The Logic of National Governance in the Integration of Pre-Existing and Newly Built Canal Systems during the Xixia: A Study Centered on Water Conservancy on the Ningxia Plain
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54097/swrs0d55Keywords:
Xixia, Hanyan Canal, Tanglai Canal, Haowang CanalAbstract
Situated in the arid and rain‑scarce northwestern territories, Xixia was compelled by its distinctive climatic structure to accord paramount importance to water resources. The development of water conservancy and the protection of canal systems thus became both pivotal undertakings and fundamental safeguards in Xixia’s state‑building. Canal irrigation works epitomize the technical sophistication of Xixia’s hydraulic exploitation and its broader capacity for state governance. Taking Xixia’s canal networks as its central object of inquiry, this article undertakes a systematic investigation by integrating Xixia’s own documentary legacy with relevant historical sources. Xixia attained effective control over its hydraulic infrastructure through well‑articulated water statutes, a specialized administrative hierarchy, and an operational model rooted in collaborative maintenance between officialdom and the populace. Water conservancy construction was not merely a critical measure by which Xixia adapted to the northwestern ecological environment; more profoundly, it constituted an essential pathway through which the regime consolidated its foundations and advanced the project of state‑building.
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