The Taihang Mountains () are a Chinese

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited Summit (topography), summit area, and ...

range running down the eastern edge of the

Loess Plateau The Chinese Loess Plateau, or simply the Loess Plateau, is a plateau in north-central China formed of loess, a clastic silt-like sediment formed by the accumulation of wind-blown dust. It is located southeast of the Gobi Desert and is surroun ...

Shanxi Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-lev ...

Henan Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...

and

Hebei Hebei or , (; alternately Hopeh) is a northern province of China. Hebei is China's sixth most populous province, with over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital city. The province is 96% Han Chinese, 3% Manchu, 0.8% Hui, an ...

provinces. The range extends over from north to south and has an average elevation of . The principal peak is

Mount Xiaowutai Mount Xiaowutai () is a mountain located in Yu County in the northwest of the province of Hebei, China. With an altitude of , it is the highest point in Hebei and the Taihang Mountains The Taihang Mountains () are a Chinese mountain range ru ...

(). The Taihang's eastern peak is

Mount Cangyan Mount Cangyan () is a scenic area in Jingxing County, Hebei Province, China, famous for its combination of natural mountain scenery with historical man-made structures. It is located approximately southwest of the provincial capital Shijiazhu ...

in Hebei;

Baishi Mountain __NOTOC__ Baishi Mountain, also known by its Chinese name Baishishan, is a mountain in Laiyuan County, Baoding Prefecture, Hebei Province, China. Its highest peak has an elevation of and its main ridge stretches for over .. Parts of the Great W ...

forms its northern tip. The Taihang Mountains were formed during the

Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately Mya. The J ...

. Brown forest and

cinnamon Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus ''Cinnamomum''. Cinnamon is used mainly as an aromatic condiment and flavouring additive in a wide variety of cuisines, sweet and savoury dishes, breakfa ...

soils are found here. The name of

Shanxi Province Shanxi (; ; Chinese postal romanization, formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked Provinces of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is ...

, meaning "west of the mountains", derives from its location west of the Taihang Mountains. The name of

Shandong Province Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizatio ...

(east of the mountains) originally applied to the area east of the

Xiao Mountains Mount Xiao or Mount Yao () is a range of mountains in western Henan, China north of the Luo River and south of Sanmenxia. Major peaks include Qīnggǎngfēng (青崗峰; 1903 m) and Guānyúnshān (冠雲山; 1666 m). The range is par ...

, but by the

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...

it refers to the area east of the Taihang Mountains; this entity evolved into the modern-day Shandong Province, though the actual border of the province has moved considerably to the east. The Hai River system runs through the Taihang Mountains. The

Red Flag Canal The Red Flag Canal () is an irrigation canal located northwest of Anyang in the northern extremity of Henan, China. Geographic location The canal begins close to the border of Henan and Shanxi. It diverts water from the Zhang River (). The Z ...

is located on the south edge of the Taihang Mountains. The

Shijiazhuang–Taiyuan high-speed railway The Shijiazhuang–Taiyuan high-speed railway, or the Shitai passenger railway () is a high-speed railway operated by China Railway High-speed, running from Shijiazhuang to Taiyuan, respectively the provincial capitals of Hebei and Shanxi, a ...

crosses under the Taihang Mountains via the

Taihang Tunnel Taihang Tunnel () is the third-longest mountain railway tunnel in northern China, after the New Guanjiao and West Qinling tunnels. It is a double track tunnel that was built to allow the Shijiazhuang–Taiyuan high-speed railway to cross the T ...

, which, at almost , is the third longest railway tunnel in China. Taihang Mountains 太行山 - panoramio

References

Many references to this range in “Fanshen” by William Hinton, with their significance in the Chinese Socialist revolution.

External links

* Mountain ranges of China Landforms of Hebei Landforms of Henan Mountain ranges of Shanxi North China Plain {{PRChina-geo-stub

See also

References

External links