Lanzhou in the context of "Lanzhou University of Technology"

Gansu is a province in Northwestern China. Its capital and largest city is Lanzhou, in the southeastern part of the province. The seventh-largest administrative district by area at 453,700 square kilometres (175,200 sq mi), Gansu lies between the Tibetan and Loess plateaus and borders Mongolia's Govi-Altai Province, Inner Mongolia and Ningxia to the north, Xinjiang and Qinghai to the west, Sichuan to the south and Shaanxi to the east. The Yellow River passes through the southern part of the province. Part of Gansu's territory is located in the Gobi Desert. The Qilian mountains are located in the south of the Province.

Gansu has a population of 26 million, ranking 22nd in China. Its population is mostly Han, along with Hui, Dongxiang and Tibetan minorities. The most common language is Mandarin. Gansu is among the poorest administrative divisions in China, ranking last in GDP per capita as of 2019.

The Dongxiang (autonym: Sarta or Santa) are a Mongolic people and one of 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China. Half of the population live in Dongxiang Autonomous County, Linxia Prefecture, Gansu Province, China. The rest are divided over Hezheng County, Linxia City, Lanzhou, Dingxi and Ningxia. According to the China Statistical Yearbook 2021, their population numbers 774,947, although research has found that the number is inflated due to Hui identifying themselves as Dongxiang for the census, in order to benefit from minority policies.

The Chishui River (Chinese: 赤水河; literally "Red Water River") is a river in China. It is a tributary of the Wei River. It is near the town of Chishui (Chinese: 赤水镇), in Hua County, under the jurisdiction of Weinan, in the northwestern province of Shaanxi.

On December 30, 2009, the Lanzhou–Zhengzhou–Changsha product oil pipeline that connects Lanzhou, Gansu with Zhengzhou, Henan burst, spilling 150,000 litres (40,000 US gal) of diesel oil into the Chishui River resulting in the Yellow River oil spill.

Tianshui is a prefecture-level city in Gansu province, China, and is the province's second-largest city (behind the provincial capital Lanzhou). Located in the southeast of the province, the city strides along the upper reaches of the Wei River and at the boundary of the Loess Plateau and the Qinling Mountains. As of the 2020 census, its population was 2,984,659 inhabitants, of which 1,212,791 lived in the built-up (or metro) area made of the 2 urban districts of Qinzhou and Maiji. The city and its surroundings have played an important role in the early history of China, as still visible in the form of historic sites such as the Maijishan Grottoes.

Xining is the capital and most populous city of Qinghai province in western China and the largest city on the Tibetan Plateau. As of the 2020 census, it had 2,467,965 inhabitants (2,208,708 as of 2010), of whom 1,954,795 lived in the built-up (or metro) area made of 5 urban districts. The city lies in the Huangshui River Valley, also known as Tsongkha (Tibetan: ཙོང་ཁ་), and owing to its high altitude, has a cool climate on the borderline between cool semi-arid and dry winter humid continental.

Xining was a commercial hub along the Northern Silk Road's Hexi Corridor for over 2000 years, and was a stronghold of the Han, Sui, Tang, and Song dynasties' resistance against nomadic attacks from the west. Although long a part of Gansu province, Xining was added to Qinghai in 1928. Xining holds sites of religious significance to Muslims and Buddhists, including the Dongguan Mosque and Kumbum Monastery. It is connected by the Qinghai–Tibet railway to Lhasa, Tibet and connected by a high-speed railway to Lanzhou, Gansu and Ürümqi, Xinjiang.

Wang Fuchen (Chinese: 王辅臣; d. 1681) was a participant in the Revolt of the Three Feudatories during the Qing dynasty against the Kangxi Emperor. Wang was born in Datong, Shanxi Province, he was born to a poor family and grew up to be a bandit. His original surname was Li, nicknamed Horse-Sparrowhawk (馬鷂子) by the Manchu soldiers. Originally resisting the Manchu conquest of the Ming dynasty, ancient historians left behind records stating that Wang Fuchen was a handsome, tall and strong man with pale face, and thick eyebrows that resembled reclining silkworms. He was famous for his valour in battle and was known to the Manchus as a tough opponent, his presence was sometimes discouraging enough for the Manchu soldiers to retreat. He was highly regarded by Shunzhi Emperor and was won over to the Regent Dorgon. He assisted the former Ming dynasty generals Hong Chengchou and Wu Sangui in suppressing the Ming remnants of the Southern Ming. He followed Wu to Burma to capture and execute Zhu Youlang, Prince of Gui, the last Ming claimant on the mainland. He was made provincial military commander of Shaanxi, which at the time also included modern-day Gansu province. From his seat at Pingliang, he revolted in coordination with Wu and quickly captured Lanzhou. In 1665 he was defeated by Manchu Bannerman Tuhai at Pingliang. With Geng Jingzhong of Fujian, he surrendered in June 1676. He committed suicide by drinking poison.

Linxia City (simplified Chinese: 临夏市; traditional Chinese: 臨夏市; pinyin: Línxià Shì, Xiao'erjing: لٍِ‌ثِيَا شِ), once known as Hezhou (Chinese: 河州; pinyin: Hézhōu; Wade–Giles: Ho-chou, Xiao'erjing: حَ‌جِوْ), is a county-level city in the province of Gansu, China and the capital of the multi-ethnic Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture. It is located in the valley of the Daxia River (a right tributary of the Yellow River), 150 km (93 mi) (by road) southwest of the provincial capital Lanzhou.

The population of the entire county-level city of Linxia (which includes both the central city and some rural area) is estimated at 250,000; of which, 58.4% is classified as urban population. According to the prefectural government, 51.4% of Linxia City's population belongs to the "Hui nationality", i.e. the Chinese-speaking Muslims. Some members of Linxia Prefecture other minority ethnic groups, such as Bonan, Dongxiang and Salar, live in the city.

Wuwei (Chinese: 武威; pinyin: Wǔwēi) is a prefecture-level city in northwest central Gansu province. In the north it borders Inner Mongolia, in the southwest, Qinghai. Its central location between three western capitals, Lanzhou, Xining, and Yinchuan makes it an important business and transportation hub for the area. Because of its position along the Hexi Corridor, historically the only route from central China to western China and the rest of Central Asia, many major railroads and national highways pass through Wuwei.