Xihe Commandery ( zh, 西河郡) was a historical
commandery of China, located in modern northern
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 ...
and part of
Inner Mongolia
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 ...
. The name "Xihe" referred to a southward section in the middle reaches of the
Yellow River
The Yellow River or Huang He (Chinese: , Mandarin: ''Huáng hé'' ) is the second-longest river in China, after the Yangtze River, and the sixth-longest river system in the world at the estimated length of . Originating in the Bayan ...
.
The commandery was separated from
Shang Commandery in 125 BC. In 2 AD, there were 36 counties in the commandery, including Fuchang (富昌), Zouyu (騶虞), Huze (鵠澤), Pingding (平定), Meiji (美稷), Zhongyang (中陽), Lejie (樂街), Tujing (徒經), Gaolang (臯狼), Dacheng (大成), Guangtian (廣田), Huanyin (圜陰), Yilan (益闌), Pingzhou (平周), Hongmen (鴻門), Lin (藺), Xuanwu (宣武), Qianzhang (千章), Zengshan (增山), Huanyang (圜陽), Guangyan (廣衍), Wuche (武車), Humeng (虎猛), Lishi (離石), Guluo (穀羅), Rao (饒), Fangli (方利), Xicheng (隰成), Linshui (臨水), Tujun (土軍), Xidu (西都), Pinglu (平陸), Yinshan (陰山), Nishi (觬氏), Boling (博陵) and Yanguan (鹽官). The population in 2 AD was 698,836, in 136,396 households. By 140 AD, only 13 counties (Lishi, Pingding, Meiji, Lejie, Zhongyang, Gaolang, Pingzhou, Pinglu, Yilan, Huanyin, Lin, Huanyang, Guangyan) remained, and the population had decreased to 20,838, in 5,698 households. The region saw repeated nomadic raids toward the end of Han dynasty, and after the establishment of
, the northern part of the commandery was abandoned.
['']Book of Jin
The ''Book of Jin'' is an official Chinese historical text covering the history of the Jin dynasty from 266 to 420. It was compiled in 648 by a number of officials commissioned by the imperial court of the Tang dynasty, with chancellor Fang X ...
'', Chapter 14.
Xihe became a principality in
Western Jin
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
* Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
* Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that ...
dynasty. In 280 AD, Xihe had 4 counties, Lishi, Xicheng (隰城), Zhongyang and
Jiexiu
Jiexiu is a county-level city in the central part of Shanxi Province, China. It is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Jinzhong and is located in the latter's western confines. Notable sites in and around Jiexiu include M ...
(介休), with a population of 6,300 households.
The region was lost in the
Disaster of Yongjia
The Disaster of Yongjia () refers to an event in Chinese history that occurred in 311 CE (5th year of the ''Yongjia'' era of the reign of Emperor Huai of Jin, hence the name), when forces of the Xiongnu-led Han Zhao dynasty captured and sacke ...
. Under
Northern Wei, the commandery was reestablished in 484 AD, and included 3 counties (Xicheng, Jiexiu, Yong'an 永安) and a population of 5,388 households. It was eventually abolished in early
Sui dynasty.
During the
Sui and
Tang dynasties, Xihe Commandery became an alternative name for Fen Prefecture (汾州). In 741 AD, it administered 5 counties, namely Xihe (formerly Xicheng),
Xiaoyi
Xiaoyi () is a county-level city under the administration of Lüliang prefecture-level city, in Shanxi Province, China.
Xiaoyi was built by the State of Jin in 594 BC, named Guayang in Spring and Autumn period. It was renamed Zhongyang in Three ...
(formerly Yong'an), Jiexiu,
Pingyao and
Lingshi. The total population was 320,230, or 59,450 households.
['' New Book of Tang'', Chapter 39.]
References
{{Han dynasty provinces
Commanderies of the Han dynasty
Commanderies of the Jin dynasty (266–420)
Commanderies of the Sui dynasty
Commanderies of the Northern dynasties