Longnan, Gansu Province, China

🇨🇳 Longnan (陇南, "south of Mount Long") is a prefecture-level city in the south-east of Gansu province in China. It borders Sichuan on its south and Shaanxi on its east.

Geography Longnan is in southern Gansu province bordering Shaanxi in the east and Sichuan in the south. It is called Gansu's southern gateway and gateway to the northwest. The major geographic features in Longnan are the Qinba Mountains in the east, the Loess Plateau in the north, and the Tibetan Plateau in the west. It is part of the Central Han basin in the east and the Sichuan basin in the south. Elevations range from 800 to 4,200 m (2,620 to 13,780 ft) above sea level. The three major rivers in Longnan are the Bailong, the Baishui, and the Jialing. Besides these major rivers there are more than 3800 streams and creeks. The annual flow from all of these rivers and streams is more than 28 billion m3. The area of the prefecture is 27,000 square km (10,000 sq mi).

History Longnan was settled by humans at least 7000 years ago. Between 5000 and 6000 years ago, civilizations developed along the Xihan ("Western Han") and Bailong ("White Dragon") rivers. Anping in Wudu as well as Lixian both have ancient ruins. Longnan is very important in Chinese history: it was the home of Rong tribes that troubled the Shang and Zhou dynasties and is considered the homeland of the House of Ying, the family of the Qin dynasty that united China at the end of the Warring States period. Wudu County was even founded as part of the Qin Empire. It is still common to find Qin artifacts—including pottery, bronzes, and coins—in the area.

During the Sixteen Kingdoms period, the region was ruled by the Qiang kingdoms of Later Qin and Tanchang, the latter has its capital in present-day Tanchang. Tanchang is conquered by Emperor Wu of Northern Zhou in 564. The region then went under control of Sui, Tang and Song dynasties, then subsequently conquered by the Tibetans, Tanguts, Jurchens and Mongols before finally administered by Ming dynasty court.

Administration Longnan has 1 urban districts, 8 counties, 242 towns, and 3243 villages: 1 Wudu District; Rural: 2 Cheng County; 3 Wen County; 4 Tanchang County; 5 Kang County; 6 Xihe County; 7 Li County; 8 Hui County; 9 Liangdang County.

Economy In 2004, Longnan's GDP was 6,338,000,000 RMB, a 12% growth over the previous year.

Important agricultural products include cereals and grains, Chinese medicinal herbs, vegetable oil, fruits, nuts, berries, and vegetables. Coal, copper, lead, zinc, petroleum, and gold are all major mineral resources for Longnan. Cement and other building materials are also produced here.

Transport • Longnan Chengxian Airport • China National Highway 212 • G75 Lanzhou–Haikou Expressway • Chongqing–Lanzhou railway • Baoji–Chengdu railway (stations only available in Hui County and Liangdang County) • Tianshui–Longnan railway (under construction).