August 8, 1539 Earthquake: Jiangshui, Yunnan Province, China
A magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck Jiangshui, Yunnan Province, China on August 8, 1539.
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
- August 8, 1539
- Place
- Jiangshui, Yunnan Province, China
- Magnitude
- 5.5 (Ms)
- Intensity
- 7 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 23.600° N, 102.800° E
- Country
- China
The toll
- Deaths
- Some (about 51 to 100)
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.
August 8, 1539, Jianshui, Yunnan Prov, 23.6 N, 102.8 E, magnitude 5.5, intensity VI-VII. Some residents were killed. Shocks occurred at Huxi and Chuxiong on the same day. (reference #3939)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- January 4, 1970, Hanoi, Yunnan Province, Vietnam, China
- January 4, 1500, Yiliang, Yunnan Province, China
- 1499, Yi Liang, Yunnan Province, China
- September 6, 1833, Yunnan Province, China
- November 30, 1606, Jianshui, Yunnan Province, China
- December 16, 1887, Yunnan Province, China
- August 27, 1799, 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
- 1560, Yunnan Province, China
More
Significant earthquakes of 1539The 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 7933.