Kaizhou District (Chinese: 开州区; pinyin: Kāizhōu Qū), formerly known as Kai County or Kaixian (Chinese: 开县; pinyin: Kāixiàn) is a district under the jurisdiction of Chongqing Municipality, in southwestern China. It has an area of 3,959 km squared. As of the end of 2009, it had a population of 1.62 million. It is located 330 kilometers from the urban centre of Chongqing proper. The county has a history dating back some 1800 years. In 1373, during the Ming Dynasty, it adopted the name Kaizhou. Until 2004 the county was one of the poorest in the municipality, home to some 10% of Chongqing municipality residents that lived in poverty. The government has attempted to remedy this in recent years.Kaizhou District in the area of ethnic composition in Han Chinese as the main body, accounting for 99.9% of the total population.