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Provinces 省 Shěng
Category	Unitary state
Location	People's Republic of China
Number	22 (1 claimed)
Government	Unitary one-party socialist republic
Subdivisions	Sub-provincial city, Prefecture-level divisions

Provinces (Chinese: 省; pinyin: Shěng) are the most numerous type of province-level divisions in the People's Republic of China (PRC). There are currently 22 provinces administered by the PRC and one province that is claimed, but not administered, which is Taiwan, currently administered by the Republic of China (ROC).

The local governments of Chinese provinces consists of a Provincial People's Government headed by a governor that acts as the executive, a Provincial People's Congress with legislative powers, and a parallel provincial branch of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) that elects a Party Secretary and a Provincial Standing Committee.

Government

Provinces are the most common form of province-level governments. The legislative bodies of the provinces are the Provincial People's Congresses. The executive branch is the Provincial People's Government, led by a governor. The People's Government is answerable to both the State Council and the Provincial People's Congress. The provincial branch of the CCP has a Provincial Party Congress every five years, and elects a Standing Committee to exercise its authority when not in session. The Provincial Party Secretary is the de facto most important position in the province.

History

The first provinces were created in the Yuan dynasty, and have remained one of the most stable forms of Chinese government since then. They were created to help the Imperial court manage local county governments, which were too numerous and far-flung to be managed directly. The number of provinces grew steadily during subsequent dynasties, reaching 28 by the time of the Republic of China. During the Warlord Era, provinces became largely or completely autonomous and exercised significant national influence. Province-level units proliferated and under the early People's Republic there were over 50. Political boundaries are, in part, established to counterbalance the influence of economic factors. For instance, the Yangtze Delta is divided among the provinces of Zhejiang, Jiangsu, and Anhui. This division ensures that economic strength is distributed, preventing any single region from potentially overpowering the state.

List of provinces

1. Abbreviation in the parentheses is informal
2. Most of Fujian is administered by the People's Republic of China, but the Republic of China governs Kinmen County and Lienchiang County (the Matsu Islands) as part of its own Fujian Province.
3. Most of Guangdong is administered by the People's Republic of China, but the Republic of China governs Pratas Island as part of the special municipality of Kaohsiung City.
4. Most of Hainan is administered by the People's Republic of China, while the Republic of China governs Taiping Island as part of the special municipality of Kaohsiung City.
5. Has separate ISO 3166-2 code: TW
6. The People's Republic of China considers Taiwan to be its 23rd province, but Taiwan is currently ruled by the Republic of China. For more information, see the political status of Taiwan.

See also

• Federalism in China
• Administrative divisions of China
• List of Chinese administrative divisions by GDP
• List of Chinese administrative divisions by population
• List of current Chinese provincial leaders
• Regional discrimination in China
• Tiao-kuai
• Yangtze Delta
• Zhou (administrative division)
• Special administrative region (Republic of China)

References

1. Goodman 2015, p. 96.
2. Saich 2015, pp. 157–158.
3. Chung & Lam 2010, Chapter 2.
4. Guo 2017, p. 23.
5. Fitzgerald 2002, p. 16.
6. Goodman 2015, pp. 150, 154.
7. Goodman 2015, pp. 153–154.
8. Fairbank, John; Goldman, Merle (2006). China: A New History. Harvard University Press. p. 11. ISBN 0674116739.
9. "GB/T 2260 codes for the provinces of China". Archived from the original on 2004-03-05. Retrieved 2011-10-30.
10. ISO 3166-2:CN (ISO 3166-2 codes for the provinces of China)

Bibliography

• Goodman, David S.G. (2015). Handbook of the Politics of China. Northampton, Massachusetts: Edward Elgar Publishing Limited.
• Saich, Tony (2015). Governance and Politics of China (Fourth ed.). New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
• Chung, Jae Ho; Lam, Chiu (2010). China's Local Administration: Traditions and Changes in the Sub-National Hierarchy. New York: Routledge.
• Fitzgerald, John (2002). Rethinking China's Provinces. New York: Routledge.
• Guo, Rongxing (2017). How the Chinese Economy Works (4th Revised ed.). Palgrave Macmillan.

External links

• Interactive Dbresearch.com: WebMap Archived 2016-04-06 at the Wayback Machine — with economic indicators for all Chinese Provinces.

v t e Provincial-level divisions of China
Provinces	Anhui Fujian Gansu Guangdong Guizhou Hainan Hebei Heilongjiang Henan Hubei Hunan Jiangsu Jiangxi Jilin Liaoning Qinghai Shaanxi Shandong Shanxi Sichuan Yunnan Zhejiang
Autonomous regions	Guangxi Inner Mongolia Ningxia Tibet Xinjiang
Direct-administered municipalities	Beijing Chongqing Shanghai Tianjin
Special administrative regions	Hong Kong Macau
Disputed province	Taiwan
Taiwan is claimed by the People's Republic of China but administered by the Republic of China (see political status of Taiwan).

• Provinces of China
• Province-level divisions of China
• Lists of administrative divisions of China
• Administrative divisions of China
• First-level administrative divisions by country