Liánshān

Lianshan lies in the mountains of northern Guangdong, near the borders of Guangxi and Hunan. Its valleys and high slopes have long been home to Zhuang and Yao communities as well as Han settlers. The county's boundaries and seat changed repeatedly through the centuries. Early in the Ming, Lianshan was merged into Yangshan in 1371, then restored as a county in 1380. The following year it was placed under Lianzhou. In this mountainous country, local communities retained their own languages and customs amid the changing institutions of imperial rule.