Capital · Industrial centre · Historic city · Jilin
Changchun
长春
Car city, film city and former capital of Manchukuo
Changchun is the capital of Jilin province and the historic centre of China's automobile industry, home of the First Automobile Works since 1953. From 1932 to 1945 it was Hsinking, capital of the Japanese-controlled state of Manchukuo, and the palace of its puppet emperor Puyi and the ministry buildings of that period still shape the city.
Key facts
Overview
Changchun began as a Qing administrative post on Mongol land in 1800 and grew with the railways at the start of the twentieth century, when it became the junction between the Russian-controlled line to the north and the Japanese-controlled line to the south. Japan chose it as the capital of Manchukuo in 1932 and laid out a planned city of broad avenues, parks and monumental ministry buildings.
After 1949 Changchun became the centre of the new Chinese car industry, with FAW building the first Jiefang lorries in 1956 and the first Hongqi limousines in 1958, and a centre of film, rail-vehicle manufacturing, optics and higher education. It is a green city with large parks and forests on its edge.
Names and nicknames
汽车城
“car city”
From FAW, the country's first car factory, and the industry around it.
电影城
“film city”
From the Changchun Film Studio, the first film studio of the People's Republic.
北国春城
“spring city of the north”
A play on the character 春 (spring) in the name and on the city's many trees.
Hsinking
新京
“New capital”, the name used under Manchukuo from 1932 to 1945.
History
Changchun was founded as a sub-prefecture in 1800 and developed around the railway stations of the Chinese Eastern Railway and the South Manchuria Railway. As Hsinking it was the seat of Manchukuo until the Soviet invasion of August 1945. In 1948 the Communist siege of the Nationalist-held city lasted about five months and caused great civilian loss of life. In 1954 the city became the capital of Jilin.
1800
Changchun sub-prefecture founded
The Qing created an administrative post for Han settlers farming leased Mongol land.
1905–1907
Railway junction
After the Russo-Japanese War the Japanese-controlled South Manchuria Railway ended at Changchun, where it met the Russian line.
1932
Capital of Manchukuo
Renamed Hsinking, the city became the seat of the state Japan created in the Northeast, with Puyi as its head.
1945
Northeast Film Studio
Founded on the site of the Manchukuo film company, it moved to Changchun and became the Changchun Film Studio in 1955.
1948
Siege of Changchun
The five-month blockade ended with the city's surrender in October 1948; tens of thousands of civilians died of hunger.
1953–1958
First Automobile Works
FAW was built with Soviet help; it produced the first Jiefang lorries in 1956 and the first Hongqi limousine in 1958.
1954
Provincial capital
The capital of Jilin moved from Jilin city to Changchun.
Landmarks
Museum
Museum of the Imperial Palace of Manchukuo
伪满皇宫博物院
Puyi's residence and offices from 1932 to 1945, with an exhibition on the occupation and on Puyi's life.
Historic site
The Eight Great Ministries
八大部
Ministry buildings of Manchukuo along Xinmin Street, in an eclectic style mixing Japanese, Chinese and Western elements; most are now university and hospital buildings.
Museum
Changchun Film Studio Old Site Museum
长影旧址博物馆
Museum of Chinese film in the studio's original buildings.
Nature
Jingyuetan National Forest Park
净月潭国家森林公园
Reservoir surrounded by planted forest in the south-east of the city, used for walking, cycling and cross-country skiing.
Park or garden
Changchun World Sculpture Park
长春世界雕塑公园
Park with several hundred sculptures by artists from around the world.
Park or garden
Nanhu Park
南湖公园
Large lake park near the centre, frozen for skating in winter.
Neighbourhoods
Xinmin Street
新民大街
Tree-lined avenue of the Manchukuo ministries, now a protected historic district.
The FAW district
一汽
The 1950s factory and housing quarter in the south-west, with Soviet-style workers' blocks.
Guilin Road
桂林路
Busy food and shopping street near the universities.
Food
Guobaorou
锅包肉
Crisp-fried pork slices in a sweet-and-sour glaze, a staple of Northeastern restaurants.
Grilled cold noodles
烤冷面
Street snack of noodle sheets fried on a griddle with egg, onion and sweet sauce.
Braised pork bones
酱骨头
Pork spine braised in soy and spices and eaten with gloves.
Culture
Changchun's cultural identity is bound up with film and cars. The Changchun Film Studio made many of the classic films of the 1950s and 1960s, and the city hosts a film festival. It is also a university city, with Jilin University and research institutes in optics and applied chemistry. Winter brings ice sculpture, skating on the park lakes and a winter sports season at Jingyuetan.
Getting around
- Changchun has metro lines and light-rail lines, one of the older urban rail systems in northern China.
- Changchun West is the high-speed station for Harbin, Shenyang and Beijing; Changchun station also serves the line to Jilin city and Yanji.
- Longjia International Airport lies east of the city towards Jilin city.
Day trips
Jilin city
吉林市
The old provincial capital on the Songhua, known for rime ice and skiing.
Chagan Lake
查干湖
Lake near Songyuan with winter ice fishing.
Frequently asked questions
Sources
- Changchun Municipal People's Government — Changchun Municipal People's Government (retrieved 27 September 2026)
- Seventh National Population Census communiqués — National Bureau of Statistics of China (retrieved 27 September 2026)
- Changchun — Encyclopaedia Britannica (retrieved 27 September 2026)