TianshuiWade-Giles romanization T’ien-shuiPinyin Tianshuicity, southeast Kansu southeastern Gansu sheng (province), north-central China. T’ien-shui It is situated along the Wei River and was historically an important place along the Silk Road, the great western route from Sian to Lan-chou and to Sinkiang provincewestward from Chang’an (present-day Xi’an, Shaanxi province) to Central Asia and Europe. This route is today followed by a highway and by the Lunghai Longhai Railway, which was extended to T’ien-shui Tianshui in 1947 and to Lan-chou Lanzhou (the provincial capital) and the far west of Uygur Autonomous Region of Xinjiang in far northwestern China during the 1950s.

The area, the cradle of Chinese civilization, has been settled since Neolithic times. In ancient times it was known as KueiGui, and under the Han dynasty (206 BCAD 220 BCE–220 CE) the town was known as Kuei HsienGui Xian, or Shang-kuei HsienShanggui Xian. In Sung Song times (960–1279) this it was renamed Ch’eng-chi Hsien. Shang-kuei Chengji Xian. Shanggui was the administrative seat of Ch’in chou (Qin prefecture ) from the late 3rd century onward, and this became the official name of the place under the Ming (1368–1644) and Ch’ing Qing (1644–1911/12) dynasties. The name of Tianshui was given to a county established there in 1913, and the county town was separated from the county to create the city of Tianshui in 1950.

Throughout history, T’ien-shui Tianshui has been both an important transportation centre and a vital strategic position, commanding the western approach to SianXi’an, for centuries the capital location of capitals of China, via the Wei River valley. Fought over repeatedly in the 3rd and 4th centuries, it later fell into the hands of the Tibetans (from 763 to 845763–845), the Tanguts and the Juchen (after 1127), and finally the Mongols (from 1215 to 13681215–1368).

In the period following the mid-5th century, it was on the main route by which Buddhism was introduced into China. The great complex of cave temples at Mai-chi Shan, some Mount Maiji, about 15 miles (25 km) to the southeast, became a major Buddhist centre during the Sui (581–618) and T’ang Tang dynasties. Mount Maiji is now a popular tourist destination.

The city stands in a small fertile basin, watered by an a long-established irrigation system. Millet, corn (maize), and winter wheat, kaoliang (sorghum), some cotton, and tobacco are grown in the area. To the west of the city along the railway lie large, unexploited coal deposits near the surface, still unexploited in the mid-20th century.T’ien-shui is .

Tianshui is now the centre of various consumer industries , producing cotton textiles, matches, in the area, including the manufacture of machinery, textiles, electrical appliances, and tractors; other products are wine, furniture, and fine lacquer warelacquerware. The city itself was once a centre of the Kansu Muslim (Hui) community in Gansu, which was decimated after the rebellions of 1864–75. A large Muslim minority remains in the area to the northeast. The city is a complex oneurban layout was complex, being formed of five separate walled cities—the Great City (Ta Ch’engDa Cheng), the Middle City (Chung Ch’engZhong Cheng), the Western and Eastern Customs Barriers (Hsi Kuan Ch’eng; Tung Kuan Ch’engXiguan; Dongguan), and Fu-hsi’s Fuxi’s city. Some of the remains for those five cities are now under protection. Pop. (1989 2002 est.) 234,700.city, 480,638; (2007 est.) urban agglom., 1,225,000.