Shanxi Province is located on the loess plateau in northern China. It borders Hebei, Henan and Shanxi provinces and inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. Shanxi is so named because it is located west of Mount Taihang. It is also named Hedong for it is east of the Yellow River. It was the territory of the Jin Kingdom during the Spring and Autumn Period, hence the name of Jin for short. It corves 156,000 square km, of which most regions are 1,000 meters above sea level, and 80 percent is mountainous. The rivers in Shanxi province are part of the Yellow River-Haihe River system.