Nangqên County, or Nangchen (, ), is a county of the

Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture (, , retranscribed into Tibetan as ), also transliterated as Yüxü or Yulshul, is an autonomous prefecture Autonomous prefectures () are one type of autonomous administrative divisions of China, existing ...

and is the southernmost

county-level division The administrative divisions of China have consisted of several levels since ancient times, due to China's large population and geographical area. The constitution of China provides for three levels of government. However in practice, there a ...

Qinghai Qinghai (; alternately romanized as Tsinghai, Ch'inghai), also known as Kokonor, is a landlocked province in the northwest of the People's Republic of China. It is the fourth largest province of China by area and has the third smallest po ...

province, China, bordering the

Tibet Autonomous Region The Tibet Autonomous Region or Xizang Autonomous Region, often shortened to Tibet or Xizang, is a Provinces of China, province-level Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of the China, People's Republic of China in Southwest China. I ...

to the south. The county seat is Xangda (shor mda’ / zh, p=Xiāngdá Zhèn ), built in a side valley and on the right bank of the Dza Chu (upper reaches of the

Mekong The Mekong or Mekong River is a trans-boundary river in East Asia and Southeast Asia. It is the world's List of rivers by length, twelfth longest river and List of longest rivers of Asia, the third longest in Asia. Its estimated length is , ...

). In 2000, the county's population amounted to people, inhabiting a surface of .

History

The county's name is derived from the former king (''nang chen rgyal po'') and kingdom of Nangchen, a tribal confederation that emerged as a unified

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

kingdom in the 13th century. The present-day's county comprises the core area of the old kingdom of Nangchen. Memories of the kingdom of Nangchen play a role in local politics, and among Tibetan refugees who came to India from the area. Scholar Maria Turek reported that in 2015 she heard about “a man who went to various Tibetan communities in India, introducing himself as ‘the king of Nangchen’ not without some success, even though he had no credentials to prove his claim.” A Yelpa Kagyu monastery, Tana Monastery (Jang Tana), was founded by Yelpa Yeshe Tsek in 1068. It is considered a branch monastery of Tsurpu.Tana monastery, (towards) Ji'nyinsib, Qinghai, CN
Mapping Buddhist Monasteries, accessed August 5, 2017.

Climate

Transportation

China National Highway 214 China National Highway 214 (G214) runs from Xining, Qinghai to Jinghong, Yunnan. It is 3,256 kilometres in length and runs south from Xining towards Tibet, and ends in Yunnan Province. Route and distance See also * China National Highways ...

References

External links

Nangchen historic area

Religious life in Nangchen: Photo album
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nangqen County Amdo County-level divisions of Qinghai Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture