January 4, 1500 Earthquake: Yiliang, Yunnan Province, China
An earthquake struck Yiliang, Yunnan Province, China on January 4, 1500. It killed 10,000 people.
Map
Where it struck, with the other significant earthquakes within 200 km. Circles are sized and colored by magnitude; select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Date
- January 4, 1500
- Place
- Yiliang, Yunnan Province, China
- Intensity
- 9 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 24.900° N, 103.100° E
- Country
- China
The toll
- Deaths
- 10,000
Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
January 4, 1500, Yiliang, Yunnan Province, 24.9 N, 103.1 E, intensity IX. The city walls of Yiliang County (built with bricks, 4.7 m in height) failed. Few were left of government
offices, temples, monasteries and civilian houses.
Uncounted people were killed or injured (another
report said that the death toll reached tens of thousands.).
Chengjiang: Offices and civilian houses were destroyed.
Many people were killed.
Kunming: The Pagoda of Huiguang Temple collapsed
under shaking.
Earth quaked at 36 places of Yunnan more than 20
times on the same day. After this, shocks continued
either once a day, or once every ten days, or every
half month or every month, lasting as long as four
years.
(above from reference #3939)
Many people killed. (reference #1185)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- January 4, 1970, Hanoi, Yunnan Province, Vietnam, China
- 1499, Yi Liang, Yunnan Province, China
- September 6, 1833, Yunnan Province, China
- September 9, 1680, Yunnan Province, China
- February 26, 1713, S of Xundian, Yunnan Province, China
- August 27, 1799, Yunnan Province, China
- December 16, 1887, Yunnan Province, China
- November 30, 1606, Jianshui, Yunnan Province, China
- December 30, 1763, Yunnan Province, China
- December 21, 1913, Yunnan Province, China
- November 24, 1814, Siping, Yunnan Province, China
- January 8, 1725, Songming, Yiliang, Yunnan Province, China
- January 27, 1755, Yunnan Province, China
- April 6, 1940, Yunnan Province, China
- May 23, 1761, Yunnan Province, China
More
Significant earthquakes of 1500The 1500sRecent earthquakes near hereThis day in weather history
Sources
Significant earthquakes from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-09-24. NCEI earthquake 656.