Geography and climate
Hebei completely surrounds Beijing and Tianjin municipalities. It borders Liaoning to the northeast, Inner Mongolia to the north, Shanxi to the west, Henan to the south, and Shandong to the southeast. Bohai Bay of the Yellow Sea is to the east. A small part of Hebei, an exclave disjointed from the rest of the province, is wedged between the municipalities of Beijing and Tianjin.
Most of central and southern Hebei lies within the North China Plain. The western part of Hebei rises into the Taihang Mountains , while the Yan Mountains run through northern Hebei, beyond which lie the grasslands of Inner Mongolia. The Great Wall of China cuts through northern Hebei from west to east as well, briefly entering the border of Beijing Municipality, and terminates at the seacoast of Shanhaiguan in northeastern Hebei. The highest peak is Mount Xiaowutai in northwestern Hebei, with an altitude of 2882 m.
Hebei borders Bohai Sea on the east. The Hai He watershed covers most of the province’s central and southern parts, and the Luan He watershed covers the northeast. Not counting the numerous reservoirs to be found in Hebei’s hills and mountains, the largest lake in Hebei is Baiyangdian, located mostly in Anxin County.
Hebei has a continental monsoon climate, with temperatures of -16 to -3 °C(3 to 27℉) in January and 20 to 27 °C (68 to 81℉)in July, and with annual precipitation of 400 to 800 mm, occurring mostly in summer.


Hebei is a northern province of the People’s Republic of China, which has an area of 78,200 sq mi (202,700 sq km).Its one-character abbreviation is Ji, named after Ji Province, a Han Dynasty province that included southern Hebei. The name Hebei means "north of the (Yellow) River".A common alternate name for Hebei is Yanzhao, after the state of Yan and state of Zhao that existed here during the Warring States Period of early Chinese history.
Zhili, meaning "Directly Ruled (by the Imperial Court)", was the name of Hebei before 1928.
Administrative divisions
Hebei is made up of 11 prefecture-level divisions, which are all prefecture-level cities:
• Shijiazhuang
• Tangshan
• Qinhuangdao
• Handan
• Xingtai
• Baoding
• Zhangjiakou
• Chengde
• Cangzhou
• Langfang
• Hengshui
These are subdivided into 172 county-level divisions (22 county-level cities, 108 counties, 6 autonomous counties and 36 districts). Those are, in turn, divided into 2207 township-level divisions (1 district public office, 937 towns, 979 townships, 55 ethnic townships, and 235 subdistricts).


History
Historically, Hebei was a chief barrier to northern invasion, it contains part of the Great Wall of China. Since 1644, it was ruled by the Qing dynasty. When the Qing Dynasty collapsed in 1912, it was ruled by the Republic of China. It was occupied by the Japanese from 1937 to 1945. The Chinese Communist Party took Hebei in control in 1949.Under the People’s Republic of China , the provincial capital of Hebei was at Baoding until 1958, when it was transferred to Tianjin, and in 1966 it returned to Baoding. In 1968 the provincial capital was moved to Shijiazhuang.
Economy
Hebei’s main agricultural products are cereal crops including wheat, maize, millet, and sorghum. Cash crops like cotton, peanut, soya bean and sesame are also produced.
Kailuan, with a history of over 100 years, is one of China’s first modern coal mines, and remains a major mine with an annual production of over 20 million metric tonnes. Much of the North China Oilfield is found in Hebei, and there are also major iron mines at Handan and Qian’an.
Hebei’s industries include textiles, coal, steel, iron, engineering, chemical production, petroleum, power, ceramics and food.
Ethnic group
The population of Hebei Province is mostly Han Chinese with minorities of Mongol, Manchu, and Hui Chinese.


Culture
Dialects of Mandarin are spoken over most of the province, and most Mandarin dialects in Hebei are in turn classified as part of the Ji Lu Mandarin subdivision. Regions along the western border with Shanxi, however, have dialects that are distinct enough for linguists to consider them as part of Jin, another subdivision of Chinese, rather than Mandarin. In general, the dialects of Hebei are quite similar to and readily intelligible with the Beijing dialect, which forms the basis for Standard Mandarin. However, there are also some distinct differences, such as differences in the pronunciation of certain words that derive from entering tone syllables (syllables ending on a plosive) in Middle Chinese.
Traditional forms of Chinese opera in Hebei include Pingju, Hebei Bangzi, and Cangzhou Kuaiban Dagu. Pingju is especially popular: it tends to be colloquial in language and hence easy to understand for audiences. Originating from northeastern Hebei, Pingju has been influenced by other forms of Chinese opera like Beijing opera. Traditionally Pingju makes use of just a xiaosheng (young male lead), a xiaodan (young female lead), and a xiaohualian (young comic character), though it has since diversified with the use of other roles as well.
Quyang County, in central Hebei, is famous for its Dingzhou porcelain, which includes various vessels such as bowls, plates, vases, and cups, as well as figurines. Dingzhou porcelain is usually creamy white, though it is also made in other colours.
Hebei cuisine is typically based on wheat, mutton and beans.


Tourism
Tourist destinations in Hebei include:
The Ming Great Wall crosses the northern part of Hebei.
The east end of the Ming Great Wall is located on the coast at Shanhaiguan, near Qinhuangdao. Informally known as the "First Pass of The World", Shanhaiguan (Shanhai Pass) was the place where Ming general Wu Sangui opened the gates to Manchu forces in 1644, beginning nearly 300 years of Manchu rule; Shanhai Pass also marks the psychological entrance / exit of Manchuria, so that for centuries Manchuria was known as "outside the Pass" or "east of the Pass". Beidaihe, located near Shanhaiguan, is a popular beach resort.
The Chengde Mountain Resort and its outlying temples are a World Heritage Site. Also known as the Rehe Palace, this was the summer resort of the Manchu Qing Dynasty emperors. The Chengde Resort was built between 1703 and 1792, and consists of a palace complex, a large park area consisting of lakes, pavilions, causeways, bridges, etc., and a number of Tibetan Buddhist and Han Chinese temples in the surrounding area.
There are Qing Dynasty imperial tombs at Zunhua (East Qing Tombs) and Yixian (West Qing Tombs). The East Qing Tombs is the resting place of 161 Qing emperors, empresses, and other members of the Qing imperial family, while the West Qing Tombs has 76. These are also part of a World Heritage Site.
The Zhaozhou Anji Bridge, built by Li Chun during the Sui Dynasty, is the oldest stone arch bridge in China, and one of the most significant examples of pre-modern Chinese civil engineering.
Baoding, the old provincial capital, contains the historical Zhili Governor’s Residence.
Xibaipo, a village about 90 km from Shijiazhuang, was the location of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the headquarters of the People’s Liberation Army during the decisive stages of the Chinese Civil War between May 26, 1948 and March 23, 1949, at which point they were moved to Beijing. Today, the area houses a memorial site.