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How does geography impact China? China Geography Main Idea: The greatly impacted its development. China Geography The land of China is part of a vast that is today called mainland East . China is located on the of Asia. Today, this area includes the countries of China, , North and . China Geography

Although we will be studying China over a span of , we will be focusing on Imperial China, which means the time period in which China was ruled by an emperor. The geography of had a dramatic effect on the China is considered a land settlement of China. Words of contrasts because the like highest, longest, and weather can vary from ice largest come to mind when storms to sandstorms, from describing China’s freezing temperatures to hot geography. temperatures. China has several extreme locations, such as those near the towering Himalaya mountains or the dry Gobi . As a result, few people settled there. Areas closer to the were the real population centers of China.

Find the , the Huang He (Yellow ), and the Chang Jiang ( River). This is where Chinese began. People could grow food here, transportation was easy, and trade flourished. The busting market led to the growth of cities. Several emperors were able to expand China’s borders to the west and south; however, other directions were blocked due to geographic features. Overall, China was able to protect itself behind its , mountains, and , easily cutting itself off from the . These natural barriers, or barriers that appear naturally through geography, greatly impacted Chinese civilization.

Despite these barriers and challenges, China eventually unites, calling their homeland “The Middle Kingdom” because to them, it was the world’s center. China’s Geographic Features

You should have the following 14 features labeled on your map Taklimakan Desert Mountains Mt. Everest Tibetan Yellow Sea Mongolia Yangtze River Korean Peninsula Himalaya Mountains Shan Mountains

Taklimakan Desert

Considered one Covers about of the most 105,000 miles dangerous deserts in the world

It’s name means “once you go in, Has little you will not come vegetation out”

Known for its sandstorms Taklimakan Desert Taklimakan Desert

Taklimakan Desert Gobi Desert

Covers over 500,000 miles

One of the world’s largest deserts

Covers parts of China and Mongolia

Few , mostly small pebbles Gobi Desert

Gobi Desert

“The ”- high elevation

Rocky land surrounded by towering mountains

Himalayas make up the southern edge of the plateau

Two of China’s major begin here Tibetan Plateau Tibetan Plateau North China Plain

“Land of the Yellow ”- Flat region ground is covered of in yellow limestone silt

This is where Grassy Chinese and fertile civilization began North China Plain North China Plain Huang He (Yellow River)

Its name comes Flows for more from the yellow than 2900 miles it carries

“China’s were good Sorrow”- because also because it it flooded, killing left behind rich many soil Huang He (Yellow River)

Chang Jiang (Yangtze River)

Flows for about 3400 miles

Empties into the

Provides rich soil for farming Chang Jiang (Yangtze River) Chang Jiang (Yangtze River) Chang Jiang (Yangtze River)