Yantai (Chinese: 烟台; pinyin: Yāntái), formerly known as Chefoo or Chih-fou, is a prefecture-level city in northeastern Shandong province, People's Republic of China. Located on the Bohai Strait and the southern coast of the Korea Bay, Yantai borders the cities of Qingdao and Weihai to the southwest and east respectively. It is the largest fishing seaport in Shandong. Its population was 6,968,202 at the 2010 census whom 2,227,733 lived in the built-up area made up of 4 urban districts (Zhifu, Muping, Fushan and Laishan).The contemporary name of Yantai came from the watchtowers constructed on Mount Qi in 1398, during the reign of the Hongwu Emperor, founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty (yan—smoke; tai—tower). The towers served to raise alarms against invasions of Japanese pirates.