Yunnan
Yunnan names 2 different subjects across the 6 encyclopedias on this shelf. Each is set out below.
Yunnan the extreme S
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
the extreme S. W. province of China; bounded on the S. by Annam, Siam, and Burma; on the W. by Burma; area, 107,969 square miles; pop. about 12,000,000. It is extremely rich in minerals, especially iron and copper, containing also many varieties of precious stones. At least a third of the cultivated land is said to be under the poppy. The inhabitants are for the most part Chinese; but there is a large number of non-Chinese Mohammedans (called by the Burmese Panthays). The chief imports into Yunnan are raw cotton, cotton yarn, and piece goods; opium and tin are the chief exports. In 1869 the Mohammedans rose in rebellion against the Chinese Government, and succeeded in establishing an independent government, but it lasted only three or four years. By the convention of Chefoo in 1876 the establishment of commercial relations between British subjects and Yunnan was conceded by the Chinese Government. In 1897 an agreement was made between Great Britain and China, supplementing the Frontier Convention of March, 1894, which laid down a boundary between Burma with its dependencies and Yunnan and made arrangements for trade, extradition, etc. The question of access to Yunnan and Szechuen is one of great importance to the commercial nations of Europe. The shortest route to Yunnan is through French territory by the Red river. There are competing routes through Burma. A part of Yunnan is most easily reached Bhamo. The Indian railway system is being extended to Kunlong Ferry, on the Salween, from which a route to Talifu, bly on to Szechuen, may be and possibly found practicable. Another route for a railway has been suggested through Chiengmai and northern Siam. More important routes at present are by river up to the Canton or West river, or by the Yang-tze-kiang. By the agreement of Jan. 15, 1896, Great Britain and France agreed to share equally all privileges or advantages that might be conceded by China in the provinces of Yun nan and Szechuen.
Yunnan the capital, is in the S
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
the capital, is in the S. E., and is a busy and prosperous town, with large copper factories, and manufactures of silks and carpets. Pop. 200,000.
What Has Changed in the Last Century
Collier's put the population at about 12,000,000 in 1921 and reckoned at least a third of the cultivated land was under the poppy; Yunnan now holds roughly 47 million people, opium growing was suppressed after 1949, and the province's cash crops are tobacco, tea and cut flowers, with hydropower on the Mekong and Salween a major export. The capital Collier's calls simply Yunnan, then also known as Yunnanfu, is Kunming, a city of several million rather than 200,000, and Talifu is Dali. The railway routes debated here mostly came to nothing: the French line up from Tonkin opened in 1910, the Burma Road was cut through in 1937-38 and Kunming became the terminus of the wartime airlift over the Hump, and a high-speed line to Vientiane in Laos opened in December 2021. The non-Chinese peoples the account notes in passing are now the province's defining feature officially, with 25 recognised ethnic minorities, more than any other Chinese province.
Written for this edition, 2026.