The great migration of Sophora japonica in Shanxi is the largest migration event in the history of our country, so what is the reason for the migration?

There are many migration events recorded in the history of our country, but the migration event with the largest scale, the longest time, the widest scope and the most far-reaching significance is the migration event of Shanxi Sophora japonica. This was a large-scale forced relocation, and many people were reluctant to move to other places, but the Ming government would take it away after registration. As for why such a large-scale migration occurred, it is said that it is related to Zhu Yuanzhang's hero Hu Dahai, the Central Plains War and the flood of the Yellow River.

Zhu Yuanzhang was the first emperor of the Ming Dynasty. During his reign, a very brave general, Hu Dahai, made great contributions to him. But when rewarding his meritorious service, Hu Dahai demanded that everyone in Henan be killed. The reason is that before he took part in the uprising, he made a living by begging in Henan, but the local people were unwilling to give him alms because of his appearance, which led to his near starvation. For this requirement, Zhu Yuanzhang told Hu Dahai that he could shoot an arrow in Henan and kill people within the range of this arrow, but unexpectedly, he shot the arrow at the goose, and then Hu Dahai followed the goose to kill people all the way, almost killing people in Henan, Shandong and other places. As a result, there were fewer people in these places, which was not conducive to the development of the court. So Shanxi people, who were sparsely populated at that time, moved there.

Although there is indeed a record of Hu Dahai in history, there is no relevant historical data to prove his story, which is likely to be fabricated. At present, most experts and scholars believe that the migration of Sophora japonica in Shanxi Province should be related to the natural factors such as the war in the Central Plains and the flooding of the Yellow River.

Especially at the end of Yuan Dynasty, Hebei, Shandong, Henan and other places fled to unaffected Shanxi because of war and other factors. As a result, Shanxi is vast and sparsely populated. Zhu Yuanzhang, who just founded the Ming Dynasty, found that this would hinder the economic development of various provinces, so there was a forced migration of Sophora japonica in Shanxi.