Xiahe County is a county in Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Gansu province, China, bordering Qinghai province to the west. The name, which literally means "Xia River", refers to the Daxia River which runs through the county. It is home to the famed Labrang Tibetan Buddhist monastery, one of the largest Tibetan Buddhist monasteries outside the Tibet Autonomous Region. The town is populated largely by ethnic Tibetans, as well as some Hui and Han Chinese. The area is highly rural and pastoral. The geography is mountainous. In recent years it has become a tourist attraction. The county was named Xiahe in 1928, after the Daxia River that flows through its territory.
Labrang Monastery
Xiahe school (note the mottos in English, Chinese, and Tibetan)
Near Sangkog, Gansu Province
Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture
Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture is an autonomous prefecture in southern Gansu Province, China, bordering Linxia to the north, Dingxi to the northeast, Longnan to the east and Aba to the south. It includes Xiahe and the Labrang Monastery, Luqu, Maqu and other mostly Tibetan towns and villages. Gannan has an area of 40,898 km2 (15,791 sq mi) and its capital is Hezuo city (Zoi). In the first year of the proclamation of Gannan Autonomous District, the district-seat was at the Labrang Town of Sangqu.
Labrang Monastery, Xiahe County, Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture