Tianshui, a prefecture-level city under the jurisdiction of Gansu Province, is located in the southeast of Gansu Province and adjacent to the Guanzhong Plain. It is an important node city in the Guanzhong Plain urban agglomeration and a sub-core city in the Guanzhong-Tianshui Economic Zone. [1] Tianshui was once named Shanggui, Chengji, and Qinzhou. It is said to be the birthplace of Fuxi and Nuwa, one of the important cradles of Chinese civilization, and is known as the "Hometown of Emperor Xi". Tianshui City has jurisdiction over 2 districts and 5 counties, with a total area of ??14,325 square kilometers and a total population of 3.829 million, including 3.323 million permanent residents (2016). [2][2]
The terrain in Tianshui is high in the northwest and low in the southeast. The altitude is between 1000-2100 meters. The climate is a temperate monsoon climate. [3] Tianshui is one of China's important old industrial bases, with 44 national and provincial enterprise technology centers and engineering technology research centers, 1 national enterprise key laboratory, and 6 provincial enterprise key laboratories. [2] It has universities such as Tianshui Normal University, Gansu Forestry Vocational and Technical College, Gansu Industrial Vocational and Technical College, and Gansu Mechanical and Electrical Vocational and Technical College. In 2017, Tianshui achieved a GDP of 61.496 billion yuan, a large-scale fiscal revenue of 14.844 billion yuan, and a total retail sales of consumer goods of 31.311 billion yuan. [4]
Tianshui has a long history and is the birthplace of the Qin people and early Qin culture. It has a written history of more than 3,000 years and a city-building history of more than 2,700 years. In 688 BC, the State of Qin established Gui County here. Heji County is the earliest place where cities and counties were built in Chinese history. There are 169 national, provincial and municipal key protected cultural relics within the territory, among which the Maijishan Grottoes, a world cultural heritage, is one of the four major grottoes in China and is known as the "Oriental Sculpture Art Exhibition Hall". [3][2]
Tianshui is a national historical and cultural city and an outstanding tourist city in China. It has famous scenic spots such as Maiji Mountain, Fuxi Temple, Nanguo Temple, Shuiliandong, Dadiwan Ruins, Qin'an Apple, Huaniu apples, Gangu peppers, Tianshui Guagua, Tianshui Laolao, Tianshui skin and other specialties and delicacies. [5]