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In ancient times the province was known as Amdo, and it was considered
Tibetan up until the eighteenth century, when it was formally incorporated into the Qing
Dynasty (1644-1911 AD) Empire. It still remains strongly Tibetan influenced, and
many of the religious complexes here are of the most famous outside of the Himalayan
region. These were to foster many of Tibetan Buddhism"s notorious figures, including the Fourteenth
Dalai Lama, born in Dek Ser, Ping"an County, some 30 kilometers
south of the Kumbum Monastery. There
is also a strong minority presence in Qinghai, with Tibetans among 30% of
the population, and with other minorities including the Mongols, the Kazaks
and the Muslim Hui & Salar. The incorporation of
China into the province, however, means that now over 60% of the population are of Han
descent. Much of the province is dominated by the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau that
rises from around 2,500 to over 3,500 meters above sea level. The plateau is home to the
sources of three of China"s most famous rivers, the Yangtze, the Yellow
and the Mekong - rivers that are considered the cradles of the
Chinese civilisation. Economy in the province is mainly concentrated in agriculture,
mining for minerals & oil, salt production, and tourism, however unemployment remains
rife. The laogais (prison factories) are also still churning out goods, and these
can, if you are lucky, be visited in Xining.
The eastern part of the plateau, around Xining, is an area of
flat grassy plains that has easily the most developed agriculture in the province.
The north and northwest areas are of an arid landscape
that contains a part of the vast Gobi Desert. It is an area that would
have remained virtually uninhabited but for the fact that the Communist Government now
have high hopes of removing possible vast resources of oil.
The south and southwestern region is where the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau
rises to over 3,500 meters, with peaks of over 6,000 meters, and it is here that the newly
defined Tibet is divided from Qinghai by the Tanggulashan Mountain Range.
The majority of employment in this region is for salt or mineral mining, and in the
herding/grazing of livestock. Travellers to the province are mainly on their way either to or from Tibet, via Golmud in the far
southwest. This is one of the roughest and most stunning of journeys, through the Tangula
Mountain Pass. The biggest highlights within the province, the Kumbum Monastery and the vast Qinghai Lake, are most
alluring to hikers, campers, ornithologists and those interested in Buddhism. |
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