Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, established on October 25, 1958, is bordered by Shaanxi Province to the east, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region to the west and north, and Gansu Province to the south. Mountains and plains account for 59 and 41 percent respectively of the region's total area of 66,400 square km. The average elevation is 1,090-2,000 metres above sea level, with the tallest mountain, the Helan Mountain, at 3,556 metres. A 397-km section of the Yellow River runs across 12 cities and counties in the region. The Chinese Moslems, the Huis, make up 33.4 percent of the total population of 6 million people in 35 ethnic groups, who live in the region's 18 cities and counties. In ancient times, the local regime, the Tangut kingdom of Western Xia, was locked in confrontations with the Song, Liao and Jin dynasties for 189 years, during which time the throne changed hands for ten times. Ningxia's cultural heritage and natural scenery today fall into six major tourist zones: Shahu Lake, the mausoleums of Western Xia Kings, Jinshui River, Qingtongxia Gorge, Shapotou Oasis, and Liupan Mountain. These include 6 key tourist attractions and 32 scenic spots that are open to foreign visitors. There are 23 travel services, and 41 hotels (10 of them star-rated) catered to foreign guests. Hedong and Helanshan airport, which are in close proximity to the region's capital city of Yinchuan, operate 30 airlines to and from seven other cities.

Abbreviation: Ning
Area: 66,400 square km
Population: 5.1 million

The province's mean temperature()

Month City	Jan	Feb	Mar	April	May	June	July	Aug	Sept	Oct	Nov	Dec
Temperature	-8.4	-4.7	2.7	10.7	17.2	21.3	23.3	21.6	16.0	9.2	1.1	-6.3

Yinchuan

Byname: Phoenix City. Arising northwest Chinese industrial city and capital of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. A famous historical and cultural city as well, and capital of the Western Xia. Major attractions: Tembhs of Western Xia Kings, Haibao Pagoda, Shahu Scenic Zone, Helan Mountain, Chengtian Temple Pagoda, Twin Pagodas at Baisikou, and Nanguan Mosque.

Haibao Pagoda

A 53.9-metre-high 11-floor pavilion like brick structure with a history of 1,500 years, HaibaoPagoda is the city emblem of Yinchuan. A wooden stairway inside the pagoda conducts to the 9th floor for a look at the city's landscape.

Nanguan Mosque

The Nanguan Mosque to the southwest of the southern city gate of Yinchuan was first built in 1915, and expanded in 1953. Covering an area of 20mu, it has a 22-metre-tall, 945-wquare-metre Prayer Hall that can seat 1,000 worshipers. In 1981, modern building materials were employed to give the mosque a new facelift. The mosque is marked for its group of green domes, with the one in the center dedicated to Mohammed, the father of Islamism, and the four in the corners honouring the Hanafiyah, Malikiyah, Shafiiyah, and Hanabilah schools respectively. The mosque is the venue for Id-al-Fitr, Corban, and Mawlid alnabi festivals and the daily morning and evening prayer services.

Ningxia Museum

Housed in Chengtian Temple in the old part of Yinchuan, Ningxia Museum has a collection of nearly 10,000 cultural artifacts. The 1,000 objects on display are of high historical and cultural value.

Western Xia Tombs

Nine tombs of Western Xia kings and 140-plus companion tombs buried with the remains of major imperial family members and aristocrats are laid out according to the contours of the terrain in an area of 50 square km on the eastern side of Helan Mountain 35 km west of Yinchuan. Each tomb was an independent architectural complex more than 100,000 square metres in area, which was complete with turrets, archways, stele pavilion, outer wall, inner city, memorial hall, pagoda-shaped altar, and divine wall. It is one of the largest and best protected imperial cemeteries in China.

Scenic Shahu Lake

Shahu Lake Scenic Zone, 56 km north of Yinchuan, consists of a 30,000mu desert, a 10,000-mu lake, and 100,000-mu marshlands. The blue lake and yellow sand are set off strikingly against the backdrop of the Helan Mountain. The reed marshes around the lake are habitats for more than 1 million precious birds in 190 or so kinds, including swans and red-crested cranes.

Shapotou, Zhongwei County

Shapotou Scenic Zone, 22 km west of Zhongwei County, is characterized by a cliff-like sand dune some 70 metres in height and 200 metres in width. It is also a landmark for the lTengger Desert. "Bell tolls at the Sandy Slope" is a famed scenery. The ocal people have managed to harness the desert by planting grass in chessboard pattern. Travellers may venture into the Tengger Desert by riding camels, or raft the Yellow River aboard sheepskin dinghies.

Mount Sumeru Grottoes

During the Northern Wei, Sui, Tang, Song and Ming dynasties, more than 130 grottoes were tunneled into the eastern side of the Sumeru Mountain 320 km southeast of Yinchuan and 55 km from Guyuan County. The earliest grotto has been more than 1,400 years old. Precious Buddhist sculptures, done along Silk Road, have survived to this day to become a legacy as important as those enshrined in Dunhuang grottoes. Today it is under state protection as a key cultural treasure.

108 Pagodas in Qingtongxia

the main attractions of the Scenic Qingtongxia Reservoir on the western shore of the YellowRiver are 108 Buddhist pagodas. They range in height from 3.5 to 2.5 metres, fashioned in three shapes (pyramid, gourd, and vase), and arranged on a rising mountain slope in rows of increasing odd numbers to form a colossal triangle. A major scenery by the Yellow River.

Cliff Carvings in Helan Mountain

Hailed as a major wonder of ancient Chinese civilization, these cliff carvings there are tens of thousands of them were discovered at the entrance to the Helan Mountain 46 km from Yinchuan. Done by Chinese nomads some 10,000 years ago. They run the gamut from portraits, totems and geniolatry signs to scenes of hunting, grazing, war and dance. There is something genuinely uninhibited and unaffected about them.

SOUVENIRS

Lamb furs: Produced from month-old local lambs, the furs are famed for their unusual lightness. Clothes made from such furs are comfortable and warm. Wool from this kind of sheep makes superb material for jacquard blankets.

Chinese wolfberries: A precious traditional Chinese medicine.

Ningxia licorice roots: A common herbal drug with wide-ranging curative effects as well as an ingredient for patent drugs.

Helan stone: Quarried from Helan Mountain, the stone is an excellent material for the making of a kind quality ink slabs.

Hair-like flabelliform nostoc: A famous culinary condiment from Ningxia.