Abstract
The North China Seismic Region is not a typical intraplate seismic region. Not only does it show a pervasive neotectonic influence of global plate geodynamics, but it also displays an atypical seismic activity rate, especially for strong earthquakes, for a region far from plate boundaries. It is obvious that the seismicity is related to the active seismotectonics and geodynamics of the deforming interior of a continental plate. The features of the seismotectonic zones and the tectonic setting of magnitude 6.0 or greater earthquakes in the region are discussed here. We conclude that strong earthquakes occur mainly in places where NE-trending main and NW-trending auxiliary tectonic zones intersect. Three types of mechanisms are suggested which differ according to the characteristics of different seismotectonic zones and which relate to different shallow and deep structures. These observed types of strong earthquakes in North China may represent the main categories of continental intraplate seismicity.
