The People's Republic of China (中华, Zhōnghuá in Chinese), has a lengthy coastline, many large harbors, and a large number of lighthouses. During the colonial period of the late 19th and early 20th centuries Western powers occupied a number of locations in China and built lighthouses, many of which survive. In more recent years the People's Republic has developed modern ports throughout the country and built many lighthouses to serve them. China is divided into 23 provinces and 11 other province-level regions of various special types. Liáoníng Province is in northeastern China at the northern end of the Chinese coast. A principal geographical feature of the province is the Liáodōng (Liaotung) Peninsula, projecting into the northern end of the Yellow Sea (Huánghǎi) and separating Korea Bay (Hánguó wān) on the east from Liáodōng Bay on the west. The major port complex of Dàlián is near the end of the peninsula on the eastern side. In addition to Dàlián, there are important Korea Bay ports at Dāndōng and Zhuānghé. During the colonial period Russia and Japan vied for control of this strategically located area. In 1898 Russia leased the Dàlián area from China, but Japan conquered the Russian colony during the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-05. In 1931 Japan invaded northeast China and incorporated Liáoníng (then called Fengtian) into the puppet state of Manchukuo until the end of the Second World War in 1945. Soviet troops then occupied Dàlián; the city was returned to Chinese sovereignty in 1950 but Soviet troops remained until they were withdrawn in 1955. Liáoníng is divided into 14 regions, 12 classified as prefectural-level cities (dìjíshì) and 2 as sub-provincial-level cities (fùshĕngjí). The regions are subdivided into districts classified at various administrative levels. This page includes lighthouses of the Dāndōng region and, in the Dàlián region, the three easternmost districts of Zhuānghé, Pǔlándiàn, and Chánghǎi. This area includes the northern coast and islands of Korea Bay. Lighthouses in China are maintained by the PRC Maritime Safety Administration (MSA). There are regional offices in each province. There are many languages and dialects spoken in China, but Standard Chinese, often called Mandarin, is official. The pīnyīn system for transliterating Chinese into Latin characters is now the international standard but some locations continue to be known also under the spellings of older transliteration systems. The Chinese word for a lighthouse is dēngtǎ (灯塔). In Standard Chinese jiāo (formerly chiao) is a reef or rock, jiǎo is a cape or headland, dǎo (tao) is an island; yǔ (tsu) or tuózi ("lump") is a small island, hǎi is a sea, wān is a bay, hǎixiá is a strait, hé or jiāng is a river, hékǒu ("river mouth") is an estuary, and gǎng (kang) is a harbor. ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. CN numbers are Chinese light list numbers, where available. Admiralty numbers are from volume P of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. U.S. NGA List numbers are from Publication 112.
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Dāndōng Region Lighthouses
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Dàlián Region: Zhuānghé District Lighthouses
Dàlián Region: Pǔlándiàn District Lighthouses
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Dàlián Region: Chánghǎi County (Wàichángshān Islands) Lighthouses
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![]() Píkǒu Light, Pǔlándiàn Unattributed photo, no longer online, probably by MSA |
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![]() Huángshíjiǎo Light, Chánghǎi PRC Maritime Safety Administration photo |
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Information available on lost lighthouses: Notable faux lighthouses: |
Adjoining pages: East: Western North Korea | Southeast: Southeastern Liáoníng
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Posted February 25, 2008. Checked and revised September 12, 2024. Lighthouses: 33. Site copyright 2024 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.