Ningxia

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Winters are very harsh indeed (the average January temperature being as low as -10°C (14°F)), while the summers are not particularly hot (the average July temperature is 20°C (68°F)). The annual rainfall is less than 200 mm/8in.

The Muslim Hui constitute an ethnic minority which, with 1.2 million people, forms a significant proportion of the population. In addition there are Mongols and Manchurians. Ningxia was declared an autonomous region in 1958.

Since the time of the Qin dynasty (221-206 BC) Ningxia was assigned to various different administrative areas, until it became a province in its own right in 1928. In 1958 the Autonomous Region of Ningxia Huizu Zizhiqu was formed.

Ningxia's most significant mineral is coal, while the northern plain, which is well irrigated by a canal system, is regarded as the ''granary'' of northwest China. Rice, wheat, millet, cotton, sugar-beet and melons are all produced, while the main livestock farmed is sheep.