China

{{hatnote|Several terms redirect here. For the present-day Republic of China, see Taiwan. For other uses, see China (disambiguation), PRC (disambiguation), and 中国 (disambiguation).}} {{Pp-move}} {{Pp-extended|small=yes}} {{Use American English|date=December 2021}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2026|cs1-dates=ly}} {{Infobox country | conventional_long_name = People's Republic of China | common_name = China | native_name = {{native name|zh-Hans-CN|中华人民共和国|italic=no|paren=omit}} {{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 = 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 | map_caption = {{Legend|#336830|People's Republic of China}}{{Legend|#61E760|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 urban population}} | admin_center_type = Largest city {{normal|by municipal population}} | admin_center = Chongqing<ref name="renamed_from_2015_on_20160214005959">{{Cite web |date=28 January 2016 |script-title=zh:2015年重庆常住人口3016.55万人继续保持增长态势 |url=http://cq.cqnews.net/html/2016-01/28/content_36292655.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160129083111/http://cq.cqnews.net/html/2016-01/28/content_36292655.htm |archive-date=29 January 2016 |access-date=13 February 2016 |publisher=Chongqing News |language=zh }}</ref> | official_languages = Standard Chinese {{nwr|(de facto)<ref name="Adamson & Feng">{{Cite book |last1=Adamson |first1=Bob |title=Multilingual China: National, Minority and Foreign Languages |last2=Feng |first2=Anwei |date=27 December 2021 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-0004-8702-2 |page=90 |quote=Despite not being defined as such in the Constitution, ''Putonghua'' enjoys de facto status of the official language in China and is legislated as the standard form of Chinese.}}</ref>}} | languages_type = Official script | languages_sub = yes | languages = Simplified Chinese (Mainland) Traditional Chinese (Hong Kong, Macau) | ethnic_groups = {{ubl|item_style=white-space:nowrap|91.11% Han Chinese|1.39% Zhuang|0.84% Uyghur|0.81% Hui|0.79% Miao|0.74% Manchu|0.70% Yi|0.68% Tujia|0.50% Tibetan|2.44% others}} | ethnic_groups_year = 2020 | ethnic_groups_ref = <ref>{{Cite web |title=Main Data of the Seventh National Population Census |url=http://www.stats.gov.cn/english/PressRelease/202105/t20210510_1817185.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511031334/http://www.stats.gov.cn/english/PressRelease/202105/t20210510_1817185.html |archive-date=11 May 2021 |access-date=25 July 2021 |website=Stats.gov.cn}}</ref> | demonym = Chinese | government_type = Unitary communist state | leader_title1 = CCP General Secretary and President{{efn|The paramount leader of China holds the titles of General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, President of China, and Chairman of the Central Military Commission}} | leader_name1 = Xi Jinping | leader_title2 = Premier | leader_name2 = Li Qiang | leader_title3 = Congress Chairman | leader_name3 = Zhao Leji | leader_title4 = CPPCC Chairman{{efn|Chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference}} | leader_name4 = Wang Huning | leader_title5 = Vice President | leader_name5 = Han Zheng | legislature = National People's Congress{{efn|While not an upper house of the legislature, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference exists as an advisory body. However, much of the parliamentary functions are held by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress when ordinary congress is not in session.}} | sovereignty_type = Formation | established_event1 = First pre-imperial dynasty | established_date1 = {{circa|2070 BCE}} | established_event2 = First imperial dynasty | established_date2 = 221 BCE | established_event3 = Establishment of the Republic of China | established_date3 = 1 January 1912 | established_event4 = Proclamation of the People's Republic | established_date4 = 1 October 1949 | established_event5 = Current constitution | established_date5 = 4 December 1982 | area_km2 = 9,596,961 | p1 = | area_footnote = {{efn|UN figure for mainland China, which excludes Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan.<ref name="UN Stat">{{Cite web |date=2007 |title=Demographic Yearbook—Table 3: Population by sex, rate of population increase, surface area and density |url=http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/products/dyb/dyb2007/Table03.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101224063215/http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/products/dyb/dyb2007/Table03.pdf |archive-date=24 December 2010 |access-date=31 July 2010 |publisher=UN Statistics}}</ref> It also excludes the Trans-Karakoram Tract ({{cvt|5180|km2}}), Aksai Chin ({{cvt|38000|km2}}) and other territories in dispute with India. The total area of China is listed as {{cvt|9572900|km2}} by the ''Encyclopædia Britannica''.<ref name="britannica">{{Cite encyclopedia |title=China |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/China |access-date=4 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190727034401/https://www.britannica.com/place/China |archive-date=27 July 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref>}}<ref>{{Cite web |title=Total surface area as of 19 January 2007 |url=https://unstats.un.org/unsd/environment/totalarea.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231203020257/https://unstats.un.org/unsd/environment/totalarea.htm |archive-date=3 December 2023 |access-date=28 March 2024 |website=United Nations Statistics Division}}</ref> | area_rank = 3rd/4th | area_sq_mi = 3,705,407  | percent_water = 2.8<ref name="CIA"/> | population_estimate = {{decreaseNeutral}} 1,404,890,000{{efn|Excluding residents of Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan and foreigners living in the 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities}}<ref>{{cite web |title=National Economy – 10. Total Population went down and Urbanization rate continued to grow (31 December 2025) |url=https://www.stats.gov.cn/english/PressRelease/202601/t20260119_1962328.html |publisher=National Bureau of Statistics of China (NBSC) |website=www.stats.gov.cn |date=19 January 2026 |access-date=19 January 2026}}</ref> | 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.}}<ref name="IMFWEO.CN">{{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) |publisher=International Monetary Fund |website=www.imf.org |date=14 April 2026 |access-date=18 April 2026}}</ref> | GDP_PPP_year = 2026 | GDP_PPP_rank = 1st | GDP_PPP_per_capita = {{increase}} $31,596<ref name="IMFWEO.CN"/> | GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank = 73rd | GDP_nominal = {{increase}} $20.852 trillion<ref name="IMFWEO.CN"/> | GDP_nominal_year = 2026 | GDP_nominal_rank = 2nd | GDP_nominal_per_capita = {{increase}} $14,874<ref name="IMFWEO.CN"/> | GDP_nominal_per_capita_rank = 74th | Gini = 36.0  | Gini_year = 2022 | Gini_change = decrease | Gini_ref = <ref name="GINI">{{Cite web |title=Gini index – China |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SI.POV.GINI?locations=CN&most_recent_year_desc=true |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240319005643/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SI.POV.GINI?locations=CN&most_recent_year_desc=true |archive-date=19 March 2024 |access-date=24 May 2022 |publisher=World Bank}}</ref> | HDI = 0.797  | HDI_year = 2023  | HDI_change = increase | HDI_ref = <ref name="UNHDR">{{Cite web |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 |publisher=United Nations Development Programme |language=en}}</ref> | HDI_rank = 78th | currency = Renminbi (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 = CST | utc_offset = +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 the second-most populous country after India, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion (17% of the world's population), across an area of {{Convert|9.6|e6sqkm|sqmi|sp=us}}, making it the third-largest country by area.{{efn|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}}.<ref name="britannica"/> # The CIA ''World Factbook'' lists China as the fourth-largest country (after Russia, Canada and the United States) with a total area of 9,596,960 km{{Sup|2}}.<ref name="CIA"/>

Both sources exclude both Taiwan and coastal and territorial waters from the area of China. However, the CIA ''World Factbook'' includes the United States coastal and territorial waters, while Encyclopædia Britannica excludes them. Britannica specifies the United States' area (excluding coastal and territorial waters) as 9,525,067 km{{Sup|2}}, which is less than either source's figure given for China's area.<ref name="United States"/> The United Nations Statistics Division's figure for the US is {{cvt|9,833,517|km2}} and China is {{cvt|9,596,961|km2}}. These closely match the CIA ''World Factbook'' figures and similarly ''include'' coastal and territorial waters for the United States, but ''exclude'' coastal and territorial waters for China.}} The country is divided into 33 province-level divisions: 22 provinces,{{efn|Excluding the disputed Taiwan Province. See {{section link||Administrative divisions}}.}} 5 autonomous regions, 4 municipalities, and 2 special administrative regions. Beijing is the capital, while Shanghai is the most populous city by urban area.

The first humans in China arrived during the Paleolithic era. By the 2nd millennium BCE dynastic states had emerged in the Yellow River basin. The 8th–3rd centuries BCE saw a breakdown in the authority of the Zhou dynasty, accompanied by the emergence of administrative and military techniques, literature and philosophy. In 221 BCE, China was unified under an emperor, ushering in two millennia of imperial rule. Its achievements include widespread cultural influence, the invention of gunpowder, paper, printing and the compass, the establishment of the Silk Road, and the building of the Great Wall. In the 1800s, the Qing dynasty ceded parts of the country to foreign powers through a series of unequal treaties. The 1911 Revolution overthrew the empire and established the Republic of China. The country was unstable and fragmented during the Warlord Era until the Kuomintang reunified much of the country.

The Chinese Civil War began in 1927, when Kuomintang forces purged members of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The Empire of Japan invaded Manchuria in 1931 and China in 1937, beginning the Second Sino-Japanese War and renewed CCP and Kuomintang cooperation. This ended in a Chinese victory in 1945, and the CCP and the Kuomintang resumed their civil war. In 1949, the CCP proclaimed the People's Republic of China and forced the Kuomintang retreat to Taiwan. Both sides of the split China claimed legitimacy. Following the implementation of land reforms, attempts by the CCP to advance communism faltered: the Great Leap Forward led to the Great Chinese Famine and millions of deaths, while the Cultural Revolution saw turmoil and persecution. The reform and opening up that began in 1978 moved the country away from a planned economy towards a market economy, spurring an economic boom. A movement for political liberalization stalled after the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre.

The PRC is a unitary communist state with the CCP as its sole ruling party. It is one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council and a member of many multilateral and regional organizations. Around one-fifth of the world's economy, China is the second-wealthiest country in the world, with the Chinese economy the largest when adjusted for purchasing power parity. China has been one of the fastest-growing modern economies and is the world's largest manufacturer and exporter, as well as the second-largest importer. International organizations rank China poorly in measures of democracy and human rights. China has the world's largest standing army, second-largest defense budget, and third-largest nuclear weapons stockpile. Since the 2020s, it has been described as a superpower due to its influence in geopolitics, science and technology, manufacturing, economics and culture. China is known for its cuisine and culture. It has over 60 UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

== Etymology ==

The word "China" has been used in English since the 16th century; however, it was not used by the Chinese themselves during this period. Its origin has been traced through Portuguese, Malay, and Persian back to the Sanskrit word चिन {{transliteration|sa|Cīna}}, used in ancient India.<ref name="OED">{{Cite web |title=China |url=https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/31735? |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230712030439/https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/31735 |archive-date=12 July 2023 |access-date=28 March 2024 |website=Oxford English Dictionary}}{{ISBN|0-1995-7315-8}}.</ref> "China" appears in an 1555 English translation{{efn|"...{{nbsp}}Next into this, is found the great China, whose king is thought to be the greatest prince in the world, and is named Santoa Raia".<ref>Eden, Richard (1555), ''Decades of the New World'', [http://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/eebo/a20032.0001.001/511?page=root;size=125;vid=4616;view=text p. 230] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230811170243/https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/eebo/a20032.0001.001/511?page=root;size=125;vid=4616;view=text |date=11 August 2023}}.</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Myers |first=Henry Allen |title=Western Views of China and the Far East, Volume 1 |date=1984 |publisher=Asian Research Service |page=34}}</ref>}} of the 1516 journal of the Portuguese explorer Duarte Barbosa.{{efn|"...{{nbsp}}The Very Great Kingdom of China".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Barbosa |first=Duarte |title=The Book of Duarte Barbosa |date=1918 |publisher=Asian Educational Services |isbn=978-8-1206-0451-3 |editor-last=Dames |editor-first=Mansel Longworth |volume=II |location=London |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=edzW9fuOF-cC&pg=PA211 211]}}</ref> ({{langx|pt|...{{nbsp}}O Grande Reino da China{{nbsp}}...}}).<ref>{{Cite book |last=Barbosa |first=Duarte |url=http://purl.pt/435 |title=Livro em que dá Relação do que Viu e Ouviu no Oriente |date=1946 |publisher=Agência Geral das Colónias |editor-last=Augusto Reis Machado |location=Lisbon |archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20081022202824/http://purl.pt/435 |archive-date=22 October 2008 |url-status=dead}}. {{in lang|pt}}</ref>}}<ref name="OED" /> Barbosa's usage was derived from Persian {{transliteration|fa|Chīn}} ({{lang|fa|{{linktext|چین}}}}), which in turn derived from Sanskrit {{transliteration|sa|Cīna}} ({{lang|sa|{{linktext|चीन}}}}).<ref name="AmHer">"[http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/China?qsrc=2888 China] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110921131850/http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/China?qsrc=2888 |date=21 September 2011}}". ''The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language'' (2000). Boston and New York: Houghton-Mifflin.</ref> The origin of the Sanskrit word is a matter of debate.<ref name="OED" /> {{transliteration|sa|Cīna}} was first used in early Hindu scripture from the 3rd century BCE to 4th century CE, including the ''Mahabharata'' and the ''Laws of Manu''.<ref name="wade">Wade, Geoff. "[http://www.sino-platonic.org/complete/spp188_yelang_china.pdf The Polity of Yelang and the Origin of the Name 'China'] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171117222125/http://www.sino-platonic.org/complete/spp188_yelang_china.pdf |date=17 November 2017}}". ''Sino-Platonic Papers'', No. 188, May 2009, p. 20.</ref> In 1655, the missionary Martino Martini suggested that the word China is derived ultimately from the name of the Qin dynasty (221–206 BCE) or the prior state of Qin.<ref name="wade" /><ref name="Martini">Martino, Martin, ''Novus Atlas Sinensis'', Vienna 1655, Preface, p. 2.</ref> This remains a common etymology, although Indian sources precedes the dynasty.<ref name="Bodde-1978">{{Cite book |last=Bodde |first=Derk |author-link=Derk Bodde |title=The Cambridge History of China: Volume 1, The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC – AD 220 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1986 |isbn=978-0-5212-4327-8 |editor-last=Denis Twitchett |editor-link=Denis Twitchett |page=20 |chapter=The state and empire of Ch'in |doi=10.1017/CHOL9780521243278.003 |editor-last2=Michael Loewe |editor-link2=Michael Loewe}}</ref> Another possible source is the ancient Guizhou polity of Yelang, known as {{Lang|ii|ʐina}} in Loloish languages.<ref name="wade" />

The official name of the modern state is the "People's Republic of China" ({{lang-zh|s={{linktext|中华人民共和国}}|p=Zhōnghuá rénmín gònghéguó|t={{linktext|中華人民共和國}}}}). The shorter form is "China" ({{lang-zh|s={{linktext|中国}}|t={{linktext|中國}}|p=Zhōngguó|labels=no}}), from {{transliteration|zh|zhōng}} ('central') and {{transliteration|zh|guó}} ('state'), a term first used for the demesne of the Western Zhou dynasty.{{efn|Its earliest extant use is on the ritual bronze vessel He zun, where it apparently refers to only the Shang's immediate demesne conquered by the Zhou.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Chen |first=Zhi |author-mask=Chen Zhi |date=9 November 2004 |title=From Exclusive Xia to Inclusive Zhu-Xia: The Conceptualisation of Chinese Identity in Early China |journal=Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society |volume=14 |issue=3 |pages=185–205 |doi=10.1017/S135618630400389X |jstor=25188470 |s2cid=162643600}}</ref>}}{{efn|Its meaning "Zhou's royal demesne" is attested from the 6th-century BC Classic of History, which states "Huangtian bestowed the lands and the peoples of the central state to the ancestors" ({{lang|zh|皇天既付中國民越厥疆土于先王}}).<ref>{{lang|zh|《尚書》, 梓材.}} {{in lang|zh}}</ref>}} It was used in official documents as a synonym for the state under the Qing.<ref name="wilx">{{Cite book |last=Wilkinson |first=Endymion |title=Chinese History: A Manual |date=2000 |publisher=Harvard University Asia Center |isbn=978-0-6740-0249-4 |series=Harvard-Yenching Institute Monograph No. 52 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=ERnrQq0bsPYC&pg=PA132 132]}}</ref> The name {{Zh|p=Zhongguo|labels=no}} is also translated as {{nowrap|'Middle Kingdom'}} in English.<ref name="Tang-2010">{{Cite book |last1=Tang |first1=Xiaoyang |title=Greater China in an Era of Globalization |last2=Guo |first2=Sujian |last3=Guo |first3=Baogang |date=2010 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield Publishers |isbn=978-0-7391-3534-1 |location=Lanham, MD |pages=[https://books.google.com/books?id=4n8u0HG-iYEC&pg=PA52 52–53]}}</ref> China is sometimes referred to as mainland China or "the Mainland" when distinguishing it from the Republic of China on Taiwan or the PRC's Special Administrative Regions.<ref>{{Cite news |title=美国唐人街两面"中国"国旗之争 |trans-title=The dispute over two "Chinese" flags in Chinatown, USA |url=https://www.bbc.com/zhongwen/simp/world-49585512 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201202000227/https://www.bbc.com/zhongwen/simp/world-49585512 |archive-date=2 December 2020 |access-date=5 November 2020 |work=BBC News |publisher=}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Chou Hsi-wei on Conflict Zone |url=https://www.dw.com/en/chou-hsi-wei-on-conflict-zone/av-49624866 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210416094447/https://www.dw.com/en/chou-hsi-wei-on-conflict-zone/av-49624866 |archive-date=16 April 2021 |access-date=5 November 2020 |work=Deutsche Welle |quote=So-called 'China', we call it 'Mainland', we are 'Taiwan'. Together we are 'China'.}}</ref><ref name="asia-34729538"/>

== History == {{Main|History of China}}

=== Prehistory === [[File:National Museum of China 2014.02.01 14-43-38.jpg|thumb|Pottery vessel, Xianren Cave culture (18,000–7,000 BCE). Among the earliest known pottery in the world. National Museum of China, Beijing.]]

Archaeological evidence suggests early hominids inhabited China 2.25 million years ago.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Ciochon |first1=Russell |last2=Larick |first2=Roy |date=1 January 2000 |title=Early Homo erectus Tools in China |url=https://archive.archaeology.org/0001/newsbriefs/china.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200106111404/https://archive.archaeology.org/0001/newsbriefs/china.html |archive-date=6 January 2020 |access-date=30 November 2012 |website=Archaeology}}</ref> The fossils of Peking Man, a ''Homo erectus'',<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Peking Man World Heritage Site at Zhoukoudian |url=http://www.unesco.org/ext/field/beijing/whc/pkm-site.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160623160018/http://www.unesco.org/ext/field/beijing/whc/pkm-site.htm |archive-date=23 June 2016 |access-date=22 March 2026 |publisher=UNESCO}}</ref> have been dated to 680,000–780,000 years ago.<ref name="autogenerated198">{{Cite journal |last1=Shen |first1=G. |last2=Gao |first2=X. |last3=Gao |first3=B. |last4=Granger |first4=De |date=March 2009 |title=Age of Zhoukoudian Homo erectus determined with (26)Al/(10)Be burial dating |journal=Nature |volume=458 |issue=7235 |pages=198–200 |doi=10.1038/nature07741 |pmid=19279636 |s2cid=19264385}}</ref> The fossilized teeth of ''Homo sapiens'' (dated to 125,000–80,000 years ago) have been discovered in Fuyan Cave.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Rincon |first=Paul |date=14 October 2015 |title=Fossil teeth place humans in Asia '20,000 years early' |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-34531861 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170817113912/http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-34531861 |archive-date=17 August 2017 |access-date=14 October 2015 |work=BBC News}}</ref> Proto-writing has been found at various Chinese archaeological sites from the 7th to 5th millennia BCE. Some scholars have suggested that the 7th millennium Jiahu symbols constituted an early writing system.<ref name="earliest writing">{{Cite news |last=Rincon |first=Paul |date=17 April 2003 |title='Earliest writing' found in China |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/2956925.stm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120320140538/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/2956925.stm |archive-date=20 March 2012 |access-date=14 January 2020 |work=BBC News}}</ref>

=== Early dynastic rules === {{Further|Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors|Xia dynasty|Shang dynasty|Zhou dynasty|Spring and Autumn period|Warring States period}} [[File:商青銅方鼎-Rectangular Cauldron (Fangding) MET DP140736.jpg|thumb|Rectangular cauldron (''fangding'', 方鼎), Shang dynasty, ca. 13th–11th century BCE. Bronze. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.]] According to traditional Chinese historiography, the Xia dynasty was established during the late 3rd millennium BCE, beginning China's dynastic cycle. The Xia's historicity has come under increasing scrutiny in modern scholarship, in part due to its earliest mentions being written millennia later. In 1958, archaeologists discovered the Erlitou site, dating to the early Bronze Age. The Erlitou culture is controversially connected to the historical Xia.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Tanner |first=Harold M. |title=China: A History |year=2009 |publisher=Hackett |isbn=978-0-8722-0915-2 |pages=[https://books.google.com/books?id=VIWC9wCX2c8C&pg=PA35 35–36]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Bronze Age China |date=19 September 1999 |url=http://www.nga.gov/exhibitions/chbro_bron.shtm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130725062916/http://www.nga.gov/exhibitions/chbro_bron.shtm |archive-date=25 July 2013 |access-date=11 July 2013 |publisher=National Gallery of Art}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |title=China: Five Thousand Years of History and Civilization |year=2007 |publisher=City University of Hong Kong Press |isbn=978-9-6293-7140-1 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=z-fAxn_9f8wC&pg=PA25 25]}}</ref> The Xia's traditional successor, the Shang dynasty, is the earliest dynasty with both contemporary written records and undisputed archaeological evidence.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Pletcher |first=Kenneth |title=The History of China |year=2011 |publisher=Britannica Educational Publishing |isbn=978-1-6153-0181-2 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=A1nwvKNPMWkC&pg=PA35 35]}}</ref> Firmly attested from {{circa|1300 BCE}}, the Shang ruled much of the Yellow River valley until the 11th century BCE.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Fowler |first1=Jeaneane D. |title=Chinese Religions: Beliefs and Practices |last2=Fowler |first2=Merv |year=2008 |publisher=Sussex Academic Press |isbn=978-1-8451-9172-6 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=rpJNfIAZltoC&pg=PA17 17]}}</ref> The oracle bone script, attested from {{circa|1250 BCE|lk=no}} but generally assumed to be considerably older,<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Boltz |first=William G. |author-link=William G. Boltz |date=February 1986 |title=Early Chinese Writing |journal=World Archaeology |volume=17 |issue=3 |page=436 |doi=10.1080/00438243.1986.9979980 |jstor=124705}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Keightley |first=David N. |author-link=David Keightley |date=Autumn 1996 |title=Art, Ancestors, and the Origins of Writing in China |journal=Representations |volume=56 |issue=Special Issue: The New Erudition |pages=68–95 |doi=10.2307/2928708 |jstor=2928708 |s2cid=145426302}}</ref> represents the oldest known form of written Chinese,<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Zhengzhou |encyclopedia=International Dictionary of Historic Places: Asia and Oceania |publisher=Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers |last=Hollister |first=Pam |year=1996 |editor-last=Schellinger |editor-first=Paul E. |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=vWLRxJEU49EC&pg=PA904 904] |isbn=978-1-8849-6404-6 |editor2-first=Robert M. |editor2-last=Salkin}}</ref> and is the ancestor of modern Chinese characters.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Allan |first=Keith |title=The Oxford Handbook of the History of Linguistics |year=2013 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-1995-8584-7 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=BzfRFmlN2ZAC&pg=PA4 4]}}</ref>

The Zhou overthrew the Shang, ruling between the 11th and 5th centuries BCE. Their centralized authority was slowly eroded by regional lords. Principalities emerged and continually waged wars during the 300-year Spring and Autumn period. By the Warring States period of the 5th–3rd centuries BCE, there were seven major states left.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Warring States |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/event/Warring-States |access-date=28 March 2024 |date=15 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240119202928/https://www.britannica.com/event/Warring-States |archive-date=19 January 2024 |url-status=live}}</ref>

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

==== Classical period ==== [[File:Han Expansion.png|The southward expansion of the Han dynasty during the 2nd century BCE|thumb|upright=1.1|left]]

The Warring States ended in 221 BCE after Qin conquered the other states, reunited China under an autocracy, the Qin dynasty. King Qin Shi Huang proclaimed himself the first emperor of China. He conquered the Yue of Southern China and Northern Vietnam, and enacted Legalist reforms, standardizing Chinese characters, measurements, road widths, and currency.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sima |first=Qian |author-link=Sima Qian |title=Records of the Grand Historian |title-link=Shiji |publisher=Columbia University Press |year=1993 |isbn=0-231-08165-0 |location=Hong Kong |pages=11–12 |translator-last=Watson |translator-first=Burton |orig-date=c. 91 BCE |translator-link=Burton Watson}}</ref> The dynasty lasted only fifteen years, falling soon after his death.<ref name="Bodde1986">{{Cite book |last=Bodde |first=Derk |author-link=Derk Bodde |title=The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC – AD 220 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1986 |isbn=0-521-24327-0 |editor-last=Twitchett |editor-first=Denis |editor-link=Denis Twitchett |series=The Cambridge History of China |volume=1 |pages=20–102 |chapter=The State and Empire of Ch'in |editor-last2=Loewe |editor-first2=Loewe |editor-link2=Michael Loewe}} </ref><ref name="Lewis2007">{{Cite book |last=Lewis |first=Mark Edward |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofimperia00broo |title=The Early Chinese Empires: Qin and Han |date=2007 |publisher=Belknap |isbn=978-0-6740-2477-9}}</ref>

Following widespread revolts, the Han dynasty emerged to rule China between 206 BCE and 220 CE, sponsoring a cultural identity and the namesake of the modern Han Chinese.<ref name="Bodde1986" /><ref name="Lewis2007" /> The Han expanded the empire's territory, with military campaigns reaching Central Asia, Mongolia, Korea, and Yunnan, and the recovery of Guangdong and northern Vietnam from Nanyue. Han involvement in Central Asia and Sogdia helped establish the land route of the Silk Road, replacing the earlier path over the Himalayas to India. Han China became the largest economy of the ancient world.<ref name="Dahlman Aubert 2001">{{Cite report |title=China and the Knowledge Economy: Seizing the 21st Century |last1=Dahlman |first1=Carl J. |last2=Aubert |first2=Jean-Eric |year=2001 |publisher=World Bank Publications |id={{ERIC|ED460052}} |series=WBI Development Studies |location=Herndon, VA|url=https://documents.worldbank.org/en/publication/documents-reports/documentdetail/597311468221378343}}</ref> Despite the Han's initial decentralization and the official abandonment of Legalism in favor of Confucianism, the Qin's institutions and policies continued to be employed by the Han government and its successors.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Goucher |first1=Candice |title=World History: Journeys from Past to Present |volume=1: From Human Origins to 1500 CE |last2=Walton |first2=Linda |year=2013 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-1350-8822-4 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=zdwpAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA108 108]}}</ref>[[File:Datong Yungang Shiku 2013.08.29 15-17-56.jpg|thumb|Cave 20, Yungang Grottoes, Datong, Shanxi. Northern Wei dynasty, c. 460–465 CE.]] After the end of the Han dynasty, a period of strife known as Three Kingdoms followed, after which Wei was overthrown by the Jin dynasty. The Jin fell to civil war, and the Five Barbarians then rebelled and ruled northern China as the Sixteen States. The Tuoba clan of the Xianbei unified them as the Northern Wei. In the south, the Jin were succeeded by various other dynasties. The various successors of these states became known as the Northern and Southern dynasties, with the two areas finally reunited by the Sui in 589.<ref>''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 177.</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Twitchett |first1=Denis C. |last2=Chan |first2=Hoklam |last3=Chen |first3=Cheng-Siang |last4=McKnight |first4=Brian E. |last5=Elman |first5=Benjamin |last6=Feuerwerker |first6=Albert |last7=Franke |first7=Herbert |last8=Lieberthal |first8=Kenneth G. |last9=Hsu |first9=Cho-yun |last10=DeWoskin |first10=Kenneth J. |last11=Dull |first11=Jack L. |last12=Wilbur |first12=C. Martin |last13=Keightley |first13=David N. |last14=Hucker |first14=Charles O. |last15=Young |first15=Ernest P. |last16=Rawski |first16=Evelyn S. |last17=Silbergeld |first17=Jerome |last18=Suzuki |first18=Chusei |last19=Liu |first19=James T.C. |last20=White |first20=Lynn |last21=Lewis |first21=John Wilson |last22=Zürcher |first22=Erik |title=China – Sui Dynasty, Grand Canal, Reunification {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/China/The-Sui-dynasty |website=Encyclopedia Britannica |access-date=13 December 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250922211913/https://www.britannica.com/place/China/The-Sui-dynasty |archive-date=22 September 2025 |language=en |url-status=live}}</ref>

==== Medieval period ==== The Sui restored the Han to power through China, reformed its agriculture, economy and imperial examination system, constructed the Grand Canal, and patronized Buddhism. However, labor conscription and a failed war in Korea provoked widespread unrest and the dynasty's fall.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Lee |first=Ki-Baik |title=A new history of Korea |date=1984 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=978-0-6746-1576-2 |page=47}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Graff |first=David Andrew |title=Medieval Chinese warfare, 300–900 |date=2002 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=0-4152-3955-9 |page=13}}</ref> Under the succeeding Tang, Chinese economy, technology, and culture entered a golden age.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Adshead |first=S. A. M. |title=T'ang China: The Rise of the East in World History |date=2004 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |isbn=9780230005518 |page=54 |doi=10.1057/9780230005518_2}}</ref> The Tang dynasty retained control of the Western Regions and the Silk Road,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nishijima |first=Sadao |title=Cambridge History of China: Volume I: the Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 B.C. – A.D. 220 |date=1986 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-5212-4327-8 |editor-last=Twitchett |editor-first=Denis |editor-link=Denis Twitchett |pages=545–607 |chapter=The Economic and Social History of Former Han |doi=10.1017/CHOL9780521243278.012 |editor-last2=Loewe |editor-first2=Michael |editor-link2=Michael Loewe}}</ref> which brought traders to as far as Mesopotamia and the Horn of Africa,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bowman |first=John S. |url=https://archive.org/details/columbiachronolo00john |title=Columbia Chronologies of Asian History and Culture |date=2000 |publisher=Columbia University Press |pages=[https://archive.org/details/columbiachronolo00john/page/104 104–105] |url-access=registration}}</ref> and made the capital Chang'an a cosmopolitan urban center. However, it was devastated and weakened by the An Lushan rebellion in the 8th century.<ref>{{Cite book |title=China: Five Thousand Years of History and Civilization |date=2007 |publisher=City University of HK Press |isbn=978-9-6293-7140-1 |page=71}}</ref> The Tang produced what many scholars regard as the apogee of classical Chinese poetry, with works that remained canonical across the Sinosphere,<ref>Owen, Stephen. ''The Great Age of Chinese Poetry: The High T'ang''. Yale University Press, 1981.</ref> while the cosmopolitan character of Chang'an reflected the Tang's international integration<ref>{{Cite book |last=Schafer |first=Edward H. |url=https://doi.org/10.2307/jj.5973081 |title=The Golden Peaches of Samarkand |date=2023-09-01 |publisher=University of California Press |doi=10.2307/jj.5973081 |isbn=978-0-520-34114-2}}</ref>

In 907, the Tang disintegrated when the local military governors became ungovernable. The Song dynasty ended the separatist situation in 960, leading to a balance of power between the Song and the Liao dynasty. The Song was the first government in world history to issue paper money and the first Chinese polity to establish a permanent navy.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Paludan |first=Ann |title=Chronicle of the Chinese Emperors |date=1998 |publisher=Thames & Hudson |isbn=0-5000-5090-2 |page=136}}</ref> [[File:Court Ladies Preparing Newly Woven Silk (cropped to show the ironing).jpg|thumb|Court Ladies Preparing Newly Woven Silk, originally painted by Zhang Xuan (713–755) during the Tang dynasty; this 12th-century Song dynasty copy is the earliest surviving version. Silk painting. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.]] [[File:Wang Xi Meng Panoramic Landscape Part.jpg|thumb|Wang Ximeng, A Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains (千里江山圖), detail. Northern Song dynasty, c. 1113. Handscroll, ink and mineral pigments on silk. Palace Museum, Beijing.]] The Song dynasty saw the first systematic military application of gunpowder, including fire arrows and proto-firearms such as the fire lance, as well as the adoption of the magnetic compass for maritime navigation.<ref>Needham, Joseph. ''Science and Civilisation in China'', Vol. 5, Part 7: ''Military Technology: The Gunpowder Epic''. Cambridge University Press, 1986.</ref> Movable type printing, invented around 1040, dramatically accelerated the diffusion of knowledge across East Asia.<ref>Needham, Joseph. ''Science and Civilisation in China'', Vol. 5, Part 1: ''Paper and Printing''. Cambridge University Press, 1985.</ref> The Song period has been characterized by some historians as an antecedent to the Industrial Revolution: iron production reached high levels, the rigid Tang-era ward system gave way to open commercial streets and night markets, and cities such as Bianjing (Kaifeng) and Lin'an (Hangzhou) each surpassed one million inhabitants.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Hartwell |first=Robert |date=1967 |title=A Cycle of Economic Change in Imperial China: Coal and Iron in Northeast China, 750-1350 |url=https://doi.org/10.1163/156852067x00109 |journal=Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient |volume=10 |issue=1 |pages=102–159 |doi=10.1163/156852067x00109 |issn=0022-4995}}</ref> The maritime Silk Road expanded significantly, with the ports of Quanzhou and Guangzhou becoming among the busiest in the contemporary world, connecting China to Southeast Asia, the Indian Ocean, and the Persian Gulf.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Abu-Lughod |first=Janet L. |date=1991-02-21 |title=Preface |url=https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780195067743.002.0003 |journal=Before European Hegemony |pages=vii–xiii |doi=10.1093/oso/9780195067743.002.0003 |isbn=978-0-19-506774-3 }}</ref>[[File:Song-Palace1.jpg|thumb|Emperor Huizong of Song, ''Auspicious Cranes'' (瑞鶴圖), detail, 1112. Handscroll, ink and color on silk. Liaoning Provincial Museum, Shenyang.]]Between the 10th and 11th century CE, the population of China doubled to around 100 million people, mostly because of the expansion of rice cultivation in central and southern China, and the production of abundant food surpluses. The Song dynasty saw a flourishing of philosophy and the arts,.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Northern Song dynasty (960–1127) |date=October 2001 |url=http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/nsong/hd_nsong.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010152800/https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/nsong/hd_nsong.htm |archive-date=10 October 2017 |access-date=27 November 2013 |publisher=Metropolitan Museum of Art}}</ref> and the reinterpretation of classical thought through Neo-Confucianism<ref>De Bary, Wm. Theodore, and Irene Bloom (eds.). ''Sources of Chinese Tradition'', Vol. 1. Columbia University Press, 1999.</ref> in response to the growth of Buddhism during the Tang.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Huang |first=Siu-Chi |title=Essentials of Neo-Confucianism: Eight Major Philosophers of the Song and Ming Periods |date=1999 |publisher=Greenwood |isbn=978-0-3132-6449-8 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=sjzPPg8eK7sC&pg=PA3 3]}}</ref> In 1127, the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty overran the northern Song. The Song remnants retreated south and reestabslished the dynasty at Jiankang.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gernet |first=Jacques |url=https://archive.org/details/dailylifeinchina00gern/page/22 |title=Daily Life in China on the Eve of the Mongol Invasion, 1250–1276 |date=1962 |publisher=Stanford University Press |isbn=978-0-8047-0720-6 |page=[https://archive.org/details/dailylifeinchina00gern/page/22 22] |oclc=1029050217}}</ref>

==== Late Imperial period ==== [[File:Thomas Child Great Wall of China.jpg|thumb|The Great Wall of China, photographed by Thomas Child in the 1870s. Most extant sections of the Wall date to the Ming dynasty.]]

The Mongol conquest of China began in 1205 with the campaigns against Western Xia by Genghis Khan,<ref>{{Cite book |last=May |first=Timothy |title=The Mongol Conquests in World History |date=2012 |publisher=Reaktion |isbn=978-1-8618-9971-2 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=ZRIt9sZaTREC 1211]}}</ref> who later invaded Jin territories.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Weatherford |first=Jack |title=Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World |title-link=Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World |date=2004 |publisher=Random House |isbn=978-0-6098-0964-8 |page=95 |chapter=Tale of Three Rivers}}</ref> In 1271, the Mongol leader Kublai Khan established the Yuan dynasty, which conquered the last remnant of the Song dynasty in 1279. Before the Mongol invasion, the population of Song China was 120 million citizens; this was reduced to 60 million by the time of the census in 1300.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ho |first=Ping-ti |author-link=He Bingdi |date=1970 |title=An Estimate of the Total Population of Sung-Chin China |journal=Études Song |volume=1 |issue=1 |pages=33–53}}</ref> A peasant leader overthrew the Yuan in 1368 and founded the Ming dynasty as the Hongwu Emperor. Under the Ming dynasty, China enjoyed another golden age, developing one of the strongest navies in the world and a rich and prosperous economy amid a flourishing of art and culture. It was during this period that admiral Zheng He led the Ming treasure voyages throughout the Indian Ocean, reaching as far as East Africa.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Rice |first=Xan |date=25 July 2010 |title=Chinese archaeologists' African quest for sunken ship of Ming admiral |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/jul/25/kenya-china |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161227095720/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/jul/25/kenya-china |archive-date=27 December 2016 |access-date=16 January 2020 |work=The Guardian}}</ref>

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

[[File:Qing Empire circa 1820 EN.svg|The Qing conquest of the Ming and expansion of the empire|thumb|upright=1.1|left]]

The transition from Ming to Qing cost 25 million lives, but the Qing restored China's imperial power and inaugurated another flowering of the arts.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roberts |first=John M. |title=A Short History of the World |date=1997 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=0-1951-1504-X |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=3QZXvUhGwhAC 272]}}</ref> After the Southern Ming fell in 1662, a series of further conquests added Mongolia, Tibet and Xinjiang to the empire.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Fletcher |first=Joseph |title=The Cambridge History of China |date=1978 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-1390-5477-5 |editor-last=John K. Fairbank |editor-link=John King Fairbank |volume=10, Part 1 |page=37 |chapter=Ch'ing Inner Asia c. 1800 |doi=10.1017/CHOL9780521214476.003}}</ref> Meanwhile, China's population growth resumed and shortly began to accelerate. It is commonly agreed that pre-modern China's population experienced two growth spurts, one during the Northern Song period (960–1127), and other during the Qing period (around 1700–1830).<ref>{{Cite book |last=Deng |first=Kent |url=https://researchonline.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/64492/ |title=China's Population Expansion and Its Causes during the Qing Period, 1644–1911 |year=2015 |pages=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240309224404/https://researchonline.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/64492/ |archive-date=9 March 2024 |url-status=live |access-date=28 August 2023}}</ref> By the High Qing era, China was possibly the most commercialized country in the world, experienced a commercial revolution by the end of the 18th century.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rowe |first=William |title=China's Last Empire – The Great Qing |publisher=Harvard University Press |year=2010 |isbn=9780674054554 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=KN7Awmzx2PAC 123]}}</ref> On the other hand, the centralized autocracy was strengthened in part to suppress anti-Qing sentiment with the policy of valuing agriculture and restraining commerce, like the {{Zh|p=haijin|labels=no}} during the early Qing period and ideological control as represented by the literary inquisition, causing some social and technological stagnation.<ref>{{Cite book |date=2010 |publisher=九州出版社 |isbn=978-7-5108-0062-7 |pages=104–112 |script-title=zh:中国通史·明清史}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |date=1996 |publisher=花城出版社 |isbn=978-7-5360-2320-8 |page=71 |script-title=zh:中华通史·第十卷}}</ref>[[File:EightNations in1901.jpg|thumb|The Eight-Nation Alliance invaded China to defeat the anti-foreign Boxers and their Qing backers. The image shows a celebration ceremony inside the Chinese imperial palace, the Forbidden City after the signing of the Boxer Protocol in 1901.]] In the mid-19th century, the Opium Wars with the Western powers forced China to pay compensation, open treaty ports, allow extraterritoriality for foreign nationals, and cede Hong Kong to the British Empire under the 1842 Treaty of Nanking, the first of what have been termed the unequal treaties.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Embree |first1=Ainslie |author-link=Ainslie Embree |url=https://archive.org/details/asiainwesternwor00ains |title=Asia in Western and World History: A Guide for Teaching |last2=Gluck |first2=Carol |author-link2=Carol Gluck |date=1997 |publisher=M.E. Sharpe |isbn=1-5632-4265-6 |page=597 |url-access=limited}}</ref> The First Sino-Japanese War (1894–1895) resulted in China's loss of influence in Korea and the cession of Taiwan to the Empire of Japan.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Sino-Japanese War (1894–1895) |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/546176/Sino-Japanese-War |access-date=16 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210920171344/https://www.britannica.com/event/First-Sino-Japanese-War-1894-1895 |archive-date=20 September 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref> The Qing dynasty also began experiencing internal unrest in which tens of millions of people died, especially in the White Lotus Rebellion, the failed Taiping Rebellion in southern China in the 1850s and 1860s and the Dungan Revolt in the northwest. The initial success of the Self-Strengthening Movement of the 1860s was frustrated by a series of military defeats in the 1880s and 1890s.<ref name="Lee2004">{{Cite book |last=Enhan (李恩涵) |first=Li |publisher=臺灣商務印書館 |year=2004 |isbn=978-9-5705-1891-7 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=cA8OBkr-JmMC&pg=PA78 78] |script-title=zh:近代中國外交史事新研}}</ref> In the 19th century, the great Chinese diaspora began. Losses due to emigration were added to by conflicts and catastrophes such as the Northern Chinese Famine of 1876–1879, in which between 9 and 13 million people died.<ref>{{Cite web |date=1995 |title=Dimensions of need – People and populations at risk |url=http://www.fao.org/3/U8480E/U8480E05.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231030150743/https://www.fao.org/3/U8480E/U8480E05.htm |archive-date=30 October 2023 |access-date=3 July 2013 |publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations}}</ref> The Guangxu Emperor drafted a reform plan in 1898 to establish a modern constitutional monarchy, but these plans were thwarted by the Empress Dowager Cixi. The anti-foreign Boxer Rebellion of 1899–1901 further weakened the dynasty. Although Cixi sponsored the late Qing reforms, the Xinhai Revolution of 1911 ended the Qing dynasty.<ref name="xb1">{{Cite book |last=Xiaobing |first=Li |title=A History of the Modern Chinese Army |date=2007 |publisher=University Press of Kentucky |isbn=978-0-8131-2438-4 |pages=13, 26–27}}</ref> Puyi, the last Emperor, abdicated in 1912.<ref name="abdicate">{{Cite web |date=4 June 2013 |title=The abdication decree of Emperor Puyi (1912) |url=https://alphahistory.com/chineserevolution/abdication-emperor-puyi-1912/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230410202346/https://alphahistory.com/chineserevolution/abdication-emperor-puyi-1912/ |archive-date=10 April 2023 |access-date=29 May 2021 |website=Chinese Revolution}}</ref>

=== Republic of China === {{Main|Republic of China (1912–1949)}}

{{Further|1911 Revolution|Second Sino-Japanese War|Chinese Civil War|Chinese Communist Revolution}} thumb|Calendar poster (''yuefenpai'', 月份牌), Republic of China, year 1 (1912). On 1 January 1912, the Republic of China (ROC) was established, and Sun Yat-sen of the Kuomintang was proclaimed provisional president.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Tamura |first1=Eileen H. |title=China: Understanding Its Past |last2=Menton |first2=Linda K. |last3=Lush |first3=Noren W. |last4=Tsui |first4=Francis K. C. |last5=Cohen |first5=Warren |date=1997 |publisher=University of Hawai'i Press |isbn=978-0-8248-1923-1 |pages=146 |jstor=j.ctt6wqmz4}}</ref> In 1912, the presidency was given to Yuan Shikai, a former Qing general who in 1915 proclaimed himself Emperor. In the face of opposition from the population and his own Beiyang Army, he was forced to re-establish the republic in 1916.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Haw |first=Stephen |title=Beijing: A Concise History |date=2006 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=0-4153-9906-8 |page=143}}</ref> After Yuan's death in 1916, China was politically fragmented. Its Beijing-based government was internationally recognized but virtually powerless; regional warlords controlled most of its territory.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Elleman |first=Bruce |title=Modern Chinese Warfare |date=2001 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=0-4152-1474-2 |page=149}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Hutchings |first=Graham |title=Modern China: A Guide to a Century of Change |date=2003 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=0-6740-1240-2 |page=459}}</ref> During this period, China participated in World War I and saw a far-reaching popular uprising called the May Fourth Movement.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Panda |first=Ankit |date=5 May 2015 |title=The Legacy of China's May Fourth Movement |url=https://thediplomat.com/2015/05/the-legacy-of-chinas-may-fourth-movement |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222173851/https://thediplomat.com/2015/05/the-legacy-of-chinas-may-fourth-movement |archive-date=22 February 2024 |access-date=28 March 2024 |website=The Diplomat}}</ref>

In the late 1920s, the Kuomintang under Chiang Kai-shek reunified most the country through the Northern Expedition<ref>{{Cite book |last=Zarrow |first=Peter |title=China in War and Revolution, 1895–1949 |date=2005 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=0-4153-6447-7 |page=230 |doi=10.4324/9780203015629}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Leutner |first=M. |editor-first1=Roland |editor-first2=A.M. |editor-first3=Mechthild |editor-first4=M.L. |editor-last1=Felber |editor-last2=Grigoriev |editor-last3=Leutner |editor-last4=Titarenko |title=The Chinese Revolution in the 1920s: Between Triumph and Disaster |date=2002 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=0-7007-1690-4 |page=129 |doi=10.4324/9781315029542}}</ref> and moved the nation's capital to Nanjing.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Tien |first=Hung-Mao |title=Government and Politics in Kuomintang China, 1927–1937 |date=1972 |publisher=Stanford University Press |isbn=0-8047-0812-6 |volume=53 |pages=60–72 |ol=4919366M}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Zhao |first=Suisheng |author-link=Suisheng Zhao |title=China and Democracy: Reconsidering the Prospects for a Democratic China |date=2000 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=0-4159-2694-7 |page=43}}</ref> The Kuomintang formed the First United Front with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) during the Northern Expedition, though the alliance broke down in 1927 after Chiang violently suppressed the CCP and other leftists in Shanghai, marking the beginning of the Chinese Civil War.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Apter |first1=David Ernest |author-link=David Apter |url=https://archive.org/details/revolutionarydis0000apte |title=Revolutionary Discourse in Mao's Republic |last2=Saich |first2=Tony |date=1994 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=0-6747-6780-2 |page=198}}</ref> CCP forces in Jiangxi were defeated by the Nationalist government in 1934, leading the CCP to initiate the Long March and relocate to Yan'an in Shaanxi. [[File:1945 Mao and Chiang.jpg|thumb|left|Chiang Kai-shek and Mao Zedong toasting together in 1945 following the end of World War II]]In 1931, Japan invaded and occupied Manchuria. Additionally, Japan invaded other parts of China in 1937, precipitating the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945), a theater of World War II. The war led to the Second United Front between the Kuomintang and the CCP. Japanese forces committed numerous war atrocities against the civilian population; as many as 20 million Chinese civilians died.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Nuclear Power: The End of the War Against Japan |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo/nuclear_01.shtml |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151128194317/http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo/nuclear_01.shtml |archive-date=28 November 2015 |access-date=14 July 2013 |publisher=BBC}}</ref> An estimated 40,000 to over 300,000 Chinese were massacred in Nanjing alone during the Japanese occupation.<ref name=":142">{{Cite book |last=van de Ven |first=Hans |author-link=Hans van de Ven |title=China at War: Triumph and Tragedy in the Emergence of the New China |title-link=China at War |date=12 February 2018 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=978-0-674-91952-5 |pages=98–99 |doi=10.2307/j.ctvhrd0kx |jstor=j.ctvhrd0kx}}</ref> The Republic of China, along with the UK, the United States, and the Soviet Union, were recognized as the Allied "Big Four" in the Declaration by United Nations.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Yearbook of the United Nations 1946–1947 |date=1947 |publisher=United Nations |page=3 |chapter=The Moscow Declaration on general security |oclc=243471225 |access-date=25 April 2015 |chapter-url=http://www.unmultimedia.org/searchers/yearbook/page.jsp?volume=1946-47&page=38 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150518074504/http://www.unmultimedia.org/searchers/yearbook/page.jsp?volume=1946-47&page=38 |archive-date=18 May 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Declaration by United Nations |url=https://www.un.org/en/sections/history-united-nations-charter/1942-declaration-united-nations |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170525120058/http://www.un.org/en/sections/history-united-nations-charter/1942-declaration-united-nations |archive-date=25 May 2017 |access-date=20 June 2015 |publisher=United Nations}}</ref> Along with the other three great powers, China was one of the four major Allies of World War II, and was later considered one of the primary victors in the war.<ref>Hoopes, Townsend, and Douglas Brinkley ''FDR and the Creation of the U.N.'' (Yale University Press, 1997)</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Gaddis |first=John Lewis |url=https://archive.org/details/unitedstatesorig0000gadd |title=The United States and the Origins of the Cold War, 1941–1947 |date=1972 |publisher=Columbia University Press |isbn=978-0-2311-2239-9 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/unitedstatesorig0000gadd/page/24 24]–25 |url-access=registration}}</ref>

After the surrender of Japan in 1945, China emerged victorious but war-ravaged and financially drained. Taiwan, along with the Penghu, were handed over to ROC control; however, the validity of this handover is controversial.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Tien |first=Hung-mao |title=Constitutional Reform and the Future of the Republic of China |date=1991 |publisher=M. E. Sharpe |isbn=978-0-8733-2880-7 |editor-last=Feldman |editor-first=Harvey |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=xCxMn-2msr8C&pg=PA3 3] |chapter=The Constitutional Conundrum and the Need for Reform |ol=1537852M}}</ref> In 1946, the country resumed a state of civil war between the CCP and the Kuomintang that lasted more than three years.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hu |first=Jubin |title=Projecting a Nation: Chinese National Cinema Before 1949 |date=31 December 2003 |publisher=Hong Kong University Press |isbn=978-988-220-258-0 |doi=10.1515/9789882202580 |jstor=j.ctt2jbzvf}}</ref> Constitutional rule was established in 1947, but because of the ongoing war, many provisions of the ROC constitution were never implemented in mainland China.<ref name=":1" />

=== People's Republic of China === {{Main|History of the People's Republic of China}}

[[File:Mao Proclaiming New China.JPG|thumb|On 1 October 1949, Mao Zedong announced the founding of the People's Republic of China]]

By 1949, the CCP took control of most of mainland China, and the ROC government retreated to Taiwan. On 1 October 1949, CCP Chairman Mao Zedong formally proclaimed the People's Republic of China.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Westcott |first1=Ben |last2=Lee |first2=Lily |date=30 September 2019 |title=They were born at the start of Communist China. 70 years later, their country is unrecognizable |url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/29/asia/china-beijing-mao-october-1-70-intl-hnk/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191215045839/https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/29/asia/china-beijing-mao-october-1-70-intl-hnk/index.html |archive-date=15 December 2019 |publisher=CNN}}</ref> The following year, the PRC captured Hainan and commenced the annexation of Tibet.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Murray |first=Jeremy A. |title=China's Lonely Revolution: The Local Communist Movement of Hainan Island, 1926-1956 |date=2017-03-27 |publisher=State University of New York Press |isbn=978-1-4384-6532-6 |doi=10.1515/9781438465326 |jstor=jj.18254075}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Smith |first=Warren |title=Tibetan Nation: A History Of Tibetan Nationalism And Sino-tibetan Relations |date=2019-07-31 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-000-61228-8 |pages=247 |language=en |doi=10.4324/9780367274771}}</ref> The CCP consolidated its popularity among the peasants through the Land Reform Movement, which included the state-tolerated executions of between 1 and 2 million landlords by peasants and former tenants.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Busky |first=Donald |title=Communism in History and Theory |date=2002 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |isbn=978-0-2759-7733-7 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=Q6b0j1VINWgC 11]}}</ref> Though the PRC initially allied closely with the Soviet Union, the relations between the two communist nations gradually deteriorated.<ref>{{Cite web |title=A Country Study: China |url=https://www.loc.gov/item/87600493 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160612025703/https://www.loc.gov/item/87600493 |archive-date=12 June 2016 |access-date=3 October 2017 |website=loc.gov|series=Area handbook series |date=January 1988 }}</ref> The Chinese population increased from 550 million in 1950 to 900 million in 1974.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Holmes |first=Madelyn |title=Students and teachers of the new China: thirteen interviews |date=2008 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=978-0-7864-3288-2 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=lJK-GRriJAoC 185]}}</ref> However, the Great Leap Forward, a massive industrialization project, resulted in the Great Chinese Famine between 1959 and 1961, causing an estimated 15 to 55 million deaths.<ref name="nyt">{{Cite news |last=Mirsky |first=Jonathan |date=9 December 2012 |title=Unnatural Disaster |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/09/books/review/tombstone-the-great-chinese-famine-1958-1962-by-yang-jisheng.html?nl=books&emc=edit_bk_20121207 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121211072252/https://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/09/books/review/tombstone-the-great-chinese-famine-1958-1962-by-yang-jisheng.html?nl=books&emc=edit_bk_20121207 |archive-date=11 December 2012 |access-date=7 December 2012 |work=The New York Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Holmes |first=Leslie |title=Communism: A Very Short Introduction |date=2009 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-1995-5154-5 |page=32 |quote=Most estimates of the number of Chinese dead are in the range of 15 to 30 million.}}</ref> In 1964, China detonated its first atomic bomb.<ref>{{Cite web |title=1964: China's first atomic bomb explodes |url=http://www.china.org.cn/english/congress/228244.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230322065350/http://www.china.org.cn/english/congress/228244.htm |archive-date=22 March 2023 |access-date=18 February 2023 |website=china.org.cn}}</ref> In 1966, Mao and his allies launched the Cultural Revolution, sparking a decade of political recrimination and social upheaval that lasted until Mao's death in 1976.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Kao |first=Michael Y. M. |title=Taiwan in a Time of Transition |date=1988 |publisher=Paragon House |editor-last=Feldman |editor-first=Harvey |page=188 |chapter=Taiwan's and Beijing's Campaigns for Unification |editor-last2=Kao |editor-first2=Michael Y. M. |editor-last3=Kim |editor-first3=Ilpyong J.}}</ref>[[File:Události na náměstí Tian an men, Čína 1989, foto Jiří Tondl.jpg|thumb|The 1989 Tiananmen Square protests were ended by a military-led massacre.]]

After Mao's death, the Gang of Four were arrested by Hua Guofeng. The Cultural Revolution was rebuked, with millions rehabilitated. Deng Xiaoping took power in 1978, and started the reform and opening up, instituting large-scale political and economic reforms to transition away from planned economy.<ref name="Ref_e">{{Cite book |last1=Hart-Landsberg |first1=Martin |title=China and Socialism: Market Reforms and Class Struggle |last2=Burkett |first2=Paul |date=March 2005 |publisher=Monthly Review Press |isbn=978-1-5836-7123-8}} ({{cite journal |title=Review |journal=Monthly Review |date=28 February 2001 |url=http://www.monthlyreview.org/chinaandsocialism.htm |access-date=30 October 2008 |archive-date=5 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090105220123/http://monthlyreview.org/chinaandsocialism.htm |url-status=live}})</ref><ref name="Hamrin-1995">{{Cite book |last1=Hamrin |first1=Carol Lee |title=Decision-making in Deng's China: Perspectives from Insiders |last2=Zhao |first2=Suisheng |date=15 January 1995 |publisher=M.E. Sharpe |isbn=978-0-7656-3694-2 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=MySp8yumuJ4C&q=boluan+fanzheng&pg=PA32 32]}}</ref> In 1989, there were protests such those in Tiananmen Square, and then throughout the entire nation.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Harding |first=Harry |date=December 1990 |title=The Impact of Tiananmen on China's Foreign Policy |url=http://www.nbr.org/publications/element.aspx?id=73 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140404193656/http://www.nbr.org/publications/element.aspx?id=73 |archive-date=4 April 2014 |access-date=28 November 2013 |publisher=National Bureau of Asian Research}}</ref> Jiang Zemin was elevated to become the CCP general secretary, becoming the paramount leader.<ref>{{Cite news |date=13 September 1997 |title=China Gets Down to Business at Party Congress |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-sep-13-mn-31787-story.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221018190108/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-sep-13-mn-31787-story.html |archive-date=18 October 2022 |access-date=12 January 2020 |work=Los Angeles Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Vogel |first=Ezra |author-link=Ezra Vogel |title=Deng Xiaoping and the Transformation of China |date=2011 |publisher=Belknap Press |isbn=978-0-6747-2586-7 |page=682}}</ref> China's economy grew sevenfold during Jiang's tenure. British Hong Kong and Portuguese Macau returned to China in 1997 and 1999, respectively, as special administrative regions.<ref name="APs-2022">{{Cite news |last=McDonald |first=Joe |date=30 November 2022 |title=Jiang Zemin, who guided China's economic rise, dies |url=https://apnews.com/article/china-beijing-hong-kong-obituaries-jiang-zemin-4ee4c5dcaf567e02efa3c5c7186af30a |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403160544/https://apnews.com/article/china-beijing-hong-kong-obituaries-jiang-zemin-4ee4c5dcaf567e02efa3c5c7186af30a |archive-date=3 April 2023 |access-date=30 November 2022 |work=Associated Press}}</ref>

In 2002, Hu Jintao succeeded Jiang as the general secretary. Under Hu, China maintained its high rate of economic growth and became the world's second-largest economy.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Orlik |first=Tom |date=16 November 2012 |title=Charting China's Economy: A Decade Under Hu Jintao |url=http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2012/11/16/charting-chinas-economy-10-years-under-hu-jintao |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221121820/http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2012/11/16/charting-chinas-economy-10-years-under-hu-jintao |archive-date=21 December 2016 |access-date=16 May 2023 |work=The Wall Street Journal}}</ref> However, the growth also severely impacted the country's resources and environment,<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Carter |first1=Shan |last2=Cox |first2=Amanda |last3=Burgess |first3=Joe |last4=Aigner |first4=Erin |date=26 August 2007 |title=China's Environmental Crisis |url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2007/08/26/world/asia/20070826_CHINA_GRAPHIC.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120116170904/http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2007/08/26/world/asia/20070826_CHINA_GRAPHIC.html |archive-date=16 January 2012 |access-date=16 May 2012 |work=The New York Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Griffiths |first=Daniel |date=16 April 2004 |title=China worried over pace of growth |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4913622.stm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201118160813/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4913622.stm |archive-date=18 November 2020 |access-date=16 April 2006 |work=BBC News}}</ref> and caused major social displacement.<ref name="Ref_k">[https://migration.ucdavis.edu/mn/more.php?id=3166 ''China: Migrants, Students, Taiwan''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161227094542/https://migration.ucdavis.edu/mn/more.php?id=3166 |date=27 December 2016}} UC Davis Migration News January 2006.</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Cody |first=Edward |date=28 January 2006 |title=In Face of Rural Unrest, China Rolls Out Reforms |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/27/AR2006012701588.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171014065549/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/27/AR2006012701588.html |archive-date=14 October 2017 |access-date=18 January 2020 |newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref> Xi Jinping succeeded Hu as paramount leader in 2012. Shortly after his ascension to power, Xi launched a vast anti-corruption crackdown,<ref>{{Cite news |date=20 March 2018 |title=China's anti-corruption campaign expands with new agency |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-43453769 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190924060145/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-43453769 |archive-date=24 September 2019 |access-date=13 September 2019 |work=BBC News}}</ref> that prosecuted more than 2 million officials by 2022.<ref name="Marquis-2022b">{{Cite book |last1=Marquis |first1=Christopher |author-link=Christopher Marquis |title=Mao and Markets: The Communist Roots of Chinese Enterprise |last2=Qiao |first2=Kunyuan |date=15 November 2022 |publisher=Yale University Press |isbn=978-0-3002-6883-6 |doi=10.2307/j.ctv3006z6k |jstor=j.ctv3006z6k |s2cid=253067190}}</ref> During his tenure, Xi has consolidated power unseen since the initiation of economic and political reforms.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wingfield-Hayes |first=Rupert |date=23 October 2022 |title=Xi Jinping's party is just getting started |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-63225277 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230317004249/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-63225277 |archive-date=17 March 2023 |access-date=23 October 2022 |work=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref>

== Geography == {{Main|Geography of China}}

thumb|A topographic map of China

China's landscape is vast and diverse, ranging from the Gobi and Taklamakan Deserts in the arid north to the subtropical forests in the wetter south. The Himalaya, Karakoram, Pamir and Tian Shan mountain ranges separate China from much of South and Central Asia. The Yangtze and Yellow Rivers, the third- and sixth-longest in the world, respectively, run from the Tibetan Plateau to the densely populated eastern seaboard. China's coastline along the Pacific Ocean is {{cvt|14500|km}} long, bounded by the Bohai, Yellow, East China and South China seas. China connects through the Kazakh border to the Eurasian Steppe.[[File:Huangshan pic 4.jpg|thumb|Huangshan in Anhui]] [[File:Biluthu Yinderitu.JPG|thumb|Biluthu Yinderitu lake amid the dunes of the Badain Jaran Desert, Inner Mongolia.]] China's landscapes vary significantly across its vast territory. In the east, along the shores of the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea, there are extensive and densely populated alluvial plains, while on the edges of the Inner Mongolian plateau in the north, broad grasslands predominate. Southern China is dominated by hills and low mountain ranges, while the central-east hosts the deltas of China's two major rivers, the Yellow River and the Yangtze. To the west sit major mountain ranges, notably the Himalayas. High plateaus feature among the more arid landscapes of the north, such as the Taklamakan and the Gobi Desert. The world's highest point, Mount Everest (8,848 miles), lies on the Sino-Nepalese border.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8608913.stm|title=Nepal and China agree on Mount Everest's height|date=8 April 2010|work=BBC News|access-date=18 January 2020|archive-date=12 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180712190003/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8608913.stm|url-status=live}}</ref> The country's lowest point, and the world's third-lowest, is the dried lake bed of Ayding Lake (−154 miles) in the Turpan Depression.<ref>{{cite web |date=28 February 2015 |title=Lowest Places on Earth |url=http://www.nps.gov/deva/naturescience/lowest-places-on-earth.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150207222858/http://www.nps.gov/deva/naturescience/lowest-places-on-earth.htm |archive-date=7 February 2015 |access-date=2 December 2013 |website=National Park Service |publisher=}}</ref> Despite spanning the equivalent of five geographical time zones (from UTC+5 to UTC+9), China uses a single national time zone, China Standard Time (UTC+8).<ref name=whyist>{{cite web | title=Why Is There Only 1 Time Zone in China? | website=timeanddate.com | url=https://www.timeanddate.com/time/china/one-time-zone.html | access-date=28 August 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title=About time: One huge country, one time zone | website=BBC News | date=23 March 2011 | url=https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-asia-pacific-12841280 | access-date=28 August 2025}}</ref>

=== Climate === {{Main|Climate of China}}China's climate is mainly dominated by dry seasons and wet monsoons, which lead to pronounced temperature differences between winter and summer. In the winter, northern winds coming from high-latitude areas are cold and dry; in summer, southern winds from coastal areas at lower latitudes are warm and moist.<ref>{{cite book|title=Regional Climate Studies of China|date=2008|publisher=Springer|page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=SEO_RyNDJ0gC&pg=PA1 1]|isbn=978-3-5407-9242-0}}</ref>

[[File:Koppen-Geiger Map CHN present.svg|thumb|upright=1.4|Köppen-Geiger climate classification map for mainland China<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Beck|first1=Hylke E.|last2=Zimmermann|first2=Niklaus E.|last3=McVicar|first3=Tim R.|last4=Vergopolan|first4=Noemi|last5=Berg|first5=Alexis|author6-link=Eric Franklin Wood|last6=Wood|first6=Eric F.|title=Present and future Köppen-Geiger climate classification maps at 1-km resolution|journal=Scientific Data|date=30 October 2018|volume=5|article-number=180214|doi=10.1038/sdata.2018.214|pmid=30375988|pmc=6207062|bibcode=2018NatSD...580214B}}</ref>]]The expansion of China's deserts, particularly the Gobi, has posed a persistent threat.<ref>{{cite news |date=17 April 2006 |title=Beijing hit by eighth sandstorm |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4915690.stm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090101023529/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4915690.stm |archive-date=1 January 2009 |access-date=21 January 2020 |work=BBC News}}</ref> Although barrier tree lines planted since the 1970s have reduced the frequency of sandstorms, prolonged drought and poor agricultural practices have resulted in dust storms plaguing northern China each spring, which spread across East Asia. Water quality, erosion, and pollution control have become important issues in China's foreign relations. Melting glaciers in the Himalayas could potentially lead to water shortages for hundreds of millions of people.<ref name="msnbc">{{cite news |last=Reilly |first=Michael |date=24 November 2008 |title=Himalaya glaciers melting much faster |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna27894721 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201023184210/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/27894721/ |archive-date=23 October 2020 |access-date=21 September 2011 |work=NBC News |publisher=}}</ref> In order to limit climate change in China to {{cvt|1.5|C-change}}, electricity generation from coal without carbon capture must be phased out by 2045.<ref>{{cite report|date=December 2020|title=China's New Growth Pathway: From the 14th Five-Year Plan to Carbon Neutrality|url=https://www.efchina.org/Attachments/Report/report-lceg-20201210/Full-Report_Synthesis-Report-2020-on-Chinas-Carbon-Neutrality_EN.pdf|page=24|publisher=Energy Foundation China|access-date=16 December 2020|archive-date=16 April 2021|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210416100821/https://www.efchina.org/Attachments/Report/report-lceg-20201210/Full-Report_Synthesis-Report-2020-on-Chinas-Carbon-Neutrality_EN.pdf}}</ref>

Much of China has a climate very suitable for agriculture and the country has been the world's largest producer of rice, wheat, tomatoes, eggplant, grapes, watermelon, spinach, and many other crops.<ref>{{cite web|title=Countries by commodity|website=FAOSTAT|url=http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#rankings/countries_by_commodity|access-date=16 January 2020|archive-date=29 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200629173611/http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#rankings/countries_by_commodity|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2021, 12% of global permanent meadows and pastures belonged to China, as well as 8% of global cropland.<ref name=":14">{{Cite book |title=World Food and Agriculture – Statistical Yearbook 2023 |place=Rome |publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations |url=https://www.fao.org/documents/card/en?details=cc8166en |access-date=13 December 2023 |date=2023 |language=en |doi=10.4060/cc8166en |isbn=978-9-2513-8262-2 |archive-date=15 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231215161116/https://www.fao.org/documents/card/en?details=cc8166en |url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Biodiversity === {{Main|Wildlife of China}}

[[File:Giant Panda Eating.jpg|thumb|A giant panda, one of China's most famous symbols, at the Chengdu Panda Base in Sichuan]]

China is one of 17 megadiverse countries,<ref name="Ref_2009a">{{cite web |url=http://www.environment.gov.au/soe/2001/publications/theme-reports/biodiversity/biodiversity01-3.html|title=Biodiversity Theme Report|last=Williams|first=Jann|date=10 December 2009|website=Environment.gov.au|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110811045957/http://www.environment.gov.au/soe/2001/publications/theme-reports/biodiversity/biodiversity01-3.html|archive-date=11 August 2011|access-date=27 April 2010}}</ref> lying in two of the world's major biogeographic realms: the Palearctic and the Indomalayan. By one measure, China has over 34,687 species of animals and vascular plants, making it the third-most biodiverse country in the world, after Brazil and Colombia.<ref>[http://rainforests.mongabay.com/03highest_biodiversity.htm Countries with the Highest Biological Diversity] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130326060253/http://rainforests.mongabay.com/03highest_biodiversity.htm|date=26 March 2013}}. Mongabay.com. 2004 data. Retrieved 24 April 2013.</ref>

China is home to at least 551 species of mammals,<ref>[http://www.iucnredlist.org/initiatives/mammals/analysis/geographic-patterns IUCN Initiatives – Mammals – Analysis of Data – Geographic Patterns 2012] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130512150801/http://www.iucnredlist.org/initiatives/mammals/analysis/geographic-patterns|date=12 May 2013}}. IUCN. Retrieved 24 April 2013. Data does not include species in Taiwan.</ref> 1,221 species of birds,<ref>[http://rainforests.mongabay.com/03birds.htm Countries with the most bird species] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130216152146/http://rainforests.mongabay.com/03birds.htm|date=16 February 2013}}. Mongabay.com. 2004 data. Retrieved 24 April 2013.</ref> 424 species of reptiles (seventh)<ref>[http://rainforests.mongabay.com/03reptiles.htm Countries with the most reptile species] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130216152129/http://rainforests.mongabay.com/03reptiles.htm |date=16 February 2013}}. Mongabay.com. 2004 data. Retrieved 24 April 2013.</ref> and 333 species of amphibians.<ref>[http://www.iucnredlist.org/initiatives/amphibians/analysis/geographic-patterns#diversity IUCN Initiatives – Amphibians – Analysis of Data – Geographic Patterns 2012] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130512145131/http://www.iucnredlist.org/initiatives/amphibians/analysis/geographic-patterns|date=12 May 2013}}. IUCN. Retrieved 24 April 2013. Data does not include species in Taiwan.</ref> Wildlife in China is pressured by the large human population. At least 840 animal species are threatened, vulnerable or in danger of local extinction, due mainly to human activity such as habitat destruction, pollution and poaching.<ref>[http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals/stories/infographic-top-20-countries-with-most-endangered-species Top 20 countries with most endangered species IUCN Red List] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130424182826/http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals/stories/infographic-top-20-countries-with-most-endangered-species|date=24 April 2013}}. 5 March 2010. Retrieved 24 April 2013.</ref> Endangered wildlife is legally protected. As of 2019, the country has over 2,750 nature reserves, covering 15% of China's total land area.<ref>{{Cite news |date=16 November 2019 |title=China owns 2,750 natural reserves |url=https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/201911/16/WS5dcfb5fba310cf3e35577cdc.html |access-date=31 October 2025 |work=China Daily}}</ref> Most wild animal species have been eliminated from the agricultural regions of east and central China, but they have fared better in the mountainous south and west.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Turvey|first1=Samuel|date=2013|title=Holocene survival of Late Pleistocene megafauna in China: a critical review of the evidence|journal=Quaternary Science Reviews|volume=76|pages=156–166|doi=10.1016/j.quascirev.2013.06.030|bibcode=2013QSRv...76..156T}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Lander|first1=Brian|last2=Brunson|first2=Katherine|date=2018 |title=Wild Mammals of Ancient North China|journal=The Journal of Chinese History|publisher=Cambridge University Press |volume=2|issue=2|pages=291–312|doi=10.1017/jch.2017.45|s2cid=90662935}}</ref>

China has over 32,000 species of vascular plants,<ref>[http://rainforests.mongabay.com/03plants.htm Countries with the most vascular plant species] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140112001508/http://rainforests.mongabay.com/03plants.htm|date=12 January 2014}}. Mongabay.com. 2004 data. Retrieved 24 April 2013.</ref> and hosts various forest types. It gained {{Convert|100,000|ha|sqmi}} of forestland per year between 2015 and 2025.<ref>{{Cite book |last=FAO |url=https://openknowledge.fao.org/handle/20.500.14283/cd6709en |title=Global Forest Resources Assessment 2025 |date=2025 |publisher=FAO |isbn=978-92-5-140082-1 |language=English |doi=10.4060/cd6709en}}</ref> Cold coniferous forests predominate in the north of the country, supporting mammals such as moose and Asian black bear, along with many bird species.<ref name="rough guide"/> The understory of moist conifer forests may contain thickets of bamboo. Higher montane stands of juniper and yew instead feature rhododendrons. Subtropical forests, which are predominate in central and southern China, support a high density of plant species including numerous rare endemics. Tropical and seasonal rainforests, though confined to Yunnan and Hainan, contain a quarter of all the animal and plant species found in China.<ref name="rough guide">{{cite book|page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=dA_QbQiZkB4C&pg=PA1213 1213]|title=China|publisher=Rough Guides|date=2003|isbn=978-1-8435-3019-0|edition=3}}</ref> China has over 10,000 recorded species of fungi.<ref>{{cite book|title=Conservation Biology: Voices from the Tropics|date=2013|publisher=John Wiley & Sons|page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=OeqjKhDml6wC&pg=PA208 208] |isbn=978-1-1186-7981-4}}</ref>

=== Environment === {{Main|Environment of China|Environmental issues in China}}

{{See also|Renewable energy in China|Water resources of China|Energy policy of China|Climate change in China}} [[File:ThreeGorgesDam-China2009.jpg|thumb|The Three Gorges Dam is the largest hydroelectric dam in the world.]] thumb|The China Energy Engineering Corporation 50 MW Hami power tower has 8 hours of molten-salt storage

In the early 21st century, China has suffered from environmental deterioration and pollution due to rapid industrialization.<ref name="Ma2002">{{Cite book |last1=Ma |first1=Xiaoying |title=Environmental Regulation in China |last2=Ortalano |first2=Leonard |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |date=2000 |isbn=978-0-8476-9399-3 |pages=[https://books.google.com/books?id=eQTbZRWgC74C&pg=PA1 1] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-21545868|title=China acknowledges 'cancer villages'|date=22 February 2013|publisher=BBC News|access-date=23 February 2013|archive-date=21 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240321002451/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-21545868|url-status=live}}</ref> Environmental regulations are fairly stringent, although poorly enforced and often disregarded.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-asia-china-20114306|title=Riot police and protesters clash over China chemical plant|last=Soekov|first=Kimberley|date=28 October 2012|publisher=BBC News|access-date=18 January 2020|archive-date=10 April 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160410202328/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-20114306|url-status=live}}</ref> China has the second-highest death toll from air pollution,, with approximately 1 million deaths as of 2016.<ref>{{cite web |date=15 February 2016 |title=Is air quality in China a social problem? |url=https://chinapower.csis.org/air-quality |access-date=26 March 2020 |website=Center for Strategic and International Studies |publisher=ChinaPower Project |archive-date=26 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200326081416/https://chinapower.csis.org/air-quality |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.who.int/phe/publications/air-pollution-global-assessment/en/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160928165031/http://www.who.int/phe/publications/air-pollution-global-assessment/en/|url-status=dead|archive-date=28 September 2016|title=Ambient air pollution: A global assessment of exposure and burden of disease|website=World Health Organization|access-date=28 April 2018}}</ref> Although China ranks as the highest CO{{Sub|2}} emitting country, it only emits 8 tons of CO{{Sub|2}} per capita, significantly lower than many other developed countries.<ref name="UCS-2020">{{cite web|date=August 2020|title=Each Country's Share of CO2 Emissions|url=https://www.ucsusa.org/resources/each-countrys-share-co2-emissions|access-date=30 October 2020|website=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}}</ref> Greenhouse gas emissions by China are the world's largest.<ref name="UCS-2020"/>

China has prioritized clamping down on pollution, bringing a significant decrease in air pollution in the 2010s.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Jayaram |first1=Kripa |last2=Kay |first2=Chris |last3=Murtaugh |first3=Dan |date=14 June 2022 |title=China Reduced Air Pollution in 7 Years as Much as US Did in Three Decades |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-06-14/china-s-clean-air-campaign-is-bringing-down-global-pollution |access-date=13 January 2024 |work=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}}</ref> In 2020, the Chinese government announced its aims for the country to reach its peak emissions levels before 2030, and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060 in line with the Paris Agreement.<ref name="CAT-2020">{{cite web |date=23 September 2020 |title=China going carbon neutral before 2060 would lower warming projections by around 0.2 to 0.3 degrees C |url=https://climateactiontracker.org/press/china-carbon-neutral-before-2060-would-lower-warming-projections-by-around-2-to-3-tenths-of-a-degree |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}}</ref> According to China's government, the forest coverage of the country grew from 10% of the overall territory in 1949 to 25% in 2024.<ref>{{cite news |date=29 November 2024 |title=China completes 3,000-km green belt around its biggest desert, state media says |url=https://www.yahoo.com/news/china-completes-3-000-km-112549261.html |access-date=8 December 2024 |agency=Reuters |publisher= }}</ref> In 2024, the government graded 90.4% of China's national surface water suitable for human consumption.<ref>{{Cite web |date=24 June 2025 |title=2024 State of Ecology & Environment Report Review |url=https://cwrrr.org/resources/analysis-reviews/2024-state-of-ecology-environment-freshwater/ |access-date=29 October 2025 |website=China Water Risk |archive-date=2026-03-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260309061250/https://cwrrr.org/resources/analysis-reviews/2024-state-of-ecology-environment-freshwater/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

China is the world's leading investor in renewable energy and its commercialization, with $546 billion invested in 2022;<ref name="Schonhardt-2023">{{Cite news |last=Schonhardt |first=Sara |date=30 January 2023 |title=China Invests $546 Billion in Clean Energy, Far Surpassing the U.S. |work=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}}</ref> it the world's leading manufacturer and innovator of renewable energy technologies and invests heavily in local-scale renewable energy projects.<ref>{{cite news |last=Meng |first=Meng |date=5 January 2017 |title=China to plow $361 billion into renewable fuel by 2020 |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-energy-renewables/china-to-plow-361-billion-into-renewable-fuel-by-2020-idUSKBN14P06P |access-date=28 May 2018 |archive-date=27 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230727074912/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-energy-renewables/china-to-plow-361-billion-into-renewable-fuel-by-2020-idUSKBN14P06P |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Schonhardt-2023"/><ref name=":37">{{Cite news |last1=Gelles |first1=David |last2=Sengupta |first2=Somini |last3=Bradsher |first3=Keith |last4=Plumer |first4=Brad |last5=Stevens |first5=Harry |date=30 June 2025 |title=There's a Race to Power the Future. China Is Pulling Away. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/06/30/climate/china-clean-energy-power.html |access-date=30 June 2025 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=2025-07-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250710054344/https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/06/30/climate/china-clean-energy-power.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Long heavily relying on non-renewable energy sources such as coal, China's adaptation of renewable energy has increased significantly in recent years.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Maguire |first=Gavin |date=23 November 2022 |title=Column: China on track to hit new clean & dirty power records in 2022 |url=https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/china-track-hit-new-clean-dirty-power-records-2022-maguire-2022-11-23 |access-date=15 May 2023 |work=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}}</ref> In 2025, 54.4% of China's electricity came from coal (largest producer in the world), 13.2% from hydroelectric power (largest), 11.1% from solar energy (largest), 10.7% from wind (largest), 4.6% from nuclear energy (second-largest), 3.2% from natural gas (fifth-largest), and 2% from bioenergy (largest); in total, 42% of China's energy came from clean energy sources.<ref>{{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}}</ref> Despite its emphasis on renewables, China remains deeply connected to global oil markets and next to India, has been the largest importer of Russian crude oil in 2022.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Perkins |first=Robert |date=7 October 2022 |title=Russian seaborne crude exports slide to 12-month low as EU ban, price caps loom |url=https://www.spglobal.com/commodityinsights/en/market-insights/latest-news/oil/072022-russian-seaborne-crude-exports-retreat-from-three-year-highs-shipping-data |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221014053951/https://www.spglobal.com/commodityinsights/en/market-insights/latest-news/oil/072022-russian-seaborne-crude-exports-retreat-from-three-year-highs-shipping-data |archive-date=14 October 2022 |website=S&P Global}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=|author-link=|date=24 February 2022|title=Oil Market and Russian Supply – Russian supplies to global energy markets|url=https://www.iea.org/reports/russian-supplies-to-global-energy-markets/oil-market-and-russian-supply-2|access-date=27 April 2022|publisher=|archive-date=16 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230116162235/https://www.iea.org/reports/russian-supplies-to-global-energy-markets/oil-market-and-russian-supply-2|url-status=live|website=International Energy Agency}}</ref>

=== Political geography === {{Main|Borders of China|Coastline of China|Territorial changes of the People's Republic of China}}

thumb|Map depicting territorial disputes between the PRC and neighboring states. China is the second-largest country by land area after Russia, and the third- or fourth-largest country by total area.{{efn|According to the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'', the total area of the United States, at {{convert|9522055|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sp=us}}, is slightly smaller than that of China. Meanwhile, the ''CIA World Factbook'' states that China's total area was greater than that of the United States until the coastal waters of the Great Lakes was added to the United States' total area in 1996. From 1989 through 1996, the total area of US was listed as {{convert|9372610|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sp=us}} (land area plus inland water only). The listed total area changed to {{convert|9629091|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sp=us}} in 1997 (with the Great Lakes areas and the coastal waters added), to {{convert|9631418|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sp=us}} in 2004, to {{convert|9631420|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sp=us}} in 2006, and to {{convert|9826630|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sp=us}} in 2007 (territorial waters added).}} China's total area is generally stated as being approximately {{convert|9600000|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sp=us}}.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Ma|first1=Jin Shuang|last2=Liu|first2=Quan Riu|title=The Present Situation and Prospects of Plant Taxonomy in China|journal=Taxon|volume=47|number=1|date=February 1998|pages=67–74|publisher=Wiley|doi=10.2307/1224020|jstor=1224020|bibcode=1998Taxon..47...67M }}</ref> Specific area figures range from {{convert|9572900|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sp=us}}<ref name="United States"/> to {{convert|9596961|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sp=us}}.<ref name="UN Stat" /><ref name="CIA">{{Cite CIA World Factbook|country=China|access-date=23 November 2013}}</ref>

China has the longest combined land border in the world, measuring {{convert|22117|km|mi|abbr=on|sp=us}}. Its coastline covers approximately {{convert|14500|km|mi|abbr=on|sp=us}}, from the mouth of the Yalu River to the Gulf of Tonkin.<ref name="CIA"/> China borders 14 nations, bordering Vietnam, Laos, and Myanmar in Southeast Asia; India, Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan{{efn|China's border with Pakistan and part of its border with India falls in the disputed region of Kashmir. The area under Pakistani administration is claimed by India, while the area under Indian administration is claimed by Pakistan.}} and Afghanistan in South Asia; Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan in Central Asia; and Russia, Mongolia, and North Korea in Inner Asia and Northeast Asia. It has several maritime neighbors.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Wei|first=Yuwa|title=China and ITS Neighbors |volume=22|number=1|date=2014|pages=105–136|publisher=Willamette University College of Law|journal=Willamette Journal of International Law and Dispute Resolution|jstor=26210500}}</ref>

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

== 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 = The Zhongnanhai, headquarters of the Chinese government and Chinese Communist Party }}

The People's Republic of China is a communist state under the absolute leadership of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The CCP is officially guided by socialism with Chinese characteristics, which it describes as Marxism adapted to Chinese circumstances.<ref>{{Cite news |date=5 January 2013 |title=Xi reiterates adherence to socialism with Chinese characteristics |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2013-01/05/c_132082389.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160201174945/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2013-01/05/c_132082389.htm |archive-date=1 February 2016 |access-date=14 January 2020 |work=Xinhua News Agency |agency=}}</ref> The Chinese constitution states that the PRC "is a socialist state governed by a people's democratic dictatorship that is led by the working class and based on an alliance of workers and peasants", and that "the defining feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics is the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party."<ref name="2018-amendments-translated2">{{Cite web |last1=Wei |first1=Changhao |last2=Hu |first2=Taige |date=November 2023 |title=Constitution of the People's Republic of China |url=https://npcobserver.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/PRC-Constitution-2018.pdf |access-date=17 December 2025 |website=NPC Observer}}</ref>

The PRC officially characterizes itself as a democracy—more specifically, a whole-process people's democracy—organized around the Leninist principle of democratic centralism.<ref name="Decoding China-2021" /> However, the country is commonly described as an authoritarian one-party state and a dictatorship,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ringen |first=Stein |author-link=Stein Ringen |title=The Perfect Dictatorship: China in the 21st Century |date=2016 |publisher=Hong Kong University Press |isbn=978-9-8882-0893-7 |page=3}}</ref><ref name="Isabelle">{{Cite news |last1=Qian |first1=Isabelle |last2=Xiao |first2=Muyi |last3=Mozur |first3=Paul |last4=Cardia |first4=Alexander |date=21 June 2022 |title=Four Takeaways From a Times Investigation Into China's Expanding Surveillance State |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/21/world/asia/china-surveillance-investigation.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230116110333/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/21/world/asia/china-surveillance-investigation.html |archive-date=16 January 2023 |access-date=23 July 2022 |work=The New York Times}}</ref> with very heavy restrictions in many civil areas, notably against freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, free formation of social organizations, freedom of religion and freedom of the Internet.<ref name="freedomhouse">{{Cite news |date=2024 |title=Freedom in the World 2024: China |url=https://freedomhouse.org/country/china/freedom-world/2024 |access-date=5 April 2024 |work=Freedom House |archive-date=2024-07-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240718034536/https://freedomhouse.org/country/china/freedom-world/2024 |url-status=live }}</ref> China has consistently been ranked amongst the lowest as an "authoritarian regime" by the Economist Intelligence Unit's Democracy Index, ranking at 141st out of 167 countries in 2025.<ref>{{Cite news |date=7 April 2026 |title=Global democracy is in better shape than you think |url=https://www.economist.com/interactive/democracy-index-2025 |access-date=10 April 2026 |newspaper=The Economist}}</ref> In the V-Dem Democracy Indices, China ranks amongst the lowest as a "closed autocracy," ranking at 175th and 172nd out of 179 countries in electoral democracy and liberal democracy indices respectively.<ref name="j496">{{cite web |title=Democracy Report 2026, Unraveling The Democratic Era?|url=https://v-dem.net/documents/75/V-Dem_Institute_Democracy_Report_2026_lowres.pdf|access-date=2026-03-17|website=V-Dem Institute}}</ref> Other sources suggest that terming China as "authoritarian" does not sufficiently account for the multiple consultation mechanisms that exist in the Chinese governmental system.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Laikwan |first=Pang |title=One and All: The Logic of Chinese Sovereignty |date=2024 |publisher=Stanford University Press |isbn=978-1-5036-3881-5 |location=Stanford, CA |pages=1}}</ref>

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

[[File:庆祝中国共产党成立100周年大会天安门广场布景.jpg|thumb|The Chinese Communist Party is the founding and governing political party of the People's Republic of China.]] The CCP is the founding and sole ruling party of the PRC. According to the CCP constitution, the Party's highest body is the National Congress held every five years.<ref name="Ruwitch-2022">{{Cite news |last=Ruwitch |first=John |date=13 October 2022 |title=China's major party congress is set to grant Xi Jinping a 3rd term. And that's not all |url=https://www.npr.org/2022/10/13/1124553497/china-communist-party-congress-xi-jinping |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221014193045/https://www.npr.org/2022/10/13/1124553497/china-communist-party-congress-xi-jinping |archive-date=14 October 2022 |access-date=15 October 2022 |work=NPR}}</ref> The National Congress elects the Central Committee, which is the CCP's highest organ between congresses and convenes at least once a year. The Central Committee then elects the party's Politburo, Politburo Standing Committee and the general secretary (party leader), the top leadership of the country.<ref name="Ruwitch-2022" /> The Politburo usually gathers once a month, while the smaller Politburo Standing Committee is thought to meet weekly.<ref name=":22" /> The general secretary holds ultimate power and authority over party and state and serves as the paramount leader of China.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hernández |first=Javier C. |date=25 October 2017 |title=China's 'Chairman of Everything': Behind Xi Jinping's Many Titles |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/25/world/asia/china-xi-jinping-titles-chairman.html |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171025074641/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/25/world/asia/china-xi-jinping-titles-chairman.html |archive-date=25 October 2017 |access-date=14 January 2020 |work=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.}}</ref> The current general secretary is Xi Jinping, who took office on 15 November 2012.<ref name="PhillipsGuardian2">{{Cite news |last=Phillips |first=Tom |date=24 October 2017 |title=Xi Jinping becomes most powerful leader since Mao with China's change to constitution |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/24/xi-jinping-mao-thought-on-socialism-china-constitution |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171024053607/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/24/xi-jinping-mao-thought-on-socialism-china-constitution |archive-date=24 October 2017 |access-date=24 October 2017 |work=The Guardian}}</ref> The National Congress also elects the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the CCP's supreme disciplinary organ.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Yu |first=Jie |date=3 August 2022 |title=A guide to the Chinese Communist Party's National Congress |url=https://www.chathamhouse.org/publications/the-world-today/2022-08/guide-chinese-communist-partys-national-congress |access-date=31 October 2025 |website=Chatham House |language=en |archive-date=2026-02-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260201151849/https://www.chathamhouse.org/publications/the-world-today/2022-08/guide-chinese-communist-partys-national-congress |url-status=live }}</ref>

The government in China is under the sole control of the CCP.<ref name=":12">{{Cite news |last=Ma |first=Josephine |date=17 May 2021 |title=Party-state relations under China's Communist Party: separation of powers, control over government and reforms |url=https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3133672/why-chinas-communist-party-inseparable-state |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230528070726/https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3133672/why-chinas-communist-party-inseparable-state |archive-date=28 May 2023 |access-date=23 June 2023 |work=South China Morning Post}}</ref> The CCP controls appointments in government bodies, with most senior government officials being CCP members.<ref name=":12" /> The appointment of CCP cadres and the leadership of all major state-owned enterprises is managed by the party's Organization Department.<ref name=":22" /><ref>{{Cite book |last=Pei|first=Minxin|author-link=Minxin Pei|title=The Broken China Dream: How Reform Revived Totalitarianism|date=2025-12-31|publisher=Princeton University Press|isbn=978-0-691-22334-6|doi=10.1515/9780691223346|jstor=jj.29871091}}</ref>{{Reference page|page=140}} The CCP maintains committees in the each level of government. At the local level, the CCP committee of a subdivision and its secretary outranks the local government and its head; CCP committee of a provincial division and its secretary outranks the provincial people's government and the governor while the CCP committee of a city and its secretary outranks the municipal people's government the mayor.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Lawrence |first1=Susan V. |last2=Lee |first2=Mari Y. |date=24 November 2021 |title=China's Political System in Charts: A Snapshot Before the 20th Party Congress |url=https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/R/R46977 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220616104006/https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/R/R46977 |archive-date=16 June 2022 |access-date=20 December 2022 |website=Congressional Research Service}}</ref> By law, the CCP leads over all major sectors of the country, including politics, military, society, economy, education, culture, diplomacy, ideology, law, national security, and propaganda and media.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Grünberg |first=Nis |last2=Drinhausen |first2=Katja |date=2019-09-24 |title=The Party leads on everything |url=https://merics.org/en/report/party-leads-everything |access-date=2026-05-30 |website=Mercator Institute for China Studies |language=en}}</ref>

=== Government === {{multiple image | perrow = 2 | align = right | direction = horizontal | caption_align = center | image1 = Xi Jinping meets Keir Starmer Jan 2026.jpg | caption1 = Xi Jinping CCP General Secretary and President | width1 = 120 | image2 = Li Qiang meets Keir Starmer Jan 2026.jpg | caption2 = Li Qiang Premier | width2 = 120 | image3 = Zhao Leji meets Keir Starmer Jan 2026.jpg | caption3 = Zhao Leji Congress Chairman | width3 = 122 | total_width = | image4 = Wang Huning 2025 National People's Congress.jpg | width4 = 122 | caption4 = Wang Huning CPPCC Chairman }}

The National People's Congress (NPC), with nearly 3,000-members, as the supreme organ of state power holds the unified powers of the state,<ref name="Constitution">{{Cite web |date=20 November 2019 |title=Constitution of the People's Republic of China |url=http://www.npc.gov.cn/englishnpc/constitution2019/201911/1f65146fb6104dd3a2793875d19b5b29.shtml |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230702212731/http://www.npc.gov.cn/englishnpc/constitution2019/201911/1f65146fb6104dd3a2793875d19b5b29.shtml |archive-date=2 July 2023 |access-date=20 March 2021 |website=National People's Congress}}</ref> creating a system where all state organs including the presidency, the State Council, the State Central Military Commission, the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, and the National Supervisory Commission are subject to its oversight through democratic centralism. However, observers often describe it as a "rubber stamp" body.<ref name="BBC News-2009">{{Cite news |title=How China is Ruled: National People's Congress |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/in_depth/china_politics/government/html/7.stm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200413113056/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/in_depth/china_politics/government/html/7.stm |archive-date=13 April 2020 |access-date=14 July 2009 |work=BBC News |publisher=}}</ref> The NPC meets annually, while the NPC Standing Committee, around 175 members elected from NPC delegates, meets every couple of months.<ref name="BBC News-2009" /> Its elections are indirect and not pluralistic, with nominations at all levels being controlled by the CCP by law.<ref name="Decoding China-2021">{{Cite web |date=4 February 2021 |title=Democracy |url=https://decodingchina.eu/democracy |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220816041118/https://decodingchina.eu/democracy |archive-date=16 August 2022 |access-date=22 August 2022 |website=Decoding China |publisher=Heidelberg University}}</ref><ref name=":62">{{Cite journal |last1=Hao |first1=Mingsong |last2=Ke |first2=Xiwang |date=5 July 2023 |title=Personal Networks and Grassroots Election Participation in China: Findings from the Chinese General Social Survey |journal=Journal of Chinese Political Science |language=en |volume=29 |issue=1 |pages=159–184 |doi=10.1007/s11366-023-09861-3 |issn=1080-6954 |doi-access=free}}</ref> The NPC is dominated by the CCP, with another eight minor parties having representation in the body under the condition of upholding CCP leadership.<ref name="HRW-2021">{{Cite web |title=China: Nipped In The Bud – Background |url=https://www.hrw.org/reports/2000/china/china009-01.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210416135228/https://www.hrw.org/reports/2000/china/china009-01.htm |archive-date=16 April 2021 |access-date=18 March 2021 |website=Human Rights Watch}}</ref>

The NPC elects the president, who is the ceremonial state representative. The incumbent president is Xi Jinping, who is also the general secretary of the CCP and the chairman of the Central Military Commission, making him China's paramount leader and supreme commander of the armed forces. The premier is the head of government, with Li Qiang being the incumbent. The premier is officially nominated by the president and then elected by the NPC, and has generally been either the second- or third-ranking member of the Politburo Standing Committee (PSC). The premier presides over the State Council, China's cabinet, composed of four vice premiers, state councillors, and the heads of ministries and commissions.<ref name="2018-amendments-translated2" /> The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) is a political advisory body that formally leads China's united front system, which aims to gather non-CCP voices to support the CCP. Similar to the people's congresses, CPPCCs have subdivisions; the National Committee of the CPPCC is chaired by Wang Huning, the fourth-ranking member of the PSC.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Tiezzi |first=Shannon |date=4 March 2021 |title=What Is the CPPCC Anyway? |url=https://thediplomat.com/2021/03/what-is-the-cppcc-anyway |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328020922/https://thediplomat.com/2021/03/what-is-the-cppcc-anyway |archive-date=28 March 2024 |access-date=21 August 2022 |work=The Diplomat}}</ref>

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

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

The PRC is constitutionally a unitary state divided into 23 provinces,{{efn|The People's Republic of China claims the islands of Taiwan and Penghu, which it does not control, as its disputed 23rd province, i.e. Taiwan Province; along with Kinmen and Matsu Islands as part of Fujian Province. These are controlled by the Taipei-based Republic of China (ROC). See {{section link||Administrative divisions}} for more details.|name=TaiwanClaim}} five autonomous regions (each with a designated minority group), four direct-administered municipalities—collectively referred to as "mainland China"—as well as the special administrative regions (SARs) of Hong Kong and Macau.<ref>{{Cite web |date=26 August 2014 |title=Administrative Division |url=http://english.www.gov.cn/archive/china_abc/2014/08/27/content_281474983873401.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220709144054/http://english.www.gov.cn/archive/china_abc/2014/08/27/content_281474983873401.htm |archive-date=9 July 2022 |access-date=19 December 2022 |website=Gov.cn}}</ref> The PRC regards the island of Taiwan as its Taiwan Province, Kinmen and Matsu as a part of Fujian Province, and islands the ROC controls in the South China Sea as a part of Hainan Province and Guangdong Province, though all these territories are governed by the Republic of China (ROC).<ref>{{Cite book |last=Chang |first=Bi-yu |title=Place, Identity, and National Imagination in Post-war Taiwan |date=2015 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-3176-5812-2 |pages=[https://books.google.com/books?id=hgaUBwAAQBAJ&q=9781317658122&pg=PA58 35–40, 46–60]}}</ref><ref name="asia-34729538">{{Cite news |date=6 November 2015 |title=What's behind China-Taiwan tensions? |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-34729538 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151107103125/http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-34729538 |archive-date=7 November 2015 |access-date=10 November 2022 |work=BBC News |publisher=}}</ref> These divisions are grouped into six statistical regions: North, East, Southwestern, South Central, Northwestern, and Northeast China.<ref name="Brown2013">{{Cite book |last=Brown |first=Kerry |title=Contemporary China |date=2013 |publisher=Macmillan International Higher Education – University of Sydney |isbn=978-1-1372-8159-3 |page=7}}</ref>

<div style="border: 1px solid #000000; width: 750px; margin: 0 auto; overflow-x: auto"><imagemap> File:China administrative claimed included.svg|center|750px

poly 238 62 219 74 211 97 181 87 158 114 126 115 126 152 115 166 83 171 61 173 53 181 42 179 42 173 16 177 3 200 17 207 14 230 3 230 39 276 59 277 73 291 98 298 113 294 126 305 165 304 200 300 231 314 246 297 232 277 265 267 281 243 315 220 336 220 338 205 329 178 305 159 270 147 279 120 271 95 254 88 247 65 Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region poly 75 292 90 299 110 296 130 310 167 307 202 305 216 314 210 352 219 372 294 402 294 414 316 418 333 408 344 426 347 467 335 484 318 482 303 478 307 471 301 457 287 461 276 452 248 464 220 474 189 462 172 458 116 440 73 386 59 389 33 352 33 333 35 340 50 340 46 313 56 312 Tibet (Xizang) Autonomous Region poly 238 274 252 302 240 307 243 322 219 318 214 354 224 372 234 369 243 380 275 393 285 391 299 410 315 414 332 386 336 374 350 377 365 399 389 403 395 393 386 377 401 377 407 375 402 366 421 341 416 320 382 300 365 282 355 287 340 276 335 299 300 289 273 270 Qinghai Province poly 337 212 339 221 322 228 295 245 285 245 282 269 297 279 302 287 331 292 337 275 355 282 365 280 384 294 419 318 426 342 405 367 410 374 403 381 388 375 401 395 410 391 407 384 417 374 426 386 435 389 443 408 454 410 463 404 467 392 474 393 475 378 475 364 487 370 497 368 495 362 509 362 509 341 480 327 476 341 484 344 483 352 473 359 458 352 458 330 449 319 432 311 444 288 441 280 413 287 408 295 378 269 389 253 362 248 353 234 358 230 350 209 339 209 Gansu Province poly 335 377 333 398 342 404 351 425 349 488 357 477 372 495 388 531 410 527 407 510 420 500 427 486 435 485 435 501 447 497 450 504 468 504 457 492 465 484 452 472 459 455 473 456 481 460 490 445 504 429 482 410 454 411 439 407 436 391 421 387 418 377 412 391 402 397 392 396 392 405 377 411 368 403 348 380 Sichuan Province poly 347 473 333 492 339 499 335 531 314 549 312 566 337 564 335 584 345 586 334 603 348 607 356 619 369 612 371 625 379 626 379 601 390 603 397 596 405 604 413 597 430 599 457 587 457 575 433 567 438 553 430 545 437 530 422 526 421 515 448 509 448 497 436 501 431 486 411 508 412 528 388 532 373 498 365 498 364 489 359 479 350 487 Yunnan Province poly 451 320 460 329 461 348 475 360 476 351 481 352 481 343 475 342 478 328 487 327 492 313 477 305 484 292 478 286 470 304 470 313 Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region poly 354 212 360 232 354 236 364 249 390 249 383 266 408 293 410 284 441 280 446 288 432 308 449 317 466 313 469 293 481 284 485 289 482 303 510 316 532 286 560 282 564 268 591 259 586 243 599 230 601 240 628 229 628 221 641 217 652 239 664 239 664 224 667 220 675 231 720 199 707 176 701 182 689 151 702 153 702 133 692 122 718 92 728 47 717 35 712 43 692 45 682 26 676 28 666 21 671 13 667 7 653 23 657 22 663 33 647 74 628 87 617 82 603 114 606 120 627 121 632 116 643 115 665 137 646 139 614 151 616 161 575 181 561 176 551 187 559 200 524 226 493 226 457 241 419 228 414 220 Inner Mongolia (Nei Mongol) Autonomous Region poly 534 286 513 317 495 316 490 331 511 341 508 362 496 363 498 368 485 370 478 365 474 374 479 378 475 394 465 395 464 409 505 420 522 430 523 414 531 412 522 401 547 400 533 372 540 355 535 327 543 318 537 307 548 284 Shaanxi Province poly 506 422 503 428 506 429 495 449 490 448 484 462 475 462 459 454 461 463 452 469 467 483 467 488 474 490 480 484 486 485 486 478 493 479 493 483 502 481 513 497 517 481 506 467 507 454 520 452 532 443 533 437 Municipality of Chongqing poly 459 489 469 504 453 505 450 512 425 513 426 526 435 524 438 528 431 542 440 552 434 562 446 557 457 562 476 553 480 547 487 553 496 553 520 541 520 520 511 521 520 508 517 496 513 499 500 484 490 481 476 492 Guizhou Province poly 437 565 459 573 462 586 450 592 472 599 470 614 500 626 502 621 525 626 555 601 554 588 566 574 563 564 557 565 549 556 555 543 548 532 536 540 491 556 480 548 477 555 461 565 447 557 Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region poly 549 285 538 307 543 317 539 358 534 374 585 357 587 343 583 337 592 316 583 305 588 290 596 286 595 274 587 271 596 266 592 260 566 267 561 280 Shanxi Province poly 588 341 590 356 538 374 548 396 557 413 590 415 594 428 616 432 626 424 626 413 620 414 614 411 610 403 616 393 620 391 619 383 625 384 628 388 636 384 629 372 617 372 607 365 616 351 613 345 Henan Province poly 522 401 534 412 524 415 525 431 533 435 532 447 520 453 505 454 506 464 517 476 530 467 541 467 541 462 574 471 578 465 582 472 590 463 594 468 596 477 623 463 632 463 626 446 629 440 621 439 617 431 610 433 594 427 591 416 567 417 553 411 548 401 Hubei Province poly 520 475 523 511 512 519 522 519 524 539 541 534 553 535 557 543 548 557 564 563 568 556 580 556 588 550 599 551 597 515 591 513 593 502 602 492 601 486 592 477 590 467 582 473 570 471 540 462 541 468 537 470 528 469 Hunan Province poly 570 557 565 581 556 589 555 599 530 621 523 638 531 652 540 650 535 639 539 630 580 621 595 608 592 601 600 604 629 600 648 595 657 581 650 563 633 558 632 564 626 561 607 566 613 555 611 550 600 552 587 549 583 559 Guangdong Province poly 518 658 466 657 462 686 505 685 524 694 527 687 531 687 540 682 548 664 545 656 Hainan Province poly 598 230 590 241 587 251 596 262 589 270 594 272 596 286 588 289 587 295 583 303 586 305 592 315 584 336 608 345 615 344 612 337 635 310 643 309 648 303 643 294 630 291 633 286 631 277 627 279 613 280 609 271 616 265 614 260 625 249 638 254 638 262 644 266 647 276 654 284 667 279 666 272 674 264 670 255 658 250 665 240 650 241 647 233 650 232 641 218 630 221 628 230 616 234 602 242 Hebei Province poly 668 8 673 14 667 22 676 28 676 25 684 28 690 45 712 41 716 35 730 47 722 66 725 82 718 98 694 122 707 141 716 141 722 154 741 152 750 157 760 155 762 164 768 164 777 173 779 163 793 180 793 176 809 168 821 175 815 149 824 140 840 140 845 94 849 84 847 82 845 73 815 94 803 96 797 89 793 76 778 69 754 68 723 11 707 6 692 1 Heilongjiang Province poly 706 142 702 152 689 151 695 158 700 181 711 174 721 194 730 197 733 202 737 198 748 216 747 220 756 237 769 218 789 221 785 209 796 207 806 198 806 188 813 190 823 185 821 175 813 173 809 169 796 174 793 181 780 164 777 172 772 173 768 165 763 164 761 156 754 155 748 157 741 152 725 155 715 141 Jilin Province poly 721 193 721 201 680 224 676 231 665 221 666 237 659 251 669 255 674 264 683 260 691 245 708 250 696 271 703 278 696 283 697 286 708 280 719 267 737 260 756 239 748 222 747 214 738 197 733 203 Liaoning Province poly 626 248 614 259 618 264 610 271 612 279 625 281 631 276 638 264 639 254 631 253 Municipality of Beijing poly 639 264 631 277 633 285 630 291 643 295 649 282 646 280 647 277 643 276 642 267 643 267 Municipality of Tianjin poly 664 303 645 304 633 311 612 337 616 353 605 365 613 367 615 371 629 374 631 367 640 366 646 373 656 368 660 373 675 359 695 337 696 327 719 320 721 310 704 311 690 306 678 320 665 318 Shandong Province poly 639 366 630 372 640 376 650 382 659 386 659 397 664 405 670 404 673 399 679 408 669 408 670 413 666 418 675 426 673 432 693 432 703 438 710 431 714 423 724 419 719 411 706 403 693 372 676 366 674 360 667 367 664 372 657 369 647 373 Jiangsu Province poly 628 373 636 384 628 389 620 384 620 392 609 403 616 411 625 413 627 425 619 434 630 440 627 446 634 463 645 459 643 467 650 459 668 467 678 456 676 451 685 449 683 445 688 434 675 433 676 427 666 421 669 413 669 410 677 408 678 404 673 400 671 404 665 405 662 398 658 397 659 387 653 386 Anhui Province poly 713 422 709 432 717 438 725 434 721 426 Municipality of Shanghai poly 690 432 684 449 678 449 678 457 666 472 675 489 679 490 683 504 689 504 693 500 697 504 710 507 715 493 720 493 727 483 734 456 717 446 708 450 705 446 711 444 715 439 708 433 702 437 Zhejiang Province poly 595 480 602 493 593 512 597 513 601 552 611 549 614 555 606 565 627 561 632 566 637 540 643 535 642 531 645 527 643 521 653 512 651 504 660 498 674 490 666 475 668 468 655 465 650 460 642 467 645 459 640 457 630 465 623 463 621 466 Jiangxi Province poly 679 490 673 492 658 498 651 504 654 512 643 519 646 526 642 534 633 558 650 562 658 582 679 563 702 541 709 507 698 505 694 500 688 505 681 504 Fujian Province poly 600 605 602 615 669 616 668 604 Hong Kong Special Administrative Region poly 595 609 589 616 589 630 623 630 623 619 602 618 Macau Special Administrative Region poly 738 542 728 547 711 574 710 584 714 594 721 600 723 608 727 596 733 589 742 559 742 553 744 548 Taiwan Province

desc bottom-right </imagemap></div> {| class="wikitable" width=100% |+ First level administrative divisions of the PRC by type !Type |List |- ! rowspan="2" style="width: 23%" | 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'' {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|台湾省}})}}, ''governed by the Republic of China'' |- ! style="width: 23%" | Autonomous regions |{{columns-list|colwidth=12em|class=plainlist| *Guangxi {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|广西壮族自治区}})}} *Inner Mongolia / ''Nei Menggu'' {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|内蒙古自治区}})}} *Ningxia {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|宁夏回族自治区}})}} *Tibet / ''Xizang'' {{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 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 |{{columns-list|colwidth=12em|class=plainlist| *Hong Kong / ''Xianggang'' {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|香港特别行政区}})}} *Macau / ''Aomen'' {{nowrap|({{lang|zh-hans|澳门特别行政区}})}} }} |}

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

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}}

The PRC has diplomatic relations with 179 United Nations member-states and maintains embassies in 174, the largest diplomatic networks of any country in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Global Diplomacy Index – Country Rank |url=https://globaldiplomacyindex.lowyinstitute.org/country_ranking |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240225223052/https://globaldiplomacyindex.lowyinstitute.org/country_ranking |archive-date=25 February 2024 |access-date=26 February 2024 |website=Lowy Institute}}</ref> China is of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council.<ref name="Ref_r">{{Cite news |last=Chang |first=Eddy |date=22 August 2004 |title=Perseverance will pay off at the UN |url=http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2004/08/22/2003199768 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070806100002/http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2004/08/22/2003199768 |archive-date=6 August 2007 |work=The Taipei Times}}</ref> It is a member of intergovernmental organizations including the G20,<ref>{{Cite web |title=About G20 |url=https://www.g20.org/en/about-g20 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230825160730/https://www.g20.org/en/about-g20 |archive-date=25 August 2023 |access-date=4 July 2023 |website=G20}}</ref> the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation,<ref>{{Cite news |date=29 March 2023 |title=Riyadh joins Shanghai Cooperation Organization as ties with Beijing grow |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/riyadh-joins-shanghai-cooperation-organization-ties-with-beijing-grow-2023-03-29 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231011070851/https://www.reuters.com/world/riyadh-joins-shanghai-cooperation-organization-ties-with-beijing-grow-2023-03-29 |archive-date=11 October 2023 |access-date=22 November 2023 |work=Reuters}}</ref> the BRICS,<ref>{{Cite news |date=14 April 2011 |title=Bric summit ends in China with plea for more influence |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-13076229 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240225211238/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-13076229 |archive-date=25 February 2024 |access-date=24 October 2011 |publisher=BBC News}}</ref> the East Asia Summit,<ref>{{Cite web |title=EAS Participating Countries |url=https://eastasiasummit.asean.org/eas-participating-country |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230923192301/https://eastasiasummit.asean.org/eas-participating-country |archive-date=23 September 2023 |access-date=4 July 2023 |website=East Asia Summit}}</ref> and the APEC.<ref>{{Cite web |date=September 2021 |title=About APEC |url=https://www.apec.org/about-us/about-apec |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240321185610/https://www.apec.org/about-us/about-apec |archive-date=21 March 2024 |access-date=4 July 2023 |website=Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation}}</ref> China is also a former member and leader of the Non-Aligned Movement and still considers itself an advocate for developing countries.<ref name="Ref_2009">{{Cite news |date=21 December 2009 |title=China says communication with other developing countries at Copenhagen summit transparent |url=http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90001/90776/90883/6847341.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091222225359/http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90001/90776/90883/6847341.html |archive-date=22 December 2009 |access-date=31 January 2019 |work=People's Daily}}</ref> China is widely described as either a potential or established superpower,<ref>{{Cite news |date=5 April 2023 |title=The Debate – Macron in the middle? French president in China amid superpower showdown |url=https://www.france24.com/en/tv-shows/the-debate/20230405-macron-in-the-middle-french-president-in-china-amid-superpower-showdown |access-date=9 April 2023 |work=France 24 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Kuper |first=Simon |date=25 May 2023 |title=There are only two global superpowers left |url=https://www.ft.com/content/3e96c85c-7ef7-4e74-85dc-c924599293a0 |access-date=18 December 2025 |work=Financial Times |language=en|url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Eaglen |first=Mackenzie |date=6 June 2023 |title=It's Time to Retire the Term "Near-Peer" Competitor When It Comes to China |url=https://www.aei.org/foreign-and-defense-policy/its-time-to-retire-the-term-near-peer-competitor-when-it-comes-to-china/ |access-date=18 December 2025 |website=American Enterprise Institute |language=en}}</ref> due to its influence in the fields of geopolitics, technology, manufacturing, economics and culture.<ref>{{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=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 }}</ref><ref>{{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 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Strimpel |first1=Zoe |date=26 April 2025 |title=The West can no longer afford to ignore China's superpower status |url=https://www.yahoo.com/news/west-no-longer-afford-ignore-135424320.html |access-date=18 December 2025 |website=The Telegraph}}</ref>

Chinese foreign policy is officially based on the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, which emphasizes non-interventionism and encourages diplomatic relations between states despite ideological differences.<ref name="Keith">{{Cite book |last=Keith |first=Ronald C. |title=China from the inside out – fitting the People's republic into the world |publisher=PlutoPress |pages=135–136}}</ref><ref name="Meng">{{Cite book |last=Meng|first=Wenting|title=Developmental Peace: Theorizing China's Approach to International Peacebuilding|date=2024|publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn=9783838219073|series=Ibidem|pages=}}</ref>{{Rp|page=86}} Per its policy of non-alignment, China maintains no military alliances except its defense treaty with North Korea.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Zhang |first=Ketian |date=2 June 2025 |title=Alliances with Chinese characteristics? The contents and rationale of China's strategic partnerships |journal=International Politics |language=en |doi=10.1057/s41311-025-00701-0 |issn=1740-3898 |doi-access=free}}</ref> Most countries have switched recognition from the ROC to the PRC since the latter replaced the former in the UN in 1971.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hale |first=Erin |date=25 October 2021 |title=Taiwan taps on United Nations' door, 50 years after departure |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/10/25/chinas-un-seat-50-years-on |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230129190345/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/10/25/chinas-un-seat-50-years-on |archive-date=29 January 2023 |access-date=11 January 2023 |work=Al Jazeera}}</ref> The PRC officially maintains the one China principle: the view that there is only one sovereign state with the name "China"—represented by the PRC—and that Taiwan is an integral part of China. The unique status of Taiwan has led to countries formally recognizing the PRC to maintain unique "one China policies" that differ from each other; some countries explicitly recognize the PRC's claim over Taiwan, while others, including the U.S. and Japan, only ''acknowledge'' the claim.<ref name="Drun-2017">{{Cite web |last=Drun |first=Jessica |date=28 December 2017 |title=One China, Multiple Interpretations |url=https://www.ccpwatch.org/single-post/2017/12/29/one-china-multiple-interpretations |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200309224301/https://www.ccpwatch.org/single-post/2017/12/29/One-China-Multiple-Interpretations |archive-date=9 March 2020 |access-date=11 January 2023 |website=Center for Advanced China Research}}</ref> [[File:16th BRICS Summit family photograph (2024).jpg|thumb|Chinese President Xi Jinping at the 16th BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia, 23 October 2024]] China's relations with Japan are marked by both deep economic ties as well as tensions over Taiwan, security, and the Senkaku Islands.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1177/0920203X16665778|date=September 2016|title=The Senkaku Shoto/Diaoyu Islands and Okinotorishima disputes: Ideational and material influences|last=Fox|first=Senan|journal=China Information|volume=30|issue=3|pages=312–333}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Gale|first=Alastair|last2=Mayger|first2=James|last3=Liu|first3=Lucille|date=January 8, 2026|title=How Rare Earths Raise the Stakes in China-Japan Spat|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-01-08/what-s-behind-china-japan-tensions-how-are-rare-earths-travel-trade-affected|work=Bloomberg News}}</ref> China has a close political, economic and military relationship with Russia,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Davidson |first=Helen |date=16 March 2022 |title=How close are China and Russia and where does Beijing stand on Ukraine? |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/16/how-close-are-china-and-russia-and-where-does-beijing-stand-on-ukraine |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220322172321/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/16/how-close-are-china-and-russia-and-where-does-beijing-stand-on-ukraine |archive-date=22 March 2022 |access-date=11 January 2023 |work=The Guardian}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=5 June 2012 |title=Energy to dominate Russia President Putin's China visit |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-18327632 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240214152040/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-18327632 |archive-date=14 February 2024 |access-date=16 January 2020 |publisher=BBC News}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Gladstone |first=Rick |date=19 July 2012 |title=Friction at the U.N. as Russia and China Veto Another Resolution on Syria Sanctions |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/20/world/middleeast/russia-and-china-veto-un-sanctions-against-syria.html |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220101/https://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/20/world/middleeast/russia-and-china-veto-un-sanctions-against-syria.html |archive-date=1 January 2022 |access-date=15 November 2012 |work=The New York Times}}{{cbignore}}</ref> China's relationship with the United States is complex, and includes deep trade ties but significant political differences.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Martin |first1=Eric |last2=Monteiro |first2=Ana |date=7 February 2023 |title=US-China Goods Trade Hits Record Even as Political Split Widens |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-02-07/us-china-trade-climbs-to-record-in-2022-despite-efforts-to-split |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230502105302/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-02-07/us-china-trade-climbs-to-record-in-2022-despite-efforts-to-split |archive-date=2 May 2023 |access-date=16 May 2023 |work=Bloomberg News}}</ref> China has close political and economic relations with African nations.<ref>{{Cite news |last=McLaughlin |first=Abraham |date=30 March 2005 |title=A rising China counters US clout in Africa |url=https://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0330/p01s01-woaf.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070816123236/http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0330/p01s01-woaf.html |archive-date=16 August 2007 |access-date=18 January 2020 |work=The Christian Science Monitor}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Lyman |first=Princeton |date=21 July 2005 |title=China's Rising Role in Africa |url=http://www.cfr.org/publication/8436 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070715183929/http://www.cfr.org/publication/8436 |archive-date=15 July 2007 |access-date=26 June 2007 |website=Council on Foreign Relations}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Politzer |first=Malia |date=6 August 2008 |title=China and Africa: Stronger Economic Ties Mean More Migration |url=https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/china-and-africa-stronger-economic-ties-mean-more-migration |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231202014823/https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/china-and-africa-stronger-economic-ties-mean-more-migration |archive-date=2 December 2023 |access-date=26 January 2013 |website=Migration Policy Institute}}</ref> It maintains extensive and highly diversified trade links with the European Union.<ref name="qz_EU_trade">{{Cite news |last=Timsit |first=Annabelle |date=15 February 2021 |title=China dethroned the US as Europe's top trade partner in 2020 |url=https://qz.com/1973067/china-dethroned-the-us-as-europes-top-trade-partner-in-2020 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231002082249/https://qz.com/1973067/china-dethroned-the-us-as-europes-top-trade-partner-in-2020 |archive-date=2 October 2023 |access-date=18 March 2021 |work=Quartz}}</ref> China is increasing its influence in Central Asia<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wolff |first=Stefan |date=24 May 2023 |title=How China is increasing its influence in central Asia as part of global plans to offer an alternative to the west |url=https://theconversation.com/how-china-is-increasing-its-influence-in-central-asia-as-part-of-global-plans-to-offer-an-alternative-to-the-west-206035 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240303040833/http://theconversation.com/how-china-is-increasing-its-influence-in-central-asia-as-part-of-global-plans-to-offer-an-alternative-to-the-west-206035 |archive-date=3 March 2024 |access-date=28 March 2024 |website=The Conversation}}</ref> and South Pacific.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Owen Greene |last2=Christoph Bluth |date=9 February 2024 |title=China's increasing political influence in the south Pacific has sparked an international response |url=https://theconversation.com/chinas-increasing-political-influence-in-the-south-pacific-has-sparked-an-international-response-222105 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240303175200/https://theconversation.com/chinas-increasing-political-influence-in-the-south-pacific-has-sparked-an-international-response-222105 |archive-date=3 March 2024 |access-date=28 March 2024 |website=The Conversation}}</ref> The country has strong trade ties with ASEAN countries<ref>{{Cite web |date=December 2022 |title=ASEAN Statistical Yearbook 2022 |url=https://www.aseanstats.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/ASYB_2022_423.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230516144951/https://www.aseanstats.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/ASYB_2022_423.pdf |archive-date=16 May 2023 |access-date=16 May 2023 |website=ASEAN}}</ref> and major South American economies,<ref>{{Cite magazine |date=4 February 2021 |title=The U.S. and China Are Battling for Influence in Latin America, and the Pandemic Has Raised the Stakes |url=https://time.com/5936037/us-china-latin-america-influence |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240323123844/https://time.com/5936037/us-china-latin-america-influence |archive-date=23 March 2024 |access-date=28 March 2021 |magazine=Time}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Garrison |first=Cassandra |date=14 December 2020 |title=In Latin America, a Biden White House faces a rising China |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-latam-usa-china-insight/in-latin-america-a-biden-white-house-faces-a-rising-china-idUSKBN28O18R |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231108025932/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-latam-usa-china-insight/in-latin-america-a-biden-white-house-faces-a-rising-china-idUSKBN28O18R |archive-date=8 November 2023 |access-date=28 March 2021 |work=Reuters}}</ref> In 2013, China initiated the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a large global infrastructure building initiative.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Dollar |first=David |date=October 2020 |title=Seven years into China's Belt and Road |url=https://www.brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2020/10/01/seven-years-into-chinas-belt-and-road |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230530150820/https://www.brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2020/10/01/seven-years-into-chinas-belt-and-road |archive-date=30 May 2023 |access-date=1 December 2020 |website=Brookings Institution}}</ref>

=== Military === {{Main|Military budget of China|People's Liberation Army|Paramilitary forces of China}}

[[File:Quadruple formation of J-20 at CCAS2023 (20230724100632).jpg|thumb|Chengdu J-20 5th generation stealth fighter|left]] The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the main armed forces of China, under the direct control of the CPC.<ref>{{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}}</ref> It consists of four services: the Ground Force, the Navy, the Air Force, and the Rocket Force. It also has four independent arms: the Aerospace Force, the Cyberspace Force, the Information Support Force, and the Joint Logistics Support Force.<ref name="ChinaMilitary">{{Cite web |title=Chinese PLA embraces a new system of services and arms: Defense spokesperson – China Military |url=http://eng.chinamil.com.cn/CHINA_209163/TopStories_209189/16302105.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240420125715/http://eng.chinamil.com.cn/CHINA_209163/TopStories_209189/16302105.html |archive-date=20 April 2024 |access-date=20 April 2024 |website=eng.chinamil.com.cn}}</ref> Its 2 million active duty personnel is the largest in the world. The PLA holds the world's third-largest stockpile of nuclear weapons,<ref>{{Cite web |date=30 September 2021 |title=Which Countries Have the Most Nuclear Weapons? |url=https://www.visualcapitalist.com/which-countries-have-the-most-nuclear-weapons/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230810145116/https://www.visualcapitalist.com/which-countries-have-the-most-nuclear-weapons/ |archive-date=10 August 2023 |access-date=27 November 2021 |publisher=Visual Capitalist}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=19 July 2018 |title=Chinese Nuclear Program |url=https://www.atomicheritage.org/history/chinese-nuclear-program |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806132531/https://www.atomicheritage.org/history/chinese-nuclear-program |archive-date=6 August 2020 |access-date=28 March 2024 |work=Atomic Heritage Foundation}}</ref> and the world's second-largest navy by tonnage.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Lendon |first=Brad |date=6 March 2021 |title=Analysis: China has built the world's largest navy. Now what's Beijing going to do with it? |url=https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/05/china/china-world-biggest-navy-intl-hnk-ml-dst/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220810040902/https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/05/china/china-world-biggest-navy-intl-hnk-ml-dst/index.html |archive-date=10 August 2022 |access-date=14 August 2022 |work=CNN}}</ref>

The PLA is considered one of the world's most powerful militaries and has rapidly modernized in the recent decades.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Maizland |first=Lindsay |date=5 February 2020 |title=China's Modernizing Military |url=https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/chinas-modernizing-military |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220814144248/https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/chinas-modernizing-military |archive-date=14 August 2022 |access-date=14 August 2022 |website=Council on Foreign Relations}}</ref> China's official military budget for 2025 totaled US$246 billion (1.78 trillion yuan), the second-largest in the world. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute estimates that its real 2025 expenditure was US$336 billion, 12% of global military spending and 1.7% of the country's GDP.'''''<ref name="SIPRI-2020">{{Cite web |date=April 2026|title=Trends in Military Expenditure 2025|url=https://www.sipri.org/sites/default/files/2026-04/2604_milex_2025.pdf#page=2|access-date=26 April 2026|publisher=Stockholm International Peace Research Institute}}</ref>''''' The PLA, the People's Armed Police and the Militia are commanded by the Central Military Commission (CMC). The chairman of the CMC is the commander-in-chief of the PLA, who maintains absolute control over the military per the chairman responsibility system.<ref>{{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}}</ref>

=== Sociopolitical issues and human rights === {{Main|Human rights in China|Censorship in China}}[[File:Hong Kong anti-extradition bill protest (48108594957).jpg|thumb|2019–20 Hong Kong protests]]The situation of human rights in China has attracted significant criticism from Chinese dissidents and external observers, alleging widespread civil rights violations such as detention without trial, forced confessions, torture, restrictions of fundamental rights, and excessive use of the death penalty.<ref name="freedomhouse" /><ref name="Amnesty-2023">{{Cite web |title=China |url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/location/asia-and-the-pacific/east-asia/china |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230515180810/https://www.amnesty.org/en/location/asia-and-the-pacific/east-asia/china |archive-date=15 May 2023 |access-date=15 May 2023 |publisher=Amnesty International}}</ref> Since its inception, Freedom House has ranked China as "not free" in its ''Freedom in the World'' survey,<ref name="freedomhouse" /> while Amnesty International has documented significant human rights abuses.<ref name="Amnesty-2023" /> Though the Chinese constitution states that the "fundamental rights" of citizens include freedom of speech, freedom of the press, the right to a fair trial, freedom of religion, universal suffrage, and property rights, these provisions do not afford significant protection against criminal prosecution by the state in practice.<ref>{{cite web |website=AP News |title=China purging 'Western erroneous views' from legal education |url=https://apnews.com/article/religion-and-politics-china-xi-jinping-education-ebb2697107b61b5fcc2f49fa42eb92b1 |date=28 February 2023 |access-date=7 December 2025 |archive-date=20 February 2026 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20260220130708/https://apnews.com/article/religion-and-politics-china-xi-jinping-education-ebb2697107b61b5fcc2f49fa42eb92b1}}</ref><ref name="books.google">{{Cite book |last=Sorman |first=Guy |title=Empire of Lies: The Truth About China in the Twenty-First Century |date=2008 |publisher=Encounter Books |isbn=978-1-5940-3284-4 |pages=[https://books.google.com/books?id=aRaLevXMZf4C&pg=PA46 46, 152]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |title=World Report 2022: China |date=2 December 2021 |publisher=Human Rights Watch |chapter=China: Events of 2021 |access-date=15 May 2023 |chapter-url=https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2022/country-chapters/china-and-tibet |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230517074437/https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2022/country-chapters/china-and-tibet |archive-date=17 May 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref> Censorship of political speech and information is amongst the harshest in the world and is routinely used to prevent collective action.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=King |first1=Gary |last2=Pan |first2=Jennifer |last3=Roberts |first3=Margaret E. |date=May 2013 |title=How Censorship in China Allows Government Criticism but Silences Collective Expression |url=http://gking.harvard.edu/files/gking/files/censored.pdf |url-status=live |journal=American Political Science Review |volume=107 |issue=2 |pages=326–343 |doi=10.1017/S0003055413000014 |s2cid=53577293 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://gking.harvard.edu/files/gking/files/censored.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |access-date=6 March 2015 |quote=Our central theoretical finding is that, contrary to much research and commentary, the purpose of the censorship program is not to suppress criticism of the state or the Communist Party.}}</ref> The government suppresses popular protests and demonstrations that it considers a potential threat to "social stability".<ref>Christian Göbel and Lynette H. Ong, [https://www.chathamhouse.org/sites/default/files/public/Research/Asia/1012ecran_gobelong.pdf "Social unrest in China." ''Long Briefing, Europe China Research and Academic Network (ECRAN)'' (2012) p 18] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116150236/https://www.chathamhouse.org/sites/default/files/public/Research/Asia/1012ecran_gobelong.pdf|date=16 January 2021}}. Chatham House</ref> China additionally uses a massive surveillance network of cameras, facial recognition software, sensors, and surveillance of personal technology as a means of social control of persons living in the country.<ref name="Isabelle" />

[[File:Xinjiang Internment Map, US-Aus Gov Assessment.jpg|thumb|In Xinjiang, China has been accused of detaining more than one million Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in internment camps.]]China is regularly accused of large-scale repression and human rights abuses in Tibet and Xinjiang by foreign human rights groups,<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Anna Morcom |date=June 2018 |title=The Political Potency of Tibetan Identity in Pop Music and Dunglen |url=https://digitalcommons.macalester.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2348&context=himalaya |url-status=live |journal=Himalaya |publisher=Royal Holloway, University of London |volume=38 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211002090307/https://digitalcommons.macalester.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2348&context=himalaya |archive-date=2 October 2021 |access-date=18 October 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=7 November 2011 |title=Dalai Lama hits out over burnings |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-15617026 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191103141911/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-15617026 |archive-date=3 November 2019 |access-date=28 March 2024 |work=BBC}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Asat |first1=Rayhan |last2=Yonah Diamond |date=15 July 2020 |title=The World's Most Technologically Sophisticated Genocide Is Happening in Xinjiang |url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/07/15/uighur-genocide-xinjiang-china-surveillance-sterilization |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328004458/https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/07/15/uighur-genocide-xinjiang-china-surveillance-sterilization |archive-date=28 March 2024 |access-date=28 March 2024 |website=Foreign Policy}}</ref> where significant numbers of ethnic minorities reside, including violent police crackdowns and religious persecution.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hatton |first=Celia |date=27 June 2013 |title=China 'moves two million Tibetans' |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-23081653 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240229053404/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-23081653 |archive-date=29 February 2024 |access-date=27 June 2013 |publisher=BBC News}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=29 June 2013 |title=Fresh unrest hits China's Xinjiang |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-23112177 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240120125125/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-23112177 |archive-date=20 January 2024 |access-date=29 June 2013 |publisher=BBC News}}</ref> Since 2017, the Chinese government has been engaged in persecution of Uyghurs in Xinjiang, with around one million Uyghurs and other ethnic and religion minorities being detained in internment camps aimed at changing the political thinking of detainees, their identities, and their religious beliefs,<ref name="Graham-Harrison-2019">{{Cite news |last1=Graham-Harrison |first1=Emma |last2=Garside |first2=Juliette |date=24 November 2019 |title='Allow no escapes': leak exposes reality of China's vast prison camp network |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/24/china-cables-leak-no-escapes-reality-china-uighur-prison-camp |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240314114513/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/24/china-cables-leak-no-escapes-reality-china-uighur-prison-camp |archive-date=14 March 2024 |access-date=18 January 2020 |work=The Guardian}}</ref> in what some external observers described as a genocide or crimes against humanity.<ref name="BBC News-2021">{{Cite news |date=8 February 2021 |title=Uighurs: 'Credible case' China carrying out genocide |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-55973215 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260130190017/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-55973215 |archive-date=30 January 2026 |access-date=21 February 2026 |publisher=BBC News}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=4 July 2020 |title=China Suppression Of Uighur Minorities Meets U.N. Definition Of Genocide, Report Says |url=https://www.npr.org/2020/07/04/887239225/china-suppression-of-uighur-minorities-meets-u-n-definition-of-genocide-report-s |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201019141640/https://www.npr.org/2020/07/04/887239225/china-suppression-of-uighur-minorities-meets-u-n-definition-of-genocide-report-s |archive-date=19 October 2020 |access-date=28 September 2020 |publisher=NPR}}</ref><ref name="Cumming-Bruce-2022">{{Cite news |last1=Cumming-Bruce |first1=Nick |last2=Ramzy |first2=Austin |date=31 August 2022 |title=U.N. Says China May Have Committed 'Crimes Against Humanity' in Xinjiang |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/31/world/asia/un-china-xinjiang-uyghurs.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220901014137/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/31/world/asia/un-china-xinjiang-uyghurs.html |archive-date=1 September 2022 |access-date=1 September 2022 |work=The New York Times}}</ref> According to ''The New Yorker'', political indoctrination, torture, physical and psychological abuse, forced sterilization, sexual abuse, and forced labor are common in these facilities.<ref name="Khatchadourian-2021">{{Cite magazine |last=Khatchadourian |first=Raffi |date=5 April 2021 |title=Surviving the Crackdown in Xinjiang |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/04/12/surviving-the-crackdown-in-xinjiang |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260216105019/https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/04/12/surviving-the-crackdown-in-xinjiang|archive-date=16 February 2026 |access-date=21 February 2026 |magazine=The New Yorker}}</ref> The Chinese authorities have also cracked down on dissent in Hong Kong, especially after the passage of a national security law in 2020.<ref>{{Cite news |date=28 June 2022 |title=Hong Kong national security law: What is it and is it worrying? |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-52765838 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200528153554/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-52765838 |archive-date=28 May 2020 |access-date=12 August 2022 |publisher=BBC News}}</ref>

In 2017 and 2020, the Pew Research Center ranked the severity of Chinese government restrictions on religion as being among the world's highest, despite ranking religious-related social hostilities in China as low in severity.<ref>{{Cite web |date=15 July 2019 |title=3. Middle East still home to highest levels of restrictions on religion, although levels have declined since 2016 |url=https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2019/07/15/middle-east-still-home-to-highest-levels-of-restrictions-on-religion-although-levels-have-declined-since-2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240106181144/https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2019/07/15/middle-east-still-home-to-highest-levels-of-restrictions-on-religion-although-levels-have-declined-since-2016 |archive-date=6 January 2024 |access-date=6 January 2024 |website=Pew Research Center |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=29 November 2022 |title=3. Small changes in median scores for government restrictions, social hostilities involving religion in 2020 |url=https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2022/11/29/small-changes-in-median-scores-for-government-restrictions-social-hostilities-involving-religion-in-2020 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240106181143/https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2022/11/29/small-changes-in-median-scores-for-government-restrictions-social-hostilities-involving-religion-in-2020 |archive-date=6 January 2024 |access-date=2 January 2024 |website=Pew Research Center |language=en-US}}</ref> China has limited protections regarding LGBT rights.<ref>{{Cite web |date=13 June 2023 |title=For China's LGBTQ community, safe spaces are becoming harder to find |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/china-beijing-lgbt-center-rcna85528 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240119214528/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/china-beijing-lgbt-center-rcna85528 |archive-date=19 January 2024 |access-date=8 August 2023 |publisher=NBC News}}</ref> The Global Slavery Index estimated that in 2016 more than 3.8 million people (0.25% of the population) were living in "conditions of modern slavery," including victims of human trafficking, forced labor, forced marriage, child labor, and state-imposed forced labor. The state-imposed re-education through labor (''laojiao'') system was formally abolished in 2013, but it is not clear to what extent its practices have stopped.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016 |title=China |url=https://www.globalslaveryindex.org/country/china/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160706152456/https://www.globalslaveryindex.org/country/china/ |archive-date=6 July 2016 |access-date=13 March 2018 |website=Global Slavery Index}}</ref> The much larger reform through labor (''laogai'') system includes labor prison factories, detention centers, and re-education camps; the Laogai Research Foundation has estimated in June 2008 that there were nearly 1,422 of these facilities, though it cautioned that this number was likely an underestimate.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2008 |title=Laogai Handbook: 2007–2008 |url=https://laogairesearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/33-Laogai-Handbook-2007-08.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231225055906/https://laogairesearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/33-Laogai-Handbook-2007-08.pdf |archive-date=25 December 2023 |access-date=28 March 2024 |website=Laogai Research Foundation}}</ref>

=== Public views of government === {{Further|Politics of China#Citizen surveys}} Political concerns in China include the growing gap between rich and poor and government corruption.<ref>{{Cite news |date=11 May 2002 |title=China sounds alarm over fast growing gap between rich and poor |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-52919430.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140610060248/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-52919430.html |archive-date=10 June 2014 |access-date=1 February 2013 |agency=Associated Press}}</ref> Nonetheless, international surveys show the Chinese public have a high level of satisfaction with their government.<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=137}} These views are generally attributed to the material comforts and security available to large segments of the Chinese populace as well as the government's attentiveness and responsiveness.<ref name=":0" /> {{Rp|page=136}} A Harvard University survey published in July 2020 found that citizen satisfaction with the government had increased since 2003, also rating China's government as more effective and capable than ever in the survey's history.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Zhao |first=Suisheng |title=The dragon roars back: transformational leaders and dynamics of Chinese foreign policy |date=2023 |publisher=Stanford University Press |isbn=978-1-5036-3088-8 |page=163}}</ref> A 2020 study by University of Southern California researchers affiliated with the Hoover Institution found that more anonymous surveys show 50% to 70% think the government works for the people, lower than what direct surveys show support at above 90%.<ref>{{Cite news |date=16 January 2024 |title=China's leaders are less popular than they might think |url=https://www.economist.com/china/2024/01/16/chinas-leaders-are-less-popular-than-they-might-think |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240116225645/https://www.economist.com/china/2024/01/16/chinas-leaders-are-less-popular-than-they-might-think |archive-date=16 January 2024 |access-date=16 January 2024 |newspaper=The Economist |issn=0013-0613 |quote=The results suggest that when the survey was conducted in June and November 2020 between 50% and 70% of Chinese people supported the party. (This is an upper bound, say the researchers, because concerns about online surveillance may still have spooked some respondents into giving positive responses.)}}</ref><ref name=":10">{{Cite web |last=Wachtel |first=Ileana |date=29 January 2024 |title=When Chinese citizens are surveyed anonymously, support for party and government plummets |url=https://phys.org/news/2024-01-chinese-citizens-surveyed-anonymously-party.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240131043010/https://phys.org/news/2024-01-chinese-citizens-surveyed-anonymously-party.html |archive-date=31 January 2024 |access-date=31 January 2024 |website=Phys.org |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Carter |first1=Erin Baggott |last2=Carter |first2=Brett L. |last3=Schick |first3=Stephen |date=10 January 2024 |title=Do Chinese Citizens Conceal Opposition to the CCP in Surveys? Evidence from Two Experiments |journal=The China Quarterly |language=en |volume=259 |pages=804–813 |doi=10.1017/S0305741023001819 |issn=0305-7410 |doi-access=free}}</ref> Another anonymous survey in a 2023 study by the American Political Science Association found trust in the central government at 76.7%.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Nicholson|first1=Stephen P.|last2=Huang|first2=Haifeng|date=2023|title=Making the List: Reevaluating Political Trust and Social Desirability in China|url=|journal=American Political Science Review|language=en|volume=117|issue=3|pages=1158–1165|doi=10.1017/S0003055422000946|issn=0003-0554}}</ref> According to the World Values Survey (2022), 91% of Chinese respondents have significant confidence in their government.<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=13}}

== Economy == {{Main|Economy of China}}

[[File:Blue hour view of the Bund from the Shanghai World Financial Center dllu.jpg|thumb|Blue hour view of the Bund from the Shanghai World Financial Center]] With a GDP of CN¥140 trillion in 2025,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ouyang |first=Shijia |date=28 February 2026 |title=China's GDP surpasses 140t yuan for the first time |url=https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202602/28/WS69a282f0a310d6866eb3ac27.html |access-date=21 May 2026 |work=China Daily}}</ref> China has the world's second-largest economy in terms of nominal GDP,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kollewe |first=Justin McCurry Julia |date=14 February 2011 |title=China overtakes Japan as world's second-largest economy |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2011/feb/14/china-second-largest-economy |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190719223048/https://www.theguardian.com/business/2011/feb/14/china-second-largest-economy |archive-date=19 July 2019 |access-date=8 July 2019 |work=The Guardian}}</ref> and the world's largest in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP).<ref>{{Cite web |date=2018 |title=GDP PPP (World Bank) |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.PP.CD?locations=CN-US&start=2000&year_high_desc=true |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190219072932/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.PP.CD?locations=CN-US&start=2000&year_high_desc=true |archive-date=19 February 2019 |access-date=18 February 2019 |publisher=World Bank}}</ref> {{As of|2025}}, China accounts for around 17% of the global economy by nominal GDP.<ref name="IMF-2023">{{Cite web |date=April 2023 |title=World Economic Outlook Database, April 2023 |url=https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2023/April |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230413194731/https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2023/April |archive-date=13 April 2023 |access-date=16 May 2023 |website=International Monetary Fund}}</ref> China is one of the world's fastest-growing major economies,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Overview |url=https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/china/overview |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200930014300/https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/china/overview |archive-date=30 September 2020 |access-date=13 September 2020 |publisher=World Bank}}</ref> with its economic growth having been almost consistently above 5% since the beginning of the reform and opening up in 1978.<ref>{{Cite web |title=GDP growth (annual %) – China |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.KD.ZG?end=2016&locations=CN&start=1961&year_high_desc=true |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220531173009/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.KD.ZG?end=2016&locations=CN&start=1961&year_high_desc=true |archive-date=31 May 2022 |access-date=25 May 2018 |publisher=World Bank}}</ref> According to the World Bank, China's GDP grew from $150 billion in 1978 to $18.74 trillion by 2024.<ref>{{Cite web |title=GDP (current US$) – China |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.CD?locations=CN |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190906052638/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.CD?locations=CN |archive-date=6 September 2019 |access-date=7 July 2023 |publisher=|website=World Bank}}</ref> It ranks 75th by nominal GDP per capita, making it an upper-middle income country.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2018 |title=GDP PPP (World Bank) |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.PCAP.PP.CD?locations=CN-US&start=2000&year_high_desc=true |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190902074129/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.PCAP.PP.CD?locations=CN-US&start=2000&year_high_desc=true |archive-date=2 September 2019 |access-date=18 February 2019 |publisher=World Bank}}</ref> Of the world's 500 largest companies, 135 are headquartered in China.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Global 500 |url=https://fortune.com/ranking/global500 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230116163740/https://fortune.com/ranking/global500 |archive-date=16 January 2023 |access-date=3 August 2023 |website=Fortune Global 500}}</ref>

China was one of the world's foremost economic powers throughout the arc of East Asian and global history. The country had one of the largest economies in the world for most of the past two millennia,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Maddison |first=Angus |author-link=Angus Maddison |title=Contours of the World Economy 1–2030 AD: Essays in Macro-Economic History |date=2007 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-1916-4758-1 |page=379|doi=10.1093/oso/9780199227211.001.0001}}</ref> during which it has seen cycles of prosperity and decline.<ref name="Dahlman Aubert 2001" /><ref name=":7">{{Cite web |title=Angus Maddison. Chinese Economic Performance in the Long Run. Development Centre Studies. |url=http://piketty.pse.ens.fr/files/Maddison98.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://piketty.pse.ens.fr/files/Maddison98.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |access-date=15 September 2017 |page=29}}</ref> Since the reform and opening up in 1978, China has developed into a highly diversified economy and one of the most consequential players in international trade.<ref name=":7" />

China officially calls its economic system as the socialist market economy, in which the market plays a decisive role in resource allocation under the macro-control of the socialist state.<ref>{{Cite web |title=社会主义市场经济|trans-title=Socialist market economy|url=https://www.beijing.gov.cn/zhengce/mc/zwmcck/qt/jjtj/202305/t20230525_3113079.html#:~:text=%E9%87%8A%E4%B9%89%EF%BC%9A,%E5%86%B3%E5%AE%9A%E6%80%A7%E4%BD%9C%E7%94%A8%E7%9A%84%E7%BB%8F%E6%B5%8E%E4%BD%93%E5%88%B6%E3%80%82|access-date=2025-12-25|website=Beijing Municipal People's Government|language=zh}}</ref><ref name="Ding2009">{{cite journal |last1=Ding |first1=Xiaoqin |date=1 April 2009 |title=The Socialist Market Economy: China and the World |journal=Science & Society |volume=73 |issue=2 |pages=235–241 |doi=10.1521/siso.2009.73.2.235 |jstor=40404550}}</ref> The CCP posits that China is in the primary stage of socialism, the first stage of building a communist society, in a stage where there is private ownership.<ref name=":15">{{Cite web |title=Glossary|url=https://chinaopensourceobservatory.org/glossary#primary-stage-of-socialism|access-date=2026-05-18|website=China Open Source Observatory|publisher=Council on Foreign Relations}}</ref> Modern-day China is often described as an example of state capitalism or party-state capitalism, with both market forces and the state playing a major role in the economy.<ref name="Pearson-2021">{{Cite journal |last1=Pearson |first1=Margaret |last2=Rithmire |first2=Meg |last3=Tsai |first3=Kellee S. |date=1 September 2021 |title=Party-State Capitalism in China |journal=Current History |volume=120 |issue=827 |pages=207–213 |doi=10.1525/curh.2021.120.827.207 |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Pearson |first1=Margaret M. |last2=Rithmire |first2=Meg |last3=Tsai |first3=Kellee S. |date=1 October 2022 |title=China's Party-State Capitalism and International Backlash: From Interdependence to Insecurity |journal=International Security |volume=47 |issue=2 |pages=135–176 |doi=10.1162/isec_a_00447 |doi-access=free}}</ref> China has numerous state-owned enterprises; the state dominates in strategic "pillar" sectors such as infrastructure, telecommunications, finance, energy production and heavy industries.<ref name=":4">{{Cite book |last=Heilmann |first=Sebastian |author-link=Sebastian Heilmann |url= |title=Red Swan: How Unorthodox Policy-Making Facilitated China's Rise |date=2018 |publisher=The Chinese University of Hong Kong Press |isbn=978-962-996-827-4}}</ref>{{Rp|page=20}} The Chinese government issues five-year plans to guide the direction of the economy.<ref name=":4" />{{Rp|page=8}} Private enterprise has expanded enormously, with around 57 million private businesses recorded in 2025.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Zuo |first=Mandy |date=22 April 2025 |title=China adds nearly 2 million private firms in first quarter as calls for support rise |url=https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3307338/china-adds-nearly-2-million-private-firms-first-quarter-calls-support-rise |access-date=31 October 2025 |work=South China Morning Post}}</ref> According to official statistics, privately owned companies constitute more than 60% of China's GDP.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hancock |first=Tom |date=30 March 2022 |title=China Crackdowns Shrink Private Sector's Slice of Big Business |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-03-29/china-crackdowns-shrink-private-sector-s-slice-of-big-business?leadSource=uverify%20wall |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328161405/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-03-29/china-crackdowns-shrink-private-sector-s-slice-of-big-business?leadSource=uverify%20wall |archive-date=28 March 2024 |access-date=13 April 2023 |work=Bloomberg News}}</ref>

=== Wealth === {{See also|Income inequality in China}} thumb|GDP per capita in China, from 1850 to 2022

China accounted for 18.6% of the world's total wealth in 2022, second highest in the world after the U.S.<ref name="databook2023">{{Cite book |last1=Shorrocks |first1=Anthony |author-link1=Anthony Shorrocks |url=https://www.ubs.com/global/en/family-office-uhnw/reports/global-wealth-report-2023.html |title=Global Wealth Databook 2023 |last2=Davies |first2=James |last3=Lluberas |first3=Rodrigo |publisher=UBS and Credit Suisse Research Institute |year=2023 |archive-date=15 August 2023 |access-date=13 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230815152741/https://www.ubs.com/global/en/family-office-uhnw/reports/global-wealth-report-2023.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> China brought more people out of extreme poverty than any other country in history<ref>{{Cite news |date=13 October 2017 |title=China lifting 800 million people out of poverty is historic: World Bank |url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/international/china-lifting-800-million-people-out-of-poverty-is-historic-world-bank-117101300027_1.html |access-date=22 February 2019 |work=Business Standard India |agency=Press Trust of India |archive-date=2019-02-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190222153513/https://www.business-standard.com/article/international/china-lifting-800-million-people-out-of-poverty-is-historic-world-bank-117101300027_1.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last= |title=Four Decades of Poverty Reduction in China: Drivers, Insights for the World, and the Way Ahead |date=2022 |publisher=World Bank Publications |isbn=978-1-4648-1878-3 |page=ix |quote=By any measure, the speed and scale of China's poverty reduction is historically unprecedented.}}</ref> — between 1978 and 2018, China reduced extreme poverty by 800 million,<ref name=":0"/>{{Rp|page=23}} with the average standard of living multiplying by a factor of twenty-six.<ref name="Bergsten 2022">{{Cite book |last=Bergsten |first=C. Fred |title=The United States vs. China: The Quest for Global Economic Leadership |date=2022 |publisher=Polity Press |isbn=978-1-5095-4735-7}}</ref> From 1990 to 2018, the proportion of the Chinese population living with an income of less than $1.90 per day (2011 PPP) decreased from 66.3% to 0.3%, the share living with an income of less than $3.20 per day from 90% to 2.9%, and the share living with an income of less than $5.50 per day decreased from 98.3% to 17%.<ref>{{Cite web |date=23 October 2020 |title=Is China Succeeding at Eradicating Poverty? |url=https://chinapower.csis.org/poverty |access-date=28 March 2021 |website=Center for Strategic and International Studies}}</ref> Per capita incomes have risen significantly – when the PRC was founded in 1949, per capita income in China was one-fifth of the world average; per capita incomes now equal the world average itself.<ref name="Bergsten 2022" />

China's development is highly uneven; its major cities and coastal areas are far more prosperous than its rural and interior regions.<ref>{{Cite news |last=King |first=Stephen |date=2 February 2016 |title=China's path to tackling regional inequality |url=https://www.ft.com/content/9c6203d8-e1d9-3ca3-818a-e55b409ece94 |work=Financial Times |archive-date=2025-11-30 |access-date=2026-03-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251130051715/https://www.ft.com/content/9c6203d8-e1d9-3ca3-818a-e55b409ece94 |url-status=live }}</ref> It has a high level of economic inequality,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Duggan |first=Jennifer |date=12 January 2013 |title=Income inequality on the rise in China |url=http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2012/12/2012122311167503363.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130722192442/http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2012/12/2012122311167503363.html |archive-date=22 July 2013 |access-date=14 January 2020 |publisher=Al Jazeera}}</ref> which has increased quickly since the economic reforms.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Tobin |first=Damian |date=29 June 2011 |title=Inequality in China: Rural poverty persists as urban wealth balloons |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-13945072 |access-date=14 January 2020 |work=BBC News}}</ref> Income inequality decreased in the 2010s,<ref>{{Cite news |date=2 October 2021 |title=Just how Dickensian is China? |url=https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2021/10/02/just-how-dickensian-is-china |access-date=15 May 2023 |newspaper=The Economist}}</ref> and China's Gini coefficient was 0.37 in 2023.<ref name="GINI"/> In March 2026, ''Forbes'' estimated China ranked second in the world, after the U.S., in total number of billionaires and total number of millionaires, with 610 Chinese billionaires,<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Peterson-Withorn |first1=Chase |last2=Chung |first2=Grace |last3=Durot |first3=Matt |date=1 March 2026 |title=World's Billionaires List |url=https://www.forbes.com/billionaires |access-date=15 May 2023 |website=Forbes}}</ref> while ''Hurun Global Rich List'' estimated it ranked first, with 1,110 billionaires.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Zhu |first=Wenqian |date=5 March 2026 |title=China is world's billionaire capital again as Hurun Rich List swells on stock surge |url=https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3345577/china-worlds-billionaire-capital-again-hurun-rich-list-swells-stock-surge |access-date=21 May 2026 |website=South China Morning Post |language=en}}</ref> China also has 6.3 million millionaires as of 2025, second highest after the U.S.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025 |title=Global Wealth Report 2025 |url=https://www.ubs.com/global/en/wealthmanagement/insights/global-wealth-report.html |access-date=18 December 2025 |website=UBS |language=en}}</ref> In 2019, China overtook the U.S. as the home to the highest number of people who have a net personal wealth of at least $110,000, according to the global wealth report by Credit Suisse.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Khan |first=Yusuf |date=22 October 2019 |title=China has overtaken the US to have the most wealthy people in the world |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/credit-suisse-china-overtakes-us-most-wealthy-people-in-world-2019-10 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250319022309/https://www.businessinsider.com/credit-suisse-china-overtakes-us-most-wealthy-people-in-world-2019-10 |archive-date=19 March 2025 |access-date= |website=Business Insider |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Dawkins |first=David |date=21 October 2019 |title=China Overtakes U.S. In Global Household Wealth Rankings 'Despite' Trade Tensions – Report |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/daviddawkins/2019/10/21/china-overtakes-us-in-global-household-wealth-rankings-despite-trade-tensionsreport/ |access-date=12 November 2019 |work=Forbes}}</ref> China had 85 female billionaires {{As of|2021|January|lc=y}}, two-thirds of the global total.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Chen|first=Qin|date=27 March 2021|title=China is now home to two-thirds of the world's top women billionaires, four times more than the US, Hurun research institute reveals|url=https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/article/3127254/china-now-home-two-thirds-worlds-top-women-billionaires-four|access-date=28 March 2021|work=South China Morning Post}}</ref> China has had the world's largest middle-class population since 2015;<ref>{{Cite news |last=Zheping |first=Huang |date=14 October 2015 |title=China's middle class has overtaken the US's to become the world's largest |url=https://qz.com/523626/chinas-middle-class-has-overtaken-the-uss-to-become-the-worlds-largest |access-date=22 June 2019 |work=Quartz}}</ref> the middle-class grew to 500 million by 2024.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Zuo |first=Mandy |date=3 March 2024 |title=China's middle-income population passes 500 million mark, state-owned newspaper says |url=https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3253995/chinas-middle-income-population-passes-500-million-mark-says-state-owned-newspaper |access-date=21 May 2024 |work=South China Morning Post}}</ref>

=== Industry and services ===

China is the world's leading manufacturing power, accounting for 30% of global manufacturing.<ref>{{Cite web |title=China Dominates Global Manufacturing |url=https://www.csis.org/analysis/china-dominates-global-manufacturing |access-date=31 October 2025 |website=Center for Strategic and International Studies |language=en|date=21 March 2025|last1=Hart|first1=Brian|first2=Hugh|last2=Grant-Chapman|first3=Leon|last3=Li}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=23 September 2025 |title=A made-in-China plan for world domination |url=https://www.economist.com/international/2025/09/23/a-made-in-china-plan-for-world-domination |access-date=31 October 2025 |newspaper=The Economist |issn=0013-0613}}</ref> It has been the world's largest manufacturing nation since 2010, after overtaking the U.S., which had been the largest for the previous hundred years.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Marsh |first=Peter |date=13 March 2011 |title=China noses ahead as top goods producer |url=https://www.ft.com/content/002fd8f0-4d96-11e0-85e4-00144feab49a |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/https://www.ft.com/content/002fd8f0-4d96-11e0-85e4-00144feab49a |archive-date=10 December 2022 |access-date=18 January 2020 |work=Financial Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Levinson |first=Marc |date=21 February 2018 |title=U.S. Manufacturing in International Perspective |url=https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R42135.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R42135.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |website=Federation of American Scientists}}</ref> China is the world's leading producer of steel and rare earths,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bradsher |first=Keith |date=27 October 2025 |title=Step by Step, How China Seized Control of Critical Minerals |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/27/business/china-rare-earth-export-controls.html |access-date=31 October 2025 |work=The New York Times |language=en}}</ref> the world's leading electronics industry manufacturer,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Salve |first=Priyanka |date=29 October 2025 |title=India is dependent on China for electronic components. Now it's trying to change that |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2025/10/29/india-is-dependent-on-china-for-electronic-components-now-its-trying-to-change-that-.html |access-date=31 October 2025 |website=CNBC |language=en}}</ref> and the world's dominant shipbuilding manufacturer.<ref>{{Cite web |title=China Dominates the Shipbuilding Industry |url=https://www.csis.org/analysis/china-dominates-shipbuilding-industry |access-date=31 October 2025 |website=www.csis.org |language=en}}</ref> China has the world's largest market for automobiles,<ref>{{Cite news |date=8 January 2010 |title=China overtakes US as world's biggest car market |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2010/jan/08/china-us-car-sales-overtakes |access-date=7 June 2023 |work=The Guardian}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Ho |first=Patricia Jiayi |date=12 January 2010 |title=China Overtakes U.S. to Become Largest Auto Market |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703652104574651833126548364 |access-date=6 June 2023 |work=The Wall Street Journal}}</ref> having surpassed the United States in both auto sales and production. The country is the world's largest exporter of cars by number as of 2024.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Harley |first=Michael |title=China Overtakes Japan As The World's Biggest Exporter Of Passenger Cars |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelharley/2023/05/22/china-overtakes-japan-as-the-worlds-biggest-exporter-of-passenger-cars |access-date=6 June 2023 |website=Forbes}}</ref> The Chinese automotive industry is regarded as one of the most competitive and innovative in the world.<ref name=":37" /> China is the world's leader in electric vehicle consumption, production and innovation,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Baraniuk |first=Chris |date=11 October 2022 |title=China's electric car market is booming but can it last? |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-62825830 |access-date=13 April 2023 |publisher=|work=BBC News}}</ref><ref name=":5">{{Cite news |last=Beam |first=Christopher |date=16 December 2025 |title=Give Up On 'Winning' Against China |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2025-us-china-rivalry/ |access-date=17 December 2025 |work=Bloomberg News}}</ref> as well as the leading producer of batteries for electric vehicles.<ref>{{Cite web |date=9 September 2020 |title=China Dominates the Global Lithium Battery Market |url=https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/renewable/china-dominates-the-global-lithium-battery-market/ |access-date=28 March 2021 |website=Institute for Energy Research}}</ref>

China is the second-largest retail market after the United States.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Shane |first=Daniel |date=23 January 2019 |title=China will overtake the US as the world's biggest retail market this year |url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/23/business/china-retail-sales-us/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240425193226/https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/23/business/china-retail-sales-us/index.html |archive-date=25 April 2024 |access-date=18 February 2019 |work=CNN}}</ref> China leads the world in e-commerce, accounting for over 37% of the global market share in 2021.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Cameron |first=Isabel |date=9 August 2022 |title=China continues to lead global ecommerce market with over $2 trillion sales in 2022 |url=https://www.chargedretail.co.uk/2022/08/09/china-continues-to-lead-global-ecommerce-market-with-over-2-trillion-sales-in-2022 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231202091337/https://www.chargedretail.co.uk/2022/08/09/china-continues-to-lead-global-ecommerce-market-with-over-2-trillion-sales-in-2022 |archive-date=2 December 2023 |access-date=19 May 2023 |work=Charged}}</ref> China has three out of the ten largest stock exchanges in the world<ref>{{Cite web |date=19 February 2019 |title=Top 10 Largest Stock Exchanges in the World By Market Capitalization |url=https://www.valuewalk.com/2019/02/top-10-largest-stock-exchanges/ |access-date=28 November 2019 |website=ValueWalk}}</ref> — Shanghai, Hong Kong and Shenzhen — that together have a market capitalization of over $15.9 trillion, {{As of|2020|October|lc=y}}.<ref>{{Cite news |date=13 October 2020 |title=China's Stock Market Tops $10 Trillion First Time Since 2015 |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-10-13/china-s-stock-market-tops-10-trillion-for-first-time-since-2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201031042855/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-10-13/china-s-stock-market-tops-10-trillion-for-first-time-since-2015 |archive-date=31 October 2020 |access-date=28 October 2020 |publisher=Bloomberg L.P.}}</ref> China has three out of the world's ten most competitive financial centers according to the 2026 Global Financial Centres Index—Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Shenzhen.<ref name="GFCI362">{{Cite web |title=GFCI 36 Rank – Long Finance |url=https://www.longfinance.net/programmes/financial-centre-futures/global-financial-centres-index/gfci-36-explore-the-data/gfci-36-rank/ |access-date=24 September 2024 |website=www.longfinance.net}}</ref> As of at least 2024, China has the world's second-largest equity markets and futures markets, as well as the third-largest bond market.<ref name=":Curtis&Klaus2">{{Cite book |last1=Curtis |first1=Simon |title=The Belt and Road City: Geopolitics, Urbanization, and China's Search for a New International Order |last2=Klaus |first2=Ian |publisher=Yale University Press |isbn=978-0-3002-6690-0 |location=New Haven and London |publication-date=2024 |doi=10.2307/jj.11589102 |jstor=jj.11589102}}</ref>{{Rp|page=153}} China has the world's largest banking sector. Its finance sector is dominated by state-owned institutions.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Qian |first=Meijun |date=28 December 2019 |title=China's incomplete financial reform |url=https://eastasiaforum.org/2019/12/28/chinas-incomplete-financial-reform/ |access-date=31 October 2025 |website=East Asia Forum |language=en}}</ref>

=== China in the global economy === China has been a member of the World Trade Organization since 2001 and is the world's largest trading power.<ref>{{Cite news |last=He |first=Laura |date=13 January 2023 |title=China's exports plunge as global demand weakens, but trade with Russia hits record high |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2023/01/13/economy/china-exports-struggle-reopening-2022-intl-hnk/index.html |access-date=19 May 2023 |work=CNN}}</ref> By 2016, China was the largest trading partner of 124 countries.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Desjardins |first=Jeff |date=27 April 2016 |title=Four Maps Showing China's Rising Dominance in Trade |url=https://www.visualcapitalist.com/four-maps-showing-chinas-rising-dominance-trade |access-date=4 December 2019 |website=Visual Capitalist}}</ref> The country has not run a trade deficit since 1993, with its trade surplus reaching a record $1.2 trillion in 2025.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bradsher |first=Keith |date=2026-01-14 |title=China Announces Record Trade Surplus as Its Exports Flood World Markets |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/13/business/china-trade-surplus-exports.html |access-date=2026-05-22 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> China became the world's largest trading nation in 2013 by the sum of imports and exports, as well as the world's largest commodity importer, accounting for roughly 45% of maritime's dry-bulk market.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Monaghan |first=Angela |date=10 January 2014 |title=China surpasses US as world's largest trading nation |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/jan/10/china-surpasses-us-world-largest-trading-nation |access-date=4 December 2019 |work=The Guardian}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Paris |first=Costas |date=27 April 2021 |title=China's Imports of Commodities Drive a Boom in Dry-Bulk Shipping |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/chinas-imports-of-commodities-drive-a-boom-in-dry-bulk-shipping-11619541574 |access-date=29 April 2021 |work=The Wall Street Journal}}</ref> China's foreign exchange reserves reached US$3.246 trillion {{As of|2024|March|lc=y}}, making its reserves by far the world's largest.<ref>{{Cite news |date=7 April 2024 |title=China forex reserves rise to $3.246 trln in March |url=https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/china-forex-reserves-rise-3246-trln-march-2024-04-07 |access-date=21 May 2024 |work=Reuters}}</ref> In 2022, China was amongst the world's largest recipient of inward foreign direct investment (FDI), attracting $180 billion, though most of these were speculated to be from Hong Kong.<ref>{{Cite news |date=19 January 2023 |title=China Foreign Investment Posts Record Slump as Covid Zero Ended |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-01-19/china-foreign-investment-posts-record-slump-as-covid-zero-ended |access-date=15 May 2023 |work=Bloomberg News}}</ref> China also invests abroad, with a total outward FDI of $147.9 billion in 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Chow |first=Loletta |date=5 February 2024 |title=Overview of China outbound investment of 2023 |url=https://www.ey.com/en_cn/china-overseas-investment-network/overview-of-china-outbound-investment-of-2023 |access-date=21 May 2024 |website=Ernst & Young |language=en-CN}}</ref>

The Chinese government has promoted the internationalization of the renminbi in order to wean itself off its dependence on the U.S. dollar.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Huang |first=Yukon |date=Fall 2013 |title=Does Internationalizing the RMB Make Sense for China? |url=http://object.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/serials/files/cato-journal/2013/9/cjv33n3-18.pdf |journal=Cato Journal |access-date=28 July 2014}}</ref> The renminbi is the world's fourth-most traded currency {{As of|2023|lc=y}}.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kawate |first=Iori |date=23 December 2023 |title=China's yuan rises to 4th most used currency in global settlements |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Markets/Currencies/China-s-yuan-rises-to-4th-most-used-currency-in-global-settlements |access-date=21 May 2024 |work=Nikkei Asia}}</ref> However, partly due to capital controls that make the renminbi fall short of being a fully convertible currency, it remains far behind the Euro and the U.S. Dollar in international trade volumes.<ref>{{cite report |url=https://www.bis.org/statistics/rpfx25_fx.pdf |title=Triennial Central Bank Survey Foreign exchange turnover in April 2025 |date=30 September 2025 |publisher=Bank for International Settlements |page=14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251012053635/https://www.bis.org/statistics/rpfx25_fx.pdf |archive-date=12 October 2025 |url-status=live}}</ref> The Chinese government has also been cited for failing to crack down on the manufacturing and export of counterfeit goods.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Chow |first=Daniel |date=1 January 2022 |title=Barriers to Criminal Enforcement Against Counterfeiting in China |url=https://scholarship.law.vanderbilt.edu/jetlaw/vol24/iss4/1 |journal=Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law |publisher=Vanderbilt University Law School |volume=24 |issue=4 |pages=633}}</ref> In 2024, Harvard University's Economic Complexity Index ranked complexity of China's exports 10th in the world, up from 24th in 2010.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Atlas of Economic Complexity |url=https://atlas.hks.harvard.edu/rankings |access-date=18 July 2025 |website=Harvard Growth Lab |language=en}}</ref>

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

[[File:The Forbidden City - View from Coal Hill.jpg|alt=The Forbidden City is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the world|thumb|The Forbidden City is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the world.]] thumb|Chongqing Skyline At Night China received 82 million international visitors in 2025,<ref>{{Cite news |date=28 January 2026 |title=China Focus: China's cross-border travel hits record in 2025 on expanded visa-free access |url=https://english.news.cn/20260128/379db85403634609b82cb8136004dced/c.html |access-date=24 April 2026 |work=Xinhua News Agency}}</ref> and in 2018 was the fourth-most-visited country in the world.<ref name="WTO Tourism Highlights 2019 Edition">{{Cite journal |date=18 December 2020 |title=UNWTO World Tourism Barometer and Statistical Annex, December 2020 {{!}} World Tourism Organization |journal=UNWTO World Tourism Barometer (English Version) |volume=18 |issue=7 |pages=1–36 |doi=10.18111/wtobarometereng.2020.18.1.7 |doi-access=free}}</ref> It also experiences an enormous volume of domestic tourism; Chinese tourists made an estimated 6.5 billion travels within the country in 2025.<ref>{{Cite news |date=7 March 2026 |title=China's domestic travel hits record highs in 2025: official |url=https://english.www.gov.cn/archive/statistics/202603/07/content_WS69abcce2c6d00ca5f9a09b37.html |access-date=24 April 2026 |work=Gov.cn}}</ref> China hosts the world's second-largest number of World Heritage Sites (60) after Italy, and is one of the most popular tourist destinations (first in the Asia-Pacific).

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

==== Historical ==== {{Main|History of science and technology in China}}

[[File:Chinese Gunpowder Formula.JPG|thumb|Earliest known written formula for gunpowder, from the ''Wujing Zongyao'' of 1044 CE]] China was a world leader in science and technology until the Ming dynasty.<ref>Tom (1989), 99; Day & McNeil (1996), 122; Needham (1986e), 1–2, 40–41, 122–123, 228.</ref> Ancient and medieval Chinese discoveries and inventions, such as papermaking, printing, the compass, and gunpowder (the Four Great Inventions), became widespread across East Asia, the Middle East and later Europe. Chinese mathematicians were the first to use negative numbers.<ref>{{Cite news |date=9 March 2006 |title=In Our Time: Negative Numbers |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p003hyd9 |access-date=19 June 2013 |work=BBC News}}</ref><ref>Struik, Dirk J. (1987). ''A Concise History of Mathematics''. New York: Dover Publications. pp. 32–33. "''In these matrices we find negative numbers, which appear here for the first time in history.''"</ref> By the 17th century, the Western World surpassed China in scientific and technological advancement.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Chinese Studies in the History and Philosophy of Science and Technology |date=1996 |publisher=Kluwer Academic Publishers |isbn=978-0-7923-3463-7 |volume=179 |pages=[https://books.google.com/books?id=jaQH6_8Ju-MC&pg=PA137 137–138]}}</ref> The causes of this early modern Great Divergence continue to be debated by scholars.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Frank |first=Andre |author-link=Andre Gunder Frank |date=2001 |title=Review of ''The Great Divergence'' |url=http://www.rrojasdatabank.info/agfrank/pomeranz.html |journal=Journal of Asian Studies |volume=60 |issue=1 |pages=180–182 |doi=10.2307/2659525 |jstor=2659525}}</ref>

After repeated military defeats by the European colonial powers and Imperial Japan in the 19th century, Chinese reformers began promoting modern science and technology as part of the Self-Strengthening Movement. After the Communists came to power in 1949, efforts were made to organize science and technology based on the model of the Soviet Union, in which scientific research was part of central planning.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Yu |first=Q. Y. |title=The Implementation of China's Science and Technology Policy |date=1999 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |isbn=978-1-5672-0332-5 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=IluWYKmTCN0C&pg=PA2 2]}}</ref> After Mao's death in 1976, science and technology were promoted as one of the Four Modernizations,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Vogel |first=Ezra F. |title=Deng Xiaoping and the Transformation of China |date=2011 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=978-0-6740-5544-5 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=3IaR-FxlA6AC&pg=PA129 129]}}</ref> and the Soviet-inspired academic system was gradually reformed.<ref>{{Cite book |last=DeGlopper |first=Donald D. |title=China: a country study |date=1987 |publisher=Library of Congress |chapter=Soviet Influence in the 1950s |chapter-url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/cntoc.html}}</ref>

==== Modern era ==== Since the end of the Cultural Revolution, China has made significant investments in scientific research<ref name="CWRD">{{Cite web |last=Jia |first=Hepeng |date=9 September 2014 |title=R&D share for basic research in China dwindles |url=http://www.rsc.org/chemistryworld/2014/09/research-development-rd-share-basic-research-china-dwindles |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150219044130/http://www.rsc.org/chemistryworld/2014/09/research-development-rd-share-basic-research-china-dwindles |archive-date=19 February 2015 |access-date=21 January 2020 |website=Chemistry World}}</ref> and is quickly catching up with the U.S. in R&D spending.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Normile |first=Dennis |date=10 October 2018 |title=Surging R&D spending in China narrows gap with United States |url=https://www.science.org/content/article/surging-rd-spending-china-narrows-gap-united-states |access-date=20 February 2019 |work=Science}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=China Has Surpassed the U.S. in R&D Spending, According to New National Academy of Arts and Sciences Report – ASME |url=https://www.asme.org/government-relations/capitol-update/china-has-surpassed-the-u-s-in-r-d-spending,-according-to-new-national-academy-of-arts-and-sciences-report |access-date=26 October 2020 |website=asme.org}}</ref> China officially spent around 2.8% of its GDP on R&D in 2025, totaling to around CN¥3.92 trillion ($569 billion).<ref>{{Cite web |date=5 March 2026 |title=China hits record R&D spending, unveils innovation push through 2030 |url=https://english.www.gov.cn/archive/statistics/202603/05/content_WS69a96a44c6d00ca5f9a09933.html |access-date=2026-05-21 |website=Gov.cn}}</ref> China was ranked 10th in the Global Innovation Index in 2025,<ref>{{Cite web |title=GII Innovation Ecosystems & Data Explorer 2025 |url=https://www.wipo.int/gii-ranking/en/china |access-date=16 October 2025 |website=WIPO}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Dutta |first1=Soumitra |url=https://www.wipo.int/web-publications/global-innovation-index-2025/en/index.html |title=Global Innovation Index 2025: Innovation at a Crossroads |last2=Lanvin |first2=Bruno |publisher=World Intellectual Property Organization |year=2025 |isbn=978-92-805-3797-0 |page=19 |language=en |doi=10.34667/tind.58864 |access-date=17 October 2025}}</ref> a considerable improvement from its rank of 35th in 2013.<ref>{{Cite web |title=WIPO Global Innovation Index 2025: Switzerland, Sweden, US, the Republic of Korea and Singapore Top Ranking; China Enters Top 10; Innovation Investment Growth Slows |url=https://www.wipo.int/pressroom/en/articles/2025/article_0009.html |access-date=19 September 2025 |website=www.wipo.int |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=28 October 2013 |title=Global Innovation Index |url=https://knowledge.insead.edu/entrepreneurship-innovation/global-innovation-index-2930 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210902101622/https://knowledge.insead.edu/entrepreneurship-innovation/global-innovation-index-2930 |archive-date=2 September 2021 |access-date=2 September 2021 |website=INSEAD Knowledge}}</ref> Chinese supercomputers are ranked among the fastest in the world.<ref>{{Cite news |date=17 June 2013 |title=China retakes supercomputer crown |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-22936989 |access-date=18 June 2013 |publisher=BBC News}}</ref>{{efn|Some of the chips used were not domestically developed until Sunway TaihuLight in 2016. China has not submitted newer entries to TOP500 amid tensions with the United States.}} China is the world's largest industrial robotics producer and user in the world, accounting for 54% of the world's 2024 total demand,<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=September 2025 |title=World Robotics 2025 |url=https://ifr.org/downloads/press_docs/PressConference2025_presentation.pdf |access-date=24 April 2026 |website=International Federation of Robotics}}</ref> and 43% of global production.<ref name=":5" /> Its efforts to develop the most advanced semiconductors and jet engines have seen delays and setbacks.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Zhu |first=Julie |date=14 December 2022 |title=Exclusive: China readying $143 billion package for its chip firms in face of U.S. curbs |url=https://www.reuters.com/technology/china-plans-over-143-bln-push-boost-domestic-chips-compete-with-us-sources-2022-12-13 |access-date=23 December 2022 |work=Reuters}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Day |first=Lewin |date=28 July 2020 |title=80 Years From Invention, China Is Struggling With Jet Engines |url=https://hackaday.com/2020/07/28/80-years-from-invention-china-is-struggling-with-jet-engines |publisher=HackADay Insider}}</ref> China is also considered a world leader in artificial intelligence.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Rai |first1=Saritha |last2=Fiegerman |first2=Seth |date=7 November 2025 |title=The AI Showdown: How the US and China Stack Up |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-11-07/us-vs-china-who-s-winning-the-ai-race |access-date=10 December 2025 |work=Bloomberg News}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=9 December 2025 |title=Donald Trump's flawed plan to get China hooked on Nvidia chips |url=https://www.economist.com/business/2025/12/09/donald-trumps-flawed-plan-to-get-china-hooked-on-nvidia-chips |access-date=10 December 2025 |newspaper=The Economist |issn=0013-0613}}</ref>

China is developing its education system with an emphasis on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).<ref>{{Cite news |last=Colvin |first=Geoff |date=29 July 2010 |title=Desperately seeking math and science majors |url=https://money.cnn.com/2010/07/29/news/international/china_engineering_grads.fortune/index.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101017232727/https://money.cnn.com/2010/07/29/news/international/china_engineering_grads.fortune/index.htm |archive-date=17 October 2010 |access-date=9 April 2012 |work=CNN Business}}</ref> Its academic publication apparatus became the world's largest publisher of scientific papers in 2016.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Orszag |first=Peter R. |date=12 September 2018 |title=China is Overtaking the U.S. in Scientific Research |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/amp/opinion/articles/2018-09-12/chinese-researchers-are-outperforming-americans-in-science |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190220183147/https://www.bloomberg.com/amp/opinion/articles/2018-09-12/chinese-researchers-are-outperforming-americans-in-science |archive-date=20 February 2019 |access-date=19 February 2019 |work=Bloomberg News}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Tollefson |first=Jeff |date=18 January 2018 |title=China declared world's largest producer of scientific articles |journal=Nature |volume=553 |issue=7689 |page=390 |bibcode=2018Natur.553..390T |doi=10.1038/d41586-018-00927-4 |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Koshikawa |first=Noriaki |date=8 August 2020 |title=China passes US as world's top researcher, showing its R&D might |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Science/China-passes-US-as-world-s-top-researcher-showing-its-R-D-might |access-date=8 June 2022 |work=Nikkei Asia}}</ref> According to the World Intellectual Property Indicators, China received more applications than the U.S. did in 2018 and 2019 and ranked first globally in patents, utility models, trademarks, industrial designs, and creative goods exports in 2021.<ref name="Dutta-2021">{{Cite book |last1=Dutta |first1=Soumitra |url=https://www.wipo.int/publications/en/details.jsp?id=4560 |title=Global Innovation Index 2021: Tracking Innovation Through the COVID-19 Crisis |last2=Lanvin |first2=Bruno |last3=Wunsch-Vincent |first3=Sacha |last4=León |first4=Lorena Rivera |last5=World Intellectual Property Organization |date=2021 |publisher=World Intellectual Property Organization |isbn=978-9-2805-3249-4 |edition=14th |doi=10.34667/tind.44315}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=World Intellectual Property Indicators: Filings for Patents, Trademarks, Industrial Designs Reach Record Heights in 2018 |url=https://www.wipo.int/pressroom/en/articles/2019/article_0012.html |access-date=10 May 2020 |website=wipo.int}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=China Becomes Top Filer of International Patents in 2019 |url=https://www.wipo.int/pressroom/en/articles/2020/article_0005.html |access-date=26 October 2020 |website=wipo.int}}</ref> In 2022, China overtook the US in the Nature Index, which measures the share of published articles in leading scientific journals.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Baker |first=Simon |date=19 May 2023 |title=China overtakes United States on contribution to research in Nature Index |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-01705-7 |journal=Nature |language=en |doi=10.1038/d41586-023-01705-7 |pmid=37208516}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Hawkins |first=Amy |date=24 May 2023 |title=China overtakes US in contributions to nature and science journals |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/may/24/china-overtakes-us-in-contributions-to-nature-and-science-journals |access-date=23 September 2024 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

===== Space program ===== {{Main|Chinese space program|China National Space Administration}}

[[File:Launch of Shenzhou 13.jpg|thumb|upright|Launch of Shenzhou 13 by a Long March 2F rocket. China is one of the only three countries with independent human spaceflight capability.]] The Chinese space program started in 1958 with some technology transfers from the Soviet Union. However, it did not launch the nation's first satellite until 1970 with the Dong Fang Hong I, which made China the fifth country to do so independently.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Long |first=Wei |date=25 April 2000 |title=China Celebrates 30th Anniversary of First Satellite Launch |url=http://www.spacedaily.com/news/china-00u.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20160515110247/http%3A//www.spacedaily.com/news/china%2D00u.html |archive-date=15 May 2016 |publisher=Space daily}}</ref>

In 2003, China became the third country in the world to independently send humans into space with Yang Liwei's spaceflight aboard Shenzhou 5. As of 2023, eighteen Chinese nationals have journeyed into space, including two women. In 2011, China launched its first space station testbed, Tiangong-1.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Amos |first=Jonathan |date=29 September 2011 |title=Rocket launches Chinese space lab |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15112760 |access-date=20 May 2012 |publisher=BBC News}}</ref> In 2013, a Chinese robotic rover ''Yutu'' successfully touched down on the lunar surface as part of the Chang'e 3 mission.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Rincon |first=Paul |date=14 December 2013 |title=China lands Jade Rabbit robot rover on Moon |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-25356603 |access-date=26 July 2014 |publisher=BBC News}}</ref> In 2019, China became the first country to land a probe—Chang'e 4—on the far side of the Moon.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Lyons |first=Kate |title=Chang'e 4 landing: China probe makes historic touchdown on far side of the moon |url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/2019/jan/03/china-probe-change-4-land-far-side-moon-basin-crater |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190103043232/https://www.theguardian.com/science/2019/jan/03/china-probe-change-4-land-far-side-moon-basin-crater |archive-date=3 January 2019 |access-date=3 January 2019 |work=The Guardian}}</ref> In 2020, Chang'e 5 successfully returned Moon samples to the Earth, making China the third country to do so independently.<ref>{{Cite news |date=17 December 2020 |title=Moon rock samples brought to Earth for first time in 44 years |url=https://www.csmonitor.com/Science/Spacebound/2020/1217/Moon-rock-samples-brought-to-Earth-for-first-time-in-44-years |access-date=23 February 2021 |work=The Christian Science Monitor}}</ref> In 2021, China became the third country to land a spacecraft on Mars and the second one to deploy a rover (''Zhurong'') on Mars.<ref>{{Cite web |date=15 May 2021 |title=China succeeds on country's first Mars landing attempt with Tianwen-1 |url=https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2021/05/china-first-mars-landing-attempt-tianwen-1 |access-date=15 May 2021 |website=NASASpaceFlight.com}}</ref> China completed its own modular space station, the Tiangong, in low Earth orbit on 3 November 2022.<ref>{{Cite tweet |number=1587984835808665600 |user=CNSpaceflight |title=Official completion time of #Mengtian relocation is 01:32UTC |author=China 'N Asia Spaceflight |date=3 November 2022 |access-date=3 November 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Skibba |first=Ramin |title=China Is Now a Major Space Power |url=https://www.wired.com/story/china-is-now-a-major-space-power-tiangong-space-station/ |access-date=4 November 2022 |magazine=Wired}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Celestial second fiddle no more, China completes its space station |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/11/05/china-space-station-tiangong/ |access-date=24 November 2022 |newspaper=Washington Post}}</ref> On 29 November 2022, China performed its first in-orbit crew handover aboard the ''Tiangong''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Chinese astronauts meet in space for historic crew handover |url=https://spaceflightnow.com/2022/11/29/chinese-astronauts-meet-in-space-for-historic-crew-handover |access-date=16 December 2022 |publisher=Spaceflight Now}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last1=Woo |first1=Ryan |last2=Liangping |first2=Gao |date=30 November 2022 |title=Chinese astronauts board space station in historic mission |url=https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/science/china-launches-crewed-spacecraft-chinese-space-station-state-television-2022-11-29/#:~:text=Shenzhou%2D15%20was%20the%20last,was%20launched%20in%20April%202021. |access-date=16 December 2022 |work=Reuters}}</ref>

In May 2023, China announced a plan to land humans on the Moon by 2030.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wang |first=Vivian |date=29 May 2023 |title=China Announces Plan to Land Astronauts on Moon by 2030 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/29/world/asia/china-space-moon-2030.html |work=The New York Times}}</ref> To that end, China has been developing a lunar-capable super-heavy launcher, the Long March 10, a new crewed spacecraft, and a crewed lunar lander.<ref name="AJ-06Mar2022">{{Cite web |last=Jones |first=Andrew |date=6 March 2022 |title=China wants its new rocket for astronaut launches to be reusable |url=https://www.space.com/china-reusable-rockets-for-astronaut-launches |access-date=5 October 2023 |website=Space.com}}</ref><ref name="AJ17072023">{{Cite news |last=Jones |first=Andrew |date=17 July 2023 |title=China sets out preliminary crewed lunar landing plan |url=https://spacenews.com/china-sets-out-preliminary-crewed-lunar-landing-plan |access-date=24 July 2023 |work=SpaceNews}}</ref> China sent Chang'e 6 on 3 May 2024, which conducted the first lunar sample return from Apollo Basin on the far side of the Moon.<ref name="AJ_FI-20230425">{{Cite tweet |number=1650832520978526208 |user=AJ_FI |title=China's Chang'e-6 sample return mission (a first ever lunar far side sample-return) is scheduled to launch in May 2024, and expected to take 53 days from launch to return module touchdown. Targeting southern area of Apollo basin (~43º S, 154º W) |first=Andrew |last=Jones |date=25 April 2023}}</ref> This is China's second lunar sample return mission, the first was achieved by Chang'e 5 from the lunar near side 4 years ago.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jones |first=Andrew |date=10 January 2024 |title=China's Chang'e-6 probe arrives at spaceport for first-ever lunar far side sample mission |url=https://spacenews.com/chinas-change-6-probe-arrives-at-spaceport-for-first-ever-lunar-far-side-sample-mission |access-date=10 January 2024 |website=SpaceNews}}</ref> It also carried a Chinese rover called ''Jinchan'' to conduct infrared spectroscopy of lunar surface and imaged Chang'e 6 lander on lunar surface.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jones |first=Andrew |date=6 May 2024 |title=China's Chang'e-6 is carrying a surprise rover to the moon |url=https://spacenews.com/chinas-change-6-is-carrying-a-surprise-rover-to-the-moon |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240508193233/https://spacenews.com/chinas-change-6-is-carrying-a-surprise-rover-to-the-moon |archive-date=8 May 2024 |access-date=8 May 2024 |website=SpaceNews}}</ref>

== Infrastructure == After a decades-long infrastructural boom,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Qu |first=Hongbin |title=China's infrastructure builds foundation for growth |url=https://www.gbm.hsbc.com/insights/global-research/china-infrastructure-builds-foundation-for-growth |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220528202857/https://www.gbm.hsbc.com/insights/global-research/china-infrastructure-builds-foundation-for-growth |archive-date=28 May 2022 |access-date=1 December 2020 |website=HSBC}}</ref> China has produced numerous world-leading infrastructural projects: it has the largest high-speed rail network,<ref>{{Cite news |date=13 January 2017 |title=China has built the world's largest bullet-train network |url=https://www.economist.com/china/2017/01/13/china-has-built-the-worlds-largest-bullet-train-network |access-date=13 September 2020 |newspaper=The Economist}}</ref> the most supertall skyscrapers,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Countries or Jurisdictions Ranked by Number of 150m+ Completed Buildings |url=https://www.skyscrapercenter.com/countries |access-date=30 November 2020 |website=The Skyscraper Center}}</ref> the largest power plant (the Three Gorges Dam),<ref>{{Cite web |title=Three Gorges Dam: The World's Largest Hydroelectric Plant |url=https://www.usgs.gov/special-topic/water-science-school/science/three-gorges-dam-worlds-largest-hydroelectric-plant?qt-science_center_objects=0#qt-science_center_objects |access-date=1 December 2020 |website=United States Geological Survey| date=30 August 2018 }}</ref> the most extensive ultra-high-voltage transmission network and innovation infrastructure,<ref name="Vara 2022">{{cite web | last=Vara | first=Vasanthi | title=Who are the leading innovators in HVDC transmission systems for the power industry? | website=Power Technology | date=18 November 2022 | url=https://www.power-technology.com/data-insights/innovators-hvdc-transmission-systems-power/ | access-date=3 January 2025}}</ref><ref name="You 2024">{{cite web | last=You | first=Xiaoying | title='A bullet train for power': China's ultra-high-voltage electricity grid | website=BBC Future | date=15 November 2024 | url=https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20241113-will-chinas-ultra-high-voltage-grid-pay-off-for-renewable-power | access-date=3 January 2025}}</ref> and a global satellite navigation system with the largest number of satellites.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Gao |first=Ryan Woo |date=12 June 2020 |title=China set to complete Beidou network rivalling GPS in global navigation |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-space-exploration-china-satellite-idUSKBN23J0I9 |access-date=1 December 2020 |work=Reuters}}</ref>

=== Telecommunications === {{Main|Telecommunications in China}}

[[File:2020.4 5G signal to cover summit of Mt. Qomolangma.webm|thumb|China Mobile built a 5G station to cover summit of Mount Everest in 2020]] China is the largest telecom market in the world and currently has the largest number of active cellphones of any country, with over 1.83 billion subscribers, {{As of|2025||lc=y}}. It has the largest number of internet and broadband users, with over 1.125 billion Internet users {{As of|2025|December|df=US|lc=y}} — equivalent to around 80.1% of its population.<ref>{{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=}}</ref> By 2018, China had more than 1 billion 4G users, accounting for 40% of world's total.<ref>{{Cite web |date=22 January 2018 |title=China breaks 1B 4G subscriber mark |url=https://www.mobileworldlive.com/featured-content/home-banner/china-breaks-1b-4g-subscriber-mark/ |access-date=23 February 2019 |website=Mobile World Live}}</ref> {{As of|2025|}}, China had over 1.204 billion 5G users and 4.84 million base stations installed.<ref>{{Cite web |date=28 January 2026 |title=China's 5G base stations top 4.83 million by end of 2025 |url=https://english.www.gov.cn/archive/statistics/202601/28/content_WS6979f123c6d00ca5f9a08ce7.html |access-date=2026-05-21 |website=Gov.cn}}</ref> China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecom, are the three large providers of mobile and internet in China.<ref name="TechNode-2018">{{Cite web |date=8 November 2018 |title=China ranked in top 5 for 4G penetration |url=https://technode.com/2018/11/08/china-ranked-in-top-5-for-4g-penetration/ |access-date=23 February 2019 |website=TechNode}}</ref> China has developed its own satellite navigation system, dubbed BeiDou, which began offering commercial navigation services across Asia in 2012<ref name="CustomersDec2012">{{Cite news |date=27 December 2012 |title=China's Beidou GPS-substitute opens to public in Asia |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-20852150 |access-date=27 December 2012 |work=BBC News |publisher=}}</ref> as well as global services by the end of 2018.<ref>{{Cite news |date=26 November 2018 |title=China Is Building a $9 Billion Rival to the American-Run GPS |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-11-25/china-s-big-dipper-satellites-challenge-the-dominance-of-gps |access-date=21 February 2019 |work=Bloomberg News}}</ref> BeiDou followed GPS and GLONASS as the third completed global navigation satellite.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Elmer |first=Keegan |date=3 August 2020 |title=China promises state support to keep BeiDou satellite system at cutting edge |url=https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3095794/china-promises-state-support-keep-beidou-satellite-system |access-date=22 August 2020 |work=South China Morning Post}}</ref>

=== Transport === {{Main|Transport in China}}

[[File:West section of Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge (20180902174105).jpg|thumb|Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macau Bridge, completed 2018. At 55 kilometres, it is the world's longest sea crossing.]] Since the late 1990s, China's national road network has been significantly expanded through the creation of a network of national highways and expressways. In 2022, China's highways had reached a total length of {{convert|177000|km|mi|abbr=on|sp=us}}, making it the longest highway system in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |date=23 November 2023 |title=我国高速公路通车里程稳居世界第一 |trans-title=China's expressway mileage ranks first in the world |url=https://www.gov.cn/lianbo/bumen/202311/content_6916724.htm#:~:text=%E6%96%B0%E5%8D%8E%E7%A4%BE%E5%8C%97%E4%BA%AC11%E6%9C%88,%E7%A8%B3%E5%B1%85%E4%B8%96%E7%95%8C%E7%AC%AC%E4%B8%80%E3%80%82 |access-date=21 May 2024 |website=State Council of the People's Republic of China}}</ref> In urban areas, bicycles remain a common mode of transport, despite increasing automobile prevalence – {{As of|2023|lc=y}}, there are approximately 200 million bicycles in China.<ref>{{Cite news |date=17 September 2023 |title=China has 200 million bicycles in use: industry association |url=https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202309/17/WS6506c419a310d2dce4bb6262.html |access-date=21 May 2024 |work=China Daily}}</ref>[[File:CR400BF-Z-0312@BJI (20231009152047).jpg|thumb|A Fuxing high-speed train running near the Beijing CBD]]

China's railways, operated by the state-owned China Railway, are among the busiest in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |date=21 June 2007 |title=Chinese Railways Carry Record Passengers, Freight |url=http://www.china.org.cn/english/travel/214698.htm |website=Xinhua}}</ref> {{As of|2025}}, the country had {{convert|165000|km|mi|0|abbr=on|sp=us}} of railways, the second-longest network in the world.<ref name=":6">{{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}}</ref> The railways strain to meet enormous demand particularly during the Chinese New Year's {{Zh|p=chunyun|labels=no}}, the world's largest annual human migration.<ref name="overcrowding">{{Cite news |date=22 January 2009 |title=China's trains desperately overcrowded for Lunar New Year |url=http://seattletimes.com/html/travel/2008659473_webchinatrains22.html |work=The Seattle Times}}</ref> China's high-speed rail (HSR) system started construction in the early 2000s. By the end of 2025, high speed rail in China had reached {{convert|50400|km|mi|0|abbr=off|sp=us}} of dedicated lines alone, making it the longest HSR network in the world,<ref name=":6" /> as well as the world's busiest. Services on some lines reach up to {{convert|350|km/h|0|abbr=on|sp=us}}, making them the fastest conventional high speed railway services in the world.<ref>{{Cite news |date=16 January 2025 |title=China's high-speed railways offer majority of passenger trips in 2024 |url=https://english.news.cn/20250116/ff17e26cc3af4724883cb69440f73425/c.html |access-date=18 July 2025 |work=Xinhua News Agency}}</ref> Since 2000, the growth of rapid transit systems in Chinese cities has accelerated.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Areddy |first=James T. |date=10 November 2013 |title=China's Building Push Goes Underground |url=https://www.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303482504579177830819719254 |access-date=16 November 2013 |work=The Wall Street Journal}}</ref> {{As of|2023|December}}, 55 Chinese cities have urban mass transit systems in operation.<ref>{{Cite web |date=13 January 2024 |title=China's urban rail transit trips skyrocket 130% in December 2023 |url=https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202401/13/WS65a2590fa3105f21a507c216.html |access-date=21 May 2024 |website=China Daily}}</ref> [[File:Air China Boeing 747-400 Zhu-1.jpg|thumb|Air China, the flag carrier of People's Republic of China]] The civil aviation industry in China is mostly state-dominated, with the Chinese government retaining a majority stake in the majority of Chinese airlines. The top three airlines in China are Air China, China Southern Airlines, and China Eastern Airlines, which collectively made up 71% of the market in 2018, are all state-owned.<ref>{{Cite web |title=China's big three state airlines lag behind profitable private peers|url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Transportation/China-s-big-three-state-airlines-lag-behind-profitable-private-peers|access-date=23 February 2025|website=Nikkei Asia|language=en|date=12 July 2024|last=Kawase|first=Kenji}}</ref> Air travel has expanded rapidly in the last decades, with the number of passengers increasing from 16.6 million in 1990 to 551.2 million in 2017.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Du |first=Harry |date=26 September 2018 |title=How is Commercial Aviation Propelling China's Economic Development? |url=https://chinapower.csis.org/china-commercial-aviation |access-date=17 December 2023 |website=ChinaPower Project |language=en-US}}</ref> China had approximately 259 airports in 2024.<ref>{{Cite web |date=18 February 2021|title=China adds 43 civil transport airports in 5 years|url=http://english.www.gov.cn/news/photos/202102/18/content_WS602de0adc6d0719374af8fdd.html|access-date=16 May 2023|publisher=State Council of China}}</ref> China has over 2,000 river and sea ports, about 130 of which are open to foreign shipping.<ref>{{Cite web |date=13 September 2021 |title=China's Global Network of Shipping Ports Reveal Beijing's Strategy |url=https://www.voanews.com/a/6224958.html |access-date=15 September 2022 |website=VOA}}</ref> Of the fifty busiest container ports, 18 are located in China. The busiest port in the world is the Port of Shanghai.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Top 50 Container Ports |url=https://www.worldshipping.org/top-50-ports |access-date=14 July 2022 |website=World Shipping Council |location=Washington, D.C. |archive-date=13 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210813193707/https://www.worldshipping.org/top-50-ports |url-status=dead }}</ref> The country's inland waterways are the world's sixth-longest, totaling {{convert|27700|km|0|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Waterways – The World Factbook |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/field/waterways/country-comparison |access-date=14 July 2022 |website=The World Factbook |publisher=Central Intelligence Agency |archive-date=12 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220412005407/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/field/waterways/country-comparison |url-status=dead }}</ref>

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

Water supply and sanitation infrastructure in China is facing challenges such as rapid urbanization, as well as water scarcity, contamination, and pollution.<ref name="Water Scarcity in China">{{Cite news |last=Hook |first=Leslie |date=14 May 2013 |title=China: High and dry: Water shortages put a brake on economic growth |url=http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/7d6f69ea-bc73-11e2-b344-00144feab7de.html |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/7d6f69ea-bc73-11e2-b344-00144feab7de.html |archive-date=10 December 2022 |access-date=15 May 2013 |work=Financial Times}}</ref> According to the Joint Monitoring Program for Water Supply and Sanitation, 93% of rural households had access to basic sanitation in 2022 (up from 77% in 2015).<ref>{{Cite book |title=Progress on household drinking water, sanitation and hygiene 2000–2022 |date=2023 |isbn=978-92-806-5476-9 |pages=124}}</ref> The ongoing South–North Water Transfer Project intends to abate water shortage in the north.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Freeman |first=Carla |title=Quenching the Dragon's Thirst: The South-North Water Transfer Project—Old Plumbing for New China? |url=https://www.wilsoncenter.org/sites/default/files/media/documents/publication/Quenching%20the%20Dragon%25E2%2580%2599s%20Thirst.pdf |access-date=16 May 2023 |website=Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars}}</ref>

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

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 approximately 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.<ref name="2020_census2">{{Cite web |date=11 May 2021 |title=Communiqué of the Seventh National Population Census (No. 2) |url=http://www.stats.gov.cn/english/PressRelease/202105/t20210510_1817187.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511104840/http://www.stats.gov.cn/english/PressRelease/202105/t20210510_1817187.html |archive-date=11 May 2021 |access-date=11 May 2021 |website=National Bureau of Statistics of China}}</ref> Between 2010 and 2020, the average population growth rate was 0.53%.<ref name="2020_census2" /> Since 2022, deaths have outpaced births.<ref name=":63">{{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}}</ref> In 2023, the total fertility rate was reported to be 1.09, among the lowest in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Qi |first=Liyan |date=19 August 2023 |title=China's Fertility Rate Dropped Sharply, Study Shows |url=https://www.wsj.com/world/china/chinas-fertility-rate-dropped-sharply-study-shows-e97e647f |url-access=subscription |access-date=12 December 2023 |website=The Wall Street Journal |language=en-US}}</ref> The National Bureau of Statistics estimated that the population fell 850,000 from 2021 to 2022, the first decline since 1961.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ng |first=Kelly |date=17 January 2023 |title=China's population falls for first time since 1961 |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-64300190 |access-date=17 January 2023 |publisher=BBC News}}</ref> In 2025, China recorded 7.92 million births, the lowest recorded birthrate since at least 1949.<ref name=":63" />

===Population policies=== {{Main|Family planning policies of China}}

Given concerns about population growth, China implemented a two-child limit during the 1970s, and, in 1979, began to advocate for an even stricter limit of one child per family. Beginning in the mid-1980s, however, given the unpopularity of the strict limits, China began to allow some major exemptions, particularly in rural areas, resulting in what was actually a "1.5"-child policy from the mid-1980s to 2015; ethnic minorities were also exempt from one-child limits.<ref name=":13">{{Cite web |last=Kızlak |first=Kamuran |date=21 June 2021 |title=Çin'de üç çocuk: Siz yapın, biz bakalım |trans-title=Three children in China: You do it, we'll see |url=https://www.birgun.net/haber/cin-de-uc-cocuk-siz-yapin-biz-bakalim-349097 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220816120012/https://www.birgun.net/haber/cin-de-uc-cocuk-siz-yapin-biz-bakalim-349097 |archive-date=16 August 2022 |website=BirGün |language=Turkish}}</ref> The next major loosening of the policy was enacted in December 2013, allowing families to have two children if one parent is an only child.<ref>{{Cite news |date=28 December 2013 |title=China formalizes easing of one-child policy |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/12/28/china-one-child-policy/4230785 |access-date=16 May 2023 |work=USA Today}}</ref> In 2016, the one-child policy was replaced in favor of a two-child policy.<ref name="Birtles-2021">{{Cite news |last=Birtles |first=Bill |author-link=Bill Birtles |date=31 May 2021 |title=China introduces three-child policy to alleviate problem of ageing population |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-05-31/china-introduces-three-child-policy/100179832 |access-date=31 May 2021 |work=ABC News}}</ref> A three-child policy was announced in May 2021, due to population aging,<ref name="Birtles-2021" /> and in July 2021, all family size limits as well as penalties for exceeding them were removed.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Cheng |first=Evelyn |date=21 July 2021 |title=China scraps fines, will let families have as many children as they'd like |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/21/china-scraps-fines-for-families-violating-childbirth-limits.html |access-date=29 April 2022 |work=CNBC}}</ref>

According to one group of scholars, one-child limits had little effect on population growth or total population size.<ref name="Whyte">{{Cite journal |last1=Whyte |first1=Martin K. |last2=Wang |first2=Feng |last3=Cai |first3=Yong |date=2015 |title=Challenging Myths about China's One-Child Policy |url=http://scholar.harvard.edu/files/martinwhyte/files/challenging_myths_published_version.pdf |url-status=live |journal=The China Journal |volume=74 |pages=144–159 |doi=10.1086/681664 |pmc=6701844 |pmid=31431804 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://scholar.harvard.edu/files/martinwhyte/files/challenging_myths_published_version.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022}}</ref><ref name="Wang Judge">{{Cite journal |last1=Feng |first1=Wang |last2=Yong |first2=Cai |last3=Gu |first3=Baochang |date=2012 |title=Population, Policy, and Politics: How Will History Judge China's One-Child Policy? |url=http://dragonreport.com/Dragon_Report/Challenges_files/Wang_pp115-129.pdf |url-status=dead |journal=Population and Development Review |volume=38 |pages=115–129 |doi=10.1111/j.1728-4457.2013.00555.x |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190606203524/http://dragonreport.com/Dragon_Report/Challenges_files/Wang_pp115-129.pdf |archive-date=6 June 2019 |access-date=16 May 2018}}</ref> However, these scholars have been challenged.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Goodkind |first=Daniel |date=2017 |title=The Astonishing Population Averted by China's Birth Restrictions: Estimates, Nightmares, and Reprogrammed Ambitions |journal=Demography |volume=54 |issue=4 |pages=1375–1400 |doi=10.1007/s13524-017-0595-x |pmid=28762036 |s2cid=13656899 |doi-access=free}}</ref> The policy, along with traditional preference for boys, may have contributed to an imbalance in the sex ratio at birth.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Parry |first=Simon |date=9 January 2005 |title=Shortage of girls forces China to criminalize selective abortion |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/1480778/Shortage-of-girls-forces-China-to-criminalise-selective-abortion.html |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/1480778/Shortage-of-girls-forces-China-to-criminalise-selective-abortion.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |access-date=22 October 2012 |work=The Daily Telegraph}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref name="Ref_2007a">{{Cite news |date=12 January 2007 |title=Chinese facing shortage of wives |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6254763.stm |access-date=23 March 2009 |work=BBC News}}</ref> The 2020 census found that males accounted for 51.2% of the total population.<ref name="NBS China-2021">{{Cite web |date=11 May 2021 |title=Communiqué of the Seventh National Population Census (No. 4) |url=http://www.stats.gov.cn/english/PressRelease/202105/t20210510_1817189.html |access-date=16 May 2023 |website=National Bureau of Statistics of China}}</ref> However, China's sex ratio is more balanced than it was in 1953, when males accounted for 51.8% of the population.<ref>{{Cite news |date=20 October 2011 |title=Chinese mainland gender ratios most balanced since 1950s: census data |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2011-04/28/c_13850191.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110911115321/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2011-04/28/c_13850191.htm |archive-date=11 September 2011 |access-date=19 May 2023 |work=Xinhua News Agency}}</ref> China maintains a restrictive immigration policy, with permanent residence granted to only around 12,000 foreigners as of 2023.<ref>{{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 }}</ref>

=== Urbanization === {{Main|Urbanization in China}}

{{See also|List of cities in China|List of cities in China by population|Megalopolises in China}} [[File:China Top 10 Biggest Cities.png|thumb|Map of the ten largest cities in China (2010)]] China has urbanized significantly in recent decades. The percent of the country's population living in urban areas increased from 20% in 1980 to over 68% in 2025, according to Chinese government figures.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Urban population (% of total) |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.URB.TOTL.IN.ZS?locations=CN |access-date=28 May 2018 |website=World Bank}}</ref><ref name="Economist-2014">{{Cite news |date=16 April 2014 |title=Where China's future will happen |url=https://www.economist.com/leaders/2014/04/16/where-chinas-future-will-happen |access-date=18 February 2023 |newspaper=The Economist}}</ref><ref>{{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}}</ref> According to the United Nations, the country's urbanization rate is 83.7%, having peaked in absolute numbers in 2021.<ref name=":43">{{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=0013-0613}}</ref> China has over 160 cities with a population of over one million,<ref>{{Cite news |last=FlorCruz |first=Jaime A. |date=20 January 2012 |title=China's urban explosion: A 21st century challenge |url=http://www.cnn.com/2012/01/20/world/asia/china-florcruz-urban-growth/index.html |access-date=18 February 2015 |work=CNN}}</ref> including the 18 megacities {{As of|2024|lc=y}}<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wong |first=Maggie Hiufu |title=Megacities and more: A guide to China's most impressive urban centers |url=https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/china-top-megacities/index.html |access-date=26 October 2020 |publisher=CNN}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=张洁 |title=Chongqing, Chengdu top new first-tier cities by population |url=http://global.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202106/15/WS60c84b56a31024ad0bac6db4.html |access-date=3 November 2021 |website=China Daily}}</ref> (cities with a population of over 10 million) of Chongqing, Shanghai, Beijing, Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Tianjin, Xi'an, Suzhou, Zhengzhou, Wuhan, Hangzhou, Linyi, Shijiazhuang, Dongguan, Qingdao, Changsha and Hefei.<ref>{{Cite web |title=17 Chinese cities have a population of over 10 million in 2021 |url=https://www.ecns.cn/news/cns-wire/2022-05-26/detail-ihaytawr8118445.shtml |access-date=31 May 2022 |website=www.ecns.cn}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=China's Hefei Is Fourth City in Yangtze River Delta Region With Over 10 Million Residents |url=https://www.yicaiglobal.com/news/hefei-becomes-the-18th-city-in-china-with-a-population-of-10-million |access-date=11 March 2025 |website=www.yicaiglobal.com |language=en}}</ref> The total permanent population of Chongqing, Shanghai, Beijing and Chengdu is above 20 million.<ref>{{Cite web |last=孙迟 |title=China's inland rides waves of innovation, new opportunities |url=https://global.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202205/27/WS62902a26a310fd2b29e5f516.html |access-date=31 May 2022 |website=global.chinadaily.com.cn |quote=Chengdu and Chongqing are now two of the only four cities (the other two are Beijing and Shanghai) in China with populations of more than 20 million.}}</ref> Shanghai is China's most populous urban area<ref name="Demographia2013">{{Cite book |last=Demographia |url=http://www.demographia.com/db-worldua.pdf |title=Demographia World Urban Areas |date=March 2013 |edition=9th |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130501024602/http://demographia.com/db-worldua.pdf |archive-date=1 May 2013}}</ref><ref name="oecd">{{Cite book |url=http://www.keepeek.com/Digital-Asset-Management/oecd/urban-rural-and-regional-development/oecd-urban-policy-reviews-china-2015_9789264230040-en#page39 |title=OECD Urban Policy Reviews: China 2015 |date=18 April 2015 |publisher=OECD |isbn=978-9-2642-3003-3 |page=37 |doi=10.1787/9789264230040-en |archive-date=27 March 2017 |access-date=3 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170327210032/http://www.keepeek.com/Digital-Asset-Management/oecd/urban-rural-and-regional-development/oecd-urban-policy-reviews-china-2015_9789264230040-en#page39 |url-status=dead }}</ref> while Chongqing is its largest city proper, the only city in China with a permanent population of over 30 million.<ref name="renamed_from_2015_on_20160214005959"/> The figures in the table below are from the 2020 census, and are only estimates of the urban populations within administrative city limits; a different ranking exists for total municipal populations. The large "floating populations" of migrant workers make conducting censuses in urban areas difficult;<ref name="Ref_abce">Francesco Sisci. "China's floating population a headache for census". ''The Straits Times''. 22 September 2000.</ref> the figures below include only long-term residents.

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

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

thumb|Ethnolinguistic map of China in 1967

China legally recognizes 56 distinct ethnic groups, who comprise the ''Zhonghua minzu''. The largest of these nationalities are the Han Chinese, who constitute more than 91% of the total population.<ref name="2020_census2" /> The Han Chinese – the world's largest single ethnic group<ref>{{Cite news |last=Lilly |first=Amanda |date=7 July 2009 |title=A Guide to China's Ethnic Groups |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/08/AR2009070802718.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131209112957/http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2009-07-07/world/36836997_1_muslim-uighurs-chinese-government-xinjiang-province |archive-date=9 December 2013 |access-date=19 May 2023 |newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref> – outnumber other ethnic groups in every place excluding Tibet, Xinjiang,<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/chinasgeographyg0000unse |title=China's Geography: Globalization and the Dynamics of Political, Economic, and Social Change |date=2011 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield Publishers |isbn=978-0-7425-6784-9 |page=[https://archive.org/details/chinasgeographyg0000unse/page/102 102] |url-access=registration}}</ref> Linxia,<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Zhang |first1=Bo |last2=Druijven |first2=Peter |last3=Strijker |first3=Dirk |date=17 September 2017 |title=A tale of three cities: negotiating ethnic identity and acculturation in northwest China |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/08873631.2017.1375779 |journal=Journal of Cultural Geography |language=en |publication-place=University of Groningen |volume=35 |issue=1 |pages=44–74 |doi=10.1080/08873631.2017.1375779 |issn=0887-3631 |quote=The major Muslim groups in Linxia are the Hui and the Dongxiang, accounting for 31.6% and 26.0% of the population, respectively, while the Han group makes up 39.7% (The Sixth National Census).}}</ref> and autonomous prefectures like Xishuangbanna.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ecosystem services and management of Long Forest created by Dai Indigenous People in Xishuangbanna, China |url=https://cases.open.ubc.ca/ecosystem-services-and-management-of-long-forest-created-by-dai-indigenous-people-in-xishuangbanna-china |access-date=23 February 2024 |website=Open Case Studies |publication-place=University of British Columbia}}</ref> Ethnic minorities account for less than 10% of the population of China, according to the 2020 census.<ref name="2020_census2" /> Compared with the 2010 population census, the Han population increased by 60,378,693 persons, or 4.93%, while the population of the 55 national minorities combined increased by 11,675,179 persons, or 10.26%.<ref name="2020_census2" /> The 2020 census recorded a total of 845,697 foreign nationals living in mainland China.<ref>{{Cite web |date=11 May 2021 |title=Communiqué of the Seventh National Population Census (No. 8) |url=http://www.stats.gov.cn/english/PressRelease/202105/t20210510_1817193.html |access-date=22 April 2023 |website=National Bureau of Statistics of China}}</ref>

=== Languages === {{Main|Languages of China|List of endangered languages in China}}

thumb|Qing dynasty imperial patent in Manchu and Chinese scripts. Wellcome Collection, London. There are as many as 284 living languages in China.<ref>{{Cite web |title=China |url=https://www.ethnologue.com/country/CN/ |access-date=9 February 2026 |website=Ethnologue}}</ref> The languages most commonly spoken belong to the Sinitic branch of the Sino-Tibetan language family, which contains Mandarin, spoken by 80% of the population,<ref>{{Cite news |title=Over 80 percent of Chinese population speak Mandarin |last1=Zhao |first1=E'nuo |last2=Wu |first2=Yue |date=16 October 2020 |url=http://en.people.cn/n3/2020/1016/c90000-9769716.html |access-date=15 September 2023 |work=People's Daily}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Kaplan |first1=Robert B. |title=Language Planning and Policy in Asia: Japan, Nepal, Taiwan and Chinese characters |last2=Baldauf |first2=Richard B. |year=2008 |publisher=Multilingual Matters |isbn=978-1-8476-9095-1 |page=42}}</ref> and other varieties of Chinese language.<ref>{{Cite book |publisher=Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, City University of Hong Kong |page=8 |year=2012 |trans-title=Language Atlas of China |edition=2nd |title-link=Language Atlas of China |orig-date=1987 |script-title=zh:中国语言地图集 |place=Beijing |volume=1: Dialects |isbn=978-7-100-07054-6}}</ref> Languages of the Tibeto-Burman branch, including Tibetan, Qiang, Naxi and Yi, are spoken across the southwestern plateaus. Other ethnic minority languages in southwestern China are from Tai-Kadai family, the Hmong–Mien family, and the Austroasiatic family. Across northeastern and northwestern China, ethnic groups speak Tungusic languages, Mongolic languages, Turkic languages,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Li Yang |date=17 November 2015 |title=Yugur people and Sunan Yugur autonomous county |url=https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/m/gansu/2015-11/17/content_22479011.htm |access-date=23 February 2024 |work=China Daily}}</ref> and one Indo-European language, Sarikoli.<ref name=":8">{{Cite journal |last1=Joo |first1=Ian |last2=Hsu |first2=Yu-Yin |date=September 2021 |title=A Preliminary Survey of Linguistic Areas in East Asia Based on Phonological Features |url=https://kb.osu.edu/items/a24b1342-748d-44da-a314-faa4d24ca8cb |journal=Buckeye East Asian Linguistics |language=en-US |publication-place=Hong Kong Polytechnic University |volume=5 |pages=58 |issn=2378-9387 |quote=Sarikoli, an Indo-European language spoken in northwestern China, shows some connection to Turkic languages (Kazakh and Uyghur) spoken nearby. |via=Ohio State University Knowledge Bank}}</ref> Korean is spoken along the border with North Korea.<ref name=":8" /> Taiwanese indigenous peoples, including a small mainland population, speak Austronesian languages.<ref name="language">[https://web.archive.org/web/20130725061022/http://english.gov.cn/2005-08/16/content_23691.htm "Languages"]. 2005. Government of China. Retrieved 31 May 2015.</ref>

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

===Religion=== {{Main|Religion in China}}

[[File:Distribution of religions in China.png|thumb|upright=1.35|Geographic distribution of religions in China: <ref name="map1">{{Cite map |last=Dumortier |first=Brigitte |title=Atlas des religions. Croyances, pratiques et territoires |map=Religions en Chine |language=fr |year=2002 |publisher=Autrement |series=Atlas/Monde |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170427135523/http://img.webme.com/pic/g/geographie-ville-en-guerre/religions-chine.jpg |archive-date=27 April 2017 |isbn=2-7467-0264-9 |map-url=http://img.webme.com/pic/g/geographie-ville-en-guerre/religions-chine.jpg |p=34}}</ref><ref name="map2">{{Cite map |title=Narody Vostochnoi Asii |trans-title=Ethnic Groups of East Asia |map=Religions in China |year=1965 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170427135600/http://cybergeo.revues.org/docannexe/image/23808/img-3.jpg |archive-date=27 April 2017 |map-url=http://cybergeo.revues.org/docannexe/image/23808/img-3.jpg}} ''Zhongguo Minsu Dili'' [Folklore Geography of China], 1999; ''Zhongguo Dili'' [Geography of China], 2002.</ref><ref name="map3">{{Cite map |author-mask=Gao Wende (高文德) |editor-last=Gao |editor-first=Wende |script-title=zh:中国少数民族史大辞典 |trans-title=Chinese Dictionary of Minorities' History |map=Religions in China |language=zh |year=1995 |publisher=Jilin Education Press |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170427135641/http://refbook.img.cnki.net/CRFDPIC/r200608092/r200608092.006.76507a.jpg |archive-date=27 April 2017 |map-url=http://refbook.img.cnki.net/CRFDPIC/r200608092/r200608092.006.76507a.jpg}}</ref><ref name="map4">{{Cite map |editor-last=Yin |editor-last2=Li |editor-last3=Guo |editor-first=Haishan |editor-first2=Yaozong |editor-first3=Jie |editor-mask=Xin Haishan (殷海山); |editor-mask2=Li Yaozong (李耀宗); |editor-mask3=Guo Jie (郭洁) |script-title=zh:中国少数民族艺术词典 |trans-title=Chinese Minorities' Arts Dictionary |map=Religions in China |language=zh |year=1991 |publisher=National Publishing House (民族出版社) |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170427135713/http://refbook.img.cnki.net/CRFDPIC/r200606014/r200606014.0652.288333.jpg |archive-date=27 April 2017 |map-url=http://refbook.img.cnki.net/CRFDPIC/r200606014/r200606014.0652.288333.jpg}}</ref> {{colorbull|#C00000}} Chinese folk religion (including Confucianism, Taoism, and groups of Chinese Buddhism) {{colorbull|#FFFF00}} Buddhism ''tout court'' {{colorbull|#008000}} Islam {{colorbull|#FF00FF}} Ethnic minorities' indigenous religions {{colorbull|#00CCFF}} Mongolian folk religion {{colorbull|#00FF00}} Northeast China folk religion influenced by Tungus and Manchu shamanism; widespread Shanrendao]]

Freedom of religion is guaranteed by China's constitution, although religious organizations that lack official approval can be subject to state persecution.<ref name="Constitution"/> The government of the country is officially atheist, and the CCP requires its members to be atheist.<ref>{{Cite news |date=5 September 2024 |title=How to get kicked out of China's Communist Party |url=https://www.economist.com/china/2024/09/05/how-to-get-kicked-out-of-chinas-communist-party |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251222094149/https://www.economist.com/china/2024/09/05/how-to-get-kicked-out-of-chinas-communist-party |archive-date=22 December 2025 |access-date=21 February 2026 |newspaper=The Economist |issn=0013-0613}}</ref> Religious affairs and issues in the country are overseen by the National Religious Affairs Administration, under the CCP's United Front Work Department.<ref>{{Cite web |title= |script-title=zh:国家宗教事务局 |trans-title=National Religious Affairs Administration |url=https://www.sara.gov.cn/ |access-date=7 January 2026 |website=Gov.cn |publisher= |language=zh}}</ref> [[File:武当山紫霄宫 (14739990839).jpg|thumb|Zixiao Palace (紫霄宫), Wudang Mountains, Hubei. Ming dynasty.]] Over the millennia, the Chinese civilization has been influenced by various religious movements. The "three doctrines" of Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism have historically shaped Chinese culture,<ref name="Yao2011">{{Cite book |last=Yao |first=Xinzhong |title=Chinese Religion: A Contextual Approach |publisher=A&C Black |year=2010 |isbn=978-1-8470-6475-2 |location=London |pages=9–11 |author-link=Xinzhong Yao}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Miller |first=James |title=Chinese Religions in Contemporary Societies |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2006 |isbn=978-1-8510-9626-8 |page=57}}</ref> enriching a theological and spiritual framework of traditional religion which harks back to the early Shang and Zhou dynasty. Chinese folk religion, which is framed by the three doctrines and by other traditions,<ref>Tam Wai Lun, "Local Religion in Contemporary China", in {{Cite book |last=Xie |first=Zhibin |title=Religious Diversity and Public Religion in China |publisher=Ashgate |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-7546-5648-7 |page=73}}</ref> consists in allegiance to the ''shen'', who can be deities of the surrounding nature or ancestral principles of human groups, concepts of civility, culture heroes, many of whom feature in Chinese mythology and history.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Teiser |first=Stephen F. |title=Religions of China in Practice |publisher=Princeton University Press |year=1996 |editor-last=Lopez |editor-first=Donald S. Jr. |chapter=The Spirits of Chinese Religion |chapter-url=http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/cosmos/main/spirits_of_chinese_religion.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/cosmos/main/spirits_of_chinese_religion.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live |via=Asia for Educators Online, Columbia University}}. Extracts in ''[http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/cosmos/bgov/cosmos.htm The Chinese Cosmos: Basic Concepts]''.</ref>

Amongst the most popular cults of folk religion are those of the Yellow Emperor, embodiment of the God of Heaven and one of the two divine patriarchs of the Chinese people,<ref name="Laliberte2011">{{Cite journal |last=Laliberté |first=André |year=2011 |title=Religion and the State in China: The Limits of Institutionalization |url=http://journals.sub.uni-hamburg.de/giga/jcca/article/view/415/413 |journal=Journal of Current Chinese Affairs |volume=40 |issue=2 |page=7 |doi=10.1177/186810261104000201 |s2cid=30608910 |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Sautman |first=Barry |author-link=Barry Sautman |title=The Construction of Racial Identities in China and Japan: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives |publisher=University of Hawaiʻi Press |year=1997 |isbn=978-9-6220-9443-7 |editor-last=Dikötter |editor-first=Frank |pages=80–81 |chapter=Myths of Descent, Racial Nationalism and Ethnic Minorities in the People's Republic of China}}</ref> of Mazu (goddess of the seas),<ref name="Laliberte2011" /> Guandi (god of war and business), Caishen (god of prosperity and richness), Pangu and many others. In the early decades of the 21st century, the Chinese government rehabilitated folk cults, formally recognizing them as "folk beliefs" as opposed to religions,<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |year=2019 |title=The Secular in South, East, and Southeast Asia. Global Diversities |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |last=Wang |first=Xiaoxuan |editor-last=Dean |editor-first=Kenneth |pages=137–164 |doi=10.1007/978-3-319-89369-3_7 |isbn=978-3-0300-7751-8 |contribution='Folk Belief', Cultural Turn of Secular Governance and Shifting Religious Landscape in Contemporary China |editor-last2=Van der Veer |editor-first2=Peter |s2cid=158975292 |contribution-url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/325765161}}</ref> and often reconstructing them into forms of "highly curated" civil religion.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Johnson |first=Ian |author-link=Ian Johnson (writer) |date=21 December 2019 |title=China's New Civil Religion |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/21/opinion/sunday/chinas-religion-xi.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200419190905/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/21/opinion/sunday/chinas-religion-xi.html |archive-date=19 April 2020 |work=The New York Times}}</ref> It has also promoted Buddhism nationally and internationally.<ref>{{Cite report |url=https://s3.amazonaws.com/berkley-center/201111TheChineseStatesGlobalPromotionOfBuddhism.pdf |title=The Chinese State's Global Promotion of Buddhism |last1=Ashiwa |first1=Yoshiko |last2=Wank |first2=David L. |publisher=Berkley Center, Georgetown University |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210216051017/https://s3.amazonaws.com/berkley-center/201111TheChineseStatesGlobalPromotionOfBuddhism.pdf |archive-date=16 February 2021 |url-status=live |year=2020 |series=The Geopolitics of Religious Soft Power |number=4}}</ref>

[[File:中国道教拜章昇疏 01.jpg|thumb|Taoism has served as a state religion several times throughout Chinese history.]] Statistics on religious affiliation in China are difficult to gather due to complex and varying definitions of religion and the diffusive nature of Chinese religious traditions. Scholars note an hnclear boundary between the three doctrines and local folk religious practices.<ref name="Yao2011" /> Chinese religions or some of their currents are also definable as non-theistic and humanistic, since they do not hold that divine creativity is completely transcendent, but that it is inherent in the world and in particular in the human being.<ref>{{Cite conference |last=Adler |first=Joseph A. |year=2011 |title=The Heritage of Non-Theistic Belief in China |url=http://www2.kenyon.edu/Depts/Religion/Fac/Adler/Writings/Non-theistic.pdf |conference=Toward a Reasonable World: The Heritage of Western Humanism, Skepticism, and Freethought |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://www2.kenyon.edu/Depts/Religion/Fac/Adler/Writings/Non-theistic.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2023, according to surveys done by Pew Research Center, 93% of respondents were formally unaffiliated with any religion. However, 75% visit family graveyards each year, 47% believe in feng shui, 33% believe in Buddha, 26% burn incense to deities each year and 18% believe in Taoist deities. These are not exclusive beliefs and often these will overlap as the respondents will have multiple beliefs at the same time. For example, of those 33% who believe in Buddha, a significant portion also believe in figures such as Taoist immortals, Jesus Christ, Catholic God and Allah.<ref name="religion2023">{{Cite web |date=30 August 2023 |title=Measuring Religion in China |url=https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2023/08/PF_2023.08.30_religion-china_REPORT.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230909075729/https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2023/08/PF_2023.08.30_religion-china_REPORT.pdf |archive-date=9 September 2023 |publisher=Pew Research Center}}</ref> A variety of organized salvationist movements have emerged since the Song period.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Broy |first=Nikolas |year=2015 |title=Syncretic Sects and Redemptive Societies. Toward a New Understanding of 'Sectarianism' in the Study of Chinese Religions |url=http://www.nikolas-broy.de/res/Broy%202015%20-%20syncretic%20sects%20and%20redemptive%20societies.pdf |journal=Review of Religion and Chinese Society |volume=2 |issue=4 |page=158 |doi=10.2307/2059958 |jstor=2059958 |s2cid=162946271}}</ref> There are also ethnic minorities in China who maintain their own indigenous religions, while major religions characteristic of specific ethnic groups include Tibetan Buddhism<ref>{{Cite news |date=10 June 2021 |title=Menjumpai etnis Yugur di atas ketinggian 3.830 mdpl puncak Bars Snow |url=https://www.antaranews.com/berita/2202994/menjumpai-etnis-yugur-di-atas-ketinggian-3830-mdpl-puncak-bars-snow |access-date=23 February 2024 |work=Antara News |language=id |quote=Bedanya lagi, Yugur memeluk agama Buddha Tibet, sedangkan Uighur beragama Islam. Konon, Yugur merupakan orang-orang Uighur yang beragama Buddha yang melarikan diri ke Gansu sejak Kerajaan Khaganate Uighur tumbang pada tahun 840 Masehi.}}</ref> and Islam.<ref name=":2">{{Cite news |last=:nl:Lode Vanoost |date=10 March 2024 |title=Op bezoek bij de Oeigoeren in Xinjiang |trans-title=Visiting the Uyghurs in Xinjiang |url=https://www.dewereldmorgen.be/artikel/2024/03/10/op-bezoek-bij-de-oeigoeren-in-xinjiang |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240404054333/https://www.dewereldmorgen.be/artikel/2024/03/10/op-bezoek-bij-de-oeigoeren-in-xinjiang |archive-date=4 April 2024 |work=DeWereldMorgen}}</ref>

=== Education === {{Main|Education in China|Higher education in China}}

[[File:13 Peking University.jpg|alt=|thumb|Beijing's Peking University, one of the top-ranked universities in China<ref>{{Cite web |date=18 September 2020 |title=Peking University |url=https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-university-rankings/peking-university |access-date=9 December 2020 |website=Times Higher Education (THE)}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Overall Ranking, Best Chinese Universities Rankings – 2019 |url=http://www.shanghairanking.com/Chinese_Universities_Rankings/Overall-Ranking-2019.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200330045254/http://www.shanghairanking.com/Chinese_Universities_Rankings/Overall-Ranking-2019.html |archive-date=30 March 2020 |access-date=9 December 2020 |website=shanghairanking.com}}</ref>]] Compulsory education in China comprises primary and junior secondary school, together lasting from ages 6 to 15.<ref>{{Cite web |date=23 July 2009 |title=Compulsory Education Law of the People's Republic of China |url=http://en.moe.gov.cn/documents/laws_policies/201506/t20150626_191391.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220319045258/https://en.moe.gov.cn/documents/laws_policies/201506/t20150626_191391.html |archive-date=19 March 2022 |access-date=3 November 2021 |website=Ministry of Education}}</ref> The {{Zh|p=gaokao|labels=no}}, China's national university entrance exam, is a prerequisite for entrance into most higher education institutions. Vocational education is available to students at the secondary and tertiary level.<ref name="Ministry of Edu China-2022">{{Cite web |date=3 April 2023 |title=Statistical report on China's educational achievements in 2022 |url=http://en.moe.gov.cn/documents/reports/202304/t20230403_1054100.html |access-date=17 December 2023 |website=Ministry of Education}}</ref> More than 10 million Chinese students graduated from vocational colleges every year.<ref>{{Cite web |date=23 March 2021|title=Zheng Yali: vocational education entering a new development stage|url=http://en.moe.gov.cn/features/2021TwoSessions/Voices/VocationalEducation/202103/t20210323_522096.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230128011150/http://en.moe.gov.cn/features/2021TwoSessions/Voices/VocationalEducation/202103/t20210323_522096.html|archive-date=28 January 2023|access-date=3 November 2021|website=Ministry of Education}}</ref> In 2024, about 92% of students continued their education at a three-year senior secondary school, while 60.8% of senior secondary school graduates enrolled in higher education.<ref name="auto">{{Cite web |date=11 June 2025|title=2024年全国教育事业发展统计公报|trans-title=Statistical Bulletin on National Education Development in 2024|url=http://www.moe.gov.cn/jyb_sjzl/sjzl_fztjgb/202506/t20250611_1193760.html|access-date=18 July 2025|website=Ministry of Education}}</ref>

China has the largest education system in the world,<ref name="UNICEF-2021">{{Cite web |date=August 2021 |title=China Case Study: Situation Analysis of the Effect of and Response to COVID-19 in Asia |url=https://www.unicef.org/eap/media/9321/file/Sit%20An%20-%20China%20Case%20Study.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://www.unicef.org/eap/media/9321/file/Sit%20An%20-%20China%20Case%20Study.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |access-date=3 November 2021 |website=UNICEF |page=21}}</ref> with about 287 million students and 18.85 million full-time teachers in over 470,300 schools in 2024.<ref name="auto"/> Annual education investment went from less than US$50 billion in 2003 to more than US$960 billion in 2020.<ref>{{Cite news |date=16 January 2013 |title=In Education, China Takes the Lead |url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2013/01/16/business/In-Education-China-Takes-the-Lead.html |access-date=17 June 2023 |work=The New York Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=31 December 2025 |title=教育部国家统计局财政部关于2024年全国教育经费执行情况统计公告 |url=https://www.cee.edu.cn/n171/n464/n515/c826658/content.html |archive-url= |archive-date= |access-date=22 May 2026 |website=China Education Economy Information Net|trans-title=Statistical Announcement on the Implementation of National Education Expenditure in 2024 by the Ministry of Education, the National Bureau of Statistics, and the Ministry of Finance}}</ref> China's literacy rate has grown dramatically, from only 20% in 1949 and 65.5% in 1979,<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Galtung |first1=Marte Kjær |title=49 Myths about China |last2=Stenslie |first2=Stig |date=2014 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-1-4422-3622-6 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=qqqDBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA189 189]}}</ref> to 97% of the population over the age of 15 in 2020.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Literacy rate, adult total (% of people ages 15 and above) - China |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.ADT.LITR.ZS?end=2020&locations=CN&most_recent_value_desc=true&start=1982 |access-date=4 October 2022 |website=World Bank}}</ref>

{{As of|2024}}, China has over 3,167 universities, with over 47.6 million students enrolled in mainland China, giving China the largest higher education system in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |date=20 June 2025 |title=全国高等学校名单 |trans-title=List of national colleges and universities |url=http://www.moe.gov.cn/jyb_xxgk/s5743/s5744/202506/t20250627_1195683.html |access-date=27 June 2025 |website=Ministry of Education}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Zou |first=Shuo |date=3 December 2020 |title=China's higher education system is world's largest, officials say |url=https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202012/03/WS5fc86ab2a31024ad0ba9999e.html |access-date=3 November 2021 |work=China Daily}}</ref> {{As of|2025}}, China had the world's highest number of top universities.<ref>{{Cite web |date=15 August 2025 |title=ShanghaiRanking's Academic Ranking of World Universities 2025 Press Release |url=https://www.shanghairanking.com/news/arwu/2025 |access-date=15 August 2025 |website=www.shanghairanking.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=U.S. News Releases 2025–2026 Best Global Universities Rankings {{!}} Clarivate |url=https://clarivate.com/news/u-s-news-releases-2025-2026-best-global-universities-rankings/ |access-date=15 August 2025 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":03">{{Cite web |title=PRESS RELEASE: World University Rankings 2025{{!}} CWUR {{!}} Center for World University Rankings |url=https://cwur.org/media.php |access-date=2 June 2025 |website=cwur.org}}</ref> China is home to two of the highest-ranking universities (Tsinghua University and Peking University) in Asia and emerging economies, according to the Times Higher Education World University Rankings<ref>{{Cite web |date=4 October 2024 |title=World University Rankings |url=https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-university-rankings/latest/world-ranking |access-date=15 August 2025 |website=Times Higher Education World University Rankings |language=en}}</ref> and the Academic Ranking of World Universities.<ref>{{Cite web |title=2025 Academic Ranking of World Universities |url=https://www.shanghairanking.com/rankings/arwu/2025 |access-date=15 August 2025 |website=ShanghaiRanking Consultancy}}</ref>

=== Health === {{Main|Health in China}}

{{See also|Medicine in China|Pharmaceutical industry in China}} [[File:China, Trends in the Human Development Index 1970-2010.png|thumb|upright=1.15|Chart showing the rise of China's Human Development Index from 1970 to 2010]] The National Health Commission, together with its counterparts in the local commissions, oversees the health needs of the population.<ref>{{Cite web |title=What we do |url=http://en.nhc.gov.cn/2018-09/22/c_74499.htm |access-date=17 December 2023 |website=National Health Commission}}</ref> An emphasis on public health and preventive medicine has characterized Chinese health policy since the early 1950s. The Communist Party started the Patriotic Health Campaign, which was aimed at improving sanitation and hygiene, as well as treating and preventing several diseases. Diseases such as cholera, typhoid and scarlet fever, which were previously rife in China, were nearly eradicated by the campaign.<ref>{{Cite web |date=14 December 2015 |title=Peking University of Health Sciences |url=https://liemgthailand.com/en/peking-university-of-health-sciences |access-date=9 June 2023 |archive-date=29 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240829063439/https://liemgthailand.com/en/peking-university-of-health-sciences/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

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

{{As of|2025||df=US}}, the life expectancy at birth exceeds 79 years.<ref>{{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}}</ref> {{As of|2024||df=US}}, the infant mortality rate is 4 per 1,000.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mortality rate, infant (per 1,000 live births) – China |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.IMRT.IN?locations=CN |access-date=28 October 2013 |publisher=World Bank}}</ref> Both have improved significantly since the 1950s.{{efn|The national life expectancy at birth rose from about 31 years in 1949 to 75 years in 2008,<ref>{{Cite news |date=4 October 2009 |title=Life expectancy increases by 44 years from 1949 in China's economic powerhouse Guangdong |url=http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90776/90882/6776688.html |work=People's Daily}}</ref> and infant mortality decreased from 300 per thousand in the 1950s to around 33 per thousand in 2001.<ref name="Ref_abcu">[http://www.china.org.cn/english/19012.htm "China's Infant Mortality Rate Down"]. 11 September 2001. China.org.cn. Retrieved 3 May 2006.</ref>}} Rates of stunting, a condition caused by malnutrition, have declined from 33.1% in 1990 to 4.5% in 2024.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Stone |first=R. |year=2012 |title=Despite Gains, Malnutrition Among China's Rural Poor Sparks Concern |journal=Science |volume=336 |issue=6080 |page=402 |doi=10.1126/science.336.6080.402 |pmid=22539691}}</ref><ref>{{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 }}</ref> Despite significant improvements in health and the construction of advanced medical facilities, China has several emerging public health problems, such as respiratory illnesses caused by widespread air pollution,<ref name="FT-china-pollution">{{Cite web |last=McGregor |first=Richard |date=2 July 2007 |title=750,000 a year killed by Chinese pollution |url=https://www.ft.com/content/8f40e248-28c7-11dc-af78-000b5df10621 |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/http://www.ft.com/cms/s/8f40e248-28c7-11dc-af78-000b5df10621.html |archive-date=10 December 2022 |access-date=22 July 2007 |website=Financial Times}}</ref> hundreds of millions of cigarette smokers,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Tatlow |first=Didi Kirsten |date=10 June 2010 |title=China's Tobacco Industry Wields Huge Power |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/11/world/asia/11iht-letter.html |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220101/https://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/11/world/asia/11iht-letter.html |archive-date=1 January 2022 |access-date=16 January 2020 |work=The New York Times}}{{cbignore}}</ref> and an increase in obesity among urban youths.<ref name="Ref_abcy">[http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/1999/china.50/dispatches/09.23.health/ "Serving the people?"]. 1999. Bruce Kennedy. CNN. Retrieved 17 April 2006.</ref><ref name="Ref_abcz">[http://english.people.com.cn/english/200008/04/eng20000804_47271.html "Obesity Sickening China's Young Hearts"]. 4 August 2000. ''People's Daily''. Retrieved 17 April 2006.</ref> Chinese mental health services are inadequate.<ref>{{Cite web |date=25 February 2019 |title=Chinese mental health services falling short: report |url=https://chinaplus.cri.cn/chinaplus/news/china/9/20190225/253543.html |website=China Plus}}</ref> China's large population and densely populated cities have led to serious disease outbreaks, such as SARS in 2003, although this has since been largely contained.<ref name="Ref_abcda">[https://web.archive.org/web/20040824014230/http://www.who.int/csr/don/2004_05_18a/en/index.html "China's latest SARS outbreak has been contained, but biosafety concerns remain"]. 18 May 2004. World Health Organization. Retrieved 17 April 2006.</ref> The COVID-19 pandemic was first identified in Wuhan in December 2019;<ref name="auto12">{{Cite journal |date=20 February 2020 |title=The Epidemiological Characteristics of an Outbreak of 2019 Novel Coronavirus Diseases (COVID-19) – China, 2020 |url=http://www.ne.jp/asahi/kishimoto/clinic/cash/COVID-19.pdf |url-status=dead |journal=China CDC Weekly |volume=2 |pages=1–10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200222141550/http://www.ne.jp/asahi/kishimoto/clinic/cash/COVID-19.pdf |archive-date=22 February 2020 |via=Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Novel Coronavirus Pneumonia Emergency Response Epidemiology Team |date=17 February 2020 |title=The Epidemiological Characteristics of an Outbreak of 2019 Novel Coronavirus Diseases (COVID-19) in China |journal=China CDC Weekly |language=zh |volume=41 |issue=2 |pages=145–151 |doi=10.3760/cma.j.issn.0254-6450.2020.02.003 |pmid=32064853 |s2cid=211133882 |script-journal=zh:中华流行病学杂志}}</ref> China responded to the pandemic with a zero-COVID approach until 2022 following protests.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Che |first1=Chang |last2=Chien |first2=Amy Chang |last3=Stevenson |first3=Alexandra |date=7 December 2022 |title=What Has Changed About China's 'Zero Covid' Policy |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/07/world/asia/china-zero-covid-changes.html |work=The New York Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=7 December 2022|title=China abandons key parts of zero-Covid strategy after protests|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-63855508|access-date=30 June 2023|work=BBC News}}</ref>

== Culture== {{Main|Chinese culture|Culture of the People's Republic of China}}

[[File:瘦西湖小金山2017.jpg|thumb|Moon gate at Xiaojinshan, Slender West Lake, Yangzhou, Jiangsu.]]

Since ancient times, Chinese culture has been heavily influenced by Confucianism. Chinese culture, in turn, has heavily influenced East Asia and Southeast Asia.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bader |first=Jeffrey A. |date=6 September 2005 |title=China's Role in East Asia: Now and the Future |url=https://www.brookings.edu/on-the-record/chinas-role-in-east-asia-now-and-the-future |access-date=16 May 2023 |website=Brookings Institution}}</ref> For much of the country's dynastic era, opportunities for social advancement could be provided by high performance in the prestigious imperial examinations, which have their origins in the Han dynasty.<ref>{{Cite book |title=China: Understanding Its Past |date=1997 |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |page=29}}</ref> The literary emphasis of the exams affected the general perception of cultural refinement in China, such as the belief that calligraphy, poetry and painting were higher forms of art than dancing or drama. Chinese culture has long emphasized a sense of deep history and a largely inward-looking national perspective.<ref name="ChinaFuture">{{Cite news |last=Jacques |first=Martin |date=19 October 2012 |title=A Point of View: What kind of superpower could China be? |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-19995218 |access-date=21 October 2012 |publisher=BBC News}}</ref> Examinations and a culture of merit remain greatly valued in China today.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=2005 |title=Historical and Contemporary Exam-driven Education Fever in China |url=http://suen.educ.psu.edu/~hsuen/pubs/KEDI%20Yu.pdf |url-status=dead |journal=KEDI Journal of Educational Policy |volume=2 |issue=1 |pages=17–33 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150301123007/http://suen.educ.psu.edu/~hsuen/pubs/KEDI%20Yu.pdf |archive-date=1 March 2015}}</ref> [[File:Lingshi Jingsheng Wangjia Dayuan 2013.08.24 14-12-19.jpg|thumb|Wang Family Compound, Lingshi, Shanxi. Ming and Qing dynasty.]] Though the Mao Zedong attacked traditional Chinese culture during the Cultural Revolution, the Chinese government has accepted numerous elements of traditional Chinese culture as being integral to Chinese society. With the rise of Chinese nationalism and the end of the Cultural Revolution, various forms of traditional Chinese art, literature, music, film, fashion and architecture have seen a revival,<ref name="Ref_abcdef">{{Cite web |date=July 1987 |title="China: Traditional arts". Library of Congress – Country Studies |url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+cn0133) |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050226150229/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd%2Fcstdy%3A%40field%28DOCID+cn0133%29 |archive-date=26 February 2005 |access-date=1 November 2011 |website=Library of Congress Country Studies}}</ref><ref name="Ref_abcdeg">{{Cite encyclopedia |title=China: Cultural life: The arts |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-258942/China |access-date=1 November 2011}}</ref> and folk and variety art in particular have sparked interest nationally and even worldwide.<ref name="Ref_abcdeh">{{Cite web |date=July 1987 |title=China: Folk and Variety Arts |url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+cn0138) |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041114173430/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd%2Fcstdy%3A%40field%28DOCID+cn0138%29 |archive-date=14 November 2004 |access-date=1 November 2011 |website=Library of Congress Country Studies}}</ref>

=== Art === {{Main|Chinese art}}

=== Architecture === {{Main|Chinese architecture|3 = }}

[[File:南禅寺大殿正面.jpg|thumb|The main hall of Nanchan Temple, Wutai County, Shanxi, completed in 782 CE, the oldest surviving timber-framed building in China.]] Chinese architecture has developed over millennia in China and has remained a vestigial source of perennial influence on the development of East Asian architecture,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Goodrich |first=L. Carrington |title=A Short History of the Chinese People |date=2007 |publisher=Sturgis Press |isbn=978-1-4067-6976-0 |edition=Third}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Formichi |first=Chiara |title=Religious pluralism, state and society in Asia |date=2013 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-1345-7542-8}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Robin W. Winks |title=Historiography |last2=Alaine M. Low |date=2001 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-1915-4241-1}}</ref> including in Japan, Korea, and Mongolia.<ref name="Cartwright-2023">{{Cite web |last=Cartwright |first=Mark |title=Ancient Chinese Architecture |url=https://www.worldhistory.org/Chinese_Architecture |access-date=19 February 2023 |website=World History Encyclopedia |date=24 October 2017 }}</ref> and minor influences on the architecture of Southeast and South Asia including the countries of Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and the Philippines.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bandaranayake |first=Senake |title=Sinhalese monastic architecture: the viháras of Anurádhapura |date=1974 |publisher=Brill |isbn=9-0040-3992-9}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Nithi Sathāpitānon |title=Architecture of Thailand: a guide to traditional and contemporary forms |last2=Brian Mertens |date=2012 |publisher=Didier Millet |isbn=978-9-8142-6086-2}}</ref>

Chinese architecture is characterized by bilateral symmetry, use of enclosed open spaces, feng shui (e.g. directional hierarchies),<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Tuobin |title=Bu lu ke lin = Brooklyn |last2=托宾 Toibin |first2=Colm |date=2021 |publisher=Shang hai yi wen chu ban she you xian gong si |others=Bo,Li, 柏栎 |isbn=978-7-5327-8659-6 |edition=Di 1 ban |language=zh}}</ref> a horizontal emphasis, and an allusion to various cosmological, mythological or in general symbolic elements. Chinese architecture traditionally classifies structures according to type, ranging from ''pagodas'' to palaces.<ref name="Itō-2017">{{Cite book |last1=Itō |first1=Chūta |title=Zhongguo jian zhu shi |last2=伊藤忠太 |date=2017 |publisher=中国画报出版社 |others=Yizhuang Liao, 廖伊庄 |isbn=978-7-5146-1318-6 |edition=Di 1 ban}}</ref><ref name="Cartwright-2023" /> [[File:Pagodaoffogongtemple2019.jpg|thumb|The Sakyamuni Pagoda of Fogong Temple in Ying County, Shanxi, built in 1056 during the Liao dynasty, it is the world's tallest surviving timber-framed structure.]] Chinese architecture varies widely based on status or affiliation, such as whether the structures were constructed for emperors, commoners, or for religious purposes. Other variations in Chinese architecture are shown in vernacular styles associated with different geographic regions and different ethnic heritages, such as the stilt houses in the south, the Yaodong buildings in the northwest, the yurt buildings of nomadic people, and the Siheyuan buildings in the north.<ref>{{Cite book |last=徐怡涛. |title=Zhong guo jian zhu |date=2010 |publisher=Gao deng jiao yu chu ban she |others=Xu yi tao, 徐怡涛. |isbn=978-7-0402-7421-9}}</ref>

=== Literature === {{Main|Chinese literature}}

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

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

=== Music === {{Main|Music of China}}

thumb|''The Drunken Concubine'' (贵妃醉酒), a classic Peking opera Chinese music covers a highly diverse range of music from traditional music to modern music. Chinese music dates back before the pre-imperial times. Traditional Chinese musical instruments were traditionally grouped into eight categories known as ''bayin'' (八音). Traditional Chinese opera is a form of musical theatre in China originating thousands of years and has regional style forms such as Beijing and Cantonese opera.<ref>{{Cite web |title=A Brief History of Chinese Opera |url=https://www.thoughtco.com/history-of-chinese-opera-195127 |access-date=14 September 2020 |website=ThoughtCo}}</ref> Chinese pop includes mandopop and cantopop. Chinese hip-hop has become popular.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Why Chinese rappers don't fight the power |date=6 November 2019 |url=https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20191106-why-chinese-rappers-dont-fight-the-power |access-date=23 November 2021 |publisher=BBC}}</ref>

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

Hanfu is the historical clothing of the Han people in China. The qipao or cheongsam is a popular Chinese female dress.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Qipao {{!}} dress |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/qipao |access-date=14 September 2020 |website=Encyclopædia Britannica}}</ref> The contemporary hanfu movement seeks to revitalize Hanfu clothing.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Current and Former EXO Members Are Some of China's Most Expensive Singers |url=https://www.jaynestars.com/news/current-and-former-exo-members-are-some-of-chinas-most-expensive-singers/ |access-date=14 September 2020 |website=JayneStars.com}}</ref> China Fashion Week is the country's only national-level fashion festival.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Xingxin|first=Zhu|date=19 September 2023|title=China fashion week struts its stuff|url=https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202309/19/WS6508f98da310d2dce4bb6759.html|website=China Daily|access-date=30 November 2025}}</ref>

=== Media === {{Main|Mass media in China|Cinema of China}}

The mass media of China primarily consists of television, newspapers, radio, and magazines. State media outlets operate under the control of the CCP. The CCP's Publicity Department acts as the main enforcer of media censorship and control in China.<ref name=":22">{{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}}</ref> The largest media organizations are the ''People's Daily'', Xinhua News Agency, and the China Media Group consisting of China Central Television, China Global Television Network, China National Radio and China Radio International.<ref>{{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}}</ref> Access to foreign media remains heavily restricted.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kuo |first=Lily |date=13 March 2013 |title=Why China is letting 'Django Unchained' slip through its censorship regime |url=http://qz.com/62717/why-china-is-letting-django-unchained-slip-through-its-censorship-regime/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130514072402/http://qz.com/62717/why-china-is-letting-django-unchained-slip-through-its-censorship-regime/ |archive-date=14 May 2013 |access-date=12 July 2013 |work=Quartz}}</ref>

Cinema was first introduced to China in 1896 and the first Chinese film, ''Dingjun Mountain,'' was released in 1905.<ref name=Encyclopedia>Zhang, Yingjin & Xiao, Zhiwei (1998). "The Fifth Generation" in [https://books.google.com/books?id=MIkc8os0WPwC&pg=PA128 ''Encyclopedia of Chinese Film'']. Taylor & Francis, p. 128. {{ISBN|0-415-15168-6}}.</ref> China has had the largest number of movie screens in the world since 2016;<ref name="hr">{{Cite web |last=Brzeski |first=Patrick |date=20 December 2016 |title=China Says It Has Passed U.S. as Country With Most Movie Screens |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/china-says-has-passed-us-as-country-movie-screens-957849 |access-date=21 December 2016 |website=The Hollywood Reporter}}</ref> China became the largest cinema market in 2020,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tartaglione |first=Nancy |date=15 November 2016 |title=China Will Overtake U.S. In Number Of Movie Screens This Week: Analyst |url=https://deadline.com/2016/11/china-cinema-screens-overtake-us-box-office-2019-1201852359/ |access-date=15 November 2016 |website=Deadline Hollywood}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=|title=Strong revenue growth continues in China's cinema market|url=https://www.pwccn.com/en/press-room/press-releases/pr-170619.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200303120239/https://www.pwccn.com/en/press-room/press-releases/pr-170619.html|archive-date=3 March 2020|access-date=14 September 2020|website=PwC}}</ref> and domestic movies dominate the market.<ref>{{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=26 October 2025 |work=Bloomberg News}}</ref> The top three highest-grossing films in China {{as of|2025|lc=y}} were ''Ne Zha 2'' (2025), ''The Battle at Lake Changjin'' (2021), and ''Wolf Warrior 2'' (2017).<ref name="Alltimedomestic">{{Cite web |title=内地总票房排名 |trans-title=All-Time Domestic Box Office Rankings |url=http://www.endata.com.cn/BoxOffice/BO/History/Movie/Alltimedomestic.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200216170558/http://www.endata.com.cn/BoxOffice/BO/History/Movie/Alltimedomestic.html |archive-date=16 February 2020 |access-date=2 March 2020 |website=China Box Office |language=zh}}</ref> In 2025, the video game market of China was the world's largest by revenue.<ref>{{cite web |title=Top countries and markets by video game revenues |url=https://newzoo.com/resources/rankings/top-10-countries-by-game-revenues |access-date=28 October 2025 |website=Newzoo}}</ref>

China has the most comprehensive and sophisticated Internet censorship regime in the world called the Great Firewall, with numerous websites being blocked.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022 |title=Freedom on the Net: 2022 |url=https://freedomhouse.org/country/china/freedom-net/2022 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230123114002/https://freedomhouse.org/country/china/freedom-net/2022 |archive-date=23 January 2023 |access-date=15 May 2023 |website=Freedom House}}</ref> The Great Firewall has allowed China to develop its own major internet services and companies, such as Tencent, Alibaba, Baidu, Douyin, Xiaohongshu, Bilibili and Weibo.<ref name=":122">{{Cite book |last=Shi |first=Song |title=China and the Internet: Using New Media for Development and Social Change |date=2023 |publisher=Rutgers University Press |isbn=9781978834736 |location=New Brunswick, NJ}}</ref>{{Rp|page=8}} The Cyberspace Administration of China acts as the national internet regulator and censor.<ref name=":42">{{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}}</ref> China requires a real-name system for Internet services and online platforms.<ref name=":3">{{Cite news |last=Feng |first=Coco |date=15 July 2025 |title=China rolls out 'voluntary' cyber ID system amid concerns over privacy, censorship |url=https://www.scmp.com/tech/tech-trends/article/3318302/china-rolls-out-voluntary-cyber-id-system-amid-concerns-over-privacy-censorship |access-date=15 July 2025 |work=South China Morning Post}}</ref>

=== Cuisine === {{Main|Chinese cuisine}}

thumb|Map showing major regional cuisines of China Chinese cuisine is highly diverse, drawing on several millennia of culinary history and geographical variety, in which the most influential are known as the "Eight Major Cuisines", including Sichuan, Cantonese, Jiangsu, Shandong, Fujian, Hunan, Anhui, and Zhejiang cuisines.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2 June 2011 |title=Eight Major Cuisines |url=http://www.chinesecio.com/cms/en/culture/eight-major-cuisines-ba-da-cai-xi |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150912222348/http://www.chinesecio.com/cms/en/culture/eight-major-cuisines-ba-da-cai-xi |archive-date=12 September 2015 |access-date=17 July 2015 |website=chinese.cn}}</ref> Chinese cuisine is known for its breadth of cooking methods and ingredients.<ref>{{Cite news |date=23 September 2013 |script-title=zh:中国美食成外国网友"噩梦" 鸡爪内脏鱼头不敢吃 |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/photo/2013-09/23/c_125426786.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130926145102/http://news.xinhuanet.com/photo/2013-09/23/c_125426786.htm |archive-date=26 September 2013 |access-date=17 July 2015 |agency=Xinhua News Agency}}</ref> China's staple food is rice in the northeast and south, and wheat-based breads and noodles in the north. Bean products such as tofu and soy milk remain a popular source of protein. Pork is now the most popular meat in China, accounting for about 60% of the country's total meat consumption.<ref>{{Cite web |title=万亿机遇，无肉不欢：中国肉食消费市场报告 |trans-title=A Trillion-Dollar Opportunity, A Craving for Meat: A Report on China's Meat Consumption Market |url=https://www.mckinsey.com.cn/%E4%B8%87%E4%BA%BF%E6%9C%BA%E9%81%87%EF%BC%8C%E6%97%A0%E8%82%89%E4%B8%8D%E6%AC%A2%EF%BC%9A%E4%B8%AD%E5%9B%BD%E8%82%89%E9%A3%9F%E6%B6%88%E8%B4%B9%E5%B8%82%E5%9C%BA%E6%8A%A5%E5%91%8A/#:~:text=%E4%B8%8D%E8%BF%87%EF%BC%8C%E4%B8%AD%E5%9B%BD%E8%82%89%E7%B1%BB%E6%B6%88%E8%B4%B9,%E8%B4%AD%E4%B9%B0%E6%AF%94%E9%87%8D%E5%B9%B6%E4%B8%8D%E9%AB%98%E3%80%82 |access-date=31 October 2025 |website=McKinsey}}</ref> Pork-free Chinese Islamic cuisine is served at halal-certified restaurants in various regions<ref>{{Cite news |date=23 December 2019 |title=Provinsi Guangdong Punya Pemandangan Indah Layaknya Lukisan |url=https://biz.kompas.com/read/2019/12/23/224748328/provinsi-guangdong-punya-pemandangan-indah-layaknya-lukisan |work=Kompas |quote=Wisatawan Indonesia tidak perlu khawatir ketika menjelajah beragam destinasi wisata di China. Saat ini restoran-restoran bersertifikasi halal dapat ditemui di China, meskipun jumlahnya belum banyak [...] menyuguhkan hidangan khas China Utara seperti daerah Xinjiang, Ningxia, Xi’an, dan Lanzhou yang kebanyakan penduduknya beragama Islam.}}</ref> while vegetarian Buddhist cuisine is commonly found at restaurants near shrines and temples.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Campbell |first=Charlie |date=22 January 2021 |title=How China Could Change the World By Taking Meat Off the Menu |url=https://time.com/5930095/china-plant-based-meat/ |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251101200545/https://time.com/5930095/china-plant-based-meat/ |archive-date=1 November 2025 |magazine=TIME |language=en |quote=Vegetarian restaurants are commonplace near Buddhist temples and shrines. Every Chinese supermarket stocks a dazzling array of bean curd and substitute meat products made with gluten.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Tindall |first=Robynne |date=29 January 2021 |title=Beijing's Best Vegetarian and Vegan-Friendly Restaurants |url=https://www.thebeijinger.com/blog/2020/01/10/beijings-best-vegetarian-and-vegan-friendly-restaurants |website=The Beijinger |language=en|access-date=19 March 2026}}</ref>

=== Sports === {{Main|Sport in China}}

[[File:FloorGoban.JPG|thumb|Go is an abstract strategy board game for two players, in which the aim is to surround more territory than the opponent, and which was invented in China more than 2,500 years ago.]]

China has one of the oldest sporting cultures. There is evidence that archery (''shèjiàn'') was practiced during the Western Zhou dynasty. Swordplay (''jiànshù'') and ''cuju'', a sport loosely similar to association football<ref>{{Cite book |title=Historical Dictionary of Soccer |date=2011 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |isbn=978-0-8108-7188-5 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=9j1wbp2t1usC&pg=PA2 2]}}</ref> originate in China's early dynasties.<ref>{{Cite web |date=31 August 2013 |title=Sport in Ancient China |url=http://www.theworldofchinese.com/2013/08/sport-in-ancient-china/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010152027/http://www.theworldofchinese.com/2013/08/sport-in-ancient-china/ |archive-date=10 October 2017 |access-date=28 June 2014 |publisher=JUE LIU (刘珏) (The World of Chinese)}}</ref>

Physical fitness is widely emphasized in Chinese culture, with morning exercises such as ''qigong'' and tai chi widely practiced,<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Thornton |first1=E. W. |last2=Sykes |first2=K. S. |last3=Tang |first3=W. K. |date=2004 |title=Health benefits of Tai Chi exercise: Improved balance and blood pressure in middle-aged women |journal=Health Promotion International |volume=19 |issue=1 |pages=33–38 |doi=10.1093/heapro/dah105 |pmid=14976170 |doi-access=free}}</ref> and commercial gyms and private fitness clubs are gaining popularity.<ref>{{Cite web |date=1 July 2011 |title=China health club market – Huge potential & challenges |url=http://chinasportsbiz.com/2011/07/01/huge-potential-of-fitness-market-in-china/ |access-date=31 July 2012 |website=China Sports Business}}</ref> Basketball is the most popular spectator sport in China.<ref>{{Cite web |date=7 August 2014 |script-title=zh:2014年6岁至69岁人群体育健身活动和体质状况抽测结果发布 |url=http://www.wenzhou.gov.cn/art/2014/8/7/art_9113_318011.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151109001344/http://www.wenzhou.gov.cn/art/2014/8/7/art_9113_318011.html |archive-date=9 November 2015 |access-date=23 November 2015 |website=Wenzhou People's Government}}</ref> The Chinese Basketball Association and the American National Basketball Association also have a huge national following amongst the Chinese populace.<ref name="Beech2003">{{Cite magazine |last=Beech |first=Hannah |date=28 April 2003 |title=Yao Ming |url=http://www.time.com/time/asia/2003/heroes/yao_ming.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110705191234/http://www.time.com/time/asia/2003/heroes/yao_ming.html |archive-date=5 July 2011 |access-date=30 March 2007 |magazine=Time}}</ref> China's professional football league, known as Chinese Super League, is the largest football market in East Asia.<ref>{{Cite web |date=14 July 2013 |script-title=zh:足球不给劲观众却不少中超球市世界第9亚洲第1 |url=http://sports.sohu.com/20130714/n381558488.shtml |access-date=17 July 2015 |website=Sohu|title=|trans-title=Despite the lackluster performance of football, the Chinese Super League boasts a large audience, ranking 9th in the world and 1st in Asia in terms of football market share.}}</ref> Other popular sports include martial arts, table tennis, badminton, swimming and snooker. China is home to a huge number of cyclists, with an estimated 470 million bicycles {{As of|2012|lc=y}}.<ref name="470MBikes">{{Cite news |date=17 August 2012 |title=Bike-Maker Giant Says Fitness Lifestyle Boosting China Sales |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-08-16/bicycle-maker-giant-says-fitness-lifestyle-boosting-china-sales.html |access-date=8 September 2012 |work=Bloomberg News}}</ref> China has the world's largest esports market.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kharpal |first=Arjun |date=15 July 2022 |title=China remains the world's largest e-sports market despite gaming crackdown |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2022/07/15/china-is-worlds-largest-e-sports-market-despite-crackdown-study.html |website=CNBC|access-date=19 March 2026}}</ref> Many traditional sports, such as dragon boat racing, Mongolian-style wrestling<ref>{{cite news |last1=Graceffo |first1=Antonio |title=Mongolia's wrestling culture: From the grasslands to the cage |url=https://www.intellinews.com/mongolia-s-wrestling-culture-from-the-grasslands-to-the-cage-192780/ |access-date=22 July 2025 |work=www.intellinews.com |date=25 September 2020 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Mongolian wrestling competition held in Hohot, north China – Xinhua {{!}} English.news.cn |url=http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-06/23/c_138166607.htm |website=www.xinhuanet.com |access-date=22 July 2025}}</ref> and horse racing are also popular.

China has participated in the Olympic Games since 1932. China hosted the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, where its athletes received 48 gold medals – the highest of the participant nations.<ref name="Ref_abcdeo">{{Cite news |date=27 August 2008 |title=China targets more golds in 2012 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/olympics/7583735.stm |access-date=27 November 2011 |work=BBC Sport}}</ref> Beijing and the nearby Zhangjiakou collaboratively hosted the 2022 Winter Olympics, making Beijing the first city to hold both Summer and Winter Olympics.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Beijing: The world's first dual Olympic city |url=https://olympics.com/en/news/100-days-to-go-beijing-worlds-first-dual-olympic-city |access-date=6 February 2022 |publisher=|date=27 October 2021|website=International Olympic Committee|last1=Meng|first1=Lingcheng|first2=Virgilio|last2=Neto}}</ref> China hosted the Asian Games in 1990, 2010, and 2023.<ref>{{Cite news |date=21 September 2023 |title=At-a-glance guide to the Hangzhou Asian Games |url=https://www.rfi.fr/en/sports/20230921-at-a-glance-guide-to-the-hangzhou-asian-games |access-date=15 December 2024 |work=Radio France Internationale}}</ref>

== See also == {{Portal|China|Countries|Asia }} * Outline of China

{{#related:Chinese culture}} {{#related:Sinosphere}}

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

== Sources == {{Free-content attribution | title = Global Forest Resources Assessment 2025 | publisher = Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) | documentURL = https://openknowledge.fao.org/bitstreams/2dee6e93-1988-4659-aa89-30dd20b43b15/download | license statement URL = https://openknowledge.fao.org/items/090d2fbb-32a6-412b-a3b8-1ce5c5905df2 | license = CC BY 4.0 }}

== References == {{reflist}}

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

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

== External links == {{Library resources box}} <!-- {{No more links}}

Please be cautious adding more external links.

Wikipedia is not a collection of links and should not be used for advertising.

Excessive or inappropriate links will be removed.

See Wikipedia:External links and Wikipedia:Spam for details.

If there are already suitable links, propose additions or replacements on the article's talk page, or submit your link to the relevant category at the "long dead (2017)" Open Directory Project (dmoz.org) and link there using {{Dmoz}}.

--> {{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/20260112211718/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/china China]. ''The World Factbook''. Central Intelligence Agency. * [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''

=== Maps === * [https://maps.google.com/maps?q=China&ll=30.600094,103.710938&spn=64.10009,177.1875&om=1 Google Maps—China] * {{Wikiatlas|the People's Republic of China}} * {{OSM relation|270056}}

{{China topics}} {{Navboxes |title = Articles related to China |list = {{Countries of Asia}} {{East Asian topics}} {{G8 nations}} {{G20}} {{BRICS}} {{East Asia Summit (EAS)}} {{Socialism by state}} {{UN Security Council}} {{World Trade Organization}} {{Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation}} {{Shanghai Cooperation Organisation}} {{States with limited recognition}} {{Province-level divisions of China}} }} {{Authority control}} {{Coord|35|N|103|E|type:country|display=title}}

Category:China Category:Atheist states Category:Communist states Category:One-party states Category:Republics Category:BRICS nations Category:Countries and territories where Chinese is an official language Category:Countries in Asia Category:Cradle of civilization Category:Countries in East Asia Category:G20 members Category:Member states of the United Nations Category:Countries in Northeast Asia Category:States with limited recognition Category:Articles containing video clips