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Home Travel in Gansu Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture
Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture
Travel in Gansu

Linxia

Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture (lín xià huí zú zì zhì zhōu 临夏回族自治州) is in Western China's Gansu Province, south of the capital, Lanzhou. It is seated in southwest-central Gansu Province on the upper reaches of the Yellow River. It borders Dingxi City (dìng xī shì 定西市) in the east, GannanTibetan Autonomous Prefecture (gān nán cáng zú zì zhì zhōu 甘南藏族自治州) in the south and the capital city of Gansu, Lanzhou, in the north. With the Anemaqen Mountains forming a naturalboundary, it is also bordered to the west by Qinghai Province (qīng hǎi shěng 青海省).


Overview

LinxiaLinxia is always considered to be the link between west and central China. It is an autonomous prefecture for the Muslim Hui people, a large Chinese ethnic group. Linxia includes two autonomous counties for other Muslim groups, namely Dongxiang (dōng xiāng zú 东乡族), Salar (sā lā zú 撒拉族), and Bonan (bǎo ān zú 保安族). It has 1 urban district, 5 counties and 2 autonomous counties with a total population of 2,070,000 and a total area of 8,169 square kilometers. The famous scenic spots include Liujiaxia Reservoir (liú jiā xiá shuǐ diàn zhàn 刘家峡水电站), Nanguan Mosque (nán guān qīng zhēn sì 南关清真寺), Songmingyan National Forest Park (sōng míng yán sēn lín gōng yuán 松鸣岩森林公园), Lianhua Mountain Nature Reserve (lián huā shān zì rán bǎo hù qū 莲花山自然保护区).
 

History

LinxiaLinxia was formerly known as Han, and was later changed to Daohe and then Hezhou. Since the founding of administrative divisions during the Qin Dynasty (221BC-206BC), it has always been a link between western and central China. Linxia was a vital passage in the ancient Silk Road, Tang-Tibet and Gansu-Sichuan ancient roads, and was praised as the 'dock on land in West China'. Linxia city was established in 1956, being one of the only two autonomous prefectures of Hui ethnic minority.
 

Geographic Features and Climate

LinxiaThe terrain of Linxia is highlands, mountains, and loess hills. Elevation averages 2000 meters above sea-level. The Yellow River, which gets its muddy yellow color from the loess, runs through the northwestern part of the prefecture. Dammed at Liujiaxia, it forms the large Liujiaxia Reservoir in the north-central part of the county. There is also a smaller Yanguoxia Dam (yán guō xiá shuǐ diàn zhàn 盐锅峡水电站) further downstream, also within Yongjing County. It is basically made up of river valley area and a dry loess region with alpine areas.

The area is semi-arid with annual percipitation of only 537 mm , the annual average temperature is 6.2°C  and there are about 137 frost-free days a year. The total Sunshine Hours is about 2572.3.Most regions of the prefecture lay in a temperate climate zone with four distinct seasons, moderate temperature, and refreshing weather. There is no excessive summer heat and the annual average temperature only falls to around 6.3 C (43.3 F).
 

Attractions

Liujiaxia Reservoir (liú jiā xiá shuǐ kù 刘家峡水库)
LinxiaThe Liujiaxia Reservoir is a reservoir in China's Gansu Province, formed by the Liujiaxia Dam on the Yellow River. It occupies over 130 square meters and is located entirely within Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture. The water level in Liujiaxia Reservoir is usually reported as 1,735 meters above the sea level, but in practice it varies significantly, in accordance with the water flow and human needs.

It is a smooth lake in the high gorges, being the largest inland reservoir in Northwest China. After admiring the reservoir on the way westward, visitors can see the ancient grottoes situated high on the cliffs. They were first excavated in 420AD. Nowadays, the Grottoes at Bingling Temple (bǐng líng sì shí kū 炳灵寺石窟) has become a hot attraction along the ancient Silk Road.

Location: 80 kilometres southwest to Lanzhou city and in the border of Gansu Province and Qinghai Provinces
Tel: 0931-8828783
Opening Hours: 8:00--18:00
Transportation: There are special buses to Liujiaxia Reservoir in Lanzhou West Bus Station and 2 hours is needed.
Admission Fee: CNY20
Best Time to Go: May to October

Nanguan Mosque (nán guān qīng zhēn sì 南关清真寺)
The Nanguan Mosque is one of the most famous mosques in China, as well as one of the Holy Lands of Islam in Northwest China. It is located at Jiefang Road in Linxia City, Gansu Province, and near the Hongshui River. 

It was established at the end of the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), and was destroyed and rebuilt many times. The existing buildings were rebuilt in 1979 and cover an area of 2,180 square meters.

LinxiaThe main buildings include the worship hall, the entrance hall, the minarets, the Wangyue Pavilion, and the sermon room. The worship hall faces the east and is a mixed construction. The ambulatory around the worship hall is supported by 30 huge columns. There are elegant and ancient concrete embossments on the entrance wall. On the top of the front part of the worship hall, there are three green domed minarets of 22 meters high. The Wangyue Pavilion is decorated with Aquarius and colorful patterns of the moon. Ancient Arabic lections are carved on the walls of the sermon room, which is the place for professional religious personnel to learn the Alcoran and the followers to perform religious rites.

This mosque combines traditional Chinese architectural art and the Arabic style. It is the result of the blending of eastern and western cultures.

Location: at Jiefang Road in Linxia City, Gansu Province, and near the Hongshui River.
Transportation: There is no airport and train station in the county, the nearest is Lanzhou Airport, it is strongly recommended to take bus in Lanzhou city
Admission Fee: Free (Tickets are for reference only)
Best Time to Go: July to November
 

Specialty

Food: The beef and mutton is very famous and delicious, especially the Dongxiang Mutton (东乡羊肉), the Mutton Fazi (羊肉筏子) and Youmiancha (油面茶) must be eaten in Linxia. Other special local products are horsebean, hemp, apricot, beet and herbs.
Linxia

Three Wonders: painted pottery, gourd carving, brick carving.
Folk-Customs: Hua'er, otherwise known as 'Flower', is a type of folk song popular amongst the ethnic minorities in Qinghai, Gansu, Ningxia and Xinjiang. According to different areas, the flower song has two types: Hezhou Hua'er and Gaoqiang Hua'er with Linxia renowned as a hometown of Hezhou Hua'er.
Nationalities and religions: There are in total twenty-two ethnic groups living in Linxia, including Han, Hui, Dongxiang, Bonan, Salar, Tibetan and Tu, among which the Bonan and Dongxiang are unique to the prefecture.
Language in Linxia:  Most people in Linxia can speak Mandarin and Linxia has it’s own dialect.
 

Travel Tips

Transportation:There is no airport and railway station in Linxia, the  nearest airport is the Lanzhou zhongchuan airport whicih is about 100 km from Linxia. The south bus station located at Jiefang Road while the West bus station located just out the West Gate
Best Time to Go: Summer and autumn are the harvest seasons for fruits and melon, and due to the high altitude, summer is comfortable and refreshing. Therefore, June to August are recommended as the best times to visit Linxia

 Linxia