ABSTRACT
This chapter aims to study the Bazi-based cultural system of the border region in the Yun-Gui Plateau, and uses the case-study of Zhaozhou to demonstrate the social reconstruction and its impact on space in the Ming period. The culture of Bazi is based on the historical legacy of Nanzhao and Dali kingdoms and the penetration of Chinese empires since the thirteenth century. Beyond that, geographical and ecological conditions also have shaped the social features of local agencies in different native societies and the hierarchy of political power over local resources. The Dingxi Mountains is the southern part of the mountain range of Tiesuo Valley. The ecological features of Bazi basin and the mountains clearly set the natural environment for the social and historical dynamic. The natural ecological elements provided a set of physical conditions and a transformation framework for different cultural meanings, the living style of communities and their relationships with the state in the southwest frontier of China.
