GOLMUD

Wade-Giles romanization Ko-erh-mu, town in central Tsinghai sheng (province), western China. Golmud is an important highway centre, standing at the intersection of two ancient routes, which have in recent times become modern highways. One links Hsi-ning in Tsinghai and Lan-chou in Kansu province in the east with the western Tsaidam area; the other runs north to south from western Kansu via the Tang-chin Pass to Na-ch' and Lhasa in Tibet. An insignificant place until the development of the rich mineral resources of the Tsaidam region (which include coal, oil, and vast deposits of salt and other minerals), Golmud has developed a chemical industry. The fertilizer produced there helps bring parts of the barren region into cultivation. Pop. (mid-1980s est.) 10,000-50,000.