Wenshan City History
Wenshan city Located on China’s southern frontier, there is no easy access to Wenshan Zhuang-Miao Autonomous Prefecture. The prefectural seat is a clean and orderly town and the local inhabitants lead a peaceful, leisurely life. In the 1970s the Xichou Man tooth fossil was unearthed here, proof that it was inhabited more than 50,000 years ago.
Administrative division of this area in history initiated during the Western Han Dynasty (206BC-24AD), when the emperor launched the exploitation of southwestern border area. Kingdoms set up by local ethnic minorities were conquered and replaced by counties and shires newly established by the court.
Due to a lack of arable land and remoteness, this is area that has never been densely populated. It is generally thought to have been originally inhabited by Miao peoples, who migrated into Wenshanzhou from what is now Guizhou province. During to the Western Han Dynasty (206BC-24AD), kingdoms established by local ethnic groups were dismantled by invading forces and the area was assimilated.
The leaders and people of Wenshan have worked hard for 10 years to change that situation. As a result, the prefecture’s GDP increased from 1.75 billion yuan in 1992 to 8.7 billion yuan in 2002, and the per capita net income of its farmers almost quadrupled. More than 2.4 million people thus emerged from poverty and achieved subsistence level.
