Research

Did you know the word Himalaya means “abode of snow”? In the Sanskrit language, “Hima” means snow and “Alaya” means abode. The Himalayas is the highest mountain system on earth. Mountains such as the Himalayas influenced China politically, culturally and economically. Throughout history, river valleys such as the Yangtze and Huang He valleys and their natural barriers known as the Gobi and Taklamakan Desert have played an important role in the development of Chinese culture and history.

Two major rivers that impacted China was the Yangtze and Yellow River. The longest man-made waterway is the Grand Canal. The Grand Canal linked the rivers Huang He and Yangtze together (Penn 313). The Yangtze is the largest river in China, and the fourth largest in the world (Hook and Twitchett). The Nile and Amazon River are the only two rivers longer (“Geography”). The Yangtze was very significant because it is one of the only rivers that can carry large amounts of water (“Yangtze River”). When the summer has a rainy season, the Yangtze floods into the lakes near it ("Yangtze River and Lakes"). Along the rivers are lots of animals such as the Tibetan antelopes and snow leopards. People used the Yangtze river for rice and wheat irrigation ("Spark View”). The Yangtze River helped make agriculture possible. Flooding lead to fertile soil which lead to an increase in crops. The second largest river in China is the Yellow River. The Yellow river floods a lot during the Summer. The flooding caused drowning, starvation, diseases and damaged crops. The flooding lead to approximately two million deaths. The Yellow River passes through the Great Wall. The Huang-He River got its name from the yellow silt left behind. During its dry months, the river is m...

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...tural barrier of China is the Taklamakan Desert. The Taklamakan is China's largest, driest, and hottest desert. The Silk Road passes through the Taklamakan Desert. The Silk Road played as a transportation route for the Chinese. It diffused trade and culture. ("Taklimakan Desert"). Crossing the Taklamakan is very dangerous and deadly because there is no water on this desert (Hruschka). This very sandy desert has extremely low temperatures in the winter. Sometimes the temperature reaches to negative twenty degrees celsius ("Gobitec"). The Gobi and Taklamakan deserts both isolate and protect China.

As described, China's geography had a positive and a negative impact on China. China’s land consists of mountains, deserts and river valleys that all influenced China. Chinas natural barriers also played an important role in the development of Chinese culture and history.