The original place of the prefecture Xia 夏州 was northeast of modern Hengshan 橫山/Shaanxi. From there the Tangut empire of Western Xia expanded along the middle course of the Yellow River and the Gansu corridor 甘肅走廊. The territory of the Western Xia empire remained stable through the near 200 years of the Tangut rule. Capital was Xingqing 興慶 (modern Yinchuan 銀川/Ningxia; later called Zhongxing 中興). The local administration of the Western Xia empire was implemented by army superintendencies (junsi 軍司) with subordinated prefectures (zhou 州). There were four superior prefectures: Xingqing 興慶府, Xiping 西平府 (Lingzhou 靈州, modern Lingwu 靈武/Ningxia), Xiliang 西涼府 (Wuwei 武威/Gansu) and Xuanhua 宣化府 (Zhangyi 張掖/Gansu), and one military prefecture nearby: Xiangqing 祥慶軍 The 12 Western Xia army superintendencies were: army superintendency (junsi) modern location Youxiang-Chaoshun 右廂朝順軍司 Keyimen 克夷門, north of Shizuishan Zhan 石咀山/Ningxia Baima-Qiangzhen 白馬強震軍司 Loubobei 婁博貝, Jartai 吉蘭泰/Inner Mongolia Heishan-Weifu 黑山威福軍司 within Bayannur League 巴彥爾淖盟/Inner Mongolia Zuoxiang-Shenyong 左廂神勇軍司 SE of Yulin 榆林/Shaanxi Xiangyou 祥祐軍司 Shizhou 石州, W of Hengshan 橫山/Shaanxi Jianing 嘉寧軍司 Youzhou 宥州, Duiziliang 堆子梁/Shaanxi Jingsai 靜塞軍司 Weizhou 韋州/Ningxia Xishou-Baotai 西壽保泰軍司 SW of Zhongning 中寧/Ningxia Zhuoluo-Henan 卓囉軍司 N of Lanzhou 蘭州/Gansu Gansu 甘肅軍司 Xuanhua 宣化府, Zhangyi 張掖/Gansu Heishui-Zhenyan 黑水鎮燕軍司 Ejin Banner 額濟納旗 (Edzina, Edsina)/Gansu Xiping 西平軍司 Guazhou 瓜州, SE of Anxi 安西/Gansu At the end of the 12th century the Mongols united the various nomad tribes of the Gobi desert and the northern steppe. In 1209 and 1226 they attacked the Western Xia empire. As the western and southern neighbors of the Western Xia empire we find the Western Uighurs (Xizhou Huigu 西州回鶻) in the Tarim Basin 塔里木盆地 and the Yellow Head Uighurs (Huangtou Huigu 黃頭回鶻) in the Qaidam Basin 柴達木盆地. From 1228 on the western region was occupied by the Western Liao empire (Xiliao 西遼). About the geography of the Liao empire and later the Jin empire, see the corresponding page about Liao geography and Jin (Jurchen) geography.

Map and Geography Event History Emperors and Rulers Government and Administration Literature and Philosophy Religion (Song) Technology and Inventions Economy Arts