Capital · Historic city · Cultural centre · Inner Mongolia
Hohhot
呼和浩特
The Blue City of Altan Khan beneath the Yin Mountains
Hohhot is the capital of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, on the Tumed plain north of the Yellow River at the foot of the Yin Mountains. Founded by the Mongol ruler Altan Khan in the sixteenth century, its name means “blue city” in Mongolian; it is known for its Tibetan Buddhist monasteries, its mutton shaomai and as the home of the dairy companies Yili and Mengniu.
Key facts
Overview
Hohhot grew from two towns: the Mongol city founded by Altan Khan of the Tümed around a Buddhist monastery, which the Ming called Guihua, and the Manchu garrison of Suiyuan built a few kilometres to the north-east in the 1730s. Chinese traders and farmers from Shanxi settled between them, and the city became the commercial centre of the southern steppe, trading tea, cloth and grain for horses, wool and hides.
Since 1952 it has been the seat of the regional government. The modern city is a centre of administration, universities and the dairy industry; its older monasteries and mosques stand among new districts that have spread across the plain.
Names and nicknames
青城
“Blue City”
The Chinese translation of the Mongolian name Kökeqota.
召城
“city of monasteries”
From the many Tibetan Buddhist monasteries (召, from Mongolian juu) built in the city from the late sixteenth century.
归绥
Name of the city from 1913 to 1954, combining the old Mongol town of Guihua and the Qing garrison town of Suiyuan.
History
Altan Khan, who dominated the southern Mongols in the mid-sixteenth century, made peace with the Ming in 1571 and built a walled town on the Tumed plain, completed in 1581. His meeting with the Tibetan lama Sonam Gyatso in 1578 began the conversion of the Mongols to the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism, and the Dazhao monastery in Hohhot was one of the first monasteries built. Under the Qing the city was a centre of Mongol Buddhism and of Shanxi merchant trade. The garrison town of Suiyuan was completed in 1739. Guihua and Suiyuan were merged as Guisui in 1913, which became the capital of Suiyuan province and, in 1954, took the name Hohhot.
1579–1580
Dazhao monastery founded
Altan Khan's monastery, known for its silver Buddha, was the first great Gelug monastery among the southern Mongols.
1581
Kökeqota completed
The walled town of the Tümed was finished; the Ming had given it the name Guihua in 1575.
1739
Suiyuan garrison city completed
The Qing built a walled city for a Manchu banner garrison and its general, whose office still stands.
1913
Guisui formed
The two towns of Guihua and Suiyuan were merged into one city.
1952
Seat of the regional government
The government of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region moved to Guisui, renamed Hohhot in 1954.
2019
First metro line opens
Hohhot Metro began operation, the first urban rail system in the region.
Landmarks
Temple or shrine
Dazhao Monastery
大召
The oldest monastery of the city, with a silver statue of the Buddha and Ming-era murals.
Temple or shrine
Xilitu Zhao
席力图召
Active monastery next to Dazhao combining Chinese halls with a Tibetan-style assembly hall and white stupa.
Temple or shrine
Five Pagoda Temple
五塔寺
Qing Diamond Throne pagoda with five small towers and a carved Mongolian astronomical chart on its rear wall.
Museum
Inner Mongolia Museum
内蒙古博物院
The regional museum, with dinosaur fossils, Ordos bronzes, Khitan treasures and displays on steppe peoples.
Temple or shrine
Great Mosque
清真大寺
Hui mosque of the old town in Chinese style with a minaret, in the Muslim quarter north of Dazhao.
Historic site
Tomb of Wang Zhaojun
昭君墓
An earth mound south of the city traditionally identified as the tomb of the Han palace lady, with a museum of Han–Xiongnu relations.
Neighbourhoods
Old Guihua
大召街区
The area around Dazhao and Xilitu Zhao, with rebuilt lanes of shops and restaurants.
Xincheng District
新城区
The former Suiyuan garrison city, with the office of the Suiyuan general.
Ruyi
如意开发区
Development zone in the east of the city with new government and cultural buildings.
Food
Shaomai
烧麦
Thin-skinned dumplings of mutton and ginger with a pleated open top, sold by weight and eaten with brick tea.
Milk tea
奶茶
Salted milk tea served in Mongol restaurants with roasted millet, dried beef and curds.
Mutton offal soup
羊杂碎
A breakfast soup with potato-starch noodles and chilli.
Naked-oat noodles
莜面
Steamed oat-flour noodles and rolls, eaten with mutton broth.
Culture
Hohhot combines Mongol, Han, Hui and Manchu heritage: monasteries built by Mongol princes, a Muslim quarter, the Qing garrison city and the commercial streets of Shanxi merchants. Mongolian script appears alongside Chinese on official signs, and the city has an active scene of Mongol music, from long song and horse-head fiddle ensembles to bands mixing throat singing with rock.
Getting around
- The Hohhot Metro serves the centre and the east of the city.
- Hohhot East station is the terminus of the high-speed line from Beijing via Zhangjiakou; Hohhot Station is the conventional station, with trains to Baotou, Ordos and Erenhot.
- Hohhot Baita International Airport lies east of the city.
Day trips
Xilamuren grassland
希拉穆仁草原
Grassland north of the Yin Mountains with herders' camps and a small monastery.
Gegentala grassland
格根塔拉草原
Grassland in Siziwang Banner, near the area where the early Shenzhou spacecraft returned to Earth.
White Pagoda
万部华严经塔
Liao-dynasty octagonal brick pagoda east of the city, with inscriptions left by visitors of the Jin and Yuan.
Frequently asked questions
Sources
- Hohhot Municipal People's Government — Hohhot Municipal People's Government (retrieved 27 September 2026)
- Seventh National Population Census communiqués — National Bureau of Statistics of China (retrieved 27 September 2026)
- Hohhot — Encyclopaedia Britannica (retrieved 27 September 2026)
More cities in Inner Mongolia
- Baotou包头Industrial centre · Historic citySteel and rare-earth city on the Yellow River
- Ordos鄂尔多斯Industrial centre · Historic city · Scenic areaPlateau of the Yellow River bend, the Genghis Khan shrine and coal
- Hulunbuir呼伦贝尔Scenic area · Border cityGrassland, lakes and forest on the borders with Russia and Mongolia
- Chifeng赤峰Historic city · Scenic areaHongshan jades and the capitals of the Khitan Liao
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