Throughout southern Yunnan's tea producing history there have been references to six famous mountains renowned for producing the best tea in the region. Historically, the Six Famous Tea Mountains were located Jiang Bei (jiang - "river" and bei - "north", meaning north of the Mekong River) and were named after six items left behind by Zhugeliang, the Prime Minister of Shu in the Three Kingdoms period and the region’s patron saint of tea. (According to legend, Zhegeliang taught the people of southern Yunnan the art of harvesting and making tea). The names of these historic mountains were Youle (copper gong), Mangzhi (copper boa), Manzhuan (iron brick), Yi Bang (wooden clapper), Gedeng (leather stirrup), and Mansa (seed-sowing bag).

For various reasons, the names and locations of these six mountains shifted gradually through time. Perhaps the same name was used by different groups for different mountains. Some confusion may have resulted from the fact that the names recorded were Chinese translations or phonetic approximations of native languages used in the area.

We do know that of the mountains considered to be the famous Six by the mid-twentieth century, many had fallen into extreme disrepair due to large fires, over-picking, or neglect. As a result, in 1962 a new group of Famous Six Tea Mountains were named based on the best tea producing mountains at the time - Yiwu, Jingmai, Menghai, Nannuo, Bulang, and Youle. All of these mountains had been famous for many years, one of which, Youle, was a member of the original Six.

Throughout the years, another Famous Six were designated from Jiang Nan (south of the Mekong River) and include some of the mountains from the 1962 list. These are Mengsong, Nannuo, Menghai, Bada, Nanqiao, and Jingmai.

Of course, southern Yunnan is full of tea and mountains and there are several others that, though not included in the Six, are renowned in and of themselves for their tea forests. Banzhang, Bangwei, and Ailao are three such mountains whose teas are as distinct and flavorful as any of the Six, yet are not as well known.