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 area, and is usually highe ...

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 surrounde ...

in Shanxi,

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, and 0 ...

provinces. The range extends over from north to south and has an average elevation of . The principal peak is Mount Xiaowutai (). The Taihang's eastern peak is Mount Cangyan in Hebei; Baishi Mountain forms its northern tip. The Taihang Mountains were formed during the

Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a geologic period and 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 Jurassic constitutes the middle period of ...

. Brown forest and cinnamon soils are found here. The name of

Shanxi Province 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-level ...

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

, but by the

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdom ...

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 (). Th ...

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, at ...

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 Ta ...

, 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