Lanzhou, << lahn joh >> (pop. 2,800,000), also spelled Lan-chou, is the capital of Gansu Province in north-central China. It was known as the Gateway to China in the Middle Ages. At that time, the city was an important stop on the Silk Road, a caravan route to the West. Marco Polo and other traders traveled the Silk Road, carrying Chinese goods to Europe and western Asia. A large proportion of China’s relatively few Muslims live in Lanzhou. Many of them are descended from Arab traders and soldiers.
After the Communists took over China in 1949, Lanzhou became an important center for the industrial development of China’s northwest. The city now has factories that produce chemicals, machinery, and petroleum and lubricants. Railroads link Lanzhou with cities to the north, east, and south.
