Beidi Commandery ( zh, c=北地郡, l=Northern Land) was a
commandery of the
Qin and
Han dynasties of China, located in what is now
Ningxia
Ningxia (,; , ; alternately romanized as Ninghsia), officially the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region (NHAR), is an autonomous region in the northwest of the People's Republic of China. Formerly a province, Ningxia was incorporated into Gansu in ...
. Its seat was Maling (馬領) during the Western Han period and Fuping (富平, near modern
Wuzhong, Ningxia
Wuzhong (, Xiao'erjing: وُجْو شِ) is a prefecture-level city in the Ningxia autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. It was known as Yinnan Prefecture (, Xiao'erjing: ءٍنًا دِٿِيُوِ) before it was upgraded to a pre ...
) during the Eastern Han.
History
Beidi Commandery was created in 271 BC, when the
Qin annexed the lands of the
Yiqu people. In late Western Han period, the commandery administered 19 counties: Maling (馬領), Zhilu (直路),
Lingwu
Lingwu (, Xiao'erjing: لِئٍوُ شِ) is a county-level city of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Southwest China, it is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Yinchuan. It is the most important industrial city of Ningxia. L ...
(靈武), Fuping (富平), Lingzhou (靈州), Xuyan (昫衍), Fangqu (方渠), Chudao (除道), Wujie (五街), Chungu (鶉孤), Guide (歸德), Huihuo (回獲), Luepandao (略畔道), Niyang (泥陽), Yuzhi (郁郅), Yiqudao (義渠道), Yiju (弋居), Dayi (大呓) and Lian (廉). The total population in 2 AD was 210,688 (64,461 households). The Eastern Han census in 140 AD, however, documented a popolation of only 18,637 (3,122 households), and the number of counties had reduced to 6.
The commandery was located on the Han dynasty's northern frontier. From 87 to 96 AD, a large number of
Xiongnu people were settled in the commandery. Due to attacks by the
Qiang people
The Qiang people ( Qiangic: ''Rrmea''; ) are an ethnic group in China. They form one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognised by the People's Republic of China, with a population of approximately 310,000 in 2000. They live mainly in a ...
, the commandery's administration was relocated to
Zuopingyi
Pingyi ( zh, 馮翊), also known as Zuo Pingyi ( zh, 左馮翊), was a historical region of China located in modern Shaanxi province.
In early Han dynasty, the administrator of an area to the east of the capital Chang'an was known as ''Zuo Neishi ...
(in modern
Shaanxi
Shaanxi (alternatively Shensi, see § Name) is a landlocked province of China. Officially part of Northwest China, it borders the province-level divisions of Shanxi (NE, E), Henan (E), Hubei (SE), Chongqing (S), Sichuan (SW), Gansu (W), Ning ...
) from 111 to 129. The original territories of Beidi were eventually abandoned in 141 after another wave of Qiang attacks.
The Beidi Commandery of
and
Western Jin
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
* Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
* Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that ...
dynasties was located in modern Shaanxi. It administered 2 counties, Niyang and
Fuping, and had a population of 2,600 households in 280 AD.
['']Book of Jin
The ''Book of Jin'' is an official Chinese historical text covering the history of the Jin dynasty from 266 to 420. It was compiled in 648 by a number of officials commissioned by the imperial court of the Tang dynasty, with chancellor Fang X ...
'', Chapter 14
Chapter 14 is an American post-hardcore/alternative rock band from Carlsbad, California, consisting of vocalist Chad Ackerman (Destroy the Runner, As I Lay Dying, Austrian Death Machine), guitarist Tanner Sparks (Destroy the Runner), bassist ...
.
References
{{Han dynasty provinces
Commanderies of the Qin dynasty
Commanderies of the Han dynasty
Commanderies of the Jin dynasty (266–420)
History of Ningxia