Abstract: Taking 224 typical Dai ethnic communities in Xinping County as a case, the spatial distribution pattern of Dai ethnic communities was revealed by nearest neighbor and kernel density analysis, and factors affecting the spatial differentiation were explored by combining geographic detectors. The results show that: (1) Dai ethnic communities in Xinping County show a condensed spatial distribution form with obvious regional differences, demonstrating a pattern of “one area-multicore-linear” distribution. (2) The results of the geographic detector reveal that spatial differentiation of Dai ethnic communities in Xinping County is most significantly affected by the forces of population, slope and elevation. (3) The spatial pattern analysis shows:The formation and evolution of Dai ethnic communities in the dry-hot valley of the Yuanjiang River in Xinping County is the result of the interaction and coupling of natural environment, history and culture, as well as social economy. While natural environment is the leading determinant factor, socio-historical-cultural factors are intrinsic drivers.