NORTH CHINA PLAIN

WadeGiles romanization Hua-pei P'ing-yan, Pinyin Huabei Pingyuan, also called Yellow Plain large alluvial plain of eastern Asia, built into the Yellow Sea by deposits of the Huang Ho (Yellow River) and a few other, comparatively minor rivers of eastern China. Covering an area of about 158,000 square miles (409,500 square km), most of which is less than 160 feet (50 m) above sea level, it is one of the most densely populated areas in the world and, since earliest history, has been a major focus of Chinese (Han) culture. It is bordered on the north by the Yen Mountains, on the west by the T'ai-hang Mountains and the Honan highlands, and on the southwest by the T'ung-pai and Ta-pieh mountains. To the south it merges into the Yangtze Plain. From northeast to southeast it fronts the Po Hai (Gulf of Chihli), the hills of Shantung Peninsula, and the Yellow Sea. Most of the rivers flow across the plain on elevated beds that are above the interstream regions. Throughout most of history, in about two years out of three, widespread flooding was common on the plain. After 1949, however, large-scale projects for flood control and irrigation were built. Wheat, cotton, sesame seed, peanuts (groundnuts), and tobacco are raised. Sea salt is sun-dried along the coast. Peking, the national capital, is located on the northwest edge of the plain, and Tientsin, an important industrial city and commercial port, is situated near the northeast coast. The Grand Canal, beginning at Peking, crosses the eastern part of the plain to the south and southeast.