Lijiang (Chinese: 丽江), formerly romanized as Likiang, is a prefecture-level city in the northwest of Yunnan Province, China.

[3] and borders Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture and Panzhihua City in Sichuan Province to the east.

It is one of the key forest areas in Yunnan Province and one of the west and east power transmission bases of China's hydropower industry.

Lijiang is the only prefecture-level city with three World Heritage Sites, rich in tourism resources, 104 tourist attractions, such as Lijiang Ancient City, Yulong Snow Mountain, Tiger Leaping Gorge, Laojun Mountain, and Shuhe Ancient Town.

The discovery of cave paintings in the Jinsha River Valley along with numerous neolithic stone tools and later artifacts of Bronze and Iron Age provenance prove Lijiang to have been one of the most important centres of ancient human activity in southwest China.

Northern and Southern Dynasties, Lijiang still belonged to the Yunnan Prefecture, known as Suijiu County, and it was aeound of the Naxi people migrated here.

[4] The Ancient Southern Silk Road started from Burma, crossed Lijiang, Shangri-La County, Tibet, continued through Iran, the Fertile Crescent before finally reaching the Mediterranean Sea.

[5] Though the kingdom was incorporated into the Mongol empire then the Yuan dynasty, it was given the status of tusi, or indigenous office, which gave autonomy to the local Naxi rulers.

[5] As the Naxi helped the Ming expand in Southwest China the ruler family was given the title of Mu.

During this period the Kingdom of Lijiang was able to expand into Sichuan and Tibet bringing many Tibetan peoples into its territory as well as their cultural and religious influence.

[6] The Mu "held this position until 1723, when Lijiang became directly incorporated under the authority of the Qing central government.

In the 17th year of the Qing Dynasty's Shunzhi Emperor's reign(1660), the Lijiang JunminFu was established again, with the Mu family continuing to hold the hereditary position of the chief.

In the first year of the Yongzheng Emperor's reign(1723), the implemented the "reform of the native chieftain system" [7] in Lijiang, replacing the hereditary chief with an appointed official from the court, and demoting the Mu family to the position of the Qianlong Emperor's reign(1770), Lijiang County was established.

On both sides of the main mountain range, there are also extensive east–west oriented valleys, creating a complex and intricate landscape of landforms with undulating terrain and a significant difference in elevation.

Laojun Mountain stretches like a barrier from north to south on the west side, with its main peak reaching an elevation of 4,247.4 meters.

Owing to its low latitude and high elevation, the city centre of Lijiang experiences a mild subtropical highland climate (Köppen Cwb).

[12] Lashihai is located in Lashi Town, Yulong County, 8 kilometers away from the urban area of Lijiang.

[14] It is also one of the key forested areas in Yunnan Province and has been identified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as one of the 25 global biodiversity hotspots in the Hengduan Mountains region of China.

Within its borders, there are several national first-class protected wild animals, such as the Yunnan golden snub-nosed monkey, clouded leopard, and forest musk deer, as well as rare species of national first-class protected wild plants, including the Himalayan yew, high-altitude water plantain, and Yulong fern.

Yulong Snow Mountain within the city's boundaries is a world-renowned site for plant specimen typification.

As a result, Lijiang City has been dubbed the "Kingdom of Alpine Plants" and the "Hometown of Medicinal Herbs.

In the history of the Yi people, they wrote historical, literary, astronomical and medical books, religious classics and so on.

Every December, the people of Huaping and other places will hold a grand ceremony to celebrate the "Wide Season" (New Year's Day).

The beans are milled into vermicelli, the color is gray-green, fried, the salad is very tasty, and the fragrance is delicious.

[19] Lijiang Baba is the local fine wheat noodles, plus ham, chemical oil, sugar and other condiments, and mix thoroughly to form a layer.

[19] Erkuai is a type of rice cake, the name literally means "ear piece," a reference to the shape of one of its common forms.

It is often served stir-fried with vegetables, and málà sauce, which is a mixture of dried red chilis, Sichuan pepper, and salt.

It has snow all year round and develops the temperate maritime glaciers closest to the equator in the Eurasian continent.

This scenic spot is mainly composed of Laojunshan Jiujiu Longtan, Jinsi Factory Jinshan Yuhu, Dawn Meile Danxia Landform, New Main Natural Alpine Botanical Garden and other areas (attractions), with a total area of 715 square kilometers, which is under planning and development.

It echoes with the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain and forms the east and west wings of Lijiang's tourism resources.