By Abigail Nutland, Sophia Poon, Sonia Poon, Joyce Xu, Rae lau & Viki Yang

Why is Shaanxi so Important to Chinese history?

Shaanxi is important to Chinese history because the northern parts of Shaanxi (especially near the Wei River valley) were one of the earliest settlements of China. There are Neolithic Yangshao culture sites which are found a lot from Gansu to Henan. The Chinese Neolithic culture was first developed in the Wei River valley. They were once abandoned by the Chang’an and no dynasty ever capitalized Shaanxi ever again. This definitely put Shaanxi to the poorest and most backward Chinese province. Shaanxi was once under the rule of the Mongols. This was called the Yuan dynasty. - Sonia Poon

What happened during the dynasty that had a major impact on the economy?

Throughout 1949, there was a period of soil erosion (soil erosion is where the topsoil is blown away or washed away. This is a problem because the topsoil is where most of the nutrients are to help plants grow.) This caused a major impact in the economy because they would use the crops to trade or to keep for themselves. Later on, China became a major coal and iron supplier. This helped to improve the technology in China and also helped their economy by letting them trade more with other countries. Shaanxi also manufactured lots of ingot steel, pig iron, and finished steel products. They were also able to make heavy machinery, industrial chemicals, chemical fertilizers, cement, paper, textiles, milled flour, and wine. This helped increase their exports, bringing China a large amount of wealth. - Sophia Poon

What modern-day tourist attractions are there that have an impact on the economy?

In Shaanxi, there are many tourist attractions including the famous terracotta warriors, many temples and museums. The terracotta warriors are estimated to be worth around 4.5 million US dollars and around 1 million tourists visit each year. One of the many museums located in the area is the Baoji Bronze Ware Museum. Bronze is very important to Chinese history because the Shang dynasty is known for their bronze work. The Shang dynasty is also known as the bronze age of China. There is also the Hukou waterfall along the Yellow River, it resides on the border of Shaanxi and Shanxi and is the second largest waterfall in china. Some other famous attractions are the Huaqing Palace and the Tang Bo Art Museum. All of these attractions contribute to Shaanxi’s economy in a positive way. - Abigail Nutland

How did Shaanxi develop its economy?

Joyce) How did Shaanxi develop its economy?
They started doing business in the mid-19th centuries, they started exporting goods, the business people in Shaanxi are usually involved with Guangzhou loan businesses. Shaanxi usually imported European goods then. The biggest two parts of the industries in Shaanxi are the fossil fuel and high technology sectors. In 2009, the province was ranked third in China for producing coal, natural gas, and crude oil. Shaanxi also makes a big contribution to Chinese aircraft and aerospace industries. In 2005 the total output number in Shaanxi was 367.475 billion yuan.and In 2017, due to the Shannxi provincial government, the Shaanxi FTZ(free trade zone) has improved in its an investment, cultural exchange, modern agriculture. - Joyce Xu

What are Shaanxi’s natural resources and industries?

Natural resources: coal, non-ferrous metals, building materials, precious metals, petroleum and natural gases.
In 2005, the total export value was $ 3.076 billion
It was the starting point of the Silk Road
The basin in the north of the province has one of the largest coal reserves in China, second only to that in Shanxi
Most of their electricity is generated by thermal power plants, but the number of hydropower plants has increased in recent years
Sectors in the region: cotton, textiles, electrical appliances, mechanical engineering and chemical industry as well as iron and steel production.
In the mid-1970s, they opened a large aircraft factory that produces aircraft for civil and military transportation. Most aircraft are based on Soviet technology.
It later merged with the Xi'an Aircraft Industrial Corporation, which then produces military aircraft.
The production of consumer goods was emphasized
There is an important cement plant near TongChuan
The Qin Mountains contain some smaller gold production areas in the west as well as some smaller deposits of manganese and other minerals. Shaanxi also has significant deposits of rhenium, strontium, molybdenum, graphite, zeolite, limestone and barite. There are 27 mineral products whose reserves are the top 3 and 54 the top 10 reserves across the country. - Rae Lau

What was Shaan xi’s main export to the world and what is their main export now?

Shaanxi has abundant reserves of coal, natural gas, petroleum, salt, and other non-metal minerals. Shenmu and Fugu are major production bases of fine quality coal in China. Together with its rich metallic and non-metallic mineral reserves, Shaanxi’s estimated reserves of mineral resources ranked first in the nation.
In 2017, Shaanxi’s R&D expenditure reached RMB46 billion, accounting for 2.10% of its GDP. With more than 200,000 personnel engaged in scientific and technological activities, it is an important scientific research and production base in China’s aviation, spaceflight, and electronics.
Xi’an, Shaanxi’s capital city, is China’s ancient capital with abundant cultural and historical assets. With the majority of the province’s software enterprises, it now has become an IT powerhouse.
Shaanxi’s development targets have been focused on 4 sectors: equipment manufacturing, high-tech industries, energy and chemicals and traditional industries (notably food processing). (Shaanxi, 2020) - Viki Yang

Citations

(Sonia)

"Shaanxi - History". Encyclopedia Britannica, 2020, https://www.britannica.com/place/Shaanxi/History.

"Shaanxi (Province, China)". Encyclopedia Britannica, 2020, https://www.britannica.com/place/Shaanxi/images-videos.

(Rae)

"Doing Business In Shaanxi Province Of China". English.Mofcom.Gov.Cn, 2020, http://english.mofcom.gov.cn/aroundchina/Shaanxi.shtml.

"Terracotta Warriors | The First Qin Emperor Of China (Article) | Khan Academy". Khan Academy, 2020, https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/south-east-se-asia/china-art/a/terracotta-warriors-from-the-mausoleum-of-the-first-qin-emperor-of-china.

"Shaanxi - Resources And Power". Encyclopedia Britannica, 2020, https://www.britannica.com/place/Shaanxi/Resources-and-power.

(Abigail)

"Search Results: Shaanxi - Tripadvisor". En.Tripadvisor.Com.Hk, https://en.tripadvisor.com.hk/Search?q=Shaanxi&searchSessionId=F2726560DC01ED4A3E05073447E1229E1585797981160ssid&searchNearby=false&sid=CACFF5CBA5AF4D4A36BF12C5A7C718691585797986665&blockRedirect=true.

https://www.google.com/travel/guide?dest_src=yts&tcfs=EgsKCS9tLzAxNGNscg&dest_mid=%2Fm%2F014clr&hl=en-GB&gl=us. Accessed 27 Mar 2020.

"Terracotta Warriors, Terracotta Army China, Xian Terracotta Warriors Tours, Terra Cotta Soldiders, Terracotta Warriors Photos, Pictures, Reviews Of Terracotta Warriors Tour". Chinatourguide.Com, http://www.chinatourguide.com/xian/terracotta_warriors.html.

Metmuseum.Org, https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/shzh/hd_shzh.htm.

{Viki}

Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia. 2020. Shaanxi. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shaanxi#Shaanxi_Xi'an_Export_Processing_Zone> [Accessed 21 April 2020].

(Sophia)

https://www.britannica.com/place/Shanxi/Economy

(Joyce)

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/201905/24/WS5ce75745a3104842260bd962.html