April 12, 1921 Earthquake: Ningxia, China

Name: April 12, 1921 Earthquake: Ningxia, China
Start: 1921-04-12
Location: Ningxia, China

April 12, 1921 · M6.2 · 10,000 deaths

A magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck Ningxia, China on April 12, 1921 at 09:36:04 UTC, 15 km below the surface. 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: April 12, 1921
Time: 09:36:04 UTC
Place: Ningxia, China
Magnitude: 6.2 (Mw)
Focal depth: 15 km (9 mi)
Tsunami: None recorded
Epicenter: 36.826° N, 100.953° E
Country: China

The toll

Deaths: 10,000
Damage: Extreme (about $25 million or more)

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.

1921 Apr 12, 17-36-00. 35.8 N 106.2 E. Magnitude 6.5. Guyuan, Ningxia. Autonomous Region. At Pingliang, Guyuan, and Longde counties, the fields and houses suffered uncountable losses. More than 30 avalanches occurred in the Mt, Liupan. Innumerable people and domestic animals were killed. In and around Guyuan, 10,000 people were killed, nobody was found within 25 km around the city. The farmland lay waste. The shock was felt at Huining (110 km apart). Shocks occurred 1-2 times per hour, till April 13. A strong shock occurred on Aug. 30, with considerable loss. (reference #3939)

1921 April 12, magnitude 6.5 Ms, 10 000 deaths, Ningxia (reference #14034)

1921-04-12 09:36:04.31 UTC, 36.826 N 100.953 E, magnitude 6.21 Mw (reference #10476, v.11)

1921 April 12, 09:36:00, Ningsia (reference #3787)

Note: possible this death toll was from the 1920 Dec 16 event; or that other references included this death toll in the Dec 16 event.

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

Significant earthquakes of 1921 The 1900s Every quake the USGS located in 1921 Recent earthquakes near here This 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 10861.