Inner Mongolia

Its border includes two-thirds of the length of China's border with the country of Mongolia. Inner Mongolia also accounts for a small section of China's border with Russia (Zabaykalsky Krai). Its capital is Hohhot; other major cities include Baotou, Chifeng, Tongliao, and Ordos.

Inner Mongolia
Autonomous region
Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
Name transcription(s)
• Chinese	内蒙古自治区 (Nèi Měnggǔ Zìzhìqū)
• Mongolian	ᠥᠪᠥᠷ ᠮᠣᠩᠭᠣᠯ ᠤᠨᠥᠪᠡᠷᠲᠡᠭᠨ ᠵᠠᠰᠠᠬᠤ ᠣᠷᠣᠨ (Öbür mongγol-un öbertegen jasaqu orun)
• Abbreviation	NM / 蒙 (Měng)
Clockwise from the top left: Steppes in Hulun Buir Greater Khingan range Dazhao Temple in Hohhot Mausoleum of Genghis Khan
Location of Inner Mongolia within China
Coordinates: 44°N 113°E / 44°N 113°E / 44; 113
Country	China
Capital	Hohhot
Largest city	Baotou
Divisions  - Prefecture-level  - County-level  - Township- level	12 prefectures 103 counties 1025 towns and subdistricts
Government
• Type	Autonomous region
• Body	Inner Mongolia Autonomous Regional People's Congress
• CCP Secretary	Sun Shaocheng
• Congress Chairman	Sun Shaocheng
• Government Chairwoman	Wang Lixia
• Regional CPPCC Chairman	Zhang Yankun
• National People's Congress Representation	58 deputies
Area
• Total	1,183,000 km2 (457,000 sq mi)
• Rank	3rd
Highest elevation (Main Peak, Helan Mountains)	3,556 m (11,667 ft)
Population  (2020)
• Total	24,049,155
• Rank	25th
• Density	20/km2 (53/sq mi)
• Rank	28th
Demographics
• Ethnic composition	Han – 78.7% Mongol – 17.7% Others – 3.6%
• Languages and dialects	Mandarin (official), Mongolian (official), Oirat, Buryat, Dagur, Evenki, Jin
GDP
• Total	CN¥ 2.316 trillion US$ 344 billion
• Per capita	CN¥ 96,474 US$ 14,343
ISO 3166 code	CN-NM
HDI (2021)	0.777 (8th) – high
Website	www.nmg.gov.cn (in Chinese) Mongol version

Inner Mongolia
"Inner Mongolia" in Chinese characters
"Inner Mongolia" in Mongolian script
Chinese name
Simplified Chinese	内蒙古
Traditional Chinese	內蒙古
Hanyu Pinyin	Nèi Měnggǔ
Literal meaning	Inner Mongolia
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Nèi Měnggǔ Bopomofo ㄋㄟˋ   ㄇㄥˇ    ㄍㄨˇ Gwoyeu Romatzyh Ney Meengguu Wade–Giles Nei4 Meng3-ku3 Tongyong Pinyin Nèi Měnggǔ IPA [nêɪ mə̀ŋ.kù] other Mandarin Xiao'erjing نُوِ مْ‌ٍ‌قُ Wu Romanization Ne Monku Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization Noih Mùhng gú Jyutping Noi6 mung4 gu2 IPA [nɔːi˨ moŋ˩ kuː˧˥] Southern Min Hokkien POJ Lāi-bông-kó
Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
Simplified Chinese	内蒙古自治区
Traditional Chinese	內蒙古自治區
Hanyu Pinyin	Nèiměnggǔ Zìzhìqū
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Nèiměnggǔ Zìzhìqū Bopomofo ㄋㄟˋ   ㄇㄥˇ   ㄍㄨˇ ㄗˋ   ㄓˋ   ㄑㄩ Gwoyeu Romatzyh Ney Meengguu Tzyhjyhchiu Wade–Giles Nei4 Meng3-ku3 Tzu4-chih4-ch'ü1 Tongyong Pinyin Nèiměnggǔ Zìhjhìhcyu IPA [nêɪ mɤ̌ŋkù t͡sɹ̩̂ʈ͡ʂɻ̩̂t͡ɕʰʏ́] other Mandarin Xiao'erjing نُوِ مْ‌ٍ‌قُ زِجِ‌کِیُوِ Wu Romanization Ne Monku Zyzychiu Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization Noih mùhng gú Jih jih kēui Jyutping Noi6 mung4 gu2 Zi6 zi6 keoi1 IPA [nɔːi˨ moŋ˩ kuː˧˥ tsiː˨ tsiː˨ kʰɵy˥] Southern Min Hokkien POJ Lāi-bông-kó Chū-tī-khu
Mongolian name
Mongolian Cyrillic	Өвөр Монгол
Mongolian script	ᠦᠪᠦᠷ ᠮᠣᠩᠭᠣᠯ
Transcriptions SASM/GNC Öbür Monggol
Manchu name
Manchu script	ᡩᠣᡵᡤᡳ ᠮᠣᠩᡤᠣ
Romanization	Dorgi monggo

This article contains Mongolian script. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of text in Mongolian script.

The autonomous region was established in 1947, incorporating the areas of the former Republic of China provinces of Suiyuan, Chahar, Rehe, Liaobei, and Xing'an, along with the northern parts of Gansu and Ningxia.

Its area makes it the third largest Chinese administrative subdivision, constituting approximately 1,200,000 km² (463,000 sq mi) and 12% of China's total land area. Due to its long span from east to west, Inner Mongolia is geographically divided into eastern and western divisions. The eastern division is often included in Northeastern China (Dongbei), with major cities including Tongliao, Chifeng, Hailar, and Ulanhot. The western division is included in North China, with major cities including Baotou and Hohhot. It recorded a population of 24,706,321 in the 2010 census, accounting for 1.84% of Mainland China's total population. Inner Mongolia is the country's 23rd most populous province-level division. Han Chinese make up the majority of the population in the region; Mongols constitute a significant minority with over 4 million people, making it the largest Mongol population in the world (larger than that of the country Mongolia). Inner Mongolia is one of the more economically developed provinces in China with annual GDP per capita at US$14,343 (2022), ranked 8th in the nation. The official languages are Mandarin and Mongolian, the latter of which is written in the traditional Mongolian script, as opposed to the Mongolian Cyrillic alphabet, which is used in the country of Mongolia (formerly often described as Outer Mongolia).

In Chinese, the region is known as "Inner Mongolia", where the terms of "Inner and "Outer" are derived from Manchu dorgi/tulergi (cf. Mongolian dotugadu/gadagadu). Inner Mongolia is distinct from Outer Mongolia, which was a term used by the Republic of China and previous governments to refer to what is now the independent state of Mongolia and the Republic of Tuva in Russia. The term Inner 内 (Nei) referred to the Nei Fan 内藩 (Inner Tributary), i.e., those descendants of Genghis Khan who were granted the title khan (king) in the Ming and Qing dynasties and lived in part of southern Mongolia. The region is sometimes called Southern Mongolia by local separatists and Mongolian irredentists.

Much of what is known about the history of the Mongolian Plateau is taken from Chinese chronicles and historians. Before the rise of the Mongols in the 13th century, what is now central and western Inner Mongolia, especially the Hetao region, alternated in control between Chinese farming communities in the south, and Xiongnu, Xianbei, Khitan, Jurchen, Tujue, and nomadic Mongol of the north. The historical narrative of what is now Eastern Inner Mongolia mostly consists of alternations between different Tungusic and Mongol tribes, rather than the struggle between nomads and Chinese farmers.

Early history

Slab Grave cultural monuments are found in Northern, Central and Eastern Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, North-Western China, Southern, Central-Eastern and Southern Baikal territory. Mongolian scholars prove that this culture related to the Proto-Mongols.

During the Zhou dynasty, Central and Western Inner Mongolia (the Hetao region and surrounding areas) were inhabited by nomadic peoples such as the Loufan, Linhu and Dí, while Eastern Inner Mongolia was inhabited by the Donghu. During the Warring States period, King Wuling (340–295 BC) of the state of Zhao based in what is now Hebei and Shanxi Provinces pursued an expansionist policy towards the region. After destroying the Dí state of Zhongshan in what is now Hebei province, he defeated the Linhu and Loufan and created the Yunzhong Commandery near modern Hohhot. King Wuling of Zhao also built a long wall stretching through the Hetao region. After Qin Shi Huang created the first unified Chinese empire in 221 BC, he sent the general Meng Tian to drive the Xiongnu from the region and incorporated the old Zhao wall into the Qin dynasty Great Wall of China. He also maintained two commanderies in the region: Jiuyuan and Yunzhong and moved 30,000 households there to solidify the region. After the Qin dynasty collapsed in 206 BC, these efforts were abandoned.

During the Western Han dynasty, Emperor Wu sent the general Wei Qing to reconquer the Hetao region from the Xiongnu in 127 BC. After the conquest, Emperor Wu continued the policy of building settlements in Hetao to defend against the Xiong-Nu. In that same year, he established the commanderies of Shuofang and Wuyuan in Hetao. At the same time, what is now Eastern Inner Mongolia was controlled by the Xianbei, who would, later on, eclipse the Xiongnu in power and influence.

During the Eastern Han dynasty (25–220 AD), Xiongnu who surrendered to the Han dynasty began to be settled in Hetao and intermingled with the Han immigrants in the area. Later on, during the Western Jin dynasty, it was a Xiongnu noble from Hetao, Liu Yuan, who established the Han Zhao kingdom in the region, thereby beginning the Sixteen Kingdoms period that saw the disintegration of northern China under a variety of Han and non-Han (including Xiongnu and Xianbei) regimes.

The Sui dynasty (581–618) and Tang dynasty (618–907) re-established a unified Chinese empire and like their predecessors, they conquered and settled people into Hetao, though once again these efforts were aborted when the Tang empire began to collapse. Hetao (along with the rest of what now consists Inner Mongolia) was then taken over by the Liao dynasty founded by the Khitans, a nomadic people originally from what is now the southern part of Manchuria and Eastern Inner Mongolia. They were followed by the Western Xia of the Tanguts, who took control of what is now the western part of Inner Mongolia (including Western Hetao). The Khitans were later replaced by the Jurchens, precursors to the modern Manchus, who established the Jin dynasty over Manchuria and Northern China.

Mongol and Ming periods

 

 

After Genghis Khan unified the Mongol tribes in 1206 and founded the Mongol Empire, the Tangut Western Xia empire was ultimately conquered in 1227, and the Jurchen Jin dynasty fell in 1234. In 1271, Kublai Khan, the grandson of Genghis Khan established the Yuan dynasty. Kublai Khan's summer capital Shangdu (aka Xanadu) was located near present-day Dolonnor. During that time Ongud and Khunggirad peoples dominated the area of what is now Inner Mongolia. After the Yuan dynasty was overthrown by the Han-led Ming dynasty in 1368, the Ming captured parts of Inner Mongolia including Shangdu and Yingchang. The Ming rebuilt the Great Wall of China at its present location, which roughly follows the southern border of the modern Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region (though it deviates significantly at the Hebei-Inner Mongolia border). The Ming established the Three Guards composed of the Mongols there. Soon after the Tumu incident in 1449, when the Oirat ruler Esen taishi captured the Chinese emperor, Mongols flooded south from Outer Mongolia to Inner Mongolia. Thus from then on until 1635, Inner Mongolia was the political and cultural center of the Mongols during the Northern Yuan dynasty.

Qing period

The eastern Mongol tribes near and in Manchuria, particularly the Khorchin and Southern Khalkha in today's Inner Mongolia intermarried, formed alliances with, and fought against the Jurchen tribes until Nurhaci, the founder of the new Jin dynasty, consolidated his control over all groups in the area in 1593. The Manchus gained far-reaching control of the Inner Mongolian tribes in 1635, when Ligden Khan's son surrendered the Chakhar Mongol tribes to the Manchus. The Manchus subsequently invaded Ming China in 1644, bringing it under the control of their newly established Qing dynasty. Under the Qing dynasty (1644–1912), the Mongolian Plateau was administered in a different way for each region:

 

 

• "Outer Mongolia": This region corresponds to the modern state of Mongolia, plus the Russian-administered region of Tannu Uriankhai, and modern-day aimag of Bayan-Ölgii which historically was a part of northern Xinjiang under China's Qing Dynasty. It included the four leagues (aimag) of the Khalkha Mongols north of the Gobi, as well as the Tannu Uriankhai which largely corresponds to modern-day Tuva Republic of Russia, and Khovd regions in northwestern Mongolia, which were overseen by the General of Uliastai from the city of Uliastai.
• "Inner Mongolia": This region corresponded to most of modern Inner Mongolia and some neighbouring areas in Liaoning and Jilin provinces. The banners and tribes in this region came under six leagues (chuulghan): Jirim, Juuuda, Josutu, Xilingol, Ulanqab, and Yekejuu.
• "Taoxi Mongolia": The Alashan Öölüd and Ejine Torghuud banners were separate from the aimags of Outer Mongolia and the chuulghans of Inner Mongolia. This territory is equivalent to modern-day Alxa League, the westernmost part of what is now Inner Mongolia.
• The Chahar Banners were controlled by the military commander of Chahar (now Zhangjiakou). Their extent corresponded to southern Ulanqab and Bayannur in modern Inner Mongolia, plus the region around Zhangjiakou in Hebei province. At the same time, the jurisdiction of some border departments of Zhili and Shanxi provinces also belonged to this region.
• The Guihua Tümed banner was controlled by the military commander of Suiyuan (now Hohhot). This corresponds to the vicinities of the modern city of Hohhot. At the same time, the jurisdiction of some border departments of modern Shanxi province also belonged to this region.
• The Hulunbuir region in what is now northeastern Inner Mongolia was part of the jurisdiction of the General of Heilongjiang, one of the three generals of Manchuria.

The Inner Mongolian Chahar leader Ligdan Khan, a descendant of Genghis Khan, opposed and fought against the Qing until he died of smallpox in 1634. Thereafter, the Inner Mongols under his son Ejei Khan surrendered to the Qing. Ejei Khan was given the title of Prince (親王; qīn wáng), and Inner Mongolian nobility became closely tied to the Qing royal family and intermarried with them extensively. Ejei Khan died in 1661 and was succeeded by his brother Abunai. After Abunai showed disaffection with Manchu Qing rule, he was placed under house arrest in 1669 in Shenyang and the Kangxi Emperor gave his title to his son Borni. Abunai then bid his time and then he and his brother Lubuzung revolted against the Qing in 1675 during the Revolt of the Three Feudatories, with 3,000 Chahar Mongol followers joining in on the revolt. The revolt was put down within two months, the Qing then crushed the rebels in a battle on 20 April 1675, killing Abunai and all his followers. Their title was abolished, all Chahar Mongol royal males were executed even if they were born to Manchu Qing princesses, and all Chahar Mongol royal females were sold into slavery except the Manchu Qing princesses. The Chahar Mongols were then put under the direct control of the Qing Emperor, unlike the other Inner Mongol leagues which maintained their autonomy.

Despite officially prohibiting Han Chinese settlement on the Manchu and Mongol lands, by the 18th century the Qing decided to settle Han refugees from northern China who were suffering from famine, floods, and drought into Manchuria and Inner Mongolia. As a result, the Han Chinese farmed 500,000 hectares in Manchuria and tens of thousands of hectares in Inner Mongolia by the 1780s.

Ordinary Mongols were not allowed to travel outside their own leagues. Mongols were forbidden by the Qing from crossing the borders of their banners, even into other Mongol Banners and from crossing into neidi (the Han Chinese 18 provinces) and were given serious punishments if they did in order to keep the Mongols divided against each other to benefit the Qing. Mongol pilgrims wanting to leave their banner's borders for religious reasons such as pilgrimage had to apply for passports to give them permission.

During the eighteenth century, growing numbers of Han Chinese settlers had illegally begun to move into the Inner Mongolian steppe. By 1791, there had been so many Han Chinese settlers in the Front Gorlos Banner that the jasak had petitioned the Qing government to legalise the status of the peasants who had already settled there.

During the nineteenth century, the Manchus were becoming increasingly sinicised and faced with the Russian threat, they began to encourage Han Chinese farmers to settle in both Mongolia and Manchuria. This policy was followed by subsequent governments. The railroads that were being built in these regions were especially useful to the Han Chinese settlers. Land was either sold by Mongol Princes, or leased to Han Chinese farmers, or simply taken away from the nomads and given to Han Chinese farmers.

A group of Han Chinese during the Qing dynasty called "Mongol followers" immigrated to Inner Mongolia who worked as servants for Mongols and Mongol princes and married Mongol women. Their descendants continued to marry Mongol women and changed their ethnicity to Mongol as they assimilated into the Mongol people, an example of this were the ancestors of Li Shouxin. They distinguished themselves apart from "true Mongols" 真蒙古.

Republic of China and the Second World War periods

 

Outer Mongolia gained independence from the Qing dynasty in 1911, when the Jebtsundamba Khutugtu of the Khalkha was declared the Bogd Khan of Mongolia. Although almost all banners of Inner Mongolia recognised the Bogd Khan as the supreme ruler of Mongols, the internal strife within the region prevented a full reunification. The Mongol rebellions in Inner Mongolia were counterbalanced by princes who hoped to see a restored Qing dynasty in Manchuria and Mongolia, as they considered the theocratic rule of the Bogd Khan would be against their modernising objectives for Mongolia. Eventually, the newly formed Republic of China promised a new nation of five races (Han, Manchu, Mongol, Tibetan and Uyghur). and suppressed the Mongol rebellions in the area.

The Republic of China reorganised Inner Mongolia into provinces:

• Rehe province was created to include the Juuuda and Josutu leagues, plus the Chengde area in what is now northern Hebei.
• Chahar province was created to include Xilingol league as well as much of the former territory of the Eight Banners.
• Suiyuan province was created to include Ulanqab league, Yekejuu league, and the Hetao region (former Guihua Tümed territory).
• Hulunbuir stayed within Heilongjiang in Manchuria, which had become a province.
• Most of Jirim league came under the new province of Fengtian in southern Manchuria.
• Taoxi Mongolia, i.e., Alashan and Ejine leagues, was incorporated into neighbouring Gansu province. Later on Ningxia province was split out of northern Gansu, and Taoxi Mongolia became part of Ningxia.

Some Republic of China maps still show this structure.

The history of Inner Mongolia during the Second World War is complicated, with Japanese invasion and different kinds of resistance movements. In 1931, Manchuria came under the control of the Japanese puppet state Manchukuo, taking some Mongol areas in the Manchurian provinces (i.e., Hulunbuir and Jirim leagues) along. Rehe was also incorporated into Manchukuo in 1933, taking Juu Uda and Josutu leagues along with it. These areas were occupied by Manchukuo until the end of World War II in 1945.

In 1937, the Empire of Japan openly and fully invaded Republic of China. On 8 December 1937, Mongolian Prince Demchugdongrub (also known as "De Wang") declared independence for the remaining parts of Inner Mongolia (i.e., the Suiyuan and Chahar provinces) as Mengjiang, and signed agreements with Manchukuo and Japan. Its capital was established at Zhangbei (now in Hebei province), with the Japanese puppet government's control extending as far west as the Hohhot region. The Japanese advance was defeated by Hui Muslim General Ma Hongbin at the Battle of West Suiyuan and Battle of Wuyuan. Since 1945, Inner Mongolia has remained part of China.

The Mongol Ulanhu fought against the Japanese.

 

Ethnic Mongolian guerrilla units were created by the Kuomintang Nationalists to fight against the Japanese during the war in the late 30s and early 40s. These Mongol militias were created by the Ejine and Alashaa based commissioner's offices created by the Kuomintang. Prince Demchugdongrub's Mongols were targeted by Kuomintang Mongols to defect to the Republic of China. The Nationalists recruited 1,700 ethnic minority fighters in Inner Mongolia and created war zones in the Tumet Banner, Ulanchab League, and Ordos Yekejuu League.

The Inner Mongolian People's Republic was founded shortly after the Second World War. It existed from 9 September 1945 until 6 November 1945.

People's Republic of China

The Communist movement gradually gained momentum as part of the Third Communist International in Inner Mongolia during the Japanese period. By the end of WWII, the Inner Mongolian faction of the ComIntern had a functional militia and actively opposed the attempts at independence by De Wang's Chinggisid princes on the grounds of fighting feudalism. Following the end of World War II, the Chinese Communists gained control of Manchuria as well as the Inner Mongolian Communists with decisive Soviet support and established the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in 1947. The Comintern army was absorbed into the People's Liberation Army. Initially, the autonomous region included just the Hulunbuir region. Over the next decade, as the communists established the People's Republic of China and consolidated control over mainland China, Inner Mongolia was expanded westwards to include five of the six original leagues (except Josutu League, which remains in Liaoning province), the northern part of the Chahar region, by then a league as well (southern Chahar remains in Hebei province), the Hetao region, and the Alashan and Ejine banners. Eventually, nearly all areas with sizeable Mongol populations were incorporated into the region, giving present-day Inner Mongolia its elongated shape. The leader of Inner Mongolia during that time, as both regional CPC secretary and head of regional government, was Ulanhu.

During the Cultural Revolution, the administration of Ulanhu was purged, and a wave of repressions was initiated against the Mongol population of the autonomous region. Among the victims in Inner Mongolia, 75 per cent were Mongols, even though they only constituted 10 per cent of the population. In 1969, much of Inner Mongolia was distributed among surrounding provinces, with Hulunbuir divided between Heilongjiang and Jilin, Jirim going to Jilin, Juu Uda to Liaoning, and the Alashan and Ejine region divided among Gansu and Ningxia. This decision was reversed in 1979.

Inner Mongolia has seen considerable development since Deng Xiaoping instituted Chinese economic reform in 1978. For about ten years since 2000, Inner Mongolia's GDP growth has been the highest in the country, (along with Guangdong) largely owing to the success of natural resource industries in the region. GDP growth has continually been over 10%, even 15% and connections with the Wolf Economy to the north has helped development. However, growth has come at a cost with huge amounts of pollution and degradation to the grasslands. Attempts to attract ethnic Chinese to migrate from other regions, as well as urbanise those rural nomads and peasants has led to huge amounts of corruption and waste in public spending, such as Ordos City. Acute uneven wealth distribution has further exacerbated ethnic tensions, many indigenous Mongolians feeling they are increasingly marginalised in their own homeland, leading to riots in 2011 and 2013.

On 31 August 2020, large protests broke out in ethnic Mongol communities due to unannounced plans by the Chinese government to phase out Mongolian-medium teaching.

 

 

Officially Inner Mongolia is classified as one of the provincial-level divisions of North China, but its great stretch means that parts of it belong to Northeast China and Northwest China as well. It borders eight provincial-level divisions in all three of the aforementioned regions (Heilongjiang, Jilin, Liaoning, Hebei, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Ningxia, and Gansu), tying with Shaanxi for the greatest number of bordering provincial-level divisions. Most of its international border is with Mongolia, which, in Chinese, is sometimes called "Outer Mongolia", while a small portion is with Russia's Zabaykalsky Krai.

Inner Mongolia largely consists of the northern side of the North China Craton, a tilted and sedimented Precambrian block. In the extreme southwest is the edge of the Tibetan Plateau where the autonomous region's highest peak, Main Peak in the Helan Mountains reaches 3,556 metres (11,670 ft), and is still being pushed up today in short bursts. Most of Inner Mongolia is a plateau averaging around 1,200 metres (3,940 ft) in altitude and covered by extensive loess and sand deposits. The northern part consists of the Mesozoic era Khingan Mountains, and is owing to the cooler climate more forested, chiefly with Manchurian elm, ash, birch, Mongolian oak and a number of pine and spruce species. Where discontinuous permafrost is present north of Hailar District, forests are almost exclusively coniferous. In the south, the natural vegetation is grassland in the east and very sparse in the arid west, and grazing is the dominant economic activity.

Owing to the ancient, weathered rocks lying under its deep sedimentary cover, Inner Mongolia is a major mining district, possessing large reserves of coal, iron ore and rare-earth minerals, which have made it a major industrial region today.

Climate

 

Due to its elongated shape, Inner Mongolia has a four-season monsoon climate with regional variations. The winters in Inner Mongolia are very long, cold, and dry with frequent blizzards, though snowfall is so light that Inner Mongolia has no modern glaciers even on the highest Helan peaks. The spring is short, mild and arid, with large, dangerous sandstorms, whilst the summer is very warm to hot and relatively humid except in the west where it remains dry. Autumn is brief and sees a steady cooling, with temperatures below 0 °C (32 °F) reached in October in the north and November in the south.

Officially, most of Inner Mongolia is classified as either a cold arid or steppe regime (Köppen BWk, BSk, respectively). The small portion besides these are classified as humid continental (Köppen Dwa/Dwb) in the northeast, or subarctic (Köppen Dwc) in the far north near Hulunbuir.

Inner Mongolia is divided into twelve prefecture-level divisions. Until the late 1990s, most of Inner Mongolia's prefectural regions were known as leagues (Chinese: 盟), a usage retained from Mongol divisions of the Qing dynasty. Similarly, county-level divisions are often known as banners (Chinese: 旗). Since the 1990s, numerous leagues have been converted into prefecture-level cities, although banners remain. The restructuring led to the conversion of primate cities in most leagues to convert to districts administratively (i.e.: Hailar, Jining and Dongsheng). Some newly founded prefecture-level cities have chosen to retain the original name of league (i.e.: Hulunbuir, Bayannur and Ulanqab), some have adopted the Chinese name of their primate city (Chifeng, Tongliao), and one league (Yekejuu) simply renamed itself Ordos. Despite these recent administrative changes, there is no indication that the Alxa, Hinggan, and Xilingol Leagues will convert to prefecture-level cities in the near future.

Administrative divisions of Inner Mongolia
↖ Hohhot Baotou ↗ Wuhai Chifeng Tongliao Ordos Hulunbuir Bayannur Ulanqab Hinggan League Xilingol League Alxa League █ Jiagedaqi Dist. & Songling Dist. is de jure part of Oroqen Aut. Ban. but de facto subordinate to Daxing'anling Pref., Heilongjiang.
Division code	Division	Area in km2	Population 2020	Seat	Divisions
					Districts	Counties Banners	Aut. banners	CL cities
150000	Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region	1,183,000.00	24,049,155	Hohhot city	23	66	3	11
150100	Hohhot city	17,186.10	3,446,100	Xincheng District	4	5
150200	Baotou city	27,768.00	2,709,378	Jiuyuan District	6	3
150300	Wuhai city	1,754.00	556,621	Haibowan District	3
150400	Chifeng city	90,021.00	4,035,967	Songshan District	3	9
150500	Tongliao city	59,535.00	2,873,168	Horqin District	1	6		1
150600	Ordos city	86,881.61	2,153,638	Kangbashi District	2	7
150700	Hulunbuir city	254,003.79	2,242,875	Hailar District	2	4	3	5
150800	Bayannur city	65,755.47	1,538,715	Linhe District	1	6
150900	Ulanqab city	54,447.72	1,706,328	Jining District	1	9		1
152200	Hinggan League	59,806.00	1,416,929	Ulanhot city		4		2
152500	Xilingol League	202,580.00	1,107,075	Xilinhot city		10		2
152900	Alxa League	267,574.00	262,361	Alxa Left Banner		3

Administrative divisions in Mongolian, Chinese, and varieties of romanisations
English	Mongolian	SASM/GNC Mongolian Pinyin	Mongolian Transcription	Chinese	Pinyin
Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region			Öbür mongγol-un öbertegen zasaqu orun	内蒙古自治区	Nèi Měnggǔ Zìzhìqū
Hohhot city		Hohhot	Kökeqota	呼和浩特市	Hūhéhàotè Shì
Baotou city		Bugt Hot	Buɣutu qota	包头市	Bāotóu Shì
Wuhai city		Uhai Hot	Üqai qota	乌海市	Wūhǎi Shì
Chifeng city		Ulanhad Hot	Ulaɣanqada qota	赤峰市	Chìfēng Shì
Tongliao city		Tungliyo Hot	Tüŋliyou qota	通辽市	Tōngliáo Shì
Ordos city		Ordos Hot	Ordos qota	鄂尔多斯市	È'ěrduōsī Shì
Hulunbuir city		Hulun'buir Hot	Kölön-buyir qota	呼伦贝尔市	Hūlúnbèi'ěr Shì
Bayannur city		Bayannur Hot	Bayannaɣur qota	巴彦淖尔市	Bāyànnào'ěr Shì
Ulanqab city		Ulanqab Hot	Ulaɣančab qota	乌兰察布市	Wūlánchábù Shì
Hinggan League		Hinggan Aimag	Qiŋɣan ayimaɣ	兴安盟	Xīng'ān Méng
Xilingol League		Xiliin'gol Aimag	Sili-yin ɣool ayimaɣ	锡林郭勒盟	Xīlínguōlè Méng
Alxa League		Alxa Aimag	Alaša ayimaɣ	阿拉善盟	Ālāshàn Méng

These prefecture-level divisions are in turn subdivided into 102 county-level divisions, including 22 districts, 11 county-level cities, 17 counties, 49 banners, and 3 autonomous banners. Those are in turn divided into 1425 township-level divisions, including 532 towns, 407 townships, 277 sums, eighteen ethnic townships, one ethnic sum, and 190 subdistricts. At the end of 2017, the total population of Inner-Mongolia is 25.29 million.

Urban areas