Autonomous prefectures () are one type of

autonomous administrative divisions of China Chinese autonomous administrative divisions are associated with one or more ethnic minorities in China, ethnic minorities that are designated as autonomous within the People's Republic of China. These areas are recognized in the Constitution of ...

, existing at the prefectural level, with either

ethnic minorities The term 'minority group' has different usages depending on the context. According to its common usage, a minority group can simply be understood in terms of demographic sizes within a population: i.e. a group in society with the least number o ...

forming over 50% of the population or being the historic home of significant minorities. All autonomous prefectures are mostly dominated, in population, by the

Han Chinese The Han Chinese () or Han people (), are an East Asian ethnic group native to China. They constitute the world's largest ethnic group, making up about 18% of the global population and consisting of various subgroups speaking distinctive va ...

. The official name of an autonomous prefecture includes the most

dominant minority A dominant minority, also called elite dominance is a minority group that has overwhelming political, economic, or cultural dominance in a country, despite representing a small fraction of the overall population (a demographic minority). Domi ...

in that region, sometimes two, rarely three. For example, a Kazakh (''Kazak'' in official naming system) prefecture may be called ''Kazak Zizhizhou''. Like all other prefectural level divisions, autonomous prefectures are divided into county level divisions. There is one exception:

Ili Kazak Autonomous Prefecture Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture ( kk, Іле Қазақ автономиялық облысы) (also as Yili) is an autonomous prefecture for Kazakh people in Northern Xinjiang, China, one of five autonomous prefectures in Xinjiang. Yining Cit ...

contains two prefectures of its own. Under the

Constitution of the People's Republic of China The Constitution of the People's Republic of China is the supreme law of the People's Republic of China. It was adopted by the 5th National People's Congress on December 4, 1982, with further revisions about every five years. It is the fou ...

, autonomous prefectures cannot be abolished.

Autonomous administrative divisions

The PRC's autonomous administrative divisions may be found in the first (or top) to third levels of its national

administrative division Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...

s thus:

List of autonomous prefectures

} (''Niepsha Nuosu Zytjiejux dde Zho'') , Xichang (Op Rro) city , - ,

Xinjiang Xinjiang, SASM/GNC: ''Xinjang''; zh, c=, p=Xīnjiāng; formerly romanized as Sinkiang (, ), officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (PRC), located in the northwest ...

Kizilsu Kizilsu (also as Kezilesu; ; ug, قىزىلسۇ قىرغىز ئاپتونوم ئوبلاستى; Kyrgyz: , , , ) is an autonomous prefecture of Kyrgyz people in the west of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China, bordering with Kyrgyzstan and ...

,
, Kyrgyz , Kyrgyz: (''Kızılsuu Kırgız avtonom oblastı'') ,

Artux Artux, Artush ( ug, ئاتۇش شەھىرى; ky, ارتىش, Артыш, Artysh), and officially rendered as Atuş ( zh, s=阿图什市, p=Ātúshí Shì),The official spelling according to is a county-level city and the capital of the Kyrgyz au ...

city , - ,

, Bortala ,
, Mongolian , Mongolian: (''Borotala mongγol ebereen zasaqu ǰuu'') , Bole (Bortala) city , - ,

, Changji ,
,

Hui The Hui people ( zh, c=, p=Huízú, w=Hui2-tsu2, Xiao'erjing: , dng, Хуэйзў, ) are an East Asian ethnoreligious group predominantly composed of Chinese-speaking adherents of Islam. They are distributed throughout China, mainly in the n ...

, (''The Hui speak

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

'')

Xiao'erjing Xiao'erjing or Xiao'erjin or Xiaor jin or in its shortened form, Xiaojing, literally meaning "children's script" or "minor script" (cf. "original script" referring to the original Perso-Arabic script; zh, s=本经, t=本經, p=Běnjīng, Xiao ...

: , Changji city , - ,

, Bayingolin ,
, Mongolian , Mongolian: (''Bayangol mongγol ebereen zasaqu ǰuu'') ,

Korla Korla,The official spelling according to also known as Kurla, United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency or from Mandarin Chinese as Ku'erle or Kuerle, is the second largest city in Xinjiang. It is a county-level city and the seat of ...

city , - ,

Ili Ili, ILI, Illi may refer to: Abbreviations * Irish Life International, part of Irish Life and Permanent * Intuitive Logical Introvert, a personality type in socionics * Influenza-like illness * Iran Language Institute, a state-owned, non-profit ...

( Altay)
(

Tacheng TachengThe official spelling according to (), as the official romanized name, also transliterated from Mongolian as Qoqak, is a county-level city (1994 est. pop. 56,400) and the administrative seat of Tacheng Prefecture, in northern Ili Kazakh A ...

) ,

()
()
()
() , Kazakh , Kazakh: (''İle Qazaq awtonomïyalıq oblısı'')
( Kazakh: ) (''Altay aymağı'')
( Kazakh: ) (''Tarbağatay aymağı'') , Yining (Ghulja) city
( Altay city)
(

city) , - ,

Yunnan Yunnan , () is a landlocked province in the southwest of the People's Republic of China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 48.3 million (as of 2018). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the C ...

Dehong The Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture is located in western Yunnan province, People's Republic of China, and is one of the eight autonomous prefectures of the province, bordering Baoshan to the east and Burma's Kachin State to the west. ...

,
, Dai and Jingpo , Tai Nüa - (''Sakhkung Sam Jinghpo Amyu Madu Uphkang Mungdo'')

Zaiwa Zaiwa (autonym: '; Tsaiwa, Tsaiva, 载瓦; Burmese: ဇိုင်ဝါး/အဇီး) is a Burmish language spoken in parts of southwest China and eastern Burma. There are around 100,000 speakers. It is also known as ''Atsi'', its name in ...

: ,

Mangshi Mangshi (; tdd, ᥝᥥᥒᥰ ᥛᥫᥒᥰ ᥑᥩᥢᥴ; Jingpho: Mangshi Myu), former name Luxi (), is a county-level city and the seat of Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture, western Yunnan province, China. Mangshi has an area of , wit ...

city , - ,

, Nujiang ,
,

Lisu Lisu may refer to: *Lisu people, an ethnic group of Southeast Asia *Lisu language, spoken by the Lisu people * Old Lisu Alphabet or Fraser Alphabet *Lisu syllabary * Lisu (Unicode block), the block of Unicode characters for the Lisu language. *Lisu ...

: ꓠꓳ-ꓟꓵ ꓡꓲ-ꓢꓴ ꓫꓵꓽ ꓚꓲꓸ ꓛꓬꓽ ꓗꓪꓼ ꓫꓵꓽ ꓝꓳꓴ (''Nolmut lisu shit jilqait guatshit zhou'') ,

Lushui Lushui () is a county-level city in and the seat of Nujiang Prefecture, western Yunnan Province, China. It borders Myanmar's Kachin State to the west and occupies the southern fifth of Nujiang Prefecture. Administrative divisions Lushui City has ...

city , - ,

, Dêqên (Diqing) ,
,

Tibetan Tibetan may mean: * of, from, or related to Tibet * Tibetan people, an ethnic group * Tibetan language: ** Classical Tibetan, the classical language used also as a contemporary written standard ** Standard Tibetan, the most widely used spoken dial ...

: (''Bde-chen Bod-rigs rang-skyong khul'') ,

Shangri-La Shangri-La is a fictional place in Asia's Kunlun Mountains (昆仑山), Uses the spelling 'Kuen-Lun'. described in the 1933 novel '' Lost Horizon'' by English author James Hilton. Hilton portrays Shangri-La as a mystical, harmonious valley, ...

city , - ,

, Dali ,
, Bai , Bai: Darl•lit Baif•cuf zirl•zirl•zox , Dali city , - ,

, Chuxiong ,
, Yi , ii, ꀒꇐꆈꌠꊨꏦꏱꅉꍏ (''Olu Nuosu Zytjiejux dde Zho'') , Chuxiong city , - ,

, Honghe ,
, Hani and Yi , Hani: Haoqhoq Haqniqssaq Haqhholssaq Ziiqziifzel
ii, ꉼꉻꆈꌠꊨꏦꏱꅉꍏ (''Hopho Nuosu Zytjiejux dde Zho'') , Mengzi city , - ,

, Wenshan ,
, Zhuang and

Miao Miao may refer to: * Miao people, linguistically and culturally related group of people, recognized as such by the government of the People's Republic of China * Miao script or Pollard script, writing system used for Miao languages * Miao (Unicode ...

, za, Munzsanh Bouxcuengh Myauzcuz Swcicouh

Hmong Hmong may refer to: * Hmong people, an ethnic group living mainly in Southwest China, Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand * Hmong cuisine * Hmong customs and culture ** Hmong music ** Hmong textile art * Hmong language, a continuum of closely related to ...

: Veej Sa Tsuaam Txhwj Mioj Txhwj Txim Tsim Tsawb , Wenshan city , - ,

, Xishuangbanna (Sibsongbanna) ,
, Dai , khb, ᦈᦹᧈ ᦈᦹᧈ ᦵᦋᦲᧁᧈ ᦘᦱ ᦉᦱ ᦺᦑ ᧑᧒ ᦗᧃ ᦓᦱ ,

Jinghong Jinghong (; khb, ᨩ᩠ᨿᨦᩁᩩ᩵ᨦ; th, เชียงรุ่ง, , ; lo, ຊຽງຮຸ່ງ; also formerly romanised as ''Chiang Hung'', ''Chengrung'', ''Cheng Hung'', Jeng Hung, ''Jinghung'', ''Keng Hung'', ''Kiang Hung'' and ' ...

city

Ethnic composition of autonomous prefectures

:Note: * - denotes as the second titular ethnic group

Former autonomous prefectures of China

Hainan Li and Miao Autonomous Prefecture Hainan Li-Miao Autonomous Prefecture () (1952–1988) was an autonomous prefecture in Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China. It was located on Hainan Island. The area now belongs to Hainan Province which was created in 1988. See also

...

(1952–1988) in

Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020) ...

, abolished because of the establishment of Hainan Province. * Hedong Hui Autonomous Prefecture (1954–1955) in Gansu, later changed name as Wuzhong Hui Autonomous Prefecture (1955–1958), abolished because of the establishment of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. * Xihaigu Hui Autonomous Prefecture (1953–1955) in Gansu, later changed name as Guyuan Hui Autonomous Prefecture (1955–1958), abolished because of the establishment of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. * Guixi Zhuang Autonomous Prefecture (sub-provincial level, 1953–1955) in Guangxi Province, abolished because of the establishment of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. * Bayinhot Mongol Autonomous Prefecture (1954–1956) in Gansu, included today's Dengkou County and Alxa League. The autonomy abolished after it merged into

Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Inner Mongolia, officially the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. Its border includes most of the length of China's border with the country of Mongolia. Inner Mongolia also accounts for a ...

Administrative prefecture level units with a population of 30% or more of ethnic minorities

:Excluding prefecture level units of autonomous regions in 2000. * Hebei:

Chengde Chengde, formerly known as Jehol and Rehe, is a prefecture-level city in Hebei province, situated about 225 km northeast of Beijing. It is best known as the site of the Mountain Resort, a vast imperial garden and palace formerly used by ...

(Han - 55.32%, Manchu - 39.87%) * Liaoning:

Benxi Benxi (, ) is a prefecture-level city located in the east of Liaoning province, People's Republic of China, south-southeast of the provincial capital Shenyang. As of the 2020 census, its population was 1,326,018 (1,709,538 in 2010) whom 809,655 ...

(Han - 66.84%, Manchu - 30.22%), Dandong(Han - 64.11%, Manchu - 32.99%) * Hunan:

Zhangjiajie Zhangjiajie (), also known in Tujia language as ''Zhangx jif avlar'' /dzaŋ˩ ji˥ a˩.la˥/, is a prefecture-level city in the northwestern part of Hunan Province, China. It comprises the district of Yongding, Wulingyuan and counties of Cili ...

(Tujia - 68.40%, Han - 22.81%),

Huaihua Huaihua () is a prefecture-level city in the southwest of Hunan province, China. It covers and is bordered by Xiangxi to the northwest, Zhangjiajie and Changde to the north, Yiyang, Loudi and Shaoyang to the east, Guilin and Liuzhou of Guang ...

(Han - 61.33%, Dong - 17.42%, Miao - 15.63%) * Guizhou:

Anshun Anshun () is a prefecture-level city located in southwestern Guizhou province, southwest China, near the Huangguoshu Waterfall, the tallest in China. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 2,297,339. The city proper had a population o ...

(Han - 61.6%, Buyei - 16.92%, Miao - 14.27%),

Tongren Tongren () is a prefecture-level city in eastern Guizhou province, People's Republic of China, located within a tobacco planting and crop agricultural area. Tongren was known as Tongren Prefecture () until November 2011, when it was converted into ...

(Tujia - 37.81%, Han - 31.76%, Miao - 14.87%, Dong - 11.41%) * Yunnan:

Yuxi Yuxi () is a prefecture-level city in the central part of Yunnan province of the People's Republic of China. The administrative center of Yuxi is Hongta District. Yuxi is approximately south of Kunming. Geography Yuxi is located in the center ...

(Han - 68,18%, Yi - 19,32%), Pu'er (Han - 40,92%, Hani - 16,98%, Yi - 16.58%, Lahu - 11.47%),

Lijiang Lijiang (), also known as Likiang, is a prefecture-level city in the northwest of Yunnan Province, China. It has an area of and had a population of 1,253,878 at the 2020 census whom 288,787 lived in the built-up area (metro) made of Gucheng ...

(Han - 42.71%, Nakhi 20.51%, Yi - 18.68%, Lisu - 9.62%),

Lincang Lincang () is a prefecture-level city located in the southwest of Yunnan province, People's Republic of China. History Lincang was previously called Baihuai during the Shang dynasty. On December 26, 2003, the state council approved the cancell ...

(Han - 61.22%, Dai - 15.77%, Lahu and Va - 9.76%) * Qinghai:

Haidong Haidong (; Wylie: Haitung) is a prefecture-level city of Qinghai province in Western China. Its name literally means "east of the (Qinghai) Lake." On 8 February 2013 Haidong was upgraded from a prefecture () into a prefecture-level city. Haido ...

(Han - 56.33%, Hui - 20.38%, Tibetan - 9.2%, Tu - 8.06%)

External links

Regional Autonomy for Ethnic Minorities in China
{{Terms for types of country subdivisions

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...