Daye

The city's name means "great smelter" (大冶), referencing the metal smelting which took place in the area dating back to the Tang dynasty. ==History==

) shown in the middle of this 1915 map, along with an early railway. Lake Daye south of town is labeled as L. Kin-hu (i.e. Jinhu, "Golden Lake") During the Yin and Shang dynasties, the area of present-day Daye belonged to the ancient province of Jingzhou. In 887 BCE, the area was incorporated as part of the Chu state. During the Qin dynasty, the area belonged to the Nan Commandery as . In the Han dynasty, E County was transferred to Jiangxia Commandery, where the area remained until the Three Kingdoms period, when it was transferred to . During the Tang dynasty, the area of present-day Daye was governed by , which it remained under until the Yuan dynasty. It was during the Tang dynasty that historical records suggest metal smelting began in the area. Daye gained great importance during the 1890s, when the city began producing iron en masse for the nascent Chinese railroad industry, a major hub of which was located shortly down the Yangtze River in Hankou. Despite the struggles of various mines and enterprises in Daye from the 1890s onwards through the early 20th century, Daye benefitted from its status as China's only major iron mining area. By the 1930s, this status was eroded by large-scale iron production in Japanese-occupied Manchuria. As recently as the World War II period, Daye included much of today's prefecture-level city of Huangshi. This means that pre-1949 references to a location in "Daye" or "Tayeh" may refer to anywhere within today's Huangshi. People's Republic of China Daye was taken by the People's Liberation Army in May 1949, and the area was re-organized as in October the same year. Daye Prefecture was abolished in 1952, and merged into , and in 1959, Daye County was abolished and merged into the city of Huangshi. During the 1950s, the area began producing steel, and began producing much iron and steel to be used in the nearby industrial hub of Wuhan. Daye County was re-established in June, 1962, as part of Huangshi. On February 18, 1994, the State Council approved the conversion of Daye into a county-level city, which went into effect on January 1, 1995. == Geography ==

Daye is located to the north of the Mufu Mountains, and has a largely hilly terrain. Daye's lowest point is above sea level, and the city's highest point is above sea level, although most of the city's terrain is between to above sea level. Daye is also home to many swamps, rivers, and lakes. Climate Daye has a humid subtropical climate, with distinct temperature changes and dry and wet seasons. The city's average annual temperature is , with July being its hottest month with an average temperature of , and January being its coldest month with an average temperature of . The city experiences an average annual precipitation of , and averages 139.7 days with precipitation per year. == Administrative divisions ==

As of 2020, Daye administers 5 subdistricts, 10 towns, 1 township, and 2 other township-level divisions. Subdistricts The city's 5 subdistricts are , , , , and . Towns The city's 10 towns are , , , , , , , , , and . Townships The city's sole township is . Other township-level divisions The city also administers the Dongfeng Farm Management Area () and the Siguzha Management Department (). == Demographics ==

Daye's population is largely Han Chinese, with just 830 residents belonging to China's recognized ethnic minorities. These ethnic minorities comprise 27 different ethnic groups, with major ethnicities being the Tujia, Zhuang, Manchu, Miao and Hui people. In recent years, many ethnic minorities have moved to Daye seeking economic opportunities, and thus, largely reside in the city's urban areas. ==Economy==

Industry -malachite from Daye's Tongshankou Mine Daye is an industrial center, particularly in regards to mining and metallurgy. In addition to iron and steel industries, large amounts of copper and coal are mined in the region. Although such copper-containing minerals as malachite and azurite are found here, the local ores are richer in iron than in copper, and the modern Daye is better known for its iron ore mining and processing. Daye is also home to a large fertilizer plant, and a number of textile mills which use locally grown cotton. Agriculture Common crops grown in Daye include rice, wheat, sweet potato, maize, soybean, peas, mung bean, rapeseed, peanut, sesame, ramie, and cotton. Daye is also home to large amounts of domesticated animals, such as pigs, cows, sheep, dogs, chickens, ducks, geese, and pigeons. Tourism The city is home to a number of major tourist attractions, including historic sites such as the and the Ewang City Site (), natural sites such as the AAAA-rated Leishan Scenic Area (), and red tourism sites such as Nanshantou Revolutionary Memorial Hall (). ==Transportation==

Daye was the junction of the Wuhan-Daye Railway (completed in 1958) and Daye-Shahejie Railway (completed in 1987), which merged in 1989 to form the Wuhan–Jiujiang Railway. , which is the main passenger station for the entire Huangshi metropolitan area, is located within Daye's administrative borders, about north of downtown Daye (). It has fairly frequent service, with travel time to Wuhan being typically around 1 hour on a high-speed D-series train, or 1.5 hours on a "conventional" passenger train. ==Dialect==

The speech of Daye and the adjacent counties farther south (toward the Jiangxi border) has been traditionally characterized as the Daye dialect, part of the Datong dialect group of Gan Chinese. ==References==