Qinghai - Demographics

Demographics

There are over 37 recognized ethnic groups among Qinghai's population of 5.2 million, with national minorities making up 46.5% of the population. The demographic mix is similar to Gansu province, with Han (54.5%), Hui (16%), Tibetans (20.7%), Tu (4%), Mongols, and Salars being the most populous groups. Han Chinese predominate in the cities of Xining, Delhi and Golmud, and elsewhere in the northeast. The Hui are concentrated in Xining, Haidong, Minhe, Hualong, and Datong. The Tu people predominate in Huzhu county and the Salars in Xunhua; Tibetans are sparsely distributed across the rural western part of the province.

Both the indigenous Han and Tibetan people in Qinghai differ from their co-ethnics outside of the province; the Han in Qinghai are more devoutly Buddhist and influenced by Tibetan customs, while the Tibetans may not speak Tibetan and are more integrated into mainstream Chinese culture. Qinghai Tibetans regard themselves as distinct from Tibetans in the Tibet Autonomous Region, and celebrate their region's unbroken independence from Lhasa's control since the fall of the Tubo Empire.