{"id":8290,"date":"2012-12-11T10:42:29","date_gmt":"2012-12-11T14:42:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/?p=8290"},"modified":"2012-12-11T10:42:30","modified_gmt":"2012-12-11T14:42:30","slug":"better-know-a-province-part-three","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/better-know-a-province-part-three\/","title":{"rendered":"Better Know a… Province (Part Three)"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Gansu on the map.<\/p><\/div>\n

We’re going around this massive country little by little here at Transparent Chinese in this series inspired by one of my heroes, Stephen Colbert. So far, we’ve covered the two most famous cities in China – which are actually municipalities – Beijing<\/a> and Shanghai<\/a>. We’ve also explored two provinces famed for their heat –\u00a0Sichuan<\/a> and its famously spicy food, and cold –\u00a0Heilongjiang<\/a> with its Ice and Snow Festival. Today, we’re cruising over to northwest China, where we’ll dive into Gansu province<\/strong> (\u7518\u8083\u7701 – g\u0101n s\u00f9 sh\u011bng). Part of the ancient Silk Road, this province has played an important role throughout China’s history.<\/p>\n

History<\/h2>\n

A number of artifacts that have been excavated in Gansu show that Neolithic cultures lived here during prehistoric times, such as the Dadiwan culture<\/strong> (\u5927\u5730\u6e7e\u6587\u5316 – d\u00e0 d\u00ec w\u0101n w\u00e9n hu\u00e0), which dates way back to 6,000 BC. In fact, a variety of ancient cultures flourished here. Fast forward many years, and the state of Qin<\/strong> (\u79e6 – q\u00edn), which went on to unify much of China under the Qin Dynasty and begin imperial China, began in Gansu. This province was critical for successive Chinese dynasties, especially because of the Hexi corridor<\/strong> (\u6cb3\u897f\u8d70\u5eca – h\u00e9 x\u012b z\u01d2u l\u00e1ng). Along this route, the Han Dynasty extended the Great Wall and also built up other strategic forts.<\/p>\n

During the Tang Dynasty, a treaty was signed with the Tibetan Empire in 823, causing China to lose control of Gansu. From 848 to 1036, an Uyghur state was established in Gansu, resulting in a majority of the population converting to Islam. Many centuries later, Gansu would be a crucial part in the Dungan revolt, which began in 1862. The “Dungans” are now referred to as Hui people<\/strong> (\u56de\u65cf – hu\u00ed z\u00fa) – a Chinese muslim ethnic minority group. This spread throughout much of China and resulted in the deaths of millions of Chinese muslims.<\/p>\n

Geography<\/h2>\n
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The Yellow River in Lanzhou.<\/p><\/div>\n

Thanks to its funny shape and the fact that it stretches from the northwest to central China, Gansu actually includes the geographical center of the country. Neighboring provinces include Xinjiang and Qinghai to the west, Inner Mongolia and Ningxia to the north, Shaanxi to the east, and Sichuan to the south. A small portion actually borders Mongolia as well. The southern part of the province is rather mountainous, while the north is primarily flat. In Gansu, you’ll find the Yellow River<\/strong> (\u9ec4\u6cb3 – hu\u00e1ng h\u00e9), and you’ll also find plenty of deserts (including part of the Gobi) and mountains. The provincial capital is Lanzhou<\/strong> (\u5170\u5dde – l\u00e1n zh\u014du), a city of over 3 million people.<\/p>\n