Bairi Tibetan Autonomous County (), also known as Tianzhu from its Chinese name (), is in the prefecture-level city of Wuwei in the central part of Gansu province, China, bordering Qinghai province to the south and west. It has an area of and approximately 230,000 inhabitants (2003). Its administrative seat is Rabgyai Town (Huazangsi).
Name The Chinese name "Tianzhu" was named by a Tibetan lama Luo Haoxue (罗好学) in 1936, deriving from the combination of "Tiantang" (天堂寺, aka Chortentang Monastery) and "Zhugong" (祝贡寺, aka Drigung Monastery), the Chinese translation of the two largest lamaseries in the county.
The Tibetan name Bairi () is pronounced Bairi in Standard Tibetan, and pronounced Hwari in the local Amdo Tibetan and Huarui (华锐) in Chinese.
An alternative Tibetan name is Tenzhu (), which is a transcription of the Chinese name Tianzhu.
History The county was established as the Tianzhu District of Yongdeng County in 1949, but became an autonomous county of Wuwei in the next year. In 1955, Tianzhu was moved under the administration of Zhangye as the first autonomous county in China. Between 1958 and 1961, Gulang County was part of Tianzhu. In 1961 the county was placed under Wuwei again.
Administrative divisions Bairi Tibetan Autonomous County is divided to 14 towns, 5 townships.
Name Simplified Chinese Hanyu Pinyin Tibetan Wylie Administrative division codeTowns Rabgyai Town(Huazangsi) 620623100 Zhaxilung Town(Dachaigou) 620623101 Tawain Town(Anyuan) 620623102 Kêsangnyagkai Town(Tanshanling) 620623103 Pachi Town(Haxi) 620623104 Sêrzü Town(Saishisi) 620623105 Yarlung Town(Shimen) 620623106 Daglung Town(Songshan) 620623107 Qoidêntang Town(Tiantang) 620623108 Torxi Town(Duoshi) 620623109 Xamar Town(Xidatan) 620623110 Zhaxiquglung Town(Zhuaxixiulong) 620623111 Gyayag Town(Dahonggou) 620623112 Sabda'gyai Town(Qilian) 620623113Townships Dongpoin Township(Dongping) 620623201 Sêralung Township(Sailalong) 620623202 Gyiyangtang Township(Dongdatan) 620623203 Horxugkya Township(Maozang) 620623208 Dainma Township(Danma) 620623210
Others Tianzhu Building Material Factory () Tianzhu Coal and Electricity Company ()
Geography The county is mountainous, being located at the tripoint of the Tibet Plateau, the Loess Plateau and the Inner Mongolia Plateau, with elevations ranging from 2040 m to 4874 m. It is divided into the watersheds of the Shiyang River and the Yellow River and crossed by the Wushao Mountain. South of the Wushao Mountain, the climate is continental and north of it, the climate is semi-arid. The land is mostly covered by grasslands and forests.
Climate
Transport China National Highway 312 Lanzhou–Xinjiang Railway crosses the county, with a station (Tianzhu) in the county seat. With the construction of the Wushaoling Tunnel under the Wushao Mountain Range (Wushaoling), about the half of the section of the main track of this railway within this county is actually underground.
Ethnic groups in Tianzhu, 2000 census Nationality Population Percentage Han 139,190 62.88% Tibetan 66,125 29.87% Tu 12,633 5.71% Hui 1,986 0.9% Mongol 961 0.43% Manchu 213 0.1% Dongxiang 90 0.04% Uyghur 40 0.02% Miao 23 0.01% Others 86 0.04%
References
Further reading A. Gruschke: The Cultural Monuments of Tibet's Outer Provinces: Amdo - Volume 2. The Gansu and Sichuan Parts of Amdo, White Lotus Press, Bangkok 2001. Tsering Shakya: The Dragon in the Land of Snows. A History of Modern Tibet Since 1947, London 1999,