Abstract:  In the Qing Dynasty，there appeared some commercial towns in Xiangxi (in the west of Hunan Province)，where economy were not highly developed.Four factors are contributed for this：the development of the mountainous areas，large number of emigrants，the development of transportation，and the progress of education.These four factors interacted together and fostered the prosperity of the commercial towns.

Key words:  , the Qing Dynasty, Xiangxi, development of the mountainous areas, commercial towns