Historical Studies (Chinese Edition)

No.2, 2017

 

The Spread of Plague and Environmental Disturbance in a Vulnerable Environment: A Case Study of the Shaanxi Cholera Outbreak of 1932

(Abstract)

 

Zhang Ping

 

From the 1920s to the 1930s, affected by climate warming in the mid-latitude zone in the northern hemisphere, China suffered from frequent climatic disasters. In 1932, a mass outbreak of cholera occurred in 23 provinces. The epidemic was notable for the broad area affected and for a particular concentration in the inland provinces. The total death toll in Shaanxi reached 200000, reflecting the fragility of the province’s natural and social environment and the process by which cholera and other exogenous infectious diseases spread inland. The Shaanxi cholera epidemic of 1932 was a critical turning point in the spread of infectious diseases from east to west. The epidemic was a direct result of modern economic expansion, and can thus be seen as a new dimension in the exploration of the modernization of the inland provinces.