Abstract
There are 56 officially-recognized ethnic groups in China. However, the distinct geographic patterns of various ethnic groups in relation to the physical environment in China have rarely been investigated. Based on the geo-referenced physical environmental parameters of 455 Han, Tu, Hui, Salar, Mongolian, and Tibetan communities in Qinghai, we found that the communities could be statistically demarcated by temperature and aridity threshold according to their ethnicity, implying that the geographic distribution of each ethnic group is mediated by the physical environment. We also observed that the habitat of each ethnic group is ecologically compatible with current subsistence strategies. Tibetans settle in cold and humid high-altitude regions owing to the cultivation of highland barley and the breeding of yak, dzo, Tibetan sheep and Tibetan goat. Mongolians survive by animal husbandry in cold and dry grassland areas. Han and Tu people settle in the Huangshui River Valley, which offers relatively humid climate and flat land for agriculture. Hui and Salar people occupy the Yellow River Valley with its relatively arid environment and grassland vegetation suitable for animal breeding. Our findings offer a new perspective in explaining the geographic patterns and the varieties of ethnic groups in China and elsewhere.
Highlights
The environment of the Tibetan Plateau, with its high altitude, low temperatures, and lower availability of oxygen, makes it an arduous place for human habitation
Tibetan communities are mostly concentrated in Huangnan, as well as Hainan and Golog Tibetan Autonomous Prefectures in the Yellow River Basin, Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in the Yangtze headwater region, and the eastern margin of Haixi Mongolian-Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in eastern Qaidam Basin (Fig. 2a)
The distribution of Mongolian communities is dispersed, and small clusters are found in Henan Mongol Autonomous County, southern Huangnan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, and the headwater of the Yellow River (Fig. 2b)
Summary
The environment of the Tibetan Plateau, with its high altitude, low temperatures, and lower availability of oxygen, makes it an arduous place for human habitation. Owing to the high altitude of the Tibetan Plateau, glacier meltwater nourishes the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, Yellow River, and Mekong River (called Lancang River in China) Numerous lakes, such as Qinghai Lake, Nam Co, and Siling Co, scatter around the southern and eastern Tibetan Plateau. We based on 455 communities of the six most heavily represented ethnic groups in Qinghai, including the Han, Tibetan, Hui, Tu, Salar, and Mongolian groups, to investigate the possible connection between ethnic groups’ distribution and physical environmental factors. These are the only ethnic groups in Qinghai that have population over 10,000. Our classification of ethnic groups was based on their dominant population stated in chronographs
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