| Overview |
Xining is the capital of Qinghai Province. Given its severe weather and high altitude, Qinghai is historically one of the poorest regions in China. Yet this inland, far northwestern province is called the "ocean of hua'er" (a type of folk song) in recognition of its cultural wealth. Named after the large salt lake within its borders, Qinghai (literally, "blue ocean") is China's fourth-largest province. It spans more than 724,000 square kilometers, one-thirteenth of the entire country. |
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| Bordering Tibet (in the southwest), Xinjiang (northwest), Sichuan (southeast), and Gansu (northeast), Qinghai has been populated by many immigrants and minority peoples, as well as by native Qinghai Chinese. Its total population is roughly 4.5 million, the lowest population density in China. The harsh climate of Qinghai province - which is situated on the Tibetan-Qinghai Plateau and called "the roof of the world" - is basically inhospitable. |
| Although it is mostly high desert and receives less than 2.5 centimeters of rain per year, one also sees vast mountain ranges of 5000 meters that are perennially covered in snow. The average elevation in Qinghai is approximately 4000 meters. Its severe weather limits crops to hearty varieties like highland barley and potatoes; the vast grasslands support livestock such as Tibetan sheep, goats, and yaks. In Chinese history, Qinghai's harsh environment has earned it a reputation as a kind of no-man's-land; for hundreds of years, the province was a colony for deported prisoners and refugees seeking asylum. However, Qinghai was also situated for trade, and was the only passage from Tibet to the rest of China during the spread of Indian-Tibetan Buddhism thousands of years ago. Eastern Qinghai also was close to the historical trading routes between China's richer provinces and Russia, Mongolia, and West Asia. |
| Located in the eastern part of Qinghai, with over 2100 years of history, Xining has an area of 35,000 square kilometers and a population of 1.05 million. |
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