Ningxia

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Ningxia

Ningxia (; Postal Pinyin: Ningsia), full name Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region (), is a Hui autonomous region of the People's Republic of China, located on the northwest Loess highland, the Yellow River flows through a vast area of its land.

History

Ningxia and its surrounding areas have been incorporated into the Qin empire as early as the 3rd century BC. Throughout the Han Dynasty and the Tang Dynasty there were further evidence of settlements, and by the 11th century the Tangut tribe had established the Xixia dynasty on the outskirts of the then Song Dynasty.

It then came under Mongol domination after Genghis Khan conquered Yinchuan in the early 13th century. After the Mongols departed and its influences faded, Turkish-speaking Muslims slowly began moving into Ningxia from the west. This created unavoidable tensions between the Han and the Hui ethnic groups in the following centuries.

In 1914, Ningxia was merged with the province of Gansu and became a part of it but then in 1928 Ningxia became a province of China. Between 1914 and 1928 the Xibei San Ma brothers (literally "three Ma's of the northwest") ruled the provinces of Qinghai, Ningxia and Gansu. In 1958, Ningxia formally became an autonomous region of China. In 1969, Ningxia's border was extended to the north and acquired parts of the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, but reverted in 1979.

Geography

Ningxia borders the provinces of Shaanxi and Gansu, and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

Rivers include: Yellow River

Ningxia is a relatively dry, desert-like region. There is a significant irrigation in order to support the growing of wolfberries (a commonly consumed fruit throughout the region).

Deserts include: Tengger desert in Shapotou

Administration

Ningxia is divided into five prefecture-level cities:

Yinchuan(银川), the capital of Ningxia
Shizuishan(石嘴山)
Zhongwei (中卫)
Wuzhong (吴忠)
Guyuan (固原)

Demographics

Ningxia is the home of the Hui, one of the officially recognized Chinese minority groups. While ethnically indistinguishable from the Han (the major Chinese ethnic group), the Hui have been Muslims for many centuries. As a stop along the legendary Silk Road, the Hui were converted by the Islamic traders.

Economy

Ningxia is the province with the second smallest GDP (Tibet being the last) of all of the PRC. Its nominal GDP in 2004 was just 46.04 billion yuan (US$5.71 billion) and a per capita GDP of 6,640 yuan (US$801). It contributes to only 0.3% of the national economy.

Tourism

One of Ningxia's main tourist spots is the famous Xixia Tomb located 30 kilometres west of Yinchuan. Located within an area of 50 km² are the remnant tombs of 9 emperors of the Xixia dynasty and 200 other tombs from that era. Other famous sites in Ningxia include Helan Shan, the mysterious 108 dagobas, the twin pagodas of Baisikou and the desert research outpost at Shapatou.

External links

Autonomous regions of the People's Republic of China | Ningxia