Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture


Liangshan, officially the Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, is an autonomous prefecture occupying much of the southern extremity of Sichuan province, People's Republic of China; its seat is Xichang. Liangshan has an area of and over 4.5 million inhabitants. It is also has the largest population of ethnic Yi nationally. Liangshan Li contains a number of isolated villages high up on its cliffs, often known as "cliff villages".
Xichang has the Xichang Qingshan Airport and the Xichang Satellite Launch Center. The prefecture also features a substantial network of railways for both passengers and freight.

Terrain and climate

The Anning River, which runs into the Jinsha River, is the main river in the area.
Owing to its low latitude and high elevation, Liangshan has a mild climate. Under the Köppen system, the prefecture belongs to the humid subtropical zone. Winters feature mild days and cool nights, while summers are very warm and humid. Monthly daily mean temperatures range from in January to in July. Unlike much of the province, which lies in the Sichuan Basin, humidity levels in winter are rather low, but like the rest of the province, rainfall is concentrated in the months of June through September, and the prefecture is virtually rainless in winter.

Cliff villages

Also see Zhaojue County
Due to the mountainous terrain, many villages that lie among the mountain cliffs of Liangshan Yi are isolated from the rest of Sichuan. They are called cliff villages as they tend to be isolated and lie at vertical heights of about. Access to these cliff villages tends to be through vines of trees along the cliffs and steep ladders made of ropes. In 2016, the state run The Beijing News reported one such village called Atulie'er where children climbed up a rope ladder for two hours to reach their home from school, often leading to falls and deaths. The Mail Online dubbed it "The world's most dangerous school run". In light of this, the local government constructed a special steel ladder in November 2016 for people to climb up and down in a safer manner.
The Atulie'er village is home to 72 families. Access from the outside world to Atulie'er is through 17 vertical vine ladders.

Subdivisions

Liangshan directly controls one county-level city, 15 counties, and 1 autonomous county.

Ethnic groups in Liangshan, 2010 census