Zhongwei (,

Xiao'erjing Xiao'erjing, Xiaorjing, Xiaojing or Benjing, is a Arabic script, Perso-Arabic script used to write Sinitic languages, including Lanyin Mandarin, Zhongyuan Mandarin, Northeastern Mandarin, and Dungan language, Dungan. It is used on occasion ...

: جْووِ شِ) is a

prefecture-level city A prefecture-level city () or prefectural city is an administrative division of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC), ranking below a province of China, province and above a Counties of the People's Republic of China, county in China's ...

Ningxia Ningxia, officially the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, is an autonomous region in Northwestern China. Formerly a province, Ningxia was incorporated into Gansu in 1954 but was later separated from Gansu in 1958 and reconstituted as an autonomous ...

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. It has an area of and a population of 1,174,600 in 2019. The city is known for its

wolfberry Goji, goji berry, or wolfberry () is the sweet fruit of either '' Lycium barbarum'' or '' Lycium chinense'', two closely related species of boxthorn in the nightshade family, Solanaceae. ''L. barbarum'' and ''L. chinense'' fruits ar ...

and Gobi

watermelon The watermelon (''Citrullus lanatus'') is a species of flowering plant in the family Cucurbitaceae, that has a large, edible fruit. It is a Glossary of botanical terms#scandent, scrambling and trailing vine-like plant, and is plant breeding ...

cultivation. One of the world's largest

photovoltaic power station A photovoltaic power station, also known as a solar park, solar farm, or solar power plant, is a large-scale grid-connected photovoltaic power system (PV system) designed for the supply of merchant power. They are different from most building ...

Tengger Desert Solar Park Tengger Desert Solar Park is the sixth-largest photovoltaic plant in the world as of December, 2021. It is located in Zhongwei, Ningxia, China. It covers an area of 43 km2. In 2018, it was the solar park with the largest peak power capacity (1, ...

, is located in Zhongwei.

History

Under general

Meng Tian Meng Tian (c. 250 BC – August or September 210 BC) was a Chinese inventor and military general of the Qin dynasty who distinguished himself in campaigns against the Xiongnu and in the construction of the Great Wall of China. He was the elder ...

, the Qin captured the area of Zhongwei and established the

Beidi Commandery 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. Its seat was Maling (馬領) during the Western Han period and Fuping (富平, near modern Wuzhong, Ning ...

. In 205 BC a city built at the current location of Zhongwei urban area, which would grow as irrigation systems were built to allow farming. In 1226

Genghis Khan Genghis Khan (born Temüjin; August 1227), also known as Chinggis Khan, was the founder and first khan (title), khan of the Mongol Empire. After spending most of his life uniting the Mongols, Mongol tribes, he launched Mongol invasions and ...

captured Zhongwei, and in 1403 the city was named Zhongwei, part of

Shaanxi Shaanxi is a Provinces of China, province in north Northwestern China. It borders the province-level divisions of Inner Mongolia to the north; Shanxi and Henan to the east; Hubei, Chongqing, and Sichuan to the south; and Gansu and Ningxia to t ...

. In 1920 Zhongwei was struck by the Haiyuan earthquake; and in 1926 the highway from

Lanzhou Lanzhou is the capital and largest city of Gansu province in northwestern China. Located on the banks of the Yellow River, it is a key regional transportation hub, connecting areas further west by rail to the eastern half of the country. His ...

to Zhongwei opened.

Tourism

Zhongwei's main attraction is Gao Miao, a temple that has hosted

Confucian Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China, and is variously described as a tradition, philosophy, religion, theory of government, or way of life. Founded by Confucius ...

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

, and

Taoist Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ...

ceremonies. A bomb shelter was also built beneath the temple during the

Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a Social movement, sociopolitical movement in the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). It was launched by Mao Zedong in 1966 and lasted until his de ...

. It has since been converted into a rendition of a Buddhist hell. The prefecture is also the location of the beginning of the northern bend in the

Yellow River The Yellow River, also known as Huanghe, is the second-longest river in China and the List of rivers by length, sixth-longest river system on Earth, with an estimated length of and a Drainage basin, watershed of . Beginning in the Bayan H ...

that produces the

Ordos Loop The Ordos Plateau, also known as the Ordos Basin or simply the Ordos, is a highland sedimentary basin in parts of most Northern China with an elevation of , and consisting mostly of land enclosed by the Ordos Loop, a large northerly rectangular ...

. A drum tower is located in the city center.

Administrative divisions

Geography

Zhongwei is located on the northern banks of the

and bordered directly by the

Tengger Desert The Tengger Desert or Tengri Desert (, ) is an arid natural region that covers about 36,700 km2 and is mostly in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in China. The desert is expanding in size.Haner, Josh, et al. (24 October 2016)Living in C ...

in the north. The city has been battling desertification since the 1950s. Using straw checkerboard patterns the advance of sand dunes is stopped.

Climate

Transportation

Zhongwei Shapotou Airport Zhongwei Shapotou Airport is an airport serving the city of Zhongwei in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China. It is located northwest of the city. The airport cost 370 million yuan to build and started operation on 26 December 2008. It was o ...

* Baotou–Lanzhou railway * Baoji–Zhongwei railway, to points south (connections to

Xi'an Xi'an is the list of capitals in China, capital of the Chinese province of Shaanxi. A sub-provincial city on the Guanzhong plain, the city is the third-most populous city in Western China after Chongqing and Chengdu, as well as the most populou ...

Chengdu Chengdu; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: ; Chinese postal romanization, previously Romanization of Chinese, romanized as Chengtu. is the capital city of the Chinese province of Sichuan. With a ...

) * Taiyuan-Zhongwei-Yinchuan railway, to the east (connection to

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

) * Gantang–Wuwei railway, to western Gansu and westward * Zhongwei–Lanzhou high-speed railway *

G70 Fuzhou–Yinchuan Expressway The Fuzhou–Yinchuan Expressway (), designated as G70 and commonly referred to as the Fuyin Expressway () is an expressway that connects the cities of Fuzhou, Fujian, China, and Yinchuan Yinchuan is the capital of the Ningxia, Ningxia Hui A ...

* G2012 Dingbian–Wuwei Expressway *

China National Highway 109 China National Highway 109 connects Beijing with Lhasa. It runs westwards from Beijing via Datong, Yinchuan and Xining to Golmud before turning southwest to Lhasa. The portion of the highway from Xining to Lhasa is known as the Qinghai-Tibet Hig ...

Gallery

Image:DesertLake3.jpg, Desert Lake Image:DesertLake.jpg, Desert Lake Image:DesertLake2.jpg, Desert Lake File:Shapotou desert area (20171005173240).jpg, Shapotou scenic area File:Camel convoys in Shapotou (20171005173358).jpg, Camels in Shapotou Image:Zhongwei_cultural_centre.jpg, Zhongwei cultural centre

References

External links

Official website of Zhongwei Government
{{Authority control Prefecture-level divisions of Ningxia Cities in Ningxia