Historic city · Industrial centre · Shanxi
Datong
大同
Northern Wei capital of the Yungang Grottoes on the Great Wall frontier
Datong is a prefecture-level city in the far north of Shanxi, close to the Great Wall and the border with Inner Mongolia. As Pingcheng it was the capital of the Northern Wei from 398 to 494, when the Yungang Grottoes were carved; later it was the western capital of the Liao and Jin, and in modern times one of China's great coal cities.
Key facts
Overview
Datong lies in a high basin of the Sanggan River, where the farmland of north China meets the steppe. For much of its history it was a frontier city: the Han fought the Xiongnu nearby, the Tuoba Xianbei made it their capital, and the Ming turned it into one of the nine garrison towns along the Great Wall.
In the twentieth century Datong became synonymous with coal. Since the 2000s the walled city has been extensively rebuilt, with its walls, gate towers and temple districts reconstructed, and tourism centred on Yungang, the Hanging Temple and the Liao and Jin temples has become a major part of the economy.
Names and nicknames
平城
The Han and Northern Wei name of the city.
凤凰城
“Phoenix City”
A traditional nickname of the walled city.
中国煤都
“coal capital of China”
Name earned in the twentieth century by its mines.
History
In 200 BCE the founding Han emperor Gaozu was surrounded by the Xiongnu at Baideng near Datong and escaped only by negotiation. The Tuoba Xianbei established the Northern Wei capital at Pingcheng in 398 and made it one of the largest cities of the age; the Yungang Grottoes were carved west of the city from 460. After the court moved to Luoyang in 494, Datong returned to frontier status until the Liao made it their Western Capital in 1044, when the Huayan and Shanhua temples were built. The Ming strengthened it as a garrison town, and the Nine Dragon Screen of 1392 survives from the palace of the Ming prince of Dai.
200 BCE
Siege of Baideng
The Han emperor Gaozu was trapped by the Xiongnu under Modu Chanyu, leading to the marriage-alliance policy with the steppe.
398–494
Capital of the Northern Wei
Pingcheng was the political centre of northern China for nearly a century.
460
Yungang Grottoes begun
The monk Tanyao began the five great caves west of the city under imperial patronage.
1044
Western Capital of the Liao
The Khitan made Datong one of their five capitals; the Huayan Temple's sutra library hall dates from 1038.
1392
Nine Dragon Screen
The glazed-tile spirit wall of the palace of Zhu Gui, Prince of Dai, is the largest of its kind in China.
2001
Yungang Grottoes inscribed
The grottoes became a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Landmarks
Temple or shrine
Yungang Grottoes
云冈石窟
Cave temples cut into the sandstone cliff of Wuzhou Hill, with colossal Buddhas in the Tanyao caves and richly carved chambers.
Temple or shrine
Huayan Temple
华严寺
Liao and Jin monastery with one of the largest surviving early Buddhist halls in China and Liao clay sculptures.
Temple or shrine
Shanhua Temple
善化寺
Liao and Jin temple inside the south gate with a complete set of halls and sculptures.
Historic site
Nine Dragon Screen
九龙壁
Ming glazed-tile screen with nine dragons, larger and older than those in Beijing.
Historic site
Datong City Wall
大同古城墙
Ming city wall around the old town, restored and rebuilt since 2008, with a walkway along the top.
Neighbourhoods
Walled city
大同古城
The rebuilt old town with its temples, drum tower and courtyard lanes.
Yudong New Area
御东新区
Modern district east of the Yu River with the city's cultural centre and museum.
Food
Knife-shaved noodles
刀削面
Datong claims to have the best of Shanxi's shaved noodles, served with mutton sauce.
Hunyuan cold jelly noodles
浑源凉粉
Potato-starch noodles with chilli, vinegar and fried tofu from Hunyuan county.
Mutton offal
羊杂
Lamb offal soup, a breakfast staple of the north.
Day lilies
黄花
The dried buds grown in Yunzhou district, used in stir-fries and soups.
Culture
Datong's culture carries the imprint of the northern frontier: Xianbei, Khitan and Jurchen rulers left the city its greatest monuments, and Buddhist art from Yungang to the Liao temples forms a continuous line of development. The region is known for its folk music, for bronze-ware making and for Mount Heng, the Northern Mountain among the Five Great Mountains, south-east of the city.
Getting around
- Datong South station on the Beijing–Zhangjiakou–Datong high-speed line connects the city with Beijing; the Datong–Taiyuan–Xi'an line runs south.
- Datong Yungang Airport lies east of the city.
- Buses run from the centre to the Yungang Grottoes west of the city; the Hanging Temple and Mount Heng are in Hunyuan county.
Day trips
Hanging Temple
悬空寺
Temple halls built on beams projecting from a cliff face at Hunyuan, combining Buddhist, Daoist and Confucian shrines.
Mount Heng
恒山
The Northern Mountain of the Five Great Mountains, with Daoist temples on its slopes.
Yingxian Wooden Pagoda
应县木塔
The Liao timber pagoda of 1056 in neighbouring Shuozhou prefecture.
Datong volcanoes
大同火山群
A field of extinct volcanic cones east of the city.
Frequently asked questions
Sources
- Datong Municipal People's Government — Datong Municipal People's Government (retrieved 27 September 2026)
- Seventh National Population Census communiqués — National Bureau of Statistics of China (retrieved 27 September 2026)
- Yungang Grottoes — UNESCO World Heritage Centre (retrieved 27 September 2026)
- Datong — Encyclopaedia Britannica (retrieved 27 September 2026)
More cities in Shanxi
- Taiyuan太原Capital · Historic city · Industrial centreDragon City of the Fen valley, where the Tang dynasty began
- Jinzhong晋中Historic city · Cultural centreHome of Pingyao and the Shanxi merchant compounds
- Xinzhou忻州Scenic area · Historic cityGateway to Mount Wutai and the Yanmen Pass
- Yuncheng运城Historic city · Cultural centreSalt lake, Guan Yu's hometown and the Stork Tower on the Yellow River bend
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