Linxia County

Geography

Linxia County is located in central and south-western parts of the Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture, extending from the shores of Liujiaxia Reservoir in the north (at 1735 m elevation above the sea level, the lowest part of the county), to Taizu Mountains in the south and Dalijia Mountain (达里加山) (at 4613 m elevation above the sea level, the highest point in the county) in the west.

The county's river network is formed primarily by small rivers that flow to the northeast and north from the mountains that line the county's southwestern border toward the Yellow River (i.e., these days, the Liujiaxia Reservoir) near the northern end of the county. The largest of these rivers is the Daxia River (大夏河), which flows from the Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture to cross Linxia County. The river's lower course forms the border between Linxia County and the neighboring Dongxiang Autonomous County to the east. It forms a large bay at its outfall into the Liujiaxia Reservoir.

The county surrounds the prefecture seat, Linxia City, from the north, south, and west, but does not include it, since Linxia City forms a county-level administrative unit of its own.

The county seat is located at Hanji Town (韩集镇), 24 km southwest of Linxia CIty. While most detailed (prefecture-level) maps label that location accordingly, less detailed (provincial) maps simply mark it as "Linxia County" (临夏县), which still makes it distinct from the county seat (labeled "Linxia City" (临夏市)). More confusingly, even less detailed maps may mark both Linxia City and Hanji Town simply as "Linxia" (临夏).

Administrative divisions

As of 2004, the county was divided into 25 towns or townships.

Population

According to the county government, the county's population totaled 375,162 in 2007. The main ethnic groups represented were Han Chinese (221,419 or 59.2% of the total), Hui (121,680 or 32.4%), and Dongxiang (29,782 or 8%). There were also 872 Salar people, 840 Tibetans, 311 Tujia people, 256 Bao'an people, 2 Mongols and 1 Uighur.

The authorities reported that as of 2004, there were 592 places of worship in the county, with 506 clerics of all religions. 267,731 residents (71.62% of the county's population) were reported as religious believers. Of them, the 117,610 reported Muslims had 409 religious facilities (including, 405 mosques), and 445 clerics. The 52,570 Buddhists, with 59 temples, had 49 religious personnel: 31 monks, 15 lamas, and 3 living Buddhas. The 97,551 Taoists had 124 temples and 12 clerics. According to the county's official statistics, there were also 138 Christians there, with no churches.

Transport

The county is served by China National Highway 213 (G213), which crosses the county on its way from Lanzhou to southern Gansu, and by a number of provincial highways. Due to the terrain and the remote location, there are no railways, sea ports or civil airports in the county; however, there is an active wharf at Lianhua Tai, on the Liujiaxia Reservoir, which also serves as the port for Linxia City. It is used both by vehicle ferries that provide a more convenient route for travel between Linxia (City or County) and Liujiaxia Town (Yongjing County) than Highway G213 does, and by recreational boaters. One can also hire a boat there to travel to Bingling Temple in Yongjing County.

Due to the county's geography, the main hub of its road network, as well as of public transportation, is actually not within the county itself, but in Linxia City. Minibuses provide passenger service from the city's Eastern Bus Station to Linxia County seat (Hanji Town), Hexi Township, Lianhua Town, and a few other destinations.

History

During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the Linxia region was known as Hezhou, and usually was administered as part of Lintao Prefecture (Fu) or Lanzhou Prefecture.

Lanzhou Prefecture was abolished in 1913, and the Linxia area was included into Daohe County (导河县) with the capital in Jiachengguan Town (郊城关镇) (part of today's Linxia City), which in its turn was part of Lanshan Circuit (Dao). In 1928, Daohe County was renamed Linxia County, thus giving origin to its modern name.

After a few more administrative reorganizations during the Republic of China administration, the Linxia region was eventually taken by the Communists during the Lanzhou Campaign (August 22, 1949), and on August 26 the Linxia County of the new Communist state was created, with the capital in Linxia City. On June 23, 1950, Linxia City was separated from Linxia County, and the county seat was moved to Hanji Town. In December 1958 Linxia County was abolished and merged into Linxia City, as was the neighboring Yongjing County, but the counties were restored in December 1961. In December 1973, the opposite thing happened: Linxia City was merged into Linxia County, but on August 31, 1983, this merger was undone again.

Notable people from Linxia County