The autonomous prefecture for Dai people is in the extreme south of Yunnan province, China, bordering both Myanmar and Laos.

It has an area of 19,124.5 square kilometers, bordering Pu'er City to the northeast and northwest, Laos to the southeast and Myanmar to the southwest.

The prefectural seat is Jinghong, the largest settlement in the area and one that straddles the Mekong, called the "Lancang River" in Chinese.

After the Mongol conquest in 1296, the subsequent Ming and Qing emperors appointed the Tai Lue rulers of Chiang Hung as a native Tusi governor.

The Yunnan provincial government of the newly established Republic of China sent troops in 1913 to oust the Chao Meng Jie rebels.

[12] The Second Sino-Japanese War (1931-1945) saw the heavy bombardment of Xishuangbanna by Japanese troops and a simultaneous influx of Pan-Taiist propaganda from Japan's ally, Thailand.

The new People's Republic of China sent various non-military expeditions to Xishuangbanna from 1949 to provide services such as schools and hospitals to replace those by western Christian missionaries.

In addition to an abundance of plants, Xishuangbanna is home to the last few Asian elephants still in China; the species roamed over a large part of the country even as late as a few hundred years ago.

The Xishuangbanna government has strived to maintain this ethnic balance of around 33% of each group: Han, Dai, and other; this policy is known as "the plan of three-three-three" (三三三计划; sān-sān-sān jìhuà).

[29] Historically, some ethnic minorities adapted some Dai characteristics in order to alleviate discrimination and increase their social status, such as the Blang people adopting the sarong, practicing matrilocal residence, and learning the Tai Tham alphabet.

The Jiuwei live in various villages in Jinghong, including: There are also ethnic Hani that are locally called Aini 爱尼 living in 7 villages on Nanlin Mountain 南林山 of southwestern Jinghong, namely Manbage 曼八阁, Manjinglong 曼景龙, Manjingnan 曼景囡, Mangudu 曼固独, Manbaqi 曼把奇, Manbasan 曼巴伞, and Manjingmai 曼景卖.

Xishuangbanna is rich in nature, historical and cultural resources, noted for its folklore, rain forests, rare plants, and wildlife.

Its major tourist attractions include Menglun Tropical Botanical Garden, Manfeilong Pagodas (Tanuozhuanglong), Jingzhen Pavilion, Wild Elephant Gully, Dai people's village at Ganlanba.

The complex is made up of four parts, the main hall, the sutra collection pavilion, the gold pagoda, and the drum tower.

The temple is well known within the Southeast Asian region and each year attracts Buddhist monks and visitors from Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar and Laos.