December 25, 1893 Earthquake: Xinjiang, China
A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck Xinjiang, China on December 25, 1893.
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
- December 25, 1893
- Place
- Xinjiang, China
- Magnitude
- 6.5 (Ms)
- Intensity
- 8 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 41.200° N, 80.300° E
- Country
- China
The toll
- Deaths
- Many (about 101 to 1,000)
- Injuries
- Many (about 101 to 1,000)
- Damage
- Moderate (about $1 to $5 million)
- Houses destroyed
- Many (101 to 1,000)
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.
December 25, 1893, Aksu, Xinjiang Autonomous Region, 41.2 N, 80.3 E, magnitude 6.5, intensity VIII.
Most houses and wall collapsed, killing and injuring countless people and domestic animals. Rocks burst and rolled down, flat ground sank into pools with ground water trickling out. The disaster area extended as large as 150-200 km. A foreshock occurred on December 31 [17?] and an aftershock followed on January 2 the next year.
(above from reference #3939)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- December 1, 2003, Zhaosu, Xinjiang, China
- February 11, 1969, Wushi, Xinjiang Province, China
- March 23, 2021, Aksu, Xingjiang, China
- January 22, 2024, Xinjiang Province, Kazakhstan, China
- 1716, Aksu, Balkhash, S Xinjiang, China
- January 24, 1987, Xingjiang Weiwuer Zizhiqu Province, Wushi, China
- February 14, 2005, Wushi, Xinjiang Province, China
- January 5, 1987, Baicheng, S Xinjiang Province, China
- February 25, 1991, Kalpin, S Xinjiang, China
- February 20, 2009, Xinjiang Province, China
- June 5, 1970, Alma-Ata, Kazakhstan
More
Significant earthquakes of 1893The 1800sRecent 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 2436.