Ningxia

Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region
宁夏回族自治区
Autonomous region
Name transcription(s)
 • Chinese 宁夏回族自治区 (Níngxià Huízú Zìzhìqū)
 • Abbreviation simplified Chinese: 宁; traditional Chinese: 寧; pinyin: Níng
Map showing the location of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region
Map showing the location of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region
Named for 宁/寧 níng—tranquil
夏 xià—Western Xia
"Tranquil Xia"
Capital
(and largest city)		 Yinchuan
Divisions 5 prefectures, 21 counties, 219 townships
Government
 • Secretary Li Jianhua
 • Governor Liu Hui
Area
 • Total 66,000 km2 (25,000 sq mi)
Area rank 27th
Population (2010)[1]
 • Total 6,301,350
 • Rank 29th
 • Density 89.1/km2 (231/sq mi)
 • Density rank 25th
Demographics
 • Ethnic composition Han: 62%
Hui: 34%
Manchu: 0.4%
 • Languages and dialects Lanyin Mandarin, Zhongyuan Mandarin
ISO 3166 code CN-64
GDP (2011) CNY 206.0 billion
US$ 32.7 billion (29th)
 - per capita CNY 26,860
US$ 3,968 (17th)
HDI (2010) 0.674[2] (medium) (21st)
Website http://www.nx.gov.cn/
Ningxia
Simplified Chinese 宁 夏
Traditional Chinese 寧 夏
Postal Map Ningsia
Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region
Simplified Chinese 宁夏回族自治区
Traditional Chinese 寧夏回族自治區
Postal Map Ningsia Hui Autonomous Region

Ningxia (Chinese: 宁夏; pinyin: Níngxià; Wade–Giles: Ning-hsia; pronounced [nǐŋɕjâ]), officially the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region (NHAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China located in the northwest part of the country. Formerly a province, Ningxia was incorporated into Gansu in 1954 but was separated from Gansu in 1958 and was reconstituted as an autonomous region for the Hui people, one of the 56 officially recognised nationalities of China.

Ningxia is bounded by Shaanxi to the east, Gansu to the south and west, and Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region to the north and has an area of around 66,400 square kilometres (25,600 sq mi). This sparsely settled, mostly desert region lies partially on the Loess Plateau and in the vast plain of the Yellow River, and features the Great Wall of China along its northeastern boundary. Over the years an extensive system of canals has been built. Extensive land reclamation and irrigation projects have made increased cultivation possible.

History

The 108 dagobas near Qingtongxia.

Ningxia and its surrounding areas were incorporated into the Qin Dynasty as early as the 3rd century BC. Throughout the Han Dynasty and the Tang Dynasty there were several large cities established in the region. The Liang Province Rebellion at the end of the Han Dynasty affected Ningxia.

By the 11th century the Tangut people had established the Western Xia Dynasty on the outskirts of the then-Song Dynasty. Jews also lived in Ningxia, as evidenced by the fact that, after a major flood destroyed Torah scrolls in Kaifeng, a replacement was sent to the Kaifeng Jews by the Ningbo and Ningxia Jewish communities.[3]

It then came under Mongol domination after Genghis Khan conquered Yinchuan in the early 13th century. Muslims from Central Asia also began moving into Ningxia from the west. The Muslim Dungan Revolt of the 19th century affected Ningxia.

In 1914, Ningxia was merged with the province of Gansu. However, in 1928 it was detached from Gansu and became a separate province. Between 1914 and 1928, the Xibei San Ma (literally "three Mas of the northwest") ruled the provinces of Qinghai, Ningxia and Gansu. Muslim Kuomintang General Ma Hongkui was the military governor of Ningxia and had absolute authority in the province. The Muslim conflict in Gansu, which lasted from 1927 to 1930, spilled over into Ningxia. From 1950 to 1958, a Kuomintang Islamic insurgency resulted in fighting throughout Northwest China, including Ningxia. In 1954, the Chinese government merged Ningxia with Gansu, but in 1958 Ningxia formally became an autonomous region of China. In 1969, Ningxia received a part of the Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region, but this area was returned in 1979.

A number of Chinese artifacts dating from the Tang dynasty and Song dynasty, some of which had been owned by Emperor Zhenzong, were excavated and then came into the hands of Ma Hongkui, who refused to publicize the findings. Among the artifacts were a white marble tablet from the Tang dynasty, gold nails, and bands made out of metal. It was not until after Ma passed away, that his wife went to Taiwan in 1971 from America to bring the artifacts to Chiang Kai-shek, who turned them over to the Taipei National Palace Museum.[4]

Geography

From a cable car running to the top of Helan Shan.

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

The Yellow River flows through Ningxia. The Ningxia ecosystem is one of the least studied regions in the world. Some plant genera in Ningxia have been estimated at over 40,000 years old.

Ningxia is a relatively dry, desert-like region. Significant irrigation supports the growing of wolfberries, a commonly consumed fruit throughout the region.

Ningxia's deserts include the Tengger desert in Shapotou.

The northern section, through which the Yellow River flows, supports the best agricultural land. A railroad, linking Lanzhou with Baotou, crosses the region. A highway has been built across the Yellow River at Yinchuan.

On 16 December 1920, the Haiyuan earthquake, 8.6 magnitude, at 36°36′N 105°19′E / 36.6°N 105.32°E, initiated a series of landslides that killed an estimated 200,000 people. Over 600 large loess landslides created more than 40 new lakes.[5][6]

In 2006, satellite images indicated that a 700 by 200-meter fenced area within Ningxia—5 km (3.1 mi) southwest of Yinchuan, near the remote village of Huangyangtan—is a near-exact 1:500 scale terrain model reproduction of a 450 by 350-kilometer area of Aksai Chin bordering India, complete with mountains, valleys, lakes and hills. Its purpose is as yet unknown.[7][8]

Climate

The region is 1,200 kilometres (750 mi) from the sea and has a continental climate with average summer temperatures rising to 17 to 24 °C (63 to 75 °F) in July and average winter temperatures dropping to between −7 to −15 °C (19 to 5 °F) in January. Seasonal extreme temperatures can reach 39 °C (102 °F) in summer and −30 °C (−22 °F) in winter. The diurnal temperature variation can reach above 17 °C (31 °F), especially in spring. Annual rainfall averages from 190 to 700 millimetres (7.5 to 27.6 in), with more rain falling in the south of the region.

Governance

Main articles: Politics of Ningxia and List of provincial leaders of the People's Republic of China
Aerial view of Yinchuan.
People's Square in Yinchuan.
Fountain in Yinchuan.

The politics of Ningxia is structured in a dual party-government system like all other governing institutions in mainland China.

The Chairman of the Autonomous Region is the highest-ranking official in the People's Government of Ningxia. However, in the Autonomous Region's dual party-government governing system, the Chairman has less power than the Communist Party of China Ningxia Committee Secretary, colloquially termed the "Ningxia CPC Party Chief".

Ningxia has a friendship agreement with Sogn og Fjordane county of Norway.[9]

Administrative divisions

Main articles: List of administrative divisions of Ningxia and List of township-level divisions of Ningxia

Ningxia is divided into five prefecture-level divisions: all prefecture-level cities:

Map # Name Administrative Seat Chinese
Hanyu Pinyin		 Population (2010)
Prefecture-level city
1 Yinchuan
(Autonomous Regional seat)		 Xingqing District 银川市
Yínchuān Shì		 1,993,088
2 Shizuishan Dawukou District 石嘴山市
Shízuǐshān Shì		 725,482
3 Wuzhong Litong District 吴忠市
Wúzhōng Shì		 1,273,792
4 Zhongwei Shapotou District 中卫市
Zhōngwèi Shì		 1,080,832
5 Guyuan Yuanzhou District 固原市
Gùyuán Shì		 1,228,156

Economy

Wolfberry harvest celebration.

Ningxia is the province with the third smallest GDP (Tibet being the last) in China, even though its neighbors, Inner Mongolia and Shaanxi, are among the strongest emerging provincial economies in the country.[10] Its nominal GDP in 2011 was just 200.0 billion yuan (US$32.7 billion) and a per capita GDP of 21,470 yuan (US$3,143). It contributes 0.44% of the national economy.[10]

Unlike several other underdeveloped provinces, labor costs in Ningxia are among the highest in China (ranking in the top third percentile), making it unattractive as a manufacturing center. Furthermore, Ningxia has yet to become a hub for consumption due to its low population.[10]

Ningxia is the principal region of China where wolfberries are grown. Other specialties of Ningxia are licorice, products made from Helan stone, fiddlehead and products made from sheepskin.

Yinchuan Economic and Technological Development Zone[11] was established in 1992. Spanning 32 km2 (12 sq mi), it has an annual economic output Rmb23.7 billion (25.1% up) (US$3.5 billion). Major investors are mainly local enterprises such as Kocel Steel Foundry, FAG Railway Bearing (Ningxia), Ningxia Little Giant Machine Tools, etc. Major industries include machinery and equipment manufacturing, new materials, fine chemicals and the animation industry.

Desheng Industrial Park (in Helan County) is a base for about 400 enterprises. The industrial park has industrial chains from Muslim food and commodities to trade and logistics, new materials and bio-pharmaceuticals that has 80 billion yuan in fixed assets. Desheng is looking to be the most promising industrial park in the city. It achieved a total output value of 4.85 billion in 2008, up 40 percent year-on-year. The local government plans to cut taxes and other fees to reduce the burden on local enterprises. The industrial output value reached 2.68 billion yuan in 2008, an increase of 48 percent from a year earlier.

Ningxia wines are a promising area of development. The Chinese authorities have given approval to the development of the eastern base of the Helan Mountains as an area suitable for wine production. Several large Chinese wine companies including Changyu and Dynasty Wine have begun development in the western region of the province. Together they now own 20,000 acres of land for wine plantations and Dynasty has ploughed 100 million yuan into Ningxia. In addition, the major oil company China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation has founded a grape plantation near the Helan Mountains. The household appliance company Midea has also begun participating in Ningxia's wine industry.[12]

Transport

Yinchuan Hedong Airport.

Airports

Highways

Bridge

Rail

Education

Religion

A mosque in Wuzhong.

Ningxia has a large Muslim population and a small Christian population. Church leaders from Ningxia were detained in 2011.[13] Ningxia also has some Buddhists and Taoists. Outside Qingtongxia, there are 108 well-known ancient dagobas.

Hospitals

Tourism

Western Xia Tombs.

One of Ningxia's main tourist spots is the internationally renowned Xixia Tombs site located 30 km (19 mi) west of Yinchuan. The remnants of nine Western Xia emperors' tombs and two hundred other tombs lie within a 50 km2 (19 sq mi) area. Other famous sites in Ningxia include Helan Shan, the mysterious 108 dagobas, the twin pagodas of Baisikou and the desert research outpost at Shapatou. A less visited tourist spots in Ningxia is the Mount Sumeru Grottoes (须弥山), which is among the ten most famous grottoes in China.[14]

Museums

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Communiqué of the National Bureau of Statistics of People's Republic of China on Major Figures of the 2010 Population Census [1] (No. 2)". National Bureau of Statistics of China. 29 April 2011. Retrieved 4 August 2013.
  2. ↑ "《2013中国人类发展报告》" (PDF) (in zh-cn). United Nations Development Programme China. 2013. Retrieved 2014-05-14.
  3. ↑ Xu Xin, The Jews of Kaifeng, Ktav Publishing House, c. 2003.
  4. ↑ China Archaeology and Art Digest, Volume 3, Issue 4. Art Text (HK) Ltd. 2000. p. 354. Retrieved 2010-11-28.
  5. ↑ Close, U., and McCormick (1922) "Where the mountains walked" National Geographic Magazine 41(5): pp.445–464.
  6. ↑ Feng, X. and Guo, A. (1985) "Earthquake landslides in China" In Proceedings, IVth International Conference and Field Workshop on Landslides pp. 339–346, Japan Landslide Society, Tokyo, OCLC 70324350.
  7. ↑ Haines, Lester (19 July 2006)."Chinese black helicopters circle Google Earth". The Register
  8. ↑ Cassidy, Katherine (13 September 2006). "Armchair Sleuths Uncover Strange Military Sites in China". McClatchy Newspapers / Real Cities Network.
  9. ↑ Ningxia og Sogn og Fjordane eit steg vidare på samarbeidsvegen
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 "China Economy @ China Perspective". Thechinaperspective.com. Retrieved 2015-01-29.
  11. ↑ http://www.ycda.gov.cn - 银川经济技术开发区银川高新技术产业开发区
  12. ↑ "Grape expansion: Chinese wine companies move west", Want China Times, 15 December 2011. Retrieved 17 December 2011.
  13. ↑ "21 House Church Leaders in Inner Mongolia, Ningixa Criminally Detained ~ CHINAaid". Chinaaid.org. 2011-08-22. Retrieved 2015-01-29.
  14. ↑ "Guyuan Travel Guide: Map, Location, Climate, Attractions". Travelchinaguide.com. Retrieved 2015-01-29.

External links

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Ningxia.
 Inner Mongolia
Shaanxi
   Ningxia  
Gansu