Huimin District 回民区

History

In the Kangxi (康熙) reign of the Qing dynasty, Hohhot was one of the markets the Qing set for trade with the Oirat Mongols (厄鲁特蒙古) under Galdan (噶尔丹); many members of his caravans to Hohhot were Hui, and some of them stayed on in the city. The district itself was created on 28 December 1950 as the Hui Autonomous District of Guisui (归绥), the city's name at the time, and became Huimin District of Hohhot in November 1956. It is the only one of China's four districts named after the Hui that lies outside Henan (河南) province.

What to see

The Hohhot Great Mosque (呼和浩特清真大寺) stands outside the north gate of the old city. It began in 1693 as a few earthen rooms, was enlarged in 1789 and reached its present scale when Muslims paid for a rebuilding in 1923–1925; the hexagonal brick moon-watching tower (望月楼), topped by a pavilion reached by a spiral stair, followed in 1939. The halls are Chinese in form with Islamic decoration, and the mosque keeps a handwritten Arabic Quran in 30 volumes and seven stone tablets.

Wusutu Monastery (乌素图召), a Gelug Tibetan Buddhist complex, lies in Wusutu village at the southern foot of the Daqing Mountains in the north-west of the district. Its temples each have their own red wall and climb the hillside; the central Qingyuan Temple (庆缘寺) dates from the Wanli (万历) reign of the Ming dynasty and was named by the Qianlong Emperor, while Faxi Temple (法禧寺), built in 1725, is the best preserved. Remains of the Zhao state's Great Wall (赵长城) run east–west behind the complex.

The Ulanhu Memorial Hall (乌兰夫纪念馆), in Ulanhu Park on Xinhua West Street (新华西街), opened on 23 December 1992 in honour of Ulanhu (乌兰夫), a Mongol leader of the Chinese Communist Party. The district government names it and the Daqing Mountain Wildlife Park (大青山野生动物园) as its leading national-level scenic areas.

Getting oriented

The memorial hall has its own station, Ulanhu Memorial Hall, on Hohhot Metro Line 1. The district government sits at 49 Xinhua West Street, and Inner Mongolia University of Finance and Economics (内蒙古财经大学) and Hohhot No. 1 Middle School (呼市一中) are among the schools in the district.

Highlights

• Hohhot Great Mosque 呼和浩特清真大寺: Founded in 1693 outside the old city's north gate; rebuilt 1923–1925 with a moon-watching tower added in 1939.
• Wusutu Monastery 乌素图召: Gelug temple complex on the foot of the Daqing Mountains, with Zhao Great Wall remains behind it.
• Ulanhu Memorial Hall 乌兰夫纪念馆: Opened in 1992 in Ulanhu Park, with its own metro station on Line 1.
• Daqing Mountain Wildlife Park 大青山野生动物园: Named by the district government as one of its national-level scenic areas.