Changbai Mountains
Template:Short description Template:About Template:Infobox mountainThe Changbai Mountains (Template:Zh) are a major mountain range in East Asia that extends from the Northeast Chinese provinces of Heilongjiang, Jilin and Liaoning, across the China-North Korea border (41°41' to 42°51'N; 127°43' to 128°16'E), to the North Korean provinces of Ryanggang and Chagang. They are also referred to as the Šanggiyan Mountains in the Manchu language, or the Great Paekdu in Korean. Most of its peaks exceed Template:Cvt in height, with the tallest summit being Paektu Mountain at Template:Cvt, which contains the Heaven Lake, the highest volcanic crater lake in the world at a surface elevation of Template:Cvt. The protected area Longwanqun National Forest Park is located within the vicinity of the mountain range.
HistoryEdit
The mountain was first recorded in the Classic of Mountains and Seas under the name Buxian Shan (Template:Zh). It is also called Shanshan Daling (Template:Zh) in the Book of the Later Han. In the New Book of Tang, it was called Taibai Shan (Template:Zh).<ref name="NewTang">Second Canonical Book of the Tang Dynasty. {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} (English translation: Khitan general Li Jinzhong killed Zhao Hui, the commanding officer of Yin Zhou. Officer Dae Jung-sang, with Mohe chieftain Qisi Piyu and Goguryeo remnants, escaped to the east, crossed Liao River, guarded the northeast part of the Grand Old White Mountain, blocked Oulou River, built walls to protect themselves.)</ref> The current Chinese name Changbai Shan was first used in the Liao dynasty (916–1125) of the Khitans<ref name="Liao">"Records of Khitan Empire". 《契丹國志》："長白山在冷山東南千餘里......禽獸皆白。"(English translation: "Changbai Mountain is a thousand miles to the southeast of Cold Mountain...Birds and animals there are all white.")</ref> and then the Jin dynasty (1115–1234) of the Jurchens.<ref name="Jin">"Canonical History Records of the Jurchen Jin Dynasty". {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} (English translation: "Changbai Mountain is in old Jurchen land, highly respectful, suitable for building temples. Only the Changbai Mountain can carry the Jin Dynasty's spirit; It is so high; It is a part of our old land.")</ref> Template:Infobox Chinese
The range represents the mythical birthplace of Bukūri Yongšon, ancestor of Nurhaci<ref>愛新覺羅·瀛生《滿語口語音典》</ref> and the Aisin Gioro imperial family, who were the founders of the Qing dynasty of China. The Chinese name literally means "Perpetually-White Mountain Region".<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The imperial family regarded the mountain as their traditional homeland.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Page needed
The Qing emperor Hong Taiji claimed that their progenitor, Bukūri Yongšon<ref name="Crossley2000">Template:Cite book</ref> (布庫里雍順), was conceived from a virgin birth. According to the legend, three heavenly maidens, namely Enggulen (恩古倫), Jenggulen (正古倫) and Fekulen (佛庫倫), were bathing at a lake called Bulhūri Omo near the Changbai Mountains. A magpie dropped a piece of red fruit near Fekulen, who ate it. She then became pregnant with Bukūri Yongšon. However, another older version of the story by the Hurha (Hurka) tribe member Muksike recorded in 1635 contradicts Hongtaiji's version on location, claiming that it was in Heilongjiang province close to the Amur river where Bulhuri lake was located where the "heavenly maidens" took their bath.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Nowadays the famous Yabuli Ski Resort is located in the Changbai Mountains.<ref>Yabuli • Ski Holiday • Reviews • Skiing - Snow-Online</ref>
Geography and climateEdit
The mountains are the source of the Songhua, Tumen, and Yalu Rivers.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
The Changbai Mountains are characterized by long, cold winters. Precipitation is low in winter, but higher in the summer and fall, with annual averages reaching as high as Template:Convert.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Flora and faunaEdit
The vegetation of the mountain slopes is divided into several different zones. At the top, above Template:Convert, tundra predominates. From Template:Convert, vegetation is dominated by mountain birch and larch. Below this zone, and down to Template:Convert, the dominant trees are spruce, fir, and pine. From Template:Convert, the landscape is dominated by mixed forest consisting of Amur linden (Tilia amurensis), pine, maple, and elm. Further down, a temperate hardwood forest is found, dominated by second-growth poplar and birch.<ref>Liu, Q.J., Takamura, T., Takeuchi, N., Shao, G. (2002). Mapping of boreal vegetation of a temperate mountain in China by multitemporal LANDSAT imagery. International Journal of Remote Sensing 23(17), p. 3388</ref> There are five known species of plants in the lake on the peak, and some 168 have been counted along its shores. The forest on the Chinese side is ancient and almost unaltered by humans. Birch predominates near the tree line, and pine lower down, mixed with other species. There has been extensive deforestation on the lower slopes on the North Korean side of the mountain.Template:Citation needed
The area is a known habitat for Siberian tigers, bears, wolves, and wild boars.<ref>Gomà Pinilla, D. (2004). Border Disputes between China and North Korea. China Perspectives 2004(52): 1−9.</ref> The Ussuri dholes may have been extirpated from the area. Deer in the mountain forests, which cover the mountain up to about Template:Convert, are of the Paekdusan roe deer kind. Many wild birds such as black grouse, owls, and woodpecker are known to inhabit the area. The mountain has been identified by BirdLife International as an Important Bird Area (IBA) because it supports a population of scaly-sided mergansers.<ref name="bli">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
GalleryEdit
- Longwanqun national forest park sanjiaolong crater lake 2011 07 25.jpg
Sanjiaolong Crater Lake in the Longwanqun National Forest Park, Huinan County
- Longwanqun national forest park entrance 2011 07 25.jpg
Entrance gate to the forest park
- MYK-1-长白山.png
Painting from the Manchu Veritable Records with the names of Mount Paektu in Manchu, Chinese and Mongolian
See alsoEdit
ReferencesEdit
External linksEdit
Template:Mountain ranges of China Template:Jilin topics Template:Liaoning topics Template:Heilongjiang topics Template:Authority control