Introduction of Yugur Minority

Yugur minority, with a population of 13,719 as at the 2000 census, lives in Hexi corridor, and most of the population lives in Sunan Yugur Autonomous County and Huangnibao area in Jiuquan city.

Yugur residential areas are mostly located in the Qilian mountains, with an average elevation of about 3200 meters. At an altitude of more than 4,700 meters, the mountains are covered with snow all year round and are distributed by glaciers. They are the source of rivers in the Hexi corridor. Mountain grass lush, is a good natural pasture. Huangnibao and minghua town are gobi oasis landform, Donghaizi and Xihaizi lakes are like two pearls on gobi desert, and they are the natural water source on the grassland.

Yugur people call themselves "yaohuer" and "xi la yu gu er". In history they have been called "yellow pan", "yellow head huihu", "sari-wei wu", "sari-wei wu er" and so on. In 1953, with the consent of the masses through consultation, "Yugur" (also the Chinese word for wealth and consolidation), which is similar to the pronunciation of "yaohuer", was adopted as the name of this minority.

Three languages are used in this mibority, the western Yuhur language, a Turkic branch of the Altaic language family (also called Raohul), used by the Yugur people who live in the western part of the Sunan Yugur autonomous county; the eastern Yuhur language, a Mongolian branch of the Altaic language family (also called Engle), used by the Yugur people living in the eastern part of the autonomous county; and the Chinese language. Nowadays, most people of Yugur minority speak Chinese.

As the Yugur people live by stock raising, animal species are mainly sheep (sheep, goat), ox (yak, yellow cat, yellow cat) and horse, with a small number of donkeys and mules. The Yugur people of Huangnibao are mainly engaged in agriculture, crops include wheat, millet, potato, highland barley, beans and flax.