China

"People's Republic of China" redirects here. For the Republic of

China, see Taiwan.
"PRC" redirects here. For other uses, see PRC (disambiguation) and
China (disambiguation).

China (Chinese: 中国; pinyin: Zhōngguó), officially the People's

Republic of China (PRC),[k] is a country in East Asia. It is the world's
most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion,
slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones
and borders fourteen countries by land,[l] the most of any country in
the world, tied with Russia. With an area of approximately 9.6 million
square kilometres (3,700,000 sq mi), it is the world's third largest
country by total land area.[m] The country consists of 22 provinces,
[n]
five autonomous regions, four municipalities, and two special
administrative regions (Hong Kong and Macau). The national capital
is Beijing, and the most populous city and largest financial center is
Shanghai.

People's Republic of China

中华⼈⺠共和国 (Chinese)
Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó (Pinyin)

Flag
:
 National Emblem
Anthem: 
义勇军进⾏曲
Yìyǒngjūn Jìnxíngqǔ
"March of the Volunteers"

0:44

Territory controlled by the People's Republic of China is shown in dark

green; territory claimed but not controlled is shown in light green.
Beijing
Capital
39°55′N 116°23′E
Largest city
Shanghai
by population
Official languages Standard Chinese[a]
Mongolian
Uyghur
Recognized Tibetan
regional languages Zhuang
Others

Official script Simplified Chinese[b]

Ethnic groups 91.1% Han Chinese

8.9% Others
(2020)[1]
:
 74.5% No religion / Folk
Religion 18.3% Buddhism
(2020)[2] 5.2% Christianity
1.6% Islam
0.4% Others

Demonym(s) Chinese
Unitary Marxist–Leninist one-party
Government
socialist republic

• CCP General Secretary[c]

President[d] Xi Jinping
CMC Chairman[e]
• Premier Li Keqiang
• Congress Chairman Li Zhanshu
• CPPCC Chairman[f] Wang Yang
Legislature National People's Congress
Formation

• First pre-imperial dynasty c. 2070 BCE

• First imperial dynasty 221 BCE
• Republic established 1 January 1912
• Proclamation of the
People's Republic 1 October 1949

• First constitution 20 September 1954

• Current constitution 4 December 1982
• Most recent polity admitted 20 December 1999
Area
9,596,961 km2 (3,705,407 sq mi)[g][5]
• Total
(3rd / 4th)
• Water (%) 2.8[h]
Population
:
 • 2022 estimate 1,411,750,000[7] (1st)
• 2020 census 1,411,778,724[8] (1st)
• Density 145[9]/km2 (375.5/sq mi) (83rd)
GDP (PPP) 2022 estimate
• Total $30.074 trillion[10] (1st)
• Per capita $21,291[10] (72nd)
GDP (nominal) 2022 estimate
• Total $18.321 trillion[i][10] (2nd)
• Per capita $12,970[10] (65th)
 38.2[11]
Gini (2019)
medium
 0.768[12]
HDI (2021)
high · 79th
Currency Renminbi (元/¥)[j] (CNY)
Time zone UTC+8 (CST)
DST is not observed
yyyy-mm-dd
or yyyy年m⽉d⽇
Date format
(CE; Chinese calendar)

right (Mainland)
Driving side
left (Hong Kong and Macau)
+86 (Mainland)
Calling code +852 (Hong Kong)
+853 (Macau)
ISO 3166 code CN
.cn
.中国
.中國 (Mainland)

.hk
Internet TLD .⾹港 (Hong Kong)
:
 .mo
.澳⻔
.澳⾨ (Macau)

Modern Chinese trace their origins to a cradle of civilization in the

fertile basin of the Yellow River in the North China Plain. The semi-
legendary Xia dynasty in the 21st century BCE and the well-attested
Shang and Zhou dynasties developed a bureaucratic political system
to serve hereditary monarchies, or dynasties. Chinese writing,
Chinese classic literature, and the Hundred Schools of Thought
emerged during this period and influenced China and its neighbors
for centuries to come. In the third century BCE, Qin Shi Huang
founded the first Chinese empire, the short-lived Qin dynasty. The
Qin was followed by the more stable Han dynasty (206 BCE–220
CE), which established a model for nearly two millennia in which the
Chinese empire was one of the world's foremost economic powers.
The empire expanded, fractured, and reunified; was conquered and
reestablished; absorbed foreign religions and ideas; and made
world-leading scientific advances, such as the Four Great Inventions:
gunpowder, paper, the compass, and printing. After centuries of
disunity following the fall of the Han, the Sui (581–618) and Tang
(618–907) dynasties reunified the empire. The multi-ethnic Tang
welcomed foreign trade and culture that came over the Silk Road and
adapted Buddhism to Chinese needs. The early modern Song
dynasty (960–1279) became increasingly urban and commercial.
The civilian scholar-officials or literati used the examination system
and the doctrines of Neo-Confucianism to replace the military
aristocrats of earlier dynasties. The Mongol invasion established the
Yuan dynasty in 1279, but the Ming dynasty (1368–1644) re-
established Han Chinese control. The Manchu-led Qing dynasty
nearly doubled the empire's territory and established a multi-ethnic
state that was the basis of the modern Chinese nation, but suffered
:
 heavy losses to foreign imperialism in the 19th century.

The Chinese monarchy collapsed in 1912 with the Xinhai Revolution,

when the Republic of China (ROC) replaced the Qing dynasty. In its
early years as a republic, the country underwent a period of
instability known as the "Warlord Era" before mostly reunifying in
1928 under a Nationalist government. A civil war between the
nationalist Kuomintang (KMT) and the Chinese Communist Party
(CCP) began in 1927. Japan invaded China in 1937, starting the
Second Sino-Japanese War and temporarily halting the civil war. The
surrender and expulsion of Japanese forces from China in 1945 left a
power vacuum in the country, which led to renewed fighting between
the CCP and the Kuomintang. The civil war ended in 1949[o] with the
division of Chinese territory; the CCP established the People's
Republic of China on the mainland while the Kuomintang-led ROC
government retreated to the island of Taiwan.[p] Both claim to be the
sole legitimate government of China, although the United Nations
has recognized the PRC as the sole representation since 1971. From
1959 to 1961, the PRC implemented an economic and social
campaign called the "Great Leap Forward" that resulted in a sharp
economic decline and an estimated 15 to 55 million deaths, mostly
through man-made famine. From 1966 to 1976, the turbulent period
of political and social chaos within China known as the Cultural
Revolution led to greater economic and educational decline, with
millions being purged or subjected to either persecution or
"politicide" based on political categories. Since then, the Chinese
government has rebuked some of the earlier Maoist policies,
conducting a series of political and economic reforms since 1978
that have greatly raised Chinese standards of living, and increased
life expectancies.

China is currently governed as a unitary Marxist–Leninist one-party

socialist republic by the CCP. China is a permanent member of the
:
 United Nations Security Council and a founding member of several
multilateral and regional cooperation organizations such as the Asian
Infrastructure Investment Bank, the Silk Road Fund, the New
Development Bank, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, and the
RCEP. It is also a member of the BRICS, the G8+5, the G20, the
APEC, and the East Asia Summit. It ranks among the lowest in
measurements of democracy, civil liberties, government
transparency, freedom of the press, freedom of religion, and the
human rights of ethnic minorities. The Chinese authorities have been
criticized by human rights activists and non-governmental
organizations for human rights abuses, including political repression,
mass censorship, mass surveillance of their citizens, and violent
suppression of protest and dissent.

Making up around one-fifth of the world economy, China is the

world's largest economy by GDP at purchasing power parity, the
second-largest economy by nominal GDP, and the second-
wealthiest country. The country is one of the fastest-growing major
economies and is the world's largest manufacturer and exporter, as
well as the second-largest importer. China is a recognized nuclear-
weapon state with the world's largest standing army by military
personnel and the second-largest defense budget. China is
considered to be a potential superpower due to its high level of
innovation, economic potential, growing military strength, and
influence in international affairs.

Etymology

History

Geography
:
 Politics

Military

Economy

Science and technology

Infrastructure

Demographics

Culture

See also

Notes

References
Further reading
External links
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