Hunan Hunan (, ; ) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the South Central China region. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangx ...

is a landlocked province situated in the

Central China Central China () is a geographical and a loosely defined cultural region that includes the provinces of Henan, Hubei and Hunan. Jiangxi is sometimes also regarded to be part of this region. Central China is now officially part of South Cent ...

and central portion of

Yangtze River The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ; ) is the longest river in Asia, the third-longest in the world, and the longest in the world to flow entirely within one country. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains (Tibetan Plateau) and flows ...

, Hunan spans from 108°47′ to 114°15′ longitude and 24°39′ to 30°8′. Hunan shares land borders with

Jiangxi Jiangxi (; ; formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked province in the east of the People's Republic of China. Its major cities include Nanchang and Jiujiang. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze river in the north int ...

to the east,

Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020 ...

and

Guangxi Guangxi (; ; alternately romanized as Kwanghsi; ; za, Gvangjsih, italics=yes), officially the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region (GZAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China, located in South China and bordering Vietnam ...

to the south,

Guizhou Guizhou (; Postal romanization, formerly Kweichow) is a landlocked Provinces of China, province in the Southwest China, southwest region of the China, People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Guiyang, in the center of the pr ...

to the west,

Chongqing Chongqing ( or ; ; Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Chungking (), is a municipality in Southwest China. The official abbreviation of the city, "" (), was approved by the State Co ...

to the northwest, and

Hubei Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The p ...

to the north. Hunan is from east to west, from south to north, with a land area of , making it the 10th largest province in China. Hunan is ringed on three sides by mountains and hills, it looks like a

horseshoe A horseshoe is a fabricated product designed to protect a horse hoof from wear. Shoes are attached on the palmar surface (ground side) of the hooves, usually nailed through the insensitive hoof wall that is anatomically akin to the human ...

. Of Hunan's total area, 51.2% consists of hilly area, 13.9% consists of basin, 13.1% consists of plain, 15.4% consists of hills, 6.4% consists of water.

Political geography

As of December 2015, Hunan is divided into 109 counties, districts and cities, and has 524 towns and townships. Approximately 11% of Hunan residents live in

Changsha Changsha (; ; ; Changshanese pronunciation: (), Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is the capital and the largest city of Hunan Province of China. Changsha is the 17th most populous city in China with a population of over 10 million, and ...

, which had a population of 7,311,500 of the 2017 Census.

Zhuzhou Zhuzhou (, ), formerly Jianning (建宁), is a prefecture-level city of Hunan Province, China, straddling the Xiang River southeast of the provincial capital, Changsha, and bordering Jiangxi province to the east. It is part of the " Greater Chan ...

ranked 2nd and

Xiangtan Xiangtan () is a prefecture-level city in east-central Hunan province, south-central China. The hometowns of several founding leaders of the Chinese Communist Party, including Chairman Mao Zedong, President Liu Shaoqi, and Marshal Peng Dehuai, a ...

ranked 3rd respectively.

Province boundaries

Located in the middle reaches of the

in South Central China, Hunan is a southern province, bordered to the north by

, to the east by

, to the south by

and

, to the west by

, and to the northwest by

Mountains

Major mountains of Hunan are

Wuling Mountains The Wuling Mountains () are a mountain range located in Central China, running from Chongqing Municipality and East Guizhou to West Hunan. They are home to many ethnic groups, including as the Tujia, Han, Miao, Dong, and Bai. Wulingyuan T ...

Xuefeng Mountains The Xuefeng Mountains () are a mountain range of China in western Hunan Hunan (, ; ) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the South Central China region. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershe ...

Nanling Mountains The Nanling (), also known as the Wuling (), is a major mountain range in Southern China that separates the Pearl River Basin from the Yangtze Valley and serves as the dividing line between south and central subtropical zones. The main rang ...

, Luoxiao Mountains and Heng Mountains. The highest natural elevation in Hunan is at Ling Peak ().

Wuling Mountains

Wuling Mountains is located in the northwestern Hunan, its highest peak is Mount Huping (), at an altitude of . It is the watershed between Lishui River and

Yuan River The Yuan River, also known by its Chinese name as the Yuanjiang, is one of the four largest rivers in Hunan province in southeast-central China. It is a tributary of Yangtze River. It is long and rises in Guizhou province in the Miao Mountains ...

Xuefeng Mountains

Xuefeng Mountains is located in the southwestern Hunan, its highest peak is Jiulongchi (), at an altitude of . It is the watershed between

Zi River The Zi River (资水) in Hunan, China, flows into the Yangtze River The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ; ) is the longest river in Asia, the third-longest in the world, and the longest in the world to flow entirely within one country. It ris ...

and Yuan River.

Nanling Mountains

Nanling Mountains is situated in southern Hunan, Jiucailing () is the highest peak with an altitude of .

Luoxiao Mountains

Luoxiao Mountains is situated in western Hunan, Mount Bamian () is the highest peak with an altitude of .

Heng Mountains

Heng Mountains is situated in central Hunan, Zhurong Peak () is the highest peak with an altitude of .

Rivers

Zi River in Lengshuijiang, Hunan, picture7

Yuan River in Yuanling County of Huaihua, Hunan, picture13

Major rivers of Hunan are the

Xiang River The Xiang River is the chief river of the Lake Dongting drainage system of the middle Yangtze, the largest river in Hunan Province, China. It is the 2nd largest tributary (after Min River) in terms of surface runoff, the 5th largest tribut ...

, and Lishui River.

Xiang River

Xiang River is the chief river of the Lake Dongting drainage system and the largest river in Hunan. It has several tributaries, such as

Xiao River The Xiao River ( ) is the Main Stream of the upper Xiang River located in Yongzhou, Hunan. As of 2011 Water Census of China, it has a length of from the headwaters to the confluence in the Ping Island of Yongzhou with the Xiang River West Branch ...

Chongling River The Chongling River (), also known as Jiao River () and Lingyuan River (), is a right-bank tributary and one of the largest tributaries of the middle Xiang River in Hunan, China. The river rises in the Renxingling Mountains () of Lanshan County. Its ...

Zheng River Zheng River () is a river of China. It flows into the Xiang River, which is part of the East China Sea basin.Google Maps See also *List of rivers in China This incomplete list of rivers that flow through China is organized according to the bod ...

Lei River The Lei River () is a right-bank tributary of the middle Xiang River in Hunan, China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, m ...

, Mi River, Lushui River,

Juan River The Juan River (), also known as Baiguo River (), Yisu River () and Xingle River (), is a left-bank tributary in the middle reaches of the Xiang River in Hunan, China. The river rises in the Changshan Mountains () of Shuangfeng County Shuangfe ...

, Lianshui River,

Wei River The Wei River () is a major river in west-central China's Gansu and Shaanxi provinces. It is the largest tributary of the Yellow River and very important in the early development of Chinese civilization. The source of the Wei River is close to ...

Liuyang River The Liuyang River (), also known as Liu River () or Liuwei River (), is a right-bank tributary of Xiang River, the largest tributary of Xiang River in Changsha, Hunan Province, China. The river has a length of with its drainage area of , account ...

and

Laodao River The Laodao River (), also known as the Laotang River () or Liaoxu River (), is a right-bank tributary of the Xiang River, the 2nd largest tributary of Xiang River in Changsha, Hunan Province, China. The river has a length of with its drainage ar ...

. It has a drainage basin of in Hunan.

Zi River

Zi River has two headwaters, the Fuyi River () and the Hao River (). It is long and drains an area of in Hunan. The river rises in

Xinning County Xinning County () is a Counties of the People's Republic of China, county in the Provinces of China, Province of Hunan, China, it is under the administration of Shaoyang, Shaoyang City. Located on the south western margin of Hunan, the county is ...

and flows generally north through Wugang,

Longhui County Longhui County () is a county and the 6th most populous county-level division in the Province of Hunan, China; it is under the administration of Shaoyang City. Located in the mid-eastern Hunan, the county is bordered to the north by Xinhua and ...

Shaoyang Shaoyang (), formerly named Baoqing (Paoking) (), is a prefecture-level city in southwestern Hunan province, China, bordering Guangxi to the south. It has a history of 2500 years and remains an important commercial and transportation city in Hu ...

Lengshuijiang Lengshuijiang () is a county-level city in Hunan Province, China, it is under the administration of Loudi prefecture-level City. Located in central Hunan, the city is bordered to the north and west by Xinhua County, to the south by Xinshao Cou ...

and then northwest past the counties and cities of

Anhua County Anhua County () is a county in the Province of Hunan, China, it is under the administration of Yiyang Prefecture-level City. Located in the north-central part of the province, the county is bordered to the north by Dingcheng District of Chang ...

Taojiang County Taojiang County () is a county in the Province of Hunan, China, it is under the administration of Yiyang Prefecture-level City. Located in the north central part of the province, the county is bordered to the north by Hanshou County and Dingche ...

, and

Yiyang Yiyang () is a prefecture-level city on the Zi River in Hunan province, China, straddling Lake Dongting and bordering Hubei to the north. According to the 2010 Census, Yiyang has a population of 4,313,084 inhabitants residing in an area of . Th ...

, where it flows into the Wanzi Lake.

Yuan River

Yuan River is the longest river in Hunan, begins in southeastern Guizhou, is and has a drainage basin of in Hunan. It has two headwaters, the Longtou River () and the An River (). It flows northeastwards through

Suining Suining (; Sichuanese Pinyin: Xu4nin2; Sichuanese pronunciation: ; ) is a prefecture-level city of eastern Sichuan province in Southwest China. In 2002, Suining had a population of 658,798. Geography and climate Suining is located in the cen ...

Huitong County Huitong County () is a county of Hunan Province, China, it is under the administration of Huaihua Prefecturel-level City. Located on the west central margin of the province, the county lies to the east of the border of Guizhou. It is bordered to ...

Huaihua Huaihua () is a prefecture-level city in the southwest of Hunan province, China. It covers and is bordered by Xiangxi to the northwest, Zhangjiajie and Changde to the north, Yiyang, Loudi and Shaoyang to the east, Guilin and Liuzhou of Guang ...

Xupu County Xupu County () is a county of Hunan Province, China, it is under the administration of Huaihua Prefecturel-level City. Located on the west central Hunan, the county is bordered to the north by Yuanling County, to the northeast by Anhua County, ...

Chenxi County Chenxi County () is a county in Hunan Province, China, it is under the administration of Huaihua prefecture-level City. Located on the north of the province, it is adjacent to the north of the city proper of Huaihua. The county is bordered to ...

, Luxi County,

Yuanling Yuanling County () is a county of Hunan Province, China, it is under the administration of Huaihua Prefecturel-level City. Located in northwest of the province, Yuanling is in the border locations of Huaihua, Xiangxi, Zhangjiajie, Changde and Y ...

Changde Changde ( ) is a prefecture-level city in the northwest of Hunan province, People's Republic of China. In addition to the urban districts, Changde also administers the county-level city of Jinshi and six counties. Changde is adjacent to Dongt ...

to join the Dalian Lake in

Dingcheng District Dingcheng District () is one of two urban districts in Changde City, Hunan Province, China; it is also the 2nd most populous district (after Heshan District) in Hunan. The district is bordered to the north by Anxiang County, Jinshi City and L ...

of Changde.

Lishui River

Lishui River rises in Sangzhi County in northwestern Hunan, and flows generally northeast, passing through

Zhangjiajie Zhangjiajie (), also known in Tujia language as ''Zhangx jif avlar'' /dzaŋ˩ ji˥ a˩.la˥/, is a prefecture-level city in the northwestern part of Hunan Province, China. It comprises the district of Yongding, Wulingyuan and counties of Cili ...

Cili County Cili () is a county in Hunan Province, China under administration of the prefecture-level city of Zhangjiajie. Located in the north of Hunan and the east of Zhangjiajie, Cili County is bordered to the southeast by Taoyuan County, to the south and ...

Shimen County Shimen County () is a northernmost county of Hunan Province, China, it is under administration of the prefecture-level city of Changde. Located on the northern margin of Hunan and the west of Changde, Shimen County is bordered to the south and s ...

, Li County and joining the Wanzi Lake in

Yuanjiang Yuanjiang () is a county-level city in the Province of Hunan, China, it is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Yiyang. Located in the north of the province, the city is bordered to the north by Nan County, to the northeast b ...

Lakes and reservoirs

Dongting Lake Dongting Lake () is a large, shallow lake in northeastern Hunan Province, China. It is a flood basin of the Yangtze River, so its volume depends on the season. The provinces of Hubei and Hunan are named after their location relative to the l ...

is the largest lake in Hunan and the 3rd largest lake and the 2nd largest freshwater lake in China covering a total of . Other lakes include Wanzi Lake, Dalian Lake, Datong Lake, Dongjiang Lake. Major reservoirs in Hunan are the Fengtan Reservoir, Huangshi Reservoir, Tuoxi Reservoir, Shuihumiao Reservoir, Shuangpai Reservoir, Ouyanghai Reservoir, Qingshanlong Reservoir, and Jiubujiang Reservoir.

Climate

Hunan has a humid subtropical climate influenced by the East Asian Monsoon, with an average annual temperature of , total annual rainfall of , a frost-free period of 253 to 311 days and annual average sunshine hours in 1521 hours. Summers are wet with high temperatures, high humidity and a high heat index. Winters are relatively dry and chilly with cold wind.

Protected areas

Hunan has 23 National Forest Parks, 17 Provincial Forest Parks, 4 National Natural Reserves and 22 Provincial Natural Reserves. The Four National Natural Reserves are Dongting Lake, Mount Huping (), Mount Badagong () and Mount Mang (). Some of the most frequently visited parks include Mount Dawei (),

Tianmen Mountain Tianmen Mountain () is a mountain located within Tianmen Mountain National Park, Zhangjiajie, in the northwestern part of Hunan Province, China. Mountain A cablecar was constructed in 2005 by the French company Poma from nearby Zhangjiajie rail ...

, Taohuayuan (), Mount Yangming, Jiuyi Mountains, Mount Liang ().

Ecology

Fauna

There are 81 species of mammal, 379 species of birds, 75 reptiles and 42 amphibians in Hunan, including 90 species of national protected animals. There are 17 national first-level protected animals and 73 national second-level protected animals in Hunan. Among them the first rank has

Baiji The baiji (; IPA: ; ''Lipotes vexillifer'', ''Lipotes'' meaning "left behind" and ''vexillifer'' "flag bearer") is a possibly extinct species of freshwater dolphin native to the Yangtze river system in China. It is thought to be the first dolph ...

South China tiger The South China tiger is a population of the '' Panthera tigris tigris'' subspecies that is native to southern China. The population mainly inhabited the Fujian, Guangdong, Hunan and Jiangxi provinces. It has been listed as Critically Enda ...

Clouded leopard The clouded leopard (''Neofelis nebulosa''), also called the mainland clouded leopard, is a wild cat inhabiting dense forests from the foothills of the Himalayas through mainland Southeast Asia into South China. In the early 19th century, a ...

Asian golden cat The Asian golden cat (''Catopuma temminckii'') is a medium-sized wild cat native to the northeastern Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia and China. It has been listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List since 2008, and is threatened by poac ...

Chinese sturgeon The Chinese sturgeon (''Acipenser sinensis''; ) is a critically endangered member of the family Acipenseridae in the order Acipenseriformes. Historically, this anadromous fish was found in China, Japan, and the Korean Peninsula, but it has be ...

Spot-billed pelican The spot-billed pelican (''Pelecanus philippensis'') or gray pelican is a member of the pelican family. It breeds in southern Asia from southern Iran across India east to Indonesia. It is a bird of large inland and coastal waters, especially larg ...

White stork The white stork (''Ciconia ciconia'') is a large bird in the stork family, Ciconiidae. Its plumage is mainly white, with black on the bird's wings. Adults have long red legs and long pointed red beaks, and measure on average from beak tip to e ...

and

Red-crowned crane The red-crowned crane (''Grus japonensis''), also called the Manchurian crane or Japanese crane (; the Chinese character '丹' means 'red', '頂/顶' means 'crown' and '鶴/鹤' means 'crane'), is a large East Asian crane among the rarest cran ...

and the second rank has

Rhesus macaque The rhesus macaque (''Macaca mulatta''), colloquially rhesus monkey, is a species of Old World monkey. There are between six and nine recognised subspecies that are split between two groups, the Chinese-derived and the Indian-derived. Generally ...

Stump-tailed macaque The stump-tailed macaque (''Macaca arctoides''), also called the bear macaque, is a species of macaque native to South Asia and Southeast Asia. In India, it occurs south of the Brahmaputra River, in the northeastern part of the country. Its range ...

Asian black bear The Asian black bear (''Ursus thibetanus''), also known as the Asiatic black bear, moon bear and white-chested bear, is a medium-sized bear species native to Asia that is largely adapted to an arboreal lifestyle. It lives in the Himalayas, so ...

Pangolin Pangolins, sometimes known as scaly anteaters, are mammals of the order Pholidota (, from Ancient Greek ϕολιδωτός – "clad in scales"). The one extant family, the Manidae, has three genera: '' Manis'', ''Phataginus'', and '' Smuts ...

Finless porpoise ''Neophocaena'' is a genus of porpoise native to the Indian and Pacific oceans, as well as the freshwater habitats of the Yangtze River basin in China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. ...

Whooper swan The whooper swan ( /ˈhuːpə(ɹ) swɒn/) (''Cygnus cygnus''), also known as the common swan, pronounced ''hooper swan'', is a large northern hemisphere swan. It is the Eurasian counterpart of the North American trumpeter swan, and the type speci ...

Tundra swan The tundra swan (''Cygnus columbianus'') is a small swan of the Holarctic. The two taxa within it are usually regarded as conspecific, but are also sometimes split into two species: Bewick's swan (''Cygnus bewickii'') of the Palaearctic and th ...

Masked palm civet The masked palm civet (''Paguma larvata''), also called the gem-faced civet, is a palm civet species native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. It has been listed as least concern on the IUCN Red List since 2008 as it occurs in many p ...

Mandarin duck The mandarin duck (''Aix galericulata'') is a perching duck species native to the East Palearctic. It is medium-sized, at long with a wingspan. It is closely related to the North American wood duck, the only other member of the genus ''Aix'' ...

Eagle Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, j ...

and

Chinese giant salamander The Chinese giant salamander (''Andrias davidianus'') is one of the largest salamanders and one of the largest amphibians in the world.tung tree" and "hometown of China fir". In Hunan, vast forests of China fir constitute the largest proportion of the province's forest growth. There is also an abundance of tea-oil tree, Pinus massoniana,

Phyllostachys edulis ''Phyllostachys edulis'', the bamboo, or tortoise-shell bamboo, or (), ( ja, モウソウチク), () is a temperate species of giant timber bamboo native to China and Taiwan and naturalised elsewhere, including Japan where it is widely distrib ...

Populus ''Populus'' is a genus of 25–30 species of deciduous flowering plants in the family Salicaceae, native to most of the Northern Hemisphere. English names variously applied to different species include poplar (), aspen, and cottonwood. The we ...

Cinnamomum camphora ''Camphora officinarum'' is a species of evergreen tree that is commonly known under the names camphor tree, camphorwood or camphor laurel. Description ''Camphora officinarum'' is native to China south of the Yangtze River, Taiwan, southern ...

Taxus chinensis ''Taxus chinensis'' is a species of yew. It is commonly called the Chinese yew, though this term also refers to '' Taxus celebica'' or ''Taxus sumatrana''. This plant is used to produce medicines for cancer treatment, including Paclitaxel and T ...

Vernicia fordii ''Vernicia fordii'', usually known as the tung tree (, ''tóng'') is a species of flowering plant in the spurge family native to southern China, Myanmar, and northern Vietnam. It is a small to medium-sized deciduous tree growing to 20 m tall, wit ...

. There are 112 national first-level protected plants: Isoetes sinensis,

Davidia involucrata ''Davidia involucrata'', the dove-tree, handkerchief tree, pocket handkerchief tree, or ghost tree, is a medium-sized deciduous tree in the family Nyssaceae. It is the only living species in the genus ''Davidia''. It was previously included wi ...

Cycad Cycads are seed plants that typically have a stout and woody (ligneous) trunk with a crown of large, hard, stiff, evergreen and (usually) pinnate leaves. The species are dioecious, that is, individual plants of a species are either male o ...

Ginkgo ''Ginkgo'' is a genus of non-flowering seed plants. The scientific name is also used as the English name. The order to which it belongs, Ginkgoales, first appeared in the Permian, 270 million years ago, and is now the only living genus with ...

Cathaya ''Cathaya'' is a genus in the pine family, Pinaceae, with one known living species, ''Cathaya argyrophylla''. ''Cathaya'' is a member of the subfamily Laricoideae, most closely related to ''Pseudotsuga'' and ''Larix''. A second species, ''C. na ...

Metasequoia glyptostroboides ''Metasequoia glyptostroboides'', the dawn redwood, is a fast-growing, endangered deciduous conifer. It is the sole living species of the genus ''Metasequoia'', one of three genera in the subfamily Sequoioideae of the family Cupressaceae. It now ...

Scaly-sided merganser The scaly-sided merganser or Chinese merganser (''Mergus squamatus'') is an endangered typical merganser (genus ''Mergus''). It lives in Manchuria and extreme Southeast Siberia, breeding in the north and wintering in the south. Description Thi ...

Bretschneidera ''Bretschneidera sinensis'', the sole species in genus ''Bretschneidera'', is a rare, tall a monotypic species of tree with large inflorescences. It is found in south and east of China, Taiwan, northern Thailand and northern Vietnam. It is thre ...

and Brasenia.

Mineral Resources

Hunan has been hailed as the "hometown of

non-ferrous metal In metallurgy, non-ferrous metals are metals or alloys that do not contain iron ( allotropes of iron, ferrite, and so on) in appreciable amounts. Generally more costly than ferrous metals, non-ferrous metals are used because of desirable prop ...

" and "hometown of nonmetallic minerals". There are more than 141 species of minerals in Hunan.

Antimony Antimony is a chemical element with the symbol Sb (from la, stibium) and atomic number 51. A lustrous gray metalloid, it is found in nature mainly as the sulfide mineral stibnite (Sb2S3). Antimony compounds have been known since ancient ti ...

of Hunan is ranked No. 1 in the world.

Bismuth Bismuth is a chemical element with the symbol Bi and atomic number 83. It is a post-transition metal and one of the pnictogens, with chemical properties resembling its lighter group 15 siblings arsenic and antimony. Elemental bismuth occurs ...

rubidium Rubidium is the chemical element with the symbol Rb and atomic number 37. It is a very soft, whitish-grey solid in the alkali metal group, similar to potassium and caesium. Rubidium is the first alkali metal in the group to have a density higher ...

anthracite Anthracite, also known as hard coal, and black coal, is a hard, compact variety of coal that has a submetallic luster. It has the highest carbon content, the fewest impurities, and the highest energy density of all types of coal and is the hig ...

realgar Realgar ( ), also known as "ruby sulphur" or "ruby of arsenic", is an arsenic sulfide mineral with the chemical formula α-. It is a soft, sectile mineral occurring in monoclinic crystals, or in granular, compact, or powdery form, often in asso ...

fluorite Fluorite (also called fluorspar) is the mineral form of calcium fluoride, CaF2. It belongs to the halide minerals. It crystallizes in isometric cubic habit, although octahedral and more complex isometric forms are not uncommon. The Mohs sca ...

sepiolite Sepiolite, also known in English by the German name meerschaum ( , ; ; meaning "sea foam"), is a soft white clay mineral, often used to make tobacco pipes (known as meerschaum pipes). A complex magnesium silicate, a typical chemical formula f ...

baryte Baryte, barite or barytes ( or ) is a mineral consisting of barium sulfate ( Ba S O4). Baryte is generally white or colorless, and is the main source of the element barium. The ''baryte group'' consists of baryte, celestine (strontium sulfate), ...

are ranked No. 1 in China.

Manganese Manganese is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Mn and atomic number 25. It is a hard, brittle, silvery metal, often found in minerals in combination with iron. Manganese is a transition metal with a multifaceted array of ...

vanadium Vanadium is a chemical element with the symbol V and atomic number 23. It is a hard, silvery-grey, malleable transition metal. The elemental metal is rarely found in nature, but once isolated artificially, the formation of an oxide layer ( pass ...

rhenium Rhenium is a chemical element with the symbol Re and atomic number 75. It is a silvery-gray, heavy, third-row transition metal in group 7 of the periodic table. With an estimated average concentration of 1 part per billion (ppb), rhenium is one ...

mirabilite Mirabilite, also known as Glauber's salt, is a hydrous sodium sulfate mineral with the chemical formula Na2SO4·10H2O. It is a vitreous, colorless to white monoclinic mineral that forms as an evaporite from sodium sulfate-bearing brines. It is fo ...

arsenic Arsenic is a chemical element with the symbol As and atomic number 33. Arsenic occurs in many minerals, usually in combination with sulfur and metals, but also as a pure elemental crystal. Arsenic is a metalloid. It has various allotropes, b ...

and

kaolinite Kaolinite ( ) is a clay mineral, with the chemical composition Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4. It is an important industrial mineral. It is a layered silicate mineral, with one tetrahedral sheet of silica () linked through oxygen atoms to one octahed ...

reached number 2 in China.

Zinc Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodi ...

aluminium Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It ha ...

, tin,

tantalum Tantalum is a chemical element with the symbol Ta and atomic number 73. Previously known as ''tantalium'', it is named after Tantalus, a villain in Greek mythology. Tantalum is a very hard, ductile, lustrous, blue-gray transition metal that ...

graphite Graphite () is a crystalline form of the element carbon. It consists of stacked layers of graphene. Graphite occurs naturally and is the most stable form of carbon under standard conditions. Synthetic and natural graphite are consumed on la ...

and

diamond Diamond is a solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the chemically stable form of carbon at room temperature and pressure, b ...

peaked at number 3 in China. Mount Xikuang of

Xinhua County Xinhua County () is a county and the 4th most populous county-level division in the Province of Hunan, China; it is under the administration of Loudi City. Located along the middle reaches of the Zi River, it covers 3,635 square kilometers a ...

is honoured as the "Capital of Antimony in the World".

References

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Geography of Hunan Geography of Central China