地理环境与西夏历史

西夏时期 ,气候寒冷干燥 ,地表多荒漠。人们砍伐森林、开垦土地 ,境内植被有所破坏。在干冷气候与人为活动的双重作用下 ,土地沙化现象较为明显。自然条件决定西夏经济以畜牧业为主 ,农业比重不大 ,基础较为薄弱 ,与中原地区互通有无 ,发展周边贸易成了西夏生存的必由之路 ,因而西夏对中原王朝有着很强的依附性。严酷的生存环境 ,频繁出现的饥荒 ,使得能骑善射的西夏军队极富掠夺性。对外征战不止 ,大肆劫掠财富、抢夺人口、侵占土地 ,成为西夏历史的一大特点。地理环境制约着西夏经济发展水平 ,但是特有的地形地貌却延缓了国家的灭亡。境内四周环绕的山脉、荒漠 ,宛如天然屏障 ,外敌难以深入 ,西夏因此得以长期立国。西夏后期 ,环境恶化 ,频繁出现的干旱和强烈地震加速了西夏的灭亡

Geographical Conditions and History of the Xixia Kingdom

Affected by cold-dry climate and human destructive activities ,such as the destructive lumbering of forests, forest area in the Xixia kingdom is decreasing and the erosion problem is becoming serious. Hard living environment and recurrent natural disasters have determined that Xixia soldiers good at horsemanship and archery live by plunder. So the history of the Xixia kingdom is characteristic by successive fighting, unbridle occupying wealth and land by force. Xixia people suffer from bad geographical conditions, but the mountains and deserts around provide a natural protective screen for then to resist foreign aggression. This special terrain and geographology have retarded the downfall of this kingdom.