Chongqing , formerly romanized as Chungking, is a major city in southwest China. Administratively, it is one of China's four municipalities under the direct administration of central government , and the only such municipality in China located far away from the coast.Chongqing was a municipality during the Republic of China administration, serving as its wartime capital during the Second Sino-Japanese War . The current municipality was recreated on 14 March 1997 to help develop central and western part of China. The Chongqing administrative municipality has a population of over 30 million spread over an area the size of Austria. The city of Chongqing has a much smaller population of approximately 8 million. The Chongqing metropolitan area, comprising Chongqing, Fuling District, Wanzhou District and Qianjiang District, combine for a metropolitan population of nearly 18 million. According to the 2010 census, Chongqing is the most populous Chinese municipality, and also the largest direct-controlled municipality in China, and comprises 26 districts, eight counties, and four autonomous counties. The official abbreviation of the city, Yu , was approved by the State Council on 18 April 1997. This abbreviation is derived from the old name of a part of the Jialing River that runs through Chongqing and feeds into the Yangtze River. Chongqing has a significant history and culture. Being one of China's five National Central Cities, it serves as the economic centre of the upstream Yangtze basin. It is a major manufacturing centre and transportation hub; a July 2012 report by the Economist Intelligence Unit described it as one of China's 13 emerging megalopolises.
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