{{Short description|Country in East Asia}}
{{hatnote|Several terms redirect here. For the present-day Republic of China, see [[Taiwan]]. For 中国 in Japan, see [[Chūgoku region]]. For other uses, see [[China (disambiguation)]] and [[PRC (disambiguation)]].}}
{{good article}}
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{{Use American English|date=December 2021}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2026}}
{{Infobox country
| conventional_long_name = People's Republic of China
| common_name = China
| native_name = {{lang|zh-Hans-CN|中华人民共和国|italic=no}}
{{tlit|zh|Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó}}
| image_flag = Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg
| image_coat = 中華人民共和國國徽.svg
| symbol_type = [[National Emblem of China|Emblem]]
| national_anthem =
{{nowrap|{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|义勇军进行曲}}}}
{{transliteration|zh|Yìyǒngjūn jìnxíngqǔ}}
"[[March of the Volunteers]]"{{pb}}[[File:March of the Volunteers instrumental.ogg]]
| image_map = CHN orthographic.svg
| map_width = 250px
| alt_map = An orthographic map with the People's Republic of China highlighted in green, with the disputed areas of Taiwan, as well as the disputed areas along Indian border, highlighted in light green.
| map_caption = {{Legend|#336830|People's Republic of China}}{{Legend|#61E760|[[Territorial disputes of China|Territory claimed but not controlled]]}}
| capital = [[Beijing]]
| coordinates = {{Coord|39|55|N|116|23|E|type:city(21,000,000)_region:CN-BJ}}
| largest_settlement = [[Shanghai]]
| largest_settlement_type = city {{normal|by [[List of cities in China by population|urban population]]}}
| admin_center_type = Largest city {{normal|by municipal population}}
| admin_center = [[Chongqing]]
| languages_type = Official language
| languages = [[Standard Chinese]][{{cite web |website=[[Ministry of Education (China)|Ministry of Education]] |title=Law on the Standard Spoken and Written Chinese Language of the People's Republic of China |date=21 July 2009 |url=http://en.moe.gov.cn/Resources/Laws_and_Policies/201506/t20150626_191388.html |access-date=15 June 2026 |archive-date=7 August 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260807194237/http://en.moe.gov.cn/Resources/Laws_and_Policies/201506/t20150626_191388.html |url-status=live }}]
| languages2_type = [[Official script]]
| languages2_sub = yes
| languages2 = [[Simplified Chinese]] ([[Mainland China|Mainland]])
[[Traditional Chinese]] ([[Hong Kong]], [[Macau]])
| ethnic_groups = {{ubl|item_style=white-space:nowrap|91.11% [[Han Chinese]]|1.39% [[Zhuang people|Zhuang]]|0.84% [[Uyghur people|Uyghur]]|0.81% [[Hui people|Hui]]|0.79% [[Miao people|Miao]]|0.74% [[Manchu people|Manchu]]|0.70% [[Yi people|Yi]]|0.68% [[Tujia people|Tujia]]|0.50% [[Tibetan people|Tibetan]]|2.44% [[List of ethnic groups in China|others]]}}
| ethnic_groups_year = 2020
| ethnic_groups_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=[[National Bureau of Statistics of China]]}}]
| demonym = {{hlist|[[Chinese people|Chinese]]|[[Names of China|others]]}}
| government_type = Unitary [[communist state]]
| leader_title1 = [[CCP General Secretary]] and [[President of China|President]]{{efn|Xi is the [[paramount leader]] of China, and holds the titles of [[General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party]] (since 2012), [[President of China]] (since 2013), and [[Chairman of the Central Military Commission (China)|Chairman of the Central Military Commission]] (since 2012).{{sfn|Joseph|2024|p=597}}{{sfn|Chan|2024|p=141}}}}
| leader_name1 = [[Xi Jinping]]
| leader_title2 = [[Premier of China|Premier]]
| leader_name2 = [[Li Qiang]]
| leader_title3 = [[Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress|Congress Chairman]]
| leader_name3 = [[Zhao Leji]]
| leader_title4 = [[Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference|Conference Chairman]]
| leader_name4 = [[Wang Huning]]
| legislature = [[National People's Congress]]
| sovereignty_type = Formation
| established_event1 = [[Qin dynasty|First imperial dynasty]]
| established_date1 = 221 BCE
| established_event2 = [[1911 Revolution|Establishment of the Republic of China]]
| established_date2 = 1 January 1912
| established_event4 = [[Proclamation of the People's Republic of China|Proclamation of the People's Republic]]
| 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.[{{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 |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 |website=[[United Nations Statistics Division]]}}] It also excludes the [[Trans-Karakoram Tract]] ({{cvt|5180|km2|disp=or}}), [[Aksai Chin]] ({{cvt|38000|km2|disp=or}}) and other territories in dispute with India. The total area of China is listed as {{cvt|9572900|km2}} by the ''[[Encyclopædia 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}}]}}[{{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]]}}]
| area_rank = 3rd
| area_sq_mi = 3,705,407
| percent_water = 2.8[{{cite web |title=National Economy 10: Total Population Went Down and Urbanization Rate Continued to Grow |url=https://www.stats.gov.cn/english/PressRelease/202601/t20260119_1962328.html |publisher=[[National Bureau of Statistics of China]] (NBSC) |website=[[National Bureau of Statistics of China]] |date=19 January 2026 |access-date=19 January 2026 |archive-date=2 May 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260502233313/https://www.stats.gov.cn/english/PressRelease/202601/t20260119_1962328.html |url-status=live }}]
| population_estimate_year = 2025
| population_estimate_rank = 2nd
| population_census_year = 2020
| population_census_rank = 2nd
| population_density_km2 = {{#expr: 1404890000/9596961 round 0}}
| population_density_sq_mi = {{#expr: 1408280000/3705407 round 0}}
| population_density_rank = 83rd
| GDP_PPP = {{increase}} $44.295 trillion{{efn|GDP figures exclude Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau.}}[{{cite web |url=https://data.imf.org/en/Data-Explorer?datasetUrn=IMF.RES:WEO(9.0.0) |title=World Economic Outlook Database (April 2026 Edition) |website=[[International Monetary Fund]] |date=14 April 2026 |access-date=18 April 2026 |archive-date=11 December 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251211224052/https://data.imf.org/en/Data-Explorer?datasetUrn=IMF.RES:WEO(9.0.0) |url-status=live }}]
| GDP_PPP_year = 2026
| GDP_PPP_rank = 1st
| GDP_PPP_per_capita = {{increase}} $31,596[{{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 Group|World Bank]]}}]
| HDI = 0.797
| HDI_year = 2023
| HDI_change = increase
| HDI_ref = [{{Cite report |date=6 May 2025 |title=Human Development Report 2025 |url=https://hdr.undp.org/system/files/documents/global-report-document/hdr2025reporten.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250506051232/https://hdr.undp.org/system/files/documents/global-report-document/hdr2025reporten.pdf |archive-date=6 May 2025 |access-date=6 May 2025 |page=280 |publisher=[[United Nations Development Programme]] |language=en}}]
| HDI_rank = 78th
| currency = [[Renminbi]] (yuan, 元/¥){{efn|The [[Hong Kong dollar]] is used in Hong Kong and Macau, while the [[Macanese pataca]] is used in Macau only.}}
| currency_code = CNY
| time_zone = [[Time in China|CST]]
| utc_offset = [[UTC+08:00|+8]]
| calling_code = {{ubl|[[+86]] (Mainland)|[[+852]] (Hong Kong)|[[+853]] (Macau)}}
| cctld = {{hlist|[[.cn]]|[[.中国]]|[[.中國]] (Mainland)}}{{hlist|[[.hk]]|[[.香港]] (Hong Kong)}}{{hlist|[[.mo]]|[[.澳门]]|[[.澳門]] (Macau)}}
}}
'''China''',{{efn|{{lang-zh|s=中国|p=Zhōngguó}}}} officially the '''People's Republic of China''' ('''PRC'''),{{efn|{{lang-zh|s=中华人民共和国|p=Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó}}}} is a country in [[East Asia]]. It is divided into 33 [[Province-level divisions of China|province-level divisions]], including two [[Special administrative regions of China|special administrative regions]].{{Efn|Not including the ''de jure'' [[Taiwan (People's Republic of China province)|Taiwan Province]], controlled by the [[Republic of China]].{{sfn|Zhao|2023|p=46}}|group=lower-alpha}} [[Beijing]] is the capital, while [[Shanghai]] is the [[List of cities in China by population|most populous city by urban area]]. Its geography features the [[Zhongyuan|Central Plain]], major rivers such as the [[Yangtze]] and [[Yellow River]], deserts, [[subtropical]] and temperate forests, plateaus, and [[mountain range]]s such as the [[Himalayas]]. It is the [[list of countries by population (United Nations)|world's second-most populous country]] after [[India]], with [[population of China|a population]] exceeding 1.4 billion (17% of the world's population). Covering {{Convert|9.6|e6sqkm|sqmi|sp=us}}, it is the [[list of countries and dependencies by area|third largest country by area]].{{efn|name=area|The total area ranking relative to the [[United States]] depends on the measurement of total areas. See [[list of countries and dependencies by area]] for information. The following two primary sources represent the range of estimates of China's and the United States' total areas.
# The ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]'' lists China as the third-largest country (after Russia and Canada) with a total area of 9,572,900 km{{Sup|2}}.[{{Cite web |title=United States |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/United-States |access-date=2017-12-04 |website=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150528012641/https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/616563/United-States |archive-date=2015-05-28 |url-status=live |language=en}}]}}
Humans first arrived in China during the [[Paleolithic]]. During the 2nd millennium BCE, [[Dynasties in Chinese history|dynastic states]] emerged. In 221 BCE, China was unified under the [[Qin dynasty|Qin]], followed by the [[Han dynasty]], ushering in two millennia of imperial rule across periods of unity and division. The imperial era saw the expansion of the [[Silk Road]] and the invention of [[invention of gunpowder|gunpowder]], [[History of paper#Paper in China|paper]], [[printing]], and the [[compass]]. After increased Western political, economic, and philosophical influence, the empire was succeeded by the [[Republic of China (1912–1949)|Republic of China]] (ROC) after the [[1911 Revolution]]. The [[Warlord Era]] and [[Chinese Civil War]] followed, interrupted by the [[Second Sino-Japanese War]], which ended in a Chinese victory. In 1949, the [[Chinese Communist Party]] (CCP) [[proclamation of the People's Republic of China|proclaimed the PRC]] and the [[Retreat of the government of the Republic of China to Taiwan|ROC retreated to Taiwan]]. Both sides still claim political legitimacy. CCP attempts to advance [[communism]] faltered through [[Great Chinese Famine|famine]] and political turmoil. The [[reform and opening up|reform and opening-up]] that began in 1978 moved China towards a [[socialist market economy]], spurring economic growth.
China is a [[unitary state]] with the CCP as its [[One-party state|sole ruling party]]. It is one of the five [[Permanent members of the United Nations Security Council|permanent members]] of the [[UN Security Council]] and a member of [[International organization membership of China|many multilateral organizations]]. China is the world's [[List of countries by manufacturing output|largest manufacturer]] and has the [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|second-largest economy by nominal GDP]]. International organizations have criticized China, alleging authoritarianism and [[Human rights in China|human rights abuses]]. Possessing [[People's Liberation Army|a large military]], [[Chinese space program|space program]], and [[Nuclear weapons of China|nuclear stockpile]], China has been described as a [[superpower]] due to its influence in geopolitics, [[Science and technology in China|science and technology]], [[Industry in China|manufacturing]], [[Economy of China|economics]], and [[Chinese culture|culture]].
[[Chinese art]] and culture have [[Sinosphere|influenced much of Asia]], with [[Chinese literature|a literary tradition]] dating back millennia to the [[Chinese classics]]. China is the birthplace of [[Confucianism]] and [[Daoism]], which form the traditional [[three teachings]] of [[Chinese philosophy]] and [[Chinese folk religion|folk religion]] alongside [[Buddhism]]. [[Chinese cuisine]] is diverse and highly regional, with rice as a staple in the south and wheat in the north. It has [[List of World Heritage Sites in China|60 World Heritage Sites]], including the [[Great Wall of China|Great Wall]] and [[Grand Canal (China)|Grand Canal]]. The [[Han Chinese|Han]], speakers of [[Sinitic languages]], are China's dominant ethnicity, although it is home to [[List of ethnic groups in China|55 recognized minorities]], including the [[Hui people|Hui]], [[Mongols]], [[Tibetans]], [[Uyghurs]], and [[Zhuang people|Zhuang]].
{{TOClimit|3}}
== Etymology ==
{{Main|Names of China}}
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 language|Portuguese]], [[Malay language|Malay]], and [[Persian language|Persian]] back to the [[Sanskrit]] word {{transliteration|sa|Cīna}} ({{Lang|sa|चिन}}), used in [[ancient India]].[{{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 Online]]}}] {{transliteration|sa|Cīna}} was first used in early [[Hinduism|Hindu]] scriptures dating from the 3rd century BCE to 4th century CE, including the ''[[Mahabharata]]'' and the ''[[Manusmriti|Laws of Manu]]''. In 1655, the missionary [[Martino Martini]] suggested that the word China is derived ultimately from the ancient state of [[Qin (state)|Qin]].{{sfn|Wade|2009|p=20}} This remains a common etymology.{{sfn|Wade|2009|p=20}}{{sfn|Bodde|1986|p=20}} Another possible source is the ancient [[Guizhou]] polity of [[Yelang]], known as {{Lang|ii|ʐina}} in [[Loloish languages]].{{sfn|Wade|2009|p=20}}
The official name of the modern state is the "People's Republic of China" ({{lang-zh|s=中华人民共和国|p=Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó|labels=no}}).{{Sfn|da Graça|2000|p=224}} The shorter form of this name is {{lang-zh|s=中国|p=Zhōngguó|labels=no}}, from {{transliteration|zh|zhōng}} ('central' or 'middle') and {{transliteration|zh|guó}} ('state'), a term first used for the [[Crown land|demesne]] of the [[Western Zhou]] dynasty.{{efn|An early use is on the [[ritual bronze]] vessel [[He zun]], where it apparently refers to only the [[Shang dynasty|Shang]]'s immediate demesne conquered by the [[Zhou dynasty|Zhou]].{{sfn|Chen|2004|p=198}}}}{{Sfn|Chen|2004|p=198}}{{Sfn|Wilkinson|2012|pp=191–193}} The names of ruling imperial dynasties were typically used to refer to the state and its territories. In the 1800s, {{Lang-zh|p=Zhongguo|labels=no}} was officially adopted as the name of the country by the [[Qing dynasty]].{{Sfn|Wilkinson|2012|pp=191–193}}
== History ==
{{Main|History of China}}
{{For timeline|Timeline of Chinese history}}
=== Prehistory ===
{{Main|Prehistory of China}}
Evidence of early humans such as ''[[Homo erectus]]'' in China dates to the [[Paleolithic]], around 1.7 million years ago, with unconfirmed sites as old as 2 million years ago. Modern ''[[Homo sapiens]]'' are attested from around 50,000 years ago.{{Sfn|Shelach-Lavi|2015|pp=21, 37–39}} Following the end of the [[Last Glacial Period]], in about 8,000 BCE, pottery-making [[Neolithic]] cultures emerged. By the 6000s BCE, sedentary agricultural societies had spread across the lower [[Yellow River]] basin.{{Sfn|Wilkinson|2012|p=662}}{{Sfn|Shelach-Lavi|2015|p=50}} These societies became increasingly complex, urbanized, and stratified,{{Sfn|Shelach-Lavi|2015|p=127}} but many experienced a population collapse in the late 2000s BCE for unclear reasons.{{Sfn|Shelach-Lavi|2015|pp=164–167}}
=== Ancient China ===
[[File:MET DP219959.jpg|alt=A set of bronze ritual vessels arranged in a museum display|thumb|A set of [[Western Zhou]]-era [[Chinese ritual bronzes|ritual bronzes]], {{Circa|1000}} BCE]]
After 2000 BCE, a [[Bronze Age]] culture emerged in the [[Zhongyuan|Central Plain]], dubbed the [[Erlitou culture]] after its [[Erlitou|main site]]. Erlitou has been controversially identified with the [[Xia dynasty|Xia]], the traditionally-accepted first [[Dynasties of China|dynasty]], but no written records exist to confirm this.{{Sfn|Shelach-Lavi|2015|pp=162–167}}{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=22–23}}{{Sfn|Wilkinson|2012|pp=678–679}} The [[Shang dynasty]] purportedly succeeded the Xia around 1600 BCE, with its early stages tentatively identified with an expansionist state known archaeologically as the [[Erligang culture]].{{Sfn|Shelach-Lavi|2015|p=196–198}} The historicity of the [[Late Shang]] is attested through divinational writings in the [[oracle bone script]]. These are the earliest known form of writing in China and the ancestor of modern [[Chinese characters]].{{Sfn|Puett|2016|pp=94–95}}{{Sfn|Idema|Haft|1997|p=12}}
The Shang were overthrown by the [[Zhou dynasty|Zhou]] {{Circa|1046 BCE}}. The Zhou ruled over a vast and loose confederation of vassal states across central China, which was gradually weakened by regional lords.{{Sfn|Shelach-Lavi|2015|pp=264–266}} Centralized authority collapsed in 771 BCE, giving way to constant regional warfare. During the [[Eastern Zhou]], the multitude of small polities of the [[Spring and Autumn period]] evolved into seven territorial [[Warring States period|Warring States]].{{Sfn|Shelach-Lavi|2015|pp=266–267}}{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=38–39}} Literary and philosophical developments of this period include the emergence of various schools of thought, such as [[Confucianism]], [[Daoism]], [[Mohism]], and [[Legalism (Chinese philosophy)|Legalism]], alongside [[Chinese classics]] like the Confucian ''[[Analects]]'' and the Daoist ''[[Tao Te Ching|Dao De Jing]]''.{{Sfn|Idema|Haft|1997|p=26}}{{Sfn|Holcombe|2017|pp=36, 40–41}}
=== Imperial China ===
{{further|Chinese Empire|}}
==== Classical period ====
[[File:Terracotta Army (6143564816).jpg|alt=A group of the Terracotta Warriors standing in an archaeological dig site|thumb|Soldier statues of the [[Terracotta Army]], buried alongside [[Qin Shi Huang]] {{Circa|210 BCE}}]]
In the 220s BCE, [[Qin (state)|Qin]] rapidly conquered the other warring states. In 221, its ruler [[Qin Shi Huang]] proclaimed himself the first [[Emperor of China|emperor]] ({{Lang-zh|c=皇帝|p=Huángdì|labels=no}}) and founded the [[Qin dynasty]].{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=60–61}}{{Sfn|Bodde|1986|pp=40, 53–55}} He led an [[Autocracy|autocratic]] Legalist state organized in a system of [[Commandery (China)|commanderies]] and [[County (China)|counties]]. The dynasty lasted only fifteen years, falling soon after his death from [[Chu–Han Contention|revolts and civil war]].{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=61–63}}{{Sfn|Bodde|1986|pp=54–56}}
After the collapse, the [[Han dynasty]] emerged to rule China between 206 BCE and 220 CE.{{Efn|Although 206 BCE is the generally accepted date for the founding of the dynasty, as it was when founding emperor [[Liu Bang]] became the King of Han, he did not declare himself emperor until 202 BCE, after the [[Chu–Han Contention]]. Han rule was interrupted by the usurper emperor [[Wang Mang]], who ruled from 9 CE to 23 CE.{{sfn|Wilkinson|2012|p=704}}|group=lower-alpha}}{{sfn|Wilkinson|2012|p=704}} The Han gradually reinstated centralized control, legitimizing their rule through Confucian scholarship and political institutions which would be maintained in some form into the 20th century.{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=24–28, 36}}{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=64–66}} Military expeditions against the [[Xiongnu]], a confederation of nomadic [[Eurasian Steppe|steppe]] tribes, expanded Han influence into parts of [[Central Asia]] and helped to establish the [[Silk Road]], allowing for trade connections between China and western Eurasia. Contemporaneously, merchants established [[Maritime Silk Road|maritime trade routes]] linking China, [[Southeast Asia]], and [[India]].{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=24–28}}{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=68–70}} The dynasty is the namesake of the [[Han Chinese]], China's main ethnic group.{{Sfn|Holcombe|2017|p=50}}
The Han faced widespread uprisings and the emergence of local warlords in the 100s and 200s CE.{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|p=84}} By 220, the empire was split into the [[Three Kingdoms]].{{sfn|Holcombe|2017|pp=56–58}} These were briefly united by the [[Jin dynasty (266–420)|Jin dynasty]] in 280, which fell into civil war. [[Sinicization|Sinicized]] formerly-nomadic peoples who had settled in Northern China, such as the Xiongnu, rebelled and [[Sixteen Kingdoms|founded new dynasties]].{{Sfn|Holcombe|2017|pp=60–63}}{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=37–38}} [[Northern_and_Southern_dynasties#Southern_dynasties|Various Han Chinese dynasties in Southern China]] emerged in the 300s.{{Sfn|Holcombe|2017|pp=63–65}} During these conflicts, [[Buddhism]] was introduced to China via the Silk Road.{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=96–98}}{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=42–45}}
==== Mid-imperial period ====
China was reunited under the [[Sui dynasty]] in 589,{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=90–94, 108}} which constructed the [[Grand Canal (China)|Grand Canal]] to link Northern and Southern China.{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=114–116}} The Sui collapsed in the 610s, and was succeeded by the [[Tang dynasty|Tang]]. The Tang dynasty centralized the state and dispatched military expeditions to pacify the surrounding regions. It promoted [[Chinese Buddhism|Buddhism]], but through expanding international trade built a heavily cosmopolitan society centered on its capital of [[Chang'an]].{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=52–56}} It reformed the [[Imperial examination|civil service examinations]] and oversaw a flourishing of art, poetry, architecture, and scholarship.{{Sfn|Sullivan|1984|pp=114–117}}{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=112, 120–121}}{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|p=63}} The 755–763 [[An Lushan rebellion]] weakened the Tang, which gradually fragmented before collapsing completely in 907, resulting in [[Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period|another period of war and division]].{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=127–130, 136}}{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=66–67}}
[[File:清明上河图.jpg|alt=A section of a Song dynasty painting showing a boat nearly crashing into a bridge|thumb|Section from the [[Song dynasty|Song]]-era landscape painting, ''[[Along the River During the Qingming Festival]]'', early 1100s]]
The [[Song dynasty]] rose to power in 960. It faced military crises, unable to subdue its Sinicized non-Han neighbors, the [[Khitan people|Khitan]]-led [[Liao dynasty]] and the [[Tangut people|Tangut]]-led [[Western Xia]]. The Song's consistent focus on defense resulted in a heavily centralized state and military, which made the first military application of [[gunpowder]].{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=136–138}}{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=67–69}} Books became widely available by the proliferation of [[printing]] technology,{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|p=152}} while the elite class of [[scholar-official]]s grew increasingly powerful.{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|p=149}} Production, population, and trade expanded massively, alongside innovations such as industrial [[metallurgy]] and [[hydraulic machinery]].{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=141–144}} The Song capital [[Kaifeng]] was overrun by the [[Jurchen people|Jurchen]]-led [[Jin dynasty (1115–1234)|Jin]] in 1127, forcing the Song to retreat to Southern China. During this period, the revivalist philosophical movement of [[Neo-Confucianism]] emerged.{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=73–74}}
==== Late imperial period ====
[[File:Great Wall of China at Jinshanling 11.jpg|thumb|A [[Ming dynasty]] section of the [[Great Wall of China]]]]
In 1206, [[Genghis Khan]] united the nomadic [[Mongols]] to the north under the [[Mongol Empire]]. Over the following fifty years, they [[Mongol conquest of Western Xia|conquered the Western Xia]] and [[Mongol conquest of the Jin dynasty|the Jin]], in addition to [[Mongol conquests|their other conquests]] as far west as Europe. [[Division of the Mongol Empire|The empire split]] into separate khanates, with Mongol leader [[Kublai Khan]] establishing the [[Yuan dynasty]] and [[Mongol conquest of the Song dynasty|subjugating the Song]] in the 1270s.{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=79–81}}{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|p=169}} Although Chinese culture remained largely unchanged, the Yuan maintained a Mongol elite culture and established a complex ethnic and occupational hierarchy. Foreign presence increased as China became more connected to Eurasian trade routes.{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=173–176, 183}}
In the 1340s, central China was devastated by disease, famine, and severe flooding along the Yellow River. [[Red Turban Rebellions|Various rebellions erupted]], leading to a peasant leader establishing the [[Ming dynasty]] in 1368 and declaring himself the [[Hongwu Emperor]].{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=83–86}}{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=190–191}} The Ming later moved their capital from [[Nanjing]] to [[Beijing]], with the [[Forbidden City]] as the imperial palace. However, the lower Yangtze remained the wealthiest region. Trade grew, and the [[European colonization of the Americas]] brought new crops and a massive influx of silver to China.{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=87–91}} The population doubled, and a growing publishing industry began producing works in [[Written vernacular Chinese|vernacular Chinese]], including the [[Classic Chinese Novels|Four Classic Novels]].{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=91–92}}
The Ming state declined, and by the 1600s, became unable to contain [[Late Ming peasant rebellions|peasant rebellions]]. The [[Manchu people|Manchus]] to the north declared the [[Qing dynasty]] in 1636 and [[Transition from Ming to Qing|conquered the Ming]],{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=94–96}} killing their last claimant emperor in 1662 and conquering a [[Kingdom of Tungning|Ming rump state on Taiwan]] in 1683.{{Sfn|Rowe|2009|pp=25–27}} From the late 1600s to the end of the 1700s, the [[High Qing era]] saw economic growth and territorial expansion westward, including the [[Chinese expedition to Tibet (1720)|conquest of Tibet]] and much of [[Central Asia]].{{Sfn|Rowe|2009|pp=97–100}}{{Sfn|Rowe|2009|p=63}}{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|p=227}}
[[File:View of Canton factories.jpg|alt=An oil painting of European and Chinese ships docked at a trading port|thumb|1805 painting of the [[Thirteen Factories|European factories]] in [[Guangzhou]] (Canton)]]European powers fought various wars against the Qing dynasty during the 19th century. These began with the United Kingdom's [[First Opium War]] in 1839–1842,{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|p=236}}{{Sfn|Rowe|2009|pp=170–172}} which resulted in the first of the "[[unequal treaties]]" imposed on the dynasty. These opened [[treaty ports]], allowed Christian missionary activity, and loosened trade restrictions.{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|p=240}} China faced an economic crisis and internal unrest, and uprisings such as the 1850–1864 [[Taiping Rebellion]] resulted in the deaths of millions.{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=106–107}}{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|p=243}} Reformist factions of the Qing responded with the [[Self-Strengthening Movement]], seeking to adopt western weapons and technologies, but this had a limited impact for much of the empire.{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|p=108}}
The [[Empire of Japan]]'s defeat of the Qing in the [[First Sino-Japanese War]] (1894–1895) resulted in the loss of [[Taiwan Prefecture|Taiwan]] and the growth of both reformist and revolutionary political movements. An [[Hundred Days' Reform|imperial push for reform]] in 1898 ended after an internal coup, while the anti-foreign [[Boxer Rebellion]] was defeated by a [[Eight-Nation Alliance|coalition of foreign powers]] in 1901. The late Qing dynasty again [[Late Qing reforms|advanced reforms]], but growing revolutionary and anti-Manchu sentiment culminated in the [[1911 Revolution]]. A coalition of revolutionaries led by [[Sun Yat-sen]] overthrew the Qing and declared the [[Republic of China (1912–1949)|Republic of China]] (ROC) in 1912.{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=111–115}}{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|p=265}}
=== Republic of China ===
{{Main|Republic of China (1912–1949)}}[[File:Shanghai Bund seen from the French Concession.jpg|alt=A black and white postcard showing the Shanghai Bund, with streetcars and European-style buildings|thumb|[[The Bund|The Shanghai Bund]], {{Circa|1934}}]]President [[Yuan Shikai]] rose to power in 1912 and crushed his main opposition, the [[Kuomintang]], ruling China as a dictator until his death in 1916, following an abortive attempt to restore the monarchy. During the [[Warlord Era]], feuding regional warlords and governors took power across China, while Tibet and [[Mongolia]] declared independence. The nominal republican government had little control outside Beijing. During this period, [[New Culture Movement|New Culture]] intellectuals and students criticized traditional society. A crackdown on a student protest in 1919 led to the [[May Fourth Movement]] and further agitation by intellectuals for a cultural and political upheaval, with many embracing Western political ideas such as [[communism]].{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=115–118}}{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=267–272}}[[File:1945 Mao and Chiang.jpg|thumb|[[Mao Zedong]] and [[Chiang Kai-shek]] toasting together in 1945 following the [[End of World War II in Asia|end of World War II]]]]In the mid-1920s, the Kuomintang [[First United Front|allied]] with the nascent [[Chinese Communist Party]] (CCP), and partially reunified China under [[Chiang Kai-shek]]'s leadership. Starting with the [[Shanghai massacre]] in 1927, the Kuomintang violently purged the CCP and gained the allegiance of the northern warlords, establishing a new government at Nanjing.{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=120–122}} The CCP was driven into the countryside and [[White Terror (China)|repressed]], but subsequently [[Long March|regrouped in the northwest]].{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|p=275}}{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=127–128}}
Japan [[Japanese invasion of Manchuria|occupied Manchuria]] in 1931, and launched an [[Second Sino-Japanese War|invasion of the rest of China]] in 1937. A [[Second United Front|renewed coalition]] between the CCP and Kuomintang fought Japan in what became a theater of [[World War II]], as Japanese forces committed numerous [[Japanese war crimes|war atrocities]] against the civilian population and occupied most of China's major cities.{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=129–130}}{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|p=285}}{{Sfn|Zarrow|2006|p=295}} After the [[surrender of Japan]] in 1945, China became a founding member of the [[United Nations]] and regained control over Manchuria and Taiwan. The [[Chinese Civil War|civil war]] between the CCP and the Kuomintang resumed the following year.{{Sfn|Zarrow|2006|p=|pp=296–298}}
=== People's Republic of China ===
{{Main|History of the People's Republic of China}}
After a string of military victories, CCP chairman [[Mao Zedong]] formally [[Proclamation of the People's Republic of China|proclaimed the People's Republic of China]] (PRC) in 1949. The ROC government [[Retreat of the government of the Republic of China to Taiwan|retreated to Taiwan]] and continued to claim legitimacy.{{Sfn|Spence|2013|pp=456–459}} The following year, the PRC [[Annexation of Tibet by the People's Republic of China|occupied and annexed Tibet]].{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|p=303}} The PRC, which the CCP described as a "[[people's democratic dictatorship]]", enacted many reforms: it restructured the economy under state control, promoted literacy and gender equality, and expanded heavy industry. The [[Land Reform Movement]], in which the state encouraged and organized peasant violence against landlords, leading to the death of upwards of a million people, had begun in northern China during the civil war and extended to most of the rest of China between 1950 and 1952. It distributed landlord land to the peasants as private property, but it was soon followed by collectivization of the land.{{Sfn|Spence|2013|p=464}}{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=294–298}}{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|p=139}}
[[File:Big- character Posters in Peking 1976 (25673509518).jpg|alt=A group of pedestrians and cyclists by a large poster with Chinese political writing, alongside a portrait of Mao Zedong and a Chinese flag|thumb|A [[big-character poster]] and portrait of [[Mao Zedong]] in Beijing during the [[Cultural Revolution]], 1976]]In 1958, Mao launched the [[Great Leap Forward]], a mass industrialization project which resulted in the [[Great Chinese Famine]] and millions of deaths. As the [[Cold War]] deepened, China [[Sino-Soviet split|grew politically isolated from its former ally]], the [[Soviet Union]], as well as the [[Western Bloc]]. It [[Project 596|detonated its first atomic bomb]] in 1964.{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=139–141}}{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=310–313}} Attempting to reassert control over the CCP after the Great Leap, Mao and his allies launched the [[Cultural Revolution]] in 1966, sparking a decade of political violence, crackdowns on perceived counterrevolutionaries, and social upheaval that lasted until [[Death and state funeral of Mao Zedong|Mao's death]] in 1976.{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=314–319}}{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=143–145}}
[[Deng Xiaoping]] served as [[paramount leader]] from 1978 to 1989. The [[reform and opening up|reform and opening-up]] policies of the 1980s and 1990s saw economic liberalization towards a [[socialist market economy]], rapid economic growth, and improved relations with the West. [[Protest and dissent in China|Political dissent]] culminated in a mild crackdown early in 1987 and a much more severe and prolonged crackdown in 1989 that included the [[1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre|Tiananmen Square massacre]].{{Sfn|Ropp|2010|pp=147–151}} China shifted away from an agricultural economy and rapidly urbanized, although this led to stark [[Economic inequality in China|economic inequality]] between urban and rural areas, as well as environmental deterioration.{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|pp=344–349}} Since the 1990s, market forces have become China's main economic driver.{{Sfn|Gilley|2024|pp=134–136}} Under the [[general secretaryship of Xi Jinping]] since 2012, he has launched a far-reaching [[Anti-corruption campaign under Xi Jinping|anti-corruption campaign]], expanded Chinese economic influence through the [[Belt and Road Initiative]], and abolished [[Term limit|term limits]] for himself as [[President of China|state president]].{{Efn|Constitutional amendments in the [[First session of the 13th National People's Congress]] saw the removal of term limits for the [[President of China|state president]], a ceremonial role. There have never been formal term limits for neither the [[Chairman of the Central Military Commission (China)|Chairman of the CMC]] nor the [[General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party|General Secretary of the CCP]].}}{{Sfn|Chan|2024|pp=141, 149–154}}
== Geography ==
{{Main|Geography of China}}{{Further|Climate of China|Geology of China}}{{Multiple images
| direction = vertical
| total_width = 300
| image1 = 漓江山水.jpg
| caption1 = Mountains along the [[Li River]] in [[Guangxi]]
| image2 = Subashí Fósì yízhi.jpg
| caption2 = [[Subashi Temple]] ruins in the [[Taklamakan Desert]], [[Xinjiang]]
| align = right
| image3 = Gegengol in Greater Khingan forest2017.jpg
| caption3 = Boreal forest in the [[Greater Khingan]], [[Inner Mongolia]]
| alt1 = Tall, cone-like and lush green mountains rising up from a flooded river valley
| alt2 = Old ruins on a hillside surrounded by dry, arid mountains
| alt3 = A mountain range covered in a forest of trees at sunset
}}
China's geography is highly varied, featuring a [[Western China|dry and mountainous west]], alongside both mountains and wide river valleys in the east. Chinese civilization was traditionally centered in the lowlands around China's two longest rivers: the [[Yangtze]] and the [[Yellow River]], both originating on the [[Tibetan Plateau]]. This temperate region is bordered by forest and [[steppe]] to the north, as well as the mountainous and subtropical [[Northern and southern China|south]].{{Sfn|Shelach-Lavi|2015|pp=9–10}} China's shoreline spans the [[Bohai Sea]], [[Yellow Sea]], [[East China Sea]], and [[South China Sea]], all part of the [[Pacific Ocean]]. Its largest island is [[Geography of Taiwan|Taiwan]], and the largest governed by the PRC is [[Hainan]].{{Sfn|Xu|Chen|Xu|2018|p=47}} [[Poyang Lake]] is the largest of the country's many freshwater lakes.{{Sfn|Xu|Chen|Xu|2018|p=46}}
Large mountain ranges in the west, including the [[Himalayas]] and [[Tian Shan]], separate China from [[South Asia|South]] and [[Central Asia]]. China features both the [[Turpan Depression]], among the deepest points on land, and the high Tibetan Plateau.{{Sfn|Veeck et al.|2016|pp=21–22, 31}} The world's highest point, [[Mount Everest]] ({{Convert|8,848|m|ft|disp=or}} above [[sea level]]), lies on the border with [[Nepal]].[{{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}}] China has a wide variety of ore and mineral resources.{{Sfn|Xu|Chen|Xu|2018|pp=44–45}}
China's climate is dominated by [[dry season]]s and wet [[monsoons]], which lead to pronounced seasonal temperature differences. 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.{{sfn|Fu et al.|2008|p=1}} The northwestern deserts receive as little as {{Convert|50|mm|in|abbr=on}} of rainfall annually, while much of southern China exceeds {{Convert|1000|mm|in|abbr=on}}.{{Sfn|Veeck et al.|2016|pp=24–25}} Eastern China is well-suited for agriculture, with two or three harvests per year. The south is dominated by [[rice]] farming, while the north grows crops such as [[wheat]] and [[maize]].{{Sfn|Veeck et al.|2016|pp=243–244}}
China frequently [[Natural disasters in China|faces natural disasters]]. Its adjacency to both the [[Ring of Fire|Pacific Ring of Fire]] and the [[Alpide belt]] (tectonic belts) results in frequent earthquakes, the cause of the majority of China's natural disaster deaths. Severe quakes such as the [[1976 Tangshan earthquake]] cause hundreds of thousands of deaths.{{Sfn|Wang|Liang|Shi|2022|pp=231–232}} Rainstorms and flooding are common hazards,{{Sfn|Wang|Liang|Shi|2022|pp=234–236}} with the Yellow River's perennial floods devastating the surrounding plains throughout recorded history.{{Sfn|Liu|Chen|2012|p=28}} [[Typhoon|Typhoons]] frequently impact southeastern China.{{Sfn|Wang|Liang|Shi|2022|pp=241–243}}
=== Environment ===
{{Main|Environment of China|Wildlife of China|Environmental issues in China}}
{{See also|Renewable energy in China|Energy policy of China|Climate change in China|}}[[File:Giant Panda Eating.jpg|thumb|A [[giant panda]], a symbol of China, eating [[bamboo]]]]
China is one of 17 [[megadiverse countries]], containing a wide variety of forests, [[shrubland]]s, wetlands, [[steppe]]s, and deserts, which host (as of 2018) 92,300 known species of plants, animals, and fungi.{{Sfn|GIZ|2022|p=|pp=13–14}} According to government surveys, [[Forestry in China|China's forest coverage]] grew from 10% of the overall territory in 1949 to 25% in 2024.[{{cite news |date=29 November 2024 |title=China Completes 3,000-km Green Belt Around Its Biggest Desert, State Media Says |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/china/china-completes-3000-km-green-belt-around-its-biggest-desert-state-media-says-2024-11-29/ |access-date=8 December 2024 |work=[[Reuters]] |publisher=}}] The far north contains [[taiga]], which transitions into [[deciduous]] forest to the south. South of the Yangtze, mixed conifer and deciduous forest is common, with tropical and subtropical forests farther south.{{Sfn|Veeck et al.|2016|pp=39–40}}
In the 21st century, China has suffered from [[environmental issues in China|environmental deterioration and pollution]] due to rapid development, alongside the broader effects of [[climate change]]. About 11% of its plant species and 21% of its [[vertebrate]] species are threatened or endangered due to [[habitat loss]], pollution, and [[poaching]].{{Sfn|GIZ|2022|pp=14–15}} "Flagship" endangered species such as the [[giant panda]] and [[tiger]] have received additional funding and protection.{{Sfn|Huang et al.|2021|p=1}}
Although China has the world's highest [[List of countries by carbon dioxide emissions|CO{{Sub|2}} emissions]], it only emits 8 tons of [[List of countries by carbon dioxide emissions per capita|CO{{Sub|2}} per capita]] as of 2020, significantly lower than many developed countries.[{{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=[[Union of Concerned Scientists]] |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}}] Total [[greenhouse gas emissions by China]] are the [[List of countries by greenhouse gas emissions|world's largest]].[{{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=[[Bloomberg News]] |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}}] announcing its aims to reach its peak emissions levels before 2030, and achieve [[carbon neutrality]] by 2060.[{{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 |url-status=live |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 |archive-date=11 February 2024 |access-date=27 September 2020 |website=[[Climate Action Tracker]]}}]{{Sfn|Chan|2024|p=150}} [[Water pollution in China|Water quality in China]] has been impacted by rapid development and high levels of [[Agricultural pollution|agricultural runoff]] and [[heavy metal pollution]].{{sfn|Feng et al.|2021|p=2}}
China is the world's leading investor in [[renewable energy]] and [[Renewable energy commercialization|its commercialization]], investing {{Chinese yuan|3.6 trillion}} in 2022 alone.[{{Cite news |last=Schonhardt |first=Sara |date=30 January 2023 |title=China Invests $546 Billion in Clean Energy, Far Surpassing the U.S. |work=[[Scientific American]] |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}}] Traditionally reliant on non-renewable energy sources such as [[Coal in China|coal]], China's adoption of [[Renewable energy in China|renewable energy]] has increased significantly in recent years.[{{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=[[Reuters]] |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}}] In 2025, 54.4% of China's electricity came from coal, while 41.6% came from clean energy.[{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=21 April 2026 |title=Global Electricity Review 2026: Analysis of Key Power Sector Emitters in 2025 |url=https://ember-energy.org/latest-insights/global-electricity-review-2026/major-countries-and-regions/#china |access-date=23 April 2026 |website=[[Ember (non-profit organisation)|Ember]] |archive-date=21 April 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260421141116/https://ember-energy.org/latest-insights/global-electricity-review-2026/major-countries-and-regions/#china |url-status=live }}] Despite its emphasis on renewables, China remains dependent on global oil markets.{{sfn|Liu et al.|2025|p=1}}
=== Political geography ===
{{Main|Borders of China|Coastline of China|Territorial changes of the People's Republic of China|Territorial disputes of China}}
{{Multiple images
| direction = horizontal
| total_width = 500
| align = right
| image1 = China administrative.png
| caption1 = China's administrative divisions and territorial disputes
| image2 = South China Sea vector.svg
| caption2 = Territorial disputes in the [[South China Sea]], with the Chinese claim in red
| alt2 = A map showing territorial disputes in the South China Sea. Various contrasting blue lines are shown corresponding to each country, with dozens of green islands labeled as disputed.
}}
China is the [[List of countries and dependencies by area|second-largest]] country by land area after [[Russia]], and the third or fourth largest by total area.{{efn|name=area}} Total area figures range from {{convert|9572900|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sp=us}}[{{Cite CIA World Factbook |country=China |access-date=23 November 2013}}] China [[Borders of China|borders 14 nations]], with a combined land border length of {{convert|22117|km|mi|abbr=on|sp=us}}. Its [[Coastline of China|coastline]] spans approximately {{convert|14500|km|mi|abbr=on|sp=us}}.[{{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 |work=[[BBC News]] |publisher=}}]{{sfn|Chang|2015|pp=35–40, 46–60}}
== Politics ==
{{Main|Politics of China}}
{{multiple image
| align = right
| width = 250
| direction = vertical
| caption_align = center
| image1 = 人民大会堂 2024-05-15.jpg
| caption1 = The [[Great Hall of the People]],
where the [[National People's Congress]] convenes
| image2 = Xinhuamen Gate of Zhongnanhai across Changan Street 2.JPG
| caption2 = [[Zhongnanhai]], headquarters of the [[State Council of the People's Republic of China|Chinese government]] and [[Chinese Communist Party]]
}}
China is a [[unitary state]] under the [[The Party leads everything|absolute leadership]] of the Chinese Communist Party. Since the 1980s, the CCP has called its guiding theories and policies [[socialism with Chinese characteristics]], which it considers an adapted form of [[Marxism–Leninism]] that emphasizes a market economy as the [[primary stage of socialism]].{{Sfn|Joseph|2024b|pp=189–190}}{{Sfn|Fang|2020|pp=v–vi}}{{Sfn|Pearson|Rithmire|Tsai|2023|pp=47–48}} China describes itself as a [[Socialist state (communism)|socialist state]],{{Sfn|Pearson|Rithmire|Tsai|2023|pp=47–48}}{{Sfn|Li|2024|p=210}} and a [[people's democratic dictatorship]].{{Efn|"People's Democratic Dictatorship" ({{lang-zh|人民民主专政}}) is essentially synonymous with the more common Marxist term, [[dictatorship of the proletariat]].{{sfn|Li|2024|p=205}}}}{{Sfn|Fang|2020|p=xv}} Many academic sources describe it as an [[Authoritarianism|authoritarian]] state, although others dispute this label.{{sfn|Joseph|2024a|p=5}}{{Sfn|Ringen|2016|p=3}}{{sfn|Laikwan|2024|p=1}}
The [[National People's Congress]] (NPC) holds the [[Unified state power|unified powers of the state]] and oversight over all state organs, with its [[Standing Committee of the National People's Congress|Standing Committee]] elected to meet between the annual NPC meetings.{{Sfn|Li|2024|p=|pp=218–220}} NPC elections are [[Indirect election|indirect]] and the CCP controls nominations.[{{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=[[Heidelberg University]]}}]{{Sfn|Li|2024|p=|pp=218–220}} The NPC elects the [[President of China|president]], [[Vice President of China|vice president]], [[Chairman of the Central Military Commission (China)|military chairman]], and [[President of the Supreme People's Court|chief justice]], and approves the president's nomination for [[Premier of China|premier]] (the head of government). In practice, the CCP leadership chooses candidates for these posts. The premier heads the [[State Council of China|State Council]], which includes 26 ministers, such as the heads of ministries and commissions.{{Sfn|Li|2024|p=|pp=218–220}} The [[Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference]] is an advisory body that formally leads the CCP's [[United front (China)|united front]] system, which aims to gain support from [[Non-Party intellectuals|non-CCP intellectuals]], eight [[Democratic parties (China)|minor parties]], and [[people's organization]]s.[{{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=[[The Diplomat (magazine)|The Diplomat]]}}]{{Sfn|Li|2024|p=232}}
[[Constitution of China|China's current constitution]] dates to 1982, succeeding two earlier constitutions.{{Sfn|Zhang|2026|pp=174, 180}} Chinese governance is characterized by a high degree of political centralization but significant economic decentralization.{{Sfn|Jin|2023|p=7}} Policy instruments and processes are often tested locally before being adopted more widely.{{Sfn|Heilmann|2018|p=14}}{{Sfn|Brussee|2023|p=71}} Surveys have generally shown that the Chinese public has a high level of support for the government.{{Efn|Surveys which have shown high government approval ratings include 2003, 2009, and 2015–2016 surveys by the [[Harvard Kennedy School]], and the 2017–2020 [[World Values Survey]].{{sfn|Jin|2023|pp=136–137}}|group=lower-alpha}}{{Sfn|Jin|2023|p=|pp=136–137}}{{Sfn|Zhai|2023|pp=87–89}}
=== Chinese Communist Party ===
{{multiple image
| perrow = 2
| align = right
| direction = horizontal
| caption_align = center
| image1 = Xi Jinping on August 18, 2026 (cropped).jpg
| caption1 = [[Xi Jinping]]
[[General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party|CCP General Secretary]]
and [[President of China|President]]
| width1 = 120
| image2 = Li Qiang meets Keir Starmer Jan 2026.jpg
| caption2 = [[Li Qiang]]
[[Premier of China|Premier]]
| width2 = 120
| image3 = Zhao Leji meets Keir Starmer Jan 2026.jpg
| caption3 = [[Zhao Leji]]
[[Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress|Congress Chairman]]
| width3 = 122
| total_width =
| image4 = Wang Huning 2025 National People's Congress.jpg
| width4 = 122
| caption4 = [[Wang Huning]]
[[Chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference|CPPCC Chairman]]
}}
The CCP is the founding and [[One-party state|sole ruling party]] of China,{{Sfn|Li|2024|p=208}} organized along [[Leninist]] principles as a [[Vanguardism|vanguard party]].{{Sfn|Joseph|2024b|p=166}} With about 98 million members, it is among the [[List of largest political parties|world's largest political parties]], as well as the longest-ruling.{{Sfn|Li|2024|p=208}} The party's highest body is its [[National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|National Congress]], which mainly consists of members elected by party membership{{Efn|In the October 2022 congress, 2,296 members were elected and 83 were invited.{{sfn|Li|2024|p=211}}}} and meets every five years. The National Congress elects the [[Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party|Central Committee]], which convenes yearly as the highest party organ between congresses. The Central Committee ostensibly elects the party's top leadership, the [[Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party|Politburo]], [[Politburo Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party|Politburo Standing Committee]] (PSC) and the [[General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party|general secretary]], its top leader. In practice, the committee typically approves a slate of candidates created by existing party leadership.{{Sfn|Li|2024|pp=211–212}}{{Sfn|Xiao|2020|p=5}}
The Politburo usually gathers once a month, while the smaller PSC is thought to meet weekly.[{{Cite web |title=Decoding Chinese Politics: Party Center|url=https://asiasociety.org/policy-institute/decoding-chinese-politics?policy=party-center&group=organizations&size=rank&connection=personal|access-date=11 October 2024|website=[[Asia Society]]|date=4 October 2024|archive-date=11 February 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250211211905/https://asiasociety.org/policy-institute/decoding-chinese-politics?policy=party-center&group=organizations&size=rank&connection=personal|url-status=live}}] The current general secretary is [[Xi Jinping]], who took office on 15 November 2012. Xi concurrently serves as president and the chair of the [[Central Military Commission (China)|Central Military Commission]] (CMC); as such, he is referred to informally as the [[paramount leader]] of China.[{{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=[[The Guardian]]}}][{{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=[[The New York Times]] |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.}}]{{Sfn|Joseph|2024|p=597}} The National Congress also elects the [[Central Commission for Discipline Inspection]], the party's main disciplinary and anti-corruption organ.{{Sfn|Li|2024|pp=215–216}}
As the CCP is closely intertwined with the government, disputes within the party represent the main form of political contention in China.[{{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=[[South China Morning Post]]}}]{{Sfn|Li|2024|pp=208, 211}} The CCP controls government appointments, with most senior officials being CCP members.
File:China administrative claimed included.svg|center|750px
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desc bottom-right
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
|+ First level administrative divisions of China by type
! scope="col" | Type
! scope="col" | List
|-
! rowspan="2" style="width: 23%" | [[Provinces of China|Provinces]]
|{{columns-list|colwidth=12em|class=plainlist|
*[[Anhui]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh|安徽省}})}}
*[[Fujian]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh|福建省}})}}
*[[Gansu]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|甘肃省}})}}
*[[Guangdong]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|广东省}})}}
*[[Guizhou]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|贵州省}})}}
*[[Hainan]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh|海南省}})}}
*[[Hebei]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh|河北省}})}}
*[[Heilongjiang]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|黑龙江省}})}}
*[[Henan]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh|河南省}})}}
*[[Hubei]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh|湖北省}})}}
*[[Hunan]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh|湖南省}})}}
*[[Jiangsu]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|江苏省}})}}
*[[Jiangxi]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh|江西省}})}}
*[[Jilin]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh|吉林省}})}}
*[[Liaoning]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|辽宁省}})}}
*[[Qinghai]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh|青海省}})}}
*[[Shaanxi]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|陕西省}})}}
*[[Shandong]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|山东省}})}}
*[[Shanxi]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh|山西省}})}}
*[[Sichuan]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh|四川省}})}}
*[[Yunnan]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|云南省}})}}
*[[Zhejiang]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh|浙江省}})}}
}}
|-
|
[[Taiwan (People's Republic of China province)|''Taiwan'']] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|台湾省}})}}, ''governed by the [[Taiwan|Republic of China]]''
|-
! style="width: 23%" | [[Autonomous regions of China|Autonomous regions]]
|{{columns-list|colwidth=12em|class=plainlist|
*[[Guangxi]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|广西壮族自治区}})}}
*[[Inner Mongolia]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|内蒙古自治区}})}}
*[[Ningxia]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|宁夏回族自治区}})}}
*[[Tibet Autonomous Region|Tibet]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|西藏自治区}})}}
*[[Xinjiang]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|新疆维吾尔自治区}})}}
}}
|-
! style="width: 23%" | [[Direct-administered municipality|Direct-administered municipalities]]
|{{columns-list|colwidth=12em|class=plainlist|
*[[Beijing]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh|北京市}})}}
*[[Chongqing]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|重庆市}})}}
*[[Shanghai]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh|上海市}})}}
*[[Tianjin]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh|天津市}})}}
}}
|-
! style="width: 23%" | [[Special administrative regions of China|Special administrative regions]]
|{{columns-list|colwidth=12em|class=plainlist|
*[[Hong Kong]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|香港特别行政区}})}}
*[[Macau]] {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|澳门特别行政区}})}}
}}
|}
=== Foreign relations ===
{{Main|Foreign relations of China}}
[[File:Diplomatic relations of China.svg|upright=1.4|thumb|Diplomatic relations of China:{{legend|#FF0000|People's Republic of China (PRC)}} {{legend|#008000|Republic of China (ROC)}} {{legend|#000080|States that have diplomatic relations with the PRC}} {{legend|#00FF00|States that have diplomatic relations with the ROC}} {{legend|Black|States that have diplomatic relations with neither}}]]
China is one of five permanent members of the [[United Nations Security Council]] and the second largest contributor to the [[United Nations]].{{Sfn|Chan|2024|p=150}}{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|p=286}} China has the largest diplomatic network of any country: It has diplomatic relations with 179 [[Member states of the United Nations|United Nations member states]] and [[List of diplomatic missions of China|embassies in 174]].[{{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=[[Lowy Institute]]}}] China is a member of the [[G20]], [[BRICS]],{{Sfn|Zhao|2023|p=100}} [[East Asia Summit]],{{Sfn|Zhao|2023|p=69}} [[Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation|APEC]],[{{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=[[Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation]]}}] and other intergovernmental organizations.{{Sfn|Zhao|2023|p=100}}
China is widely described as a [[superpower]]{{Sfn|Zhao|2023|p=204}}{{Sfn|Joseph|2024a|p=3}} due to its influence in geopolitics, technology, manufacturing, economics and culture.[{{cite web |last1=Jolly |first1=Dominique |date=30 January 2025 |title=China as a Technological Superpower |url=https://www.iris-france.org/en/china-as-a-technological-superpower/ |access-date=18 December 2025 |website=[[Institut français des relations internationales|Institute for International and Strategic Affairs]]|archive-date=2025-01-31 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250131034315/https://www.iris-france.org/en/china-as-a-technological-superpower/ |url-status=live}}][{{cite web |last1=Baldwin |first1=Richard |date=17 January 2024 |title=China is the world's sole manufacturing superpower: A line sketch of the rise |url=https://cepr.org/voxeu/columns/china-worlds-sole-manufacturing-superpower-line-sketch-rise |access-date=18 December 2025 |website=[[Centre for Economic Policy Research]] |archive-date=2024-01-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240117100640/https://cepr.org/voxeu/columns/china-worlds-sole-manufacturing-superpower-line-sketch-rise |url-status=live}}] Although China moderated its relations with the West during the [[Reform and opening up|reform era]],{{Sfn|Zhao|2023|p=2}} its rise in power has brought political tensions with many of its neighbors and [[China–United States relations|with the United States]], the current dominant superpower.{{Sfn|Deng|2022|p=1}}{{Sfn|Shirk|2023|p=10}}{{Sfn|Zhao|2023|p=223}} Although China is among the United States' largest trade partners, their relationship is tempered by [[China–United States trade war|a trade war]]{{Sfn|Chan|2020|p=168}}{{Sfn|Deng|2022|p=46}} and disagreements over the [[political status of Taiwan]].{{Sfn|Chan|2020|p=168}}
China's foreign policy is based on the [[Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence]], which include a principle of non-intervention in other countries' domestic affairs.{{Sfn|Ren|2021|pp=3–4}} Per its policy of non-alignment, China has no [[defense pact]]s except for [[Treaty on Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance between China and the DPRK|its 1961 treaty]] with [[North Korea]],{{Sfn|Zhao|2023|p=223}} although it maintains close relationships with neighbors such as [[Pakistan]]{{Sfn|Zhao|2023|p=223}} and Russia.{{Sfn|Deng|2022|p=1}} China has invested heavily in [[Developing country|developing countries]] across Asia, [[Latin America]], and Africa, creating a system of [[development bank]]s and loans through the [[Belt and Road Initiative]].{{Sfn|Shirk|2023|p=230}}
=== Military ===
{{Main|People's Liberation Army}}
[[File:Quadruple formation of J-20 at CCAS2023 (20230724100632).jpg|thumb|[[Chengdu J-20]] [[Fifth-generation fighter|5th generation]] stealth fighter|left]]
The [[People's Liberation Army]] (PLA) is the main armed forces of China, under the [[The Party commands the gun|direct control]] of the CCP.[{{Cite web |last=Yuwen |first=Deng |date=12 November 2025 |title=Why Are China's Generals So Quiet as Xi Purges Them? |url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2025/10/30/xi-purges-china-military-pla-ccp-power-control/ |access-date=6 November 2025 |website=[[Foreign Policy]] |language=en-US |author-link=Deng Yuwen}}] It consists of four services: the [[People's Liberation Army Ground Force|Ground Force]], the [[People's Liberation Army Navy|Navy]], the [[People's Liberation Army Air Force|Air Force]], and the [[People's Liberation Army Rocket Force|Rocket Force]], and four arms: the [[People's Liberation Army Aerospace Force|Aerospace Force]], the [[People's Liberation Army Cyberspace Force|Cyberspace Force]], the [[People's Liberation Army Information Support Force|Information Support Force]], and the [[People's Liberation Army Joint Logistics Support Force|Joint Logistics Support Force]].{{sfn|Wirth|2025|p=9}} It has around 2 million active soldiers, and the world's [[Nuclear weapons of China|third largest stockpile of nuclear weapons]],{{sfn|Kristensen et al.|2025}} and the world's largest navy by ship count.[{{cite web |date=1 September 2025 |last1=Bicker |first1=Laura |title=China's Navy is Expanding At Breakneck Speed and Catching Up With the US |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gmnpg31xlo |website=[[BBC News]] |access-date=18 June 2026 |archive-date=19 June 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260619025235/https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gmnpg31xlo |url-status=live }}]
The PLA is considered one of the world's most powerful militaries and has [[Modernization of the People's Liberation Army|rapidly modernized]] in the recent decades.[{{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=[[Council on Foreign Relations]]}}] A 2026 study estimates that its 2025 expenditure was 2.27 trillion yuan (US$336 billion), 12% of global military spending and 1.7% of China's GDP.{{sfn|SIPRI|2026|p=2}} The PLA, the [[People's Armed Police]] and the [[Militia (China)|Militia]] are commanded by the Central Military Commission. Due to the [[chairman responsibility system]], the [[Chairman of the Central Military Commission (China)|chairman of the CMC]], currently Xi Jinping, is the [[Supreme command of the armed forces in China|commander-in-chief]] of the PLA.[{{Cite web |last=Morris |first=Lyle |date=27 October 2022 |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]]}}]{{Sfn|Joseph|2024|pp=614, 632}}
{{Clear}}
===Law and policing===
{{Further|Judicial system of China|Law of the People's Republic of China|Law enforcement in China}}
[[File:20190501 162539 Shanghai (172).jpg|alt=A group of seven Chinese police officers in various uniforms|thumb|Police officers in Shanghai]]
The [[Judicial system of China|Chinese judicial system]] consists of [[Local people's court|people's courts]] at provincial, regional, and local levels, alongside circuit courts for regional matters and specialized courts to handle professional disputes. The highest legal authority is the [[Supreme People's Court]].{{Sfn|Zhang|2026|p=224, 238}} The courts are closely controlled by the CCP, supervised by corresponding [[System of people's congress|people's congresses]], and led by CCP appointees.{{Sfn|Zhang|2026|p=28}} [[Law of the People's Republic of China|PRC law]] derives from a combination of [[Civil law (legal system)|civil law]], [[Chinese law|traditional Chinese law]], and [[socialist law]].{{Sfn|Zhang|2026|p=82}}
China's law enforcement system is managed by the [[Ministry of Public Security (China)|Ministry of Public Security]], which oversees [[Public security bureau (China)|public security bureaus]] (PSBs) in each province, themselves divided into local levels. Local sub-bureaus and stations handle most routine policing.{{Sfn|Scoggins|2018|p=90}} The [[People's Armed Police]], a [[paramilitary]] force, is administered by the CMC and supports emergency response measures.{{Sfn|Wuthnow|2022|p=75}} The [[social credit system]] maintains a network of [[Blacklisting|blacklists]] to record businesses and individuals who violate regulations, court orders, or financial agreements.{{Sfn|Brussee|2023|pp=40, 44–46, 107}} China has periodically mobilized anti-crime campaigns, using heavy penalties as a form of deterrence.{{Sfn|Wang|Wang|2024|pp=87, 93–94}} Violent crimes are the highest priority for enforcement, although they occur at relatively low rates.{{sfn|Zhang|Zhang|Hong|2026|p=135}} [[Capital punishment in China|Capital punishment]] has declined since the Mao era, but remains common;{{Sfn|Wang|Wang|2024|pp=87, 93–94}} China has the most executions per year of any country.{{Sfn|Amnesty International|2025|p=7}}
=== Human rights ===
{{Main|Human rights in China}}
Various human rights organizations, United Nations assessments, and foreign governments have accused China of severe human rights violations.{{sfn|Inboden|2021|pp=4–5}}{{sfn|Pils|2017|loc=Chapter 2, 'Institutional Avenues of Human Rights Advocacy'}} It has been accused of political repression, torture, [[indefinite detention]], restrictions on free speech and religious practice, excessive use of capital punishment, and the persecution of ethnic minorities.{{sfn|deLisle|2024|p=273}}[[File:Hong Kong anti-extradition bill protest (48108594957).jpg|thumb|China cracked down on political rights in Hong Kong following the [[2019–20 Hong Kong protests|2019-2020 protests]].]]Although the Chinese constitution protects a wide variety of civil and political rights, these largely lack enforcement mechanisms. The [[Petitioning (China)|petitioning system]] allows citizens to raise complaints of wrongdoing, although the concerns are often left unaddressed, and some petitioners have faced punitive arrest or incarceration.{{sfn|Pils|2017|loc=Chapter 2, 'Institutional Avenues of Human Rights Advocacy'}} In the 21st century, China has participated extensively in the [[United Nations Human Rights Council]],{{sfn|Inboden|2021|pp=4–5}} but remains strongly critical of international scrutiny of its human rights, seeing it as interference in its internal affairs.{{sfn|Inboden|2021|pp=15–18}}{{Sfn|Pils|2017|loc=Chapter 2, 'Institutional Avenues of Human Rights Advocacy'}}
In [[Xinjiang]], China has restricted the civil rights of the [[Uyghurs]], who face [[Persecution of Uyghurs in China|widespread discrimination]],{{sfn|Bovingdon|2024|p=523}}{{sfn|Amnesty International|2026|p=134}} police crackdowns, and restrictions on Islamic religious practice and the use of the [[Uyghur language]]. China interred over a million Uyghurs in a [[Xinjiang internment camps|network of internment camps]] in the late 2010s. These facilities have evolved into a system of prisons and [[Uyghur forced labour|forced labor]].{{sfn|Bovingdon|2024|pp=542–544}} Several UN [[Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights|OHCHR]]{{efn|Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights|group=lower-alpha}} experts have equated it to "[[Slavery in China|enslavement]] as a [[crime against humanity]]".[{{Cite news |date=23 January 2026|title=China rejects UN experts' concerns for alleged forced labour in Xinjiang|url=https://www.reuters.com/world/china/china-rejects-un-experts-concerns-alleged-forced-labour-xinjiang-2026-01-23/|access-date=23 January 2026|work=[[Reuters]]}}] China has restricted the civil and political rights of [[Hong Kong]] residents.{{Sfn|Amnesty International|2026|pp=134–135}}{{Sfn|Lo|2024|pp=572–574}} Since the [[2019–2020 Hong Kong protests|2019–2020 protests]], China has cracked down on the [[Pro-democracy camp (Hong Kong)|pro-democracy movement]] in the SAR and removed much of its political autonomy.{{Sfn|Lo|2024|pp=572–574}} China has cracked down on political expression in Tibet and strengthened surveillance since the late 2000s, restricting residents from obtaining passports and most foreigners from entering the region.{{Sfn|Barnett|2024|pp=489–490, 512–513}}
China does not recognize [[same-sex marriage]] or [[same-sex adoption]], and regularly censors [[LGBTQ people|LGBTQ]]-related media. Many Chinese hospitals provide [[Conversion therapy|sexual conversion therapy]], viewing homosexuality as a mental disorder.{{Sfn|Wang et al.|2019|p=E440}} [[LGBTQ rights in China|LGBTQ rights]] advocates are surveilled and criminalized.{{sfn|Bernot|2025|p=167}}
== Economy ==
{{Main|Economy of China|}}
{{See also|Income inequality in China|Industry in China}}
[[File:Shanghai photos (14370159373).jpg|thumb|The Shanghai Bund and [[Lujiazui]] seen from the [[Shanghai Tower]]]]
The modern PRC is often described by analysts as an example of [[state capitalism]] or [[party-state capitalism]],{{Sfn|Pearson|Rithmire|Tsai|2023|pp=47–48}} with both market forces and the state playing a major role in the economy.{{sfn|Pearson|Rithmire|Tsai|2021|pp=207–213}} Various state organs manage the economy according to the State Council's [[Five-year plans of China|five-year plans]].{{Sfn|Wang|2023|p=|pp=69, 80–82}} China describes its economic system as a [[socialist market economy]], in which the market plays a decisive role in resource allocation under the control of a [[Socialist state (communism)|socialist state]].{{sfn|de Rambures|2015|pp=9–11}}{{sfn|Ding|2009|pp=235–241}} The Chinese economy has expanded more than 20 times since 2000.{{sfn|Wang|2023|pp=9}} It is now the [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|second largest economy by GDP]] (135 trillion yuan)[{{Cite web |title=GDP (Current US$): China |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.CD?locations=CN |access-date=9 August 2026 |publisher=[[World Bank]] |archive-date=6 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190906052638/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.CD?locations=CN |url-status=live }}] and [[List of countries by GDP (PPP)|the largest when adjusted]] for [[purchasing power parity]].[{{Cite web |title=GDP, PPP (current international $) |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.PP.CD?most_recent_value_desc=true |access-date=9 August 2026 |publisher=[[World Bank]] |archive-date=27 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240327113849/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/ny.gdp.mktp.pp.cd%3Fmost_recent_value_desc%3Dtrue |url-status=live }}] China has brought roughly 800 million people out of extreme [[Poverty in China|poverty]], more than any other country in history.{{sfn|Wang|2023|pp=3–4}}{{sfn|Lo|2025|p=11}}
[[File:Shanghái, fábrica de maquinaria 1978 02.jpg|alt=A color photograph of various men and women standing in a dark factory, with glowing red steel being poured|thumb|Workers at a steel foundry in [[Shanghai]], 1978]]
China is the world's leading manufacturing power, accounting for 28% of global manufacturing as of 2024;[{{Cite web |date=17 December 2024 |title=Measuring China's Manufacturing Might |url=https://chinapower.csis.org/tracker/china-manufacturing/ |access-date=13 August 2026 |website=[[Center for Strategic and International Studies]] |archive-date=13 August 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260813101002/https://chinapower.csis.org/tracker/china-manufacturing/ |url-status=live }}] it is the largest producer of [[Steel industry in China|steel]],[{{Cite web |last=Russel |first=Clyde |date=26 May 2026 |title=China's Weak Steel Output, Strong Iron Ore imports Show Structural Shift |url=https://www.reuters.com/commentary/reuters-open-interest/chinas-weak-steel-output-strong-iron-ore-imports-show-structural-shift-2026-05-26/ |access-date=20 June 2026 |website=[[Reuters]]}}] [[Rare-earth industry in China|rare earths]],[{{Cite web |last=Perera |first=Ayeshea |date=16 October 2025 |title=Why the US Needs China's Rare Earths |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1drqeev36qo |access-date=20 June 2026 |website=[[BBC]] |archive-date=18 June 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260618162411/https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1drqeev36qo |url-status=live }}] ships,[{{Cite web |last1=Funaiole |first1=Matthew P. |last2=Hart |first2=Brian |last3=Powers-Riggs |first3=Aidan |date=25 March 2025 |title=China Dominates the Shipbuilding Industry |url=https://www.csis.org/analysis/china-dominates-shipbuilding-industry |access-date=20 June 2026 |website=[[Center for Strategic and International Studies]] |archive-date=3 July 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260703140815/https://www.csis.org/analysis/china-dominates-shipbuilding-industry |url-status=live }}] and automobiles,[{{Cite web |title=Production Statistics |url=https://oica.net/production-statistics/ |access-date=20 June 2026 |website=[[Organisation Internationale des Constructeurs d'Automobiles]] |archive-date=7 June 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260607093252/https://oica.net/production-statistics/ |url-status=live }}] as well as the largest exporter of electronics[{{Cite web |last1=Thorbecke |first1=Williem |last2=Chen |first2=Chen |last3=Salike |first3=Nimesh |date=29 August 2025 |title=China's Electronics Export Juggernaut and Lessons For the US |url=https://cepr.org/voxeu/columns/chinas-electronics-export-juggernaut-and-lessons-us |access-date=20 June 2026 |website=[[Center for Economic and Policy Research]] |archive-date=18 September 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250918081800/https://cepr.org/voxeu/columns/chinas-electronics-export-juggernaut-and-lessons-us |url-status=live }}] and [[Textile industry in China|textiles]].[{{Cite web |date=2024 |title=Textiles |url=https://oec.world/en/profile/hs/textiles?growthSelector=value1 |access-date=August 10, 2026 |website=Observatory of Economic Complexity |archive-date=10 August 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260810174934/https://oec.world/en/profile/hs/textiles%3FgrowthSelector%3Dvalue1 |url-status=live }}]
The private sector constitutes the largest portion of the Chinese economy, with about 30–40% under state ownership. State-owned companies make less than 10% of exports, but are predominant in industries such as transportation, utilities, and financial services.{{sfn|Wang|2023|p=7}} Since the 1990s, China has decentralized its economic planning, with about 85% of government spending delegated to the provincial or local level,{{sfn|Lo|2025|p=19}} and local governments adapting national economic plans to suit local interests.{{Sfn|Wang|2023|p=|pp=69, 80–82}}
China's main [[stock exchanges]] are [[Shanghai Stock Exchange|Shanghai]] and [[Shenzhen Stock Exchange|Shenzhen]]. Its stock market is the second largest, behind the US.{{Sfn|He|Wei|2023|p=456}} The [[Banking in China|Chinese banking system]] makes up a much larger share of the economy than most other countries. Four state-owned banks hold about 40% of the sector's assets as of 2022.{{Sfn|He|Wei|2023|pp=464–467}} China has struggled to establish its currency, the [[renminbi]] (in units of yuan), as an international [[reserve currency]];{{Sfn|Wang|2023|p=179}} as of 2025, it is the seventh largest currency in foreign exchange reserves.[{{Cite web |date=27 March 2026 |title=IMF Data Brief: Currency Composition of Official Foreign Exchange Reserves |url=https://data.imf.org/en/news/imf%20data%20brief%20march%2027 |access-date=20 June 2026 |website=[[International Monetary Fund]] |archive-date=24 June 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260624152253/https://data.imf.org/en/news/imf%20data%20brief%20march%2027 |url-status=live }}]
About a third of China's workforce consists of domestic migrant workers, the [[floating population]]. The {{lang-zh|p=[[hukou]]|labels=no}} system restricts citizens' access to services and utilities outside of their registered home, leading to pronounced inequalities between urban and rural workers. Especially in larger cities, only those with local {{lang-zh|p=hukou|labels=no}} may be able to buy property, though ''hukou'' restrictions have loosened significantly in recent decades.{{sfn|Wang|2023|pp=110–113}}{{sfn|Lo|2025|p=13}}{{sfn|Jin|2023|p=23}}
According to 2026 state data, China's urban unemployment rate was 5.0%.[{{Cite web |date=15 July 2026 |title=China's Job Market Generally Stable in June |url=https://english.www.gov.cn/archive/statistics/202607/15/content_WS6a5737e0c6d00ca5f9a0c384.html |access-date=13 August 2026 |website= |publisher=[[State Council of China]]}}] China has a high [[debt-to-GDP ratio]] (almost 300% in 2020),{{sfn|Wang|2023|p=8}} with [[household debt]] at about 65% of the GDP.{{Sfn|Wang|2023|p=166}} China has faced a [[Chinese property sector crisis (2020–present)|property sector crisis]] since 2020. By the late 2010s, Chinese real estate assets far exceed the combined total of stocks, [[Bond (finance)|bonds]], and [[Deposit (finance)|deposits]].[{{Cite web |last1=Rogoff |first1=Kenneth |last2=Yang |first2=Yuanchen |date=25 March 2026 |title=A Tale of Two Countries |url=https://www.brookings.edu/articles/a-tale-of-two-countries/ |access-date=13 August 2026 |website=[[Brookings Institution]] |archive-date=2 July 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260702062141/https://www.brookings.edu/articles/a-tale-of-two-countries/ |url-status=live }}]
=== Science and technology ===
{{Main|Science and technology in China|List of Chinese discoveries|List of Chinese inventions}}
[[File:Launch of Shenzhou 13.jpg|thumb|upright|Launch of [[Shenzhou 13]] by a [[Long March 2F]] rocket]]
As the world's largest economy for much of its history, many inventions and scientific discoveries have been produced in China, including paper, printing, the compass, and gunpowder.{{Sfn|Wilkinson|2012|p=467}} China has pursued rapid technological development since the reform era.{{Sfn|Shirk|2023|p=109}} It has made great advances in the fields of [[artificial intelligence]], [[robotics]], and [[biotechnology]],{{Sfn|Shirk|2023|p=6}} while the Xi administration has prioritized [[green technology]]{{Sfn|Chan|2024|p=150}} and reducing Chinese dependence on foreign technology.{{Sfn|Zweig|2024|pp=311–312}} It has emphasized [[Technocracy|technocratic]] leadership in the 2020s, promoting experts in scientific fields to national leadership positions,{{Sfn|Li|2024|p=226}} while bringing major private technology firms such as [[Tencent]] and [[Alibaba Group|Alibaba]] under state regulation.{{Sfn|Zweig|2024|p=308}} Geopolitical tensions have led Europe and the United States to restrict Chinese access to their technology,{{Sfn|Shirk|2023|pp=7–8}} especially [[Semiconductor|semiconductors]],{{Sfn|Hamdani|Belfencha|2024|pp=1–2}} and launch sanctions targeting the telecommunications and electronics firm [[Huawei]].[{{Cite news |date=13 June 2024 |title=America's Assassination Attempt on Huawei is Backfiring |url=https://www.economist.com/briefing/2024/06/13/americas-assassination-attempt-on-huawei-is-backfiring |access-date=13 August 2026 |newspaper=[[The Economist]] |archive-date=6 September 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250906114359/https://www.economist.com/briefing/2024/06/13/americas-assassination-attempt-on-huawei-is-backfiring |url-status=live }}]
Since launching [[Dong Fang Hong 1|its first satellite]] in 1970,{{Sfn|Harvey|2019|pp=49–50}} China has maintained [[Chinese space program|an active space program]]. After the United States and the Soviet Union, China became the third country to independently launch an orbital satellite, and [[Shenzhou 5|in 2003 became the third to bring astronauts into orbit]].{{Sfn|Harvey|2019|pp=x–xi}} The [[Chinese Lunar Exploration Program]] has sent multiple robotic landers to the Moon,{{Sfn|Harvey|2019|pp=443}} the [[Planetary Exploration of China]] program has sent [[Tianwen-1|a lander and rover]] to [[Mars]],[{{Cite web |last=O'Callaghan |first=Jonathan |date=14 May 2021 |title=China Lands Tianwen-1 Rover on Mars in a Major First for the Country |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/china-lands-tianwen-1-rover-on-mars-in-a-major-first-for-the-country/ |access-date=21 June 2026 |website=[[Scientific American]] |archive-date=24 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624140829/https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/china-lands-tianwen-1-rover-on-mars-in-a-major-first-for-the-country/ |url-status=live }}] and the [[Tiangong space station]] has hosted crewed operations in [[Low Earth orbit]] since 2021.[{{Cite web |last1=Dobrijevic |first1=Daisy |last2=Jones |first2=Andrew |date=15 August 2023 |title=China's Space Station, Tiangong: A Complete Guide |url=https://www.space.com/tiangong-space-station |access-date=21 June 2026 |website=[[Space.com]] |archive-date=9 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211209030509/https://www.space.com/tiangong-space-station |url-status=live }}]
=== Infrastructure and transportation ===
{{Main|Transport in China|Telecommunications in China}}
[[File:CR400BF-Z-0312@BJI_(20231009152047).jpg|alt=A train running on an elevated track through a commercial area|thumb|A [[Fuxing (train)|Fuxing]] high-speed train running in Beijing]]
Since the 1990s, automobiles have become a common form of transport in China.{{Sfn|Chen|Pan|Shen|Wang|2020|pp=1–3}} According to state data, the Chinese highway network exceeded {{Convert|6,000,000|km|mi|abbr=on}} by the end of 2021, having grown 30% over the past decade. In addition to local and provincial routes, this network includes the [[National highways of China|national highways]], which are divided between the ordinary highways (of various classes) and the [[Expressways of China|national expressway system]]. China has the largest highway and rail systems in the world by capacity,[{{Cite web |date=26 September 2022 |title=China's Infrastructure Network Races Ahead In Last 10 Years |url=https://en.ndrc.gov.cn/news/mediarusources/202209/t20220928_1337393.html |access-date=29 June 2026 |website=[[National Development and Reform Commission]] |archive-date=30 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221130111153/https://en.ndrc.gov.cn/news/mediarusources/202209/t20220928_1337393.html |url-status=live }}]{{Sfn|Fu|2020|pp=37–39}} along with the [[List of countries by rail transport network size|second longest rail network]] at roughly {{convert|165000|km|mi|0|abbr=on|sp=us}}.[{{Cite news |last=Yang |first=Carol |date=5 January 2025 |title=China Plans 19% High-Speed Rail Expansion by 2030 Amid Global Dominance in the Sector |url=https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3338778/china-plans-19-high-speed-rail-expansion-2030-amid-global-dominance-sector |access-date=5 January 2025 |work=[[South China Morning Post]] |archive-date=5 January 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260105095527/https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3338778/china-plans-19-high-speed-rail-expansion-2030-amid-global-dominance-sector |url-status=live }}] According to 2022 state data, over 95% of cities exceeding one million residents have access to [[High-speed rail in China|high-speed rail]].[{{Cite web |title=The Top 50 Container Ports |url=https://www.worldshipping.org/top-50-ports |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210813193707/https://www.worldshipping.org/top-50-ports |archive-date=13 August 2021 |access-date=14 July 2022 |website=[[World Shipping Council]]}}] China has the largest domestic aviation market by passenger capacity, and maintains 262 airports as of 2025.[{{Cite web |last=Rochat |first=Matthew |date=27 January 2025 |title=China's Position in the Global Aviation Industry |url=https://thediplomat.com/2025/01/chinas-position-in-the-global-aviation-industry/ |access-date=13 August 2026 |website=[[The Diplomat (magazine)|The Diplomat]] |archive-date=23 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250723061157/https://thediplomat.com/2025/01/chinas-position-in-the-global-aviation-industry/ |url-status=live }}]
Chinese cities are disparate in their level of infrastructure. [[Chinese city tier system|Tier-one cities]] such as Beijing and Shanghai have elaborate and advanced infrastructure networks, while smaller cities and rural areas often have outdated and underfunded transit and public utilities.{{sfn|Wang|2023|pp=4–5}} Water resources in China are unevenly distributed. With industrialization and rapid development, the drier north has faced endemic water shortages. To combat this, the [[South–North Water Transfer Project]] pumps water from the Yangtze basin to supply northern cities.{{Sfn|Webber|Crow-Miller|Rogers|2017|pp=370–375}}
[[File:ThreeGorgesDam-China2009.jpg|alt=A wide shot of the Three Gorges Dam|thumb|The [[Three Gorges Dam]], the largest hydroelectric dam in the world]]
The [[State Grid Corporation of China]], the world's largest [[Public utility|utility company]], manages the [[electrical grid]] for most of the country, with the [[China Southern Power Grid]] as the electric utility in some southern provinces.{{Sfn|Xu|2019|pp=222–223}} Power generation is primarily managed by five state-owned corporations, alongside local and provincial utilities.{{Sfn|Xu|2019|pp=222–223}}{{Sfn|Wu|2019|p=86}} Most of China's renewable energy comes from [[Hydroelectricity in China|hydropower]].[{{Cite web |title=China |url=https://www.iea.org/countries/china |access-date=29 June 2026 |website=[[International Energy Agency]] |archive-date=1 July 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260701160852/https://www.iea.org/countries/china |url-status=live }}] The [[Three Gorges Dam]] is the [[List of largest power stations|world's largest power station by capacity]].[{{Cite web |last1=Slater-Thompson |first1=Nancy |last2=Johnson |first2=Slade |date=18 October 2016 |title=The World's Nine Largest Operating Power Plants Are Hydroelectric Facilities |url=https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=28392 |access-date=29 June 2026 |website=[[Energy Information Administration|United States Energy Information Administration]] |archive-date=5 May 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260505002112/https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=28392 |url-status=live }}]
China has the largest number of internet users and websites of any country.{{Sfn|Stockmann|Luo|2026|p=238}} According to state data, it has 1.125 billion internet users as of 2025, about 80% of its population.[{{Cite web |date=5 February 2026 |title=China's Internet User Base Hits 1.125 Billion as AI Adoption Surges |url=https://english.www.gov.cn/archive/statistics/202602/05/content_WS698442cac6d00ca5f9a08edc.html |access-date=18 January 2025 |website=[[Gov.cn]] |publisher= |archive-date=19 March 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260319103532/https://english.www.gov.cn/archive/statistics/202602/05/content_WS698442cac6d00ca5f9a08edc.html |url-status=live }}] It has an extensive [[Internet censorship in China|system of internet censorship]]. The [[Great Firewall]], a system of internet controls and regulations, blocks access to many foreign websites. Users can circumvent it through [[virtual private network]]s, but these face occasional crackdowns.{{Sfn|Roberts|2018|pp=2–4}} The [[Cyberspace Administration of China]] is the national internet regulator and censor.{{Sfn|Roberts|2018|pp=106–107}}[{{Cite web |last=Horsley |first=Jamie P. |date=8 August 2022 |title=Behind the Facade of China's Cyber Super-Regulator |url=https://digichina.stanford.edu/work/behind-the-facade-of-chinas-cyber-super-regulator/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230909152619/https://digichina.stanford.edu/work/behind-the-facade-of-chinas-cyber-super-regulator/ |archive-date=9 September 2023 |access-date=8 September 2023 |website=DigiChina |publisher=[[Stanford University]] |language=en}}] Most [[Telecommunications in China|telecommunications]] are operated by state-owned companies.{{Sfn|Wu|2019|p=86}}
== Demographics ==
{{Main|Demographics of China}}{{See also|Chinese nationality law|Family planning policies of China}}[[File:China Population Density Map 2020.png|thumb|upright=1.21|Map of China's population density across third-level administrative divisions. Based on the results of the 2020 census.]]The [[2020 Chinese census]] recorded the population as 1,411,778,724. About 17.95% were 14 years old or younger, 63.35% were between 15 and 59, and 18.7% were over 60.[{{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=[[National Bureau of Statistics of China]]}}] Between 2010 and 2020, the average population growth rate was 0.53%.[{{Cite web |last=Wu|first=Huizhong|date=19 January 2026|title=China's Population Falls Again As Births Drop To Lowest Rate Since 1949 Communist Revolution|url=https://apnews.com/article/china-population-shrinks-births-tax-condoms-868cd1ffc949af5a2e94c523e750e97e|access-date=19 January 2026|website=[[Associated Press]]|language=en}}] China has one of the lowest [[total fertility rate]]s (births per woman) in the world, around 1.0 as of 2025.[{{Cite web |last1=Ritchie |first1=Hannah |last2=Mathieu |first2=Edouard |date=27 November 2025 |title=China's Fertility Rate Has Fallen To One, Continuing a Long Decline That Began Before and Continued After The One-Child Policy |url=https://ourworldindata.org/data-insights/chinas-fertility-rate-has-fallen-to-one-continuing-a-long-decline-that-began-before-and-continued-after-the-one-child-policy |access-date=29 June 2026 |website=[[Our World in Data]] |archive-date=14 July 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260714234900/https://ourworldindata.org/data-insights/chinas-fertility-rate-has-fallen-to-one-continuing-a-long-decline-that-began-before-and-continued-after-the-one-child-policy |url-status=live }}] [[Aging of China|China has a rapidly aging population]]: the proportion of Chinese over 65 is predicted to reach 26% by 2050, which would create a large economic and social burden from increased need for caretakers and medical assistance.{{Sfn|Han et al.|2020|pp=11–13}}
The [[National Bureau of Statistics of China|National Bureau of Statistics]] estimated that the population fell 850,000 from 2021 to 2022, the first decline since 1961.[{{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|website=[[BBC News]]|archive-date=17 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230117043939/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-64300190|url-status=live}}] In 2025, China recorded 5.6 births per 1000 people, the lowest recorded birthrate since at least 1949.[{{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=[[CNBC]]|archive-date=28 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230128131149/https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/21/china-scraps-fines-for-families-violating-childbirth-limits.html|url-status=live}}] The policy resulted in a skewed [[sex ratio]], as many families preferred to have sons, who were able to continue the patrilineal line and were perceived as better able to support the family. Through a combination of infanticide, [[sex-selective abortion]], and unreported female births, there were 120 boys born for every 100 girls by the late 1990s.{{Sfn|Zeng|Hesketh|2016|pp=1930–1933}}{{Sfn|Chen|Zhang|2019|pp=1057–1059}}
China maintains a restrictive [[Immigration to China|immigration policy]], with permanent residence granted to only around 12,000 foreigners as of 2023,[{{cite web |url=https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3234679/china-launch-revamped-smart-green-card-making-it-easier-foreigners-book-tickets-and-order-online|title=China to Launch Revamped 'Smart' Green Card, Making It Easier for Foreigners to Book Tickets and Order Online|website=[[South China Morning Post]]|date=15 September 2023|first=Phoebe|last=Zhang|access-date=24 February 2024|archive-date=21 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240221112212/https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3234679/china-launch-revamped-smart-green-card-making-it-easier-foreigners-book-tickets-and-order-online|url-status=live}}] while an additional 845,697 [[foreign national]]s lived in Mainland China as of the 2020 census.[{{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=[[National Bureau of Statistics of China]]|archive-date=11 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511105022/http://www.stats.gov.cn/english/PressRelease/202105/t20210510_1817193.html|url-status=live}}] The [[Chinese diaspora]] is among the largest on earth, comprising about 40 million people, mostly descended from [[Chinese emigration|emigrants]] during the 19th and early 20th centuries. About two-thirds of this diaspora reside in [[Chinese Indonesians|Indonesia]], [[Thai Chinese|Thailand]], [[Malaysian Chinese|Malaysia]], and the [[Chinese Americans|United States]].{{Sfn|Poston|Wong|2016|pp=351, 362, 368}}
=== Cities and urbanization ===
{{Main|Urbanization in China}}
{{See also|List of cities in China|List of cities in China by population|Megalopolises in China}}
[[File:Guangzhou Twin Towers.jpg|thumb|right|[[Guangzhou]], a major transportation hub and one of China's three largest cities]]
China [[Urbanization in China|has urbanized]] significantly in recent decades. The percentage of the country's population living in urban areas increased from 20% in 1980 to over 68% in 2025, according to Chinese government figures,[{{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 |publisher=[[World Bank]] |archive-date=29 May 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180529133227/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.URB.TOTL.IN.ZS?locations=CN |url-status=live }}][{{Cite web |last=Jiang |first=Dan |date=19 January 2026 |title=国家统计局：2025年城镇化率比上年末提高0.89个百分点 |trans-title=National Bureau of Statistics: The urbanization rate in 2025 will increase by 0.89 percentage points compared to the end of the previous year. |url=https://www.stcn.com/article/detail/3599377.html |access-date=8 February 2026 |website=[[Securities Times]]|language=zh}}] while the United Nations calculates the 2025 urbanization rate as 83.7%.[{{Cite news |date=8 January 2026 |title=It's Not Just China's Total Population That's Falling |url=https://www.economist.com/china/2026/01/08/its-not-just-chinas-total-population-thats-falling |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260130102605/https://www.economist.com/china/2026/01/08/its-not-just-chinas-total-population-thats-falling |archive-date=30 January 2026 |access-date=21 February 2026 |newspaper=[[The Economist]] |issn=}}] Cities in China often include smaller towns and rural areas under their jurisdiction.{{Sfn|Qi|Deng|2024|p=6}} [[Shanghai]] is its [[List of cities in China by population|most populous city by urban area]].{{Sfn|Qi|Deng|2024|p=11}} Two [[urban agglomerations]], the [[Pearl River Delta|Pearl Delta]] and [[Yangtze Delta]], contain many of the largest cities and tens of millions of people.{{Sfn|Qi|Deng|2024|pp=8–10}}
The figures 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 population of migrant workers make conducting censuses in urban areas difficult.{{sfn|Qi|Deng|2024|p=6}}
{{Most populous cities in the People's Republic of China|class=info}}
=== Languages and ethnic groups ===
{{Main|Languages of China|List of ethnic groups in China}}[[File:China ethnolinguistic 1967.jpg|thumb|alt=A demographic map of China shaded by region to indicate different language families and minority groups.|An ethnolinguistic map of China (1967), illustrating the geographic distribution of [[Language family|language families]] and ethnic groups]]China legally recognizes [[List of ethnic groups in China|56 distinct ethnic groups]]. The largest of these are the [[Han Chinese]], who constitute more than 91% of the total population. The minority groups are generally found in the western and border regions of China.{{sfn|Zang|2016|pp=1–3}} Social and wealth inequalities exist between many minority groups and the Han, especially in the rural [[Southwestern China|southwestern areas]].{{sfn|Zang|2016|pp=8, 17}} The [[Zhuang people|Zhuang]] of the southwest are the most populous minority group;{{Sfn|Joseph|2024a|p=8}} other major groups include the [[Uyghurs]], [[Hui people|Hui]], [[Mongols in China|Mongols]], and [[Tibetans]].{{Sfn|Zang|2016|pp=10–13}}
Most Han are speakers of [[Mandarin Chinese]]. [[Standard Chinese]], largely based off the [[Beijing dialect]], is the official language of China.{{Sfn|Bradley|2007|pp=354–355, 385}} Around 300 million people speak other [[Sinitic languages|Chinese languages]] (often described as {{Zh|c=方言|l=|labels=no}}—local varieties or [[Dialect|dialects]]—in Chinese sources). While also written with [[Chinese characters]], these are not highly [[Mutual intelligibility|mutually intelligible]] with Mandarin or each other. Major branches of Chinese include Mandarin, [[Wu Chinese|Wu]], [[Yue Chinese|Yue]] (Cantonese), [[Min Chinese|Min]], [[Gan Chinese|Gan]], [[Hakka Chinese|Hakka]], and [[Xiang Chinese|Xiang]]; the latter six are mainly spoken in Southern China. Since the 1950s, local dialects have steadily assimilated into Mandarin or one of the main regional registers.{{Sfn|Bradley|2007|pp=354–355}}
[[Simplified Chinese characters]], first standardized in the 1950s, are used to write Chinese throughout Mainland China, while [[traditional Chinese characters]] remain in use in the [[Special administrative regions of China|SARs]] and Taiwan.{{Sfn|Yang|Wang|2018|p=1134}} [[Pinyin|Hanyu Pinyin]] is the official [[Romanization of Chinese|romanization system for Chinese]] in the PRC.{{Sfn|Chen|2016|p=484}}
Other language families are found throughout China.{{Sfn|Bradley|2007|pp=351–354}} Distantly related to Chinese, [[Tibeto-Burman languages]] are found in the west and southwest.{{Sfn|Bradley|2007|p=355}} In southwestern China, many [[Hmong–Mien languages|Hmong–Mien]] and [[Kra–Dai languages]] are spoken by minority groups. Offshoots of the [[Austroasiatic languages|Austroasiatic]] and [[Austronesian languages|Austronesian language families]] are also found in the south in smaller numbers. In the northwest, [[Turkic languages|Turkic]] (including [[Uyghur language|Uyghur]]) and [[Mongolic languages]] are found, as well as two [[Indo-European languages]] ([[Russian language|Russian]] and [[Tajik language|Tajik]]).{{Sfn|Bradley|2007|pp=351–354}} Several [[Tungusic languages]] are found in northwestern and northeastern China.{{Sfn|Bradley|2007|p=380}} Since the 2010s, the Chinese government has intensified [[linguistic assimilation]] policies, generally requiring schools to use Standard Chinese.{{Sfn|Barnett|2024|p=514}}
===Religion===
{{Main|Religion in China}}{{See also|Irreligion in China|Antireligious campaigns in China}}[[File:Sakyamuni, Lao Tzu, and Confucius - Google Art ProjectFXD.jpg|alt=A Chinese painting showing a scene of the Buddha, Laozi, and Confucius standing together and smiling by a bridge and a tree|thumb|Ming dynasty painting depicting the sages of the [[three teachings]]: [[the Buddha]], [[Laozi]], and [[Confucius]]]]The Chinese religious tradition is heavily syncretic, incorporating various [[Chinese folk religion|folk religious practices]] alongside [[Confucianism]], [[Taoism]], and [[Buddhism]]. These '[[three teachings]]' were the three main institutionalized schools of Chinese religion. These exist alongside introduced minority religions such as [[Christianity]] and [[Islam]],{{sfn|Wilkinson|2012|p=378}}{{Sfn|Yao|Zhao|2010|pp=6–8, 13–14}} as well as [[Chinese salvationist religions|various new religious movements]].{{Sfn|Yao|Zhao|2010|p=9}} Statistics on affiliation are difficult to gather due to varying definitions of religion and the diffusive nature of local traditions.{{Sfn|Yao|Zhao|2010|pp=9–11}} Many people follow religious teachings and practices without considering themselves adherents.{{Sfn|Yao|Zhao|2010|pp=9–11}} [[Tudigong|Local deities]] are commonly worshiped alongside widely known gods, such as [[Guan Yu]] and [[Mazu]].{{Sfn|Tam|2011|pp=41–43}}
Confucianism is a philosophical and spiritual tradition that originated in the Eastern Zhou, emphasizing the study of the [[Chinese classics|classics]] and the relations of the individual, society, and [[Tian|heaven]].{{Sfn|Billioud|2020|p=75}}{{Sfn|Swain|2017|pp=24–32}} It has sometimes been identified as a religion, following western influences.{{Sfn|Billioud|2020|p=75}} Daoism emphasizes the {{Lang-zh|p=[[Dao]]|labels=no}} ('way') as the world's origin and fundamental force, and seeks to harness it through spiritual cultivation. Initially a philosophical movement during the Eastern Zhou, the religious tradition of Daoism emerged during the 2nd century CE.{{Sfn|Wilkinson|2012|p=|pp=380–382}}{{Sfn|Wei|2015|pp=13–15, 20}} [[Mahayana|Mahayana Buddhism]] was introduced to China during the Han dynasty and spread rapidly over the following centuries. Although often dismissed by Confucian elites, Buddhism greatly influenced other Chinese religious and philosophical traditions.{{Sfn|Wilkinson|2012|p=384}}
Although China and CCP are legally [[State atheism|atheist]], [[Freedom of religion in China|freedom of religion]] is formally guaranteed by the Chinese constitution.{{Sfn|Yao|Zhao|2010|pp=9–11}} China [[Laws regarding religious activities in China|officially recognizes]] five religions: [[Buddhism in China|Buddhism]], Taoism, [[Islam in China (1912–present)|Islam]], [[Catholic Church in China|Catholicism]], and [[Protestantism in China|Protestantism]]. Formal religious practice is managed by "patriotic associations" for each of the recognized faiths overseen by the CCP's [[United Front Work Department]].{{sfn|Zhu|2020|pp=96–97}} However, the majority of religious activities take place outside of registered organizations.{{sfn|Feuchtwang|2020|pp=4–6}}{{Sfn|Madsen|2020|pp=27–28}} China has attempted to crack down on some forms of unregistered practice, such as Protestant [[House church (China)|house churches]]. Religious practices among minority groups, such as Islam among the Uyghur and [[Tibetan Buddhism]], have come under state scrutiny and regulation over fears of [[Secession in China|separatism]].{{Sfn|Madsen|2020|pp=27–28}}
=== Education ===
{{Main|Education in China|Higher education in China}}{{See also|Literacy in China}}
[[File:100 Hours of Astronomy, 瑞安市高楼镇中学天文课1.png|alt=A photo of a group of students in a Chinese junior high school classroom, seated at desks |thumb|Students at a junior high school classroom in [[Zhejiang]], 2019]]
Following an optional two to three years of [[Preschool in China|preschool]], China has nine years of free [[compulsory education]], generally with six years of elementary school and three years of junior high school.{{Sfn|Jia|Feng|2025|p=7}} If they pass entrance examinations, students may then attend a senior high school, choosing between an academic or [[Vocational school|vocational]] track.{{Sfn|Jia|Feng|2025|p=|pp=9–10}} The {{Lang-zh|p=[[gaokao]]|labels=no}} exams allow access to [[Undergraduate education|undergraduate]] higher education, with additional examinations required to attend postgraduate programs.{{Sfn|Jia|Feng|2025|pp=9–10}} As of 2022, 95% of junior high students continue to high school, while higher education has a 59.6% enrollment rate.{{Sfn|Jia|Feng|2025|p=17}}
As of 2022, China had 158 million students enrolled in compulsory school, and 46.5 million enrolled in higher education. There are over 200,000 elementary and junior high schools, over 22,000 secondary schools, and over 3,000 colleges and universities.{{Sfn|Jia|Feng|2025|pp=16–18}} Both private and public schools exist at all levels, with 10.6% of elementary and junior high students attending private schools.{{Sfn|Jia|Feng|2025|p=|pp=7, 10}} China became the world's [[List of countries by number of scientific and technical journal articles|largest publisher of scientific papers]] in 2016.{{sfn|Tollefson|2018|p=390}} [[Language education|Foreign language]] programs are mandatory from 3rd grade. Generally focused on English, other languages are increasingly being taught, especially at the senior high level.{{Sfn|Wang|2024|pp=3–4}}
=== Health ===
{{Main|Health in China}}
{{See also|Medicine in China|Pharmaceutical industry in China}}[[File:NanningTianchiShanPharmacy.jpg|alt=A large pharmacy in China, with western prepackaged medicines at the left, and various herbal medicines in cabinets at the right|thumb|A pharmacy in [[Guangxi]], selling both Western and [[traditional Chinese medicine]]]]The vast majority of [[Primary health care|primary health care institutions]] in China offer both [[Allopathic medicine|allopathic]] and [[traditional Chinese medicine]] (TCM). In 2017, there were approximately 9,000 community health centers in urban areas—which oversaw roughly 25,000 health stations—and 37,000 township health centers in rural areas. There were about 639,000 village clinics, which operate as independent, for-profit enterprises subsidized by the state.{{Sfn|Li et al.|2017|p=2586}}{{Sfn|Wang|Wang|2019|p=8}}
The [[National Health Commission]], together with its local counterparts, oversees health policy.{{sfn|Sun|Condé|Wang|2026|p=417}} After the beginning of reform and opening-up in 1978, Chinese public health improved rapidly from better nutrition, although many free health services provided in the countryside disappeared. [[Healthcare in China]] became mostly privatized and experienced a significant quality increase.[{{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 |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=[[Bloomberg News]]}}] China is a major producer and exporter of [[Active ingredient|active pharmaceutical ingredients]].[{{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=[[Nikkei Asia]] |archive-date=29 September 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240929063530/https://asia.nikkei.com/static/vdata/infographics/chinavaccine-3/}}]
According to 2025 state data, the [[life expectancy]] at birth exceeds 79 years,[{{Cite web |date=7 March 2026 |title=Average Life Expectancy of Chinese Reaches 79.25 Years in 2025: Top Health Official |url=https://english.news.cn/20260307/09cbce382f56427da29dd6429d0f7b34/c.html |access-date=24 April 2026 |website=[[Xinhua News Agency]] |archive-date=7 March 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260307123821/https://english.news.cn/20260307/09cbce382f56427da29dd6429d0f7b34/c.html |url-status=live }}] and the [[infant mortality|infant mortality rate]] is 4 per 1,000.[{{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=[[World Bank]] |archive-date=17 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181017191349/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.IMRT.IN?locations=CN |url-status=live }}] Rates of [[stunted growth]] declined from 33.1% in 1990 to 4.5% in 2024.[{{Cite web |title=Malnutrition: Share of Children Who Are Stunted |url=https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/share-of-children-younger-than-5-who-suffer-from-stunting |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250715043334/https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/share-of-children-younger-than-5-who-suffer-from-stunting |archive-date=15 July 2025 |access-date=18 July 2025 |website=[[Our World in Data]] |language=en |url-status=live}}] Mental health services are underfunded and unevenly distributed.{{Sfn|Que|Lu|Shi|2019|p=1}} The [[COVID-19 pandemic]] was first identified in [[Wuhan]].{{sfn|Novel Coronavirus Pneumonia Emergency Response Epidemiology Team|2020|p=145}} China maintained a [[Zero-COVID|zero-COVID policy]], using [[COVID-19 lockdowns|lockdowns]], [[Quarantine|quarantines]], and [[contact tracing]] to curb its transmission, until [[2022 COVID-19 protests in China|protests]] in November–December 2022.{{Sfn|Ba et al.|2023|pp=1–2}}
== Culture ==
{{Main|Chinese culture|Culture of the People's Republic of China}}
[[File:Red lanterns, Spring Festival, Ditan Park Beijing.JPG|alt=A group of people walking through an avenue over which is hung many dozens of red paper lanterns and other festive ornaments|thumb|Red [[Paper lantern|paper lanterns]] hung up for [[Chinese New Year]] festivities in Beijing]]
Beginning in the Qin and Han dynasties and continuing over the following millennia, [[Sinosphere|an area of Chinese cultural influence]] grew to encompass much of East Asia. Japan, Korea, and Vietnam adopted various political, philosophical, religious, and aesthetic concepts from China, facilitated by their adoption of [[Chinese characters]] and participation in the [[Tributary system of China|tributary system]].{{Sfn|Smith|2020|pp=xxii–xxiv}} [[List of World Heritage Sites in China|China has 60 World Heritage Sites]], including the [[Great Wall of China|Great Wall]] and Grand Canal, the second most of any country (behind [[Italy]]).[{{cite web|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list//en/news/1049/en/list&order=country|title=World Heritage List|publisher=|access-date=1 July 2026|archive-date=2 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201102083728/https://whc.unesco.org/en/list//en/news/1049/en/list%26order%3Dcountry|url-status=live|website=[[UNESCO World Heritage Centre]]}}]
Chinese culture has historically emphasized family connections, with [[filial piety]] and the [[Veneration of the dead|veneration of ancestors]] seen as vital duties under Confucian ethics. Prior to the 20th century, family relations were highly [[Patriarchy|patriarchal]], and [[arranged marriage]]s were commonplace.{{Sfn|Morton|Lewis|2005|pp=272–274}} The CCP pushed for gender equality after coming to power, establishing the [[All-China Women's Federation]] to manage women's issues. However, many patriarchal gender norms remain prevalent, and women face lower employment rates and [[occupational gender segregation]].{{Sfn|Cheung|Tang|2017|pp=19–20, 23–25}}
Prior to the adoption of the [[Gregorian calendar]] in 1912, China traditionally used a 12-month [[lunisolar calendar]].{{Sfn|Wilkinson|2012|pp=498, 501}} The 60-part [[sexagenary cycle]] was often used to enumerate days as well as years,{{Sfn|Wilkinson|2012|pp=496–497}} alongside the twelve-year [[Chinese zodiac]].{{Sfn|Wilkinson|2012|p=518}} [[Public holidays in China|Major holidays and festivals in China]] include the [[Chinese New Year]] (or Spring Festival), the [[Qingming Festival]], the [[Mid-Autumn Festival]], and [[National Day of the People's Republic of China|National Day]].{{Sfn|Kuiper|2011|pp=37–39}}
=== Art ===
{{Main|Chinese art}}
[[File:Folding fan with daylilies, rocks, and a poem, painted by the Qianlong emperor for Empress Dowager Chongqing, China, 1762 AD, ink and color on paper, bamboo - Peabody Essex Museum - DSC07993.jpg|thumb|An 18th-century [[hand fan]] with a poem and nature painting|alt=A hand fan with a flower motif and a poem painted on its surface]]
Traditional Chinese art makes use of a wide array of common motifs, metaphors, and symbols, often using nature as allegory.{{Sfn|Kuiper|2011|pp=153–154}} During the imperial period, skill in art was a marker of refinement and high social status.{{Sfn|Kuiper|2011|pp=152–153}} Renowned art pieces often bear inscriptions and [[Seals in the Sinosphere|seals]] from their previous owners, allowing for the tracing of [[provenance]] over long periods of time.{{Sfn|Clunas|2009|p=139}}
Chinese paintings are traditionally made with [[ink brush]]es on paper or [[silk]].{{Sfn|Kuiper|2011|pp=152–153}} Horizontal [[handscroll]]s and vertical [[hanging scroll]]s are common formats, alongside [[Mural|wall paintings]], [[folding screen]]s and [[hand fan]]s.{{Sfn|Clunas|2009|pp=48–50}} [[Chinese calligraphy|Calligraphy]], emerging during the 3rd and 4th centuries CE, was traditionally regarded in China as the most prestigious form of art, and remains among the most widely practiced.{{Sfn|Kuiper|2011|p=152}}{{Sfn|Clunas|2009|pp=135–137}} Western painting styles gained popularity during the early 20th century,{{Sfn|Andrews|Shen|2012|p=74}} while the Mao government promoted art as a means to embody socialist ideals.{{Sfn|Clunas|2009|pp=212–219}} The 21st century has seen a boom in the international influence of Chinese [[contemporary art]].{{Sfn|Andrews|Shen|2012|pp=291–296}}
Pottery and metal crafts in China date to ancient times.{{Sfn|Clunas|2009|pp=15–18}} [[Porcelain]], also known as china, became a common form of ceramic during the 7th century.{{Sfn|Kuiper|2011|p=167}} By the 14th century, it became popular to decorate porcelain vessels with elaborate [[Blue and white pottery|blue and white patterns]], which became the most popular form of Chinese ceramics.{{Sfn|Kuiper|2011|p=|pp=174–175}} [[Jade]] crafts and [[lacquerware]] have been common decorative mediums since antiquity.{{Sfn|Kuiper|2011|pp=226, 230}}
====Architecture====
{{Further|Chinese architecture}}
[[File:Beijing 北京 (50540559551).jpg|alt=An aerial view of the Forbidden City centered on the Gate of Divine Prowess|thumb|The [[Forbidden City]] in Beijing, with the [[Gate of Divine Prowess]] at center]]
Wood is the most commonly used material in traditional [[Chinese architecture]]. Roofs of important buildings, generally ceramic tile, are often ornate and [[Hip roof|hipped]].{{Sfn|Steinhardt|2019|pp=1–2}} Traditional buildings are often arranged around [[Cardinal direction|cardinal directions]], with grandeur expressed through large complexes, often featuring [[courtyard]]s and large gates.{{Sfn|Steinhardt|2019|pp=5–6}} The spiritual concept of [[feng shui]] influences the layout of houses and settlements, oriented around the flow of {{Zh|p=[[qi]]|labels=no}}, vital energy.{{Sfn|Tam|2011|pp=34–35}}
[[Pagoda]]s, multi-story religious towers far taller than other forms of traditional architecture, were introduced to China alongside Buddhism, and comprise many of China's oldest buildings.{{Sfn|Steinhardt|2019|pp=6, 95}} Western-style architecture was introduced during the 1800s,{{Sfn|Steinhardt|2019|pp=319–321}} while domestic architects began to implement Western design principles in the 1900s.{{Sfn|Steinhardt|2019|pp=321–324}} The reform era has seen a boom in [[contemporary architecture|contemporary]] skyscrapers and offices, which have largely supplanted traditional architecture.{{Sfn|Kuiper|2011|pp=287–289}}
==== Performing arts ====
{{Further|Music of China}}
[[File:2016-05-15 Peking-Oper Lebewohl meine Konkubine anagoria.JPG|alt=Two Peking Opera actors performing on stage in ornate costumes |thumb|Two actors in a performance of [[The Hegemon-King Bids His Lady Farewell|''Farewell My Concubine'']], a [[Peking opera]]]]
The [[music of China]] is highly diverse and regional.{{Sfn|Lau|2008|pp=27–28}} Traditional Chinese music uses a wide variety of instruments, including the {{Lang-zh|p=[[Dizi (instrument)|dizi]]|labels=no}} (a flute), {{Lang-zh|p=[[erhu]]|labels=no}} (a [[bowed string instrument]]), {{Lang-zh|p=[[guqin]]|labels=no}} (a plucked string instrument), {{Lang-zh|p=[[guzheng]]|labels=no}} (a plucked [[zither]]), {{Lang-zh|p=[[pipa]]|labels=no}} (a [[lute]]), {{Lang-zh|p=[[Sheng (instrument)|sheng]]|labels=no}} (a [[mouth organ]]), {{Lang-zh|p=[[suona]]|labels=no}} (a wind instrument), and various types of bells and drums.{{Sfn|Kuiper|2011|pp=239–241}}{{Sfn|Lau|2008|p=|pp=38, 51}} Western-style music spread during the early 20th century, leading the [[Chinese orchestra]] to develop as a fusion of Western orchestral music with Chinese instruments. Western [[classical music]] remains highly prestigious.{{Sfn|Lau|2008|pp=34–39, 91}} Inspired by Western [[jazz]] and boosted by the introduction of recording studios, [[Chinese pop music|Mandarin pop music]] emerged in Shanghai in the 1920s, while the [[folk rock]]-inspired [[Cantopop]] became popular around Hong Kong during the 1970s.{{Sfn|Lau|2008|pp=105–108}} After reform and opening-up, various forms of pop and rock music reached widespread popularity.{{Sfn|Lau|2008|pp=109–111}}
[[Chinese opera]] emerged from {{Zh|p=[[shuochang]]|labels=no}}, folk narrative singing traditions.{{Sfn|Miller|Church|2015|pp=127–128}} Influenced by various regional traditions and {{Lang-zh|p=[[kunqu]]|labels=no}}, a genre popular during the Ming dynasty, [[Peking opera]] reached national popularity during the Qing dynasty,{{Sfn|Miller|Church|2015|pp=130–131}} while various local and regional forms of opera emerged across the country.{{Sfn|Miller|Church|2015|pp=127–128}} Maoist China promoted [[revolutionary opera]] and communist-oriented folk music.{{Sfn|Kuiper|2011|pp=254–256}}
By the Han period, [[Dance in China|Chinese dance]] was a frequent subject of art and poetry, as well as an element of religious rites.{{Sfn|Chang|Frederiksen|2016|pp=12–15, 19}} Dancers often performed for the imperial courts,{{Sfn|Chang|Frederiksen|2016|pp=19–20}} while Chinese opera dances led to increasing numbers of dance troupes across all levels of society during the Qing.{{Sfn|Chang|Frederiksen|2016|pp=27–29}} Western dances gained popularity in the early 20th century, while the CCP promoted [[Folk dance|folk dances]] such as {{Zh|p=[[yangge]]|labels=no}}.{{Sfn|Chang|Frederiksen|2016|pp=34–35, 46–47}}
=== Cuisine ===
{{Main|Chinese cuisine}}
[[File:Chinese_Islamic_food_stall_in_Xi'an.jpg|alt=A man in a restaurant kitchen stands at a food stand with three hot wok slots, two of which are occupied by woks|thumb|A man at a [[Chinese Islamic cuisine|Chinese Muslim restaurant]] in [[Xi'an]] preparing food in [[wok]]s]]
Chinese meals generally incorporate a grain ({{Lang-zh|p=fan|labels=no}}) alongside meat or vegetable-based dishes ({{Lang-zh|p=cai|labels=no}}). Flour—as [[Mantou|steamed buns]], [[dumpling]]s, [[Bing (bread)|pancakes]], or [[Chinese noodles|noodles]]—is the primary grain in the north, alongside [[maize]], [[millet]], [[rice]], and in some regions, [[sorghum]]. Rice—steamed or in the form of [[congee]], [[rice noodles]] or [[rice cake]]s—dominates in the south. Although Chinese cuisine is highly diverse and regional, pork, chicken, fish, and duck are the most common meats.{{Sfn|Chang|1977|pp=7–8}}{{Sfn|Liu|2004|pp=10–13}}{{Sfn|Hsu|Hsu|1977|p=300}} Soybeans are a common staple nationally made into products such as [[tofu]] and [[soy sauce]].{{Sfn|Liu|2004|pp=12–13}} [[Stir frying]] in [[wok]]s is the most common cooking method, alongside deep-frying, steaming,{{Sfn|Liu|2004|p=|pp=119–123}} and [[hot pot]], where dishes are cooked in simmering broth at the table.{{Sfn|Anderson|Anderson|1977|p=358}}
People in China generally eat three meals a day,{{Sfn|Hsu|Hsu|1977|p=304}}{{Sfn|Liu|2004|p=33}} often with a simple breakfast and a more elaborate dinner.{{Sfn|Liu|2004|p=40}} [[Chopsticks]] are the main [[eating utensil]].{{Sfn|Liu|2004|pp=27–29}} Dishes are usually served to be shared among multiple people, rather than served in individual portions.{{Sfn|Liu|2004|p=33}} Hot tea almost always accompanies meals across the country, in lieu of water. Alcohol such as [[rice wine]]s and the distilled liquor [[baijiu]] are commonly served with meals.{{Sfn|Hsu|Hsu|1977|pp=307–308}} Chinese cuisine was traditionally divided into four great traditions: [[Shandong cuisine|Lu]] (Shandong), [[Huaiyang cuisine|Yang]] (Jiangsu), [[Sichuan cuisine|Chuan]] (Sichuan), and [[Cantonese cuisine|Yue]] (Guangdong).{{Sfn|Wilkinson|2012|p=456}}{{Sfn|Anderson|Anderson|1977|pp=353–354}} Chinese Buddhists have developed a [[Buddhist cuisine|unique cuisine]] that [[Vegetarianism in China|avoids meat]], while [[Chinese Islamic cuisine]] excludes pork and alcohol.{{Sfn|Wilkinson|2012|p=441}}{{Sfn|Sai|Fischer|2016|pp=162–164}}
=== Fashion ===
{{Main|Chinese clothing}}
[[File:Gu Hongzhong's Night Revels, Detail 1.jpg|alt=A Chinese painting of a group of men and women reveling at a banquet|thumb|Traditional clothing in a [[Song dynasty]] painting ]]
Various forms of [[robe]] served as the main form of clothing for men and women throughout Chinese history, adapting over the centuries.{{Sfn|Wilkinson|2012|pp=182–183}} Silk, hemp, and later cotton were the main textiles.{{Sfn|Wilkinson|2012|pp=180–181}} Both men and women generally bound their hair with caps or pins, except during periods where foreign hairstyles were enforced by the elite.{{Sfn|Wilkinson|2012|pp=182–183}}
Chinese fashions changed greatly during the 20th century, as traditional designs largely gave way to western clothing.{{Sfn|Finnane|2008|pp=1–3}} The {{Lang-zh|p=[[qipao]]|labels=no}} became a popular form of women's dress during the early 20th century, but are today rare outside of formal occasions.{{Sfn|Finnane|2008|pp=297, 300–301}} After a focus on simple, practical clothing during the Mao era,{{Sfn|Finnane|2008|p=257}}{{Sfn|Wilkinson|2012|p=184}} the reform era saw the emergence of a Western-style fashion industry.{{Sfn|Finnane|2008|pp=263–265}} In the 21st century, the [[Hanfu Movement|Hanfu movement]] has sought to promote a reconstructed form of traditional Chinese clothing.{{Sfn|Fan|Ip|2023|pp=786–787}}
=== Literature ===
{{Main|Chinese literature|Chinese poetry}}
[[File:Kǒngzǐ Shīlùn Manuscript from Shanghai Museum 1.jpg|alt=A group of bamboo slips with old Chinese characters written on them|thumb|[[Bamboo and wooden slips|Bamboo slips]] from the [[Warring States period]], containing part of a commentary on the ''[[Classic of Poetry]]'']]
China has among the longest continuous literary traditions in the world.{{Sfn|Owen|2011|p=xx}} Late Shang-era [[Oracle bone script|oracle bone inscriptions]] are the oldest known form of Chinese writing,{{Sfn|Idema|Haft|1997|p=12}} while the oldest surviving literary works—such as the ''[[Book of Documents]]—''date to the early Zhou.{{Sfn|Ebrey|2010|p=30}} The Chinese literary canon was historically centered on the [[Five Classics]] (ancient transmitted texts) and the [[Four Books and Five Classics|Four Books]] (central Confucian texts).{{Sfn|Idema|Haft|1997|pp=53–54}} The literati regarded literature as primarily [[Didacticism|didactic]], with fiction seen as useless and potentially corruptive.{{Sfn|Idema|Haft|1997|pp=9–10}}{{Sfn|Idema|Haft|1997|p=|pp=56–57}} However, poetry was viewed highly for its ability to convey the nature of reality. The poetry of the Tang era was particularly prized in later dynasties.{{Sfn|Idema|Haft|1997|pp=52–53}}{{Sfn|Wilkinson|2012|pp=401–402}}
[[Classical Chinese]] was the standard literary register until the early 20th century, when it was overtaken by [[written vernacular Chinese]].{{Sfn|Owen|2011|pp=xxiii–xxiv}} Before this, fiction was generally written in vernacular Chinese, with formal works generally in Classical Chinese.{{Sfn|Idema|Haft|1997|p=58}} Popular vernacular literature spread with the introduction of printing, resulting in works such as the [[Classic Chinese Novels|Four Classic Novels]] of the Ming and Qing periods.{{Sfn|Wilkinson|2012|p=411}}
Modern Chinese literature has been heavily influenced by the political upheavals of the 19th and 20th centuries, seeking to explain the political climate or imagine its future.{{Sfn|Wang|2017|pp=245–247}} [[New Culture Movement|New Culture]] writers such as [[Lu Xun]] promoted the importance of fiction and [[Written vernacular Chinese|vernacular Chinese]], experimenting with new modernist forms,{{Sfn|Wang|2017|pp=237–239}} while writers of the Reform era sought to explain the trauma of the Mao era.{{Sfn|Wang|2017|pp=243–245}}
=== Media ===
{{Main|Mass media in China}}China's largest media company is [[China Central Television]], which competes with various provincial television networks. China is the largest online video market, with its major streaming platforms including [[iQIYI]], [[Youku]], and [[Sohu]].[{{cite web |date=22 August 2023 |title=China Media Guide |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-13017881 |access-date=9 July 2025 |work=[[BBC News]] |archive-date=29 May 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250529141517/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-13017881 |url-status=live }}] As of 2025, the [[Cinema of China|Chinese film industry]] is the second largest by global box office earnings (behind the United States), although 98% of earnings are domestic. China limits the number of foreign films that can be shown domestically. According to state sources, it has over 90,000 cinema screens as of 2025, more than any other country.[{{Cite news |last1=Gambrell |first1=Dorothy |last2=Fevrier |first2=Tom |date=23 September 2025 |title=A New Script |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2025-china-box-office/ |access-date=30 June 2026 |work=[[Bloomberg News]] |archive-date=1 October 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251001150952/https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2025-china-box-office/ |url-status=live }}]
As of 2023, China has over 2,600 radio stations, all state-owned, and over 1,900 newspapers. Cities generally have a newspaper published by the local government and another by the local CCP branch. Journalism is tightly controlled and monitored by the CCP, with content critical of the government censored. Foreign Chinese-language news outlets are blocked, while English-language outlets are occasionally available but often censored. Prominent newspapers in China include the ''[[People's Daily]],'' ''[[Global Times]]'', ''[[China Daily]]'', and ''[[Reference News]].''[{{cite news |last=Church |first=Michael |date=14 July 2018 |title=Fifa World Cup: China viewing figures skyrocket as Tencent piggybacks on TV ratings wave |url=https://www.scmp.com/sport/soccer/article/2155256/fifa-world-cup-china-viewing-figures-skyrocket-tencent-piggyback-tv |work=[[South China Morning Post]] |accessdate=21 August 2026 |archive-date=22 August 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260822221709/https://www.scmp.com/sport/soccer/article/2155256/fifa-world-cup-china-viewing-figures-skyrocket-tencent-piggyback-tv |url-status=live }}] the country hosted the [[FIFA Women's World Cup]] twice and the [[China women's national football team|women's team]] finished as runners-up once.[{{cite news |date=10 April 2018 |title=Steel Roses ready to blossom on global stage |url=https://inside.fifa.com/tournaments/womens/womensworldcup/france2019/news/steel-roses-ready-to-blossom-on-global-stage-again |website=[[FIFA]] |accessdate=21 August 2026 |archive-date=23 August 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260823115548/https://inside.fifa.com/tournaments/womens/womensworldcup/france2019/news/steel-roses-ready-to-blossom-on-global-stage-again |url-status=live }}]
China began to invest heavily in [[High-performance sport|elite sports]] during the 1990s, and in 2008 [[2008 Summer Olympics|Beijing hosted the Summer Olympics]].{{Sfn|Zheng et al.|2018|pp=473–474}} Elite sports in China are managed by the [[General Administration of Sport of China|General Administration of Sport]], which oversees management centers for various sports, as well as provincial sports committees and teams. The vast majority of sports funding, especially for elite sports, comes from the government.{{Sfn|Zheng et al.|2018|pp=476–478}} China hosted the [[2022 Winter Olympics|Winter Olympics in 2022]],{{Sfn|Meng|2023|p=309}} and the [[Asian Games]] in [[1990 Asian Games|1990]], [[2010 Asian Games|2010]], and [[2022 Asian Games|2022]].{{Efn|The 2022 Asian Games were held in 2023.[{{cite web|title=Asian Games 2023: Final Medal Table|url=https://www.olympics.com/en/news/asian-games-2023-overall-medal-table-complete-list|access-date=21 July 2026|website=[[Olympic Games]]|date=8 October 2023|archive-date=4 November 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251104013236/https://www.olympics.com/en/news/asian-games-2023-overall-medal-table-complete-list|url-status=live}}]|group=lower-alpha}}{{Sfn|Yuan|2023|p=279}} China is dominant among international competition in [[Table tennis in China|table tennis]] (often dubbed China's [[national sport]]),{{Sfn|Zhang|Zhou|2019|p=244}}{{Sfn|Eskicioglu|Tauscher|2025|p=5}} [[badminton]], [[Diving (sport)|diving]], and [[weightlifting]],{{Sfn|Eskicioglu|Tauscher|2025|p=5}}{{Sfn|Chu|2024|p=51}} and is among the top global competitors in [[snooker]].{{Sfn|Harris|2020|p=235}}
Various card, dice, and board games gained popularity in imperial China, most notably {{Lang-zh|p=[[Go (game)|weiqi]]|labels=no}} (also known as Go) and {{Lang-zh|p=[[xiangqi]]|labels=no}} (a relative of [[chess]]).{{Sfn|Liboriussen|Martin|2016|p=227}} [[Mahjong]] emerged during the 1800s, initially one of many popular [[Gambling|gambling games]].{{Sfn|Heinz|2021|p=4}} China is the world's largest video game market. Video games were introduced from Japan in the 1980s, and online video games grew to immense popularity alongside the spread of the internet.{{Sfn|Tai|Lu|2021|pp=206–207}}
== See also ==
{{Portal|China|Countries|Asia
}}
* [[Outline of China]]
{{#related:Chinese culture}}
{{#related:Sinosphere}}
{{Clear}}
== Notes ==
{{Notelist|30em}}
== References ==
{{reflist}}
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*{{cite report |first=Shouren |last=Wang |title=The Expansion of Foreign Language Education in China |publisher=World Humanities Report |date=2024 |url=https://worldhumanitiesreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Chi_9.3_The-Expansion-of-Foreign-Language-Education-in-China.pdf |archive-date=13 August 2026 |access-date=13 August 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260813140112/https://worldhumanitiesreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Chi_9.3_The-Expansion-of-Foreign-Language-Education-in-China.pdf |url-status=live }}
*{{cite book |first=Tao |last=Wang |title=Making Sense of China's Economy |date=2023 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=978-1-032-31704-5 |doi=10.4324/9781003310938-1}}
*{{cite journal |first1=Yuanyuan |last1=Wang |first2=Zhishan |last2=Hu |first3=Ke |last3=Peng |first4=Ying |last4=Xin |first5=Yuan |last5=Yang |first6=Jack |last6=Drescher |first7=Runsen |last7=Chen |title=Discrimination Against LGBT Populations in China |date=2019 |ref={{harvid|Wang et al.|2019}} |journal=The Lancet Public Health |doi=10.1016/S2468-2667(19)30153-7 |pages=e440–e441 |volume=4 |issue=9 |pmid=31493836}}
*{{cite journal |first1=Michael |last1=Webber |first2=Britt |last2=Crow-Miller |first3=Sarah |last3=Rogers |title=The South–North Water Transfer Project: Remaking the Geography of China |journal=Regional Studies |doi=10.1080/00343404.2016.1265647 |pages=370–382 |volume=51 |issue=3 |date=2017 |bibcode=2017RegSt..51..370W}}
*{{cite book |first=Chiao |last=Wei |title=Religion in China: Major Concepts and Minority Positions |date=2015 |publisher=[[Austrian Academy of Sciences Press]] |isbn=978-3-7001-7782-1 |doi=10.2307/j.ctt1vw0pdc |jstor=j.ctt1vw0pdc |editor-first1=Max |editor-last1=Deeg |editor-first2=Bernhard |editor-last2=Scheid |chapter=Daoism in China |pages=13–28}}
*{{cite book |first=Endymion |last=Wilkinson |title=[[Chinese History: A New Manual]] |date=2012 |publisher=[[Harvard University Asia Center]] |isbn=978-0-674-06715-8}}
*{{cite report |first=Christian |last=Wirth |title=The Transformation of the Chinese People's Liberation Army into a 'World-Class Military' |date=2025 |publisher=[[Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik]] |url=https://www.swp-berlin.org/publications/products/research_papers/2025RP03_TransformationChineseArmy.pdf |archive-date=14 March 2026 |access-date=18 June 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260314090556/https://www.swp-berlin.org/publications/products/research_papers/2025RP03_TransformationChineseArmy.pdf |url-status=live }}
*{{cite journal |first=Joel |last=Wuthnow |title=Who Commands the Gun? Mobilization and Use of China's Armed Police |journal=[[The China Quarterly]] |issue=253 |pages=74–89 |doi=10.1017/S0305741022001254 |date=2022 |volume=253}}
*{{cite journal |first1=Jia |last1=Xiao |title=Calculating the Hu Huanyong Line |date=2026 |journal=[[Annals of the American Association of Geographers]] |volume=116 |issue=1 |pages=17–38 |doi=10.1080/24694452.2025.2534549 |bibcode=2026AAAG..116...17X}}
*{{cite book |editor-first1=Guobin |editor-last1=Xu |editor-first2=Yanhui |editor-last2=Chen |editor-first3=Lianhua |editor-last3=Xu |title=Introduction to Chinese Culture: Cultural History, Arts, Festivals and Rituals |date=2018 |publisher=[[Palgrave Macmillan]] |isbn=978-981-10-8155-2 |doi=10.1007/978-981-10-8156-9}}
*{{cite journal |first1=Ruoxiao |last1=Yang |first2=William Shi Yuan |last2=Wang |title=Categorical Perception of Chinese Characters by Simplified and Traditional Chinese Readers |date=2018 |journal=[[Reading and Writing]] |doi=10.1007/s11145-018-9832-y |pages=1133–1154 |volume=3 |issue=5}}
*{{cite book |first1=Xinzhong |last1=Yao |first2=Yanxia |last2=Zhao |title=Chinese Religion: A Contextual Approach |date=2010 |publisher=[[Continuum International Publishing Group|Continuum International Publishing]] |isbn=978-1-8470-6475-2}}
*{{cite book |first=Xiaowei |last=Zang |title=Handbook on Ethnic Minorities in China |publisher=[[Edward Elgar Publishing]] |date=2016 |isbn=9781784717353 |pages=1–19 |chapter=Introduction: Who Are Ethnic Minorities and How Well Do They Do In China?}}
*{{cite book |first=Peter |last=Zarrow |date=2006 |title=China in War and Revolution, 1895–1949 |isbn=978-1-134-21976-6 |publisher=[[Routledge]]}}
*{{cite journal |first1=Yi |last1=Zeng |first2=Therese |last2=Hesketh |title=The Effects of China's Universal Two-Child Policy |date=2016 |doi=10.1016/S0140-6736(16)31405-2 |journal=[[The Lancet]] |volume=388 |issue=10054 |pages=1930–1938 |pmid=27751400 |pmc=5944611 |bibcode=2016Lanc..388.1930Z}}
*{{cite journal |first=Yida |last=Zhai |title=Public Opinion in a Rising Power: National and International Orientations among the Chinese Public |journal=[[Journal of East Asian Studies]] |doi=10.1017/jea.2023.3 |pages=71–94 |volume=23 |date=2023}}
*{{cite journal |first1=Chenghui |last1=Zhang |first2=Bo |last2=Zhang |first3=Qingyang |last3=Hong |title=Crime Data in Mainland China: Legal Frameworks, Accessibility, and Research Challenges |date=2026 |doi=10.1177/10439862251387467 |pages=132–152 |journal=[[Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice]] |volume=42 |issue=1}}
*{{cite journal |first1=Hui |last1=Zhang |first2=Zheng |last2=Zhou |title=How is Table Tennis in China Successful? |date=2019 |doi=10.1007/s12662-019-00583-4 |pages=244–250 |journal=German Journal of Exercise and Sports Research |volume=49 |issue=3}}
*{{cite book |first=Mo |last=Zhang |date=2026 |title=Contemporary Chinese Law and Legal System: Fundamentals, Civil Justice and Process |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |isbn=9781009690447 |doi=10.1017/9781009690478}}
*{{cite book |first1=Xiang |last1=Zhang |title=Routledge Handbook of Media Geographies |date=2022 |chapter=The Internet Media in China |pages=60–73 |isbn=978-0-367-48285-5 |doi=10.4324/9781003039068 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |editor-first1=Paul C. |editor-last1=Adams |editor-first2=Barney |editor-last2=Warf}}
*{{cite book |first=Suisheng |author-link=Suisheng Zhao |last=Zhao |title=The Dragon Roars Back: Transformational Leaders and Dynamics of Chinese Foreign Policy |date=2023 |publisher=[[Stanford University Press]] |isbn=978-1-5036-3415-2 |doi=10.1515/9781503634152}}
*{{cite journal |title=Sport Policy in China (Mainland) |first1=Jinming |last1=Zheng |first2=Shushu |last2=Chen |first3=Tien-Chin |last3=Tan |first4=Patrick Wing Chung |last4=Lau |ref={{harvid|Zheng et al.|2018}} |date=2018 |journal=International Journal of Sport Policy and Politics |doi=10.1080/19406940.2017.1413585 |pages=469–491 |volume=10 |issue=3}}
{{refend}}
{{div col end}}
== External links ==
{{Library resources box}}
{{Sister project links|China|auto=yes}}
=== Government ===
* [http://english.gov.cn/ The Central People's Government of People's Republic of China]
=== General information ===
* [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-13017877 Country profile – China] at [[BBC News]]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120609183901/http://ucblibraries.colorado.edu/govpubs/for/china.htm China, People's Republic of (archived 2012)] from ''UCB Libraries GovPubs''
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