Shaanxi is a first-level division of China, in Asia. Its mapped cities centre on 34.6944° N, 108.9437° E.

What is the largest city in Shaanxi?

Xian is the largest city mapped in Shaanxi, with a metropolitan population of about 4.01 million.

How many cities are in Shaanxi?

YearMaps maps 10 cities and towns in Shaanxi, with a combined metropolitan population of about 8.12 million. This counts mapped settlements, not every municipality.

What is the highest mountain in Shaanxi?

The highest summit mapped in Shaanxi is Taibai Shan at 3,767 m.

Shaanxi Map — Cities & Geography, China

Interactive Map of Shaanxi

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About Shaanxi

Shaanxi is a province in Northwestern China. It borders the province-level divisions of Inner Mongolia to the north; Shanxi and Henan to the east; Hubei, Chongqing, and Sichuan to the south; and Gansu and Ningxia to the west.

Shaanxi covers an area of over 205,000 km2 (79,000 sq mi) with about 37 million people, the 16th-largest in China. Xi'an, which includes the sites of the former capitals Fenghao and Chang'an, is the provincial capital and largest city in Northwest China and also one of the oldest cities in China. It is also the oldest of the Four Ancient Capitals, being the capital for the Western Zhou, Western Han, Jin, Sui and Tang dynasties. Xianyang, which served as the capital of the Qin dynasty (221–206 BC), is just north across the Wei River. The other prefecture-level cities into which the province is divided are Ankang, Baoji, Hanzhong, Shangluo, Tongchuan, Weinan, Yan'an and Yulin.

The province is geographically divided into three parts, namely Northern (or "Shaanbei"), Central ("Shaanzhong") and Southern Shaanxi (or "Shaannan"). Northern Shaanxi makes up the southeastern portion of the Ordos Basin and mainly comprises the two prefectural cities of Yulin and Yan'an on the northern Loess Plateau, demarcated from the Ordos Desert and the grasslands of Inner Mongolia's Ordos City by the Ming Great Wall. Central Shaanxi is also known as the Guanzhong region, and comprises the drainage basin of lower Wei River east of Mount Liupan and north of the Qinling Mountains, where the majority of Shaanxi's population reside. Southern Shaanxi comprises the three prefectural cities in the edge of the historical Bashu region south of the Qinling Mountains and includes the three mountainous cities of Hanzhong, Ankang and Shangluo.

The area comprising Shaanxi, Shanxi, and Henan formed the cradle of Chinese civilization.

Summary adapted from Wikipedia: Shaanxi (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Shaanxi in Depth

History

Shaanxi is considered one of the cradles of Chinese civilization. Thirteen feudal dynasties established their capitals in the province during a span of more than 1,100 years, from the Zhou dynasty to the Tang dynasty.

The province's principal city and current capital, Xi'an, is one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the Silk Road, which leads to Europe, the Arabian Peninsula, and Africa.

The region was briefly governed as the Three Qins after the fall of the Qin dynasty. This is the origin of one of Shaanxi's two abbreviations, 秦 (Qin), the other being 陝 (Shaan). Then it was conquered by Liu Bang during the Chu-Han Contention. Under the Han dynasty, the Northern Silk Road was expanded to advance exploration and military purposes to the west.

Geography

The geography of the area is described as being part of the Ordos Desert in the north along the border with Inner Mongolia, the Loess Plateau in the central part of the province, the Qin Mountains (Qinling) running east to west in the south central part, and subtropical climate south of the Qinling. In between the Loess Plateau and the Qinling lies the Wei River Valley, or Guanzhong, a cradle of early Chinese civilization.

Going clockwise, Shaanxi borders Shanxi (E, NE), Henan (E), Hubei (SE), Chongqing (S), Sichuan (SW), Gansu (W), Ningxia (NW), and Inner Mongolia (N). In terms of number of bordering provincial-level divisions, Shaanxi ties Inner Mongolia.

Due to its large span in latitude, Shaanxi has a variety of climates.

Economy

As of the mid-19th century, Shaanxi exported animal skins, wine, liquor, and musk. Money loans were also common, with Shaanxi business people involved in the Guangzhou loan business. Shaanxi commonly imported European animal skins, watches, Chinese language books, and cloth.

Shaanxi was a major recipient of China's investment in industrial capacity during the Third Front campaign.

The fossil fuel and high technology sectors compose the two largest industries in Shaanxi province. During 2009, the province ranked third in China for production of coal, natural gas and crude oil.

Demographics

Nearly all the people in Shaanxi are ethnic Han Chinese, with pockets of Hui population in the northwestern region (adjacent to Ningxia). Shaanxi province is one of the centers of ancient Chinese civilization. The central part of Shaanxi, known as Guanzhong, where the provincial capital Xi'an is located, is more populous compared to the others (Shaannan and Shaanbei).

The predominant religions in Shaanxi are Chinese folk religions, Taoist traditions and Chinese Buddhism. According to surveys conducted in 2007 and 2009, 7.58% of the population believes and is involved in ancestor veneration, while 1.57% of the population identifies as Christian.

Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Shaanxi (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Shaanxi: Key Facts

Key facts about Shaanxi
Population	39,528,999 (2020)
Area	205,800 km²
Capital	Xi'an
Head of government	Zhao Gang
Highest point	Mount Taibai

Facts from Wikidata Q47974 (CC0).

History of Shaanxi: Empires and States

The atlas records 46 polities whose mapped territory included part of Shaanxi, from Zhou Dynasty in 1000 BCE to 2024 CE. They are listed in the order they first appear.

Polities that held Shaanxi, in chronological order
Polity	Period here
Zhou Dynasty	1000–751 BCE
Spring and Autumn States	750–481 BCE
Qin	750–219 BCE
Warring States China	480–219 BCE
Qin Dynasty	218–209 BCE
The Han Dynasty	202 BCE – 223 CE
Xin Dynasty	6–29 CE
Cao Cao	215–223 CE
Shu Han	224–262 CE
Cao Wei	224–264 CE
Western Jin	265–425 CE
Former Zhao	306–336 CE
Cheng Han	306–346 CE
Later Zhao	337–352 CE
Former Qin	353–393 CE
Later Qin	394–416 CE
Xia	426–438 CE
Liu Song Dynasty	426–479 CE
Northern Wei	439–533 CE
Southern Qi	480–509 CE
Liang Dynasty	510–535 CE
Western Wei	534–560 CE
Northern Zhou	561–586 CE
Sui Dynasty	587–622 CE
The Tang Dynasty	623–910 CE
Former Shu	911–925 CE
Later Liang Dynasty	911–925 CE
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms	911–969 CE
Later Tang	926–935 CE
Later Jin	936–946 CE
Later Shu	936–969 CE
Later Han	947–959 CE
Northern Song	961–1138 CE
The Song Dynasty	961–1259 CE
Vassalage of Western Xia to Great Jin	1139–1226 CE
Great Jin	1139–1235 CE
Southern Song	1139–1259 CE
The Mongol Empire	1236–1293 CE
Yuan Dynasty	1294–1374 CE
The Ming Dynasty	1375–1644 CE

Also recorded: Li Zicheng, The Qing Dynasty, Southern Ming, Republic of China, Kuomintang, People's Republic of China.

Historical Maps of Shaanxi

Shaanxi on the world map in each year one of these states held it:

Derived by testing mapped cities against dated territorial polygons. Dates are when the polygons cover this place, not the polity's whole lifespan, and polities absent from the source dataset are not listed.

Visiting Shaanxi

Shaanxi (陕西; Shǎnxī), pronounced roughly Shahn-see, is a north-central province of China, and includes portions of the Loess Plateau on the middle reaches of the Yellow River as well as the Qinling Mountains across the southern part of the province.

Travel notes adapted from Wikivoyage: Shaanxi (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Largest Cities in Shaanxi

10 cities mapped. Ranked by metropolitan population. A port city's harbour is written up on the page of its sea.

Largest Cities in Shaanxi
#	Name	Population	Region	Role
1	Xian	4.01 million	Shaanxi	Populated place
2	Xianyang	1.13 million	Shaanxi	Populated place
3	Ankang	1.10 million	Shaanxi	Populated place
4	Baoji	800,000	Shaanxi	Populated place
5	Tongchuan	282,258	Shaanxi	Populated place
6	Hancheng	222,135	Shaanxi	Populated place
7	Weinan	172,321	Shaanxi	Populated place
8	Yulin	155,960	Shaanxi	Populated place
9	Hanzhong	145,986	Shaanxi	Populated place
10	Dali	109,696	Shaanxi	Populated place

Highest Mountains in Shaanxi

3 mountains mapped. Ranked by summit elevation above sea level. A summit on a border is listed under both countries. Assigned by the nearest mapped city, so features near the boundary may belong to a neighbouring division.

Highest Mountains in Shaanxi
#	Name	Elevation	Feet	Region
1	Taibai Shan	3,767 m	12,359 ft	Asia
2	Daba Shan	2,708 m	8,885 ft	Asia
3	Hua Shan	2,130 m	6,988 ft	Asia

UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Shaanxi

2 World Heritage Sites mapped. Listed by year of inscription, earliest first. Sites shared with another country appear under each. Assigned by the nearest mapped city, so features near the boundary may belong to a neighbouring division.

UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Shaanxi
#	Name	Inscribed	Type	Criteria
1	Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor	1987	Cultural	(i) (iii) (iv) (vi)
2	Silk Roads: the Routes Network of Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor	2014	Cultural	(ii) (iii) (v) (vi)

Shaanxi: Quick Answers

Where is Shaanxi?: Shaanxi is a first-level division of China, in Asia. Its mapped cities centre on 34.6944° N, 108.9437° E.
What is the largest city in Shaanxi?: Xian is the largest city mapped in Shaanxi, with a metropolitan population of about 4.01 million.
How many cities are in Shaanxi?: YearMaps maps 10 cities and towns in Shaanxi, with a combined metropolitan population of about 8.12 million. This counts mapped settlements, not every municipality.
What is the highest mountain in Shaanxi?: The highest summit mapped in Shaanxi is Taibai Shan at 3,767 m.