Get to know Xide County

Photo adjustments
Full frame retained; proportionally resized and converted to WebP. No retouching or changes to the photographed subject. Card displays may crop the view.
- Administrative area
- County · 县
- Part of
- Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture
- Chinese name
- 喜德县
- Local areas
- County guide
Area & population
- Area in the source
- 2,206.00 km²
- Population · 2020
- 158,139
- Administrative seat
- Guangming
Source: cited geographic source, as of the dates shown.
Setting and landscape
The scenic area occupies the county’s northwestern end, adjoining Yuexi (越西) and Mianning (冕宁). Its landscape includes forested ridges, valleys, waterfalls and mountain meadows. A cold spring on the southern slopes lies at about 3,000 metres: water surges out intermittently, then dwindles and stops. The county government describes this as a geological feature formed by particular rock structures and groundwater conditions.
History
Remains of the Lingguan Ancient Road date to the Han dynasty. Dengxiangying Castle (登相营城堡), built in the Ming dynasty, served as a post station on the Southern Silk Road. Local stories connect the mountains with Sima Xiangru (司马相如), Zhuge Liang (诸葛亮) and Meng Huo (孟获).
Sources for this guide
喜德县小相岭景区资源介绍 · Xide County Government
喜德县小相岭灵关古道风景名胜区概况 · Xide County Government
Original English written from the listed sources and checked sentence by sentence against quoted extracts by a separate reviewer. Updated 2026-09-27.
Explore Xide County
Core places to explore, with English and Chinese names.
Xide County 喜德县
Plan your visit
Getting there
Xide County is about 50 km in a straight line from central Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture. Search for 喜德县 in a map app to find stations and your accommodation.
Where to stay →More in Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture
Sources & geographic information
Administrative names and parent areas: Official geographic directory · Reference date 2026-09-06.
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. Pins mark approximate centres, not entrances or boundaries.
