Yushu

The present name Gyêgu (Jiegu) (simplified Chinese: 结古镇; traditional Chinese: 結古鎮; pinyin: Jiégǔ Zhèn; also spelled Jyegu) is derived from Gyêgudo (སྐྱེ་དགུ་མདོ་, ZWPY: Gyêgumdo, Wylie: skye dgu mdo or skye rgu mdo; simplified Chinese: 结古多; traditional Chinese: 結古多; pinyin: Jiégǔduō). The Tibetan designation Gyêgumdo indicates that it is a place where one valley opens into another one (mdo), here formed by two tributaries of the Batang River, Za Qu (rdza chu) and Bai Qu (Bä Qu, dpal chu). Since Gyêgu (skye dgu) also means men, mankind or all beings, the name could be interpreted as the ‘dwelling place of men at a valley junction’. Chinese maps show the "main" river flowing through the town (coming from the south, and then turning to the east, toward the Tongtian River (Dri Chu), after taking on a tributary in Gyêgu) as the Batang River (巴塘河).

Gyêgu (Jiegu), like most parts of Yushu prefecture, is rich in Buddhist monasteries. Being a constituent of the local warlord or chieftain (Drawupon), one of the Twenty five chieftain under late Nangchen kingdom. the area was, for most of the time, not under domination by the Dalai Lama’s Gelugpa order in Lhasa. The different balance of power in this part of Kham enabled the older Tibetan Buddhist orders to prevail in Yushu, and thus Gyêgu. The main lamasery in town is the Sakyapa monastery Doendrub Ling, commonly just called Yushu Gompa. Like at the beginning of the 20th century Other nearby monastic sites include the important Karma-Kagyupa lamaseries Domkar Gompa and Thrangu Gompa, the famous Mahavairocana Temple (often called Wencheng Temple) and the popular religious site of Gyanamani with its billions of mani stones. The 9th Panchen Lama died here. …

Gyêgu (Jiegu) is located in the eastern Tibetan Plateau, at an elevation of 3,700 m (12,100 ft). The town is located in the Batang River (Zha Chu) valley, surrounded by mountains. The town is reached by a two-day car ride on China National Highway 214 - a good, mostly metalled road leading all the way from Xining (820 km or 510 mi), the provincial capital, via the Sun and Moon Pass, Gonghe-Chabcha of Hainan prefecture and Madoi in Golog across the Bayankara Mountains. 25 km (16 mi) before arriving at Gyêgu, the Dri Chu (Yangtze River) is crossed. In 2007 the construction of an airstrip was begun. The facility, named Yushu Batang Airport, was opened on August 1, 2009. Located 18 kilometers to the south of the town at 3,890 meters elevation about the sea level, it is the highest airport in Qinghai Province. The airport has a 3,800-meter-long runway and can receive A319 aircraft. …