| a city on N Hainan island, in SE China. 500,000. |
Haikou
city and capital of Hainan sheng (province), southern China. It is situated on the north coast of Hainan Island, facing the Leizhou Peninsula, across the Hainan (Qiongzhou) Strait (9.5 miles [15 km] wide). Haikou originally grew up as the port for Qiongshan, the ancient administrative capital of Hainan Island, which is situated some 3 miles (5 km) inland
Learn more about Haikou with a free trial on Britannica.com.