Gengma History ,Yunnan Adventure Travel

Gengma History

Gengma is named “Xin Tu Wa Na Ta” in the Pali language which means a place discovered by people when following a white sacred horse, while its residents refer to it as “Meng Xiang Geng Geng” which indicates a place of jewels. For centuries, the Dai, Wa, and other nationalities here have developed Gengma into a fertile and beautiful land.

At the county seat of Gengma is a White Horse Square behind which one can see two buildings that are said to be the former mansion of Gengma Pacification Commissioner. One is a Chinese traditional building with carved eaves; the other one is a western construction designed and built for the chieftain in 1948 by those left-behind engineers/workers of the Yunnan-Myanmar Railway (The railway project was started by the R.C Government in December 1938 but ceased in 1942 due to the loss of West Yunnan during the war against the Japanese).

Before the liberation (1949), Gengma was under the rule of Han Clan Chieftains and Mengding Chieftain, and had been run in a feudal society for near 600 years. It’s recorded that in 1397 Han Clan Chieftains, under the guidance of a white horse, arrived at and settled down in Gengma. In the 13th year of Wanli Reign of the Ming Dynasty, the 17th Chieftain Han was bestowed as the Supervisor of Military Affairs and he was further promoted to Pacification Commissioner by the Qing Court. When it came to 1950, the chieftain hereditary system had been lasting for 500 years or 23 generations.

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