Dalian or Talien [key], Rus. Dalny, Jap. Dairen, city (1994 est. pop. 1,855,200), S Liaoning prov., China, on the Liaodong peninsula in the Bay of Korea. It has annexed Lüshun (Port Arthur), with which it was formerly combined into the joint municipality of Lüda. With a huge, well-protected harbor, modern freight-handling facilities, and fine rail connections, Dalian is the chief commercial port of NE China and an oil-exporting port. It is also a major industrial center with large shipyards, fisheries, an oil refinery, textile mills, chemical and fertilizer plants, and factories making locomotives, rolling stock, and electrical equipment. China's largest diamond deposit is nearby. Dalian has two sections: a former Japanese district and a Chinese residential area. The city first became important when Russia occupied it as part of the Liaodong leasehold (1898). Under the Russians the city was developed as the southern terminus of the South Manchurian RR and as the chief ice-free port on the route to Vladivostok. When the Japanese acquired the territory in 1905 (thereafter known as the Kwantung leasehold), Dalian was enlarged and modernized. In 1945, Russia occupied Dalian and received a free lease from Nationalist China on half the city's port facilities. This arrangement was continued under the Communist government, and a joint Sino-Soviet company was set up to develop shipping. Russian troops remained there until 1955. Dalian is the seat of a technical university, a medical college, and several specialized schools.
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2024, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
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