The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Columbia Encyclopedia World Factbook Columbia Gazetteer American Heritage Coll. Xining is the capital. Extensive irrigation and the use of early-ripening spring wheat increased production in the late 20th cent. The south is inhabited by Tibetans who live a precarious existence based on stock herding and marginal farming.
Salt is so abundant that it is used for building blocks and for road pavement.
Heavy industry, utilizing the province's store of mineral resources, has increased steadily since the 1950s. Historically a part of Tibet, the Qinghai region passed to the Mongol overlords of China in the 14th cent. Huang He rivers from Lanzhou, penetrating deeply into ethnic Tibetan territory in the northeast. In 1928, Qinghai became a province of China. The Communist government established autonomous districts for the Tibetan, Chinese Muslim, Kazakh, and Mongol minorities.