Pu'er is a prefecture-level city in southern Yunnan Province, China. The urban administrative center of Pu'er is Simao District, which is also the former name of the prefecture-level city itself. A major downturn in the price of tea in 2007 caused severe economic distress in the area. The price of Pu'er has since recovered and Pu'er tea, a type of dark tea, still contributes much to the income of the area.

Etymology

Nanzhao set a division called Bu'ri Jian in 839 AD; this was the first time the region was integrated into the administrative system of a Chinese dynasty. In the Yuan dynasty, the central government changed the name to Pu'ri in 1278. Finally in Ming dynasty, the name was changed to "Pu'er" in 1384. The character of "er" was changed to 洱 in Wanli Emperor period. The name "普洱" (Pu'er) has continued to be used to this day. Wa scholar Ni-ga states that the original name "Bu'ri" is the exonym of Blang people in Baraoke language, a dialect of Wa language, which means "my brother". Pu'er tea has the name "Pu'er" because Pu'er was the distribution centre of the tea produced in the south-west of Yunnan during the Ming and Qing dynasty. Pu'er tea became world-famous, and the city Pu'er also became famous as a result of the tea.

History

Its name was changed to Simao in 1950 following the Communist victory in the Chinese Civil War, while its surrounding county was known as Pu'er. In 2007, the town's name was changed back to Pu'er; the surrounding area became known as Ning'er County; and the name Simao was taken by a town and district within the city. The change had an effect on the size of the official Pu'er tea production area, a major regional product.

Geography and climate

Pu'er is located in southern/southwestern Yunnan, on the lower reaches of the Mekong (known in Chinese as the Lancang), with the bordering prefectures being Yuxi to the northeast, Honghe to the east, Xishuangbanna to the south, Lincang to the northwest, and Dali and Chuxiong. It also shares borders with Vietnam (Điện Biên Province), Laos (Phongsaly Province), and Burma (Shan State), being the only prefecture in Yunnan to border all three countries. As with much of the province, mountainous terrain dominates its administrative area, covering 98.3%. Elevations range from 376 to 3306 m. Located at an altitude of above 1300 m and within a degree south of the Tropic of Cancer, Pu'er, as with much of southern Yunnan, has a warm humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cwa), with muddled distinction between the seasons and daytime temperatures remaining warm year-round. Highs peak in April and May before the core of the rainy season and reach a minimum in December; however, the warmest and coolest months are June and January, respectively at 23.0 °C and 13.7 °C; the annual mean is 19.3 °C. June through September accounts for nearly 70% of the annual rainfall of 1442 mm and during this time, some rainfall occurs on most days, pushing relative humidity above 80% and there is a marked reduction in sunshine. With monthly percent possible sunshine ranging from 27% in July to 69% in February, the city receives 2,206 hours of bright sunshine annually.

Administrative divisions

Demographics

According to the Sixth National Census in 2010, the city’s Permanent Population (hukou) was 2,542,898. Compared with the Fifth National Census, the ten-year increase was 147,650, an increase of 6.16%. The average annual increase of 14,765 people, the average annual growth rate of 0.59%. Among them, there are 1,339,502 males, accounting for 52.68% of the total population; 1,203,396 females, accounting for 47.32% of the total population. The sex ratio of the total population (female is 100) is 111.31. The population aged 0-14 is 456,130, accounting for 17.94%; the population aged 15-64 is 1,902,145, accounting for 74.80%; the population aged 65 and over is 184,623, accounting for 7.26%. The population living in cities and towns was 788,298, accounting for 31.0% of the total population; the population living in rural areas was 1,754,600, accounting for 69.0% of the total population.

Nationality

Among the resident population, the Han population is 991,585, accounting for 38.99% of the total population; the ethnic minorities population is 1,551,313, accounting for 61.01% of the total population.

Transport