INNER MONGOLIA

in full Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Chinese (Wade-Giles) Nei-meng-ku Tzu-chih-ch', (Pinyin) Nei Mongol Zizhiqu, autonomous region of China. It is a vast territory, with an area of 454,600 square miles (1,177,500 square kilometres), that stretches in a great crescent for some 1,700 miles (2,700 kilometres) across northern China. It is bordered to the north by Mongolia (formerly Outer Mongolia) and Russia; to the east by the Chinese provinces of Heilungkiang, Kirin, and Liaoning; to the south by the provinces of Hopeh, Shansi, and Shensi and the Hui Autonomous Region of Ningsia; and to the west by the province of Kansu. Its capital is Hu-ho-hao-t'e (Hohhot). Chu-yuan Cheng Victor C. Falkenheim The Editors of the Encyclopdia Britannica in full Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Wade-Giles Nei-meng-ku Tzu-Chih-Ch', Pinyin Nei Mongol Zizhiqu one of the five tzu-chih-ch' (autonomous regions) of the People's Republic of China, a territory 1,800 miles (2,900 km) long in northern and northeastern China. Inner Mongolia is bordered to the north by Mongolia; by the Chinese provinces of Heilungkiang, Kirin, and Liaoning to the east; by the provinces of Hopeh, Shansi, and Shensi and the autonomous region of Ningsia to the south; and by the province of Kansu to the west. Inner Mongolia and Mongolia (or Outer Mongolia) have been separate entities since the 17th century. The Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region was founded by the Chinese communist regime in 1947, more than two years prior to the establishment of its national government at Peking in 1949. Since 1954 the region's capital has been Hohhot (Hu-ho-hao-t'e). Inner Mongolia is essentially an inland plateau with a flat surface lying at an elevation of about 3,000 feet (900 m) and fringed by mountains and valleys. The plateau's southern boundary is formed by a series of high ridges. To the northwest, the land falls away toward the centre of the Gobi Desert. The Huang Ho (Yellow River) provides major irrigation in the southwestern part of the region. In the centre and the northwest, rainfall and snow are absorbed by the desert. The forested Greater Khingan Range in northeastern Inner Mongolia extends some 750 miles (1,200 km) north to south and has an average elevation of 4,100 feet (1,250 m). The seasons in Inner Mongolia are marked by sharp fluctuations in the climate. Winter is bitterly cold, with strong icy winds blowing out of Siberia. Rainfall is meagre. Mongols and Chinese compose the bulk of the population, which is unevenly distributed, with most of it concentrated in the agricultural southern belt near the Huang Ho. The three major urban population centres in the south are Pao-t'ou, a large steel and iron complex and the terminal of two major railways connecting Kansu province and Peking; Hohhot, a newly developed cultural and political centre; and Chi-ning, a commercial centre and the terminal of the Chi-ningErh-lien railway. Ch'ih-feng is a shipping point for pastoral products, as is T'ung-liao in the east and Hailar (Hai-la-erh) in the far northwest. Inner Mongolia's harsh climate severely restricts intensive agriculture. In some areas, particularly around the great bend of the Huang Ho, oats, spring wheat, liangkao (sorghum), millet, and other grains are cultivated. In irrigated areas crops of sugar beets and oilseeds are grown. There has been a good deal of industrial development in the region, especially around Pao-t'ou, which is one of the most significant industrial bases north of the Huang Ho. Inner Mongolia has extensive rail and highway networks. Inland-waterway navigation is limited, and there is some local air service. Area 454,600 square miles (1,177,500 square km). Pop. (1993 est.) 22,070,000.