Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture

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Xishuangbanna
In Chinese
Traditional Chinese: 西雙版納
Simplified Chinese: 西双版纳
Pronunciation: Xīshuāngbǎnnà ?
* Former names:

1. 車里 (Chēlǐ ?)
2. 允景洪 (Yǔnjǐnghóng ?)
 
In Tai Lü language (native name)
Pronunciation: /sípsɔ́ngpǎnnǎ/ ?  
In Thai
In Thai alphabet: สิบสองปันนา
Pronunciation: /sipsongpanna/ ?  
In Hani language
Hani alphabet: Xisual banaq
In Akha language
Akha alphabet: Siˇsawˇpaˆna
The Blang village of Manpo.
The Blang village of Manpo.

Xishuangbanna or Sipsongpanna is an autonomous prefecture in southern Yunnan Province, People's Republic of China. The capital city is Jinghong, which straddles the Lancang (Mekong) river. The prefecture has an area of 19.700 km².

The native name literally means "twelve thousand rice fields".

Xishuangbanna is the home of the Dai people. The region sits at a lower altitude than most of Yunnan, and has a tropical climate. It is fast becoming a sought after tourist destination. Passiflora xishuangbannaensis is a recently discovered passionflower species that is endemic in Xishuangbanna.

Passiflora xishuangbannaensis
Passiflora xishuangbannaensis

Contents

[edit] Administrative Subdivisions

Location of Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture within Yunnan Province
Location of Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture within Yunnan Province

Xishuangbanna governs 1 county-level city and 2 counties.

  • County level city: Jinghong.
  • Counties:
    • Menghai County (Měnghǎi Xiàn 勐海县); capital: Xiangshan (Xiàngshān Zhēn 象山镇)
    • Mengla County (Měnglà Xiàn 勐腊县); capital: Mengla (Měnglà Zhēn 勐腊镇)

[edit] Demographics

With censuses in the year 2000 Xishuangbanna had 993,397 inhabitants with a population density of 50.43 inhabitants per km².

[edit] Culture

The Six famous tea mountains region (六大茶山; pinyin: Liù Dà Chá Shān; literally, "Six big tea mountain") located in the prefecture produce some of the most highly regarded Pu-erh tea in the 20th century.

[edit] Ethnic groups in Xishuangbanna, 2000 census

Nationality Population Percentage
Dai 296,930 29.89%
Han 289,181 29.11%
Hani 186,067 18.73%
Yi 55,772 5.61%
Lahu 55,548 5.59%
Blang 36,453 3.67%
Jino 20,199 2.03%
Yao 18,679 1.88%
Miao 11,037 1.11%
Bai 5,931 0.6%
ethnic background not given 5,640 0.57%
Hui 3,911 0.39%
Va 3,112 0.31%
Zhuang 2,130 0.21%
Others 2,807 0.3%

[edit] External links


Prefecture-level divisions of Yunnan
Prefecture-level cities: Baoshan | Kunming | Lijiang | Lincang
Pu'er | Qujing | Yuxi | Zhaotong
Autonomous prefectures: Chuxiong | Dali | Dehong | Dêqên
Honghe | Nujiang | Wenshan | Xishuangbanna
List of Yunnan County-level divisions