Topography& Geography

How many Continents and Oceans in the world? ContinentsOceans Asia Africa Europe North America South America Antarctica Oceania The Pacific Ocean The Atlantic Ocean The Indian Ocean The Arctic Ocean

What’s the location of China?

In East Asia, border on the west Pacific Ocean the largest country in Asia and the third largest country in the world with the total area of 9.6 million sq km.

Topography From north to south, it stretches from Mohe Town to the Zengmu Reef of the Nansha Islands, covering a distance of 5500kms. From west to east, it extends from the Pamir Plateau to the confluence of the Heilong and Wusuli rivers with a distance of 5200 kms.

China has 14 neighboring countries The northern border: high plains of Mongolia The southwestern border: Great Tibetan upthrust The Southern border: the jungle-clad mountains The western border: Gobi Desert The eastern border: the Yellow Sea, the East China Sea (marginal seas of the Pacific Ocean, and the Bohai Sea (continental sea)

hhhh iiii gggg hhhh llll aaaa nnnn dddd ssss pppp llll aaaa iiii nnnn ssss What are the features of China’s topography?

HHHHigh in its west and low in its east: mountain areas 33.3%, plateaus 26%, basins 18.8%, plains 12% and hills 9.9%. TT aking a bird’s-eye view of China, the terrain descends from the west to east like a four-staircase

A Terraced Terrain Qinghai-Tibet Plateau Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in Southwest China; (above 4000m) Inner Mongolia Plateau Inner Mongolia Plateau, the Loess Plateau, the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, the Tarim Basin, the Junggar Basin and Sichuan Basin; (1000m-2000m) The Northeast Plain The Northeast Plain, the North China Plain and the Middle-Lower of Yangtze River Plain; ( m) The continental shelf The continental shelf

 Three Major Plains---the Northeast Plain, the North China Plain and the Middle and Lower Reaches of the Yangtze River Plain.  Three Large Deltas---the Yangtze River Delta, Yellow River Delta and the Pearl River Delta.

Climate A warm climate and distinct seasons （ northern temperate zone ） Continental monsoon climate : 1) cold and dry winters; 2) warm and humid summers;

 Climate Zone tropical zone, subtropical zone, temperate zone, medium temperate zone and frigid temperate zone.  Precipitation gradually declines from the southeastern area to the northwestern inland area.  Temperature great temperature difference between the south and the north.

Mountains  Two distinct geographic regions ---the North and the South(Qinling Ranges)  Three groups of China’s mountains --- the east-west ranges, the northeast-southwest ranges and the north-south ranges.

 Mount Qomolangma of Himalayas “Goddess Peak” Mount Everest : 8, meters above sea level  The Qinling Mountain Range natural dividing line  The Hengduan Mountain Range “Barrier moutains”

Five Holy/Sacred Mountains(Taoism) Mount Tai (Shandong province) Mount Hua (Shaanxi province) Mount Song (Henan province) Mount Heng (Shanxi province) Bei Mount Heng (Hunan province) Nan

 Cultural and Natural World Heritage site;  “World Geopark” ;  The first group of “National Parks of China”;  The state 5A-class tourist attraction;  The top 10 best National Civilized Spot in China;  “Most Revered of the Five Sacred Mountains”.

One of China’s Five Sacred Taoist Mountains Five main peaks (the South Peak 2160m) A variety of temples on its slopes and peaks The Cloister of the Jade Spring

one of the sacred Taoist mountains of China; also features a significant Buddhist presence. The Shaolin Temple The Songshan Geopark

Four great Buddhist mountains  Wutai (Shanxi) Sacred to Manjushri (Wenshu) the Bodhisattva of Wisdom  Putuo (Zhejiang) Sacred to Kuan-Yin the Bodhisattva of Compassion  Jiuhua (Anhui) Sacred to Kshitigarbha (Dizang) the Bodhisattva of salvation  Emei (Sichuan) Sacred to Samantabhadra (Puxian) the Bodhisattva of Benevolent Action click

Buddhist mountain of the north the global centre for Buddhist Manjusri worship far-reaching influence inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2009

Buddhist mountain of the east 33m tall statue of the Guan Yin at Zizhulin ( 紫竹林 ) covered with many temples and monasteries

the loftiness of Mount Tai 泰山之雄伟 the precipitousness of Mount Hua 华山之险峻 the changing clouds of Mount Heng 衡山之烟云 the flying waterfalls of Mount Lu 庐山之飞瀑 the exquisite rocks of Mount Yandang 雁荡之 巧石 the beauty of Mount Emei 峨眉之秀丽  graceful pines ， karst formation, a sea of clouds and hot springs.

Topography, Plateaus, Plains, Deltas, Basins, Mountains, Climate

Rivers and Lakes More than 1,500 rivers each drain More than 2,700 billion cubic meters of water flow along these rivers, 5.8% of the world's total. exterior and interior systems man-made river – the Grand Canal more than 2,800 natural lakes

 The major rivers: The Yangtze River(The Changjiang River), The Yellow River(The Huanghe River), The Heilongjiang River (Black Dragon River), and The Zhujiang (Pearl)River  Other Rivers: Yarlung Zangbo River,Nujiang River,Liaohe River,Lancangjiang River,Huaihe River,Haihe River

The Yangtze River The Yellow River

Tuotuo River (Qinghai, Sichuan, Tibet, Yunnan, Chongqing, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, Anhui, Jiangsu and Shanghai). It flows into the East China Sea.

The Yangtze River  6,300 km in length  It flows through 11 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities.  Containing a large water volume, deep and navigable in much of its distance  It is one of the main artery of water transportation between eastern and western China. What’s your impression of the Yangtze River?

The Yellow River  5,464 km in length ;  stretches through 9 provinces;  The most heavily silt-laden river in the world;  The Yellow river catchment area is an important base for grains in China;  “the cradle of Chinese civilization”;  “China’s sorrow” What’s your impression of the Yellow River?

Jinghang Canal) The Grand Canal (Jinghang Canal)  Its cutting began in the fifth century BC;  It flows through 4 provinces;  An important economic link between the North and the South.  the longest as well as the oldest man-made waterway in the world topography.

Freshwater Lakes The five freshwater lakes : Poyang Lake, Dongting Lake, Taihu Lake, Hongze Lake and Chaohu Lake.

Saltwater Lakes The Qinghai Lake the biggest enclosed lake and salt-water lake; In 1994, acknowledged to be the key scenic resort and historic site in China; In 1997, acknowledged to be national nature reserve area.

Administrat ive Division System

A three-tier system 1.The country is divided into provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government; 2.Provinces and autonomous regions are divided into autonomous prefectures, counties, autonomous counties and cities; and 3. Counties, autonomous counties and cities are divided into townships, ethnic minority townships, and towns.

Questions: What are the features of China’s topography? China’s topography? Why is it said that the Sichuan Basin and Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau are rich in cultural resources? Please give some specific examples to demonstrate this? Yellow River has been regarded as “the Mother River of China” and “the cradle of Chinese civilization”, yet, why was it known as “China’s sorrow” before 1949?