North China Plain
Encyclopedia
The North China Plain is based on the deposits of the Yellow River
and is the largest alluvial plain
of eastern Asia. The plain is bordered on the north by the Yanshan Mountains and on the west by the Taihang Mountains
edge of the Shanxi
('western mountains') plateau. To the south, it merges into the Yangtze Plain
. From northeast to southeast, it fronts the Bohai Gulf, the highlands of Shandong Peninsula, and the Yellow Sea
. The Yellow River flows through the middle of the plain into Bohai Gulf.
Below the Sanmenxia Dam
is the multipurpose Xiaolangdi Dam
, located in the river's last valley before the North China Plain, a great delta created from silt dropped at the Huang He's mouth over the millennia. The North China Plain extends over much of Henan, Hebei, and Shandong provs. and merges with the Chang (Yangtze) delta in N Jiangsu and N Anhui provs. The Huang He meanders over the fertile, densely populated plain to reach the Bohai. The plain is one of China's most important agricultural regions, producing corn, sorghum, winter wheat, vegetables, and cotton.
Its nickname is "Land of the yellow earth."
The southern part of the plain is traditionally referred to as the Central Plain
, which formed the cradle of Chinese civilization.
The plain covers an area of about 409500 square kilometres (158,108.8 sq mi), most of which is less than 50 metres (164 ft) above sea level. This flat yellow-soil plain is the main area of sorghum
, millet
, maize
, and cotton
production in China. Wheat
, sesame seed, and peanut
s are also grown here. The plain is one of the most densely populated regions in the world.
Beijing
, the national capital, is located on the northeast edge of the plain, with Tianjin
, an important industrial city and commercial port, near its northeast coast. Shengli Oilfield in Shandong is an important petroleum bases. It is also home to the Huang He (Yellow River).
Because the fertile soil of the North China Plain gradually merges with the steppe
s and desert
s of Central Asia
, with no natural barriers between the two regions, the plain has been prone to invasion from Central Asia and Manchuria
, prompting the construction of the Great Wall of China
.
Although the soil of the North China Plain is fertile, the weather is unpredictable, being at the intersection of humid winds from the Pacific and dry winds from the interior of the Asian continent. This makes the plain prone to both floods and drought. Moreover, the flatness of the plain promotes massive flooding when river works are damaged. Many historians have proposed that these factors have encouraged the development of a centralized Chinese state to manage granaries
, maintain hydraulic
works, and administer fortification
s against the steppe peoples. ( The "hydraulic society" school holds that early states developed in the valleys of the Nile, Euphrates, Indus and Yellow Rivers due to the need to supervise large numbers of laborers to build irrigation canals and control floods.)
Yellow River
The Yellow River or Huang He, formerly known as the Hwang Ho, is the second-longest river in China and the sixth-longest in the world at the estimated length of . Originating in the Bayan Har Mountains in Qinghai Province in western China, it flows through nine provinces of China and empties into...
and is the largest alluvial plain
Alluvial plain
An alluvial plain is a relatively flat landform created by the deposition of sediment over a long period of time by one or more rivers coming from highland regions, from which alluvial soil forms...
of eastern Asia. The plain is bordered on the north by the Yanshan Mountains and on the west by the Taihang Mountains
Taihang Mountains
The Taihang Mountains are a Chinese mountain range running down the eastern edge of the Loess Plateau in Henan, Shanxi and Hebei provinces. The range extends over 400 km from north to south and has an average elevation of 1,500 to 2,000 meters. The principal peak is Xiao Wutaishan...
edge of the Shanxi
Shanxi
' is a province in Northern China. Its one-character abbreviation is "晋" , after the state of Jin that existed here during the Spring and Autumn Period....
('western mountains') plateau. To the south, it merges into the Yangtze Plain
Yangtze Plain
The Yangtze Plain is made up of a series of alluvial plains of along the Yangtze River and its major tributaries....
. From northeast to southeast, it fronts the Bohai Gulf, the highlands of Shandong Peninsula, and the Yellow Sea
Yellow Sea
The Yellow Sea is the name given to the northern part of the East China Sea, which is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean. It is located between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula. Its name comes from the sand particles from Gobi Desert sand storms that turn the surface of the water golden...
. The Yellow River flows through the middle of the plain into Bohai Gulf.
Below the Sanmenxia Dam
Sanmenxia Dam
The Sanmenxia Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the middle-reaches of the Yellow River near Sanmenxia on the border Shanxi and Henan Province, China. The dam is multi-purpose and was constructed for flood and ice control along with irrigation, hydroelectric power production and navigation....
is the multipurpose Xiaolangdi Dam
Xiaolangdi Dam
The Xiaolangdi Dam is a dam in Jiyuan, Henan Province, China, and impounds the Yellow River. The facility has a total installed capacity of and generates up to 5.1 TWh annually with the help of six turbines. The dam stands tall and wide, and cost US$3.5 billion to construct...
, located in the river's last valley before the North China Plain, a great delta created from silt dropped at the Huang He's mouth over the millennia. The North China Plain extends over much of Henan, Hebei, and Shandong provs. and merges with the Chang (Yangtze) delta in N Jiangsu and N Anhui provs. The Huang He meanders over the fertile, densely populated plain to reach the Bohai. The plain is one of China's most important agricultural regions, producing corn, sorghum, winter wheat, vegetables, and cotton.
Its nickname is "Land of the yellow earth."
The southern part of the plain is traditionally referred to as the Central Plain
Central Plain (China)
Zhongyuan or the Central Plain of China refers to the area on the lower reaches of the Yellow River which formed the cradle of Chinese civilization. It forms part of the North China Plain....
, which formed the cradle of Chinese civilization.
The plain covers an area of about 409500 square kilometres (158,108.8 sq mi), most of which is less than 50 metres (164 ft) above sea level. This flat yellow-soil plain is the main area of sorghum
Sorghum
Sorghum is a genus of numerous species of grasses, one of which is raised for grain and many of which are used as fodder plants either cultivated or as part of pasture. The plants are cultivated in warmer climates worldwide. Species are native to tropical and subtropical regions of all continents...
, millet
Millet
The millets are a group of small-seeded species of cereal crops or grains, widely grown around the world for food and fodder. They do not form a taxonomic group, but rather a functional or agronomic one. Their essential similarities are that they are small-seeded grasses grown in difficult...
, maize
Maize
Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...
, and cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
production in China. Wheat
Wheat
Wheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
, sesame seed, and peanut
Peanut
The peanut, or groundnut , is a species in the legume or "bean" family , so it is not a nut. The peanut was probably first cultivated in the valleys of Peru. It is an annual herbaceous plant growing tall...
s are also grown here. The plain is one of the most densely populated regions in the world.
Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
, the national capital, is located on the northeast edge of the plain, with Tianjin
Tianjin
' is a metropolis in northern China and one of the five national central cities of the People's Republic of China. It is governed as a direct-controlled municipality, one of four such designations, and is, thus, under direct administration of the central government...
, an important industrial city and commercial port, near its northeast coast. Shengli Oilfield in Shandong is an important petroleum bases. It is also home to the Huang He (Yellow River).
Historical significance
The geography of the North China Plain has had profound cultural and political implications. Unlike areas to the south of the Yangtze, the plain generally runs uninterrupted by mountains and has far fewer rivers, and as a result communication by horse is rapid within the plain. As a result, the spoken language is relatively uniform in contrast to the plethora of languages and dialects in southern China. In addition the possibility of rapid communication has meant that the political center of China has tended to be located here.Because the fertile soil of the North China Plain gradually merges with the steppe
Steppe
In physical geography, steppe is an ecoregion, in the montane grasslands and shrublands and temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biomes, characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes...
s and desert
Desert
A desert is a landscape or region that receives an extremely low amount of precipitation, less than enough to support growth of most plants. Most deserts have an average annual precipitation of less than...
s of Central Asia
Central Asia
Central Asia is a core region of the Asian continent from the Caspian Sea in the west, China in the east, Afghanistan in the south, and Russia in the north...
, with no natural barriers between the two regions, the plain has been prone to invasion from Central Asia and Manchuria
Manchuria
Manchuria is a historical name given to a large geographic region in northeast Asia. Depending on the definition of its extent, Manchuria usually falls entirely within the People's Republic of China, or is sometimes divided between China and Russia. The region is commonly referred to as Northeast...
, prompting the construction of the Great Wall of China
Great Wall of China
The Great Wall of China is a series of stone and earthen fortifications in northern China, built originally to protect the northern borders of the Chinese Empire against intrusions by various nomadic groups...
.
Although the soil of the North China Plain is fertile, the weather is unpredictable, being at the intersection of humid winds from the Pacific and dry winds from the interior of the Asian continent. This makes the plain prone to both floods and drought. Moreover, the flatness of the plain promotes massive flooding when river works are damaged. Many historians have proposed that these factors have encouraged the development of a centralized Chinese state to manage granaries
Granary
A granary is a storehouse for threshed grain or animal feed. In ancient or primitive granaries, pottery is the most common use of storage in these buildings. Granaries are often built above the ground to keep the stored food away from mice and other animals.-Early origins:From ancient times grain...
, maintain hydraulic
Irrigation
Irrigation may be defined as the science of artificial application of water to the land or soil. It is used to assist in the growing of agricultural crops, maintenance of landscapes, and revegetation of disturbed soils in dry areas and during periods of inadequate rainfall...
works, and administer fortification
Fortification
Fortifications are military constructions and buildings designed for defence in warfare and military bases. Humans have constructed defensive works for many thousands of years, in a variety of increasingly complex designs...
s against the steppe peoples. ( The "hydraulic society" school holds that early states developed in the valleys of the Nile, Euphrates, Indus and Yellow Rivers due to the need to supervise large numbers of laborers to build irrigation canals and control floods.)
External links
- Encyclopædia Britannica: "North China Plain"