Xaitongmoin County, also known as “Xietongmen County” OR “Zhetongmon County “, is a county in the north of Shigatse City; it means “joy at first sight” in Tibetan.
Location
Xaitongmoin County is located on the north bank of Yarlung Tsangbo River, adjacent to Namling County and Shigatse City to east, Xainza County of Nagqu City to north, Ngamring County to west, and Sagya County and Lhatse County to south.
The county seat is Kaga Town, about 83 kilometers away from Shigatse City, 178 kilometers away from Gyantse County, and 357 kilometers away from Lhasa City.
Best travel time
From June to October
Local climate
Alpine plateau climate
Most popular sites
Tudan Langka Monastery, also known as “Tupten Namgyel Monastery“, is located in Rinchenzi Village, with an altitude of 3950 meters. The monastery was built in 1425 AD, and it was firstly to follow Nyingma pa, and later converted to be a Sakya pa monastery
Chaga Chode Monastery, also known as “Tsaga Chode Monastery“, is located in Chaga Village, northeast of Napu Township, with altitude of 4300 meters above sea level. It was firstly to follow Nyingma pa, and later converted to be a Gelug pa monastery
Kaga Hot Springs, 2.5 kilometers away from the county seat. The spring water temperature is above 70℃, and the spring water contains many kinds of minerals. It has auxiliary therapeutic effect on arthritis and various skin diseases if to use of this spring water for bathing frequently
Geography and climate
Xaitongmoin County is a plateau and hill type, and the whole terrain is high in the north and low in the south.
North, the northern part of Xaitongmoin County is located in the north of the Gangdisi Mountains. It is about 80 kilometers wide and about 100 kilometers long from east to west. There are gentle hills and grasslands with relatively flat terrain.
There are also many river valleys and flatlands. The low places are filled with water throughout the year. With an average altitude of more than 4,500 meters, it is the main pastoral area of Xaitongmoin County.
South, the southern part of Xaitongmoin County lies on the north bank of the Yarlung Tsangbo River and its tributaries. There are many valleys and flatlands which are usually with width of 4-7 kilometers, and length of about 40 kilometers, and an average elevation of about 4,100 meters.
The terrain is flat, the soil is fertile, and the water source is sufficient. It is the main agricultural area of Xaitongmoin County.
West, there are three major water systems in the west of Xaitongmoin County, Buqu Tsangbo and Luozu Tsangbo , and Meiqu Tsangbo
The northern of Xaitongmoin County is severely cold and dry, while the southern and western are semi-warm and humid. It is with long sunshine hours, low temperature, large temperature difference between day and night, clear dry and wet, rainy nights, dry winter and spring, strong winds, low air pressure, and less oxygen.
Annual average temperature is 6.35 degrees, and average temperature in January is 8 degrees, average temperature in July is around 15 degrees, and the extreme maximum temperature is 27.6 degrees.
During the crop growth period, average temperature is above 0 degrees for about 9 months (from February to mid-November). Annual average number of sunshine is between 2980-3120 hours, rainfall is 350 mm/year, which is mostly concentrated in June to September.
Population and ethnicity
As of 2015, Xaitongmoin County has a total population of 47,000, of which Tibetans account for 99.5% of total population. The remaining ethnic groups are Han, Hui, Tu, Dongxiang, Manchu, Miao, etc.
Brief History
During period of King Drigum Tsenpo, Xaitongmoin was the seat of Musin family, one of the six descendants of Bon religion
At the beginning of 7th century, Xaitongmoin belonged to “Ye Ru” (Ru is the name of Tibet administrative area in ancient time)
In 13th century, Sakya regime was established, and U-Tsang was designated as 13 Wanhu households, and Xaitongmoin was under jurisdiction of Laduijiang Wanhu households.
In 14th century, Phagmo Drupa Regime was established and Xaitongmoin was under jurisdiction of Samzhubze Zong
In the middle of 18th century, Kashag regime was established. 2 Shiga and 1 Zong was set up in the area of Xaitongmoin
In 1959, Xaitongmoin County was established
In 2014, Shigatse Prefecture was abolished and the prefecture-level Shigatse City was established, and Xaitongmoin County has been under jurisdiction of Shigatse City since then
