1. Chapter 31: China Section 2: Regions of China

2. The Northeast Amur River in the north China Plain in the south
Greater Khingan Range
Contains China’s major lowland ares

3. Beijing China’s Northeast province Capital
Greatest concentration of China’s population
Major industrial center

4. Loess: Fertile Soil Vast agricultural area
Loess: fine, yellow-brown loam deposited by seasonal dust storms
Blown in from Mongolia and the Gobi Desert
Deposited along the Huang He River
Area very fertile

5. Yellow River Huang He also known as the Yellow River
Color the loess gives the water
Also serves as a transportation route

6. Yellow River: China’s Sorrow
Brought death and destruction
Destructive floods
1887: One of history’s greatest flood disasters – 1 million people died
New problem: River can dry up completely for months

7. The Southeast North China Plain down to the country’s southern border
East coast to the western highland areas
More mountainous than the northeast region
Warmer, wetter climate

8. Agriculture Climate + fertile soil = excellent region for farming
Double cropping: growing more than one crop a year on the same land
Carve steplike terraces onto the slopes of hills to increase the area of farmable land

9. Yangzi River Valley: Some of China’s most productive farmland
One of the country’s busiest and most crowded areas
East-West Highway
Shanghai, China’s major port, is on the mouth of the Yangzi
Three Gorges Dam: control flooding and generate electricity

10. Special Economic Zones
Original zones: Southeast
Attract foreign businesses
Government set low tax rates
Reduced the amount of official forms and licenses needed to set-up a business
1991: Foreign investors poured $22 billion into the Special Economic Zones

11. The Northwest Stark, rugged, and barren Gobi Desert: Northern boundary
Very little grows
Mountains surround and separate 2 large basins

12. Silk Road Great trade route in ancient times
Stations developed in the Northwest around oases fed by mountain streams
Stations grew into cities
Farmed
Nomadic herding

13. The Southwest Plateau of Tibet 14,000 feet (4,300 meters)
Surrounding mountains: 20,000 feet (6,100 meters)
Highest region in the world
Isolated

14. Tibet Distinct, traditional society Farmers and herders
Ruled by Buddhist customs and decrees of the Dalai Lama
Theocratic leader: claims to rule by religious or divine authority

15. 1950: Chinese Invasion Ended Tibet’s isolation
Destroyed Buddhist monasteries
Farmers had to join agricultural communes
Dalia Lama: exiled to India

16. 1959: Uprising
Chinese government: Program to destroy Tibet’s ancient culture
1965: Installed a Communist government
Autonomous region, region with limited self-government
Renamed Tibet: Xizang
Tibetans: Hold onto their culture and religions