Dali 大理市 |
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County-level city | |
Wuhua Tower
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Locations of Dali City (pink) and Dali Prefecture (yellow) within Yunnan and China |
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Location in Yunnan | |
Coordinates: 25°36′N 100°16′E / 25.600°N 100.267°E | |
Country | China |
Province | Yunnan |
Autonomous prefecture | Dali |
Area | |
• Total | 1,468 km2 (567 sq mi) |
Elevation | 2,007 m (6,585 ft) |
Population | |
• Total | 652,000 |
• Density | 440/km2 (1,200/sq mi) |
Time zone | China Standard (UTC+8) |
Postal code | 671003 |
Area code(s) | 0872 |
Climate | Cwb |
Website | www.dali.gov.cn |
Yunnan e-Portal |
Dali City | |||||||
Chinese | |||||||
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Transcriptions | |
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Standard Mandarin | |
Hanyu Pinyin | Dàlǐ Shì |
Dali Old Town Dali |
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Chinese name | |||||||||
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Chinese | |||||||||
Postal | Tali | ||||||||
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Bai name | |||||||||
Bai | Darl·lit | ||||||||
Hani name | |||||||||
Hani | Dafli |
Transcriptions | |
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Standard Mandarin | |
Hanyu Pinyin | Dàlǐ Gǔchéng |
Wade–Giles | Ta⁴-li³ |
Dali City, formerly known as Tali, is the county-level seat of the Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture in northwestern Yunnan.
Similar to Carlisle in England, Dali City is not a single city but a county-sized area called a city for administrative purposes. Transportation to Dali usually arrives at the modern industrial city called "Dali" but locally distinguished by its former name Xiaguan. Travelers to and discussion of "Dali", however, usually refers to the old town located about an hour away. The old town is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Yunnan, known for its natural scenery, historical and cultural heritage, and vibrant nightlife.
The Dali area was formerly known as Jumie (苴咩, Jūmiē). The old town was the medieval capital of both the Bai kingdom Nanzhao (fl. 8th and 9th centuries) and the Kingdom of Dali (937–1253). That city was razed and its records burnt during its conquest by China's Mongolian Yuan Dynasty. The present old town was organized in the late 14th century under the Hongwu Emperor of the Ming Dynasty. The area became significantly Muslim (Hui) under the Yuan and Ming and was the center of the Panthay Rebellion against the Qing from 1856–1863. It was severely damaged during a massive earthquake in 1925.