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{{Short description|Country in East Asia}}
'''China''' is a country with a 5,000-year-old civilization in South East ]. Since ] the official name of the country has been The ] (or P.R.C). From that time, a ] government has ruled.
{{Redirect2|People's Republic of China|PRC|the present-day Republic of China|Taiwan|other uses|PRC (disambiguation)|and|China (disambiguation)}}
{{Pp-move}}
{{Pp|small=yes}}
{{Use American English|date=December 2021}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2024|cs1-dates=ly}}
{{Infobox country
| conventional_long_name = People's Republic of China
| common_name = China
| native_name = {{native name|zh-Hans-CN|中华人民共和国|italic=no}}<br>{{tlit|zh|Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó}}&nbsp;(])
| image_flag = Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg
| image_coat = National Emblem of the People's Republic of China (2).svg
| symbol_type = ]
| national_anthem = "]"{{pb}}]
| image_map = CHN orthographic.svg
| map_width = 250px
| map_caption = {{Legend|#336830|Location of the People's Republic of China}}{{Legend|#61E760|]}}
| capital = ]
| coordinates = {{Coord|39|55|N|116|23|E|type:city(21,000,000)_region:CN-BJ}}
| largest_settlement = ]
| largest_settlement_type = city {{normal|by ]}}
|admin_center_type = Largest city {{normal|by municipal boundary}}
|admin_center = ]{{efn|The size of Chonqging Municipality is about that of the country of ]. ] professor Kam Wing Chan argued that Chongqing's status is more akin to that of a province rather than a city.<ref name=BBCHowdoyoumeasure>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-16761784|title=The world's biggest cities: How do you measure them?|publisher=]|date=29 January 2012|access-date=8 August 2024}}</ref>}}
| official_languages = ] {{nwr|(de facto)<ref name="Adamson & Feng">{{Cite book |last1=Adamson |first1=Bob |title=Multilingual China: National, Minority and Foreign Languages |last2=Feng |first2=Anwei |date=27 December 2021 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-0004-8702-2 |page=90 |quote=Despite not being defined as such in the Constitution, ''Putonghua'' enjoys de facto status of the official language in China and is legislated as the standard form of Chinese.}}</ref>}}
| languages_type = ]
| languages_sub = yes
| languages = ]
| religion = {{ubl|item_style=white-space:nowrap|33.4% ]|25.2% ]|19.6% ]|17.7% other ]|2.5% ]|1.6% ]}}
| religion_ref = <ref name="religion2023">2023 approximations of the statistics from the ] (CFPS) of the year 2018, as contained in the following analyses:
* {{Cite web |date=30 August 2023 |title=Measuring Religion in China |url=https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2023/08/PF_2023.08.30_religion-china_REPORT.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230909075729/https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2023/08/PF_2023.08.30_religion-china_REPORT.pdf |archive-date=9 September 2023 |publisher=Pew Research Center}}{{cite web|url=https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2023/08/30/measuring-religion-in-china/|title=Measuring Religions in China|date=30 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230930132002/https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2023/08/30/measuring-religion-in-china/|archive-date=30 September 2023|url-status=live}} A compilation of statistics from reliable surveys held throughout the 2010s and early 2020s, with an emphasis on the CFPS 2018.
* {{cite journal|last=Wenzel-Teuber|first=Katharina|title=Statistics on Religions and Churches in the People's Republic of China – Update for the Year 2022|journal=Religions & Christianity in Today's China|volume=XIII|pages=18–44|date=2023|publisher=China Zentrum|issn=2192-9289|url=https://www.china-zentrum.de/fileadmin/PDF-Dateien/E-Journal_RCTC/2023/RCTC_2023-2.18-44_Wenzel-Teuber_-_Statistics_on_Religions_and_Churches_in_the_People%E2%80%99s_Republic_of_China_%E2%80%93_Update_for_the_Year_2022.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230623210716/https://www.china-zentrum.de/fileadmin/PDF-Dateien/E-Journal_RCTC/2023/RCTC_2023-2.18-44_Wenzel-Teuber_-_Statistics_on_Religions_and_Churches_in_the_People%E2%80%99s_Republic_of_China_%E2%80%93_Update_for_the_Year_2022.pdf|archive-date=23 June 2023|url-status=live}}
* {{cite journal|last1=Zhang|first1=Chunni|last2=Lu|first2=Yunfeng|last3=He|first3=Sheng|title=Exploring Chinese folk religion: Popularity, diffuseness, and diversities|journal=Chinese Journal of Sociology|volume=7|number=4|pages=575–592|date=2021|publisher=SAGE Publications|doi=10.1177/2057150X211042687|url=http://www.shehui.pku.edu.cn/upload/editor/file/20220323/20220323092720_6133.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231015040713/http://www.shehui.pku.edu.cn/upload/editor/file/20220323/20220323092720_6133.pdf|archive-date=15 October 2023|url-status=live |issn=2057-150X}}</ref>
| religion_year = 2023
| ethnic_groups = {{ubl|item_style=white-space:nowrap|91.1% ]|8.9% ]}}
| ethnic_groups_year = 2020
| ethnic_groups_ref = <ref>{{Cite web |title=Main Data of the Seventh National Population Census |url=http://www.stats.gov.cn/english/PressRelease/202105/t20210510_1817185.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511031334/http://www.stats.gov.cn/english/PressRelease/202105/t20210510_1817185.html |archive-date=11 May 2021 |access-date=25 July 2021 |website=Stats.gov.cn}}</ref>
| demonym = Chinese
|<!-- Do not change this without consensus; see the past discussions on the talk page. In 2018, the Chinese government added the CCP's leadership to the constitution, which makes China a de jure one-party state. -->government_type = Unitary ] one-party ]
| leader_title1 = ] and ]{{efn|] of China, who holds the titles of:
* ]
* ]
* ]}}
| leader_name1 = ]
| leader_title2 = ]
| leader_name2 = ]
| leader_title3 = ]
| leader_name3 = ]
| leader_title4 = ]{{efn|Chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference}}
| leader_name4 = ]
| leader_title5 = ]
| leader_name5 = ]
| legislature = ]{{efn|While not an upper house of the legislature, the ] exists as an advisory body. However, much of the parliamentary functions are held by the ] when ordinary congress is not in session.}}
| sovereignty_type = ]
| established_event1 = ]
| established_date1 = {{circa|2070&nbsp;BCE}}
| established_event2 = ]
| established_date2 = 221&nbsp;BCE
| established_event3 = ]
| established_date3 = 1 January 1912
| established_event4 = ]
| established_date4 = 1 October 1949
| area_km2 = 9,596,961
| p1 =
| area_footnote = {{efn|UN figure for mainland China, which excludes Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan.<ref name="UN Stat">{{Cite web |date=2007 |title=Demographic Yearbook—Table 3: Population by sex, rate of population increase, surface area and density |url=http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/products/dyb/dyb2007/Table03.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101224063215/http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/products/dyb/dyb2007/Table03.pdf |archive-date=24 December 2010 |access-date=31 July 2010 |publisher=UN Statistics}}</ref> It also excludes the ] ({{cvt|5180|km2}}), ] ({{cvt|38000|km2}}) and other territories in dispute with India. The total area of China is listed as {{cvt|9572900|km2}} by the ''Encyclopædia Britannica''.<ref name="britannica">{{Cite encyclopedia |title=China |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/China |access-date=4 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190727034401/https://www.britannica.com/place/China |archive-date=27 July 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref>}}<ref>{{Cite web |title=Total surface area as of 19 January 2007 |url=https://unstats.un.org/unsd/environment/totalarea.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231203020257/https://unstats.un.org/unsd/environment/totalarea.htm |archive-date=3 December 2023 |access-date=28 March 2024 |website=United Nations Statistics Division}}</ref>
| area_rank = 3rd{{\}}4th
| area_sq_mi = 3,705,407 <!-- per ] -->
| percent_water = 2.8<ref name="CIA"/>
| population_estimate = {{decreaseNeutral}} 1,409,670,000<ref>{{Cite news |last=Master |first=Farah |date=17 January 2024 |title=China's population drops for second year, with record low birth rate |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/china/chinas-population-drops-2nd-year-raises-long-term-growth-concerns-2024-01-17 |access-date=17 January 2024 |work=Reuters}}</ref>
| population_estimate_year = 2023
| population_estimate_rank = 2nd
| population_census_year = 2020
| population_census_rank = 2nd
| population_density_km2 = 145<ref>{{Cite web |title=Population density (people per km2 of land area) |url=http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/EN.POP.DNST |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150516215445/http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/EN.POP.DNST |archive-date=16 May 2015 |access-date=16 May 2015 |publisher=IMF}}</ref>
| population_density_sq_mi = 373 <!-- per ] -->
| population_density_rank = 83rd
| GDP_PPP = {{increase}} $37.072 trillion{{efn|GDP figures exclude Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau.}}<ref name="IMFWEO.CN">{{cite web |url=https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2024/October/weo-report?c=924,&s=NGDPD,PPPGDP,NGDPDPC,PPPPC,&sy=2022&ey=2029&ssm=0&scsm=1&scc=0&ssd=1&ssc=0&sic=0&sort=country&ds=.&br=1 |title=World Economic Outlook Database, October 2024 Edition. (China) |publisher=] |website=www.imf.org |date=22 October 2024 |access-date=11 November 2024}}</ref>
| GDP_PPP_year = 2024
| GDP_PPP_rank = 1st
| GDP_PPP_per_capita = {{increase}} $26,310<ref name="IMFWEO.CN"/>
| GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank = 79th
| GDP_nominal = {{increase}} $18.273 trillion<ref name="IMFWEO.CN"/>
| GDP_nominal_year = 2024
| GDP_nominal_rank = 2nd
| GDP_nominal_per_capita = {{increase}} $12,969<ref name="IMFWEO.CN"/>
| GDP_nominal_per_capita_rank = 73rd
| Gini = 35.7 <!-- number only -->
| Gini_year = 2021
| Gini_change = decrease
| Gini_ref = <ref name="GINI">{{Cite web |title=Gini index – China |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SI.POV.GINI?locations=CN&most_recent_year_desc=true |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240319005643/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SI.POV.GINI?locations=CN&most_recent_year_desc=true |archive-date=19 March 2024 |access-date=24 May 2022 |publisher=World Bank}}</ref>
| HDI = 0.788 <!-- number only -->
| HDI_year = 2022 <!-- The year of the data, not the publication year -->
| HDI_change = increase
| HDI_ref = <ref name="UNHDR">{{Cite web |date=13 March 2024 |title=Human Development Report 2023/24 |url=https://hdr.undp.org/system/files/documents/global-report-document/hdr2023-24reporten.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240313164319/https://hdr.undp.org/system/files/documents/global-report-document/hdr2023-24reporten.pdf |archive-date=13 March 2024 |access-date=13 March 2024 |publisher=]}}</ref>
| HDI_rank = 75th
| currency = ] (元/¥){{efn|The ] is used in Hong Kong and Macau, while the ] is used in Macau only.}}
| currency_code = CNY
| time_zone = ]
| utc_offset = ]
| calling_code = {{ubl|] (mainland)|] (Hong Kong)|] (Macau)}}
| cctld = {{hlist|]|]|] (mainland)}}{{hlist|]|] (Hong Kong)}}{{hlist|]|]|] (Macau)}}
}}


'''China''',{{efn|{{zh|s=中国<!-- Do not add traditional characters. -->|p=Zhōngguó}}}} officially the '''People's Republic of China''' ('''PRC'''),{{efn|{{zh|s=中华人民共和国|p=Zhōnghuá rénmín gònghéguó}}}} is a country in ]. With ] exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the ] after ], representing 17.4% of the world population. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ].{{efn|China's border with Pakistan is disputed by India, which claims the entire ] region as its territory. China is tied with Russia as having the ].}} With an area of nearly {{Convert|9.6|e6sqkm|sqmi|sp=us}}, it is the ] by total land area.{{efn|The total area ranking relative to the ] depends on the measurement of the total areas of both countries. See ] for more information. The following two primary sources represent the range of estimates of China's and the United States' total areas.
China is known by native people as Zhong1 Guo2 (&#20013;&#22283; or &#20013;&#22269; in simplified Chinese) or Zhong1 Hua2 (&#20013;&#33775;), and in ancient Chinese literature Hua2 Xia4 (&#33775;&#22799;) where Xia refers to the ] in 2205-1766 BC.


# The '']'' lists China as world's third-largest country (after Russia and Canada) with a total area of 9,572,900 km{{Sup|2}},<ref name="britannica"/> and the United States as fourth-largest at 9,525,067 km{{Sup|2}}.<ref name="United States">{{Cite encyclopedia |title=United States |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/United-States |access-date=4 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150528012641/https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/616563/United-States |archive-date=28 May 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref>
The origins of the English word "China" are unclear.
# The ] lists China as the fourth-largest country (after Russia, Canada and the United States) with a total area of 9,596,960 km{{Sup|2}},<ref name="CIA"/> and the United States as the third-largest at 9,833,517 km{{Sup|2}}.<ref>{{citation-attribution|1={{Cite CIA World Factbook|country=United States|access-date=3 July 2016}}}}</ref>


Both sources exclude both Taiwan and coastal and territorial waters from the area of China. However, the CIA ''World Factbook'' includes the United States coastal and territorial waters, while Encyclopædia Britannica excludes them.
According to ], the word is based on a ] word chInI which refers to a type of fine ] from China.
<br/>
And the porcelain is called ci2 (&#29943; pronounced ''chee'') in Chinese which might be the root of the Persian word.
Notably, the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' specifies the United States' area (excluding coastal and territorial waters) as 9,525,067 km{{Sup|2}}, which is less than either source's figure given for China's area.<ref name="United States"/> Therefore, it is unclear which country has a larger area including coastal and territorial waters.
The word '''china''' (in lower case) refers to the porcelain.
<br/>
Apparently, the English named the countries after the porcelain.
The ]'s figure for the United States is {{cvt|9,833,517|km2}} and China is {{cvt|9,596,961|km2}}. These closely match the CIA ''World Factbook'' figures and similarly ''include'' coastal and territorial waters for the United States, but ''exclude'' coastal and territorial waters for China.{{Overly detailed inline|date=March 2024}}}} The country is divided into 33 ]: 22 ],{{efn|Excluding the disputed ]. See {{section link||Administrative divisions}}.}} five ], four ], and two semi-autonomous ]. ] is the country's capital, while ] is ] and largest ].


China is considered one of the ]: the first human inhabitants in the region arrived during the ]. By the late 2nd millennium&nbsp;BCE, the earliest ] had emerged in the ] basin. The 8th–3rd centuries&nbsp;BCE saw a breakdown in the authority of the ], accompanied by the emergence of administrative and military techniques, ], ], and ]. In 221&nbsp;BCE, China was unified under ], ushering in more than two millennia of imperial dynasties including the ], ], ], ], ], and ]. With the ] and ], the establishment of the ], and the building of the ], ] flourished and has ] and lands further afield. However, China began to cede ] in the late 19th century to various European powers by a series of ].
According to ], the word is based on a ] word ''China'' which refers to ] or Ch'in dynasty (&#31206; 255-204 BC).


After decades of Qing China on the decline, the ] overthrew the Qing dynasty and the monarchy and the ] (ROC) was established the following year. The country under the nascent ] was unstable and ultimately fragmented during the ], which was ended upon the ] conducted by the ] (KMT) to reunify the country. The ] began in 1927, when KMT forces ] members of the rival ] (CCP), who proceeded to engage in sporadic fighting against the KMT-led ]. Following the country's invasion by the ] in 1937, the CCP and KMT formed the ] to fight the Japanese. The ] eventually ended in a Chinese victory; however, the CCP and the KMT resumed their civil war as soon as the war ended. In 1949, the resurgent Communists established control over most of the country, ] and forcing the ] to the ]. The country was split, with ] claiming to be the ]. Following the implementation of ]s, further attempts by the PRC to realize ] failed: the ] was largely responsible for the ] that ended with millions of Chinese people having died, and the subsequent ] was a period of social turmoil and persecution characterized by ] populism. Following the ], the ] in 1972 would precipitate the normalization of ]. ] that began in 1978 moved the country away from a socialist ] towards ], spurring significant economic growth. The corresponding movement for increased democracy and liberalization stalled after the ] in 1989.
<i>Some historians please explain the origin of the word. If two major English dictionaries have different views, no one really knows where this English word came from.</i>


China is a ] one-party ] led by the CCP. It is one of the five ] of the ]; the UN representative for China was changed from the ROC to the PRC in 1971. It is a founding member of several multilateral and regional organizations such as the ], the ], the ], and the ]. It is a member of the ], the ], ], the ], and the ]. Making up around one-fifth of the world economy, the ] is the world's ], the ], and the ], albeit ] in measures of ], ] and ]. The country has been one of the ] major economies and is the world's ] and ], as well as the ]. China is a ] with the world's ] and the ]. It is a ], and ]. China is known for ] and culture, and has ], the ].
See also ], ] and the ] (]).


== Etymology ==
'''External References'''


{{Main|Names of China}}
*
]), ''Mangi'' (inland of '']''), and ''Cataio'' (inland of ''China'' and '']'', and including the capital '']'', '']'', and a ]) are all shown as separate regions on this 1570 map by ].]]

The word "China" has been used in English since the 16th century; however, it was not used by the Chinese themselves during this period. Its origin has been traced through ], ], and ] back to the ] word {{transliteration|sa|Cīna}}, used in ].<ref name="OED">{{Cite web |title=China |url=https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/31735? |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230712030439/https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/31735 |archive-date=12 July 2023 |access-date=28 March 2024 |website=Oxford English Dictionary}}{{ISBN|0-1995-7315-8}}</ref> "China" appears in ]'s 1555 translation{{efn|"...{{nbsp}}Next into this, is found the great China, whose king is thought to be the greatest prince in the world, and is named Santoa Raia".<ref>] (1555), ''Decades of the New World'', {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230811170243/https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/eebo/a20032.0001.001/511?page=root;size=125;vid=4616;view=text |date=11 August 2023}}.</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Myers |first=Henry Allen |title=Western Views of China and the Far East, Volume 1 |date=1984 |publisher=Asian Research Service |page=34}}</ref>}} of the 1516 journal of the Portuguese explorer ].{{efn|"...{{nbsp}}The Very Great Kingdom of China".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Barbosa |first=Duarte |title=The Book of Duarte Barbosa |date=1918 |publisher=Asian Educational Services |isbn=978-8-1206-0451-3 |editor-last=Dames |editor-first=Mansel Longworth |volume=II |location=London |page=}}</ref> ({{langx|pt|...{{nbsp}}O Grande Reino da China{{nbsp}}...}}).<ref>{{Cite book |last=Barbosa |first=Duarte |url=http://purl.pt/435 |title=Livro em que dá Relação do que Viu e Ouviu no Oriente |date=1946 |publisher=Agência Geral das Colónias |editor-last=Augusto Reis Machado |location=Lisbon |archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20081022202824/http://purl.pt/435 |archive-date=22 October 2008 |url-status=dead}}. {{in lang|pt}}</ref>}}<ref name="OED" /> Barbosa's usage was derived from Persian {{transliteration|fa|Chīn}} ({{lang|fa|{{linktext|چین}}}}), which in turn derived from Sanskrit {{transliteration|sa|]}} ({{lang|sa|{{linktext|चीन}}}}).<ref name="AmHer">" {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110921131850/http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/China?qsrc=2888 |date=21 September 2011}}". ''The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language'' (2000). Boston and New York: Houghton-Mifflin.</ref> {{transliteration|sa|Cīna}} was first used in early ] scripture, including the '']'' (5th century&nbsp;BCE) and the '']'' (2nd century&nbsp;BCE).<ref name="wade">Wade, Geoff. " {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171117222125/http://www.sino-platonic.org/complete/spp188_yelang_china.pdf |date=17 November 2017}}". '']'', No. 188, May 2009, p. 20.</ref> In 1655, ] suggested that the word China is derived ultimately from the name of the ] (221–206 BCE).<ref name="Martini">Martino, Martin, ''Novus Atlas Sinensis'', Vienna 1655, Preface, p. 2.</ref><ref name="wade" /> Although use in Indian sources precedes this dynasty, this derivation is still given in various sources.<ref name="Bodde-1978">{{Cite book |last=Bodde |first=Derk |author-link=Derk Bodde |title=The Cambridge History of China: Volume 1, The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC – AD 220 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1986 |isbn=978-0-5212-4327-8 |editor-last=Denis Twitchett |editor-link=Denis Twitchett |page=20 |chapter=The state and empire of Ch'in |doi=10.1017/CHOL9780521243278.003 |editor-last2=Michael Loewe |editor-link2=Michael Loewe}}</ref> The origin of the Sanskrit word is a matter of debate.<ref name="OED" /> Alternative suggestions include the names for ] and the ] or Chu state.<ref name="wade" /><ref name="Yule-1866">{{Cite book |last=Yule |first=Henry |title=Cathay and the Way Thither |publisher=Asian Educational Services |year=1866 |isbn=978-8-1206-1966-1 |pages=}}</ref>

The official name of the modern state is the "People's Republic of China" ({{zh|s={{linktext|中华人民共和国}}|p=Zhōnghuá rénmín gònghéguó|t={{linktext|中華人民共和國}}}}).<!--Do NOT remove Traditional. Simplified is the official script in China but Traditional is found in ],

], and other important CCP documents, as well as being the official script in Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. Traditional characters are an important though secondary part of mainland China's script system.--> The shorter form is "China" ({{zh|s={{linktext|中国}}|t={{linktext|中國}}|p=Zhōngguó|labels=no}}), from {{transliteration|zh|zhōng}} ('central') and {{transliteration|zh|guó}} ('state'), a term which developed under the ] dynasty in reference to its ].{{efn|Its earliest extant use is on the ] vessel ], where it apparently refers to only the ]'s immediate demesne conquered by the ].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Chen |first=Zhi |author-mask=Chen Zhi |date=9 November 2004 |title=From Exclusive Xia to Inclusive Zhu-Xia: The Conceptualisation of Chinese Identity in Early China |journal=] |volume=14 |issue=3 |pages=185–205 |doi=10.1017/S135618630400389X |jstor=25188470 |s2cid=162643600}}</ref>}}{{efn|Its meaning "Zhou's royal demesne" is attested from the 6th-century BC ], which states "] bestowed the lands and the peoples of the central state to the ancestors" ({{lang|zh|皇天既付中國民越厥疆土于先王}}).<ref>{{lang|zh|], ].}} {{in lang|zh}}</ref>}} It was used in official documents as an synonym for the state under the ].<ref name="wilx">{{Cite book |last=Wilkinson |first=Endymion |title=Chinese History: A Manual |date=2000 |publisher=Harvard University Asia Center |isbn=978-0-6740-0249-4 |series=Harvard-Yenching Institute Monograph No. 52 |page=}}</ref> The name ''Zhongguo'' is also translated as {{nowrap|'Middle Kingdom'}} in English.<ref name="Tang-2010">{{Cite book |last1=Tang |first1=Xiaoyang |title=Greater China in an Era of Globalization |last2=Guo |first2=Sujian |last3=Guo |first3=Baogang |date=2010 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield Publishers |isbn=978-0-7391-3534-1 |location=Lanham, MD |pages=}}</ref> China is sometimes referred to as "]" or "the Mainland" when distinguishing it from the ] or the ].<ref>{{Cite news |title=Two 'Chinese' flags in Chinatown 美國唐人街兩面「中國」國旗之爭 |url=https://www.bbc.com/zhongwen/simp/world-49585512 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201202000227/https://www.bbc.com/zhongwen/simp/world-49585512 |archive-date=2 December 2020 |access-date=5 November 2020 |publisher=BBC}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Chou Hsi-wei on Conflict Zone |url=https://www.dw.com/en/chou-hsi-wei-on-conflict-zone/av-49624866 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210416094447/https://www.dw.com/en/chou-hsi-wei-on-conflict-zone/av-49624866 |archive-date=16 April 2021 |access-date=5 November 2020 |publisher=Deutsche Welle |quote=So-called 'China', we call it 'Mainland', we are 'Taiwan'. Together we are 'China'.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=China-Taiwan Relations |url=https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/china-taiwan-relations |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200726215005/https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/china-taiwan-relations |archive-date=26 July 2020 |access-date=5 November 2020 |publisher=Council on Foreign Relations}}</ref><ref name="asia-34729538"/>

== History ==
{{Main|History of China}}
{{For timeline|Timeline of Chinese history}}

=== Prehistory ===
] culture (18000–7000 BCE)]]

] suggests that early ] inhabited China 2.25 million years ago.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Ciochon |first1=Russell |last2=Larick |first2=Roy |date=1 January 2000 |title=Early Homo erectus Tools in China |url=https://archive.archaeology.org/0001/newsbriefs/china.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200106111404/https://archive.archaeology.org/0001/newsbriefs/china.html |archive-date=6 January 2020 |access-date=30 November 2012 |website=]}}</ref> The hominid fossils of ], a '']'' who ],<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Peking Man World Heritage Site at Zhoukoudian |url=http://www.unesco.org/ext/field/beijing/whc/pkm-site.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160623160018/http://www.unesco.org/ext/field/beijing/whc/pkm-site.htm |archive-date=23 June 2016 |access-date=6 March 2013 |publisher=UNESCO}}</ref> have been dated to between 680,000 and 780,000 ].<ref name="autogenerated198">{{Cite journal |last1=Shen |first1=G. |last2=Gao |first2=X. |last3=Gao |first3=B. |last4=Granger |first4=De |date=March 2009 |title=Age of Zhoukoudian Homo erectus determined with (26)Al/(10)Be burial dating |journal=Nature |volume=458 |issue=7235 |pages=198–200 |doi=10.1038/nature07741 |pmid=19279636 |s2cid=19264385}}</ref> The fossilized teeth of ''Homo sapiens'' (dated to 125,000–80,000 years ago) have been discovered in ].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Rincon |first=Paul |date=14 October 2015 |title=Fossil teeth place humans in Asia '20,000 years early' |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-34531861 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170817113912/http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-34531861 |archive-date=17 August 2017 |access-date=14 October 2015 |work=BBC News}}</ref> Chinese ] existed in ] around 6600 BCE,<ref name="earliest writing">{{Cite news |last=Rincon |first=Paul |date=17 April 2003 |title='Earliest writing' found in China |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/2956925.stm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120320140538/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/2956925.stm |archive-date=20 March 2012 |access-date=14 January 2020 |work=BBC News}}</ref> at ] around 6000 BCE,<ref>] (2000) ''Chinese Writing'' English translation of {{lang|zh-Hant|文字學概論}} by Gilbert L. Mattos and ] Early China Special Monograph Series No. 4. Berkeley: The Society for the Study of Early China and the Institute of East Asian Studies, University of California, Berkeley. {{ISBN|978-1-5572-9071-7}}</ref> ] from 5800 to 5400 BCE, and ] dating from the 5th millennium BCE. Some scholars have suggested that the ] (7th millennium BCE) constituted the earliest Chinese writing system.<ref name="earliest writing" />

=== Early dynastic rule ===
{{Further|Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors|Xia dynasty|Shang dynasty|Zhou dynasty|Spring and Autumn period|Warring States period}}
], the ruins of the capital of the late ] (14th century BCE)]]

According to traditional ], the ] was established during the late 3rd millennium&nbsp;BCE, marking the beginning of the dynastic cycle that was understood to underpin China's entire political history. In the modern era, the Xia's historicity came under increasing scrutiny, in part due to the earliest known attestation of the Xia being written millennia after the date given for their collapse. In 1958, archaeologists discovered sites belonging to the ] that existed during the early ]; they have since been characterized as the remains of the historical Xia, but this conception is often rejected.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Tanner |first=Harold M. |title=China: A History |year=2009 |publisher=Hackett |isbn=978-0-8722-0915-2 |pages=}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Bronze Age China |url=http://www.nga.gov/exhibitions/chbro_bron.shtm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130725062916/http://www.nga.gov/exhibitions/chbro_bron.shtm |archive-date=25 July 2013 |access-date=11 July 2013 |publisher=National Gallery of Art}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |title=China: Five Thousand Years of History and Civilization |year=2007 |publisher=City University of Hong Kong Press |isbn=978-9-6293-7140-1 |page=}}</ref> The ] that traditionally succeeded the Xia is the earliest for which there are both contemporary written records and undisputed archaeological evidence.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Pletcher |first=Kenneth |title=The History of China |year=2011 |publisher=Britannica Educational Publishing |isbn=978-1-6153-0181-2 |page=}}</ref> The Shang ruled much of the ] valley until the 11th century&nbsp;BCE, with the earliest hard evidence dated {{circa|1300&nbsp;BCE}}.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Fowler |first1=Jeaneane D. |title=Chinese Religions: Beliefs and Practices |last2=Fowler |first2=Merv |year=2008 |publisher=Sussex Academic Press |isbn=978-1-8451-9172-6 |page=}}</ref> The ], attested from {{circa|1250&nbsp;BCE|lk=no}} but generally assumed to be considerably older,<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Boltz |first=William G. |author-link=William G. Boltz |date=February 1986 |title=Early Chinese Writing |journal=World Archaeology |volume=17 |issue=3 |page=436 |doi=10.1080/00438243.1986.9979980 |jstor=124705}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Keightley |first=David N. |author-link=David Keightley |date=Autumn 1996 |title=Art, Ancestors, and the Origins of Writing in China |journal=Representations |volume=56 |issue=Special Issue: The New Erudition |pages=68–95 |doi=10.2307/2928708 |jstor=2928708 |s2cid=145426302}}</ref> represents the oldest known form of ],<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Zhengzhou |encyclopedia=International Dictionary of Historic Places: Asia and Oceania |publisher=Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers |last=Hollister |first=Pam |year=1996 |editor-last=Schellinger |editor-first=Paul E. |page= |isbn=978-1-8849-6404-6 |editor2-first=Robert M. |editor2-last=Salkin}}</ref> and is the direct ancestor of modern ].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Allan |first=Keith |title=The Oxford Handbook of the History of Linguistics |year=2013 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-1995-8584-7 |page=}}</ref>

The Shang were overthrown by the ], who ruled between the 11th and 5th centuries&nbsp;BCE, though the centralized authority of ] was slowly eroded by '']'' lords. Some principalities eventually emerged from the weakened Zhou and continually waged war with each other during the 300-year ]. By the time of the ] of the 5th–3rd centuries&nbsp;BCE, there were seven major powerful states left.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Warring States |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/event/Warring-States |access-date=28 March 2024 |date=15 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240119202928/https://www.britannica.com/event/Warring-States |archive-date=19 January 2024 |url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Imperial China ===
{{further|Chinese Empire|History of China#Imperial China}}

==== Qin and Han ====
] during the 2nd century&nbsp;BCE|thumb|upright=1.1]]

The Warring States period ended in 221&nbsp;BCE after the ] conquered the other six states, reunited China and established the dominant order of ]. ] proclaimed himself the Emperor of the ], becoming the first emperor of a unified China. He enacted Qin's ] reforms, notably the standardization of Chinese characters, ], road widths, and ]. His dynasty also ] in ], ], and ].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sima |first=Qian |author-link=Sima Qian |title=Records of the Grand Historian |title-link=Shiji |publisher=Columbia University Press |year=1993 |isbn=0-231-08165-0 |location=Hong Kong |pages=11–12 |translator-last=Watson |translator-first=Burton |orig-date=c. 91 BCE |translator-link=Burton Watson}}</ref> The Qin dynasty lasted only fifteen years, falling soon after the First Emperor's death.<ref name="Bodde1986">{{Cite book |last=Bodde |first=Derk |author-link=Derk Bodde |title=The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC – AD 220 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1986 |isbn=0-521-24327-0 |editor-last=Twitchett |editor-first=Denis |editor-link=Denis Twitchett |series=] |volume=1 |pages=20–102 |chapter=The State and Empire of Ch'in |editor-last2=Loewe |editor-first2=Loewe |editor-link2=Michael Loewe}}
</ref><ref name="Lewis2007">{{Cite book |last=Lewis |first=Mark Edward |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofimperia00broo |title=The Early Chinese Empires: Qin and Han |date=2007 |publisher=Belknap |isbn=978-0-6740-2477-9}}</ref>

Following ] during which the imperial library ],{{efn|Owing to Qin Shi Huang's earlier policy involving the "]", the destruction of the confiscated copies at ] was an event similar to the ] of the ] in the west. Even those texts that did survive had to be painstakingly reconstructed from memory, luck, or forgery.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Cotterell |first=Arthur |title=The Imperial Capitals of China |year=2011 |publisher=Pimlico |pages=}}</ref> The ] of the ] were said to have been found hidden in a wall at the Kong residence in ]. ]'s "rediscovered" edition of the ] was ].}} the ] emerged to rule China between 206&nbsp;BCE and 220&nbsp;CE, creating a cultural identity among its populace still remembered in the ethnonym of the modern ].<ref name="Bodde1986" /><ref name="Lewis2007" /> The Han ], with military campaigns reaching ], ], and ], and the ] from ]. Han involvement in Central Asia and ] helped establish the land route of the ], replacing the earlier path over the ] to India. Han China gradually became the largest economy of the ancient world.<ref name="Dahlman Aubert 2001">{{Cite report |title=China and the Knowledge Economy: Seizing the 21st Century |last1=Dahlman |first1=Carl J. |last2=Aubert |first2=Jean-Eric |year=2001 |publisher=World Bank Publications |id={{ERIC|ED460052}} |series=WBI Development Studies |location=Herndon, VA}}</ref> Despite the Han's initial decentralization and the official abandonment of the Qin philosophy of Legalism in favor of ], Qin's legalist institutions and policies continued to be employed by the Han government and its successors.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Goucher |first1=Candice |title=World History: Journeys from Past to Present |volume=1: From Human Origins to 1500 CE |last2=Walton |first2=Linda |year=2013 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-1350-8822-4 |page=}}</ref>

==== Three Kingdoms, Jin, Northern and Southern dynasties ====
After the ], a period of strife known as ] followed, at the end of which ] was swiftly overthrown by the ]. The Jin fell to ] upon the ascension of a ]; the ] then ] and ruled northern China as the ]. The ] unified them as the ], whose ] reversed his predecessors' apartheid policies and ]. In the south, the general ] secured the abdication of the Jin in favor of the ]. The various successors of these states became known as the ], with the two areas finally reunited by the ] in 581.{{Citation needed|date=June 2024}}

==== Sui, Tang and Song ====
The Sui restored the Han to power through China, reformed its agriculture, economy and ] system, constructed the ], and patronized ]. However, they fell quickly when their conscription for public works and a ] in ] provoked widespread unrest.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Lee |first=Ki-Baik |title=A new history of Korea |date=1984 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=978-0-6746-1576-2 |page=47}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Graff |first=David Andrew |title=Medieval Chinese warfare, 300–900 |date=2002 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=0-4152-3955-9 |page=13}}</ref>
Under the succeeding ] and ], Chinese economy, technology, and culture entered a golden age.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Adshead |first=S. A. M. |title=T'ang China: The Rise of the East in World History |date=2004 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |isbn=9780230005518 |page=54 |doi=10.1057/9780230005518_2}}</ref> The Tang dynasty retained control of the ] and the Silk Road,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nishijima |first=Sadao |title=Cambridge History of China: Volume I: the Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 B.C. – A.D. 220 |date=1986 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-5212-4327-8 |editor-last=Twitchett |editor-first=Denis |editor-link=Denis Twitchett |pages=545–607 |chapter=The Economic and Social History of Former Han |doi=10.1017/CHOL9780521243278.012 |editor-last2=Loewe |editor-first2=Michael |editor-link2=Michael Loewe}}</ref> which brought traders to as far as ] and the ],<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bowman |first=John S. |url=https://archive.org/details/columbiachronolo00john |title=Columbia Chronologies of Asian History and Culture |date=2000 |publisher=Columbia University Press |pages= |url-access=registration}}</ref> and made the capital ] a cosmopolitan urban center. However, it was devastated and weakened by the ] in the 8th century.<ref>{{Cite book |title=China: Five Thousand Years of History and Civilization |date=2007 |publisher=City University of HK Press |isbn=978-9-6293-7140-1 |page=71}}</ref> In 907, the Tang disintegrated completely when the local military governors became ungovernable. The Song dynasty ended the ] in 960, leading to a balance of power between the Song and the ]. The Song was the first government in world history to issue paper money and the first Chinese polity to establish a permanent navy which was supported by the developed shipbuilding industry along with the sea trade.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Paludan |first=Ann |title=Chronicle of the Chinese Emperors |date=1998 |publisher=Thames & Hudson |isbn=0-5000-5090-2 |page=136}}</ref>

Between the 10th and 11th century CE, the population of China doubled to around 100 million people, mostly because of the expansion of rice cultivation in central and southern China, and the production of abundant food surpluses. The Song dynasty also saw a ], in response to the growth of Buddhism during the Tang,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Huang |first=Siu-Chi |title=Essentials of Neo-Confucianism: Eight Major Philosophers of the Song and Ming Periods |date=1999 |publisher=Greenwood |isbn=978-0-3132-6449-8 |page=}}</ref> and a flourishing of philosophy and the arts, as ] and ] were brought to new levels of complexity.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Northern Song dynasty (960–1127) |url=http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/nsong/hd_nsong.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010152800/https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/nsong/hd_nsong.htm |archive-date=10 October 2017 |access-date=27 November 2013 |publisher=Metropolitan Museum of Art}}</ref> However, the military weakness of the Song army was observed by the ]. In 1127, ] and the capital ] were captured during the ]. The remnants of the Song retreated to ].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gernet |first=Jacques |url=https://archive.org/details/dailylifeinchina00gern/page/22 |title=Daily Life in China on the Eve of the Mongol Invasion, 1250–1276 |date=1962 |publisher=Stanford University Press |isbn=978-0-8047-0720-6 |page= |oclc=1029050217}}</ref>

===== Yuan =====
], is famed for having united the ]' walls to form the ]. Most of the present structure dates to the ].|thumb|upright=1.1]]
The ] began in 1205 with the ] against ] by ],<ref>{{Cite book |last=May |first=Timothy |title=The Mongol Conquests in World History |date=2012 |publisher=Reaktion |isbn=978-1-8618-9971-2 |page=}}</ref> who also ].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Weatherford |first=Jack |title=Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World |title-link=Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World |date=2004 |publisher=Random House |isbn=978-0-6098-0964-8 |page=95 |chapter=Tale of Three Rivers}}</ref> In 1271, the Mongol leader ] established the ], which ] in 1279. Before the Mongol invasion, the population of Song China was 120 million citizens; this was reduced to 60 million by the time of the census in 1300.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ho |first=Ping-ti |author-link=He Bingdi |date=1970 |title=An Estimate of the Total Population of Sung-Chin China |journal=Études Song |volume=1 |issue=1 |pages=33–53}}</ref> A peasant named Zhu Yuanzhang ] in 1368 and founded the ] as the ]. Under the Ming dynasty, China enjoyed another golden age, developing one of the strongest navies in the world and a rich and prosperous economy amid a flourishing of art and culture. It was during this period that admiral ] led the ] throughout the Indian Ocean, reaching as far as East Africa.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Rice |first=Xan |date=25 July 2010 |title=Chinese archaeologists' African quest for sunken ship of Ming admiral |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/jul/25/kenya-china |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161227095720/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/jul/25/kenya-china |archive-date=27 December 2016 |access-date=16 January 2020 |work=The Guardian}}</ref>

==== Ming ====
In the early Ming dynasty, China's capital was moved from ] to Beijing. With the budding of capitalism, philosophers such as ] critiqued and expanded Neo-Confucianism with concepts of ] and equality of ].<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Wang Yangming (1472–1529) |encyclopedia=Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy |url=https://www.iep.utm.edu/wangyang/ |access-date=9 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131109100108/http://www.iep.utm.edu/wangyang/ |archive-date=9 November 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The ] stratum became a supporting force of industry and commerce in the tax boycott movements, which, together with the famines and defense against ] and ] incursions led to an exhausted treasury.<ref>{{Cite book |url=http://www.docin.com/p-378667223.html |date=8 April 2012 |script-title=zh:论明末士人阶层与资本主义萌芽的关系 |access-date=2 September 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150909195232/http://www.docin.com/p-378667223.html |archive-date=9 September 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> In 1644, Beijing was captured by a coalition of ] forces led by ]. The ] committed suicide when the city fell. The Manchu ], then allied with Ming dynasty general ], overthrew Li's short-lived ] and subsequently seized control of Beijing, which became the new capital of the Qing dynasty.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Qing dynasty |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Qing-dynasty |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180309212209/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Qing-dynasty |archive-date=9 March 2018 |access-date=10 November 2022 |website=Britannica}}</ref>

==== Qing ====
] and expansion of the empire|thumb|upright=1.1]]
The Qing dynasty, which lasted from 1644 until 1912, was the last imperial dynasty of China. The ] (1618–1683) cost 25 million lives, but the Qing appeared to have restored China's imperial power and inaugurated another flowering of the arts.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roberts |first=John M. |title=A Short History of the World |date=1997 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=0-1951-1504-X |page=}}</ref> After the ] ended, the further conquest of the ] added Mongolia, Tibet and Xinjiang to the empire.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Fletcher |first=Joseph |title=The Cambridge History of China |date=1978 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-1390-5477-5 |editor-last=John K. Fairbank |editor-link=John King Fairbank |volume=10, Part 1 |page=37 |chapter=Ch'ing Inner Asia c. 1800 |doi=10.1017/CHOL9780521214476.003}}</ref> Meanwhile, China's population growth resumed and shortly began to accelerate. It is commonly agreed that pre-modern China's population experienced two growth spurts, one during the ] period (960–1127), and other during the Qing period (around 1700–1830).<ref>{{Cite book |last=Deng |first=Kent |url=https://eprints.lse.ac.uk/64492/1/WP219.pdf |title=China's Population Expansion and Its Causes during the Qing Period, 1644–1911 |year=2015 |pages=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240309224404/https://eprints.lse.ac.uk/64492/1/WP219.pdf |archive-date=9 March 2024 |url-status=live |accessdate=28 August 2023}}</ref> By the ] China was possibly the most commercialized country in the world, and imperial China experienced a second commercial revolution by the end of the 18th century.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rowe |first=William |title=China's Last Empire – The Great Qing |publisher=Harvard University Press |year=2010 |isbn=9780674054554 |page=}}</ref> On the other hand, the centralized autocracy was strengthened in part to suppress ] with the policy of valuing agriculture and restraining commerce, like the '']'' during the early Qing period and ideological control as represented by the ], causing some social and technological stagnation.<ref>{{Cite book |date=2010 |publisher=九州出版社 |isbn=978-7-5108-0062-7 |pages=104–112 |script-title=zh:中国通史·明清史}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |date=1996 |publisher=花城出版社 |isbn=978-7-5360-2320-8 |page=71 |script-title=zh:中华通史·第十卷}}</ref>

=== Fall of the Qing dynasty ===
{{Further|Century of humiliation|Opium Wars|First Sino-Japanese War|Boxer Rebellion}}
] invaded China to defeat the anti-foreign ] and their Qing backers. The image shows a celebration ceremony inside the Chinese imperial palace, the ] after the signing of the ] in 1901.]]

In the mid-19th century, the ] with Britain and ] forced China to pay compensation, open treaty ports, allow ] for foreign nationals, and cede ] to the British<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Embree |first1=Ainslie |author-link=Ainslie Embree |url=https://archive.org/details/asiainwesternwor00ains |title=Asia in Western and World History: A Guide for Teaching |last2=Gluck |first2=Carol |author-link2=Carol Gluck |date=1997 |publisher=] |isbn=1-5632-4265-6 |page=597 |url-access=limited}}</ref> under the 1842 ], the first of what have been termed as the "]". The ] (1894–1895) resulted in Qing China's loss of influence in the ], as well as the ] to ].<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Sino-Japanese War (1894–1895) |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/546176/Sino-Japanese-War |access-date=16 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210920171344/https://www.britannica.com/event/First-Sino-Japanese-War-1894-1895 |archive-date=20 September 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref> The Qing dynasty also began experiencing ] in which tens of millions of people died, especially in the ], the failed ] that ravaged southern China in the 1850s and 1860s and the ] in the northwest. The initial success of the ] of the 1860s was frustrated by a series of military defeats in the 1880s and 1890s.<ref name="Lee2004">{{Cite book |last=Enhan (李恩涵) |first=Li |publisher=臺灣商務印書館 |year=2004 |isbn=978-9-5705-1891-7 |page= |script-title=zh:近代中國外交史事新研}}</ref>

In the 19th century, the great ] began. Losses due to emigration were added to by conflicts and catastrophes such as the ], in which between 9 and 13 million people died.<ref>{{Cite web |date=1995 |title=Dimensions of need – People and populations at risk |url=http://www.fao.org/3/U8480E/U8480E05.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231030150743/https://www.fao.org/3/U8480E/U8480E05.htm |archive-date=30 October 2023 |access-date=3 July 2013 |publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations}}</ref> The ] drafted a ] in 1898 to establish a modern ], but these plans were thwarted by the ]. The ill-fated anti-foreign ] of 1899–1901 further weakened the dynasty. Although Cixi sponsored a program of reforms known as the ], the ] of 1911–1912 ended the Qing dynasty and established the ].<ref name="xb1">{{Cite book |last=Xiaobing |first=Li |title=A History of the Modern Chinese Army |date=2007 |publisher=University Press of Kentucky |isbn=978-0-8131-2438-4 |pages=13, 26–27}}</ref> ], the last Emperor, ].<ref name="abdicate">{{Cite web |date=4 June 2013 |title=The abdication decree of Emperor Puyi (1912) |url=https://alphahistory.com/chineserevolution/abdication-emperor-puyi-1912/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230410202346/https://alphahistory.com/chineserevolution/abdication-emperor-puyi-1912/ |archive-date=10 April 2023 |access-date=29 May 2021 |website=Chinese Revolution}}</ref>

=== Establishment of the Republic and World War II ===
{{Main|Republic of China (1912–1949)}}{{Further|1911 Revolution|Second Sino-Japanese War|Chinese Civil War|Chinese Communist Revolution}}
On 1 January 1912, the Republic of China was established, and ] of the ] (KMT) was proclaimed provisional president.<ref>Tamura, Eileen (1997) ''China: Understanding Its Past.'' Volume 1. University of Hawaii Press {{ISBN|0-8248-1923-3}} p.146</ref> In March 1912, the presidency was given to ], a former Qing general who in 1915 proclaimed himself ]. In the face of popular condemnation and opposition from his own ], he was forced to abdicate and re-establish the republic in 1916.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Haw |first=Stephen |title=Beijing: A Concise History |date=2006 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=0-4153-9906-8 |page=143}}</ref> After Yuan Shikai's death in 1916, China was politically fragmented. Its Beijing-based government was internationally recognized but virtually powerless; regional warlords controlled most of its territory.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Elleman |first=Bruce |title=Modern Chinese Warfare |date=2001 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=0-4152-1474-2 |page=149}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Hutchings |first=Graham |title=Modern China: A Guide to a Century of Change |date=2003 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=0-6740-1240-2 |page=459}}</ref> During this ], China ] ] and saw a far-reaching popular uprising (the ]).<ref>{{Cite web |last=Panda |first=Ankit |date=5 May 2015 |title=The Legacy of China's May Fourth Movement |url=https://thediplomat.com/2015/05/the-legacy-of-chinas-may-fourth-movement |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222173851/https://thediplomat.com/2015/05/the-legacy-of-chinas-may-fourth-movement |archive-date=22 February 2024 |access-date=28 March 2024 |website=]}}</ref>
] and ] toasting together in 1945 following the ]]]In the late 1920s, the Kuomintang under ] was able to reunify the country under its own control with a series of deft military and political maneuverings known collectively as the ].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Zarrow |first=Peter |title=China in War and Revolution, 1895–1949 |date=2005 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=0-4153-6447-7 |page=230}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Leutner |first=M. |title=The Chinese Revolution in the 1920s: Between Triumph and Disaster |date=2002 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=0-7007-1690-4 |page=129}}</ref> The Kuomintang moved the nation's capital to ] and implemented "political tutelage", an intermediate stage of political development outlined in Sun Yat-sen's ] program for transforming China into a modern democratic state.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Tien |first=Hung-Mao |title=Government and Politics in Kuomintang China, 1927–1937 |date=1972 |publisher=Stanford University Press |isbn=0-8047-0812-6 |volume=53 |pages=60–72}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Zhao |first=Suisheng |title=China and Democracy: Reconsidering the Prospects for a Democratic China |date=2000 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=0-4159-2694-7 |page=43}}</ref> The Kuomintang ] with the ] (CCP) during the Northern Expedition, though the alliance broke down in 1927 after Chiang ] the CCP and other leftists in Shanghai, marking the beginning of the ].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Apter |first1=David Ernest |title=Revolutionary Discourse in Mao's Republic |last2=Saich |first2=Tony |date=1994 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=0-6747-6780-2 |page=198}}</ref> The CCP declared ] as the ] (Jiangxi Soviet) in November 1931 in ], ]. The Jiangxi Soviet was ] by the KMT armies in 1934, leading the CCP to initiate the ] and relocate to ] in ]. It would be the base of the communists before major combat in the Chinese Civil War ended in 1949.

In 1931, Japan ]. Japan invaded other parts of China in 1937, precipitating the ] (1937–1945), a ] of ]. The war forced an ] between the Kuomintang and the CCP. Japanese forces committed numerous ] against the civilian population; as many as 20 million Chinese civilians died.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Nuclear Power: The End of the War Against Japan |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo/nuclear_01.shtml |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151128194317/http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo/nuclear_01.shtml |archive-date=28 November 2015 |access-date=14 July 2013 |publisher=BBC}}</ref> An estimated 40,000 to 300,000 Chinese were ] alone during the Japanese occupation.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180804062413/http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/PTO/IMTFE/IMTFE-8.html |date=4 August 2018}}. ''Chapter VIII: Conventional War Crimes (Atrocities).'' November 1948. Retrieved 4 February 2013.</ref> China, along with the UK, the United States, and the ], were recognized as the Allied "]" in the ].<ref>{{Cite book |title=Yearbook of the United Nations 1946–1947 |date=1947 |publisher=United Nations |page=3 |chapter=The Moscow Declaration on general security |oclc=243471225 |access-date=25 April 2015 |chapter-url=http://www.unmultimedia.org/searchers/yearbook/page.jsp?volume=1946-47&page=38 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150518074504/http://www.unmultimedia.org/searchers/yearbook/page.jsp?volume=1946-47&page=38 |archive-date=18 May 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Declaration by United Nations |url=https://www.un.org/en/sections/history-united-nations-charter/1942-declaration-united-nations |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170525120058/http://www.un.org/en/sections/history-united-nations-charter/1942-declaration-united-nations |archive-date=25 May 2017 |access-date=20 June 2015 |publisher=United Nations}}</ref> Along with the other three great powers, China was one of the four major ], and was later considered one of the primary victors in the war.<ref>Hoopes, Townsend, and Douglas Brinkley ''FDR and the Creation of the U.N.'' (Yale University Press, 1997)</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Gaddis |first=John Lewis |url=https://archive.org/details/unitedstatesorig0000gadd |title=The United States and the Origins of the Cold War, 1941–1947 |date=1972 |publisher=Columbia University Press |isbn=978-0-2311-2239-9 |pages=–25 |url-access=registration}}</ref> After the ] in 1945, Taiwan, including the ], was ]; however, the validity of this handover is controversial.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Tien |first=Hung-mao |title=Constitutional Reform and the Future of the Republic of China |date=1991 |publisher=M.E. Sharpe |isbn=978-0-8733-2880-7 |editor-last=Feldman |editor-first=Harvey |page= |chapter=The Constitutional Conundrum and the Need for Reform}}</ref>

=== People's Republic ===
{{Main|History of the People's Republic of China (1949–1976)}}
] was held at 3:00 pm on 1 October 1949. The picture above shows ]'s announcement of the founding of the People's Republic of China in ].<ref>{{Cite web |last=李丹青 |title=What's behind the founding ceremony of the PRC? |url=https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/201909/30/WS5d9d4f5aa310cf3e3556f681.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230218080210/https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/201909/30/WS5d9d4f5aa310cf3e3556f681.html |archive-date=18 February 2023 |website=www.chinadaily.com.cn}}</ref>]]

China emerged victorious but war-ravaged and financially drained. The continued distrust between the ] and the ] led to the resumption of civil war. Constitutional rule was established in 1947, but because of the ongoing unrest, many provisions of the ] were never implemented in mainland China.<ref name=":1" /> Afterwards, the CCP took control of most of mainland China, and the ].

On 1 October 1949, ] ] formally ] in ], ].<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Westcott |first1=Ben |last2=Lee |first2=Lily |date=30 September 2019 |title=They were born at the start of Communist China. 70 years later, their country is unrecognizable |url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/29/asia/china-beijing-mao-october-1-70-intl-hnk/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191215045839/https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/29/asia/china-beijing-mao-october-1-70-intl-hnk/index.html |archive-date=15 December 2019 |publisher=CNN}}</ref> In 1950, the PRC ] from the ROC<ref>{{Cite news |date=9 May 1950 |title=Red Capture of Hainan Island |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1817&dat=19500509&id=FUw_AAAAIBAJ&pg=3627,3301880 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230810125935/https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1817&dat=19500509&id=FUw_AAAAIBAJ&pg=3627,3301880 |archive-date=10 August 2023 |work=]}}</ref> and ].<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Tibetans |url=http://www.usc.edu/dept/LAS/ir/cews/database/Tibet/tibet.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131016102314/http://www.usc.edu/dept/LAS/ir/cews/database/Tibet/tibet.pdf |archive-date=16 October 2013 |access-date=20 July 2013 |publisher=]}}</ref> However, remaining Kuomintang forces continued to wage ] throughout the 1950s.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Garver |first=John W. |title=The Sino-American alliance: Nationalist China and American Cold War strategy in Asia |date=1997 |publisher=M.E. Sharpe |isbn=978-0-7656-0025-7 |page=}}</ref> The ] consolidated its popularity among the peasants through the ], which included the state-tolerated executions of between 1 and 2 million landlords by peasants and former tenants.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Busky |first=Donald |title=Communism in History and Theory |date=2002 |publisher=] |isbn=978-0-2759-7733-7 |page=}}</ref> Though the PRC initially allied closely with the ], the relations between the two ] nations ], leading China to develop an independent industrial system and ].<ref>{{Cite web |title=A Country Study: China |url=https://www.loc.gov/item/87600493 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160612025703/https://www.loc.gov/item/87600493 |archive-date=12 June 2016 |access-date=3 October 2017 |website=loc.gov|series=Area handbook series |date=January 1988 }}</ref>

The Chinese population increased from 550 million in 1950 to 900 million in 1974.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Holmes |first=Madelyn |title=Students and teachers of the new China: thirteen interviews |date=2008 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=978-0-7864-3288-2 |page=}}</ref> However, the ], an idealistic massive ] project, resulted in ] between 1959 and 1961, mostly from starvation.<ref name="nyt">{{Cite news |last=Mirsky |first=Jonathan |date=9 December 2012 |title=Unnatural Disaster |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/09/books/review/tombstone-the-great-chinese-famine-1958-1962-by-yang-jisheng.html?nl=books&emc=edit_bk_20121207 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121211072252/https://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/09/books/review/tombstone-the-great-chinese-famine-1958-1962-by-yang-jisheng.html?nl=books&emc=edit_bk_20121207 |archive-date=11 December 2012 |access-date=7 December 2012 |work=]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Holmes |first=Leslie |title=Communism: A Very Short Introduction |date=2009 |publisher=] |isbn=978-0-1995-5154-5 |page=32 |quote=Most estimates of the number of Chinese dead are in the range of 15 to 30 million.}}</ref> In 1964, China detonated its first atomic bomb.<ref>{{Cite web |title=1964: China's first atomic bomb explodes |url=http://www.china.org.cn/english/congress/228244.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230322065350/http://www.china.org.cn/english/congress/228244.htm |archive-date=22 March 2023 |access-date=18 February 2023 |website=china.org.cn}}</ref> In 1966, Mao and his allies launched the ], sparking a decade of political recrimination and social upheaval that lasted until Mao's death in 1976. In October 1971, the PRC ] in the United Nations, and took its seat as a permanent member of the Security Council.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Kao |first=Michael Y. M. |title=Taiwan in a Time of Transition |date=1988 |publisher=Paragon House |editor-last=Feldman |editor-first=Harvey |page=188 |chapter=Taiwan's and Beijing's Campaigns for Unification |editor-last2=Kao |editor-first2=Michael Y. M. |editor-last3=Kim |editor-first3=Ilpyong J.}}</ref>

=== Reforms and contemporary history ===
{{Main|History of the People's Republic of China (1976–1989)|History of the People's Republic of China (1989–2002)|History of the People's Republic of China (2002–present)}}
] was ended by a military-led massacre.]]

After Mao's death, the ] was arrested by ] and held responsible for the Cultural Revolution. The Cultural Revolution was rebuked, with millions rehabilitated. ] took power in 1978, and instituted large-scale ] and ], together with the "]", most senior and influential members of the party. The government loosened its control and the ] were gradually disbanded.<ref name="Hamrin-1995">{{Cite book |last1=Hamrin |first1=Carol Lee |title=Decision-making in Deng's China: Perspectives from Insiders |last2=Zhao |first2=Suisheng |date=15 January 1995 |publisher=M.E. Sharpe |isbn=978-0-7656-3694-2 |page=}}</ref> ] was dismantled and farmlands privatized. While foreign trade became a major focus, ] (SEZs) were created. Inefficient ] (SOEs) were restructured and some closed. This marked China's transition away from planned economy.<ref name="Ref_e">{{Cite book |last1=Hart-Landsberg |first1=Martin |title=China and Socialism: Market Reforms and Class Struggle |last2=Burkett |first2=Paul |date=March 2005 |publisher=Monthly Review Press |isbn=978-1-5836-7123-8}} ({{cite journal |title=Review |journal=] |date=28 February 2001 |url=http://www.monthlyreview.org/chinaandsocialism.htm |access-date=30 October 2008 |archive-date=5 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090105220123/http://monthlyreview.org/chinaandsocialism.htm |url-status=live}})</ref> China adopted its current ] on 4 December 1982.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Primary Source Document with Questions (DBQs) CONSTITUTION OF THE PEOPLE ' S REPUBLIC OF CHINA (1982) |url=https://afe.easia.columbia.edu/ps/china/prc_constitution.pdf |publisher=]}}</ref>

In 1989, there were protests such ], and then throughout the entire nation.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Harding |first=Harry |date=December 1990 |title=The Impact of Tiananmen on China's Foreign Policy |url=http://www.nbr.org/publications/element.aspx?id=73 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140404193656/http://www.nbr.org/publications/element.aspx?id=73 |archive-date=4 April 2014 |access-date=28 November 2013 |publisher=]}}</ref> ] was put under house arrest for his sympathies to the protests and was replaced by ]. Jiang continued economic reforms, closing many SOEs and trimming down "]" (life-tenure positions).<ref name="APs-2022">{{Cite news |date=30 November 2022 |title=Jiang Zemin, who guided China's economic rise, dies |url=https://apnews.com/article/china-beijing-hong-kong-obituaries-jiang-zemin-4ee4c5dcaf567e02efa3c5c7186af30a |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403160544/https://apnews.com/article/china-beijing-hong-kong-obituaries-jiang-zemin-4ee4c5dcaf567e02efa3c5c7186af30a |archive-date=3 April 2023 |access-date=30 November 2022 |work=]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=13 September 1997 |title=China Gets Down to Business at Party Congress |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-sep-13-mn-31787-story.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221018190108/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-sep-13-mn-31787-story.html |archive-date=18 October 2022 |access-date=12 January 2020 |work=]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Vogel |first=Ezra |author-link=Ezra Vogel |title=Deng Xiaoping and the Transformation of China |date=2011 |publisher=Belknap Press |isbn=978-0-6747-2586-7 |page=682}}</ref> China's economy grew sevenfold during this time.<ref name="APs-2022" /> ] and ] returned to China in ] and ], respectively, as ] under the principle of ]. The country joined the ] in 2001.<ref name="APs-2022" />] and related projects]]At the ] in 2002, ] succeeded Jiang as the general secretary.<ref name="APs-2022" /> Under Hu, China maintained its high rate of economic growth, overtaking the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Japan to become the world's second-largest economy.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Orlik |first=Tom |date=16 November 2012 |title=Charting China's Economy: A Decade Under Hu Jintao |url=http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2012/11/16/charting-chinas-economy-10-years-under-hu-jintao |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221121820/http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2012/11/16/charting-chinas-economy-10-years-under-hu-jintao |archive-date=21 December 2016 |access-date=16 May 2023 |work=]}}</ref> However, the growth also severely impacted the country's resources and environment,<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Carter |first1=Shan |last2=Cox |first2=Amanda |last3=Burgess |first3=Joe |last4=Aigner |first4=Erin |date=26 August 2007 |title=China's Environmental Crisis |url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2007/08/26/world/asia/20070826_CHINA_GRAPHIC.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120116170904/http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2007/08/26/world/asia/20070826_CHINA_GRAPHIC.html |archive-date=16 January 2012 |access-date=16 May 2012 |work=The New York Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Griffiths |first=Daniel |date=16 April 2004 |title=China worried over pace of growth |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4913622.stm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201118160813/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4913622.stm |archive-date=18 November 2020 |access-date=16 April 2006 |work=BBC News}}</ref> and caused major social displacement.<ref name="Ref_k"> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161227094542/https://migration.ucdavis.edu/mn/more.php?id=3166 |date=27 December 2016}} ] Migration News January 2006</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Cody |first=Edward |date=28 January 2006 |title=In Face of Rural Unrest, China Rolls Out Reforms |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/27/AR2006012701588.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171014065549/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/27/AR2006012701588.html |archive-date=14 October 2017 |access-date=18 January 2020 |newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref> ] succeeded Hu as paramount leader at the ] in 2012. Shortly after his ascension to power, Xi launched ],<ref>{{Cite news |date=20 March 2018 |title=China's anti-corruption campaign expands with new agency |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-43453769 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190924060145/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-43453769 |archive-date=24 September 2019 |access-date=13 September 2019 |publisher=]}}</ref> that prosecuted more than 2 million officials by 2022.<ref name="Marquis-2022b">{{Cite book |last1=Marquis |first1=Christopher |author-link=Christopher Marquis |title=Mao and Markets: The Communist Roots of Chinese Enterprise |last2=Qiao |first2=Kunyuan |date=15 November 2022 |publisher=] |isbn=978-0-3002-6883-6 |doi=10.2307/j.ctv3006z6k |jstor=j.ctv3006z6k |s2cid=253067190}}</ref> During ], Xi has consolidated power unseen since the initiation of economic and political reforms.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wingfield-Hayes |first=Rupert |date=23 October 2022 |title=Xi Jinping's party is just getting started |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-63225277 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230317004249/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-63225277 |archive-date=17 March 2023 |access-date=23 October 2022 |work=] |language=en-GB}}</ref>

== Geography ==
{{Main|Geography of China}}
] of China]]
China's landscape is vast and diverse, ranging from the ] and ]s in the arid north to the ] forests in the wetter south. The ], ], ] and ] mountain ranges separate China from much of ] and ]. The ] and Yellow Rivers, the third- and sixth-longest in the world, respectively, run from the ] to the densely populated eastern seaboard. China's coastline along the ] is {{cvt|14500|km}} long and is bounded by the ], ], ] and ] seas. China connects through the Kazakh border to the ].

The territory of China lies between ]s ] and ], and ]s ] and ]. The ] of China is marked by the Center of the Country Monument at {{coord|35|50|40.9|N|103|27|7.5|E|region:CN-62_type:landmark|name=Geographical center of China}}. China's landscapes vary significantly across its vast territory. In the east, along the shores of the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea, there are extensive and densely populated ], while on the edges of the Inner Mongolian plateau in the north, broad ]s predominate. Southern China is dominated by hills and low mountain ranges, while the central-east hosts the ] of China's two major rivers, the Yellow River and the Yangtze River. Other major rivers include the ], ], ] and ]. To the west sit major mountain ranges, most notably the Himalayas. High ]s feature among the more arid landscapes of the north, such as the Taklamakan and the Gobi Desert. The world's highest point, ] (8,848&nbsp;m), lies on the Sino-Nepalese border.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8608913.stm|title=Nepal and China agree on Mount Everest's height|date=8 April 2010|work=BBC News|access-date=18 January 2020|archive-date=12 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180712190003/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8608913.stm|url-status=live}}</ref> The country's lowest point, and the world's third-lowest, is the dried lake bed of ] (−154&nbsp;m) in the ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nps.gov/deva/naturescience/lowest-places-on-earth.htm|title=Lowest Places on Earth|date=28 February 2015|publisher=National Park Service|access-date=2 December 2013|archive-date=7 February 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150207222858/http://www.nps.gov/deva/naturescience/lowest-places-on-earth.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Climate ===
{{Main|Climate of China}}
{{Further|Great Green Wall (China)}}

] map for mainland China<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Beck|first1=Hylke E.|last2=Zimmermann|first2=Niklaus E.|last3=McVicar|first3=Tim R.|last4=Vergopolan|first4=Noemi|last5=Berg|first5=Alexis|author6-link=Eric Franklin Wood|last6=Wood|first6=Eric F.|title=Present and future Köppen-Geiger climate classification maps at 1-km resolution|journal=Scientific Data|date=30 October 2018|volume=5|page=180214|doi=10.1038/sdata.2018.214|pmid=30375988|pmc=6207062|bibcode=2018NatSD...580214B}}</ref>]]
China's climate is mainly dominated by ]s and wet ], which lead to pronounced temperature differences between winter and summer. In the winter, northern winds coming from high-latitude areas are cold and dry; in summer, southern winds from coastal areas at lower latitudes are warm and moist.<ref>{{cite book|title=Regional Climate Studies of China|date=2008|publisher=Springer|page=|isbn=978-3-5407-9242-0}}</ref>

A major environmental issue in China is the continued ], particularly the Gobi Desert.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/terrywaghorn/2011/03/07/fighting-desertification/|title=Fighting Desertification|last=Waghorn|first=Terry|date=7 March 2011|newspaper=Forbes|access-date=21 January 2020|archive-date=29 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170729115736/https://www.forbes.com/sites/terrywaghorn/2011/03/07/fighting-desertification/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4915690.stm|title=Beijing hit by eighth sandstorm|date=17 April 2006|work=BBC News|access-date=21 January 2020|archive-date=1 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090101023529/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4915690.stm|url-status=live}}</ref> Although barrier tree lines planted since the 1970s have reduced the frequency of ], prolonged drought and poor agricultural practices have resulted in ] plaguing northern China each spring, which then spread to other parts of East Asia, including Japan and Korea. Water quality, ], and ] have become important issues in China's relations with other countries. Melting ] in the Himalayas could potentially lead to ]s for hundreds of millions of people.<ref name="msnbc">{{cite news|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna27894721|title=Himalaya glaciers melting much faster|last=Reilly|first=Michael|date=24 November 2008|publisher=NBC News|access-date=21 September 2011|archive-date=23 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201023184210/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/27894721/|url-status=live}}</ref> According to academics, in order to limit ] to {{cvt|1.5|C-change}} electricity generation from ] without ] must be phased out by 2045.<ref>{{cite report|date=December 2020|title=China's New Growth Pathway: From the 14th Five-Year Plan to Carbon Neutrality|url=https://www.efchina.org/Attachments/Report/report-lceg-20201210/Full-Report_Synthesis-Report-2020-on-Chinas-Carbon-Neutrality_EN.pdf|page=24|publisher=Energy Foundation China|access-date=16 December 2020|archive-date=16 April 2021|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210416100821/https://www.efchina.org/Attachments/Report/report-lceg-20201210/Full-Report_Synthesis-Report-2020-on-Chinas-Carbon-Neutrality_EN.pdf}}</ref> With current policies, the GHG emissions of China will probably peak in 2025, and by 2030 they will return to 2022 levels. However, such pathway still leads to three-degree temperature rise.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Lui |first1=Swithin |title=Guest post: Why China is set to significantly overachieve its 2030 climate goals |url=https://www.carbonbrief.org/guest-post-why-china-is-set-to-significantly-overachieve-its-2030-climate-goals |website=Carbon Brief |date=19 May 2022 |access-date=24 May 2022 |archive-date=23 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220523114439/https://www.carbonbrief.org/guest-post-why-china-is-set-to-significantly-overachieve-its-2030-climate-goals |url-status=live}}</ref>

Official government statistics about Chinese agricultural productivity are considered unreliable, due to exaggeration of production at subsidiary government levels.<ref>Chow, Gregory (2006) Are Chinese Official Statistics Reliable? CESifo Economic Studies 52. 396–414. 10.1093/cesifo/ifl003.</ref><ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Liu G, Wang X, Baiocchi G, Casazza M, Meng F, Cai Y, Hao Y, Wu F, Yang Z |date=October 2020 |title=On the accuracy of official Chinese crop production data: Evidence from biophysical indexes of net primary production |journal=] |volume=117|issue=41|pages=25434–25444 |doi=10.1073/pnas.1919850117|pmc=7568317|pmid=32978301 |bibcode=2020PNAS..11725434L |doi-access=free}}</ref> Much of China has a climate very suitable for agriculture and the country has been the world's largest producer of rice, wheat, tomatoes, eggplant, grapes, watermelon, spinach, and many other crops.<ref>{{cite web|title=Countries by commodity|website=]|url=http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#rankings/countries_by_commodity|access-date=16 January 2020|archive-date=29 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200629173611/http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#rankings/countries_by_commodity|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2021, 12 percent of global permanent meadows and pastures belonged to China, as well as 8% of global cropland.<ref name=":14">{{Cite book |title=World Food and Agriculture – Statistical Yearbook 2023 |place=Rome |publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations |url=https://www.fao.org/documents/card/en?details=cc8166en |access-date=13 December 2023 |date=2023 |language=en |doi=10.4060/cc8166en |isbn=978-9-2513-8262-2 |archive-date=15 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231215161116/https://www.fao.org/documents/card/en?details=cc8166en |url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Biodiversity ===
{{Main|Wildlife of China}}
], China's most famous ] and ] species, at the ] in ]]]

China is one of 17 ],<ref name="Ref_2009a">{{cite web |url=http://www.environment.gov.au/soe/2001/publications/theme-reports/biodiversity/biodiversity01-3.html|title=Biodiversity Theme Report|last=Williams|first=Jann|date=10 December 2009|website=Environment.gov.au|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110811045957/http://www.environment.gov.au/soe/2001/publications/theme-reports/biodiversity/biodiversity01-3.html|archive-date=11 August 2011|access-date=27 April 2010}}</ref> lying in two of the world's major ]s: the ] and the ]. By one measure, China has over 34,687 species of animals and vascular plants, making it the third-most biodiverse country in the world, after ] and ].<ref> {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130326060253/http://rainforests.mongabay.com/03highest_biodiversity.htm|date=26 March 2013}}. Mongabay.com. 2004 data. Retrieved 24 April 2013.</ref> The country is a party to the ];<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cbd.int/countries/?country=cn|title=Country Profiles – China|website=]|access-date=9 December 2012|archive-date=9 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231209085157/https://www.cbd.int/countries/?country=cn|url-status=live}}</ref> its ] was received by the convention in 2010.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cbd.int/doc/world/cn/cn-nbsap-v2-zh.pdf |title=translation: China Biodiversity Conservation Strategy and Action Plan. Years 2011–2030|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://www.cbd.int/doc/world/cn/cn-nbsap-v2-zh.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live|website=]|access-date=9 December 2012}}</ref>

China is home to at least 551 species of ] (the third-highest in the world),<ref> {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130512150801/http://www.iucnredlist.org/initiatives/mammals/analysis/geographic-patterns|date=12 May 2013}}. IUCN. Retrieved 24 April 2013. Data does not include species in Taiwan.</ref> 1,221 species of birds (eighth),<ref> {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130216152146/http://rainforests.mongabay.com/03birds.htm|date=16 February 2013}}. Mongabay.com. 2004 data. Retrieved 24 April 2013.</ref> 424 species of reptiles (seventh)<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130216152129/http://rainforests.mongabay.com/03reptiles.htm |date=16 February 2013}}. Mongabay.com. 2004 data. Retrieved 24 April 2013.</ref> and 333 species of amphibians (seventh).<ref> {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130512145131/http://www.iucnredlist.org/initiatives/amphibians/analysis/geographic-patterns|date=12 May 2013}}. IUCN. Retrieved 24 April 2013. Data does not include species in Taiwan.</ref> Wildlife in China shares habitat with, and bears acute pressure from, one of the world's largest population of humans. At least 840 ], due mainly to human activity such as habitat destruction, pollution and poaching for food, fur and ].<ref> {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130424182826/http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals/stories/infographic-top-20-countries-with-most-endangered-species|date=24 April 2013}}. 5 March 2010. Retrieved 24 April 2013.</ref> Endangered wildlife is protected by law, and {{As of|2005|lc=y}}, the country has over 2,349 ], covering a total area of 149.95 million hectares, 15 percent of China's total land area.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.china.org.cn/english/features/Brief/193257.htm|title=Nature Reserves|website=] |url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101115063105/http://www.china.org.cn/english/features/Brief/193257.htm |archive-date=15 November 2010|access-date=2 December 2013}}</ref> Most wild animals have been eliminated from the core agricultural regions of east and central China, but they have fared better in the mountainous south and west.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Turvey|first1=Samuel|date=2013|title=Holocene survival of Late Pleistocene megafauna in China: a critical review of the evidence|journal=]|volume=76|pages=156–166|doi=10.1016/j.quascirev.2013.06.030|bibcode=2013QSRv...76..156T}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Lander|first1=Brian|last2=Brunson|first2=Katherine|date=2018 |title=Wild Mammals of Ancient North China|journal=The Journal of Chinese History|publisher=] |volume=2|issue=2|pages=291–312|doi=10.1017/jch.2017.45|s2cid=90662935}}</ref> The ] was confirmed extinct on 12 December 2006.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Turvey|first1=Samuel|title=Witness to Extinction: How we failed to save the Yangtze River dolphin |date=2008|publisher=]}}</ref>

China has over 32,000 species of vascular plants,<ref> {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140112001508/http://rainforests.mongabay.com/03plants.htm|date=12 January 2014}}. Mongabay.com. 2004 data. Retrieved 24 April 2013.</ref> and is home to a variety of forest types. Cold ] forests predominate in the north of the country, supporting animal species such as ] and ], along with over 120 bird species.<ref name="rough guide"/> The ] of moist ] forests may contain thickets of ]. In higher ] stands of ] and ], the bamboo is replaced by ]s. ] forests, which are predominate in central and southern China, support a high density of plant species including numerous rare endemics. Tropical and seasonal ]s, though confined to ] and ], contain a quarter of all the animal and plant species found in China.<ref name="rough guide">{{cite book|page=|title=China|publisher=]|date=2003|isbn=978-1-8435-3019-0|edition=3}}</ref> China has over 10,000 recorded species of ].<ref>{{cite book|title=Conservation Biology: Voices from the Tropics|date=2013|publisher=John Wiley & Sons|page= |isbn=978-1-1186-7981-4}}</ref>

=== Environment ===
{{Main|Environment of China|Environmental issues in China}}
{{See also|Renewable energy in China|Water resources of China|Energy policy of China|Climate change in China}}
] is the largest hydroelectric dam in the world.]]

In the early 2000s, China has suffered from ] due to its rapid pace of industrialization.<ref name="Ma2002">{{Cite book |last1=Ma |first1=Xiaoying |title=Environmental Regulation in China |last2=Ortalano |first2=Leonard |publisher=] |date=2000 |isbn=978-0-8476-9399-3 |pages= |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-21545868|title=China acknowledges 'cancer villages'|date=22 February 2013|publisher=]|access-date=23 February 2013|archive-date=21 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240321002451/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-21545868|url-status=live}}</ref> Regulations such as the 1979 Environmental Protection Law are fairly stringent, though they are poorly enforced, frequently disregarded in favor of rapid economic development.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-20114306|title=Riot police and protesters clash over China chemical plant|last=Soekov|first=Kimberley|date=28 October 2012|publisher=]|access-date=18 January 2020|archive-date=10 April 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160410202328/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-20114306|url-status=live}}</ref> China has the second-highest death toll because of air pollution, after ], with approximately 1 million deaths.<ref>{{cite web |date=15 February 2016 |title=Is air quality in China a social problem? |url=https://chinapower.csis.org/air-quality |access-date=26 March 2020 |website=] |publisher=ChinaPower Project |archive-date=26 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200326081416/https://chinapower.csis.org/air-quality |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.who.int/phe/publications/air-pollution-global-assessment/en/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160928165031/http://www.who.int/phe/publications/air-pollution-global-assessment/en/|url-status=dead|archive-date=28 September 2016|title=Ambient air pollution: A global assessment of exposure and burden of disease|website=]|access-date=28 April 2018}}</ref> Although China ranks as the highest ] country,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iea-emissions-idUSBRE95908S20130610|title=Global carbon emissions hit record high in 2012 |last=Chestney|first=Nina|date=10 June 2013|work=]|access-date=3 November 2013|archive-date=19 November 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131119111939/http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/10/us-iea-emissions-idUSBRE95908S20130610 |url-status=live}}</ref> it only emits 8 tons of ], significantly lower than developed countries such as the United States (16.1), Australia (16.8) and South Korea (13.6).<ref name="UCS-2020">{{cite web|date=August 2020|title=Each Country's Share of CO2 Emissions|url=https://www.ucsusa.org/resources/each-countrys-share-co2-emissions|access-date=30 October 2020|website=]|archive-date=15 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191015184639/https://www.ucsusa.org/resources/each-countrys-share-co2-emissions|url-status=live}}</ref> ] are the ].<ref name="UCS-2020"/> The country has significant ] problems; only 89.4% of China's national surface water was graded suitable for human consumption by the ] in 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |date=25 June 2024 |title=2023 State of Ecology & Environment Report Review |url=https://chinawaterrisk.org/resources/analysis-reviews/2023-state-of-ecology-environment-report-review/ |access-date=18 October 2024 |website=]}}</ref>

China has prioritized clamping down on pollution, bringing a significant decrease in air pollution in the 2010s.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Jayaram |first1=Kripa |last2=Kay |first2=Chris |last3=Murtaugh |first3=Dan |date=14 June 2022 |title=China Reduced Air Pollution in 7 Years as Much as US Did in Three Decades |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-06-14/china-s-clean-air-campaign-is-bringing-down-global-pollution |access-date=13 January 2024 |work=] |archive-date=7 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231107054008/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-06-14/china-s-clean-air-campaign-is-bringing-down-global-pollution |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2020, the Chinese government announced its aims for the country to reach its peak emissions levels before 2030, and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060 in line with the ],<ref name="CAT-2020">{{cite web |date=23 September 2020 |title=China going carbon neutral before 2060 would lower warming projections by around 0.2 to 0.3 degrees C |url=https://climateactiontracker.org/press/china-carbon-neutral-before-2060-would-lower-warming-projections-by-around-2-to-3-tenths-of-a-degree |access-date=27 September 2020 |website=] |archive-date=11 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240211205338/https://climateactiontracker.org/press/china-carbon-neutral-before-2060-would-lower-warming-projections-by-around-2-to-3-tenths-of-a-degree |url-status=live}}</ref> which, according to ], would lower the expected rise in global temperature by 0.2–0.3 degrees – "the biggest single reduction ever estimated by the Climate Action Tracker".<ref name="CAT-2020"/>

China is the world's leading investor in ] and ], with ]546&nbsp;billion invested in 2022;<ref name="Schonhardt-2023">{{Cite news |last=Schonhardt |first=Sara |date=30 January 2023 |title=China Invests $546 Billion in Clean Energy, Far Surpassing the U.S. |work=] |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/china-invests-546-billion-in-clean-energy-far-surpassing-the-u-s/#:~:text=The%20country%20spent%20%24546%20billion,billion%20in%20clean%20energy%20investments. |access-date=19 May 2023 |archive-date=19 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230519125528/https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/china-invests-546-billion-in-clean-energy-far-surpassing-the-u-s/#:~:text=The%20country%20spent%20%24546%20billion,billion%20in%20clean%20energy%20investments. |url-status=live}}</ref> it is a major manufacturer of renewable energy technologies and invests heavily in local-scale renewable energy projects.<ref>{{cite news |last=Meng |first=Meng |date=5 January 2017 |title=China to plow $361 billion into renewable fuel by 2020 |work=] |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-energy-renewables/china-to-plow-361-billion-into-renewable-fuel-by-2020-idUSKBN14P06P |access-date=28 May 2018 |archive-date=27 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230727074912/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-energy-renewables/china-to-plow-361-billion-into-renewable-fuel-by-2020-idUSKBN14P06P |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Schonhardt-2023"/> Long heavily relying on non-renewable energy sources such as coal, China's adaptation of ] has increased significantly in recent years, with their share increasing from 26.3 percent in 2016 to 31.9 percent in 2022.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Maguire |first=Gavin |date=23 November 2022 |title=Column: China on track to hit new clean & dirty power records in 2022 |url=https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/china-track-hit-new-clean-dirty-power-records-2022-maguire-2022-11-23 |access-date=15 May 2023 |work=] |archive-date=16 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230416175101/https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/china-track-hit-new-clean-dirty-power-records-2022-maguire-2022-11-23 |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2023, 60.5% of China's electricity came from ] (largest producer in the world), 13.2% from ] (largest), 9.4% from ] (largest), 6.2% from ] (largest), 4.6% from ] (second-largest), 3.3% from ] (fifth-largest), and 2.2% from ] (largest); in total, 31% of China's energy came from renewable energy sources.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=8 May 2024 |title=Global Electricity Review 2024: Analysis of key power sector emitters in 2023 |url=https://ember-climate.org/insights/research/global-electricity-review-2024/major-countries-and-regions |access-date=21 May 2024 |website=]}}</ref> Despite its emphasis on renewables, China remains deeply connected to global oil markets and next to India, has been the largest importer of Russian ] in 2022.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Perkins |first=Robert |date=7 October 2022 |title=Russian seaborne crude exports slide to 12-month low as EU ban, price caps loom |url=https://www.spglobal.com/commodityinsights/en/market-insights/latest-news/oil/072022-russian-seaborne-crude-exports-retreat-from-three-year-highs-shipping-data |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221014053951/https://www.spglobal.com/commodityinsights/en/market-insights/latest-news/oil/072022-russian-seaborne-crude-exports-retreat-from-three-year-highs-shipping-data |archive-date=14 October 2022 |website=]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=International Energy Agency |author-link=International Energy Agency |date=24 February 2022 |title=Oil Market and Russian Supply – Russian supplies to global energy markets |url=https://www.iea.org/reports/russian-supplies-to-global-energy-markets/oil-market-and-russian-supply-2 |access-date=27 April 2022 |publisher=IEA |archive-date=16 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230116162235/https://www.iea.org/reports/russian-supplies-to-global-energy-markets/oil-market-and-russian-supply-2 |url-status=live}}</ref>

According to China's government, the forest coverage of the country grew from 10% of the overall territory in 1949 to 25% in 2024.<ref>{{cite news |title=China completes 3,000-km green belt around its biggest desert, state media says |url=https://www.yahoo.com/news/china-completes-3-000-km-112549261.html |access-date=8 December 2024 |agency=Yahoo |publisher=Reuters |date=29 November 2024}}</ref>

=== Political geography ===
{{Main|Borders of China|Coastline of China|Territorial changes of the People's Republic of China}}China is the ] country in the world by land area after ], and the third- or fourth-largest country in the world by total area.{{efn|According to the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'', the total area of the United States, at {{convert|9522055|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sp=us}}, is slightly smaller than that of China. Meanwhile, the ''CIA World Factbook'' states that China's total area was greater than that of the United States until the coastal waters of the ] was added to the United States' total area in 1996. From 1989 through 1996, the total area of US was listed as {{convert|9372610|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sp=us}} (land area plus inland water only). The listed total area changed to {{convert|9629091|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sp=us}} in 1997 (with the Great Lakes areas and the coastal waters added), to {{convert|9631418|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sp=us}} in 2004, to {{convert|9631420|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sp=us}} in 2006, and to {{convert|9826630|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sp=us}} in 2007 (territorial waters added).}} China's total area is generally stated as being approximately {{convert|9600000|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sp=us}}.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Ma|first1=Jin Shuang|last2=Liu|first2=Quan Riu|title=The Present Situation and Prospects of Plant Taxonomy in China|journal=]|volume=47|number=1|date=February 1998|pages=67–74|publisher=]|doi=10.2307/1224020|jstor=1224020}}</ref> Specific area figures range from {{convert|9572900|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sp=us}} according to the '']'',<ref name="United States"/> to {{convert|9596961|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sp=us}} according to the '']'',<ref name="UN Stat"/> and '']''.<ref name="CIA">{{Cite CIA World Factbook|country=China|access-date=23 November 2013}}</ref>].]]China has the ], measuring {{convert|22117|km|mi|abbr=on|sp=us}} and its ] covers approximately {{convert|14500|km|mi|abbr=on|sp=us}} from the mouth of the ] (Amnok River) to the ].<ref name="CIA"/> China ] and covers the bulk of East Asia, bordering ], ], and ] in Southeast Asia; ], ], ], ]{{efn|China's border with Pakistan and part of its border with India falls in the disputed region of ]. The area under Pakistani administration is claimed by India, while the area under Indian administration is claimed by Pakistan.}} and ] in South Asia; ], ] and ] in Central Asia; and Russia, ], and ] in ] and ]. It is narrowly separated from ] and ] to the southwest and south, and has several maritime neighbors such as ], ], ], and ].<ref>{{cite journal|last=Wei|first=Yuwa|title=China and ITS Neighbors |volume=22|number=1|date=2014|pages=105–136|publisher=]|journal=Willamette Journal of International Law and Dispute Resolution|jstor=26210500}}</ref>

China has resolved its land borders with 12 out of 14 neighboring countries, having pursued substantial compromises in most of them.<ref>{{cite web |title=Groundless to view China as expansionist, says Beijing after PM Modi's Ladakh visit |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/world/story/groundless-to-view-china-as-expansionist-says-beijing-after-pm-modi-s-ladakh-visit-1696727-2020-07-03 |access-date=13 August 2020 |website=] |date=3 July 2020 |archive-date=10 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230810133156/https://www.indiatoday.in/world/story/groundless-to-view-china-as-expansionist-says-beijing-after-pm-modi-s-ladakh-visit-1696727-2020-07-03 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Fravel |first=M. Taylor |author-link=Taylor Fravel |date=1 October 2005 |title=Regime Insecurity and International Cooperation: Explaining China's Compromises in Territorial Disputes |journal=] |volume=30 |issue=2 |pages=46–83 |doi=10.1162/016228805775124534 |s2cid=56347789}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Fravel |first=M. Taylor |title=Strong Borders, Secure Nation: Cooperation and Conflict in China's Territorial Disputes |publisher=] |date=2008 |isbn=978-0-6911-3609-7 |author-link=Taylor Fravel}}</ref> China currently has a disputed land border with ]<ref>{{Cite news |date=14 December 2022 |title=India-China dispute: The border row explained in 400 words |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-53062484 |access-date=16 May 2023 |publisher=] |archive-date=20 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220420180958/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-53062484 |url-status=live}}</ref> and ].<ref>{{Cite news |date=26 April 2023 |title=Bhutan wants a border deal with China: Will India accept? |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-65396384 |access-date=16 May 2023 |publisher=] |archive-date=15 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230515174751/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-65396384 |url-status=live}}</ref> China is additionally involved in maritime disputes with multiple countries over territory in the ] and ], such as the ] and the entirety of ].<ref>{{Cite news |date=12 May 2012 |title=China denies preparing war over South China Sea shoal |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-18045383 |access-date=16 January 2020 |publisher=] |archive-date=7 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200207111212/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-18045383 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=27 November 2013 |title=How uninhabited islands soured China-Japan ties |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11341139 |access-date=16 January 2020 |publisher=] |archive-date=10 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180710120934/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11341139 |url-status=live}}</ref>

== Government and politics ==
{{Main|Politics of China}}
{{See also|List of current Chinese provincial leaders}}<!-- Please add new information to relevant articles of the series. -->
{{multiple image
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| caption1 = The ]<br/>where the ] convenes
| image2 = Xinhuamen Gate of Zhongnanhai across Changan Street.JPG
| caption2 = The ], headquarters of the ] and ]
}}

The People's Republic of China is a ] governed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The CCP is officially ] by ], which is ].<ref>{{Cite news |date=5 January 2013 |title=Xi reiterates adherence to socialism with Chinese characteristics |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2013-01/05/c_132082389.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160201174945/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2013-01/05/c_132082389.htm |archive-date=1 February 2016 |access-date=14 January 2020 |agency=]}}</ref> The Chinese constitution states that the PRC "is a socialist state governed by a ] that is led by the working class and based on an alliance of workers and peasants," that the state institutions "shall practice the principle of ],"<ref name="Constitution">{{Cite web |date=20 November 2019 |title=Constitution of the People's Republic of China |url=http://www.npc.gov.cn/englishnpc/constitution2019/201911/1f65146fb6104dd3a2793875d19b5b29.shtml |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230702212731/http://www.npc.gov.cn/englishnpc/constitution2019/201911/1f65146fb6104dd3a2793875d19b5b29.shtml |archive-date=2 July 2023 |access-date=20 March 2021 |website=]}}</ref> and that "the defining feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics is the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party."<ref name="2018-amendments-translated">{{Cite web |last=Wei |first=Changhao |date=11 March 2018 |title=Annotated Translation: 2018 Amendment to the P.R.C. Constitution (Version 2.0) |url=https://npcobserver.com/2018/03/11/translation-2018-amendment-to-the-p-r-c-constitution |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181222125439/https://npcobserver.com/2018/03/11/translation-2018-amendment-to-the-p-r-c-constitution |archive-date=22 December 2018 |access-date=22 August 2019 |website=NPC Observer}}</ref>

The PRC ], using terms such as "socialist consultative democracy",<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jia |first=Qinglin |date=1 January 2013 |title=The Development of Socialist Consultative Democracy in China |url=http://english.qstheory.cn/magazine/201301/201302/t20130218_211654.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170309221709/http://english.qstheory.cn/magazine/201301/201302/t20130218_211654.htm |archive-date=9 March 2017 |access-date=13 May 2018 |website=]}}</ref> and "]".<ref name="Decoding China-2021" /> However, the country is commonly described as an authoritarian one-party state and a ],<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ringen |first=Stein |author-link=Stein Ringen |title=The Perfect Dictatorship: China in the 21st Century |date=2016 |publisher=] |isbn=978-9-8882-0893-7 |page=3}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last1=Qian |first1=Isabelle |last2=Xiao |first2=Muyi |last3=Mozur |first3=Paul |last4=Cardia |first4=Alexander |date=21 June 2022 |title=Four Takeaways From a Times Investigation Into China's Expanding Surveillance State |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/21/world/asia/china-surveillance-investigation.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230116110333/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/21/world/asia/china-surveillance-investigation.html |archive-date=16 January 2023 |access-date=23 July 2022 |work=]}}</ref> with among the heaviest restrictions worldwide in many areas, most notably against ], ], ], ] and ].<ref name="freedomhouse">{{Cite news |date=2024 |title=Freedom in the World 2024: China |url=https://freedomhouse.org/country/china/freedom-world/2024 |access-date=5 April 2024 |work=]}}</ref> China has consistently been ranked amongst the lowest as an "authoritarian regime" by the ]'s ], ranking at 148th out of 167 countries in 2023.<ref>{{Cite news |date=14 February 2024 |title=Where democracy is most at risk |url=https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2024/02/14/four-lessons-from-the-2023-democracy-index |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240214222019/https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2024/02/14/four-lessons-from-the-2023-democracy-index |archive-date=14 February 2024 |access-date=15 February 2024 |newspaper=] |issn=0013-0613}}</ref> Other sources suggest that terming China as "authoritarian" does not sufficiently account for the multiple consultation mechanisms that exist in Chinese government.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Laikwan |first=Pang |title=One and All: The Logic of Chinese Sovereignty |date=2024 |publisher=] |isbn=978-1-5036-3881-5 |location=Stanford, CA |pages=1}}</ref>

=== Chinese Communist Party ===
{{Main|Chinese Communist Party}}

] is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China.]]
According to the ], its highest body is the ] held every five years.<ref name="Ruwitch-2022">{{Cite news |last=Ruwitch |first=John |date=13 October 2022 |title=China's major party congress is set to grant Xi Jinping a 3rd term. And that's not all |url=https://www.npr.org/2022/10/13/1124553497/china-communist-party-congress-xi-jinping |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221014193045/https://www.npr.org/2022/10/13/1124553497/china-communist-party-congress-xi-jinping |archive-date=14 October 2022 |access-date=15 October 2022 |work=]}}</ref> The National Congress elects the ], who then elects the party's ], ] and the ] (]), the top leadership of the country.<ref name="Ruwitch-2022" /> The general secretary holds ultimate power and authority over party and state and serves as the informal ].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hernández |first=Javier C. |date=25 October 2017 |title=China's 'Chairman of Everything': Behind Xi Jinping's Many Titles |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/25/world/asia/china-xi-jinping-titles-chairman.html |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171025074641/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/25/world/asia/china-xi-jinping-titles-chairman.html |archive-date=25 October 2017 |access-date=14 January 2020 |work=] |quote=Mr. Xi's most important title is general secretary, the most powerful position in the Communist Party. In China's one party system, this ranking gives him virtually unchecked authority over the government.}}</ref> The current general secretary is ], who took office on 15 November 2012.<ref name="PhillipsGuardian2">{{Cite news |last=Phillips |first=Tom |date=24 October 2017 |title=Xi Jinping becomes most powerful leader since Mao with China's change to constitution |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/24/xi-jinping-mao-thought-on-socialism-china-constitution |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171024053607/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/24/xi-jinping-mao-thought-on-socialism-china-constitution |archive-date=24 October 2017 |access-date=24 October 2017 |work=]}}</ref> At the local level, the ] of a subdivision outranks the local government level; CCP committee secretary of a provincial division outranks the governor while the CCP committee secretary of a city outranks the mayor.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Lawrence |first1=Susan V. |last2=Lee |first2=Mari Y. |date=24 November 2021 |title=China's Political System in Charts: A Snapshot Before the 20th Party Congress |url=https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/R/R46977 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220616104006/https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/R/R46977 |archive-date=16 June 2022 |access-date=20 December 2022 |website=]}}</ref>

=== Government ===
{{Main|Government of China}}

{{See also|List of national leaders of the People's Republic of China}}
{{multiple image
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and ]</small>
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The government in China is under the sole control of the CCP.<ref name=":12">{{Cite news |last=Ma |first=Josephine |date=17 May 2021 |title=Party-state relations under China's Communist Party: separation of powers, control over government and reforms |url=https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3133672/why-chinas-communist-party-inseparable-state |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230528070726/https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3133672/why-chinas-communist-party-inseparable-state |archive-date=28 May 2023 |access-date=23 June 2023 |work=]}}</ref> The CCP controls appointments in government bodies, with most senior government officials being CCP members.<ref name=":12" />

The ] (NPC), with nearly 3,000-members, is constitutionally the "]",<ref name="Constitution" /> though it has been also described as a "]" body.<ref name="BBC News-2009">{{Cite news |title=How China is Ruled: National People's Congress |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/in_depth/china_politics/government/html/7.stm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200413113056/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/in_depth/china_politics/government/html/7.stm |archive-date=13 April 2020 |access-date=14 July 2009 |publisher=]}}</ref> The NPC meets annually, while the ], around 150 members elected from NPC delegates, meets every couple of months.<ref name="BBC News-2009" /> Elections are indirect and not pluralistic, with nominations at all levels being controlled by the CCP.<ref name="Decoding China-2021">{{Cite web |date=4 February 2021 |title=Democracy |url=https://decodingchina.eu/democracy |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220816041118/https://decodingchina.eu/democracy |archive-date=16 August 2022 |access-date=22 August 2022 |website=Decoding China |publisher=]}}</ref> The NPC is dominated by the CCP, with another ] having nominal representation under the condition of upholding CCP leadership.<ref name="HRW-2021">{{Cite web |title=China: Nipped In The Bud – Background |url=https://www.hrw.org/reports/2000/china/china009-01.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210416135228/https://www.hrw.org/reports/2000/china/china009-01.htm |archive-date=16 April 2021 |access-date=18 March 2021 |website=]}}</ref>

The ] is elected by the NPC. The presidency is the ceremonial state representative, but not the constitutional head of state. The incumbent president is Xi Jinping, who is also the general secretary of the CCP and the ], making him China's ] and ] of the Armed Forces. The ] is the ], with ] being the incumbent. The premier is officially nominated by the president and then elected by the NPC, and has generally been either the second- or third-ranking member of the Politburo Standing Committee (PSC). The premier presides over the ], China's cabinet, composed of four vice premiers, ], and the heads of ministries and commissions.<ref name="Constitution" /> The ] (CPPCC) is a political advisory body that is critical in China's "]" system, which aims to gather non-CCP voices to support the CCP. Similar to the people's congresses, CPPCC's exist at various division, with the National Committee of the CPPCC being chaired by ], fourth-ranking member of the PSC.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Tiezzi |first=Shannon |date=4 March 2021 |title=What Is the CPPCC Anyway? |url=https://thediplomat.com/2021/03/what-is-the-cppcc-anyway |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328020922/https://thediplomat.com/2021/03/what-is-the-cppcc-anyway |archive-date=28 March 2024 |access-date=21 August 2022 |work=]}}</ref>

The governance of China is characterized by a high degree of political centralization but significant economic decentralization.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Jin |first=Keyu |author-link=Keyu Jin |title=The New China Playbook: Beyond Socialism and Capitalism |date=2023 |publisher=Viking |isbn=978-1-9848-7828-1}}</ref>{{Rp|page=7}} Policy instruments or processes are often tested locally before being applied more widely, resulting in a policy that involves experimentation and feedback.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Heilmann |first=Sebastian |author-link=Sebastian Heilmann |title=Red Swan: How Unorthodox Policy-Making Facilitated China's Rise |date=2018 |publisher=] |isbn=978-9-6299-6827-4}}</ref>{{Rp|page=14}} Generally, central government leadership refrains from drafting specific policies, instead using the informal networks and site visits to affirm or suggest changes to the direction of local policy experiments or pilot programs.<ref name=":44">{{Cite book |last=Brussee |first=Vincent |title=Social Credit: The Warring States of China's Emerging Data Empire |date=2023 |publisher=] |isbn=978-9-8199-2188-1}}</ref>{{Rp|page=71}} The typical approach is that central government leadership begins drafting formal policies, law, or regulations after policy has been developed at local levels.<ref name=":44" />{{Rp|page=71}}

=== Administrative divisions ===
{{Main|Administrative divisions of China|Districts of Hong Kong|Municipalities and parishes of Macau}}

The PRC is constitutionally a ] divided into 23 ],{{efn|The People's Republic of China claims the islands of ] and ], which it does not control, as its disputed 23rd province, i.e. ]; along with ] and ] as part of ]. These are controlled by the Taipei-based ] (ROC). See {{section link||Administrative divisions}} for more details.|name=TaiwanClaim}} five ] (each with a designated minority group), and four ]—collectively referred to as "mainland China"—as well as the ] (SARs) of Hong Kong and Macau.<ref>{{Cite web |date=26 August 2014 |title=Administrative Division |url=http://english.www.gov.cn/archive/china_abc/2014/08/27/content_281474983873401.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220709144054/http://english.www.gov.cn/archive/china_abc/2014/08/27/content_281474983873401.htm |archive-date=9 July 2022 |access-date=19 December 2022 |website=]}}</ref> The PRC regards the ] as its ], ] and ] as a part of ] and islands the ROC controls in the South China Sea as a part of ] and ], although all these territories are governed by the ] (ROC).<ref>{{Cite book |last=Chang |first=Bi-yu |title=Place, Identity, and National Imagination in Post-war Taiwan |date=2015 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-3176-5812-2 |pages=}}</ref><ref name="asia-34729538">{{Cite news |date=6 November 2015 |title=What's behind China-Taiwan tensions? |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-34729538 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151107103125/http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-34729538 |archive-date=7 November 2015 |access-date=10 November 2022 |publisher=]}}</ref> Geographically, all 31 provincial divisions of mainland China can be grouped into six regions: ], ], ], ], ], and ].<ref name="Brown2013">{{Cite book |last=Brown |first=Kerry |title=Contemporary China |date=2013 |publisher=Macmillan International Higher Education – University of Sydney |isbn=978-1-1372-8159-3 |page=7}}</ref>

{{PRC provinces big imagemap alt}}
{{PRC provinces small imagemap/province list}}

=== Foreign relations ===
{{Main|Foreign relations of China}}
]

The PRC has diplomatic relations with 179 United Nation members states and maintains ]. {{As of|2024}}, China has one of the largest diplomatic networks of any country in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Global Diplomacy Index – Country Rank |url=https://globaldiplomacyindex.lowyinstitute.org/country_ranking |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240225223052/https://globaldiplomacyindex.lowyinstitute.org/country_ranking |archive-date=25 February 2024 |access-date=26 February 2024 |website=]}}</ref> In 1971, the PRC replaced the Republic of China (ROC) as the sole representative of China in the United Nations and as one of the five permanent members of the ].<ref name="Ref_r">{{Cite news |last=Chang |first=Eddy |date=22 August 2004 |title=Perseverance will pay off at the UN |url=http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2004/08/22/2003199768 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070806100002/http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2004/08/22/2003199768 |archive-date=6 August 2007 |work=]}}</ref> It is a member of intergovernmental organizations including the ],<ref>{{Cite web |title=About G20 |url=https://www.g20.org/en/about-g20 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230825160730/https://www.g20.org/en/about-g20 |archive-date=25 August 2023 |access-date=4 July 2023 |website=]}}</ref> the ],<ref>{{Cite news |date=29 March 2023 |title=Riyadh joins Shanghai Cooperation Organization as ties with Beijing grow |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/riyadh-joins-shanghai-cooperation-organization-ties-with-beijing-grow-2023-03-29 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231011070851/https://www.reuters.com/world/riyadh-joins-shanghai-cooperation-organization-ties-with-beijing-grow-2023-03-29 |archive-date=11 October 2023 |access-date=22 November 2023 |work=]}}</ref> the ],<ref>{{Cite news |date=14 April 2011 |title=Bric summit ends in China with plea for more influence |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-13076229 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240225211238/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-13076229 |archive-date=25 February 2024 |access-date=24 October 2011 |publisher=]}}</ref> the ],<ref>{{Cite web |title=EAS Participating Countries |url=https://eastasiasummit.asean.org/eas-participating-country |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230923192301/https://eastasiasummit.asean.org/eas-participating-country |archive-date=23 September 2023 |access-date=4 July 2023 |website=]}}</ref> and the ].<ref>{{Cite web |date=September 2021 |title=About APEC |url=https://www.apec.org/about-us/about-apec |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240321185610/https://www.apec.org/about-us/about-apec |archive-date=21 March 2024 |access-date=4 July 2023 |website=]}}</ref> China was also a former member and leader of the ], and still considers itself an advocate for ].<ref name="Ref_2009">{{Cite news |date=21 December 2009 |title=China says communication with other developing countries at Copenhagen summit transparent |url=http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90001/90776/90883/6847341.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091222225359/http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90001/90776/90883/6847341.html |archive-date=22 December 2009 |access-date=31 January 2019 |work=]}}</ref>

The PRC officially maintains the ], which holds the view that there is only one sovereign state in the name of China, represented by the PRC, and that Taiwan is part of that China.<ref name="Drun-2017">{{Cite web |last=Drun |first=Jessica |date=28 December 2017 |title=One China, Multiple Interpretations |url=https://www.ccpwatch.org/single-post/2017/12/29/one-china-multiple-interpretations |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200309224301/https://www.ccpwatch.org/single-post/2017/12/29/One-China-Multiple-Interpretations |archive-date=9 March 2020 |access-date=11 January 2023 |website=Center for Advanced China Research}}</ref> The unique status of Taiwan has led to countries recognizing the PRC to maintain unique "one-China policies" that differ from each other; some countries explicitly recognize the PRC's claim over Taiwan, while others, including the U.S. and Japan, only ''acknowledge'' the claim.<ref name="Drun-2017" /> Chinese officials have protested on numerous occasions when foreign countries have made diplomatic overtures to Taiwan,<ref>{{Cite news |date=12 January 2010 |title=Taiwan's Ma to stopover in US: report |url=http://www.mysinchew.com/node/33834 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150909170723/http://www.mysinchew.com/node/33834 |archive-date=9 September 2015 |agency=]}}</ref> especially in the matter of armament sales.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Macartney |first=Jane |date=1 February 2010 |title=China says US arms sales to Taiwan could threaten wider relations |url=https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/china-says-us-arms-sales-to-taiwan-could-threaten-wider-relations-pl2j2pdn667 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230712030509/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/china-says-us-arms-sales-to-taiwan-could-threaten-wider-relations-pl2j2pdn667 |archive-date=12 July 2023 |access-date=18 January 2020 |work=]}}</ref> Most countries have switched recognition from the ROC to the PRC since the latter replaced the former in the UN in 1971.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hale |first=Erin |date=25 October 2021 |title=Taiwan taps on United Nations' door, 50 years after departure |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/10/25/chinas-un-seat-50-years-on |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230129190345/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/10/25/chinas-un-seat-50-years-on |archive-date=29 January 2023 |access-date=11 January 2023 |work=]}}</ref>] signed a $400 billion ]. Currently,{{When|date=July 2024}} Russia is supplying ] to China.]]Much of current ] is reportedly based on Premier ]'s ], and is also driven by the concept of "harmony without uniformity", which encourages diplomatic relations between states despite ideological differences.<ref name="Keith">{{Cite book |last=Keith |first=Ronald C. |title=China from the inside out – fitting the People's republic into the world |publisher=PlutoPress |pages=135–136}}</ref> This policy may have led China to support or maintain close ties with states that are ] and repressive by Western nations, such as ],<ref>{{Cite web |last=Timothy Webster |date=17 May 2013 |title=China's Human Rights Footprint in Africa |url=https://scholarlycommons.law.case.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1619&context=faculty_publications |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240229040705/https://scholarlycommons.law.case.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1619&context=faculty_publications |archive-date=29 February 2024 |access-date=28 March 2024 |website=] |pages=628 and 638}}</ref> ] and ].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Martel |first=William C. |date=29 June 2012 |title=An Authoritarian Axis Rising? |url=https://thediplomat.com/2012/06/an-authoritarian-axis-rising |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131216045110/https://thediplomat.com/2012/06/an-authoritarian-axis-rising |archive-date=16 December 2013 |work=]}}</ref> China's close relationship with ] has involved support for its ruling governments as well as for its ethnic rebel groups,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Maria Siow |date=27 March 2021 |title=Could Myanmar's ethnic armed groups turn the tide against the junta, with a little help from Beijing? |url=https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3127236/could-myanmars-ethnic-armed-groups-turn-tide-against-junta |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20231127152703/https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3127236/could-myanmars-ethnic-armed-groups-turn-tide-against-junta |archive-date=27 November 2023 |access-date=27 November 2023 |website=] |language=en}}</ref> including the ].<ref>{{Cite web |last=DAVID BREWSTER |date=8 November 2022 |title=How China, India and Bangladesh could be drawn into Myanmar's conflict |url=https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/how-china-india-bangladesh-could-be-drawn-myanmar-s-conflict |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240224140842/https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/how-china-india-bangladesh-could-be-drawn-myanmar-s-conflict |archive-date=24 February 2024 |access-date=28 March 2024 |website=] |language=en}}</ref> China has a ] with Russia,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Davidson |first=Helen |date=16 March 2022 |title=How close are China and Russia and where does Beijing stand on Ukraine? |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/16/how-close-are-china-and-russia-and-where-does-beijing-stand-on-ukraine |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220322172321/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/16/how-close-are-china-and-russia-and-where-does-beijing-stand-on-ukraine |archive-date=22 March 2022 |access-date=11 January 2023 |work=]}}</ref> and the two states often vote in unison in the UN Security Council.<ref>{{Cite news |date=5 June 2012 |title=Energy to dominate Russia President Putin's China visit |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-18327632 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240214152040/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-18327632 |archive-date=14 February 2024 |access-date=16 January 2020 |publisher=]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Gladstone |first=Rick |date=19 July 2012 |title=Friction at the U.N. as Russia and China Veto Another Resolution on Syria Sanctions |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/20/world/middleeast/russia-and-china-veto-un-sanctions-against-syria.html |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220101/https://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/20/world/middleeast/russia-and-china-veto-un-sanctions-against-syria.html |archive-date=1 January 2022 |access-date=15 November 2012 |work=The New York Times}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=23 March 2013 |title=Xi Jinping: Russia-China ties 'guarantee world peace' |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-21911842 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240120144520/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-21911842 |archive-date=20 January 2024 |access-date=23 March 2013 |publisher=]}}</ref> ] is complex, and includes deep trade ties but significant political differences.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Martin |first1=Eric |last2=Monteiro |first2=Ana |date=7 February 2023 |title=US-China Goods Trade Hits Record Even as Political Split Widens |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-02-07/us-china-trade-climbs-to-record-in-2022-despite-efforts-to-split |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230502105302/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-02-07/us-china-trade-climbs-to-record-in-2022-despite-efforts-to-split |archive-date=2 May 2023 |access-date=16 May 2023 |work=]}}</ref>

Since the early 2000s, China has followed a policy of ] for trade and bilateral co-operation.<ref>{{Cite news |last=McLaughlin |first=Abraham |date=30 March 2005 |title=A rising China counters US clout in Africa |url=https://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0330/p01s01-woaf.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070816123236/http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0330/p01s01-woaf.html |archive-date=16 August 2007 |access-date=18 January 2020 |work=]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Lyman |first=Princeton |date=21 July 2005 |title=China's Rising Role in Africa |url=http://www.cfr.org/publication/8436 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070715183929/http://www.cfr.org/publication/8436 |archive-date=15 July 2007 |access-date=26 June 2007 |website=]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Politzer |first=Malia |date=6 August 2008 |title=China and Africa: Stronger Economic Ties Mean More Migration |url=https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/china-and-africa-stronger-economic-ties-mean-more-migration |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231202014823/https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/china-and-africa-stronger-economic-ties-mean-more-migration |archive-date=2 December 2023 |access-date=26 January 2013 |website=]}}</ref> It maintains extensive and highly diversified trade links with the European Union, and became its largest trading partner for goods.<ref name="qz_EU_trade">{{Cite news |last=Timsit |first=Annabelle |date=15 February 2021 |title=China dethroned the US as Europe's top trade partner in 2020 |url=https://qz.com/1973067/china-dethroned-the-us-as-europes-top-trade-partner-in-2020 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231002082249/https://qz.com/1973067/china-dethroned-the-us-as-europes-top-trade-partner-in-2020 |archive-date=2 October 2023 |access-date=18 March 2021 |work=Quartz}}</ref> China is increasing its influence in ]<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wolff |first=Stefan |date=24 May 2023 |title=How China is increasing its influence in central Asia as part of global plans to offer an alternative to the west |url=https://theconversation.com/how-china-is-increasing-its-influence-in-central-asia-as-part-of-global-plans-to-offer-an-alternative-to-the-west-206035 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240303040833/http://theconversation.com/how-china-is-increasing-its-influence-in-central-asia-as-part-of-global-plans-to-offer-an-alternative-to-the-west-206035 |archive-date=3 March 2024 |access-date=28 March 2024 |website=]}}</ref> and South Pacific.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Owen Greene |last2=Christoph Bluth |date=9 February 2024 |title=China's increasing political influence in the south Pacific has sparked an international response |url=https://theconversation.com/chinas-increasing-political-influence-in-the-south-pacific-has-sparked-an-international-response-222105 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240303175200/https://theconversation.com/chinas-increasing-political-influence-in-the-south-pacific-has-sparked-an-international-response-222105 |archive-date=3 March 2024 |access-date=28 March 2024 |website=]}}</ref> The country has strong trade ties with ] countries<ref>{{Cite web |date=December 2022 |title=ASEAN Statistical Yearbook 2022 |url=https://www.aseanstats.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/ASYB_2022_423.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230516144951/https://www.aseanstats.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/ASYB_2022_423.pdf |archive-date=16 May 2023 |access-date=16 May 2023 |website=ASEAN}}</ref> and major South American economies,<ref>{{Cite magazine |date=4 February 2021 |title=The U.S. and China Are Battling for Influence in Latin America, and the Pandemic Has Raised the Stakes |url=https://time.com/5936037/us-china-latin-america-influence |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240323123844/https://time.com/5936037/us-china-latin-america-influence |archive-date=23 March 2024 |access-date=28 March 2021 |magazine=Time}}</ref> and is the largest trading partner of Brazil, Chile, Peru, Uruguay, Argentina, and several others.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Garrison |first=Cassandra |date=14 December 2020 |title=In Latin America, a Biden White House faces a rising China |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-latam-usa-china-insight/in-latin-america-a-biden-white-house-faces-a-rising-china-idUSKBN28O18R |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231108025932/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-latam-usa-china-insight/in-latin-america-a-biden-white-house-faces-a-rising-china-idUSKBN28O18R |archive-date=8 November 2023 |access-date=28 March 2021 |work=]}}</ref>

In 2013, China initiated the ] (BRI), a large global infrastructure building initiative with funding on the order of $50–100 billion per year.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Dollar |first=David |date=October 2020 |title=Seven years into China's Belt and Road |url=https://www.brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2020/10/01/seven-years-into-chinas-belt-and-road |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230530150820/https://www.brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2020/10/01/seven-years-into-chinas-belt-and-road |archive-date=30 May 2023 |access-date=1 December 2020 |website=Brookings}}</ref> BRI could be one of the largest development plans in modern history.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cai |first=Peter |title=Understanding China's Belt and Road Initiative |url=https://www.lowyinstitute.org/publications/understanding-belt-and-road-initiative |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220901063800/http://www.lowyinstitute.org/publications/understanding-belt-and-road-initiative |archive-date=1 September 2022 |access-date=30 November 2020 |website=]}}</ref> It expanded significantly over the next six years and, {{As of|2020|April|lc=y}}, included 138 countries and 30 international organizations. In addition to intensifying foreign policy relations, the focus is particularly on building efficient transport routes, especially the ] with its connections to East Africa and Europe. However many loans made under the program are unsustainable and China has faced a number of calls for ] from debtor nations.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Kynge |first1=James |author-link=James Kynge |last2=Sun |first2=Yu |date=30 April 2020 |title=China faces wave of calls for debt relief on 'Belt and Road' projects |url=https://www.ft.com/content/5a3192be-27c6-4fe7-87e7-78d4158bd39b |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/https://www.ft.com/content/5a3192be-27c6-4fe7-87e7-78d4158bd39b |archive-date=10 December 2022 |access-date=28 October 2022 |work=]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Broadman |first=Harry G. |url=http://hdl.handle.net/10986/7186 |title=Africa's Silk Road: China and India's New Economic Frontier |date=2007 |publisher=World Bank |isbn=978-0-8213-6835-0 |hdl=10986/7186 |access-date=28 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328160049/https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/entities/publication/ba2454cc-7c86-58e3-b0ad-c9b0968b70eb |archive-date=28 March 2024 |url-status=live}}

* {{Cite book |author1=Wolf D. Hartmann |title=Chinas neue Seidenstraße Kooperation statt Isolation - der Rollentausch im Welthandel |author2=Wolfgang Maennig |author3=Run Wang |publisher=Frankfurter Allgemeine Buch |date=2017 |isbn=978-3-9560-1224-2 |page=59}}
* {{Cite book |first=Marcus |last=Hernig |title=Die Renaissance der Seidenstrasse : der Weg des chinesischen Drachens ins Herz Europas |publisher=FinanzBuch Verlag (FBV) |date=2018 |isbn=978-3-9597-2138-7 |page=112}}
* {{Cite journal |first=Harry |last=de Wilt |date=17 December 2019 |title=Is 'One Belt, One Road' a China Crisis for North Sea Main Ports? |url=https://www.worldcargonews.com/news/news/is-one-belt-one-road-a-china-crisis-for-north-sea-main-ports-63544 |journal=World Cargo News |volume=17 |url-access=registration |access-date=16 October 2023 |archive-date=18 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231018024445/https://www.worldcargonews.com/news/news/is-one-belt-one-road-a-china-crisis-for-north-sea-main-ports-63544 |url-status=dead}}
* {{Cite journal |first=Guido |last=Santevecchi |date=November 2019 |title=Di Maio e la Via della Seta: «Faremo i conti nel 2020», siglato accordo su Trieste |url=https://www.informazione.it/a/F44F3D8B-F9F0-4058-B30F-8799E0A22A01/Di-Maio-e-la-Via-della-Seta-Faremo-i-conti-nel-2020-siglato-accordo-su-Trieste |journal=Corriere della Sera |volume=5 |access-date=28 March 2024 |archive-date=18 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231018024550/https://www.informazione.it/a/F44F3D8B-F9F0-4058-B30F-8799E0A22A01/Di-Maio-e-la-Via-della-Seta-Faremo-i-conti-nel-2020-siglato-accordo-su-Trieste |url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Military ===
{{Main|People's Liberation Army|Paramilitary forces of China}}
] ] stealth fighter]]

The ] (PLA) is considered one of the world's most powerful militaries and has rapidly modernized in the recent decades.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Maizland |first=Lindsay |date=5 February 2020 |title=China's Modernizing Military |url=https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/chinas-modernizing-military |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220814144248/https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/chinas-modernizing-military |archive-date=14 August 2022 |access-date=14 August 2022 |website=]}}</ref> It has also been accused of technology theft by some countries.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Russia up in arms over Chinese theft of military technology |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/International-relations/Russia-up-in-arms-over-Chinese-theft-of-military-technology |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240208134321/https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/International-relations/Russia-up-in-arms-over-Chinese-theft-of-military-technology |archive-date=8 February 2024 |access-date=1 February 2024 |website=Nikkei Asia |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=17 November 2022 |title=Chinese Spy Sentenced to 20 Years for Trying to Steal US Aviation Trade Secrets |url=https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/national-international/chinese-intelligence-officer-sentenced-to-20-years-for-trying-to-steal-us-aviation-trade-secrets/3961058 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240201111420/https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/national-international/chinese-intelligence-officer-sentenced-to-20-years-for-trying-to-steal-us-aviation-trade-secrets/3961058 |archive-date=1 February 2024 |access-date=1 February 2024 |website=NBC New York |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=19 December 2016 |title=Office of Public Affairs {{!}} Chinese National Admits to Stealing Sensitive Military Program Documents From United Technologies {{!}} United States Department of Justice |url=https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/chinese-national-admits-stealing-sensitive-military-program-documents-united-technologies |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240201111420/https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/chinese-national-admits-stealing-sensitive-military-program-documents-united-technologies |archive-date=1 February 2024 |access-date=1 February 2024 |website=www.justice.gov |language=en}}</ref> Since 2024, it consists of four services: the ] (PLAGF), the ] (PLAN), the ] (PLAAF) and the ] (PLARF). It also has four independent arms: the ], the ], the ], and the ], the first three of which were split from the disbanded ] (PLASSF).<ref name="ChinaMilitary">{{Cite web |title=Chinese PLA embraces a new system of services and arms: Defense spokesperson - China Military |url=http://eng.chinamil.com.cn/CHINA_209163/TopStories_209189/16302105.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240420125715/http://eng.chinamil.com.cn/CHINA_209163/TopStories_209189/16302105.html |archive-date=20 April 2024 |access-date=20 April 2024 |website=eng.chinamil.com.cn}}</ref> Its nearly 2.2 million active duty personnel is the ]. The PLA holds the world's ],<ref>{{Cite web |date=30 September 2021 |title=Which Countries Have the Most Nuclear Weapons? |url=https://www.visualcapitalist.com/which-countries-have-the-most-nuclear-weapons/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230810145116/https://www.visualcapitalist.com/which-countries-have-the-most-nuclear-weapons/ |archive-date=10 August 2023 |access-date=27 November 2021 |publisher=Visual Capitalist}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=19 July 2018 |title=Chinese Nuclear Program |url=https://www.atomicheritage.org/history/chinese-nuclear-program |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806132531/https://www.atomicheritage.org/history/chinese-nuclear-program |archive-date=6 August 2020 |access-date=28 March 2024 |work=Atomic Heritage Foundation}}</ref> and the world's second-largest navy by tonnage.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Lendon |first=Brad |date=6 March 2021 |title=Analysis: China has built the world's largest navy. Now what's Beijing going to do with it? |url=https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/05/china/china-world-biggest-navy-intl-hnk-ml-dst/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220810040902/https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/05/china/china-world-biggest-navy-intl-hnk-ml-dst/index.html |archive-date=10 August 2022 |access-date=14 August 2022 |work=CNN}}</ref> China's official military budget for 2023 totalled US$224 billion (1.55 trillion Yuan), the ], though ] estimates that its real expenditure that year was US$296 billion, making up 12% of global military spending and accounting for 1.7% of the country's GDP.<ref name="SIPRI-20202">{{Cite web |date=April 2024 |title=Trends in Military Expenditure 2023 |url=https://www.sipri.org/sites/default/files/2024-04/2404_fs_milex_2023.pdf#page=2 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240515230851/https://www.sipri.org/sites/default/files/2024-04/2404_fs_milex_2023.pdf#page=2 |archive-date=15 May 2024 |access-date=22 April 2024 |publisher=]}}</ref> According to SIPRI, its military spending from 2012 to 2021 averaged US$215 billion per year or 1.7 per cent of GDP, behind only the United States at US$734 billion per year or 3.6 per cent of GDP.<ref>{{Cite web |title=SIPRI Military Expenditure Database |url=https://milex.sipri.org/sipri |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221108022107/https://milex.sipri.org/sipri |archive-date=8 November 2022 |access-date=28 March 2024 |publisher=Stockholm International Peace Research Institute}}</ref> The PLA is commanded by the ] (CMC) of the party and the state; though officially two separate organizations, the two CMCs have identical membership except during leadership transition periods and effectively function as one organization. The ] is the ] of the PLA.<ref>{{Cite web |title=What China's New Central Military Commission Tells Us About Xi's Military Strategy |url=https://asiasociety.org/policy-institute/what-chinas-new-central-military-commission-tells-us-about-xis-military-strategy |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221221094427/https://asiasociety.org/policy-institute/what-chinas-new-central-military-commission-tells-us-about-xis-military-strategy |archive-date=21 December 2022 |access-date=21 December 2022 |website=Asia Society}}</ref>

=== Sociopolitical issues and human rights ===
{{See also|Human rights in China|Hukou|Social welfare in China|Elections in China|Censorship in China|Persecution of Uyghurs in China}}
] laureate ] who died of organ failure while in government custody in 2017]]

The situation of ] has attracted significant criticism from foreign governments, foreign press agencies, and non-governmental organizations, alleging widespread civil rights violations such as detention without trial, forced confessions, torture, restrictions of fundamental rights, and ].<ref name="freedomhouse" /><ref name="Amnesty-2023">{{Cite web |title=China |url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/location/asia-and-the-pacific/east-asia/china |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230515180810/https://www.amnesty.org/en/location/asia-and-the-pacific/east-asia/china |archive-date=15 May 2023 |access-date=15 May 2023 |publisher=]}}</ref> Since its inception, ] has ranked China as "not free" in its '']'' survey,<ref name="freedomhouse" /> while ] has documented significant human rights abuses.<ref name="Amnesty-2023" /> The Chinese constitution states that the "fundamental rights" of citizens include ], ], the ], ], ], and ]. However, in practice, these provisions do not afford significant protection against criminal prosecution by the state.<ref name="books.google">{{Cite book |last=Sorman |first=Guy |title=Empire of Lies: The Truth About China in the Twenty-First Century |date=2008 |publisher=] |isbn=978-1-5940-3284-4 |pages=}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |title=World Report 2022: China |date=2 December 2021 |publisher=] |chapter=China: Events of 2021 |access-date=15 May 2023 |chapter-url=https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2022/country-chapters/china-and-tibet |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230517074437/https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2022/country-chapters/china-and-tibet |archive-date=17 May 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref> China has limited protections regarding ].<ref>{{Cite web |date=13 June 2023 |title=For China's LGBTQ community, safe spaces are becoming harder to find |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/china-beijing-lgbt-center-rcna85528 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240119214528/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/china-beijing-lgbt-center-rcna85528 |archive-date=19 January 2024 |access-date=8 August 2023 |publisher=NBC News}}</ref>

Although some criticisms of government policies and the ruling CCP are tolerated, censorship of political speech and information are amongst the harshest in the world and routinely used to prevent collective action.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=King |first1=Gary |last2=Pan |first2=Jennifer |last3=Roberts |first3=Margaret E. |date=May 2013 |title=How Censorship in China Allows Government Criticism but Silences Collective Expression |url=http://gking.harvard.edu/files/gking/files/censored.pdf |url-status=live |journal=American Political Science Review |volume=107 |issue=2 |pages=326–343 |doi=10.1017/S0003055413000014 |s2cid=53577293 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://gking.harvard.edu/files/gking/files/censored.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |access-date=6 March 2015 |quote=Our central theoretical finding is that, contrary to much research and commentary, the purpose of the censorship program is not to suppress criticism of the state or the Communist Party.}}</ref> China also has the most comprehensive and sophisticated Internet censorship regime in the world, with numerous websites being blocked.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022 |title=Freedom on the Net: 2022 |url=https://freedomhouse.org/country/china/freedom-net/2022 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230123114002/https://freedomhouse.org/country/china/freedom-net/2022 |archive-date=23 January 2023 |access-date=15 May 2023 |website=]}}</ref> The government suppresses popular protests and demonstrations that it considers a potential threat to "social stability".<ref>Christian Göbel and Lynette H. Ong, {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116150236/https://www.chathamhouse.org/sites/default/files/public/Research/Asia/1012ecran_gobelong.pdf |date=16 January 2021}}. ]</ref> China additionally uses a massive espionage network of cameras, facial recognition software, sensors, and surveillance of personal technology as a means of social control of persons living in the country.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Qian |first1=Isabelle |last2=Xiao |first2=Muyi |last3=Mozur |first3=Paul |last4=Cardia |first4=Alexander |date=21 June 2022 |title=Four Takeaways From a Times Investigation Into China's Expanding Surveillance State |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/21/world/asia/china-surveillance-investigation.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230116110333/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/21/world/asia/china-surveillance-investigation.html |archive-date=16 January 2023 |access-date=28 March 2024 |work=]}}</ref>

], China has been accused of committing genocide against Uyghurs and detaining more than one million ] and other ethnic minorities in camps.<ref name="BBC News-2021">{{Cite news |date=8 February 2021 |title=Uighurs: 'Credible case' China carrying out genocide |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-55973215 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20210208184814/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-55973215 |archive-date=8 February 2021 |access-date=8 February 2021 |publisher=]}}</ref>]]
China is regularly accused of large-scale repression and human rights abuses in ] and Xinjiang,<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Anna Morcom |date=June 2018 |title=The Political Potency of Tibetan Identity in Pop Music and Dunglen |url=https://digitalcommons.macalester.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2348&context=himalaya |url-status=live |journal=Himalaya |publisher=] |volume=38 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211002090307/https://digitalcommons.macalester.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2348&context=himalaya |archive-date=2 October 2021 |access-date=18 October 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=7 November 2011 |title=Dalai Lama hits out over burnings |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-15617026 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191103141911/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-15617026 |archive-date=3 November 2019 |access-date=28 March 2024 |work=]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Asat |first1=Rayhan |last2=Yonah Diamond |date=15 July 2020 |title=The World's Most Technologically Sophisticated Genocide Is Happening in Xinjiang |url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/07/15/uighur-genocide-xinjiang-china-surveillance-sterilization |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328004458/https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/07/15/uighur-genocide-xinjiang-china-surveillance-sterilization |archive-date=28 March 2024 |access-date=28 March 2024 |website=]}}</ref> where significant numbers of ethnic minorities reside, including violent police crackdowns and ].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hatton |first=Celia |date=27 June 2013 |title=China 'moves two million Tibetans' |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-23081653 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240229053404/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-23081653 |archive-date=29 February 2024 |access-date=27 June 2013 |publisher=]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=29 June 2013 |title=Fresh unrest hits China's Xinjiang |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-23112177 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240120125125/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-23112177 |archive-date=20 January 2024 |access-date=29 June 2013 |publisher=]}}</ref> Since 2017, the Chinese government has been engaged in a harsh crackdown in Xinjiang, with around one million ] and other ethnic and religion minorities being detained in ] aimed at changing the political thinking of detainees, their identities, and their religious beliefs.<ref name="Graham-Harrison-2019">{{Cite news |last1=Graham-Harrison |first1=Emma |last2=Garside |first2=Juliette |date=24 November 2019 |title='Allow no escapes': leak exposes reality of China's vast prison camp network |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/24/china-cables-leak-no-escapes-reality-china-uighur-prison-camp |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240314114513/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/24/china-cables-leak-no-escapes-reality-china-uighur-prison-camp |archive-date=14 March 2024 |access-date=18 January 2020 |work=]}}</ref> According to Western reports, political indoctrination, torture, ] and ] abuse, ], ], and ] are common in these facilities.<ref name="Khatchadourian-2021">{{Cite magazine |last=Khatchadourian |first=Raffi |date=5 April 2021 |title=Surviving the Crackdown in Xinjiang |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/04/12/surviving-the-crackdown-in-xinjiang |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20210410193233/https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/04/12/surviving-the-crackdown-in-xinjiang |archive-date=10 April 2021 |access-date=19 March 2023 |magazine=]}}</ref> According to a 2020 ] report, China's treatment of Uyghurs meets the UN definition of genocide,<ref>{{Cite news |date=4 July 2020 |title=China Suppression Of Uighur Minorities Meets U.N. Definition Of Genocide, Report Says |url=https://www.npr.org/2020/07/04/887239225/china-suppression-of-uighur-minorities-meets-u-n-definition-of-genocide-report-s |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201019141640/https://www.npr.org/2020/07/04/887239225/china-suppression-of-uighur-minorities-meets-u-n-definition-of-genocide-report-s |archive-date=19 October 2020 |access-date=28 September 2020 |publisher=]}}</ref> while a separate ] said they could potentially meet the definitions for ].<ref name="Cumming-Bruce-2022">{{Cite news |last1=Cumming-Bruce |first1=Nick |last2=Ramzy |first2=Austin |date=31 August 2022 |title=U.N. Says China May Have Committed 'Crimes Against Humanity' in Xinjiang |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/31/world/asia/un-china-xinjiang-uyghurs.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220901014137/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/31/world/asia/un-china-xinjiang-uyghurs.html |archive-date=1 September 2022 |access-date=1 September 2022 |work=]}}</ref> The Chinese authorities have also cracked down on dissent in ], especially after the passage of a ] in 2020.<ref>{{Cite news |date=28 June 2022 |title=Hong Kong national security law: What is it and is it worrying? |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-52765838 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200528153554/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-52765838 |archive-date=28 May 2020 |access-date=12 August 2022 |publisher=]}}</ref>

]]]
In 2017 and 2020, the ] ranked the severity of Chinese government restrictions on religion as being among the world's highest, despite ranking religious-related social hostilities in China as low in severity.<ref>{{Cite web |date=15 July 2019 |title=3. Middle East still home to highest levels of restrictions on religion, although levels have declined since 2016 |url=https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2019/07/15/middle-east-still-home-to-highest-levels-of-restrictions-on-religion-although-levels-have-declined-since-2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240106181144/https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2019/07/15/middle-east-still-home-to-highest-levels-of-restrictions-on-religion-although-levels-have-declined-since-2016 |archive-date=6 January 2024 |access-date=6 January 2024 |website=] |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=29 November 2022 |title=3. Small changes in median scores for government restrictions, social hostilities involving religion in 2020 |url=https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2022/11/29/small-changes-in-median-scores-for-government-restrictions-social-hostilities-involving-religion-in-2020 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240106181143/https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2022/11/29/small-changes-in-median-scores-for-government-restrictions-social-hostilities-involving-religion-in-2020 |archive-date=6 January 2024 |access-date=2 January 2024 |website=] |language=en-US}}</ref> The ] estimated that in 2016 more than 3.8 million people (0.25% of the population) were living in "conditions of modern ]", including victims of human trafficking, forced labor, forced marriage, child labor, and state-imposed forced labor. The state-imposed ] (''laojiao'') system was formally abolished in 2013, but it is not clear to what extent its practices have stopped.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016 |title=China |url=https://www.globalslaveryindex.org/country/china/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160706152456/https://www.globalslaveryindex.org/country/china/ |archive-date=6 July 2016 |access-date=13 March 2018 |website=]}}</ref> The much larger ] (''laogai'') system includes labor prison factories, detention centers, and re-education camps; the ] has estimated in June 2008 that there were nearly 1,422 of these facilities, though it cautioned that this number was likely an underestimate.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2008 |title=Laogai Handbook: 2007–2008 |url=https://laogairesearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/33-Laogai-Handbook-2007-08.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231225055906/https://laogairesearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/33-Laogai-Handbook-2007-08.pdf |archive-date=25 December 2023 |access-date=28 March 2024 |website=]}}</ref>

=== Public views of government ===
Political concerns in China include the growing gap between rich and poor and government corruption.<ref>{{Cite news |date=11 May 2002 |title=China sounds alarm over fast growing gap between rich and poor |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-52919430.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140610060248/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-52919430.html |archive-date=10 June 2014 |access-date=1 February 2013 |agency=]}}</ref> Nonetheless, international surveys show the Chinese public have a high level of satisfaction with their government.<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=137}} These views are generally attributed to the material comforts and security available to large segments of the Chinese populace as well as the government's attentiveness and responsiveness.<ref name=":0" /> {{Rp|page=136}} According to the ] (2022), 91% of Chinese respondents have significant confidence in their government.<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=13}} A Harvard University survey published in July 2020 found that citizen satisfaction with the government had increased since 2003, also rating China's government as more effective and capable than ever in the survey's history.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Zhao |first=Suisheng |title=The dragon roars back: transformational leaders and dynamics of Chinese foreign policy |date=2023 |publisher=Stanford University Press |isbn=978-1-5036-3088-8 |page=163}}</ref>

== Economy ==
{{Main|Economy of China}}
{{For|Economic history of China|Economic history of China before 1912|Economic history of China (1912–1949)|Economic history of China (1949–present)}}

China has the world's ] in terms of ],<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kollewe |first=Justin McCurry Julia |date=14 February 2011 |title=China overtakes Japan as world's second-largest economy |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2011/feb/14/china-second-largest-economy |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190719223048/https://www.theguardian.com/business/2011/feb/14/china-second-largest-economy |archive-date=19 July 2019 |access-date=8 July 2019 |work=]}}</ref> and the world's ] in terms of ] (PPP).<ref>{{Cite web |date=2018 |title=GDP PPP (World Bank) |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.PP.CD?locations=CN-US&start=2000&year_high_desc=true |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190219072932/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.PP.CD?locations=CN-US&start=2000&year_high_desc=true |archive-date=19 February 2019 |access-date=18 February 2019 |publisher=]}}</ref> {{As of|2022}}, China accounts for around 18% of the ] by nominal GDP.<ref name="IMF-2023">{{Cite web |date=April 2023 |title=World Economic Outlook Database, April 2023 |url=https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2023/April |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230413194731/https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2023/April |archive-date=13 April 2023 |access-date=16 May 2023 |website=]}}</ref> China is one of the world's ] major economies,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Overview |url=https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/china/overview |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200930014300/https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/china/overview |archive-date=30 September 2020 |access-date=13 September 2020 |publisher=World Bank}}</ref> with its economic growth having been almost consistently above 6 percent since the introduction of ].<ref>{{Cite web |title=GDP growth (annual %) – China |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.KD.ZG?end=2016&locations=CN&start=1961&year_high_desc=true |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220531173009/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.KD.ZG?end=2016&locations=CN&start=1961&year_high_desc=true |archive-date=31 May 2022 |access-date=25 May 2018 |publisher=]}}</ref> According to the World Bank, China's GDP grew from $150 billion in 1978 to $17.96 trillion by 2022.<ref>{{Cite web |title=GDP (current US$) – China |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.CD?locations=CN |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190906052638/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.CD?locations=CN |archive-date=6 September 2019 |access-date=7 July 2023 |publisher=]}}</ref> It ranks at ], making it an upper-middle income country.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2018 |title=GDP PPP (World Bank) |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.PCAP.PP.CD?locations=CN-US&start=2000&year_high_desc=true |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190902074129/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.PCAP.PP.CD?locations=CN-US&start=2000&year_high_desc=true |archive-date=2 September 2019 |access-date=18 February 2019 |publisher=World Bank}}</ref> Of the world's ], 135 are headquartered in China.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Global 500 |url=https://fortune.com/ranking/global500 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230116163740/https://fortune.com/ranking/global500 |archive-date=16 January 2023 |access-date=3 August 2023 |website=]}}</ref> As of at least 2024, China has the world's second-largest equity markets and futures markets, as well as the third-largest bond market.<ref name=":Curtis&Klaus">{{Cite book |last1=Curtis |first1=Simon |title=The Belt and Road City: Geopolitics, Urbanization, and China's Search for a New International Order |last2=Klaus |first2=Ian |publisher=] |isbn=978-0-3002-6690-0 |location=New Haven and London |publication-date=2024 |doi=10.2307/jj.11589102 |jstor=jj.11589102}}</ref>{{Rp|page=153}}

China ] throughout the arc of ] and ]. The country ] in the world for most of the ],<ref>{{Cite book |last=Maddison |first=Angus |author-link=Angus Maddison |title=Contours of the World Economy 1–2030 AD: Essays in Macro-Economic History |date=2007 |publisher=] |isbn=978-0-1916-4758-1 |page=379}}</ref> during which it has seen cycles of prosperity and decline.<ref name="Dahlman Aubert 2001"/><ref>{{Cite web |title=Angus Maddison. Chinese Economic Performance in the Long Run. Development Centre Studies. |url=http://piketty.pse.ens.fr/files/Maddison98.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://piketty.pse.ens.fr/files/Maddison98.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |access-date=15 September 2017 |page=29}}</ref> Since economic reforms began in 1978, China has developed into a highly diversified economy and one of the most consequential players in international trade. Major sectors of competitive strength include manufacturing, retail, ], ], textiles, automobiles, energy generation, green energy, banking, electronics, telecommunications, real estate, e-commerce, and tourism. China has three out of the ten ] in the world<ref>{{Cite web |date=19 February 2019 |title=Top 10 Largest Stock Exchanges in the World By Market Capitalization |url=https://www.valuewalk.com/2019/02/top-10-largest-stock-exchanges/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20190515114023/https://www.valuewalk.com/2019/02/top-10-largest-stock-exchanges/ |archive-date=15 May 2019 |access-date=28 November 2019 |website=ValueWalk}}</ref>—], ] and ]—that together have a market capitalization of over $15.9 trillion, {{As of|2020|October|lc=y}}.<ref>{{Cite news |date=13 October 2020 |title=China's Stock Market Tops $10 Trillion First Time Since 2015 |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-10-13/china-s-stock-market-tops-10-trillion-for-first-time-since-2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201031042855/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-10-13/china-s-stock-market-tops-10-trillion-for-first-time-since-2015 |archive-date=31 October 2020 |access-date=28 October 2020 |publisher=Bloomberg L.P.}}</ref> China has three (], ], and ]) out of the world's top ten most competitive financial centers according to the 2024 ].<ref name="GFCI36">{{Cite web |title=GFCI 36 Rank - Long Finance |url=https://www.longfinance.net/programmes/financial-centre-futures/global-financial-centres-index/gfci-36-explore-the-data/gfci-36-rank/ |access-date=2024-09-24 |website=www.longfinance.net}}</ref>

], 1990–2013. The rapid economic growth of China (blue) is readily apparent.<ref>{{Cite web |title=World Bank World Development Indicators |url=http://data.worldbank.org/data-catalog/world-development-indicators |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141220032256/http://data.worldbank.org/data-catalog/world-development-indicators |archive-date=20 December 2014 |access-date=8 December 2014 |publisher=World Bank}}</ref>]]

Modern-day China is often described as an example of ] or ].<ref name="Pearson-2021">{{Cite journal |last1=Pearson |first1=Margaret |last2=Rithmire |first2=Meg |last3=Tsai |first3=Kellee S. |date=1 September 2021 |title=Party-State Capitalism in China |journal=] |volume=120 |issue=827 |pages=207–213 |doi=10.1525/curh.2021.120.827.207 |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Pearson |first1=Margaret M. |last2=Rithmire |first2=Meg |last3=Tsai |first3=Kellee S. |date=1 October 2022 |title=China's Party-State Capitalism and International Backlash: From Interdependence to Insecurity |journal=] |volume=47 |issue=2 |pages=135–176 |doi=10.1162/isec_a_00447 |doi-access=free}}</ref> The state dominates in strategic "pillar" sectors such as energy production and ], but private enterprise has expanded enormously, with around 30&nbsp;million private businesses recorded in 2008.<ref name="Ref_abf">John Lee. . The Center for Independent Studies. 26 July 2008. Retrieved 16 July 2013.</ref><ref name="Ref_2005a">{{Cite web |date=22 August 2005 |title=China Is a Private-Sector Economy |url=http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/05_34/b3948478.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080213222740/http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/05_34/b3948478.htm |archive-date=13 February 2008 |access-date=27 April 2010 |website=]}}</ref><ref name="Ref_abg">{{Cite web |title=Microsoft Word – China2bandes.doc |url=http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/16/3/36174313.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081010154017/http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/16/3/36174313.pdf |archive-date=10 October 2008 |access-date=27 April 2010 |publisher=OECD}}</ref> According to official statistics, privately owned companies constitute more than 60% of China's GDP.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hancock |first=Tom |date=30 March 2022 |title=China Crackdowns Shrink Private Sector's Slice of Big Business |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-03-29/china-crackdowns-shrink-private-sector-s-slice-of-big-business?leadSource=uverify%20wall |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328161405/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-03-29/china-crackdowns-shrink-private-sector-s-slice-of-big-business?leadSource=uverify%20wall |archive-date=28 March 2024 |access-date=13 April 2023 |work=]}}</ref>

China has been the world's ] since 2010, after overtaking the U.S., which had been the largest for the previous hundred years.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Marsh |first=Peter |date=13 March 2011 |title=China noses ahead as top goods producer |url=https://www.ft.com/content/002fd8f0-4d96-11e0-85e4-00144feab49a |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/https://www.ft.com/content/002fd8f0-4d96-11e0-85e4-00144feab49a |archive-date=10 December 2022 |access-date=18 January 2020 |work=]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Levinson |first=Marc |date=21 February 2018 |title=U.S. Manufacturing in International Perspective |url=https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R42135.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R42135.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |website=Federation of American Scientists}}</ref> China has also been the second-largest in ] manufacturing country since 2012, according to US ].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Report – S&E Indicators 2018 |url=https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/2018/nsb20181/report/sections/industry-technology-and-the-global-marketplace/patterns-and-trends-of-knowledge--and-technology-intensive-industries#medium-high-technology-industries-in-china |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230923083925/https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/2018/nsb20181/report/sections/industry-technology-and-the-global-marketplace/patterns-and-trends-of-knowledge--and-technology-intensive-industries#medium-high-technology-industries-in-china |archive-date=23 September 2023 |access-date=8 July 2019 |website=nsf.gov}}</ref> China is the second-largest retail market after the United States.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Shane |first=Daniel |date=23 January 2019 |title=China will overtake the US as the world's biggest retail market this year |url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/23/business/china-retail-sales-us/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240425193226/https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/23/business/china-retail-sales-us/index.html |archive-date=25 April 2024 |access-date=18 February 2019 |work=]}}</ref> China leads the world in e-commerce, accounting for over 37% of the global market share in 2021.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Cameron |first=Isabel |date=9 August 2022 |title=China continues to lead global ecommerce market with over $2 trillion sales in 2022 |url=https://www.chargedretail.co.uk/2022/08/09/china-continues-to-lead-global-ecommerce-market-with-over-2-trillion-sales-in-2022 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231202091337/https://www.chargedretail.co.uk/2022/08/09/china-continues-to-lead-global-ecommerce-market-with-over-2-trillion-sales-in-2022 |archive-date=2 December 2023 |access-date=19 May 2023 |work=Charged}}</ref> China is the world's leader in electric vehicle consumption and production, manufacturing and buying half of all the plug-in electric cars (BEV and PHEV) in the world {{As of|2022|lc=y}}.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Baraniuk |first=Chris |date=11 October 2022 |title=China's electric car market is booming but can it last? |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-62825830 |access-date=13 April 2023 |publisher=]}}</ref> China is also the leading producer of batteries for electric vehicles as well as several key raw materials for batteries.<ref>{{Cite web |date=9 September 2020 |title=China Dominates the Global Lithium Battery Market |url=https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/renewable/china-dominates-the-global-lithium-battery-market/ |access-date=28 March 2021 |website=Institute for Energy Research}}</ref>

=== Tourism ===
{{Main|Tourism in China|3 = List of World Heritage Sites in China}}

China received 65.7&nbsp;million international visitors in 2019,<ref name="WTO Tourism Highlights 2019 Edition">{{Cite journal |date=18 December 2020 |title=UNWTO World Tourism Barometer and Statistical Annex, December 2020 {{!}} World Tourism Organization |journal=UNWTO World Tourism Barometer (English Version) |volume=18 |issue=7 |pages=1–36 |doi=10.18111/wtobarometereng.2020.18.1.7 |doi-access=free}}</ref> and in 2018 was the ] in the world.<ref name="WTO Tourism Highlights 2019 Edition" /> It also experiences an enormous volume of ]; Chinese tourists made an estimated 6 billion travels within the country in 2019.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Liang |first=Xinlu |date=19 August 2021 |title=How has China's travel industry been hurt by the coronavirus pandemic, and when will tourism recover? |url=https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3145468/how-has-chinas-travel-industry-been-hurt-coronavirus-pandemic |access-date=16 May 2023 |work=]}}</ref> China hosts the world's ] of ]s (]) after Italy, and is one of the ] (]).

=== Wealth ===
{{See also|Income inequality in China}}
] in Shanghai]]

China ] of the world's total wealth in 2022, second highest in the world after the U.S.<ref name="databook2023">{{Cite book |last=Shorrocks |first=Anthony |author-link=Anthony Shorrocks |url=https://www.ubs.com/global/en/family-office-uhnw/reports/global-wealth-report-2023.html |title=Global Wealth Databook 2023 |last2=Davies |first2=James |last3=Lluberas |first3=Rodrigo |publisher=] and ] Research Institute |year=2023}}</ref> China brought more people out of extreme poverty than any other country in history<ref>{{Cite news |date=13 October 2017 |title=China lifting 800 million people out of poverty is historic: World Bank |url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/international/china-lifting-800-million-people-out-of-poverty-is-historic-world-bank-117101300027_1.html |access-date=22 February 2019 |work=Business Standard India |agency=Press Trust of India}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Four Decades of Poverty Reduction in China: Drivers, Insights for the World, and the Way Ahead |date=2022 |publisher=World Bank Publications |isbn=978-1-4648-1878-3 |page=ix |quote=By any measure, the speed and scale of China's poverty reduction is historically unprecedented.}}</ref>—between 1978 and 2018, China reduced extreme poverty by 800 million.<ref name=":0"/>{{Rp|page=23}} From 1990 to 2018, the proportion of the Chinese population living with an income of less than $1.90 per day (2011 ]) decreased from 66.3% to 0.3%, the share living with an income of less than $3.20 per day from 90.0% to 2.9%, and the share living with an income of less than $5.50 per day decreased from 98.3% to 17.0%.<ref>{{Cite web |date=23 October 2020 |title=Is China Succeeding at Eradicating Poverty? |url=https://chinapower.csis.org/poverty |access-date=28 March 2021 |website=Center for Strategic and International Studies}}</ref>

From 1978 to 2018, the average standard of living multiplied by a factor of twenty-six.<ref name="Bergsten 2022">{{Cite book |last=Bergsten |first=C. Fred |title=The United States vs. China: The Quest for Global Economic Leadership |date=2022 |publisher=Polity Press |isbn=978-1-5095-4735-7}}</ref> Wages in China have grown significantly in the last 40 years—real (inflation-adjusted) wages grew seven-fold from 1978 to 2007.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Rising Wages: Has China Lost Its Global Labor Advantage? |url=https://www.iza.org/publications/dp/5008/rising-wages-has-china-lost-its-global-labor-advantage |access-date=21 February 2019 |website=iza.org}}</ref> Per capita incomes have also risen significantly – when the PRC was founded in 1949, per capita income in China was one-fifth of the world average; per capita incomes now equal the world average itself.<ref name="Bergsten 2022" /> China's development is highly uneven. Its major cities and coastal areas are far more prosperous compared to rural and interior regions.<ref>{{Cite news |last=King |first=Stephen |date=2 February 2016 |title=China's path to tackling regional inequality |url=https://www.ft.com/content/9c6203d8-e1d9-3ca3-818a-e55b409ece94 |work=Financial Times}}</ref> It has a high level of economic inequality,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Duggan |first=Jennifer |date=12 January 2013 |title=Income inequality on the rise in China |url=http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2012/12/2012122311167503363.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130722192442/http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2012/12/2012122311167503363.html |archive-date=22 July 2013 |access-date=14 January 2020 |publisher=]}}</ref> which has increased quickly after the economic reforms,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Tobin |first=Damian |date=29 June 2011 |title=Inequality in China: Rural poverty persists as urban wealth balloons |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-13945072 |access-date=14 January 2020 |work=]}}</ref> though has decreased significantly in the 2010s.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2 October 2021 |title=Just how Dickensian is China? |url=https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2021/10/02/just-how-dickensian-is-china |access-date=15 May 2023 |newspaper=]}}</ref> In 2021, China's ] was 0.357, according to the ].<ref name="GINI"/>

{{As of|2024|March}}, China was second in the world, after the U.S., in ] and ], with 473 Chinese billionaires<ref>{{Cite web |title=Forbes World's Billionaires List: The Richest People in the World 2023 |url=https://www.forbes.com/billionaires |access-date=15 May 2023 |website=]}}</ref> and 6.2 million millionaires.<ref name="databook2023" /> In 2019, China overtook the U.S. as the home to the highest number of people who have a net personal wealth of at least $110,000, according to the global wealth report by ].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Khan |first=Yusuf |date=22 October 2019 |title=China has overtaken the US to have the most wealthy people in the world {{!}} Markets Insider |url=http://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/china-has-overtaken-the-us-to-have-the-most-wealthy-people-in-the-world-1028618107 |access-date=12 November 2019 |work=]}}{{Dead link|date=February 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Dawkins |first=David |date=21 October 2019 |title=China Overtakes U.S. In Global Household Wealth Rankings 'Despite' Trade Tensions – Report |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/daviddawkins/2019/10/21/china-overtakes-us-in-global-household-wealth-rankings-despite-trade-tensionsreport/ |access-date=12 November 2019 |work=Forbes}}</ref> China had 85 female billionaires {{As of|2021|January|lc=y}}, two-thirds of the global total.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Chen |first=Qin |date=27 March 2021 |title=China is now home to two-thirds of the world's top women billionaires, four times more than the US, Hurun research institute reveals |url=https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/article/3127254/china-now-home-two-thirds-worlds-top-women-billionaires-four |access-date=28 March 2021 |work=South China Morning Post}}</ref> China has had the world's largest middle-class population since 2015;<ref>{{Cite news |last=Zheping |first=Huang |date=14 October 2015 |title=China's middle class has overtaken the US's to become the world's largest |url=https://qz.com/523626/chinas-middle-class-has-overtaken-the-uss-to-become-the-worlds-largest |access-date=22 June 2019 |work=]}}</ref> the middle-class grew to 500 million by 2024.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Zuo |first=Mandy |date=3 March 2024 |title=China's middle-income population passes 500 million mark, state-owned newspaper says |url=https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3253995/chinas-middle-income-population-passes-500-million-mark-says-state-owned-newspaper |access-date=21 May 2024 |work=]}}</ref>

=== China in the global economy ===

China has been a member of the ] since 2001 and is the world's largest trading power.<ref>{{Cite news |last=He |first=Laura |date=13 January 2023 |title=China's exports plunge as global demand weakens, but trade with Russia hits record high |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2023/01/13/economy/china-exports-struggle-reopening-2022-intl-hnk/index.html |access-date=19 May 2023 |work=]}}</ref> By 2016, China was the largest trading partner of 124 countries.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Desjardins |first=Jeff |date=27 April 2016 |title=Four Maps Showing China's Rising Dominance in Trade |url=https://www.visualcapitalist.com/four-maps-showing-chinas-rising-dominance-trade |access-date=4 December 2019 |website=Visual Capitalist}}</ref> China became the world's largest trading nation in 2013 by the sum of imports and exports, as well as the world's largest commodity importer, accounting for roughly 45% of maritime's ].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Monaghan |first=Angela |date=10 January 2014 |title=China surpasses US as world's largest trading nation |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/jan/10/china-surpasses-us-world-largest-trading-nation |access-date=4 December 2019 |work=]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Paris |first=Costas |date=27 April 2021 |title=China's Imports of Commodities Drive a Boom in Dry-Bulk Shipping |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/chinas-imports-of-commodities-drive-a-boom-in-dry-bulk-shipping-11619541574 |access-date=29 April 2021 |work=]}}</ref>

] reached US$3.246&nbsp;trillion {{As of|2024|March|lc=y}}, making its reserves by far the world's largest.<ref>{{Cite news |date=7 April 2024 |title=China forex reserves rise to $3.246 trln in March |url=https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/china-forex-reserves-rise-3246-trln-march-2024-04-07 |access-date=21 May 2024 |work=]}}</ref> In 2022, China was amongst the world's largest recipient of inward ] (FDI), attracting $180 billion, though most of these were speculated to be from Hong Kong.<ref>{{Cite news |date=19 January 2023 |title=China Foreign Investment Posts Record Slump as Covid Zero Ended |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-01-19/china-foreign-investment-posts-record-slump-as-covid-zero-ended |access-date=15 May 2023 |work=]}}</ref> In 2021, China's foreign exchange remittances were $US53 billion making it the second-largest recipient of remittances in the world.<ref>{{Cite news |date=21 July 2022 |title=With $87 billion, India beats China as top remittance recipient in 2021 |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/business/story/india-china-top-remittance-recipient-2021-un-report-1978008-2022-07-20 |access-date=15 May 2023 |work=]}}</ref> China also invests abroad, with a total outward FDI of $147.9&nbsp;billion in 2023,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Chow |first=Loletta |date=5 February 2024 |title=Overview of China outbound investment of 2023 |url=https://www.ey.com/en_cn/china-overseas-investment-network/overview-of-china-outbound-investment-of-2023 |access-date=21 May 2024 |website=] |language=en-CN}}</ref> and a number of major takeovers of foreign firms by Chinese companies.<ref>{{Cite news |date=11 November 2010 |title=Being eaten by the dragon |url=http://www.economist.com/node/17460954 |newspaper=The Economist}}</ref>

Economists have argued that the ] is undervalued, due to ] from the Chinese government, giving China an unfair trade advantage.<ref>{{Cite web |last=He |first=Laura |date=4 June 2021 |title=China's stronger currency means difficult choices for Beijing |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2021/06/04/investing/china-yuan-financial-risks-intl-hnk/index.html |access-date=27 July 2022 |website=] |publisher=CNN}}</ref> China has also been widely criticized for manufacturing large quantities of ] goods.<ref>{{Cite web |date=September 2005 |title=Intellectual Property Rights |url=http://www.asiabusinesscouncil.org/docs/IntellectualPropertyRights.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100326093314/http://www.asiabusinesscouncil.org/docs/IntellectualPropertyRights.pdf |archive-date=26 March 2010 |access-date=13 January 2012 |website=Asia Business Council |publisher=]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=MIT CIS: Publications: Foreign Policy Index |url=http://web.mit.edu/cis/fpi_china.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070214212158/http://web.mit.edu/CIS/fpi_china.html |archive-date=14 February 2007 |access-date=15 May 2010 |website=]}}</ref> The U.S. government has also alleged that China does not respect ] (IP) rights and ].<ref>{{Cite news |date=6 February 2020 |title=China theft of technology is biggest law enforcement threat to US, FBI says |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/feb/06/china-technology-theft-fbi-biggest-threat |access-date=19 December 2022 |work=]}}</ref> In 2020, ]'s ] ranked complexity of China's exports 17th in the world, up from 24th in 2010.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hancock |first=Tom |date=26 January 2023 |title=The US Hasn't Noticed That China-Made Cars Are Taking Over the World |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-01-26/how-china-is-quietly-dominating-the-global-car-market |access-date=16 May 2023 |work=]}}</ref>

The Chinese government has promoted the ] in order to wean off of its dependence on the U.S. dollar as a result of perceived weaknesses of the international monetary system.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Huang |first=Yukon |date=Fall 2013 |title=Does Internationalizing the RMB Make Sense for China? |url=http://object.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/serials/files/cato-journal/2013/9/cjv33n3-18.pdf |journal=Cato Journal |access-date=28 July 2014}}</ref> The renminbi is a component of the IMF's ] and the world's fourth-most traded currency {{As of|2023|lc=y}}.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kawate |first=Iori |date=23 December 2023 |title=China's yuan rises to 4th most used currency in global settlements |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Markets/Currencies/China-s-yuan-rises-to-4th-most-used-currency-in-global-settlements |access-date=21 May 2024 |work=]}}</ref> However, partly due to capital controls that make the renminbi fall short of being a fully convertible currency, it remains far behind the Euro, the U.S. Dollar and the Japanese Yen in international trade volumes.<ref>{{Cite web |title=RMB now 8th most widely traded currency in the world |url=http://www.swift.com/about_swift/shownews?param_dcr=news.data%2Fen%2Fswift_com%2F2013%2FPR_RMB_september.xml |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151105223715/http://www.swift.com/about_swift/shownews?param_dcr=news.data%2Fen%2Fswift_com%2F2013%2FPR_RMB_september.xml |archive-date=5 November 2015 |access-date=10 October 2013 |publisher=]}}</ref>

=== Science and technology ===
{{Main|Science and technology in China|List of Chinese discoveries|List of Chinese inventions}}

==== Historical ====
{{Main|History of science and technology in China}}
], from the '']'' of 1044 CE]]
China was a world leader in science and technology until the ].<ref>Tom (1989), 99; Day & McNeil (1996), 122; Needham (1986e), 1–2, 40–41, 122–123, 228.</ref> Ancient and medieval ] and ], such as ], ], the ], and ] (the ]), became widespread across East Asia, the Middle East and later Europe. Chinese mathematicians were the first to use ].<ref>{{Cite news |date=9 March 2006 |title=In Our Time: Negative Numbers |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p003hyd9 |access-date=19 June 2013 |work=]}}</ref><ref>Struik, Dirk J. (1987). ''A Concise History of Mathematics''. New York: Dover Publications. pp. 32–33. "''In these matrices we find negative numbers, which appear here for the first time in history.''"</ref> By the 17th century, the Western World surpassed China in scientific and technological advancement.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Chinese Studies in the History and Philosophy of Science and Technology |date=1996 |publisher=Kluwer Academic Publishers |isbn=978-0-7923-3463-7 |volume=179 |pages=}}</ref> The causes of this early modern ] continue to be debated by scholars.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Frank |first=Andre |author-link=Andre Gunder Frank |date=2001 |title=Review of ''The Great Divergence'' |url=http://www.rrojasdatabank.info/agfrank/pomeranz.html |journal=Journal of Asian Studies |volume=60 |issue=1 |pages=180–182 |doi=10.2307/2659525 |jstor=2659525}}</ref>

After ] by the ] and ] in the 19th century, Chinese reformers began promoting modern science and technology as part of the ]. After the Communists came to power in 1949, efforts were made to organize science and technology based on the model of the ], in which scientific research was part of central planning.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Yu |first=Q. Y. |title=The Implementation of China's Science and Technology Policy |date=1999 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |isbn=978-1-5672-0332-5 |page=}}</ref> After Mao's death in 1976, science and technology were promoted as one of the ],<ref>{{Cite book |last=Vogel |first=Ezra F. |title=] |date=2011 |publisher=] |isbn=978-0-6740-5544-5 |page=}}</ref> and the Soviet-inspired academic system was gradually reformed.<ref>{{Cite book |last=DeGlopper |first=Donald D. |title=China: a country study |date=1987 |publisher=Library of Congress |chapter=Soviet Influence in the 1950s |chapter-url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/cntoc.html}}</ref>

==== Modern era ====
Since the end of the ], China has made significant investments in scientific research<ref name="CWRD">{{Cite web |last=Jia |first=Hepeng |date=9 September 2014 |title=R&D share for basic research in China dwindles |url=http://www.rsc.org/chemistryworld/2014/09/research-development-rd-share-basic-research-china-dwindles |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150219044130/http://www.rsc.org/chemistryworld/2014/09/research-development-rd-share-basic-research-china-dwindles |archive-date=19 February 2015 |access-date=21 January 2020 |website=]}}</ref> and is quickly catching up with the U.S. ].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Normile |first=Dennis |date=10 October 2018 |title=Surging R&D spending in China narrows gap with United States |url=https://www.science.org/content/article/surging-rd-spending-china-narrows-gap-united-states |access-date=20 February 2019 |work=]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=China Has Surpassed the U.S. in R&D Spending, According to New National Academy of Arts and Sciences Report – ASME |url=https://www.asme.org/government-relations/capitol-update/china-has-surpassed-the-u-s-in-r-d-spending,-according-to-new-national-academy-of-arts-and-sciences-report |access-date=26 October 2020 |website=asme.org}}</ref> China officially spent around 2.6% of its GDP on R&D in 2023, totaling to around $458.5 billion.<ref>{{Cite web |date=5 March 2024 |title=China's R&D expenditure exceeds 3.3 trln yuan in 2023: minister |url=https://english.www.gov.cn/news/202403/05/content_WS65e6ff4dc6d0868f4e8e4b66.html |access-date=21 May 2024 |website=]}}</ref> According to the ], China received more applications than the U.S. did in 2018 and 2019 and ranked first globally in patents, utility models, trademarks, industrial designs, and creative goods exports in 2021.<ref name="Dutta-2021">{{Cite book |last1=Dutta |first1=Soumitra |url=https://www.wipo.int/publications/en/details.jsp?id=4560 |title=Global Innovation Index 2021: Tracking Innovation Through the COVID-19 Crisis |last2=Lanvin |first2=Bruno |last3=Wunsch-Vincent |first3=Sacha |last4=León |first4=Lorena Rivera |last5=World Intellectual Property Organization |date=2021 |publisher=] |isbn=978-9-2805-3249-4 |edition=14th |doi=10.34667/tind.44315}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=World Intellectual Property Indicators: Filings for Patents, Trademarks, Industrial Designs Reach Record Heights in 2018 |url=https://www.wipo.int/pressroom/en/articles/2019/article_0012.html |access-date=10 May 2020 |website=wipo.int}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=China Becomes Top Filer of International Patents in 2019 |url=https://www.wipo.int/pressroom/en/articles/2020/article_0005.html |access-date=26 October 2020 |website=wipo.int}}</ref> It was ranked 11th in the ] in 2024, a considerable improvement from its rank of 35th in 2013.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Global Innovation Index 2024 : Unlocking the Promise of Social Entrepreneurship |url=https://www.wipo.int/web-publications/global-innovation-index-2024/en/ |access-date=2024-11-29 |website=www.wipo.int |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Dutta |first1=Soumitra |url=https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/index.html |title=Global Innovation Index 2022: What Is the Future of Innovation Driven Growth? |last2=Lanvin |first2=Bruno |last3=Wunsch-Vincent |first3=Sacha |last4=León |first4=Lorena Rivera |last5=World Intellectual Property Organization |date=2022 |publisher=] |isbn=978-9-2805-3432-0 |edition=15th |series=] |doi=10.34667/tind.46596 |access-date=29 September 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=28 October 2013 |title=Global Innovation Index |url=https://knowledge.insead.edu/entrepreneurship-innovation/global-innovation-index-2930 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210902101622/https://knowledge.insead.edu/entrepreneurship-innovation/global-innovation-index-2930 |archive-date=2 September 2021 |access-date=2 September 2021 |website=INSEAD Knowledge}}</ref> ] ranked among the ].<ref>{{Cite news |date=17 June 2013 |title=China retakes supercomputer crown |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-22936989 |access-date=18 June 2013 |publisher=]}}</ref>{{efn|Some of the chips used were not domestically developed until ] in 2016. China ] newer entries to TOP500 amid tensions with the United States.}} Its efforts to develop the most advanced semiconductors and jet engines have seen delays and setbacks.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Zhu |first=Julie |date=14 December 2022 |title=Exclusive: China readying $143 billion package for its chip firms in face of U.S. curbs |url=https://www.reuters.com/technology/china-plans-over-143-bln-push-boost-domestic-chips-compete-with-us-sources-2022-12-13 |access-date=23 December 2022 |work=]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Day |first=Lewin |date=28 July 2020 |title=80 Years From Invention, China Is Struggling With Jet Engines |url=https://hackaday.com/2020/07/28/80-years-from-invention-china-is-struggling-with-jet-engines |publisher=HackADay Insider}}</ref>

China is developing ] with an emphasis on ] (STEM).<ref>{{Cite news |last=Colvin |first=Geoff |date=29 July 2010 |title=Desperately seeking math and science majors |url=https://money.cnn.com/2010/07/29/news/international/china_engineering_grads.fortune/index.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101017232727/https://money.cnn.com/2010/07/29/news/international/china_engineering_grads.fortune/index.htm |archive-date=17 October 2010 |access-date=9 April 2012 |work=]}}</ref> ] became the world's ] in 2016.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Orszag |first=Peter R. |date=12 September 2018 |title=China is Overtaking the U.S. in Scientific Research |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/amp/opinion/articles/2018-09-12/chinese-researchers-are-outperforming-americans-in-science |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190220183147/https://www.bloomberg.com/amp/opinion/articles/2018-09-12/chinese-researchers-are-outperforming-americans-in-science |archive-date=20 February 2019 |access-date=19 February 2019 |work=]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Tollefson |first=Jeff |date=18 January 2018 |title=China declared world's largest producer of scientific articles |journal=Nature |volume=553 |issue=7689 |page=390 |bibcode=2018Natur.553..390T |doi=10.1038/d41586-018-00927-4 |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Koshikawa |first=Noriaki |date=8 August 2020 |title=China passes US as world's top researcher, showing its R&D might |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Science/China-passes-US-as-world-s-top-researcher-showing-its-R-D-might |access-date=8 June 2022 |work=]}}</ref> In 2022, China overtook the US in the ], which measures the share of published articles in leading scientific journals.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Baker |first=Simon |date=19 May 2023 |title=China overtakes United States on contribution to research in Nature Index |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-01705-7 |journal=Nature |language=en |doi=10.1038/d41586-023-01705-7 |pmid=37208516}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Hawkins |first=Amy |date=24 May 2023 |title=China overtakes US in contributions to nature and science journals |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/may/24/china-overtakes-us-in-contributions-to-nature-and-science-journals |access-date=23 September 2024 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

===== Space program =====
{{Main|Chinese space program}}
] by a ] rocket. China is one of the only three countries with independent ] capability.]]
The Chinese space program started in 1958 with some technology transfers from the Soviet Union. However, it did not launch the nation's first satellite until 1970 with the ], which made China the fifth country to do so independently.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Long |first=Wei |date=25 April 2000 |title=China Celebrates 30th Anniversary of First Satellite Launch |url=http://www.spacedaily.com/news/china-00u.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20160515110247/http%3A//www.spacedaily.com/news/china%2D00u.html |archive-date=15 May 2016 |publisher=Space daily}}</ref>

In 2003, China became the third country in the world to independently send humans into space with ]'s spaceflight aboard ]. As of 2023, ] have journeyed into space, including two women. In 2011, China launched its first space station testbed, ].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Amos |first=Jonathan |date=29 September 2011 |title=Rocket launches Chinese space lab |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15112760 |access-date=20 May 2012 |publisher=]}}</ref> In 2013, a Chinese robotic rover '']'' successfully touched down on the lunar surface as part of the ] mission.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Rincon |first=Paul |date=14 December 2013 |title=China lands Jade Rabbit robot rover on Moon |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-25356603 |access-date=26 July 2014 |publisher=]}}</ref>

In 2019, China became the first country to land a probe—]—on the ].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Lyons |first=Kate |title=Chang'e 4 landing: China probe makes historic touchdown on far side of the moon |url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/2019/jan/03/china-probe-change-4-land-far-side-moon-basin-crater |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190103043232/https://www.theguardian.com/science/2019/jan/03/china-probe-change-4-land-far-side-moon-basin-crater |archive-date=3 January 2019 |access-date=3 January 2019 |work=]}}</ref> In 2020, ] successfully returned Moon samples to the Earth, making China the third country to do so independently.<ref>{{Cite news |date=17 December 2020 |title=Moon rock samples brought to Earth for first time in 44 years |url=https://www.csmonitor.com/Science/Spacebound/2020/1217/Moon-rock-samples-brought-to-Earth-for-first-time-in-44-years |access-date=23 February 2021 |work=The Christian Science Monitor}}</ref> In 2021, China became the third country to land a spacecraft on Mars and the second one to deploy a ] on Mars.<ref>{{Cite web |date=15 May 2021 |title=China succeeds on country's first Mars landing attempt with Tianwen-1 |url=https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2021/05/china-first-mars-landing-attempt-tianwen-1 |access-date=15 May 2021 |website=NASASpaceFlight.com}}</ref> China completed its own modular ], the ], in ] on 3 November 2022.<ref>{{Cite tweet |number=1587984835808665600 |user=CNSpaceflight |title=Official completion time of #Mengtian relocation is 01:32UTC |author=China 'N Asia Spaceflight |date=3 November 2022 |access-date=3 November 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Skibba |first=Ramin |title=China Is Now a Major Space Power |url=https://www.wired.com/story/china-is-now-a-major-space-power-tiangong-space-station/ |access-date=4 November 2022 |magazine=Wired}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Celestial second fiddle no more, China completes its space station |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/11/05/china-space-station-tiangong/ |access-date=24 November 2022 |newspaper=Washington Post}}</ref> On 29 November 2022, China performed its first in-orbit crew handover aboard the ''Tiangong''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Chinese astronauts meet in space for historic crew handover |url=https://spaceflightnow.com/2022/11/29/chinese-astronauts-meet-in-space-for-historic-crew-handover |access-date=16 December 2022 |publisher=Spaceflight Now}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last1=Woo |first1=Ryan |last2=Liangping |first2=Gao |date=30 November 2022 |title=Chinese astronauts board space station in historic mission |url=https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/science/china-launches-crewed-spacecraft-chinese-space-station-state-television-2022-11-29/#:~:text=Shenzhou%2D15%20was%20the%20last,was%20launched%20in%20April%202021. |access-date=16 December 2022 |work=]}}</ref>

In May 2023, China announced a plan to ] by 2030.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wang |first=Vivian |date=29 May 2023 |title=China Announces Plan to Land Astronauts on Moon by 2030 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/29/world/asia/china-space-moon-2030.html |work=The New York Times}}</ref> To that end, China has been developing a lunar-capable super-heavy launcher, the ], a new ], and a ].<ref name="AJ-06Mar2022">{{Cite web |last=Jones |first=Andrew |date=6 March 2022 |title=China wants its new rocket for astronaut launches to be reusable |url=https://www.space.com/china-reusable-rockets-for-astronaut-launches |access-date=5 October 2023 |website=]}}</ref><ref name="AJ17072023">{{Cite news |last=Jones |first=Andrew |date=17 July 2023 |title=China sets out preliminary crewed lunar landing plan |url=https://spacenews.com/china-sets-out-preliminary-crewed-lunar-landing-plan |access-date=24 July 2023 |work=spacenews.com}}</ref>

China sent ] on 3 May 2024, which conducted the first lunar sample return from ] on the ].<ref name="AJ_FI-20230425">{{Cite tweet |number=1650832520978526208 |user=AJ_FI |title=China's Chang'e-6 sample return mission (a first ever lunar far side sample-return) is scheduled to launch in May 2024, and expected to take 53 days from launch to return module touchdown. Targeting southern area of Apollo basin (~43º S, 154º W) |first=Andrew |last=Jones |date=25 April 2023}}</ref> This is China's second lunar sample return mission, the first was achieved by ] from the lunar near side 4 years ago.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jones |first=Andrew |date=10 January 2024 |title=China's Chang'e-6 probe arrives at spaceport for first-ever lunar far side sample mission |url=https://spacenews.com/chinas-change-6-probe-arrives-at-spaceport-for-first-ever-lunar-far-side-sample-mission |access-date=10 January 2024 |website=]}}</ref> It also carried a Chinese rover called ''Jinchan'' to conduct ] of lunar surface and imaged Chang'e 6 lander on lunar surface.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jones |first=Andrew |date=6 May 2024 |title=China's Chang'e-6 is carrying a surprise rover to the moon |url=https://spacenews.com/chinas-change-6-is-carrying-a-surprise-rover-to-the-moon |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240508193233/https://spacenews.com/chinas-change-6-is-carrying-a-surprise-rover-to-the-moon |archive-date=8 May 2024 |access-date=8 May 2024 |website=SpaceNews}}</ref> The lander-ascender-rover combination was separated with the orbiter and returner before landing on 1 June 2024, at 22:23 UTC. It landed on the Moon's surface on 1 June 2024.<ref name="AJ_FI-20240601">{{Cite web |last=Jones |first=Andrew |date=1 June 2024 |title=Chang'e-6 lands on far side of the moon to collect unique lunar samples |url=https://spacenews.com/change-6-lands-on-far-side-of-the-moon-to-collect-unique-lunar-samples |access-date=1 June 2024 |website=]}}</ref><ref name="segeryu240602">{{Cite tweet |number=1797042217804337307 |user=SegerYu |title=落月时刻 2024-06-02 06:23:15.861 |first=Seger |last=Yu |language=zh}}</ref> The ascender was launched back to lunar orbit on 3 June 2024, at 23:38 UTC, carrying samples collected by the lander, which later completed another robotic rendezvous, before docking in lunar orbit. The sample container was then transferred to the returner, which landed on ] in June 2024, completing China's far side extraterrestrial sample return mission.

== Infrastructure ==
After a decades-long infrastructural boom,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Qu |first=Hongbin |title=China's infrastructure builds foundation for growth |url=https://www.gbm.hsbc.com/insights/global-research/china-infrastructure-builds-foundation-for-growth |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220528202857/https://www.gbm.hsbc.com/insights/global-research/china-infrastructure-builds-foundation-for-growth |archive-date=28 May 2022 |access-date=1 December 2020 |website=HSBC}}</ref> China has produced numerous world-leading infrastructural projects: it has the ],<ref>{{Cite news |date=13 January 2017 |title=China has built the world's largest bullet-train network |url=https://www.economist.com/china/2017/01/13/china-has-built-the-worlds-largest-bullet-train-network |access-date=13 September 2020 |newspaper=]}}</ref> the ],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Countries or Jurisdictions Ranked by Number of 150m+ Completed Buildings |url=https://www.skyscrapercenter.com/countries |access-date=30 November 2020 |website=The Skyscraper Center}}</ref> the largest power plant (the ]),<ref>{{Cite web |title=Three Gorges Dam: The World's Largest Hydroelectric Plant |url=https://www.usgs.gov/special-topic/water-science-school/science/three-gorges-dam-worlds-largest-hydroelectric-plant?qt-science_center_objects=0#qt-science_center_objects |access-date=1 December 2020 |website=United States Geological Survey}}</ref> and ] with the largest number of satellites.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Gao |first=Ryan Woo |date=12 June 2020 |title=China set to complete Beidou network rivalling GPS in global navigation |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-space-exploration-china-satellite-idUSKBN23J0I9 |access-date=1 December 2020 |work=]}}</ref>

=== Telecommunications ===
{{Main|Telecommunications in China}}
] and ], 1995–2012]]
China is the largest telecom market in the world and currently has the ], with over 1.7 billion subscribers, {{As of|2023|February|lc=y}}. It has the largest number of ] and ], with over 1.09 billion Internet users {{As of|2023|December|df=US|lc=y}}<ref>{{Cite web |date=August 2023 |title=The 50th Statistical Report on China's Internet Development |url=https://s.weibo.com/weibo?q=%23%E6%88%91%E5%9B%BD%E7%BD%91%E6%B0%91%E8%A7%84%E6%A8%A1%E5%B7%B2%E8%BE%BE10.79%E4%BA%BF%E4%BA%BA%23 |publisher=]}}</ref>—equivalent to around 77.5% of its population.<ref>{{Cite web |date=29 March 2024 |title=China Internet Overview |url=https://www.chinainternetwatch.com/overview |access-date=21 May 2024 |website=China Internet Watch |language=en-US}}</ref> By 2018, China had more than 1 billion 4G users, accounting for 40% of world's total.<ref>{{Cite web |date=22 January 2018 |title=China breaks 1B 4G subscriber mark |url=https://www.mobileworldlive.com/featured-content/home-banner/china-breaks-1b-4g-subscriber-mark/ |access-date=23 February 2019 |website=Mobile World Live}}</ref> China is making rapid advances in ]—by late 2018, China had started large-scale and commercial 5G trials.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Woyke |first=Elizabeth |title=China is racing ahead in 5G. Here's what that means. |url=https://www.technologyreview.com/s/612617/china-is-racing-ahead-in-5g-heres-what-it-means/ |access-date=21 February 2019 |website=MIT Technology Review}}</ref> {{As of|2023|December}}, China had over 810 million ] users and 3.38 million base stations installed.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Zuo |first=Mandy |date=29 March 2024 |title=China's 5G market set to expand, fuel economic growth as tech solidifies status as pillar industry |url=https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3257119/chinas-5g-market-set-expand-fuel-economic-growth-tech-solidifies-status-pillar-industry |access-date=21 May 2024 |work=]}}</ref>

], ] and ], are the three large providers of mobile and internet in China. China Telecom alone served more than 145 million broadband subscribers and 300 million mobile users; China Unicom had about 300 million subscribers; and China Mobile, the largest of them all, had 925 million users, {{As of|2018|lc=y}}.<ref>{{Cite web |date=21 August 2018 |title=Blog: China operator H1 2018 scorecard |url=https://www.mobileworldlive.com/blog/blog-china-operator-h1-2018-scorecard/ |access-date=23 February 2019 |website=Mobile World Live}}</ref> Combined, the three operators had over 3.4 million 4G base-stations in China.<ref name="TechNode-2018">{{Cite web |date=8 November 2018 |title=China ranked in top 5 for 4G penetration |url=https://technode.com/2018/11/08/china-ranked-in-top-5-for-4g-penetration/ |access-date=23 February 2019 |website=TechNode}}</ref> Several Chinese telecommunications companies, most notably ] and ], have been accused of spying for the Chinese military.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Engleman |first=Eric |date=8 October 2012 |title=Huawei, ZTE Provide Opening for China Spying, Report Says |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-10-07/huawei-zte-provide-opening-for-china-spying-report-says.html |access-date=26 October 2012 |work=]}}</ref>

China has developed its own ] system, dubbed ], which began offering commercial navigation services across Asia in 2012<ref name="CustomersDec2012">{{Cite news |date=27 December 2012 |title=China's Beidou GPS-substitute opens to public in Asia |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-20852150 |access-date=27 December 2012 |publisher=]}}</ref> as well as global services by the end of 2018.<ref>{{Cite news |date=26 November 2018 |title=China Is Building a $9 Billion Rival to the American-Run GPS |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-11-25/china-s-big-dipper-satellites-challenge-the-dominance-of-gps |access-date=21 February 2019 |work=]}}</ref> Beidou followed ] and ] as the third completed global navigation satellite.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Elmer |first=Keegan |date=3 August 2020 |title=China promises state support to keep BeiDou satellite system at cutting edge |url=https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3095794/china-promises-state-support-keep-beidou-satellite-system |access-date=22 August 2020 |work=]}}</ref>

=== Transport ===
{{Main|Transport in China}}
] is the ] in the world.]]
] high-speed train running near the ]]]

Since the late 1990s, China's national road network has been significantly expanded through the creation of a network of ] and ]. In 2022, China's highways had reached a total length of {{convert|177000|km|mi|abbr=on|sp=us}}, making it the ] in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |date=23 November 2023 |title=多我国高速公路通车里程稳居世界第一 |trans-title=China's expressway mileage ranks first in the world |url=https://www.gov.cn/lianbo/bumen/202311/content_6916724.htm#:~:text=%E6%96%B0%E5%8D%8E%E7%A4%BE%E5%8C%97%E4%BA%AC11%E6%9C%88,%E7%A8%B3%E5%B1%85%E4%B8%96%E7%95%8C%E7%AC%AC%E4%B8%80%E3%80%82 |access-date=21 May 2024 |website=]}}</ref> China has the world's largest market for automobiles,<ref>{{Cite news |date=8 January 2010 |title=China overtakes US as world's biggest car market |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2010/jan/08/china-us-car-sales-overtakes |access-date=7 June 2023 |work=The Guardian}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Ho |first=Patricia Jiayi |date=12 January 2010 |title=China Overtakes U.S. to Become Largest Auto Market |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703652104574651833126548364 |access-date=6 June 2023 |work=]}}</ref> having surpassed the United States in both auto sales and ]. The country is the world's largest exporter of cars by number as of 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Harley |first=Michael |title=China Overtakes Japan As The World's Biggest Exporter Of Passenger Cars |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelharley/2023/05/22/china-overtakes-japan-as-the-worlds-biggest-exporter-of-passenger-cars |access-date=6 June 2023 |website=Forbes}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=19 May 2023 |title=China overtakes Japan as world's top car exporter |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-65643064 |access-date=6 June 2023 |work=BBC News}}</ref> A side-effect of the rapid growth of China's road network has been a significant rise in traffic accidents.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Road Traffic Accidents Increase Dramatically Worldwide |url=http://www.prb.org/Publications/Articles/2006/RoadTrafficAccidentsIncreaseDramaticallyWorldwide.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010151203/http://www.prb.org/Publications/Articles/2006/RoadTrafficAccidentsIncreaseDramaticallyWorldwide.aspx |archive-date=10 October 2017 |access-date=16 November 2013 |publisher=Population Reference Bureau}}</ref> In urban areas, bicycles remain a common mode of transport, despite the increasing prevalence of automobiles – {{As of|2023|lc=y}}, there are approximately 200 million bicycles in China.<ref>{{Cite news |date=17 September 2023 |title=China has 200 million bicycles in use: industry association |url=https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202309/17/WS6506c419a310d2dce4bb6262.html |access-date=21 May 2024 |work=]}}</ref>

], which are operated by the state-owned ], are among ] in the world, handling a quarter of the world's rail traffic volume on only 6 percent of the world's tracks in 2006.<ref>{{Cite web |date=21 June 2007 |title=Chinese Railways Carry Record Passengers, Freight |url=http://www.china.org.cn/english/travel/214698.htm |website=Xinhua}}</ref> {{As of|2023}}, the country had {{convert|159000|km|mi|0|abbr=on|sp=us}} of railways, the ] in the world.<ref name="Chinab2">{{Cite news |date=1 March 2024 |title=中国国家铁路集团有限公司2023年统计公报 |trans-title=China State Railway Group Co., Ltd. Statistical Bulletin 2023 |url=http://www.china-railway.com.cn/xwzx/zhxw/202403/t20240315_134819.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240408045401/http://www.china-railway.com.cn/xwzx/zhxw/202403/t20240315_134819.html |archive-date=8 April 2024 |access-date=8 April 2024 |language=Chinese}}</ref> The railways strain to meet enormous demand particularly during the ] holiday, when the ] takes place.<ref name="overcrowding">{{Cite news |date=22 January 2009 |title=China's trains desperately overcrowded for Lunar New Year |url=http://seattletimes.com/html/travel/2008659473_webchinatrains22.html |work=The Seattle Times}}</ref> China's ] started construction in the early 2000s. By the end of 2023, high speed rail in China had reached {{convert|45000|km|mi|0|abbr=off|sp=us}} of dedicated lines alone, making it the ] in the world.<ref>{{Cite news |date=9 April 2024 |title=China's operating high-speed railway hits 45,000 km |url=http://en.people.cn/n3/2024/0109/c90000-20119756.html |access-date=22 April 2024 |work=]}}</ref> Services on the ], ], and ] lines reach up to {{convert|350|km/h|0|abbr=on|sp=us}}, making them the fastest conventional high speed railway services in the world. With an annual ridership of over 2.3 billion passengers in 2019, it is the world's busiest.<ref>{{Cite web |last=陈子琰 |title=China's railways report 3.57b passenger trips in 2019 |url=http://global.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202001/03/WS5e0eada7a310cf3e355824c4.html |access-date=10 March 2021 |website=China Daily}}</ref> The network includes the ], the single longest HSR line in the world, and the ], which has ].<ref>{{Cite news |date=26 December 2012 |title=China opens world's longest high-speed rail route |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-20842836 |access-date=26 December 2012 |publisher=BBC}}</ref> The ], which reaches {{convert|431|km/h|0|abbr=on|sp=us}}, is the fastest commercial train service in the world.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Jones |first=Ben |date=7 December 2022 |title=Flying without wings: The world's fastest trains |url=https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/worlds-fastest-trains-cmd/index.html |access-date=16 May 2023 |work=]}}</ref> Since 2000, the growth of rapid transit systems in Chinese cities has accelerated.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Areddy |first=James T. |date=10 November 2013 |title=China's Building Push Goes Underground |url=https://www.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303482504579177830819719254 |access-date=16 November 2013 |work=]}}</ref> {{As of|2023|December}}, 55 Chinese cities have ] in operation.<ref>{{Cite web |date=13 January 2024 |title=China's urban rail transit trips skyrocket 130% in December 2023 |url=https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202401/13/WS65a2590fa3105f21a507c216.html |access-date=21 May 2024 |website=]}}</ref> {{As of|2020}}, China boasts the five longest ] in the world with the networks in ], ], ], ] and ] being the largest.

The ] is mostly state-dominated, with the Chinese government retaining a majority stake in the majority of Chinese airlines. The top three airlines in China, which collectively made up 71% of the market in 2018, are all state-owned. Air travel has expanded rapidly in the last decades, with the number of passengers increasing from 16.6 million in 1990 to 551.2 million in 2017.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Du |first=Harry |date=26 September 2018 |title=How is Commercial Aviation Propelling China's Economic Development? |url=https://chinapower.csis.org/china-commercial-aviation |access-date=17 December 2023 |website=ChinaPower Project |language=en-US}}</ref> China had ].<ref>{{Cite web |date=18 February 2021 |title=China adds 43 civil transport airports in 5 years |url=http://english.www.gov.cn/news/photos/202102/18/content_WS602de0adc6d0719374af8fdd.html |access-date=16 May 2023 |publisher=]}}</ref>

China has ], about 130 of which are open to foreign shipping.<ref>{{Cite web |date=13 September 2021 |title=China's Global Network of Shipping Ports Reveal Beijing's Strategy |url=https://www.voanews.com/a/6224958.html |access-date=15 September 2022 |website=VOA}}</ref> Of the ], 15 are located in China, of which the busiest is the ], also the busiest port in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Top 50 Container Ports |url=https://www.worldshipping.org/top-50-ports |access-date=14 July 2022 |website=] |location=Washington, D.C.}}</ref> The country's inland waterways are the world's ], and total {{convert|27700|km|0|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Waterways – The World Factbook |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/field/waterways/country-comparison |access-date=14 July 2022 |website=] |publisher=]}}</ref>

=== Water supply and sanitation ===
{{Main|Water supply and sanitation in China}}

Water supply and sanitation infrastructure in China is facing challenges such as rapid urbanization, as well as ].<ref name="Water Scarcity in China">{{Cite news |last=Hook |first=Leslie |date=14 May 2013 |title=China: High and dry: Water shortages put a brake on economic growth |url=http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/7d6f69ea-bc73-11e2-b344-00144feab7de.html |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/7d6f69ea-bc73-11e2-b344-00144feab7de.html |archive-date=10 December 2022 |access-date=15 May 2013 |work=]}}</ref> According to the ], about 36% of the rural population in China still did not have access to ] in 2015.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Website of the Joint Monitoring Program for Water Supply and Sanitation |url=http://www.wssinfo.org/fileadmin/user_upload/resources/JMP-Update-report-2015_English.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304112745/http://www.wssinfo.org/fileadmin/user_upload/resources/JMP-Update-report-2015_English.pdf |archive-date=4 March 2016 |access-date=14 February 2016 |publisher=JMP (WHO and UNICEF) |df=dmy-all}}</ref>{{Update inline|date=January 2024}} The ongoing ] intends to abate water shortage in the north.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Freeman |first=Carla |title=Quenching the Dragon's Thirst: The South-North Water Transfer Project—Old Plumbing for New China? |url=https://www.wilsoncenter.org/sites/default/files/media/documents/publication/Quenching%20the%20Dragon%25E2%2580%2599s%20Thirst.pdf |access-date=16 May 2023 |website=]}}</ref>

== Demographics ==
{{Main|Demographics of China}}
]

The ] recorded the population as approximately 1,411,778,724. About 17.95% were 14 years old or younger, 63.35% were between 15 and 59 years old, and 18.7% were over 60 years old.<ref name="2020_census2">{{Cite web |date=11 May 2021 |title=Communiqué of the Seventh National Population Census (No. 2) |url=http://www.stats.gov.cn/english/PressRelease/202105/t20210510_1817187.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511104840/http://www.stats.gov.cn/english/PressRelease/202105/t20210510_1817187.html |archive-date=11 May 2021 |access-date=11 May 2021 |website=]}}</ref> Between 2010 and 2020, the average population growth rate was 0.53%.<ref name="2020_census2" />

Given concerns about population growth, China implemented a two-child limit during the 1970s, and, in 1979, began to advocate for an even stricter limit of one child per family. Beginning in the mid-1980s, however, given the unpopularity of the strict limits, China began to allow some major exemptions, particularly in rural areas, resulting in what was actually a "1.5"-child policy from the mid-1980s to 2015; ethnic minorities were also exempt from one-child limits.<ref name=":13">{{Cite web |last=Kızlak |first=Kamuran |date=21 June 2021 |title=Çin'de üç çocuk: Siz yapın, biz bakalım |trans-title=Three children in China: You do it, we'll see |url=https://www.birgun.net/haber/cin-de-uc-cocuk-siz-yapin-biz-bakalim-349097 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220816120012/https://www.birgun.net/haber/cin-de-uc-cocuk-siz-yapin-biz-bakalim-349097 |archive-date=16 August 2022 |website=] |language=Turkish}}</ref> The next major loosening of the policy was enacted in December 2013, allowing families to have two children if one parent is an only child.<ref>{{Cite news |date=28 December 2013 |title=China formalizes easing of one-child policy |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/12/28/china-one-child-policy/4230785 |access-date=16 May 2023 |work=]}}</ref> In 2016, the one-child policy was replaced in favor of a ].<ref name="Birtles-2021">{{Cite news |last=Birtles |first=Bill |author-link=Bill Birtles |date=31 May 2021 |title=China introduces three-child policy to alleviate problem of ageing population |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-05-31/china-introduces-three-child-policy/100179832 |access-date=31 May 2021 |work=]}}</ref> A ] was announced on 31 May 2021, due to ],<ref name="Birtles-2021" /> and in July 2021, all family size limits as well as penalties for exceeding them were removed.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Cheng |first=Evelyn |date=21 July 2021 |title=China scraps fines, will let families have as many children as they'd like |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/21/china-scraps-fines-for-families-violating-childbirth-limits.html |access-date=29 April 2022 |work=]}}</ref> In 2023, the ] was reported to be 1.09, ranking ].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Qi |first=Liyan |date=19 August 2023 |title=China's Fertility Rate Dropped Sharply, Study Shows |url=https://www.wsj.com/world/china/chinas-fertility-rate-dropped-sharply-study-shows-e97e647f |url-access=subscription |access-date=12 December 2023 |website=] |language=en-US}}</ref> In 2023, ] estimated that the population fell 850,000 from 2021 to 2022, the first decline since 1961.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ng |first=Kelly |date=17 January 2023 |title=China's population falls for first time since 1961 |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-64300190 |access-date=17 January 2023 |publisher=]}}</ref>

According to one group of scholars, one-child limits had little effect on population growth<ref name="Wang Judge">{{Cite journal |last1=Feng |first1=Wang |last2=Yong |first2=Cai |last3=Gu |first3=Baochang |date=2012 |title=Population, Policy, and Politics: How Will History Judge China's One-Child Policy? |url=http://dragonreport.com/Dragon_Report/Challenges_files/Wang_pp115-129.pdf |url-status=dead |journal=] |volume=38 |pages=115–129 |doi=10.1111/j.1728-4457.2013.00555.x |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190606203524/http://dragonreport.com/Dragon_Report/Challenges_files/Wang_pp115-129.pdf |archive-date=6 June 2019 |access-date=16 May 2018}}</ref> or total population size.<ref name="Whyte">{{Cite journal |last1=Whyte |first1=Martin K. |last2=Wang |first2=Feng |last3=Cai |first3=Yong |date=2015 |title=Challenging Myths about China's One-Child Policy |url=http://scholar.harvard.edu/files/martinwhyte/files/challenging_myths_published_version.pdf |url-status=live |journal=] |volume=74 |pages=144–159 |doi=10.1086/681664 |pmc=6701844 |pmid=31431804 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://scholar.harvard.edu/files/martinwhyte/files/challenging_myths_published_version.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022}}</ref> However, these scholars have been challenged.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Goodkind |first=Daniel |date=2017 |title=The Astonishing Population Averted by China's Birth Restrictions: Estimates, Nightmares, and Reprogrammed Ambitions |journal=] |volume=54 |issue=4 |pages=1375–1400 |doi=10.1007/s13524-017-0595-x |pmid=28762036 |s2cid=13656899 |doi-access=free}}</ref> The policy, along with traditional preference for boys, may have contributed to an imbalance in the ] at birth.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Parry |first=Simon |date=9 January 2005 |title=Shortage of girls forces China to criminalize selective abortion |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/1480778/Shortage-of-girls-forces-China-to-criminalise-selective-abortion.html |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/1480778/Shortage-of-girls-forces-China-to-criminalise-selective-abortion.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |access-date=22 October 2012 |work=The Daily Telegraph}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref name="Ref_2007a">{{Cite news |date=12 January 2007 |title=Chinese facing shortage of wives |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6254763.stm |access-date=23 March 2009 |work=BBC News}}</ref> The 2020 census found that males accounted for 51.2% of the total population.<ref name="NBS China-2021">{{Cite web |date=11 May 2021 |title=Communiqué of the Seventh National Population Census (No. 4) |url=http://www.stats.gov.cn/english/PressRelease/202105/t20210510_1817189.html |access-date=16 May 2023 |website=]}}</ref> However, China's sex ratio is more balanced than it was in 1953, when males accounted for 51.8% of the population.<ref>{{Cite news |date=20 October 2011 |title=Chinese mainland gender ratios most balanced since 1950s: census data |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2011-04/28/c_13850191.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110911115321/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2011-04/28/c_13850191.htm |archive-date=11 September 2011 |access-date=19 May 2023 |work=]}}</ref>

The cultural preference for male children, combined with the one-child policy, led to an excess of female child orphans in China, and in the 1990s through around 2007, there was an active stream of adoptions of (mainly female) babies by American and other foreign parents.<ref name="GirlBabyAdoptions"> by Diane Clehane, ''Vanity Fair'', August 2008 Issue. Last access 31 August 2024.</ref> However, increased restrictions by the Chinese Government slowed foreign adoptions significantly in 2007 and again in 2015.<ref name="AdoptionRestrictions"> by Margaret Gyznar, Georgia Journal of International and Comparative Law, 17 May 2017. See pages 40–42. Last access 31 August 2024.</ref>

=== Urbanization ===
{{See also|List of cities in China|List of cities in China by population|Megalopolises in China}}
] in China (2010)]]
China ] significantly in recent decades. The percent of the country's population living in urban areas increased from 20% in 1980 to over 66% in 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Urban population (% of total) |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.URB.TOTL.IN.ZS?locations=CN |access-date=28 May 2018 |website=]}}</ref><ref name="Economist-2014">{{Cite news |date=16 April 2014 |title=Where China's future will happen |url=https://www.economist.com/leaders/2014/04/16/where-chinas-future-will-happen |access-date=18 February 2023 |newspaper=]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Statistical communiqué of the People's Republic of China on the 2023 national economic and social development |url=https://www.stats.gov.cn/english/PressRelease/202402/t20240228_1947918.html |access-date=7 March 2024 |website=]}}</ref> China has over 160 cities with a population of over one million,<ref>{{Cite news |last=FlorCruz |first=Jaime A. |date=20 January 2012 |title=China's urban explosion: A 21st century challenge |url=http://www.cnn.com/2012/01/20/world/asia/china-florcruz-urban-growth/index.html |access-date=18 February 2015 |work=]}}</ref> including the 17 ] {{As of|2021|lc=y}}<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wong |first=Maggie Hiufu |title=Megacities and more: A guide to China's most impressive urban centers |url=https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/china-top-megacities/index.html |access-date=26 October 2020 |publisher=CNN}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=张洁 |title=Chongqing, Chengdu top new first-tier cities by population |url=http://global.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202106/15/WS60c84b56a31024ad0bac6db4.html |access-date=3 November 2021 |website=China Daily}}</ref> (cities with a population of over 10 million) of ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ] and ].<ref>{{Cite web |title=17 Chinese cities have a population of over 10 million in 2021 |url=https://www.ecns.cn/news/cns-wire/2022-05-26/detail-ihaytawr8118445.shtml |access-date=31 May 2022 |website=www.ecns.cn}}</ref> The total permanent population of Chongqing, Shanghai, Beijing and Chengdu is above 20 million.<ref>{{Cite web |last=孙迟 |title=China's inland rides waves of innovation, new opportunities |url=https://global.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202205/27/WS62902a26a310fd2b29e5f516.html |access-date=31 May 2022 |website=global.chinadaily.com.cn |quote=Chengdu and Chongqing are now two of the only four cities (the other two are Beijing and Shanghai) in China with populations of more than 20 million.}}</ref> Shanghai is China's ]<ref name="Demographia2013">{{Cite book |last=Demographia |url=http://www.demographia.com/db-worldua.pdf |title=Demographia World Urban Areas |date=March 2013 |edition=9th |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130501024602/http://demographia.com/db-worldua.pdf |archive-date=1 May 2013}}</ref><ref name="oecd">{{Cite book |url=http://www.keepeek.com/Digital-Asset-Management/oecd/urban-rural-and-regional-development/oecd-urban-policy-reviews-china-2015_9789264230040-en#page39 |title=OECD Urban Policy Reviews: China 2015 |date=18 April 2015 |publisher=] |isbn=978-9-2642-3003-3 |page=37 |doi=10.1787/9789264230040-en}}</ref> while Chongqing is its ], the only city in China with a permanent population of over 30 million.<ref name="renamed_from_2015_on_20160214005959">{{Cite web |date=28 January 2016 |script-title=zh:2015年重庆常住人口3016.55万人 继续保持增长态势 |url=http://cq.cqnews.net/html/2016-01/28/content_36292655.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160129083111/http://cq.cqnews.net/html/2016-01/28/content_36292655.htm |archive-date=29 January 2016 |access-date=13 February 2016 |publisher=Chongqing News |language=zh |df=dmy-all}}</ref> The figures in the table below are from the 2020 census, and are only estimates of the urban populations within administrative city limits; a different ranking exists for total municipal populations. The large "]s" of migrant workers make conducting censuses in urban areas difficult;<ref name="Ref_abce">Francesco Sisci. "China's floating population a headache for census". ''The Straits Times''. 22 September 2000.</ref> the figures below include only long-term residents.

{{Most populous cities in the People's Republic of China|class=info}}

=== Ethnic groups ===
{{Main|List of ethnic groups in China|Ethnic minorities in China|Ethnic groups in Chinese history}}
]

China legally recognizes 56 distinct ethnic groups, who comprise the '']''. The largest of these nationalities are the ], who constitute more than 91% of the total population.<ref name="2020_census2" /> The Han Chinese – the world's largest single ethnic group<ref>{{Cite news |last=Lilly |first=Amanda |date=7 July 2009 |title=A Guide to China's Ethnic Groups |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/08/AR2009070802718.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131209112957/http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2009-07-07/world/36836997_1_muslim-uighurs-chinese-government-xinjiang-province |archive-date=9 December 2013 |access-date=19 May 2023 |newspaper=]}}</ref> – outnumber other ethnic groups in every place excluding ], ],<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/chinasgeographyg0000unse |title=China's Geography: Globalization and the Dynamics of Political, Economic, and Social Change |date=2011 |publisher=] |isbn=978-0-7425-6784-9 |page= |url-access=registration}}</ref> ],<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Zhang |first1=Bo |last2=Druijven |first2=Peter |last3=Strijker |first3=Dirk |date=17 September 2017 |title=A tale of three cities: negotiating ethnic identity and acculturation in northwest China |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/08873631.2017.1375779 |journal=Journal of Cultural Geography |language=en |publication-place=] |volume=35 |issue=1 |pages=44–74 |doi=10.1080/08873631.2017.1375779 |issn=0887-3631 |quote=The major Muslim groups in Linxia are the Hui and the Dongxiang, accounting for 31.6% and 26.0% of the population, respectively, while the Han group makes up 39.7% (The Sixth National Census).}}</ref> and ]s like ].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ecosystem services and management of Long Forest created by Dai Indigenous People in Xishuangbanna, China |url=https://cases.open.ubc.ca/ecosystem-services-and-management-of-long-forest-created-by-dai-indigenous-people-in-xishuangbanna-china |access-date=23 February 2024 |website=Open Case Studies |publication-place=]}}</ref> Ethnic minorities account for less than 10% of the population of China, according to the 2020 census.<ref name="2020_census2" /> Compared with the 2010 population census, the Han population increased by 60,378,693 persons, or 4.93%, while the population of the 55 national minorities combined increased by 11,675,179 persons, or 10.26%.<ref name="2020_census2" /> The 2020 census recorded a total of 845,697 foreign nationals living in mainland China.<ref>{{Cite web |date=11 May 2021 |title=Communiqué of the Seventh National Population Census (No. 8) |url=http://www.stats.gov.cn/english/PressRelease/202105/t20210510_1817193.html |access-date=22 April 2023 |website=]}}</ref>

=== Languages ===
{{Main|Languages of China|List of endangered languages in China}}
], Yunnan, written in ] using the Latin alphabet, ] using the ], and Chinese.]]

There are as many as 292 ]s in China.<ref> – from Lewis, M. Paul (ed.), 2009. Ethnologue: Languages of the World, Sixteenth edition. Dallas, TX: SIL International.</ref> The languages most commonly spoken belong to the ] of the ], which contains ] (spoken by 80% of the population),<ref>{{Cite news |title=Over 80 percent of Chinese population speak Mandarin |last1=Zhao |first1=E'nuo |last2=Wu |first2=Yue |date=16 October 2020 |url=http://en.people.cn/n3/2020/1016/c90000-9769716.html |access-date=15 September 2023 |work=People's Daily}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Kaplan |first1=Robert B. |title=Language Planning and Policy in Asia: Japan, Nepal, Taiwan and Chinese characters |last2=Baldauf |first2=Richard B. |year=2008 |publisher=Multilingual Matters |isbn=978-1-8476-9095-1 |page=42}}</ref> and ] of ]: ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ] and unclassified Tuhua (] and ]).<ref>{{Cite book |publisher=Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, City University of Hong Kong |page=8 |year=2012 |trans-title=Language Atlas of China |edition=2nd |title-link=Language Atlas of China |orig-date=1987 |script-title=zh:中国语言地图集 |place=Beijing |volume=1: Dialects |isbn=978-7-100-07054-6}}</ref> Languages of the ], including ], ], ] and ], are spoken across the ] and ]. Other ethnic minority languages in ] include ], ], ] and ] of the ], ] and ] of the ], and ] of the ]. Across ] and ], local ethnic groups speak ] including ], ] and several ]: ], ], ], ] and ].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Li Yang |date=17 November 2015 |title=Yugur people and Sunan Yugur autonomous county |url=https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/m/gansu/2015-11/17/content_22479011.htm |access-date=23 February 2024 |work=China Daily}}</ref> ] is spoken natively along the border with ]. ], the language of ], is an ].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Joo |first=Ian |last2=Hsu |first2=Yu-Yin |date=September 2021 |title=A Preliminary Survey of Linguistic Areas in East Asia Based on Phonological Features |url=https://kb.osu.edu/items/a24b1342-748d-44da-a314-faa4d24ca8cb |journal=Buckeye East Asian Linguistics |language=en-US |publication-place=Hong Kong Polytechnic University |volume=5 |pages=58 |issn=2378-9387 |quote=Sarikoli, an Indo-European language spoken in northwestern China, shows some connection to Turkic languages (Kazakh and Uyghur) spoken nearby. |via=Ohio State University Knowledge Bank}}</ref> ], including a small population on the mainland, speak ].<ref name="language">. 2005. Government of China. Retrieved 31 May 2015.</ref>

], a variety based on the ] of Mandarin, is the national language of China, having de facto official status.<ref name="Adamson & Feng"/> It is used as a ] between people of different linguistic backgrounds.<ref name="langlaw">{{Cite law |date=31 October 2000 |title=Law of the People's Republic of China on the Standard Spoken and Written Chinese Language (Order of the President No. 37) |url=http://www.gov.cn/english/laws/2005-09/19/content_64906.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130724204951/http://www.gov.cn/english/laws/2005-09/19/content_64906.htm |archive-date=24 July 2013 |access-date=21 June 2013 |publisher=Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China |quote=For purposes of this Law, the standard spoken and written Chinese language means Putonghua (a common speech with pronunciation based on the Beijing dialect) and the standardized Chinese characters.}}</ref> In the ], other languages may also serve as a lingua franca, such as Uyghur in Xinjiang, where governmental services in Uyghur are constitutionally guaranteed.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dwyer |first=Arienne M. |title=The Xinjiang Conflict: Uyghur Identity, Language Policy, and Political Discourse |year=2005 |publisher=East-West Center Washington |isbn=978-1-9327-2828-6 |pages=43–44}}</ref>

===Religion===
{{Main article|Religion in China}}
, 1999; ''Zhongguo Dili'' , 2002.</ref><ref name="map3">{{Cite map |author-mask=Gao Wende (高文德) |editor-last=Gao |editor-first=Wende |script-title=zh:中国少数民族史大辞典 |trans-title=Chinese Dictionary of Minorities' History |map=Religions in China |language=zh |year=1995 |publisher=Jilin Education Press |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170427135641/http://refbook.img.cnki.net/CRFDPIC/r200608092/r200608092.006.76507a.jpg |archive-date=27 April 2017 |map-url=http://refbook.img.cnki.net/CRFDPIC/r200608092/r200608092.006.76507a.jpg}}</ref><ref name="map4">{{Cite map |editor-last=Yin |editor-last2=Li |editor-last3=Guo |editor-first=Haishan |editor-first2=Yaozong |editor-first3=Jie |editor-mask=Xin Haishan (殷海山); |editor-mask2=Li Yaozong (李耀宗); |editor-mask3=Guo Jie (郭洁) |script-title=zh:中国少数民族艺术词典 |trans-title=Chinese Minorities' Arts Dictionary |map=Religions in China |language=zh |year=1991 |publisher=National Publishing House (民族出版社) |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170427135713/http://refbook.img.cnki.net/CRFDPIC/r200606014/r200606014.0652.288333.jpg |archive-date=27 April 2017 |map-url=http://refbook.img.cnki.net/CRFDPIC/r200606014/r200606014.0652.288333.jpg}}</ref><br/>{{colorbull|#C00000}} ] (including ], ], and groups of ])<br/>{{colorbull|#FFFF00}} ] ''tout court''<br/>{{colorbull|#008000}} ]<br/>{{colorbull|#FF00FF}} ]<br/>{{colorbull|#00CCFF}} ]<br/>{{colorbull|#00FF00}} ] influenced by Tungus and ]; widespread ]]]
] is guaranteed by China's constitution, although religious organizations that lack official approval can be subject to state persecution.<ref name="Constitution"/> The government of the country is officially ]. Religious affairs and issues in the country are overseen by the National Religious Affairs Administration, under the ].<ref>{{Cite web |script-title=zh:国家宗教事务局 |trans-title=National Religious Affairs Administration |url=https://www.sara.gov.cn/ |publisher=Chinese Government |language=zh}}</ref>

Over the millennia, the Chinese civilization has been influenced by various religious movements. The "]" of ], ], and ] have historically shaped Chinese culture,<ref name="Yao2011">{{Cite book |last=Yao |first=Xinzhong |title=Chinese Religion: A Contextual Approach |publisher=A&C Black |year=2010 |isbn=978-1-8470-6475-2 |location=London |pages=9–11 |author-link=Xinzhong Yao}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Miller |first=James |title=Chinese Religions in Contemporary Societies |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2006 |isbn=978-1-8510-9626-8 |page=57}}</ref> enriching a ] of traditional religion which harks back to the early ] and ]. ], which is framed by the three doctrines and by other traditions,<ref>Tam Wai Lun, "Local Religion in Contemporary China", in {{Cite book |last=Xie |first=Zhibin |title=Religious Diversity and Public Religion in China |publisher=Ashgate |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-7546-5648-7 |page=73}}</ref> consists in allegiance to the '']'', who can be ] of the surrounding nature or ] of human groups, concepts of civility, ]es, many of whom feature in ] and history.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Teiser |first=Stephen F. |title=Religions of China in Practice |publisher=Princeton University Press |year=1996 |editor-last=Lopez |editor-first=Donald S. Jr. |chapter=The Spirits of Chinese Religion |chapter-url=http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/cosmos/main/spirits_of_chinese_religion.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/cosmos/main/spirits_of_chinese_religion.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live |via=Asia for Educators Online, Columbia University}}. Extracts in ''''.</ref> Amongst the most popular ] of folk religion are those of the ], embodiment of the God of Heaven and one of the two ] of the Chinese people,<ref name="Laliberte2011">{{Cite journal |last=Laliberté |first=André |year=2011 |title=Religion and the State in China: The Limits of Institutionalization |url=http://journals.sub.uni-hamburg.de/giga/jcca/article/view/415/413 |journal=Journal of Current Chinese Affairs |volume=40 |issue=2 |page=7 |doi=10.1177/186810261104000201 |s2cid=30608910 |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Sautman |first=Barry |author-link=Barry Sautman |title=The Construction of Racial Identities in China and Japan: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives |publisher=University of Hawaiʻi Press |year=1997 |isbn=978-9-6220-9443-7 |editor-last=Dikötter |editor-first=Frank |pages=80–81 |chapter=Myths of Descent, Racial Nationalism and Ethnic Minorities in the People's Republic of China}}</ref> of ] (goddess of the seas),<ref name="Laliberte2011" /> ] (god of war and business), ] (god of prosperity and richness), ] and many others. In the early decades of the 21st century, the Chinese government has been engaged in a rehabilitation of folk cults—formally recognizing them as "folk beliefs" as distinguished from doctrinal religions,<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |year=2019 |title=The Secular in South, East, and Southeast Asia. Global Diversities |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |last=Wang |first=Xiaoxuan |editor-last=Dean |editor-first=Kenneth |pages=137–164 |doi=10.1007/978-3-319-89369-3_7 |isbn=978-3-0300-7751-8 |contribution='Folk Belief', Cultural Turn of Secular Governance and Shifting Religious Landscape in Contemporary China |editor-last2=Van der Veer |editor-first2=Peter |s2cid=158975292 |contribution-url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/325765161}}</ref> and often reconstructing them into forms of "highly curated" ]<ref>{{Cite news |last=Johnson |first=Ian |author-link=Ian Johnson (writer) |date=21 December 2019 |title=China's New Civil Religion |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/21/opinion/sunday/chinas-religion-xi.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200419190905/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/21/opinion/sunday/chinas-religion-xi.html |archive-date=19 April 2020 |work=]}}</ref>—as well as in a national and international promotion of Buddhism.<ref>{{Cite report |url=https://s3.amazonaws.com/berkley-center/201111TheChineseStatesGlobalPromotionOfBuddhism.pdf |title=The Chinese State's Global Promotion of Buddhism |last1=Ashiwa |first1=Yoshiko |last2=Wank |first2=David L. |publisher=Berkley Center, Georgetown University |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210216051017/https://s3.amazonaws.com/berkley-center/201111TheChineseStatesGlobalPromotionOfBuddhism.pdf |archive-date=16 February 2021 |url-status=live |year=2020 |series=The Geopolitics of Religious Soft Power |number=4}}</ref> China is home to many of the ], representing either deities of Chinese folk religion or enlightened beings of Buddhism; the tallest of all is the ] in ].

]
Statistics on religious affiliation in China are difficult to gather due to complex and varying definitions of religion and the diffusive nature of Chinese religious traditions. Scholars note that in China there is no clear boundary between the three doctrines and local folk religious practices.<ref name="Yao2011" /> Chinese religions or some of their currents are also definable as ] and ], since they do not hold that divine creativity is completely transcendent, but that it is inherent in the world and in particular in the human being.<ref>{{Cite conference |last=Adler |first=Joseph A. |year=2011 |title=The Heritage of Non-Theistic Belief in China |url=http://www2.kenyon.edu/Depts/Religion/Fac/Adler/Writings/Non-theistic.pdf |conference=Toward a Reasonable World: The Heritage of Western Humanism, Skepticism, and Freethought |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://www2.kenyon.edu/Depts/Religion/Fac/Adler/Writings/Non-theistic.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live}}</ref> According to studies published in 2023, compiling demographic analyses conducted throughout the 2010s and the early 2020s, 70% of the Chinese population believed in or practiced Chinese folk religion—among them, with an approach of non-exclusivity, 33.4% may be identified as Buddhists, 19.6% as Taoists, and 17.7% as adherents of other types of folk religion.<ref name=religion2023/> Of the remaining population, 25.2% are fully non-believers or atheists, 2.5% are adherents of ], and 1.6% are adherents of ].<ref name=religion2023/> Chinese folk religion also comprises a variety of ] which emerged since the ].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Broy |first=Nikolas |year=2015 |title=Syncretic Sects and Redemptive Societies. Toward a New Understanding of 'Sectarianism' in the Study of Chinese Religions |url=http://www.nikolas-broy.de/res/Broy%202015%20-%20syncretic%20sects%20and%20redemptive%20societies.pdf |journal=Review of Religion and Chinese Society |volume=2 |issue=4 |page=158 |doi=10.2307/2059958 |jstor=2059958 |s2cid=162946271}}</ref> There are also ethnic minorities in China who maintain their own ], while major religions characteristic of specific ethnic groups include ] among ], ] and ],<ref>{{Cite news |date=10 June 2021 |title=Menjumpai etnis Yugur di atas ketinggian 3.830 mdpl puncak Bars Snow |url=https://www.antaranews.com/berita/2202994/menjumpai-etnis-yugur-di-atas-ketinggian-3830-mdpl-puncak-bars-snow |access-date=23 February 2024 |work=] |language=id |quote=Bedanya lagi, Yugur memeluk agama Buddha Tibet, sedangkan Uighur beragama Islam. Konon, Yugur merupakan orang-orang Uighur yang beragama Buddha yang melarikan diri ke Gansu sejak Kerajaan Khaganate Uighur tumbang pada tahun 840 Masehi.}}</ref> and Islam among the ], ], ],<ref name=":2" /> and ] peoples, and other ethnicities in the northern and northwestern regions of the country.

=== Education ===
{{Main|Education in China|Higher education in China}}
], one of the ]<ref>{{Cite web |date=18 September 2020 |title=Peking University |url=https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-university-rankings/peking-university |access-date=9 December 2020 |website=Times Higher Education (THE)}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Overall Ranking, Best Chinese Universities Rankings – 2019 |url=http://www.shanghairanking.com/Chinese_Universities_Rankings/Overall-Ranking-2019.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200330045254/http://www.shanghairanking.com/Chinese_Universities_Rankings/Overall-Ranking-2019.html |archive-date=30 March 2020 |access-date=9 December 2020 |website=shanghairanking.com}}</ref>]]
Compulsory education in China comprises ] and ], which together last for nine years from the age of 6 and 15.<ref>{{Cite web |date=23 July 2009 |title=Compulsory Education Law of the People's Republic of China |url=http://en.moe.gov.cn/documents/laws_policies/201506/t20150626_191391.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220319045258/https://en.moe.gov.cn/documents/laws_policies/201506/t20150626_191391.html |archive-date=19 March 2022 |access-date=3 November 2021 |website=]}}</ref> The ], China's national university entrance exam, is a prerequisite for entrance into most higher education institutions. Vocational education is available to students at the secondary and ] level.<ref name="Ministry of Edu China-2022">{{Cite web |date=3 April 2023 |title=Statistical report on China's educational achievements in 2022 |url=http://en.moe.gov.cn/documents/reports/202304/t20230403_1054100.html |access-date=17 December 2023 |website=]}}</ref> More than 10 million Chinese students graduated from vocational colleges every year.<ref>{{Cite web |date=23 March 2021 |title=Zheng Yali: vocational education entering a new development stage |url=http://en.moe.gov.cn/features/2021TwoSessions/Voices/VocationalEducation/202103/t20210323_522096.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230128011150/http://en.moe.gov.cn/features/2021TwoSessions/Voices/VocationalEducation/202103/t20210323_522096.html |archive-date=28 January 2023 |access-date=3 November 2021 |website=]}}</ref> In 2023, about 91.8 percent of students continued their education at a three-year senior secondary school, while 60.2 percent of secondary school graduates were enrolled in higher education.<ref>{{Cite web |date=4 March 2024 |title=MOE press conference presents China's educational achievements in 2023 |url=http://en.moe.gov.cn/news/press_releases/202403/t20240311_1119782.html |access-date=23 March 2024 |website=Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China}}</ref>

China has the largest education system in the world,<ref name="UNICEF-2021">{{Cite web |date=August 2021 |title=China Case Study: Situation Analysis of the Effect of and Response to COVID-19 in Asia |url=https://www.unicef.org/eap/media/9321/file/Sit%20An%20-%20China%20Case%20Study.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://www.unicef.org/eap/media/9321/file/Sit%20An%20-%20China%20Case%20Study.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |access-date=3 November 2021 |website=UNICEF |page=21}}</ref> with about 291 million students and 18.92 million full-time teachers in over 498,300 schools in 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |date=4 March 2024 |title=MOE press conference presents China's educational achievements in 2023 |url=http://en.moe.gov.cn/news/press_releases/202403/t20240311_1119782.html |access-date=23 March 2024 |website=Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China}}</ref> Annual education investment went from less than US$50 billion in 2003 to more than US$817 billion in 2020.<ref>{{Cite news |date=16 January 2013 |title=In Education, China Takes the Lead |url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2013/01/16/business/In-Education-China-Takes-the-Lead.html |access-date=17 June 2023 |work=]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=7 May 2021 |title=MOE releases 2020 Statistical Bulletin on Educational Spending |url=http://en.moe.gov.cn/news/press_releases/202105/t20210512_531041.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230321225632/http://en.moe.gov.cn/news/press_releases/202105/t20210512_531041.html |archive-date=21 March 2023 |access-date=3 November 2021 |website=]}}</ref> However, there remains an inequality in education spending. In 2010, the annual education expenditure per secondary school student in Beijing totalled ¥20,023, while in ], one of the ], it only totalled ¥3,204.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Roberts |first=Dexter |date=4 April 2013 |title=Chinese Education: The Truth Behind the Boasts |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-04-04/chinese-education-the-truth-behind-the-boasts |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130406202405/http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-04-04/chinese-education-the-truth-behind-the-boasts |archive-date=6 April 2013 |access-date=17 June 2023 |work=]}}</ref> China's literacy rate has grown dramatically, from only 20% in 1949 and 65.5% in 1979,<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Galtung |first1=Marte Kjær |title=49 Myths about China |last2=Stenslie |first2=Stig |date=2014 |publisher=] |isbn=978-1-4422-3622-6 |page=}}</ref> to 97% of the population over age 15 in 2020.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Literacy rate, adult total (% of people ages 15 and above) - China |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.ADT.LITR.ZS?end=2020&locations=CN&most_recent_value_desc=true&start=1982 |access-date=4 October 2022 |website=]}}</ref>

{{As of|2023}}, China has over 3,074 universities, with over 47.6 million students enrolled in mainland China, giving China the largest higher education system in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |date=4 March 2024 |title=MOE press conference presents China's educational achievements in 2023 |url=http://en.moe.gov.cn/news/press_releases/202403/t20240311_1119782.html |access-date=23 March 2024 |website=Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Zou |first=Shuo |date=3 December 2020 |title=China's higher education system is world's largest, officials say |url=https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202012/03/WS5fc86ab2a31024ad0ba9999e.html |access-date=3 November 2021 |work=]}}</ref> {{As of|2023}}, China had the world's highest ].<ref name=":10">{{Cite web |date=15 August 2023 |title=ShanghaiRanking's Academic Ranking of World Universities 2023 Press Release |url=http://www.shanghairanking.com/news/arwu/2023 |access-date=26 December 2023 |website=ShanghaiRanking}}</ref><ref name=":112">{{Cite web |date=25 October 2022 |title=U.S. News Unveils 2022–2023 Best Global Universities Rankings |url=https://www.usnews.com/info/blogs/press-room/articles/2022-10-25/u-s-news-unveils-2022-2023-best-global-universities-rankings |access-date=26 December 2023 |website=U.S. News & World Report}}</ref> Currently, China trails only the United States and the United Kingdom in terms of representation on lists of the top 200 universities according to the 2023 ''Aggregate Ranking of Top Universities'', a composite ranking system of three world-most followed university rankings (]+]+]).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Country Analysis {{!}} Aggregate Ranking of Top Universities 2023 |url=https://research.unsw.edu.au/artu/indicator |access-date=26 December 2023 |website=UNSW Research}}</ref> China is home to two of the highest-ranking universities (] and ]) in ] and ], according to the ]<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-10-04 |title=World University Rankings |url=https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-university-rankings/latest/world-ranking |access-date=2024-11-30 |website=Times Higher Education (THE) |language=en}}</ref> and the ].<ref>{{Cite web |title=ShanghaiRanking's Academic Ranking of World Universities |url=https://www.shanghairanking.com/rankings/arwu/2024 |access-date=2024-11-30 |website=www.shanghairanking.com}}</ref> These universities are members of the ], an alliance of elite ] offering comprehensive and leading education.<ref>{{Cite web |date=17 February 2011 |title=Eastern stars: Universities of China's C9 League excel in select fields |url=https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/eastern-stars-universities-of-chinas-c9-league-excel-in-select-fields/415193.article |access-date=16 May 2023 |website=]}}</ref>

=== Health ===
{{Main|Health in China}}
{{See also|Medicine in China|Pharmaceutical industry in China}}
] from 1970 to 2010]]
The ], together with its counterparts in the local commissions, oversees the health needs of the population.<ref>{{Cite web |title=What we do |url=http://en.nhc.gov.cn/2018-09/22/c_74499.htm |access-date=17 December 2023 |website=]}}</ref> An emphasis on public health and preventive medicine has characterized Chinese health policy since the early 1950s. The Communist Party started the ], which was aimed at improving sanitation and hygiene, as well as treating and preventing several diseases. Diseases such as ], ] and ], which were previously rife in China, were nearly eradicated by the campaign.<ref>{{Cite web |date=14 December 2015 |title=Peking University of Health Sciences |url=https://liemgthailand.com/en/peking-university-of-health-sciences |access-date=9 June 2023 |archive-date=2024-08-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240829063439/https://liemgthailand.com/en/peking-university-of-health-sciences/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

After ] began instituting economic reforms in 1978, the health of the Chinese public improved rapidly because of better nutrition, although many of the free public health services provided in the countryside disappeared. ] became mostly privatized, and experienced a significant rise in quality. In 2009, the government began a three-year large-scale healthcare provision initiative worth US$124 billion.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Lawrence |first1=Dune |last2=Liu |first2=John |date=22 January 2009 |title=China's $124 Billion Health-Care Plan Aims to Boost Consumption |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aXFagkr3Dr6s |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029211403/http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aXFagkr3Dr6s |archive-date=29 October 2013 |access-date=16 January 2020 |work=]}}</ref> By 2011, the campaign resulted in 95% of China's population having basic health insurance coverage.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Liu |first=Yuanli |date=1 November 2011 |title=China's Health Care Reform: Far From Sufficient |url=https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2011/11/01/is-china-facing-a-health-care-crisis/chinas-health-care-reform-far-from-sufficient |access-date=16 May 2023 |work=]}}</ref> By 2022, China had established itself as a key producer and exporter of ], producing around 40 percent of ] in 2017.<ref>{{Cite news |date=5 April 2022 |title=The great medicines migration |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/static/vdata/infographics/chinavaccine-3 |access-date=16 May 2023 |work=] |archive-date=2024-09-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240929063530/https://asia.nikkei.com/static/vdata/infographics/chinavaccine-3/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

{{As of|2023||df=US}}, the life expectancy at birth exceeds 78 years.<ref name=":02">{{Cite book |last=Li |first=David Daokui |author-link=David Daokui Li |title=China's World View: Demystifying China to Prevent Global Conflict |date=2024 |publisher=] |isbn=978-0-3932-9239-8 |location=New York, NY}}</ref>{{Rp|page=163}} {{As of|2021||df=US}}, the ] rate is 5 per thousand.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mortality rate, infant (per 1,000 live births) – China |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.IMRT.IN?locations=CN |access-date=28 October 2013 |publisher=]}}</ref> Both have improved significantly since the 1950s.{{efn|The national life expectancy at birth rose from about 31 years in 1949 to 75 years in 2008,<ref>{{Cite news |date=4 October 2009 |title=Life expectancy increases by 44 years from 1949 in China's economic powerhouse Guangdong |url=http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90776/90882/6776688.html |work=People's Daily}}</ref> and infant mortality decreased from 300 per thousand in the 1950s to around 33 per thousand in 2001.<ref name="Ref_abcu">. 11 September 2001. China.org.cn. Retrieved 3 May 2006.</ref>}} Rates of ], a condition caused by ], have declined from 33.1% in 1990 to 9.9% in 2010.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Stone |first=R. |year=2012 |title=Despite Gains, Malnutrition Among China's Rural Poor Sparks Concern |journal=Science |volume=336 |issue=6080 |page=402 |doi=10.1126/science.336.6080.402 |pmid=22539691}}</ref> Despite significant improvements in health and the construction of advanced medical facilities, China has several emerging public health problems, such as respiratory illnesses caused by ],<ref name="FT-china-pollution">{{Cite web |last=McGregor |first=Richard |date=2 July 2007 |title=750,000 a year killed by Chinese pollution |url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/8f40e248-28c7-11dc-af78-000b5df10621.html |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/http://www.ft.com/cms/s/8f40e248-28c7-11dc-af78-000b5df10621.html |archive-date=10 December 2022 |access-date=22 July 2007 |website=]}}</ref> ],<ref>{{Cite news |last=Tatlow |first=Didi Kirsten |date=10 June 2010 |title=China's Tobacco Industry Wields Huge Power |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/11/world/asia/11iht-letter.html |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220101/https://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/11/world/asia/11iht-letter.html |archive-date=1 January 2022 |access-date=16 January 2020 |work=]}}{{cbignore}}</ref> and an increase in ] among urban youths.<ref name="Ref_abcy">. 1999. Bruce Kennedy. CNN. Retrieved 17 April 2006.</ref><ref name="Ref_abcz">. 4 August 2000. ''People's Daily''. Retrieved 17 April 2006.</ref> In 2010, air pollution caused 1.2 million premature deaths in China.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wong |first=Edward |date=1 April 2013 |title=Air Pollution Linked to 1.2 Million Premature Deaths in China |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/02/world/asia/air-pollution-linked-to-1-2-million-deaths-in-china.html |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220101/https://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/02/world/asia/air-pollution-linked-to-1-2-million-deaths-in-china.html |archive-date=1 January 2022 |access-date=14 January 2020 |work=The New York Times}}{{cbignore}}</ref> ] services are inadequate.<ref>{{Cite web |date=25 February 2019 |title=Chinese mental health services falling short: report |url=https://chinaplus.cri.cn/chinaplus/news/china/9/20190225/253543.html |website=]}}</ref> China's large population and densely populated cities have led to serious disease outbreaks, such as ] in 2003, although this has since been largely contained.<ref name="Ref_abcda">. 18 May 2004. ]. Retrieved 17 April 2006.</ref> The ] was first identified in ] in December 2019;<ref name="auto12">{{Cite journal |date=20 February 2020 |title=The Epidemiological Characteristics of an Outbreak of 2019 Novel Coronavirus Diseases (COVID-19) – China, 2020 |url=http://www.ne.jp/asahi/kishimoto/clinic/cash/COVID-19.pdf |url-status=live |journal=China CDC Weekly |volume=2 |pages=1–10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200222141550/http://www.ne.jp/asahi/kishimoto/clinic/cash/COVID-19.pdf |archive-date=22 February 2020 |via=Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Novel Coronavirus Pneumonia Emergency Response Epidemiology Team |date=17 February 2020 |title=The Epidemiological Characteristics of an Outbreak of 2019 Novel Coronavirus Diseases (COVID-19) in China |journal=China CDC Weekly |language=zh |volume=41 |issue=2 |pages=145–151 |doi=10.3760/cma.j.issn.0254-6450.2020.02.003 |pmid=32064853 |s2cid=211133882 |script-journal=zh:中华流行病学杂志}}</ref> pandemic led the government to enforce ] intended to completely eradicate the virus, a goal that was eventually abandoned in December 2022 after ].<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Che |first1=Chang |last2=Chien |first2=Amy Chang |last3=Stevenson |first3=Alexandra |date=7 December 2022 |title=What Has Changed About China's 'Zero Covid' Policy |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/07/world/asia/china-zero-covid-changes.html |work=]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=7 December 2022 |title=China abandons key parts of zero-Covid strategy after protests |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-63855508 |access-date=30 June 2023 |work=BBC News}}</ref>

== Culture and society==
{{Main|Chinese culture|Culture of the People's Republic of China}}
{{wide image|File:Temple of Heaven, Beijing, China - 010 edit.jpg|1000px|The ], a center of ] and an UNESCO ], symbolizes the Interactions Between Heaven and Mankind.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Temple of Heaven: an Imperial Sacrificial Altar in Beijing |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/881 |access-date=18 February 2023 |website=UNESCO World Heritage Centre}}</ref>}}
] in a Chinese garden]]

Since ], Chinese culture has been heavily influenced by Confucianism. Chinese culture, in turn, has heavily influenced ] and ].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bader |first=Jeffrey A. |date=6 September 2005 |title=China's Role in East Asia: Now and the Future |url=https://www.brookings.edu/on-the-record/chinas-role-in-east-asia-now-and-the-future |access-date=16 May 2023 |website=Brookings Institution}}</ref> For much of the country's dynastic era, opportunities for social advancement could be provided by high performance in the prestigious ]s, which have their origins in the Han dynasty.<ref>{{Cite book |title=China: Understanding Its Past |date=1997 |publisher=] |page=29}}</ref> The ] of the exams affected the general perception of cultural refinement in China, such as the belief that ], ] and ] were higher forms of art than dancing or drama. Chinese culture has long emphasized a sense of deep history and a largely inward-looking national perspective.<ref name="ChinaFuture">{{Cite news |last=Jacques |first=Martin |date=19 October 2012 |title=A Point of View: What kind of superpower could China be? |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-19995218 |access-date=21 October 2012 |publisher=]}}</ref> Examinations and a ] remain greatly valued in China today.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=2005 |title=Historical and Contemporary Exam-driven Education Fever in China |url=http://suen.educ.psu.edu/~hsuen/pubs/KEDI%20Yu.pdf |url-status=dead |journal=KEDI Journal of Educational Policy |volume=2 |issue=1 |pages=17–33 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150301123007/http://suen.educ.psu.edu/~hsuen/pubs/KEDI%20Yu.pdf |archive-date=1 March 2015}}</ref>

], an ancient town that harbors many architectural remains of Ming and Qing styles<ref>{{Cite web |title=Fenghuang Ancient City |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/5337 |access-date=19 February 2023 |website=UNESCO World Heritage Centre}}</ref>]]

Today, the Chinese government has accepted numerous elements of traditional Chinese culture as being integral to Chinese society. With the rise of ] and the end of the Cultural Revolution, various forms of traditional Chinese art, literature, music, film, fashion and architecture have seen a vigorous revival,<ref name="Ref_abcdef">{{Cite web |date=July 1987 |title="China: Traditional arts". Library of Congress – Country Studies |url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+cn0133) |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050226150229/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd%2Fcstdy%3A%40field%28DOCID+cn0133%29 |archive-date=26 February 2005 |access-date=1 November 2011 |website=]}}</ref><ref name="Ref_abcdeg">{{Cite encyclopedia |title=China: Cultural life: The arts |encyclopedia=] |url=https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-258942/China |access-date=1 November 2011}}</ref> and folk and variety art in particular have sparked interest nationally and even worldwide.<ref name="Ref_abcdeh">{{Cite web |date=July 1987 |title=China: Folk and Variety Arts |url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+cn0138) |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041114173430/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd%2Fcstdy%3A%40field%28DOCID+cn0138%29 |archive-date=14 November 2004 |access-date=1 November 2011 |website=]}}</ref> Access to foreign media remains heavily restricted.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kuo |first=Lily |date=13 March 2013 |title=Why China is letting 'Django Unchained' slip through its censorship regime |url=http://qz.com/62717/why-china-is-letting-django-unchained-slip-through-its-censorship-regime/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130514072402/http://qz.com/62717/why-china-is-letting-django-unchained-slip-through-its-censorship-regime/ |archive-date=14 May 2013 |access-date=12 July 2013 |work=]}}</ref>

=== Architecture ===
{{Main|Chinese architecture|3 = List of World Heritage Sites in China}}

] has developed over millennia in China and has remained a vestigial source of perennial influence on the development of East Asian architecture,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Goodrich |first=L. Carrington |title=A Short History of the Chinese People |date=2007 |publisher=Sturgis Press |isbn=978-1-4067-6976-0 |edition=Third}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Formichi |first=Chiara |title=Religious pluralism, state and society in Asia |date=2013 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-1345-7542-8}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Robin W. Winks |title=Historiography |last2=Alaine M. Low |date=2001 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-1915-4241-1}}</ref> including in ], ], and ].<ref name="Cartwright-2023">{{Cite web |last=Cartwright |first=Mark |title=Ancient Chinese Architecture |url=https://www.worldhistory.org/Chinese_Architecture |access-date=19 February 2023 |website=World History Encyclopedia}}</ref> and minor influences on the architecture of Southeast and South Asia including the countries of ], ], ], ], Thailand, Laos, ], ] and the Philippines.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bandaranayake |first=Senake |title=Sinhalese monastic architecture: the viháras of Anurádhapura |date=1974 |publisher=Brill |isbn=9-0040-3992-9}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Nithi Sathāpitānon |title=Architecture of Thailand: a guide to traditional and contemporary forms |last2=Brian Mertens |date=2012 |publisher=Didier Millet |isbn=978-9-8142-6086-2}}</ref>

Chinese architecture is characterized by bilateral symmetry, use of enclosed open spaces, ] (e.g. directional ]),<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Tuobin |title=Bu lu ke lin = Brooklyn |last2=托宾 Toibin |first2=Colm |date=2021 |publisher=Shang hai yi wen chu ban she you xian gong si |others=Bo,Li, 柏栎 |isbn=978-7-5327-8659-6 |edition=Di 1 ban |language=zh}}</ref> a horizontal emphasis, and an allusion to various cosmological, ]ological or in general symbolic elements. Chinese architecture traditionally classifies structures according to type, ranging from '']'' to ].<ref name="Itō-2017">{{Cite book |last1=Itō |first1=Chūta |title=Zhongguo jian zhu shi |last2=伊藤忠太 |date=2017 |publisher=中国画报出版社 |others=Yizhuang Liao, 廖伊庄 |isbn=978-7-5146-1318-6 |edition=Di 1 ban}}</ref><ref name="Cartwright-2023" />

Chinese architecture varies widely based on status or affiliation, such as whether the structures were constructed for emperors, commoners, or for religious purposes. Other variations in Chinese architecture are shown in vernacular styles associated with different ] regions and different ethnic heritages, such as the ]s in the south, the ] in the northwest, the ] of nomadic people, and the ] in the north.<ref>{{Cite book |last=徐怡涛. |title=Zhong guo jian zhu |date=2010 |publisher=Gao deng jiao yu chu ban she |others=Xu yi tao, 徐怡涛. |isbn=978-7-0402-7421-9}}</ref>

=== Literature ===
{{Main|Chinese literature}}
]'' are common themes in ].]]

Chinese literature has its roots in the Zhou dynasty's literary tradition.<ref>{{Cite web |script-title=zh:中国文学史概述 |url=http://cai.jstvu.edu.cn/cai/daxueyuwen/2/two/xxck.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150722034509/http://cai.jstvu.edu.cn/cai/daxueyuwen/2/two/xxck.htm |archive-date=22 July 2015 |access-date=18 July 2015 |website=jstvu.edu.cn}}</ref> The ] encompass a wide range of thoughts and subjects, such as the ], ], ], ], and ], as well as many others.<ref>{{Cite web |date=14 November 2013 |title=The Canonical Books of Confucianism – Canon of the Literati |url=http://weber.ucsd.edu/~dkjordan/chin/hbcanonru-u.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140202210607/http://weber.ucsd.edu/~dkjordan/chin/hbcanonru-u.html |archive-date=2 February 2014 |access-date=14 January 2014}}</ref> Among the most significant early works are the '']'' and the '']'', which are part of the ]. These texts were the cornerstone of the Confucian curriculum sponsored by the state throughout the dynastic periods. Inherited from the '']'', ] developed to its ] during the Tang dynasty. ] and ] opened the forking ways for the poetic circles through romanticism and realism respectively. ] began with the '']'', the overall scope of the historiographical tradition in China is termed the ], which set a vast stage for Chinese fictions along with ] and ].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Guo |first=Dan |script-title=zh:史传文学与中国古代小说 |url=http://www.cnki.com.cn/Article/CJFDTotal-MQXS199704006.htm |url-status=dead |journal=明清小说研究 |issue=April 1997 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150722013727/http://www.cnki.com.cn/Article/CJFDTotal-MQXS199704006.htm |archive-date=22 July 2015 |access-date=18 July 2015}}</ref> Pushed by a burgeoning citizen class in the Ming dynasty, Chinese classical fiction rose to a boom of the historical, town and ]s as represented by the ] which include '']'', '']'', '']'' and '']''.<ref>{{Cite web |script-title=zh:第一章 中国古典小说的发展和明清小说的繁荣 |url=http://iclass.nbtvu.net.cn/kecheng/072157/3title4200499122140/z3.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151015200539/http://iclass.nbtvu.net.cn/kecheng/072157/3title4200499122140/z3.htm |archive-date=15 October 2015 |access-date=18 July 2015 |website=nbtvu.net.cn}}</ref> Along with the ] fictions of ] and ],<ref>{{Cite web |date=12 March 2014 |script-title=zh:金庸作品从流行穿越至经典 |url=http://www.baotounews.com.cn/epaper/btrb/html/2014-03/12/content_286579.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150722071612/http://www.baotounews.com.cn/epaper/btrb/html/2014-03/12/content_286579.htm |archive-date=22 July 2015 |access-date=18 July 2015 |website=Baotou News}}</ref> it remains an enduring source of popular culture in the ].<ref>{{Cite journal |script-title=zh:四大名著在日、韩的传播与跨文化重构 |url=http://d.wanfangdata.com.cn/Periodical_dbsdxb-zxsh201006025.aspx |journal=Journal of Northeast Normal University (Philosophy and Social Sciences) |issue=June 2010 |access-date=18 July 2015}}</ref>

In the wake of the ] after the end of the Qing dynasty, Chinese literature embarked on a new era with ] for ordinary citizens. ] and ] were pioneers in modern literature.<ref>{{Cite web |date=April 2000 |script-title=zh:新文化运动中的胡适与鲁迅 |url=http://www.cnki.com.cn/Article/CJFDTotal-HZSW200004009.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150722013427/http://www.cnki.com.cn/Article/CJFDTotal-HZSW200004009.htm |archive-date=22 July 2015 |access-date=18 July 2015 |publisher=CCP Hangzhou Party School Paper (中共杭州市委党校学报) |language=zh-CN}}</ref> Various literary genres, such as ], ], ] and the ], which is influenced by ],<ref>{{Cite web |date=February 2006 |script-title=zh:魔幻现实主义文学与"寻根"小说" |url=http://www.literature.org.cn/article.aspx?id=25449 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150723065447/http://www.literature.org.cn/article.aspx?id=25449 |archive-date=23 July 2015 |access-date=18 July 2015 |website=literature.org.cn |language=zh-CN}}</ref> emerged following the Cultural Revolution. ], a xungen literature author, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2012.<ref>{{Cite web |date=12 October 2012 |script-title=zh:"莫言:寻根文学作家" |url=http://e.hznews.com/paper/djsb/20121012/A0607/1/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150722034627/http://e.hznews.com/paper/djsb/20121012/A0607/1/ |archive-date=22 July 2015 |access-date=18 July 2015 |publisher=Dongjiang Times (东江时报) |language=zh-CN}}</ref>

=== Music ===
{{Main|Music of China|C-pop|Chinese opera}}

Chinese music covers a highly diverse range of music from traditional music to modern music. Chinese music dates back before the pre-imperial times. ] were traditionally grouped into eight categories known as ''bayin'' (八音). Traditional Chinese opera is a form of musical theatre in China originating thousands of years and has regional style forms such as Beijing and ].<ref>{{Cite web |title=A Brief History of Chinese Opera |url=https://www.thoughtco.com/history-of-chinese-opera-195127 |access-date=14 September 2020 |website=ThoughtCo}}</ref> Chinese pop (C-Pop) includes ] and ]. ] and ] have become popular.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Why Chinese rappers don't fight the power |url=https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20191106-why-chinese-rappers-dont-fight-the-power |access-date=23 November 2021 |publisher=BBC}}</ref>

=== Fashion ===
{{Main|Chinese clothing|Hanfu}}

] is the historical clothing of the Han people in China. The ] or cheongsam is a popular Chinese female dress.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Qipao {{!}} dress |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/qipao |access-date=14 September 2020 |website=Encyclopædia Britannica}}</ref> The ] has been popular in contemporary times and seeks to revitalize Hanfu clothing.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Current and Former EXO Members Are Some of China's Most Expensive Singers |url=https://www.jaynestars.com/news/current-and-former-exo-members-are-some-of-chinas-most-expensive-singers/ |access-date=14 September 2020 |website=JayneStars.com}}</ref> ] is the country's only national-level fashion festival.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Xingxin |first=Zhu |date=19 September 2023 |title=China fashion week struts its stuff |url=https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202309/19/WS6508f98da310d2dce4bb6759.html |website=]}}</ref>

=== Cinema ===
{{Main|Cinema of China}}

Cinema was first introduced to China in 1896 and the first Chinese film, ''],'' was released in 1905.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hays |first=Jeffrey |title=Early history of chinese film |url=http://factsanddetails.com/china/cat7/sub42/item1630.html |access-date=14 September 2020 |website=factsanddetails.com}}</ref> China has the largest number of movie screens in the world since 2016;<ref name="hr">{{Cite web |last=Brzeski |first=Patrick |date=20 December 2016 |title=China Says It Has Passed U.S. as Country With Most Movie Screens |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/china-says-has-passed-us-as-country-movie-screens-957849 |access-date=21 December 2016 |website=]}}</ref> China became the largest cinema market in 2020.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tartaglione |first=Nancy |date=15 November 2016 |title=China Will Overtake U.S. In Number Of Movie Screens This Week: Analyst |url=https://deadline.com/2016/11/china-cinema-screens-overtake-us-box-office-2019-1201852359/ |access-date=15 November 2016 |website=]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=PricewaterhouseCoopers |title=Strong revenue growth continues in China's cinema market |url=https://www.pwccn.com/en/press-room/press-releases/pr-170619.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200303120239/https://www.pwccn.com/en/press-room/press-releases/pr-170619.html |archive-date=3 March 2020 |access-date=14 September 2020 |website=PwC}}</ref> The top three ] {{as of|2023|lc=y}} were '']'' (2021), '']'' (2017), and '']'' (2021).<ref name="Alltimedomestic">{{Cite web |title=内地总票房排名 |trans-title=All-Time Domestic Box Office Rankings |url=http://www.endata.com.cn/BoxOffice/BO/History/Movie/Alltimedomestic.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200216170558/http://www.endata.com.cn/BoxOffice/BO/History/Movie/Alltimedomestic.html |archive-date=16 February 2020 |access-date=2 March 2020 |website=China Box Office |language=zh}}</ref>

=== Cuisine ===
{{Main|Chinese cuisine}}
]
Chinese cuisine is highly diverse, drawing on several millennia of culinary history and geographical variety, in which the most influential are known as the "Eight Major Cuisines", including ], ], ], ], ], ], ], and ] cuisines.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2 June 2011 |title=Eight Major Cuisines |url=http://www.chinesecio.com/cms/en/culture/eight-major-cuisines-ba-da-cai-xi |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150912222348/http://www.chinesecio.com/cms/en/culture/eight-major-cuisines-ba-da-cai-xi |archive-date=12 September 2015 |access-date=17 July 2015 |website=chinese.cn}}</ref> Chinese cuisine is known for its breadth of ] and ingredients.<ref>{{Cite news |date=23 September 2013 |script-title=zh:中国美食成外国网友"噩梦" 鸡爪内脏鱼头不敢吃 |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/photo/2013-09/23/c_125426786.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130926145102/http://news.xinhuanet.com/photo/2013-09/23/c_125426786.htm |archive-date=26 September 2013 |access-date=17 July 2015 |agency=]}}</ref> China's staple food is rice in the northeast and south, and wheat-based breads and noodles in the north. Bean products such as ] and ] remain a popular source of protein. Pork is now the most popular meat in China, accounting for about three-fourths of the country's total meat consumption.<ref>{{Cite news |date=19 June 2013 |title=China's Hunger For Pork Will Impact The U.S. Meat Industry |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2013/06/19/chinas-hunger-for-pork-will-impact-the-u-s-meat-industry/ |access-date=18 January 2020 |work=Forbes}}</ref> There is also the vegetarian ] and the pork-free ]. Chinese cuisine, due to the area's proximity to the ocean and milder climate, has a wide variety of seafood and vegetables. Offshoots of Chinese food, such as ] and ], have emerged in the ].

=== Sports ===
{{Main|Sport in China|China at the Olympics|China at the Paralympics}}
] is an abstract strategy board game for two players, in which the aim is to surround more territory than the opponent, and which was invented in China more than 2,500 years ago.]]

China has one of the ]. There is evidence that ] (''shèjiàn'') was practiced during the ]. Swordplay (''jiànshù'') and '']'', a sport loosely related to ]<ref>{{Cite book |title=Historical Dictionary of Soccer |date=2011 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |isbn=978-0-8108-7188-5 |page=}}</ref> date back to China's early dynasties as well.<ref>{{Cite web |date=31 August 2013 |title=Sport in Ancient China |url=http://www.theworldofchinese.com/2013/08/sport-in-ancient-china/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010152027/http://www.theworldofchinese.com/2013/08/sport-in-ancient-china/ |archive-date=10 October 2017 |access-date=28 June 2014 |publisher=JUE LIU (刘珏) (The World of Chinese)}}</ref>

] is widely emphasized in Chinese culture, with morning exercises such as '']'' and ] widely practiced,<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Thornton |first1=E. W. |last2=Sykes |first2=K. S. |last3=Tang |first3=W. K. |date=2004 |title=Health benefits of Tai Chi exercise: Improved balance and blood pressure in middle-aged women |journal=] |volume=19 |issue=1 |pages=33–38 |doi=10.1093/heapro/dah105 |pmid=14976170 |doi-access=free}}</ref> and commercial ]s and private fitness clubs are gaining popularity.<ref>{{Cite web |date=1 July 2011 |title=China health club market – Huge potential & challenges |url=http://chinasportsbiz.com/2011/07/01/huge-potential-of-fitness-market-in-china/ |access-date=31 July 2012 |website=China Sports Business}}</ref> Basketball is the most popular spectator sport in China.<ref>{{Cite web |date=7 August 2014 |script-title=zh:2014年6岁至69岁人群体育健身活动和体质状况抽测结果发布 |url=http://www.wenzhou.gov.cn/art/2014/8/7/art_9113_318011.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151109001344/http://www.wenzhou.gov.cn/art/2014/8/7/art_9113_318011.html |archive-date=9 November 2015 |access-date=23 November 2015 |website=Wenzhou People's Government}}</ref> The ] and the American ] also have a huge national following amongst the Chinese populace, with native-born and NBA-bound Chinese players and well-known national household names such as ] and ] being held in high esteem.<ref name="Beech2003">{{Cite magazine |last=Beech |first=Hannah |date=28 April 2003 |title=Yao Ming |url=http://www.time.com/time/asia/2003/heroes/yao_ming.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110705191234/http://www.time.com/time/asia/2003/heroes/yao_ming.html |archive-date=5 July 2011 |access-date=30 March 2007 |magazine=Time}}</ref> China's professional football league, known as ], is the largest football market in East Asia.<ref>{{Cite web |date=14 July 2013 |script-title=zh:足球不给劲观众却不少 中超球市世界第9亚洲第1 |url=http://sports.sohu.com/20130714/n381558488.shtml |access-date=17 July 2015 |website=] Sports}}</ref> Other popular sports include ], ], ], ] and ]. China is home to a huge number of ], with an estimated 470 million bicycles {{As of|2012|lc=y}}.<ref name="470MBikes">{{Cite news |date=17 August 2012 |title=Bike-Maker Giant Says Fitness Lifestyle Boosting China Sales |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-08-16/bicycle-maker-giant-says-fitness-lifestyle-boosting-china-sales.html |access-date=8 September 2012 |work=]}}</ref> China has the world's largest ] market.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kharpal |first=Arjun |date=15 July 2022 |title=China remains the world's largest e-sports market despite gaming crackdown |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2022/07/15/china-is-worlds-largest-e-sports-market-despite-crackdown-study.html |website=]}}</ref> Many more ], such as ] racing, ] and ] are also popular.<ref name="Ref_abcden">Qinfa, Ye. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090303183246/http://chineseculture.about.com/library/weekly/aa032301a.htm |date=3 March 2009}}. ]. Retrieved 21 April 2006.</ref>

China has ] since 1932, although it has only participated as the PRC ]. China hosted the ] in Beijing, where its athletes received 48 gold medals – the ].<ref name="Ref_abcdeo">{{Cite news |date=27 August 2008 |title=China targets more golds in 2012 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/olympics/7583735.stm |access-date=27 November 2011 |work=BBC Sport}}</ref> China also won the most medals at the ], with 231 overall, including 95 gold.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Medal Count |url=http://www.london2012.com/paralympics/medals/medal-count/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120830230101/http://www.london2012.com/paralympics/medals/medal-count |archive-date=30 August 2012 |access-date=9 September 2012 |website=London2012.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=9 September 2012 |title=China dominates medals; U.S. falls short at Paralympics |url=https://www.usatoday.com/sports/olympics/story/2012/09/9/china-dominates-medals-us-falls-short-at-paralympics/57719222/1 |access-date=19 June 2013 |work=]}}</ref> In 2011, Shenzhen hosted the ]. China hosted the ] in Tianjin and the ] in Nanjing, the first country to host both regular and Youth Olympics. Beijing and its nearby city ] collaboratively hosted the ], making Beijing the first dual Olympic city by holding both the Summer Olympics and the Winter Olympics.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Beijing: The world's first dual Olympic city |url=https://olympics.com/en/news/100-days-to-go-beijing-worlds-first-dual-olympic-city |access-date=6 February 2022 |publisher=olympics.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=23 February 2018 |title=Beijing 2022 Winter Games Olympics – results & video highlights |url=https://www.olympic.org/beijing-2022 |access-date=23 February 2018 |publisher=International Olympic Committee}}</ref> China hosted the ] in ] (Beijing), ] (Guangzhou), and ] (Hangzhou).<ref>{{Cite news |date=21 September 2023 |title=At-a-glance guide to the Hangzhou Asian Games |url=https://www.rfi.fr/en/sports/20230921-at-a-glance-guide-to-the-hangzhou-asian-games |access-date=15 December 2024 |work=]}}</ref>

== See also ==
{{Portal|China}}
* ]

== Notes ==
{{Notelist|30em}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== Sources ==
{{Free-content attribution
| title = World Food and Agriculture – Statistical Yearbook 2023
| author = FAO
| publisher = FAO
| documentURL = https://www.fao.org/documents/card/en?details=cc8166en
| license statement URL = https://commons.wikimedia.org/whttps://commons.wikimedia.org/File:World_Food_and_Agriculture_-_Statistical_Yearbook_2023.pdf
| license = CC BY-SA IGO 3.0
}}

== Further reading ==
{{Main|Bibliography of Chinese history}}

== External links ==
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Latest revision as of 17:45, 25 December 2024

Country in East Asia "People's Republic of China" and "PRC" redirect here. For the present-day Republic of China, see Taiwan. For other uses, see PRC (disambiguation) and China (disambiguation).

People's Republic of China中华人民共和国 (Chinese)
Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó (pinyin)
Flag of China Flag Emblem of China Emblem
Anthem: "March of the Volunteers"
  Location of the People's Republic of China  Territory claimed but not controlled
CapitalBeijing
39°55′N 116°23′E / 39.917°N 116.383°E / 39.917; 116.383
Largest city by municipal boundaryChongqing
Largest city by urban populationShanghai
Official languagesStandard Chinese (de facto)
Official scriptSimplified characters
Ethnic groups (2020)
Religion (2023)
Demonym(s)Chinese
GovernmentUnitary Marxist–Leninist one-party socialist republic
• CCP General Secretary and President Xi Jinping
• Premier Li Qiang
• Congress Chairman Zhao Leji
• CPPCC Chairman Wang Huning
• Vice President Han Zheng
LegislatureNational People's Congress
Formation
• First pre-imperial dynasty c. 2070 BCE
• First imperial dynasty 221 BCE
• Establishment of the Republic of China 1 January 1912
• Proclamation of the People's Republic 1 October 1949
Area
• Total9,596,961 km (3,705,407 sq mi) (3rd / 4th)
• Water (%)2.8
Population
• 2023 estimateNeutral decrease 1,409,670,000 (2nd)
• Density145/km (375.5/sq mi) (83rd)
GDP (PPP)2024 estimate
• TotalIncrease $37.072 trillion (1st)
• Per capitaIncrease $26,310 (79th)
GDP (nominal)2024 estimate
• TotalIncrease $18.273 trillion (2nd)
• Per capitaIncrease $12,969 (73rd)
Gini (2021)Positive decrease 35.7
medium inequality
HDI (2022)Increase 0.788
high (75th)
CurrencyRenminbi (元/¥) (CNY)
Time zoneUTC+8 (CST)
Calling code
ISO 3166 codeCN
Internet TLD

China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the second-most populous country after India, representing 17.4% of the world population. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and borders fourteen countries by land. With an area of nearly 9.6 million square kilometers (3,700,000 sq mi), it is the third-largest country by total land area. The country is divided into 33 province-level divisions: 22 provinces, five autonomous regions, four municipalities, and two semi-autonomous special administrative regions. Beijing is the country's capital, while Shanghai is its most populous city by urban area and largest financial center.

China is considered one of the cradles of civilization: the first human inhabitants in the region arrived during the Paleolithic. By the late 2nd millennium BCE, the earliest dynastic states had emerged in the Yellow River basin. The 8th–3rd centuries BCE saw a breakdown in the authority of the Zhou dynasty, accompanied by the emergence of administrative and military techniques, literature, philosophy, and historiography. In 221 BCE, China was unified under an emperor, ushering in more than two millennia of imperial dynasties including the Qin, Han, Tang, Yuan, Ming, and Qing. With the invention of gunpowder and paper, the establishment of the Silk Road, and the building of the Great Wall, Chinese culture flourished and has heavily influenced both its neighbors and lands further afield. However, China began to cede parts of the country in the late 19th century to various European powers by a series of unequal treaties.

After decades of Qing China on the decline, the 1911 Revolution overthrew the Qing dynasty and the monarchy and the Republic of China (ROC) was established the following year. The country under the nascent Beiyang government was unstable and ultimately fragmented during the Warlord Era, which was ended upon the Northern Expedition conducted by the Kuomintang (KMT) to reunify the country. The Chinese Civil War began in 1927, when KMT forces purged members of the rival Chinese Communist Party (CCP), who proceeded to engage in sporadic fighting against the KMT-led Nationalist government. Following the country's invasion by the Empire of Japan in 1937, the CCP and KMT formed the Second United Front to fight the Japanese. The Second Sino-Japanese War eventually ended in a Chinese victory; however, the CCP and the KMT resumed their civil war as soon as the war ended. In 1949, the resurgent Communists established control over most of the country, proclaiming the People's Republic of China and forcing the Nationalist government to retreat to the island of Taiwan. The country was split, with both sides claiming to be the sole legitimate government of China. Following the implementation of land reforms, further attempts by the PRC to realize communism failed: the Great Leap Forward was largely responsible for the Great Chinese Famine that ended with millions of Chinese people having died, and the subsequent Cultural Revolution was a period of social turmoil and persecution characterized by Maoist populism. Following the Sino-Soviet split, the Shanghai Communiqué in 1972 would precipitate the normalization of relations with the United States. Economic reforms that began in 1978 moved the country away from a socialist planned economy towards an increasingly capitalist market economy, spurring significant economic growth. The corresponding movement for increased democracy and liberalization stalled after the Tiananmen Square protests and massacre in 1989.

China is a unitary one-party socialist republic led by the CCP. It is one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council; the UN representative for China was changed from the ROC to the PRC in 1971. It is a founding member of several multilateral and regional organizations such as the AIIB, the Silk Road Fund, the New Development Bank, and the RCEP. It is a member of the BRICS, the G20, APEC, the SCO, and the East Asia Summit. Making up around one-fifth of the world economy, the Chinese economy is the world's largest economy by PPP-adjusted GDP, the second-largest economy by nominal GDP, and the second-wealthiest country, albeit ranking poorly in measures of democracy, human rights and religious freedom. The country has been one of the fastest-growing major economies and is the world's largest manufacturer and exporter, as well as the second-largest importer. China is a nuclear-weapon state with the world's largest standing army by military personnel and the second-largest defense budget. It is a great power, and has been described as an emerging superpower. China is known for its cuisine and culture, and has 59 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, the second-highest number of any country.

Etymology

Main article: Names of China
China (today's Guangdong), Mangi (inland of Xanton), and Cataio (inland of China and Chequan, and including the capital Cambalu, Xandu, and a marble bridge) are all shown as separate regions on this 1570 map by Abraham Ortelius.

The word "China" has been used in English since the 16th century; however, it was not used by the Chinese themselves during this period. Its origin has been traced through Portuguese, Malay, and Persian back to the Sanskrit word Cīna, used in ancient India. "China" appears in Richard Eden's 1555 translation of the 1516 journal of the Portuguese explorer Duarte Barbosa. Barbosa's usage was derived from Persian Chīn (چین), which in turn derived from Sanskrit Cīna (चीन). Cīna was first used in early Hindu scripture, including the Mahabharata (5th century BCE) and the Laws of Manu (2nd century BCE). In 1655, Martino Martini suggested that the word China is derived ultimately from the name of the Qin dynasty (221–206 BCE). Although use in Indian sources precedes this dynasty, this derivation is still given in various sources. The origin of the Sanskrit word is a matter of debate. Alternative suggestions include the names for Yelang and the Jing or Chu state.

The official name of the modern state is the "People's Republic of China" (simplified Chinese: 中华人民共和国; traditional Chinese: 中華人民共和國; pinyin: Zhōnghuá rénmín gònghéguó). The shorter form is "China" (中国; 中國; Zhōngguó), from zhōng ('central') and guó ('state'), a term which developed under the Western Zhou dynasty in reference to its royal demesne. It was used in official documents as an synonym for the state under the Qing. The name Zhongguo is also translated as 'Middle Kingdom' in English. China is sometimes referred to as "mainland China" or "the Mainland" when distinguishing it from the Republic of China or the PRC's Special Administrative Regions.

History

Main article: History of China For a chronological guide, see Timeline of Chinese history.

Prehistory

10,000-year-old pottery, Xianren Cave culture (18000–7000 BCE)

Archaeological evidence suggests that early hominids inhabited China 2.25 million years ago. The hominid fossils of Peking Man, a Homo erectus who used fire, have been dated to between 680,000 and 780,000 years ago. The fossilized teeth of Homo sapiens (dated to 125,000–80,000 years ago) have been discovered in Fuyan Cave. Chinese proto-writing existed in Jiahu around 6600 BCE, at Damaidi around 6000 BCE, Dadiwan from 5800 to 5400 BCE, and Banpo dating from the 5th millennium BCE. Some scholars have suggested that the Jiahu symbols (7th millennium BCE) constituted the earliest Chinese writing system.

Early dynastic rule

Further information: Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, Xia dynasty, Shang dynasty, Zhou dynasty, Spring and Autumn period, and Warring States period
Yinxu, the ruins of the capital of the late Shang dynasty (14th century BCE)

According to traditional Chinese historiography, the Xia dynasty was established during the late 3rd millennium BCE, marking the beginning of the dynastic cycle that was understood to underpin China's entire political history. In the modern era, the Xia's historicity came under increasing scrutiny, in part due to the earliest known attestation of the Xia being written millennia after the date given for their collapse. In 1958, archaeologists discovered sites belonging to the Erlitou culture that existed during the early Bronze Age; they have since been characterized as the remains of the historical Xia, but this conception is often rejected. The Shang dynasty that traditionally succeeded the Xia is the earliest for which there are both contemporary written records and undisputed archaeological evidence. The Shang ruled much of the Yellow River valley until the 11th century BCE, with the earliest hard evidence dated c. 1300 BCE. The oracle bone script, attested from c. 1250 BCE but generally assumed to be considerably older, represents the oldest known form of written Chinese, and is the direct ancestor of modern Chinese characters.

The Shang were overthrown by the Zhou, who ruled between the 11th and 5th centuries BCE, though the centralized authority of Son of Heaven was slowly eroded by fengjian lords. Some principalities eventually emerged from the weakened Zhou and continually waged war with each other during the 300-year Spring and Autumn period. By the time of the Warring States period of the 5th–3rd centuries BCE, there were seven major powerful states left.

Imperial China

Further information: Chinese Empire and History of China § Imperial China

Qin and Han

The southward expansion of the Han dynasty during the 2nd century BCE

The Warring States period ended in 221 BCE after the state of Qin conquered the other six states, reunited China and established the dominant order of autocracy. King Zheng of Qin proclaimed himself the Emperor of the Qin dynasty, becoming the first emperor of a unified China. He enacted Qin's legalist reforms, notably the standardization of Chinese characters, measurements, road widths, and currency. His dynasty also conquered the Yue tribes in Guangxi, Guangdong, and Northern Vietnam. The Qin dynasty lasted only fifteen years, falling soon after the First Emperor's death.

Following widespread revolts during which the imperial library was burned, the Han dynasty emerged to rule China between 206 BCE and 220 CE, creating a cultural identity among its populace still remembered in the ethnonym of the modern Han Chinese. The Han expanded the empire's territory considerably, with military campaigns reaching Central Asia, Mongolia, Korea, and Yunnan, and the recovery of Guangdong and northern Vietnam from Nanyue. Han involvement in Central Asia and Sogdia helped establish the land route of the Silk Road, replacing the earlier path over the Himalayas to India. Han China gradually became the largest economy of the ancient world. Despite the Han's initial decentralization and the official abandonment of the Qin philosophy of Legalism in favor of Confucianism, Qin's legalist institutions and policies continued to be employed by the Han government and its successors.

Three Kingdoms, Jin, Northern and Southern dynasties

After the end of the Han dynasty, a period of strife known as Three Kingdoms followed, at the end of which Wei was swiftly overthrown by the Jin dynasty. The Jin fell to civil war upon the ascension of a developmentally disabled emperor; the Five Barbarians then rebelled and ruled northern China as the Sixteen States. The Xianbei unified them as the Northern Wei, whose Emperor Xiaowen reversed his predecessors' apartheid policies and enforced a drastic sinification on his subjects. In the south, the general Liu Yu secured the abdication of the Jin in favor of the Liu Song. The various successors of these states became known as the Northern and Southern dynasties, with the two areas finally reunited by the Sui in 581.

Sui, Tang and Song

The Sui restored the Han to power through China, reformed its agriculture, economy and imperial examination system, constructed the Grand Canal, and patronized Buddhism. However, they fell quickly when their conscription for public works and a failed war in northern Korea provoked widespread unrest. Under the succeeding Tang and Song dynasties, Chinese economy, technology, and culture entered a golden age. The Tang dynasty retained control of the Western Regions and the Silk Road, which brought traders to as far as Mesopotamia and the Horn of Africa, and made the capital Chang'an a cosmopolitan urban center. However, it was devastated and weakened by the An Lushan rebellion in the 8th century. In 907, the Tang disintegrated completely when the local military governors became ungovernable. The Song dynasty ended the separatist situation in 960, leading to a balance of power between the Song and the Liao dynasty. The Song was the first government in world history to issue paper money and the first Chinese polity to establish a permanent navy which was supported by the developed shipbuilding industry along with the sea trade.

Between the 10th and 11th century CE, the population of China doubled to around 100 million people, mostly because of the expansion of rice cultivation in central and southern China, and the production of abundant food surpluses. The Song dynasty also saw a revival of Confucianism, in response to the growth of Buddhism during the Tang, and a flourishing of philosophy and the arts, as landscape art and porcelain were brought to new levels of complexity. However, the military weakness of the Song army was observed by the Jin dynasty. In 1127, Emperor Huizong of Song and the capital Bianjing were captured during the Jin–Song wars. The remnants of the Song retreated to southern China.

Yuan
China's first emperor, Qin Shi Huang, is famed for having united the Warring States' walls to form the Great Wall of China. Most of the present structure dates to the Ming dynasty.

The Mongol conquest of China began in 1205 with the campaigns against Western Xia by Genghis Khan, who also invaded Jin territories. In 1271, the Mongol leader Kublai Khan established the Yuan dynasty, which conquered the last remnant of the Song dynasty in 1279. Before the Mongol invasion, the population of Song China was 120 million citizens; this was reduced to 60 million by the time of the census in 1300. A peasant named Zhu Yuanzhang overthrew the Yuan in 1368 and founded the Ming dynasty as the Hongwu Emperor. Under the Ming dynasty, China enjoyed another golden age, developing one of the strongest navies in the world and a rich and prosperous economy amid a flourishing of art and culture. It was during this period that admiral Zheng He led the Ming treasure voyages throughout the Indian Ocean, reaching as far as East Africa.

Ming

In the early Ming dynasty, China's capital was moved from Nanjing to Beijing. With the budding of capitalism, philosophers such as Wang Yangming critiqued and expanded Neo-Confucianism with concepts of individualism and equality of four occupations. The scholar-official stratum became a supporting force of industry and commerce in the tax boycott movements, which, together with the famines and defense against Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–1598) and Later Jin incursions led to an exhausted treasury. In 1644, Beijing was captured by a coalition of peasant rebel forces led by Li Zicheng. The Chongzhen Emperor committed suicide when the city fell. The Manchu Qing dynasty, then allied with Ming dynasty general Wu Sangui, overthrew Li's short-lived Shun dynasty and subsequently seized control of Beijing, which became the new capital of the Qing dynasty.

Qing

The Qing conquest of the Ming and expansion of the empire

The Qing dynasty, which lasted from 1644 until 1912, was the last imperial dynasty of China. The Ming-Qing transition (1618–1683) cost 25 million lives, but the Qing appeared to have restored China's imperial power and inaugurated another flowering of the arts. After the Southern Ming ended, the further conquest of the Dzungar Khanate added Mongolia, Tibet and Xinjiang to the empire. Meanwhile, China's population growth resumed and shortly began to accelerate. It is commonly agreed that pre-modern China's population experienced two growth spurts, one during the Northern Song period (960–1127), and other during the Qing period (around 1700–1830). By the High Qing era China was possibly the most commercialized country in the world, and imperial China experienced a second commercial revolution by the end of the 18th century. On the other hand, the centralized autocracy was strengthened in part to suppress anti-Qing sentiment with the policy of valuing agriculture and restraining commerce, like the Haijin during the early Qing period and ideological control as represented by the literary inquisition, causing some social and technological stagnation.

Fall of the Qing dynasty

Further information: Century of humiliation, Opium Wars, First Sino-Japanese War, and Boxer Rebellion
The Eight-Nation Alliance invaded China to defeat the anti-foreign Boxers and their Qing backers. The image shows a celebration ceremony inside the Chinese imperial palace, the Forbidden City after the signing of the Boxer Protocol in 1901.

In the mid-19th century, the Opium Wars with Britain and France forced China to pay compensation, open treaty ports, allow extraterritoriality for foreign nationals, and cede Hong Kong to the British under the 1842 Treaty of Nanking, the first of what have been termed as the "unequal treaties". The First Sino-Japanese War (1894–1895) resulted in Qing China's loss of influence in the Korean Peninsula, as well as the cession of Taiwan to Japan. The Qing dynasty also began experiencing internal unrest in which tens of millions of people died, especially in the White Lotus Rebellion, the failed Taiping Rebellion that ravaged southern China in the 1850s and 1860s and the Dungan Revolt (1862–1877) in the northwest. The initial success of the Self-Strengthening Movement of the 1860s was frustrated by a series of military defeats in the 1880s and 1890s.

In the 19th century, the great Chinese diaspora began. Losses due to emigration were added to by conflicts and catastrophes such as the Northern Chinese Famine of 1876–1879, in which between 9 and 13 million people died. The Guangxu Emperor drafted a reform plan in 1898 to establish a modern constitutional monarchy, but these plans were thwarted by the Empress Dowager Cixi. The ill-fated anti-foreign Boxer Rebellion of 1899–1901 further weakened the dynasty. Although Cixi sponsored a program of reforms known as the late Qing reforms, the Xinhai Revolution of 1911–1912 ended the Qing dynasty and established the Republic of China. Puyi, the last Emperor, abdicated in 1912.

Establishment of the Republic and World War II

Main article: Republic of China (1912–1949)Further information: 1911 Revolution, Second Sino-Japanese War, Chinese Civil War, and Chinese Communist Revolution

On 1 January 1912, the Republic of China was established, and Sun Yat-sen of the Kuomintang (KMT) was proclaimed provisional president. In March 1912, the presidency was given to Yuan Shikai, a former Qing general who in 1915 proclaimed himself Emperor of China. In the face of popular condemnation and opposition from his own Beiyang Army, he was forced to abdicate and re-establish the republic in 1916. After Yuan Shikai's death in 1916, China was politically fragmented. Its Beijing-based government was internationally recognized but virtually powerless; regional warlords controlled most of its territory. During this period, China participated in World War I and saw a far-reaching popular uprising (the May Fourth Movement).

Chiang Kai-shek and Mao Zedong toasting together in 1945 following the end of World War II

In the late 1920s, the Kuomintang under Chiang Kai-shek was able to reunify the country under its own control with a series of deft military and political maneuverings known collectively as the Northern Expedition. The Kuomintang moved the nation's capital to Nanjing and implemented "political tutelage", an intermediate stage of political development outlined in Sun Yat-sen's Three Principles of the People program for transforming China into a modern democratic state. The Kuomintang briefly allied with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) during the Northern Expedition, though the alliance broke down in 1927 after Chiang violently suppressed the CCP and other leftists in Shanghai, marking the beginning of the Chinese Civil War. The CCP declared areas of the country as the Chinese Soviet Republic (Jiangxi Soviet) in November 1931 in Ruijin, Jiangxi. The Jiangxi Soviet was wiped out by the KMT armies in 1934, leading the CCP to initiate the Long March and relocate to Yan'an in Shaanxi. It would be the base of the communists before major combat in the Chinese Civil War ended in 1949.

In 1931, Japan invaded and occupied Manchuria. Japan invaded other parts of China in 1937, precipitating the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945), a theater of World War II. The war forced an uneasy alliance between the Kuomintang and the CCP. Japanese forces committed numerous war atrocities against the civilian population; as many as 20 million Chinese civilians died. An estimated 40,000 to 300,000 Chinese were massacred in Nanjing alone during the Japanese occupation. China, along with the UK, the United States, and the Soviet Union, were recognized as the Allied "Big Four" in the Declaration by United Nations. Along with the other three great powers, China was one of the four major Allies of World War II, and was later considered one of the primary victors in the war. After the surrender of Japan in 1945, Taiwan, including the Penghu, was handed over to Chinese control; however, the validity of this handover is controversial.

People's Republic

Main article: History of the People's Republic of China (1949–1976)
The founding ceremony of the People's Republic of China was held at 3:00 pm on 1 October 1949. The picture above shows Mao Zedong's announcement of the founding of the People's Republic of China in Tiananmen Square.

China emerged victorious but war-ravaged and financially drained. The continued distrust between the Kuomintang and the Communists led to the resumption of civil war. Constitutional rule was established in 1947, but because of the ongoing unrest, many provisions of the ROC constitution were never implemented in mainland China. Afterwards, the CCP took control of most of mainland China, and the ROC government retreated offshore to Taiwan.

On 1 October 1949, CCP Chairman Mao Zedong formally proclaimed the People's Republic of China in Tiananmen Square, Beijing. In 1950, the PRC captured Hainan from the ROC and annexed Tibet. However, remaining Kuomintang forces continued to wage an insurgency in western China throughout the 1950s. The CCP consolidated its popularity among the peasants through the Land Reform Movement, which included the state-tolerated executions of between 1 and 2 million landlords by peasants and former tenants. Though the PRC initially allied closely with the Soviet Union, the relations between the two communist nations gradually deteriorated, leading China to develop an independent industrial system and its own nuclear weapons.

The Chinese population increased from 550 million in 1950 to 900 million in 1974. However, the Great Leap Forward, an idealistic massive industrialization project, resulted in an estimated 15 to 55 million deaths between 1959 and 1961, mostly from starvation. In 1964, China detonated its first atomic bomb. In 1966, Mao and his allies launched the Cultural Revolution, sparking a decade of political recrimination and social upheaval that lasted until Mao's death in 1976. In October 1971, the PRC replaced the ROC in the United Nations, and took its seat as a permanent member of the Security Council.

Reforms and contemporary history

Main articles: History of the People's Republic of China (1976–1989), History of the People's Republic of China (1989–2002), and History of the People's Republic of China (2002–present)
The 1989 Tiananmen Square protests was ended by a military-led massacre.

After Mao's death, the Gang of Four was arrested by Hua Guofeng and held responsible for the Cultural Revolution. The Cultural Revolution was rebuked, with millions rehabilitated. Deng Xiaoping took power in 1978, and instituted large-scale political and economic reforms, together with the "Eight Elders", most senior and influential members of the party. The government loosened its control and the communes were gradually disbanded. Agricultural collectivization was dismantled and farmlands privatized. While foreign trade became a major focus, special economic zones (SEZs) were created. Inefficient state-owned enterprises (SOEs) were restructured and some closed. This marked China's transition away from planned economy. China adopted its current constitution on 4 December 1982.

In 1989, there were protests such those in Tiananmen Square, and then throughout the entire nation. Zhao Ziyang was put under house arrest for his sympathies to the protests and was replaced by Jiang Zemin. Jiang continued economic reforms, closing many SOEs and trimming down "iron rice bowl" (life-tenure positions). China's economy grew sevenfold during this time. British Hong Kong and Portuguese Macau returned to China in 1997 and 1999, respectively, as special administrative regions under the principle of one country, two systems. The country joined the World Trade Organization in 2001.

Belt and Road Initiative and related projects

At the 16th CCP National Congress in 2002, Hu Jintao succeeded Jiang as the general secretary. Under Hu, China maintained its high rate of economic growth, overtaking the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Japan to become the world's second-largest economy. However, the growth also severely impacted the country's resources and environment, and caused major social displacement. Xi Jinping succeeded Hu as paramount leader at the 18th CCP National Congress in 2012. Shortly after his ascension to power, Xi launched a vast anti-corruption crackdown, that prosecuted more than 2 million officials by 2022. During his tenure, Xi has consolidated power unseen since the initiation of economic and political reforms.

Geography

Main article: Geography of China
Topographic map of China

China's landscape is vast and diverse, ranging from the Gobi and Taklamakan Deserts in the arid north to the subtropical forests in the wetter south. The Himalaya, Karakoram, Pamir and Tian Shan mountain ranges separate China from much of South and Central Asia. The Yangtze and Yellow Rivers, the third- and sixth-longest in the world, respectively, run from the Tibetan Plateau to the densely populated eastern seaboard. China's coastline along the Pacific Ocean is 14,500 km (9,000 mi) long and is bounded by the Bohai, Yellow, East China and South China seas. China connects through the Kazakh border to the Eurasian Steppe.

The territory of China lies between latitudes 18° and 54° N, and longitudes 73° and 135° E. The geographical center of China is marked by the Center of the Country Monument at 35°50′40.9″N 103°27′7.5″E / 35.844694°N 103.452083°E / 35.844694; 103.452083 (Geographical center of China). China's landscapes vary significantly across its vast territory. In the east, along the shores of the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea, there are extensive and densely populated alluvial plains, while on the edges of the Inner Mongolian plateau in the north, broad grasslands predominate. Southern China is dominated by hills and low mountain ranges, while the central-east hosts the deltas of China's two major rivers, the Yellow River and the Yangtze River. Other major rivers include the Xi, Mekong, Brahmaputra and Amur. To the west sit major mountain ranges, most notably the Himalayas. High plateaus feature among the more arid landscapes of the north, such as the Taklamakan and the Gobi Desert. The world's highest point, Mount Everest (8,848 m), lies on the Sino-Nepalese border. The country's lowest point, and the world's third-lowest, is the dried lake bed of Ayding Lake (−154 m) in the Turpan Depression.

Climate

Main article: Climate of China Further information: Great Green Wall (China)
Köppen-Geiger climate classification map for mainland China

China's climate is mainly dominated by dry seasons and wet monsoons, which lead to pronounced temperature differences between winter and summer. In the winter, northern winds coming from high-latitude areas are cold and dry; in summer, southern winds from coastal areas at lower latitudes are warm and moist.

A major environmental issue in China is the continued expansion of its deserts, particularly the Gobi Desert. Although barrier tree lines planted since the 1970s have reduced the frequency of sandstorms, prolonged drought and poor agricultural practices have resulted in dust storms plaguing northern China each spring, which then spread to other parts of East Asia, including Japan and Korea. Water quality, erosion, and pollution control have become important issues in China's relations with other countries. Melting glaciers in the Himalayas could potentially lead to water shortages for hundreds of millions of people. According to academics, in order to limit climate change in China to 1.5 °C (2.7 °F) electricity generation from coal in China without carbon capture must be phased out by 2045. With current policies, the GHG emissions of China will probably peak in 2025, and by 2030 they will return to 2022 levels. However, such pathway still leads to three-degree temperature rise.

Official government statistics about Chinese agricultural productivity are considered unreliable, due to exaggeration of production at subsidiary government levels. Much of China has a climate very suitable for agriculture and the country has been the world's largest producer of rice, wheat, tomatoes, eggplant, grapes, watermelon, spinach, and many other crops. In 2021, 12 percent of global permanent meadows and pastures belonged to China, as well as 8% of global cropland.

Biodiversity

Main article: Wildlife of China
A giant panda, China's most famous endangered and endemic species, at the Chengdu Panda Base in Sichuan

China is one of 17 megadiverse countries, lying in two of the world's major biogeographic realms: the Palearctic and the Indomalayan. By one measure, China has over 34,687 species of animals and vascular plants, making it the third-most biodiverse country in the world, after Brazil and Colombia. The country is a party to the Convention on Biological Diversity; its National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan was received by the convention in 2010.

China is home to at least 551 species of mammals (the third-highest in the world), 1,221 species of birds (eighth), 424 species of reptiles (seventh) and 333 species of amphibians (seventh). Wildlife in China shares habitat with, and bears acute pressure from, one of the world's largest population of humans. At least 840 animal species are threatened, vulnerable or in danger of local extinction, due mainly to human activity such as habitat destruction, pollution and poaching for food, fur and traditional Chinese medicine. Endangered wildlife is protected by law, and as of 2005, the country has over 2,349 nature reserves, covering a total area of 149.95 million hectares, 15 percent of China's total land area. Most wild animals have been eliminated from the core agricultural regions of east and central China, but they have fared better in the mountainous south and west. The Baiji was confirmed extinct on 12 December 2006.

China has over 32,000 species of vascular plants, and is home to a variety of forest types. Cold coniferous forests predominate in the north of the country, supporting animal species such as moose and Asian black bear, along with over 120 bird species. The understory of moist conifer forests may contain thickets of bamboo. In higher montane stands of juniper and yew, the bamboo is replaced by rhododendrons. Subtropical forests, which are predominate in central and southern China, support a high density of plant species including numerous rare endemics. Tropical and seasonal rainforests, though confined to Yunnan and Hainan, contain a quarter of all the animal and plant species found in China. China has over 10,000 recorded species of fungi.

Environment

Main articles: Environment of China and Environmental issues in China See also: Renewable energy in China, Water resources of China, Energy policy of China, and Climate change in China
The Three Gorges Dam is the largest hydroelectric dam in the world.

In the early 2000s, China has suffered from environmental deterioration and pollution due to its rapid pace of industrialization. Regulations such as the 1979 Environmental Protection Law are fairly stringent, though they are poorly enforced, frequently disregarded in favor of rapid economic development. China has the second-highest death toll because of air pollution, after India, with approximately 1 million deaths. Although China ranks as the highest CO2 emitting country, it only emits 8 tons of CO2 per capita, significantly lower than developed countries such as the United States (16.1), Australia (16.8) and South Korea (13.6). Greenhouse gas emissions by China are the world's largest. The country has significant water pollution problems; only 89.4% of China's national surface water was graded suitable for human consumption by the Ministry of Ecology and Environment in 2023.

China has prioritized clamping down on pollution, bringing a significant decrease in air pollution in the 2010s. In 2020, the Chinese government announced its aims for the country to reach its peak emissions levels before 2030, and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060 in line with the Paris Agreement, which, according to Climate Action Tracker, would lower the expected rise in global temperature by 0.2–0.3 degrees – "the biggest single reduction ever estimated by the Climate Action Tracker".

China is the world's leading investor in renewable energy and its commercialization, with $546 billion invested in 2022; it is a major manufacturer of renewable energy technologies and invests heavily in local-scale renewable energy projects. Long heavily relying on non-renewable energy sources such as coal, China's adaptation of renewable energy has increased significantly in recent years, with their share increasing from 26.3 percent in 2016 to 31.9 percent in 2022. In 2023, 60.5% of China's electricity came from coal (largest producer in the world), 13.2% from hydroelectric power (largest), 9.4% from wind (largest), 6.2% from solar energy (largest), 4.6% from nuclear energy (second-largest), 3.3% from natural gas (fifth-largest), and 2.2% from bioenergy (largest); in total, 31% of China's energy came from renewable energy sources. Despite its emphasis on renewables, China remains deeply connected to global oil markets and next to India, has been the largest importer of Russian crude oil in 2022.

According to China's government, the forest coverage of the country grew from 10% of the overall territory in 1949 to 25% in 2024.

Political geography

Main articles: Borders of China, Coastline of China, and Territorial changes of the People's Republic of China

China is the third-largest country in the world by land area after Russia, and the third- or fourth-largest country in the world by total area. China's total area is generally stated as being approximately 9,600,000 km (3,700,000 sq mi). Specific area figures range from 9,572,900 km (3,696,100 sq mi) according to the Encyclopædia Britannica, to 9,596,961 km (3,705,407 sq mi) according to the UN Demographic Yearbook, and The World Factbook.

Map depicting territorial disputes between the PRC and neighboring states. For a larger map, see here.

China has the longest combined land border in the world, measuring 22,117 km (13,743 mi) and its coastline covers approximately 14,500 km (9,000 mi) from the mouth of the Yalu River (Amnok River) to the Gulf of Tonkin. China borders 14 nations and covers the bulk of East Asia, bordering Vietnam, Laos, and Myanmar in Southeast Asia; India, Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan and Afghanistan in South Asia; Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan in Central Asia; and Russia, Mongolia, and North Korea in Inner Asia and Northeast Asia. It is narrowly separated from Bangladesh and Thailand to the southwest and south, and has several maritime neighbors such as Japan, Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia.

China has resolved its land borders with 12 out of 14 neighboring countries, having pursued substantial compromises in most of them. China currently has a disputed land border with India and Bhutan. China is additionally involved in maritime disputes with multiple countries over territory in the East and South China Seas, such as the Senkaku Islands and the entirety of South China Sea Islands.

Government and politics

Main article: Politics of China See also: List of current Chinese provincial leaders The Great Hall of the People
where the National People's Congress convenesThe Zhongnanhai, headquarters of the Chinese government and Chinese Communist Party

The People's Republic of China is a one-party state governed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The CCP is officially guided by socialism with Chinese characteristics, which is Marxism adapted to Chinese circumstances. The Chinese constitution states that the PRC "is a socialist state governed by a people's democratic dictatorship that is led by the working class and based on an alliance of workers and peasants," that the state institutions "shall practice the principle of democratic centralism," and that "the defining feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics is the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party."

The PRC officially terms itself as a democracy, using terms such as "socialist consultative democracy", and "whole-process people's democracy". However, the country is commonly described as an authoritarian one-party state and a dictatorship, with among the heaviest restrictions worldwide in many areas, most notably against freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, free formation of social organizations, freedom of religion and free access to the Internet. China has consistently been ranked amongst the lowest as an "authoritarian regime" by the Economist Intelligence Unit's Democracy Index, ranking at 148th out of 167 countries in 2023. Other sources suggest that terming China as "authoritarian" does not sufficiently account for the multiple consultation mechanisms that exist in Chinese government.

Chinese Communist Party

Main article: Chinese Communist Party
The Chinese Communist Party is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China.

According to the CCP constitution, its highest body is the National Congress held every five years. The National Congress elects the Central Committee, who then elects the party's Politburo, Politburo Standing Committee and the general secretary (party leader), the top leadership of the country. The general secretary holds ultimate power and authority over party and state and serves as the informal paramount leader. The current general secretary is Xi Jinping, who took office on 15 November 2012. At the local level, the secretary of the CCP committee of a subdivision outranks the local government level; CCP committee secretary of a provincial division outranks the governor while the CCP committee secretary of a city outranks the mayor.

Government

Main article: Government of China See also: List of national leaders of the People's Republic of China Xi Jinping
CCP General Secretary and PresidentLi Qiang
PremierZhao Leji
Congress ChairmanWang Huning
CPPCC Chairman

The government in China is under the sole control of the CCP. The CCP controls appointments in government bodies, with most senior government officials being CCP members.

The National People's Congress (NPC), with nearly 3,000-members, is constitutionally the "highest organ of state power", though it has been also described as a "rubber stamp" body. The NPC meets annually, while the NPC Standing Committee, around 150 members elected from NPC delegates, meets every couple of months. Elections are indirect and not pluralistic, with nominations at all levels being controlled by the CCP. The NPC is dominated by the CCP, with another eight minor parties having nominal representation under the condition of upholding CCP leadership.

The president is elected by the NPC. The presidency is the ceremonial state representative, but not the constitutional head of state. The incumbent president is Xi Jinping, who is also the general secretary of the CCP and the chairman of the Central Military Commission, making him China's paramount leader and supreme commander of the Armed Forces. The premier is the head of government, with Li Qiang being the incumbent. The premier is officially nominated by the president and then elected by the NPC, and has generally been either the second- or third-ranking member of the Politburo Standing Committee (PSC). The premier presides over the State Council, China's cabinet, composed of four vice premiers, state councilors, and the heads of ministries and commissions. The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) is a political advisory body that is critical in China's "united front" system, which aims to gather non-CCP voices to support the CCP. Similar to the people's congresses, CPPCC's exist at various division, with the National Committee of the CPPCC being chaired by Wang Huning, fourth-ranking member of the PSC.

The governance of China is characterized by a high degree of political centralization but significant economic decentralization. Policy instruments or processes are often tested locally before being applied more widely, resulting in a policy that involves experimentation and feedback. Generally, central government leadership refrains from drafting specific policies, instead using the informal networks and site visits to affirm or suggest changes to the direction of local policy experiments or pilot programs. The typical approach is that central government leadership begins drafting formal policies, law, or regulations after policy has been developed at local levels.

Administrative divisions

Main articles: Administrative divisions of China, Districts of Hong Kong, and Municipalities and parishes of Macau

The PRC is constitutionally a unitary state divided into 23 provinces, five autonomous regions (each with a designated minority group), and four direct-administered municipalities—collectively referred to as "mainland China"—as well as the special administrative regions (SARs) of Hong Kong and Macau. The PRC regards the island of Taiwan as its Taiwan Province, Kinmen and Matsu as a part of Fujian Province and islands the ROC controls in the South China Sea as a part of Hainan Province and Guangdong Province, although all these territories are governed by the Republic of China (ROC). Geographically, all 31 provincial divisions of mainland China can be grouped into six regions: North China, East China, Southwestern China, South Central China, Northeast China, and Northwestern China.

Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous RegionTibet (Xizang) Autonomous RegionQinghai ProvinceGansu ProvinceSichuan ProvinceYunnan ProvinceNingxia Hui Autonomous RegionInner Mongolia (Nei Mongol) Autonomous RegionShaanxi ProvinceMunicipality of ChongqingGuizhou ProvinceGuangxi Zhuang Autonomous RegionShanxi ProvinceHenan ProvinceHubei ProvinceHunan ProvinceGuangdong ProvinceHainan ProvinceHebei ProvinceHeilongjiang ProvinceJilin ProvinceLiaoning ProvinceMunicipality of BeijingMunicipality of TianjinShandong ProvinceJiangsu ProvinceAnhui ProvinceMunicipality of ShanghaiZhejiang ProvinceJiangxi ProvinceFujian ProvinceHong Kong Special Administrative RegionMacau Special Administrative RegionTaiwan Province
List of administrative divisions in the PRC
Provinces (省)
Claimed Province

Taiwan (台湾省), governed by the Republic of China

Autonomous regions (自治区)
Municipalities (直辖市)
Special administrative regions (特别行政区)
  • Hong Kong / Xianggang (香港特别行政区)
  • Macau / Aomen (澳门特别行政区)

Foreign relations

Main article: Foreign relations of China
Diplomatic relations of China

The PRC has diplomatic relations with 179 United Nation members states and maintains embassies in 174. As of 2024, China has one of the largest diplomatic networks of any country in the world. In 1971, the PRC replaced the Republic of China (ROC) as the sole representative of China in the United Nations and as one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council. It is a member of intergovernmental organizations including the G20, the SCO, the BRICS, the East Asia Summit, and the APEC. China was also a former member and leader of the Non-Aligned Movement, and still considers itself an advocate for developing countries.

The PRC officially maintains the one-China principle, which holds the view that there is only one sovereign state in the name of China, represented by the PRC, and that Taiwan is part of that China. The unique status of Taiwan has led to countries recognizing the PRC to maintain unique "one-China policies" that differ from each other; some countries explicitly recognize the PRC's claim over Taiwan, while others, including the U.S. and Japan, only acknowledge the claim. Chinese officials have protested on numerous occasions when foreign countries have made diplomatic overtures to Taiwan, especially in the matter of armament sales. Most countries have switched recognition from the ROC to the PRC since the latter replaced the former in the UN in 1971.

On 21 May 2014, China and Russia signed a $400 billion gas deal. Currently, Russia is supplying natural gas to China.

Much of current Chinese foreign policy is reportedly based on Premier Zhou Enlai's Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, and is also driven by the concept of "harmony without uniformity", which encourages diplomatic relations between states despite ideological differences. This policy may have led China to support or maintain close ties with states that are regarded as dangerous and repressive by Western nations, such as Sudan, North Korea and Iran. China's close relationship with Myanmar has involved support for its ruling governments as well as for its ethnic rebel groups, including the Arakan Army. China has a close political, economic and military relationship with Russia, and the two states often vote in unison in the UN Security Council. China's relationship with the United States is complex, and includes deep trade ties but significant political differences.

Since the early 2000s, China has followed a policy of engaging with African nations for trade and bilateral co-operation. It maintains extensive and highly diversified trade links with the European Union, and became its largest trading partner for goods. China is increasing its influence in Central Asia and South Pacific. The country has strong trade ties with ASEAN countries and major South American economies, and is the largest trading partner of Brazil, Chile, Peru, Uruguay, Argentina, and several others.

In 2013, China initiated the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a large global infrastructure building initiative with funding on the order of $50–100 billion per year. BRI could be one of the largest development plans in modern history. It expanded significantly over the next six years and, as of April 2020, included 138 countries and 30 international organizations. In addition to intensifying foreign policy relations, the focus is particularly on building efficient transport routes, especially the maritime Silk Road with its connections to East Africa and Europe. However many loans made under the program are unsustainable and China has faced a number of calls for debt relief from debtor nations.

Military

Main articles: People's Liberation Army and Paramilitary forces of China
Chengdu J-20 5th generation stealth fighter

The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is considered one of the world's most powerful militaries and has rapidly modernized in the recent decades. It has also been accused of technology theft by some countries. Since 2024, it consists of four services: the Ground Force (PLAGF), the Navy (PLAN), the Air Force (PLAAF) and the Rocket Force (PLARF). It also has four independent arms: the Aerospace Force, the Cyberspace Force, the Information Support Force, and the Joint Logistics Support Force, the first three of which were split from the disbanded Strategic Support Force (PLASSF). Its nearly 2.2 million active duty personnel is the largest in the world. The PLA holds the world's third-largest stockpile of nuclear weapons, and the world's second-largest navy by tonnage. China's official military budget for 2023 totalled US$224 billion (1.55 trillion Yuan), the second-largest in the world, though SIPRI estimates that its real expenditure that year was US$296 billion, making up 12% of global military spending and accounting for 1.7% of the country's GDP. According to SIPRI, its military spending from 2012 to 2021 averaged US$215 billion per year or 1.7 per cent of GDP, behind only the United States at US$734 billion per year or 3.6 per cent of GDP. The PLA is commanded by the Central Military Commission (CMC) of the party and the state; though officially two separate organizations, the two CMCs have identical membership except during leadership transition periods and effectively function as one organization. The chairman of the CMC is the commander-in-chief of the PLA.

Sociopolitical issues and human rights

See also: Human rights in China, Hukou, Social welfare in China, Elections in China, Censorship in China, and Persecution of Uyghurs in China
March in memory of Chinese Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo who died of organ failure while in government custody in 2017

The situation of human rights in China has attracted significant criticism from foreign governments, foreign press agencies, and non-governmental organizations, alleging widespread civil rights violations such as detention without trial, forced confessions, torture, restrictions of fundamental rights, and excessive use of the death penalty. Since its inception, Freedom House has ranked China as "not free" in its Freedom in the World survey, while Amnesty International has documented significant human rights abuses. The Chinese constitution states that the "fundamental rights" of citizens include freedom of speech, freedom of the press, the right to a fair trial, freedom of religion, universal suffrage, and property rights. However, in practice, these provisions do not afford significant protection against criminal prosecution by the state. China has limited protections regarding LGBT rights.

Although some criticisms of government policies and the ruling CCP are tolerated, censorship of political speech and information are amongst the harshest in the world and routinely used to prevent collective action. China also has the most comprehensive and sophisticated Internet censorship regime in the world, with numerous websites being blocked. The government suppresses popular protests and demonstrations that it considers a potential threat to "social stability". China additionally uses a massive espionage network of cameras, facial recognition software, sensors, and surveillance of personal technology as a means of social control of persons living in the country.

In Xinjiang, China has been accused of committing genocide against Uyghurs and detaining more than one million Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in camps.

China is regularly accused of large-scale repression and human rights abuses in Tibet and Xinjiang, where significant numbers of ethnic minorities reside, including violent police crackdowns and religious suppression. Since 2017, the Chinese government has been engaged in a harsh crackdown in Xinjiang, with around one million Uyghurs and other ethnic and religion minorities being detained in internment camps aimed at changing the political thinking of detainees, their identities, and their religious beliefs. According to Western reports, political indoctrination, torture, physical and psychological abuse, forced sterilization, sexual abuse, and forced labor are common in these facilities. According to a 2020 Foreign Policy report, China's treatment of Uyghurs meets the UN definition of genocide, while a separate UN Human Rights Office report said they could potentially meet the definitions for crimes against humanity. The Chinese authorities have also cracked down on dissent in Hong Kong, especially after the passage of a national security law in 2020.

2019–20 Hong Kong protests

In 2017 and 2020, the Pew Research Center ranked the severity of Chinese government restrictions on religion as being among the world's highest, despite ranking religious-related social hostilities in China as low in severity. The Global Slavery Index estimated that in 2016 more than 3.8 million people (0.25% of the population) were living in "conditions of modern slavery", including victims of human trafficking, forced labor, forced marriage, child labor, and state-imposed forced labor. The state-imposed re-education through labor (laojiao) system was formally abolished in 2013, but it is not clear to what extent its practices have stopped. The much larger reform through labor (laogai) system includes labor prison factories, detention centers, and re-education camps; the Laogai Research Foundation has estimated in June 2008 that there were nearly 1,422 of these facilities, though it cautioned that this number was likely an underestimate.

Public views of government

Political concerns in China include the growing gap between rich and poor and government corruption. Nonetheless, international surveys show the Chinese public have a high level of satisfaction with their government. These views are generally attributed to the material comforts and security available to large segments of the Chinese populace as well as the government's attentiveness and responsiveness. According to the World Values Survey (2022), 91% of Chinese respondents have significant confidence in their government. A Harvard University survey published in July 2020 found that citizen satisfaction with the government had increased since 2003, also rating China's government as more effective and capable than ever in the survey's history.

Economy

Main article: Economy of China For Economic history of China, see Economic history of China before 1912, Economic history of China (1912–1949), and Economic history of China (1949–present).

China has the world's second-largest economy in terms of nominal GDP, and the world's largest in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP). As of 2022, China accounts for around 18% of the global economy by nominal GDP. China is one of the world's fastest-growing major economies, with its economic growth having been almost consistently above 6 percent since the introduction of economic reforms in 1978. According to the World Bank, China's GDP grew from $150 billion in 1978 to $17.96 trillion by 2022. It ranks at 64th at nominal GDP per capita, making it an upper-middle income country. Of the world's 500 largest companies, 135 are headquartered in China. As of at least 2024, China has the world's second-largest equity markets and futures markets, as well as the third-largest bond market.

China was one of the world's foremost economic powers throughout the arc of East Asian and global history. The country had one of the largest economies in the world for most of the past two millennia, during which it has seen cycles of prosperity and decline. Since economic reforms began in 1978, China has developed into a highly diversified economy and one of the most consequential players in international trade. Major sectors of competitive strength include manufacturing, retail, mining, steel, textiles, automobiles, energy generation, green energy, banking, electronics, telecommunications, real estate, e-commerce, and tourism. China has three out of the ten largest stock exchanges in the world—Shanghai, Hong Kong and Shenzhen—that together have a market capitalization of over $15.9 trillion, as of October 2020. China has three (Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Shenzhen) out of the world's top ten most competitive financial centers according to the 2024 Global Financial Centres Index.

China and other major developing economies by GDP per capita at purchasing-power parity, 1990–2013. The rapid economic growth of China (blue) is readily apparent.

Modern-day China is often described as an example of state capitalism or party-state capitalism. The state dominates in strategic "pillar" sectors such as energy production and heavy industries, but private enterprise has expanded enormously, with around 30 million private businesses recorded in 2008. According to official statistics, privately owned companies constitute more than 60% of China's GDP.

China has been the world's largest manufacturing nation since 2010, after overtaking the U.S., which had been the largest for the previous hundred years. China has also been the second-largest in high-tech manufacturing country since 2012, according to US National Science Foundation. China is the second-largest retail market after the United States. China leads the world in e-commerce, accounting for over 37% of the global market share in 2021. China is the world's leader in electric vehicle consumption and production, manufacturing and buying half of all the plug-in electric cars (BEV and PHEV) in the world as of 2022. China is also the leading producer of batteries for electric vehicles as well as several key raw materials for batteries.

Tourism

Main articles: Tourism in China and List of World Heritage Sites in China

China received 65.7 million international visitors in 2019, and in 2018 was the fourth-most-visited country in the world. It also experiences an enormous volume of domestic tourism; Chinese tourists made an estimated 6 billion travels within the country in 2019. China hosts the world's second-largest number of World Heritage Sites (56) after Italy, and is one of the most popular tourist destinations (first in the Asia-Pacific).

Wealth

See also: Income inequality in China
Skyline of Lujiazui in Shanghai

China accounted for 18.6% of the world's total wealth in 2022, second highest in the world after the U.S. China brought more people out of extreme poverty than any other country in history—between 1978 and 2018, China reduced extreme poverty by 800 million. From 1990 to 2018, the proportion of the Chinese population living with an income of less than $1.90 per day (2011 PPP) decreased from 66.3% to 0.3%, the share living with an income of less than $3.20 per day from 90.0% to 2.9%, and the share living with an income of less than $5.50 per day decreased from 98.3% to 17.0%.

From 1978 to 2018, the average standard of living multiplied by a factor of twenty-six. Wages in China have grown significantly in the last 40 years—real (inflation-adjusted) wages grew seven-fold from 1978 to 2007. Per capita incomes have also risen significantly – when the PRC was founded in 1949, per capita income in China was one-fifth of the world average; per capita incomes now equal the world average itself. China's development is highly uneven. Its major cities and coastal areas are far more prosperous compared to rural and interior regions. It has a high level of economic inequality, which has increased quickly after the economic reforms, though has decreased significantly in the 2010s. In 2021, China's Gini coefficient was 0.357, according to the World Bank.

As of March 2024, China was second in the world, after the U.S., in total number of billionaires and total number of millionaires, with 473 Chinese billionaires and 6.2 million millionaires. In 2019, China overtook the U.S. as the home to the highest number of people who have a net personal wealth of at least $110,000, according to the global wealth report by Credit Suisse. China had 85 female billionaires as of January 2021, two-thirds of the global total. China has had the world's largest middle-class population since 2015; the middle-class grew to 500 million by 2024.

China in the global economy

China has been a member of the WTO since 2001 and is the world's largest trading power. By 2016, China was the largest trading partner of 124 countries. China became the world's largest trading nation in 2013 by the sum of imports and exports, as well as the world's largest commodity importer, accounting for roughly 45% of maritime's dry-bulk market.

China's foreign exchange reserves reached US$3.246 trillion as of March 2024, making its reserves by far the world's largest. In 2022, China was amongst the world's largest recipient of inward foreign direct investment (FDI), attracting $180 billion, though most of these were speculated to be from Hong Kong. In 2021, China's foreign exchange remittances were $US53 billion making it the second-largest recipient of remittances in the world. China also invests abroad, with a total outward FDI of $147.9 billion in 2023, and a number of major takeovers of foreign firms by Chinese companies.

Economists have argued that the renminbi is undervalued, due to currency intervention from the Chinese government, giving China an unfair trade advantage. China has also been widely criticized for manufacturing large quantities of counterfeit goods. The U.S. government has also alleged that China does not respect intellectual property (IP) rights and steals IP through espionage operations. In 2020, Harvard University's Economic Complexity Index ranked complexity of China's exports 17th in the world, up from 24th in 2010.

The Chinese government has promoted the internationalization of the renminbi in order to wean off of its dependence on the U.S. dollar as a result of perceived weaknesses of the international monetary system. The renminbi is a component of the IMF's special drawing rights and the world's fourth-most traded currency as of 2023. However, partly due to capital controls that make the renminbi fall short of being a fully convertible currency, it remains far behind the Euro, the U.S. Dollar and the Japanese Yen in international trade volumes.

Science and technology

Main articles: Science and technology in China, List of Chinese discoveries, and List of Chinese inventions

Historical

Main article: History of science and technology in China
Earliest known written formula for gunpowder, from the Wujing Zongyao of 1044 CE

China was a world leader in science and technology until the Ming dynasty. Ancient and medieval Chinese discoveries and inventions, such as papermaking, printing, the compass, and gunpowder (the Four Great Inventions), became widespread across East Asia, the Middle East and later Europe. Chinese mathematicians were the first to use negative numbers. By the 17th century, the Western World surpassed China in scientific and technological advancement. The causes of this early modern Great Divergence continue to be debated by scholars.

After repeated military defeats by the European colonial powers and Imperial Japan in the 19th century, Chinese reformers began promoting modern science and technology as part of the Self-Strengthening Movement. After the Communists came to power in 1949, efforts were made to organize science and technology based on the model of the Soviet Union, in which scientific research was part of central planning. After Mao's death in 1976, science and technology were promoted as one of the Four Modernizations, and the Soviet-inspired academic system was gradually reformed.

Modern era

Since the end of the Cultural Revolution, China has made significant investments in scientific research and is quickly catching up with the U.S. in R&D spending. China officially spent around 2.6% of its GDP on R&D in 2023, totaling to around $458.5 billion. According to the World Intellectual Property Indicators, China received more applications than the U.S. did in 2018 and 2019 and ranked first globally in patents, utility models, trademarks, industrial designs, and creative goods exports in 2021. It was ranked 11th in the Global Innovation Index in 2024, a considerable improvement from its rank of 35th in 2013. Chinese supercomputers ranked among the fastest in the world. Its efforts to develop the most advanced semiconductors and jet engines have seen delays and setbacks.

China is developing its education system with an emphasis on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Its academic publication apparatus became the world's largest publisher of scientific papers in 2016. In 2022, China overtook the US in the Nature Index, which measures the share of published articles in leading scientific journals.

Space program
Main article: Chinese space program
Launch of Shenzhou 13 by a Long March 2F rocket. China is one of the only three countries with independent human spaceflight capability.

The Chinese space program started in 1958 with some technology transfers from the Soviet Union. However, it did not launch the nation's first satellite until 1970 with the Dong Fang Hong I, which made China the fifth country to do so independently.

In 2003, China became the third country in the world to independently send humans into space with Yang Liwei's spaceflight aboard Shenzhou 5. As of 2023, eighteen Chinese nationals have journeyed into space, including two women. In 2011, China launched its first space station testbed, Tiangong-1. In 2013, a Chinese robotic rover Yutu successfully touched down on the lunar surface as part of the Chang'e 3 mission.

In 2019, China became the first country to land a probe—Chang'e 4—on the far side of the Moon. In 2020, Chang'e 5 successfully returned Moon samples to the Earth, making China the third country to do so independently. In 2021, China became the third country to land a spacecraft on Mars and the second one to deploy a rover (Zhurong) on Mars. China completed its own modular space station, the Tiangong, in low Earth orbit on 3 November 2022. On 29 November 2022, China performed its first in-orbit crew handover aboard the Tiangong.

In May 2023, China announced a plan to land humans on the Moon by 2030. To that end, China has been developing a lunar-capable super-heavy launcher, the Long March 10, a new crewed spacecraft, and a crewed lunar lander.

China sent Chang'e 6 on 3 May 2024, which conducted the first lunar sample return from Apollo Basin on the far side of the Moon. This is China's second lunar sample return mission, the first was achieved by Chang'e 5 from the lunar near side 4 years ago. It also carried a Chinese rover called Jinchan to conduct infrared spectroscopy of lunar surface and imaged Chang'e 6 lander on lunar surface. The lander-ascender-rover combination was separated with the orbiter and returner before landing on 1 June 2024, at 22:23 UTC. It landed on the Moon's surface on 1 June 2024. The ascender was launched back to lunar orbit on 3 June 2024, at 23:38 UTC, carrying samples collected by the lander, which later completed another robotic rendezvous, before docking in lunar orbit. The sample container was then transferred to the returner, which landed on Inner Mongolia in June 2024, completing China's far side extraterrestrial sample return mission.

Infrastructure

After a decades-long infrastructural boom, China has produced numerous world-leading infrastructural projects: it has the largest high-speed rail network, the most supertall skyscrapers, the largest power plant (the Three Gorges Dam), and a global satellite navigation system with the largest number of satellites.

Telecommunications

Main article: Telecommunications in China
Internet penetration rates in China in the context of East Asia and Southeast Asia, 1995–2012

China is the largest telecom market in the world and currently has the largest number of active cellphones of any country, with over 1.7 billion subscribers, as of February 2023. It has the largest number of internet and broadband users, with over 1.09 billion Internet users as of December 2023—equivalent to around 77.5% of its population. By 2018, China had more than 1 billion 4G users, accounting for 40% of world's total. China is making rapid advances in 5G—by late 2018, China had started large-scale and commercial 5G trials. As of December 2023, China had over 810 million 5G users and 3.38 million base stations installed.

China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecom, are the three large providers of mobile and internet in China. China Telecom alone served more than 145 million broadband subscribers and 300 million mobile users; China Unicom had about 300 million subscribers; and China Mobile, the largest of them all, had 925 million users, as of 2018. Combined, the three operators had over 3.4 million 4G base-stations in China. Several Chinese telecommunications companies, most notably Huawei and ZTE, have been accused of spying for the Chinese military.

China has developed its own satellite navigation system, dubbed BeiDou, which began offering commercial navigation services across Asia in 2012 as well as global services by the end of 2018. Beidou followed GPS and GLONASS as the third completed global navigation satellite.

Transport

Main article: Transport in China
The Duge Bridge is the highest bridge in the world.
A Fuxing high-speed train running near the Beijing CBD

Since the late 1990s, China's national road network has been significantly expanded through the creation of a network of national highways and expressways. In 2022, China's highways had reached a total length of 177,000 km (110,000 mi), making it the longest highway system in the world. China has the world's largest market for automobiles, having surpassed the United States in both auto sales and production. The country is the world's largest exporter of cars by number as of 2023. A side-effect of the rapid growth of China's road network has been a significant rise in traffic accidents. In urban areas, bicycles remain a common mode of transport, despite the increasing prevalence of automobiles – as of 2023, there are approximately 200 million bicycles in China.

China's railways, which are operated by the state-owned China State Railway Group Company, are among the busiest in the world, handling a quarter of the world's rail traffic volume on only 6 percent of the world's tracks in 2006. As of 2023, the country had 159,000 km (98,798 mi) of railways, the second-longest network in the world. The railways strain to meet enormous demand particularly during the Chinese New Year holiday, when the world's largest annual human migration takes place. China's high-speed rail (HSR) system started construction in the early 2000s. By the end of 2023, high speed rail in China had reached 45,000 kilometers (27,962 miles) of dedicated lines alone, making it the longest HSR network in the world. Services on the Beijing–Shanghai, Beijing–Tianjin, and Chengdu–Chongqing lines reach up to 350 km/h (217 mph), making them the fastest conventional high speed railway services in the world. With an annual ridership of over 2.3 billion passengers in 2019, it is the world's busiest. The network includes the Beijing–Guangzhou high-speed railway, the single longest HSR line in the world, and the Beijing–Shanghai high-speed railway, which has three of longest railroad bridges in the world. The Shanghai maglev train, which reaches 431 km/h (268 mph), is the fastest commercial train service in the world. Since 2000, the growth of rapid transit systems in Chinese cities has accelerated. As of December 2023, 55 Chinese cities have urban mass transit systems in operation. As of 2020, China boasts the five longest metro systems in the world with the networks in Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Chengdu and Shenzhen being the largest.

The civil aviation industry in China is mostly state-dominated, with the Chinese government retaining a majority stake in the majority of Chinese airlines. The top three airlines in China, which collectively made up 71% of the market in 2018, are all state-owned. Air travel has expanded rapidly in the last decades, with the number of passengers increasing from 16.6 million in 1990 to 551.2 million in 2017. China had approximately 259 airports in 2024.

China has over 2,000 river and seaports, about 130 of which are open to foreign shipping. Of the fifty busiest container ports, 15 are located in China, of which the busiest is the Port of Shanghai, also the busiest port in the world. The country's inland waterways are the world's sixth-longest, and total 27,700 km (17,212 mi).

Water supply and sanitation

Main article: Water supply and sanitation in China

Water supply and sanitation infrastructure in China is facing challenges such as rapid urbanization, as well as water scarcity, contamination, and pollution. According to the Joint Monitoring Program for Water Supply and Sanitation, about 36% of the rural population in China still did not have access to improved sanitation in 2015. The ongoing South–North Water Transfer Project intends to abate water shortage in the north.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of China
Population density map of the People's Republic of China (2000)

The 2020 Chinese census recorded the population as approximately 1,411,778,724. About 17.95% were 14 years old or younger, 63.35% were between 15 and 59 years old, and 18.7% were over 60 years old. Between 2010 and 2020, the average population growth rate was 0.53%.

Given concerns about population growth, China implemented a two-child limit during the 1970s, and, in 1979, began to advocate for an even stricter limit of one child per family. Beginning in the mid-1980s, however, given the unpopularity of the strict limits, China began to allow some major exemptions, particularly in rural areas, resulting in what was actually a "1.5"-child policy from the mid-1980s to 2015; ethnic minorities were also exempt from one-child limits. The next major loosening of the policy was enacted in December 2013, allowing families to have two children if one parent is an only child. In 2016, the one-child policy was replaced in favor of a two-child policy. A three-child policy was announced on 31 May 2021, due to population aging, and in July 2021, all family size limits as well as penalties for exceeding them were removed. In 2023, the total fertility rate was reported to be 1.09, ranking among the lowest in the world. In 2023, National Bureau of Statistics estimated that the population fell 850,000 from 2021 to 2022, the first decline since 1961.

According to one group of scholars, one-child limits had little effect on population growth or total population size. However, these scholars have been challenged. The policy, along with traditional preference for boys, may have contributed to an imbalance in the sex ratio at birth. The 2020 census found that males accounted for 51.2% of the total population. However, China's sex ratio is more balanced than it was in 1953, when males accounted for 51.8% of the population.

The cultural preference for male children, combined with the one-child policy, led to an excess of female child orphans in China, and in the 1990s through around 2007, there was an active stream of adoptions of (mainly female) babies by American and other foreign parents. However, increased restrictions by the Chinese Government slowed foreign adoptions significantly in 2007 and again in 2015.

Urbanization

See also: List of cities in China, List of cities in China by population, and Megalopolises in China
Map of the ten largest cities in China (2010)

China has urbanized significantly in recent decades. The percent of the country's population living in urban areas increased from 20% in 1980 to over 66% in 2023. China has over 160 cities with a population of over one million, including the 17 megacities as of 2021 (cities with a population of over 10 million) of Chongqing, Shanghai, Beijing, Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Tianjin, Xi'an, Suzhou, Zhengzhou, Wuhan, Hangzhou, Linyi, Shijiazhuang, Dongguan, Qingdao and Changsha. The total permanent population of Chongqing, Shanghai, Beijing and Chengdu is above 20 million. Shanghai is China's most populous urban area while Chongqing is its largest city proper, the only city in China with a permanent population of over 30 million. The figures in the table below are from the 2020 census, and are only estimates of the urban populations within administrative city limits; a different ranking exists for total municipal populations. The large "floating populations" of migrant workers make conducting censuses in urban areas difficult; the figures below include only long-term residents.

  Largest cities or municipalities in China
China Urban Construction Statistical Yearbook 2020 Urban Population and Urban Temporary Population
Rank Name Province Pop. Rank Name Province Pop.
Shanghai
Shanghai
Beijing
Beijing
1 Shanghai SH 24,281,400 11 Hong Kong HK 7,448,900 Guangzhou
Guangzhou
Shenzhen
Shenzhen
2 Beijing BJ 19,164,000 12 Zhengzhou HA 7,179,400
3 Guangzhou GD 13,858,700 13 Nanjing JS 6,823,500
4 Shenzhen GD 13,438,800 14 Xi'an SN 6,642,100
5 Tianjin TJ 11,744,400 15 Jinan SD 6,409,600
6 Chongqing CQ 11,488,000 16 Shenyang LN 5,900,000
7 Dongguan GD 9,752,500 17 Qingdao SD 5,501,400
8 Chengdu SC 8,875,600 18 Harbin HL 5,054,500
9 Wuhan HB 8,652,900 19 Hefei AH 4,750,100
10 Hangzhou ZJ 8,109,000 20 Changchun JL 4,730,900
  1. Population of Hong Kong as of 2018 estimate
  2. The data of Chongqing in the list is the data of "Metropolitan Developed Economic Area", which contains two parts: "City Proper" and "Metropolitan Area". The "City proper" are consist of 9 districts: Yuzhong, Dadukou, Jiangbei, Shapingba, Jiulongpo, Nan'an, Beibei, Yubei, & Banan, has the urban population of 5,646,300 as of 2018. And the "Metropolitan Area" are consist of 12 districts: Fuling, Changshou, Jiangjin, Hechuan, Yongchuan, Nanchuan, Qijiang, Dazu, Bishan, Tongliang, Tongnan, & Rongchang, has the urban population of 5,841,700. Total urban population of all 26 districts of Chongqing are up to 15,076,600.

Ethnic groups

Main articles: List of ethnic groups in China, Ethnic minorities in China, and Ethnic groups in Chinese history
Ethnolinguistic map of China in 1967

China legally recognizes 56 distinct ethnic groups, who comprise the Zhonghua minzu. The largest of these nationalities are the Han Chinese, who constitute more than 91% of the total population. The Han Chinese – the world's largest single ethnic group – outnumber other ethnic groups in every place excluding Tibet, Xinjiang, Linxia, and autonomous prefectures like Xishuangbanna. Ethnic minorities account for less than 10% of the population of China, according to the 2020 census. Compared with the 2010 population census, the Han population increased by 60,378,693 persons, or 4.93%, while the population of the 55 national minorities combined increased by 11,675,179 persons, or 10.26%. The 2020 census recorded a total of 845,697 foreign nationals living in mainland China.

Languages

Main articles: Languages of China and List of endangered languages in China
A sign at a high school in Jianshui, Yunnan, written in Hani using the Latin alphabet, Nisu using the Yi script, and Chinese.

There are as many as 292 living languages in China. The languages most commonly spoken belong to the Sinitic branch of the Sino-Tibetan language family, which contains Mandarin (spoken by 80% of the population), and other varieties of Chinese language: Jin, Wu, Min, Hakka, Yue, Xiang, Gan, Hui, Ping and unclassified Tuhua (Shaozhou Tuhua and Xiangnan Tuhua). Languages of the Tibeto-Burman branch, including Tibetan, Qiang, Naxi and Yi, are spoken across the Tibetan and Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau. Other ethnic minority languages in southwestern China include Zhuang, Thai, Dong and Sui of the Tai-Kadai family, Miao and Yao of the Hmong–Mien family, and Wa of the Austroasiatic family. Across northeastern and northwestern China, local ethnic groups speak Altaic languages including Manchu, Mongolian and several Turkic languages: Uyghur, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Salar and Western Yugur. Korean is spoken natively along the border with North Korea. Sarikoli, the language of Tajiks in western Xinjiang, is an Indo-European language. Taiwanese indigenous peoples, including a small population on the mainland, speak Austronesian languages.

Standard Chinese, a variety based on the Beijing dialect of Mandarin, is the national language of China, having de facto official status. It is used as a lingua franca between people of different linguistic backgrounds. In the autonomous regions of China, other languages may also serve as a lingua franca, such as Uyghur in Xinjiang, where governmental services in Uyghur are constitutionally guaranteed.

Religion

Main article: Religion in China
Geographic distribution of religions in China:

Chinese folk religion (including Confucianism, Taoism, and groups of Chinese Buddhism)
Buddhism tout court
Islam
Ethnic minorities' indigenous religions
Mongolian folk religion
Northeast China folk religion influenced by Tungus and Manchu shamanism; widespread Shanrendao

Freedom of religion is guaranteed by China's constitution, although religious organizations that lack official approval can be subject to state persecution. The government of the country is officially atheist. Religious affairs and issues in the country are overseen by the National Religious Affairs Administration, under the United Front Work Department.

Over the millennia, the Chinese civilization has been influenced by various religious movements. The "three doctrines" of Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism have historically shaped Chinese culture, enriching a theological and spiritual framework of traditional religion which harks back to the early Shang and Zhou dynasty. Chinese folk religion, which is framed by the three doctrines and by other traditions, consists in allegiance to the shen, who can be deities of the surrounding nature or ancestral principles of human groups, concepts of civility, culture heroes, many of whom feature in Chinese mythology and history. Amongst the most popular cults of folk religion are those of the Yellow Emperor, embodiment of the God of Heaven and one of the two divine patriarchs of the Chinese people, of Mazu (goddess of the seas), Guandi (god of war and business), Caishen (god of prosperity and richness), Pangu and many others. In the early decades of the 21st century, the Chinese government has been engaged in a rehabilitation of folk cults—formally recognizing them as "folk beliefs" as distinguished from doctrinal religions, and often reconstructing them into forms of "highly curated" civil religion—as well as in a national and international promotion of Buddhism. China is home to many of the world's tallest religious statues, representing either deities of Chinese folk religion or enlightened beings of Buddhism; the tallest of all is the Spring Temple Buddha in Henan.

Taoism has served as a state religion several times throughout Chinese history

Statistics on religious affiliation in China are difficult to gather due to complex and varying definitions of religion and the diffusive nature of Chinese religious traditions. Scholars note that in China there is no clear boundary between the three doctrines and local folk religious practices. Chinese religions or some of their currents are also definable as non-theistic and humanistic, since they do not hold that divine creativity is completely transcendent, but that it is inherent in the world and in particular in the human being. According to studies published in 2023, compiling demographic analyses conducted throughout the 2010s and the early 2020s, 70% of the Chinese population believed in or practiced Chinese folk religion—among them, with an approach of non-exclusivity, 33.4% may be identified as Buddhists, 19.6% as Taoists, and 17.7% as adherents of other types of folk religion. Of the remaining population, 25.2% are fully non-believers or atheists, 2.5% are adherents of Christianity, and 1.6% are adherents of Islam. Chinese folk religion also comprises a variety of salvationist doctrinal organized movements which emerged since the Song dynasty. There are also ethnic minorities in China who maintain their own indigenous religions, while major religions characteristic of specific ethnic groups include Tibetan Buddhism among Tibetans, Mongols and Yugurs, and Islam among the Hui, Uyghur, Kazakh, and Kyrgyz peoples, and other ethnicities in the northern and northwestern regions of the country.

Education

Main articles: Education in China and Higher education in China
Beijing's Peking University, one of the top-ranked universities in China

Compulsory education in China comprises primary and junior secondary school, which together last for nine years from the age of 6 and 15. The Gaokao, China's national university entrance exam, is a prerequisite for entrance into most higher education institutions. Vocational education is available to students at the secondary and tertiary level. More than 10 million Chinese students graduated from vocational colleges every year. In 2023, about 91.8 percent of students continued their education at a three-year senior secondary school, while 60.2 percent of secondary school graduates were enrolled in higher education.

China has the largest education system in the world, with about 291 million students and 18.92 million full-time teachers in over 498,300 schools in 2023. Annual education investment went from less than US$50 billion in 2003 to more than US$817 billion in 2020. However, there remains an inequality in education spending. In 2010, the annual education expenditure per secondary school student in Beijing totalled ¥20,023, while in Guizhou, one of the poorest provinces, it only totalled ¥3,204. China's literacy rate has grown dramatically, from only 20% in 1949 and 65.5% in 1979, to 97% of the population over age 15 in 2020.

As of 2023, China has over 3,074 universities, with over 47.6 million students enrolled in mainland China, giving China the largest higher education system in the world. As of 2023, China had the world's highest number of top universities. Currently, China trails only the United States and the United Kingdom in terms of representation on lists of the top 200 universities according to the 2023 Aggregate Ranking of Top Universities, a composite ranking system of three world-most followed university rankings (ARWU+QS+THE). China is home to two of the highest-ranking universities (Tsinghua University and Peking University) in Asia and emerging economies, according to the Times Higher Education World University Rankings and the Academic Ranking of World Universities. These universities are members of the C9 League, an alliance of elite Chinese universities offering comprehensive and leading education.

Health

Main article: Health in China See also: Medicine in China and Pharmaceutical industry in China
Chart showing the rise of China's Human Development Index from 1970 to 2010

The National Health Commission, together with its counterparts in the local commissions, oversees the health needs of the population. An emphasis on public health and preventive medicine has characterized Chinese health policy since the early 1950s. The Communist Party started the Patriotic Health Campaign, which was aimed at improving sanitation and hygiene, as well as treating and preventing several diseases. Diseases such as cholera, typhoid and scarlet fever, which were previously rife in China, were nearly eradicated by the campaign.

After Deng Xiaoping began instituting economic reforms in 1978, the health of the Chinese public improved rapidly because of better nutrition, although many of the free public health services provided in the countryside disappeared. Healthcare in China became mostly privatized, and experienced a significant rise in quality. In 2009, the government began a three-year large-scale healthcare provision initiative worth US$124 billion. By 2011, the campaign resulted in 95% of China's population having basic health insurance coverage. By 2022, China had established itself as a key producer and exporter of pharmaceuticals, producing around 40 percent of active pharmaceutical ingredients in 2017.

As of 2023, the life expectancy at birth exceeds 78 years. As of 2021, the infant mortality rate is 5 per thousand. Both have improved significantly since the 1950s. Rates of stunting, a condition caused by malnutrition, have declined from 33.1% in 1990 to 9.9% in 2010. Despite significant improvements in health and the construction of advanced medical facilities, China has several emerging public health problems, such as respiratory illnesses caused by widespread air pollution, hundreds of millions of cigarette smokers, and an increase in obesity among urban youths. In 2010, air pollution caused 1.2 million premature deaths in China. Chinese mental health services are inadequate. China's large population and densely populated cities have led to serious disease outbreaks, such as SARS in 2003, although this has since been largely contained. The COVID-19 pandemic was first identified in Wuhan in December 2019; pandemic led the government to enforce strict public health measures intended to completely eradicate the virus, a goal that was eventually abandoned in December 2022 after protests against the policy.

Culture and society

Main articles: Chinese culture and Culture of the People's Republic of China The Temple of Heaven, a center of heaven worship and an UNESCO World Heritage site, symbolizes the Interactions Between Heaven and Mankind.
A moon gate in a Chinese garden

Since ancient times, Chinese culture has been heavily influenced by Confucianism. Chinese culture, in turn, has heavily influenced East Asia and Southeast Asia. For much of the country's dynastic era, opportunities for social advancement could be provided by high performance in the prestigious imperial examinations, which have their origins in the Han dynasty. The literary emphasis of the exams affected the general perception of cultural refinement in China, such as the belief that calligraphy, poetry and painting were higher forms of art than dancing or drama. Chinese culture has long emphasized a sense of deep history and a largely inward-looking national perspective. Examinations and a culture of merit remain greatly valued in China today.

Fenghuang County, an ancient town that harbors many architectural remains of Ming and Qing styles

Today, the Chinese government has accepted numerous elements of traditional Chinese culture as being integral to Chinese society. With the rise of Chinese nationalism and the end of the Cultural Revolution, various forms of traditional Chinese art, literature, music, film, fashion and architecture have seen a vigorous revival, and folk and variety art in particular have sparked interest nationally and even worldwide. Access to foreign media remains heavily restricted.

Architecture

Main articles: Chinese architecture and List of World Heritage Sites in China

Chinese architecture has developed over millennia in China and has remained a vestigial source of perennial influence on the development of East Asian architecture, including in Japan, Korea, and Mongolia. and minor influences on the architecture of Southeast and South Asia including the countries of Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and the Philippines.

Chinese architecture is characterized by bilateral symmetry, use of enclosed open spaces, feng shui (e.g. directional hierarchies), a horizontal emphasis, and an allusion to various cosmological, mythological or in general symbolic elements. Chinese architecture traditionally classifies structures according to type, ranging from pagodas to palaces.

Chinese architecture varies widely based on status or affiliation, such as whether the structures were constructed for emperors, commoners, or for religious purposes. Other variations in Chinese architecture are shown in vernacular styles associated with different geographic regions and different ethnic heritages, such as the stilt houses in the south, the Yaodong buildings in the northwest, the yurt buildings of nomadic people, and the Siheyuan buildings in the north.

Literature

Main article: Chinese literature
The stories in Journey to the West are common themes in Peking opera.

Chinese literature has its roots in the Zhou dynasty's literary tradition. The classical texts of China encompass a wide range of thoughts and subjects, such as the calendar, military, astrology, herbology, and geography, as well as many others. Among the most significant early works are the I Ching and the Shujing, which are part of the Four Books and Five Classics. These texts were the cornerstone of the Confucian curriculum sponsored by the state throughout the dynastic periods. Inherited from the Classic of Poetry, classical Chinese poetry developed to its floruit during the Tang dynasty. Li Bai and Du Fu opened the forking ways for the poetic circles through romanticism and realism respectively. Chinese historiography began with the Shiji, the overall scope of the historiographical tradition in China is termed the Twenty-Four Histories, which set a vast stage for Chinese fictions along with Chinese mythology and folklore. Pushed by a burgeoning citizen class in the Ming dynasty, Chinese classical fiction rose to a boom of the historical, town and gods and demons fictions as represented by the Four Great Classical Novels which include Water Margin, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Journey to the West and Dream of the Red Chamber. Along with the wuxia fictions of Jin Yong and Liang Yusheng, it remains an enduring source of popular culture in the Chinese sphere of influence.

In the wake of the New Culture Movement after the end of the Qing dynasty, Chinese literature embarked on a new era with written vernacular Chinese for ordinary citizens. Hu Shih and Lu Xun were pioneers in modern literature. Various literary genres, such as misty poetry, scar literature, young adult fiction and the xungen literature, which is influenced by magic realism, emerged following the Cultural Revolution. Mo Yan, a xungen literature author, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2012.

Music

Main articles: Music of China, C-pop, and Chinese opera

Chinese music covers a highly diverse range of music from traditional music to modern music. Chinese music dates back before the pre-imperial times. Traditional Chinese musical instruments were traditionally grouped into eight categories known as bayin (八音). Traditional Chinese opera is a form of musical theatre in China originating thousands of years and has regional style forms such as Beijing and Cantonese opera. Chinese pop (C-Pop) includes mandopop and cantopop. Chinese hip hop and Hong Kong hip hop have become popular.

Fashion

Main articles: Chinese clothing and Hanfu

Hanfu is the historical clothing of the Han people in China. The qipao or cheongsam is a popular Chinese female dress. The hanfu movement has been popular in contemporary times and seeks to revitalize Hanfu clothing. China Fashion Week is the country's only national-level fashion festival.

Cinema

Main article: Cinema of China

Cinema was first introduced to China in 1896 and the first Chinese film, Dingjun Mountain, was released in 1905. China has the largest number of movie screens in the world since 2016; China became the largest cinema market in 2020. The top three highest-grossing films in China as of 2023 were The Battle at Lake Changjin (2021), Wolf Warrior 2 (2017), and Hi, Mom (2021).

Cuisine

Main article: Chinese cuisine
Map showing major regional cuisines of China

Chinese cuisine is highly diverse, drawing on several millennia of culinary history and geographical variety, in which the most influential are known as the "Eight Major Cuisines", including Sichuan, Cantonese, Jiangsu, Shandong, Fujian, Hunan, Anhui, and Zhejiang cuisines. Chinese cuisine is known for its breadth of cooking methods and ingredients. China's staple food is rice in the northeast and south, and wheat-based breads and noodles in the north. Bean products such as tofu and soy milk remain a popular source of protein. Pork is now the most popular meat in China, accounting for about three-fourths of the country's total meat consumption. There is also the vegetarian Buddhist cuisine and the pork-free Chinese Islamic cuisine. Chinese cuisine, due to the area's proximity to the ocean and milder climate, has a wide variety of seafood and vegetables. Offshoots of Chinese food, such as Hong Kong cuisine and American Chinese cuisine, have emerged in the Chinese diaspora.

Sports

Main articles: Sport in China, China at the Olympics, and China at the Paralympics
Go is an abstract strategy board game for two players, in which the aim is to surround more territory than the opponent, and which was invented in China more than 2,500 years ago.

China has one of the oldest sporting cultures. There is evidence that archery (shèjiàn) was practiced during the Western Zhou dynasty. Swordplay (jiànshù) and cuju, a sport loosely related to association football date back to China's early dynasties as well.

Physical fitness is widely emphasized in Chinese culture, with morning exercises such as qigong and tai chi widely practiced, and commercial gyms and private fitness clubs are gaining popularity. Basketball is the most popular spectator sport in China. The Chinese Basketball Association and the American National Basketball Association also have a huge national following amongst the Chinese populace, with native-born and NBA-bound Chinese players and well-known national household names such as Yao Ming and Yi Jianlian being held in high esteem. China's professional football league, known as Chinese Super League, is the largest football market in East Asia. Other popular sports include martial arts, table tennis, badminton, swimming and snooker. China is home to a huge number of cyclists, with an estimated 470 million bicycles as of 2012. China has the world's largest esports market. Many more traditional sports, such as dragon boat racing, Mongolian-style wrestling and horse racing are also popular.

China has participated in the Olympic Games since 1932, although it has only participated as the PRC since 1952. China hosted the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, where its athletes received 48 gold medals – the highest number of any participating nation that year. China also won the most medals at the 2012 Summer Paralympics, with 231 overall, including 95 gold. In 2011, Shenzhen hosted the 2011 Summer Universiade. China hosted the 2013 East Asian Games in Tianjin and the 2014 Summer Youth Olympics in Nanjing, the first country to host both regular and Youth Olympics. Beijing and its nearby city Zhangjiakou collaboratively hosted the 2022 Winter Olympics, making Beijing the first dual Olympic city by holding both the Summer Olympics and the Winter Olympics. China hosted the Asian Games in 1990 (Beijing), 2010 (Guangzhou), and 2023 (Hangzhou).

See also

Notes

  1. The size of Chonqging Municipality is about that of the country of Austria. University of Washington professor Kam Wing Chan argued that Chongqing's status is more akin to that of a province rather than a city.
  2. Paramount leader of China, who holds the titles of:
  3. Chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference
  4. While not an upper house of the legislature, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference exists as an advisory body. However, much of the parliamentary functions are held by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress when ordinary congress is not in session.
  5. UN figure for mainland China, which excludes Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan. It also excludes the Trans-Karakoram Tract (5,180 km (2,000 sq mi)), Aksai Chin (38,000 km (15,000 sq mi)) and other territories in dispute with India. The total area of China is listed as 9,572,900 km (3,696,100 sq mi) by the Encyclopædia Britannica.
  6. GDP figures exclude Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau.
  7. The Hong Kong dollar is used in Hong Kong and Macau, while the Macanese pataca is used in Macau only.
  8. Chinese: 中国; pinyin: Zhōngguó
  9. Chinese: 中华人民共和国; pinyin: Zhōnghuá rénmín gònghéguó
  10. China's border with Pakistan is disputed by India, which claims the entire Kashmir region as its territory. China is tied with Russia as having the most land borders of any country.
  11. The total area ranking relative to the United States depends on the measurement of the total areas of both countries. See list of countries and dependencies by area for more information. The following two primary sources represent the range of estimates of China's and the United States' total areas.
    1. The Encyclopædia Britannica lists China as world's third-largest country (after Russia and Canada) with a total area of 9,572,900 km, and the United States as fourth-largest at 9,525,067 km.
    2. The CIA World Factbook lists China as the fourth-largest country (after Russia, Canada and the United States) with a total area of 9,596,960 km, and the United States as the third-largest at 9,833,517 km.
    Both sources exclude both Taiwan and coastal and territorial waters from the area of China. However, the CIA World Factbook includes the United States coastal and territorial waters, while Encyclopædia Britannica excludes them.
    Notably, the Encyclopædia Britannica specifies the United States' area (excluding coastal and territorial waters) as 9,525,067 km, which is less than either source's figure given for China's area. Therefore, it is unclear which country has a larger area including coastal and territorial waters.
    The United Nations Statistics Division's figure for the United States is 9,833,517 km (3,796,742 sq mi) and China is 9,596,961 km (3,705,407 sq mi). These closely match the CIA World Factbook figures and similarly include coastal and territorial waters for the United States, but exclude coastal and territorial waters for China.
  12. Excluding the disputed Taiwan Province. See § Administrative divisions.
  13. "... Next into this, is found the great China, whose king is thought to be the greatest prince in the world, and is named Santoa Raia".
  14. "... The Very Great Kingdom of China". (Portuguese: ... O Grande Reino da China ...).
  15. Its earliest extant use is on the ritual bronze vessel He zun, where it apparently refers to only the Shang's immediate demesne conquered by the Zhou.
  16. Its meaning "Zhou's royal demesne" is attested from the 6th-century BC Classic of History, which states "Huangtian bestowed the lands and the peoples of the central state to the ancestors" (皇天既付中國民越厥疆土于先王).
  17. Owing to Qin Shi Huang's earlier policy involving the "burning of books and burying of scholars", the destruction of the confiscated copies at Xianyang was an event similar to the destructions of the Library of Alexandria in the west. Even those texts that did survive had to be painstakingly reconstructed from memory, luck, or forgery. The Old Texts of the Five Classics were said to have been found hidden in a wall at the Kong residence in Qufu. Mei Ze's "rediscovered" edition of the Book of Documents was only shown to be a forgery in the Qing dynasty.
  18. According to the Encyclopædia Britannica, the total area of the United States, at 9,522,055 km (3,676,486 sq mi), is slightly smaller than that of China. Meanwhile, the CIA World Factbook states that China's total area was greater than that of the United States until the coastal waters of the Great Lakes was added to the United States' total area in 1996. From 1989 through 1996, the total area of US was listed as 9,372,610 km (3,618,780 sq mi) (land area plus inland water only). The listed total area changed to 9,629,091 km (3,717,813 sq mi) in 1997 (with the Great Lakes areas and the coastal waters added), to 9,631,418 km (3,718,711 sq mi) in 2004, to 9,631,420 km (3,718,710 sq mi) in 2006, and to 9,826,630 km (3,794,080 sq mi) in 2007 (territorial waters added).
  19. China's border with Pakistan and part of its border with India falls in the disputed region of Kashmir. The area under Pakistani administration is claimed by India, while the area under Indian administration is claimed by Pakistan.
  20. The People's Republic of China claims the islands of Taiwan and Penghu, which it does not control, as its disputed 23rd province, i.e. Taiwan Province; along with Kinmen and Matsu Islands as part of Fujian Province. These are controlled by the Taipei-based Republic of China (ROC). See § Administrative divisions for more details.
  21. Some of the chips used were not domestically developed until Sunway TaihuLight in 2016. China has not submitted newer entries to TOP500 amid tensions with the United States.
  22. The national life expectancy at birth rose from about 31 years in 1949 to 75 years in 2008, and infant mortality decreased from 300 per thousand in the 1950s to around 33 per thousand in 2001.

References

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Sources

 This article incorporates text from a free content work. Licensed under CC BY-SA IGO 3.0 (license statement/permission). Text taken from World Food and Agriculture – Statistical Yearbook 2023​, FAO, FAO.

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