Everything about Shaanxi Province totally explained
(;
Postal map spelling:
Shensi) is a north-central
province of the
People's Republic of China, and includes portions of the
Loess Plateau on the middle reaches of the
Yellow River as well as the
Qinling Mountains across the southern part of the province.
By regular
Hanyu Pinyin rules, if tone marks are not written, both Shaanxi and the neighbouring province of
Shanxi should be spelled "Shanxi"; the difference is in tone: Shānxī and Shǎnxī. To make the difference clear without tonal marks, the spelling "Shaanxi" was contrived (following the
romanization system of
Yuen Ren Chao) for the province of Shǎnxī, while "Shanxi" is used for the province of Shānxī. It is also the official spelling on
Chinese Government's official web portal
.
History
Shaanxi is considered one of the cradles of Chinese civilization. Thirteen feudal dynasties established their capitals in the province during a span of more than 1,100 years, from the Zhou Dynasty to the Tang Dynasty.
The province's principal city and current capital,
Xi'an, is one of the
four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the
Silk Road, which leads to
Europe,
Arabia and
Africa.
Under the Han Dynasty, the
Northern Silk Road was expanded to advance exploration and military purposes to the west. This Northern Silk Road is the northernmost of the
Silk Roads and is about 2600 kilometres in length. It connected the ancient Chinese capital of Xi'an to the west over the
Wushao Ling Pass to
Wuwei and emerging in
Kashgar before linking to ancient
Parthia.
Under the
Ming dynasty, Shaanxi was incorporated into
Gansu but was again separated in the
Qing dynasty.
One of the most devastating
earthquakes in history occurred near
Hua Shan, in south-eastern part of Shaanxi Province on
January 23,
1556, killing an estimated 830,000 people (see
1556 Shaanxi earthquake).
The end of the short-lived
Jiangxi Soviet signalled the beginning of the
Long March by
Mao Zedong and the
Chinese Communists to the
Shaanxi Soviet at
Yan'an.
Geography
Desert in the north along the border with
Inner Mongolia, the Loess Plateau in the central part of the province, the Qinling mountains running east to west in the south central part, and subtropical climate south of the Qinling mountains.
The northern part of Shaanxi is cold in the winter and very hot in summer with dry winter and spring. Its southern portion generally receives more rain. Annual mean temperature is roughly between 9
°C and 16°C with January temperature ranging from −11°C to 3.5°C and July temperature ranging from 21°C to 28°C.
Other cities include:
Baoji,
Hanzhong,
Lintong,
Tongchuan,
Xianyang,
Yan'an,
Ankang.
Administration
Shaanxi consists of nine
prefecture-level cities and one sub-provincial city:
The prefecture-level cities:
The sub-province-level city:
Xi'an (西安 | Xī'ān Shì)
See List of administrative divisions of Shaanxi for a complete list of county-level divisions.
Politics
The politics of Shaanxi is structured in a dual party-government system like all other governing institutions in mainland China.
The Governor of Shaanxi is the highest ranking official in the People's Government of Shaanxi. However, in the province's dual party-government governing system, the Governor is considered to have less power than the Shaanxi Communist Party of China Provincial Committee Secretary (中共陕西省委书记), colloquially termed the "Shaanxi CPC Party Chief"; since the Governor is always ranked as the First-Deputy Secretary in the Shaanxi Communist Party of China Provincial Committee.
Shaanxi was established as a provincial government since Qing Dynasty. In 10 January 1950, the People's Government of Shaanxi was established in Xi'an. Ma Minfang was then appointed as the first Governor of Shaanxi.
Economy
Shaanxi's nominal GDP for 2006 was 438.4 RMB (56.7 billion USD) and GDP Per Capita was 11,762 RMB (1,516 USD). It ranked 22nd in the PRC.
Demographics
Nearly all the people in Shaanxi are ethnic Han Chinese, with pockets of Hui population in the north western region (adjacent to Ningxia). The southern part of Shaanxi, known as Guanzhong, where the provincial capital Xi'an is located, is more populated compared to the northern part.
Culture
Qinqiang, the representative folk opera of Shaanxi.
Tourism
Banpo Neolithic village, near Xi'an
Daqin Pagoda
Imperial mausoleums
Huashan (Mount Hua), one of the five most famous mountains in China.
Taibaishan (Mount Taibai), the highest peak of the Qinling Range.
Mausoleum and Terracotta Army Museum of the First Qin Emperor in Xi'an (World Heritage Site)
The city of Xi'an: City Walls, Great Mosque, Bell Tower and Drum Tower, Forest of Stone Steles Museum, Shaanxi History Museum, Wild Goose Pagoda
Yan'an, the destination of the Long March and the center of Chinese Communist revolution from 1935 to 1948
Biang Biang Noodles, one of the "ten strange wonders of Shaanxi" (陝西十大怪)
Media
Shaanxi Radio serves Xi'an and the surrounding Shaanxi province area with music, and news.
The Story of Yue Fei, a 17 – 18th century wuxia fiction novel about the life of Song Dynasty general Yue Fei, says his military arts teacher, Zhou Tong, was from Shaanxi.
Miscellaneous topics
Professional sports teams based in Shaanxi include:
Chinese Basketball Association
Chinese Football Association Jia League
Further Information
Get more info on 'Shaanxi Province'.
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