Study on the spatial distribution pattern and influencing factors of Guanzhong grottoes heritage based on GIS

The spatial data information of Guanzhong grottoes heritage is obtained through GIS. The elevation distribution, distance relationship with rivers, distribution type, aggregation degree and distribution direction of Guanzhong grottoes are systematically analyzed by means of nearest neighbor index, kernel density estimation and standard deviation ellipse. The spatial distribution characteristics of Guanzhong grottoes from the Northern and Southern Dynasties to the Ming and Qing Dynasties are revealed, and discusses the influence of three factors: political economy, belief foundation and ancient river on the distribution pattern of Guanzhong grottoes. Research funding comes from Shaanxi Social Science Fund: Study on the Environment and Art of Grotto Temples in Shaanxi Province from the Perspective of Historical Geography (Project Number: 2022J074). The research shows that the distribution of Guanzhong grottoes generally shows a trend of clustering distribution, and its nearest neighbor distance index R=0.559767<1, forming two core gathering areas of Tongchuan City and Xianyang City. It gathered and distributed in the Northern and Southern Dynasties and Sui and Tang Dynasties, and dispersed in the Song and Jin Dynasties and Ming and Qing Dynasties. The distribution of grottoes in Guanzhong generally showed a trend of first diffusion and then contraction. It showed a diffusion trend from the Northern and Southern Dynasties to the Sui and Tang Dynasties, and a contraction trend from the Sui and Tang Dynasties to the Song and Jin Dynasties. The distribution center of Guanzhong grottoes moved from southwest to northeast as a whole.