| Revision as of 20:09, 31 July 2002 view sourceMav (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users77,874 edits - self link← Previous edit | Revision as of 23:27, 31 July 2002 view source Jeronimo (talk | contribs)8,556 edits fix redirectNext edit → | ||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
| #REDIRECT ] | |||
| ] | |||
| '''China''' (in simplified Chinese 中国) is a country with a 5,000-year-old civilization in Eastern ]. The name of the government which administrates the Mainland is the ], while ] is administered by the ]. The ] between the ] and the ] ended with the Communist in control of Mainland China in ] | |||
| From that time, a government controlled by the Chinese Communist Party has ruled which while still nominally ] has gradually moved toward both personal and economic freedom while maintaining elements of ] with regard to ] and ] and ] minorities, especially the ] and ]. | |||
| Following the civil war the Kuomintang fled to ] where with the support of the ] they ruled under the name Republic of China and was recognized as | |||
| the legitimate government of China by the ] and many Western government until the 1970's. In the 1970's, most major governments switched recognition to the | |||
| People's Republic of China. The status of Taiwan is still quite controversial. | |||
| For millenia China stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in many areas of the arts and sciences. But in the first half of the ], the country was beset by major famines, civil unrest, military defeats, and foreign occupation. After ], the Communists led by ] established a dictatorship that, while ensuring China's sovereignty, imposed strict controls over everyday life and cost the lives of tens of millions of people. After ], Mao's successor ] committed China to a program of ]. Output quadrupled in the next 20 years and China now has the world's second largest ] when measured at ]. Political controls remain tight despite China's commitment to economic reform. | |||
| The capital is ]. | |||
| China is known by native people as Zhong1 Guo2 (中國 or 中国 in simplified Chinese) or Zhong1 Hua2 (中華), and in ancient Chinese literature Hua2 Xia4 (華夏) where Xia refers to the ] in 2205-1766 BC. | |||
| The origins of the English word "China" are unclear; according to ], the word is based on a ] word chInI which refers to a type of fine ] from China. The porcelain is called ci2 (瓷 pronounced ''chee'') in Chinese which might be the root of the Persian word. The word '''china''' (in lower case) refers to the porcelain. Apparently, the English named the countries after the porcelain. | |||
| According to ], the word is based on a ] word ''China'' which refers to ] or Ch'in dynasty (秦 255-204 BC). | |||
| <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> | |||
| See also ], ] (]) ], ], ]. ], ]. | |||
| '''External References''' | |||
| * | |||
| ] | |||
| <i>From the ] 2000 and the U.S. Department of State website. Partially Wikified.</i> | |||
| ] | |||
| <i>From the ] 2000 and the U.S. Department of State website. Partially Wikified.</i> | |||
| Information on the Mainland China. | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| Information on Taiwan: | |||
| The status of Taiwan is controversial. In addition, it can be confusing | |||
| because of the different parties and the effort by many groups to deal | |||
| with the controversial through a policy | |||
| of deliberate ambiguity. The current position of the People's Republic | |||
| of China is that Taiwan is part of China and the PRC is the sole legitimate | |||
| government of China. The position of supporters of ] | |||
| is that Taiwan is not part of China and the PRC is the sole legitimate | |||
| government of China. The position of supporters of ] on Taiwan is that Taiwan is part of China but the PRC is not the sole | |||
| legitimate government of China. | |||
| The positions of the current government on Taiwan is deliberately ambigious. | |||
| Until 1991, the government on Taiwan maintained that it was | |||
| the sole legitimate government of China, but it currently does not take | |||
| this position. | |||
| The government has styled itself the Republic of China and claims that | |||
| it does not challenge the rule of the PRC on the Mainland. The government | |||
| has been deliberately silent as to the issue of whether Taiwan is or is | |||
| not part of China and the meaning of the term China. | |||
| The positions of other countries and international organizations is also | |||
| ambigious. The PRC refuses to maintain diplomatic relations | |||
| with any nation that recognizes the government in Taipei, and most nations | |||
| have diplomatic relations with Beijing while maintaining offices in Taipei | |||
| that are diplomatic in all but name. Most major countries have policies | |||
| toward this issue that use very careful language which is deliberately ambigious. | |||
| International organizations also have different policies toward this issue. | |||
| In some cases (such as United Nations organizations) Taiwan has been | |||
| completely shut out while in others, such as the ] | |||
| Taiwan is a member sometimes under a special name. | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
Revision as of 23:27, 31 July 2002
Redirect to: