求帮忙翻译一下 - 美无处不在 -
福步外贸论坛(FOB Business Forum) |中国第一外贸论坛
求帮忙翻译一下
16:30&&&mazy
Zhōngguó), officially the
People's Republic of China
(PRC), is a sovereign state located in
. It is the world's
. The PRC is a
governed by the
, with its
in the capital city of
. It exercises jurisdiction over 22
), and two mostly self-governing
). The PRC also claims
– which is controlled by the
(ROC), a separate political entity – as its
, a claim controversial due to the complex
and the unresolved
Covering approximately 9.6 million square kilometres, China is the world's
, depending on the definition of total area. China's landscape is vast and diverse, with
deserts occupying the arid north and northwest near
and Central Asia, and
forests prevalent in the wetter south near Southeast Asia. The terrain of western China is rugged and elevated, with the
mountain ranges separating China from South and Central Asia. The
, have their sources in the
and continue to the densely populated eastern seaboard. China's coastline along the Pacific Ocean is 14,500 kilometres (9,000 mi) long and is bounded by the
– one of the world's earliest – flourished in the fertile basin of the Yellow River in the
. For millennia, China's political system was based on hereditary monarchies, known as, beginning with the semi-mythological
of the Yellow River basin (c. 2000 BC). Since 221 BC, when the
first conquered several states to form a Chinese empire, the country has expanded, fractured and been reformed numerous times. The
overthrew the
in 1911, and ruled the
until 1949. After the defeat of the
, the Communist Party
the nationalist
in mainland China and established the People's Republic of China in Beijing on 1 October 1949, while the Kuomintang relocated the ROC government to
. The ROC's jurisdiction is now limited to Taiwan and several outlying islands, including Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu, and it now receives limited.
Since the introduction of
, China has become the world's
major economy. As of 2013, it is the world's second-largest economy by both
, and is also the world's
of goods. China is a
and has the world's
, with the
. The PRC has been a
, when it replaced the ROC as a
. China is also a member of numerous formal and informal multilateral organizations, including the
. China has been characterized as a
by a number of academics, military analysts, and public policy and economics analysts.
EtymologyMain article:
The word &China& is derived from
(چین), which is from
(चीन). It is first recorded in 1516 in the journal of Portuguese explorer
. It appears in English in a translation published in 1555. It is commonly thought that it is derived from the && () Dynasty. In China, common names for the present country include
Zhōngguó
; literally &the Middle State(s)&) and
Zhōnghuá
), although the country's official name has been changed numerous times by successive
and modern governments. The term
appeared in various ancient texts, such as the
of the 6th century BC, and in pre-imperial times it was often used as a cultural concept to distinguish the
tribes from perceived &barbarians&. The term, which can be either singular or plural, referred to the group of states or provinces in the central plain but was not used as a name for the country as a whole until the nineteenth century. The Chinese were not unique in regarding their country as &central&, since other civilizations had the same view of themselves.
HistoryMain articles:
PrehistoryMain article:
Archaeological evidence suggests that early
inhabited China between 250,000 and 2.24 million years ago. A cave in
(near present-day Beijing) exhibits fossils dated at between 300,000 and 780,000 BC. The fossils are of
, an example of
. The Peking Man site has also yielded remains of
Homo sapiens
dating back to 18,000–11,000 BC.
Early dynastic ruleSee also:
deer ornament dating from the
(16th-11th centuries BC).
Chinese tradition names the first imperial dynasty
, but it was considered mythical until scientific excavations found early
in Henan Province in 1959. Archaeologists have since uncovered urban sites, bronze implements, and tombs in locations cited as Xia's in ancient historical texts, but it is impossible to verify that these remains are of the Xia without written records from the period.
Some of the thousands of life-size
, ca. 210 BC.
The first Chinese dynasty that left historical records, the loosely feudal
(Yin), settled along the
in eastern China from the 17th to the 11th century BC. The
of the Shang Dynasty represents the oldest form of Chinese writing yet found, and the direct ancestor of the modern
used throughout East Asia. The Shang were invaded from the west by the
, who ruled between the 12th and 5th centuries BC, until their centralized authority was slowly eroded by feudal warlords. Many independent states eventually emerged out of the weakened Zhou state, and continually waged war with each other in the 300-year-long
, only occasionally deferring to the Zhou king. By the time of the
of the 5th–3rd centuries BC, there were seven powerful sovereign states in what is now China, each with its own king, ministry and army.
was built by several dynasties over two thousand years to protect the sedentary agricultural regions of the
from incursions by
of the northern
Imperial ChinaThe first unified Chinese state was established by
in 221 BC. Qin Shi Huang proclaimed himself the &First Emperor& (始皇帝), and imposed many reforms throughout China, notably the forced standardization of the Chinese language, measurements, length of cart axles, and currency. The
lasted only fifteen years, falling soon after Qin Shi Huang's death, as its harsh
and authoritarian policies led to widespread rebellion.
The subsequent
ruled China between 206 BC and 220 AD, and created a lasting
among its populace that has endured to the present day. The Han Dynasty
with military campaigns reaching
, Vietnam,
and Central Asia, and also helped establish the
in Central Asia. Han China gradually became the largest economy of the ancient world. After the
, another period of disunion followed, including the highly chivalric period of the
. Independent Chinese states of this period such as
opened diplomatic relations with
, introducing the Chinese writing system there. In 580 AD, China was reunited under the
. However, the Sui Dynasty declined following its defeat in the
(598–614).
Under the succeeding
dynasties, Chinese technology and culture entered a golden age. The Tang Empire was at its height of power until the middle of the 8th century, when the
destroyed the prosperity of the empire. The Song Dynasty was the first government in world history to issue paper money and the first Chinese
to establish a permanent standing navy. Between the 10th and 11th centuries, the population of China doubled in size to around 100 million people, mostly due to the expansion of rice cultivation in central and southern China, and the production of abundant food surpluses. The Song Dynasty also saw a flourishing of philosophy and the arts, as
painting were brought to new levels of maturity and complexity, and social elites gathered to view art, share their own and trade precious artworks. Philosophers such as
reinvigorated Confucianism with new commentary, infused
ideals, and emphasized a new organization of classic texts that brought about the core doctrine of
Detail from
, a 12th-century painting showing everyday life in the's capital city, Bianjing (today's
In 1271, the
established the
; the Yuan conquered the last remnant of the Song Dynasty in 1279. Before the
, Song Cina reportedly had approximately 120 the 1300 census which followed the invasion reported roughly 60 million people.
Late dynastic ruleA peasant named
overthrew the Yuan Dynasty in 1368 and founded the
. Under the Ming Dynasty, China enjoyed another golden age, developing one of the strongest navies in the world and a rich and prosperous economy amid a flourishing of art and culture. It was during this period that
. In the early years of the Ming Dynasty, China's capital was moved from
to Beijing.
During the Ming Dynasty, thinkers such as
further critiqued and expanded Neo-Confucianism with concepts of
and innate morality that would have tremendous impact on later Japanese thought.
also became a nominal vassal state of Ming China, and adopted much of its Neo-Confucian bureaucratic structure.
In 1644, Beijing was sacked by a coalition of rebel forces led by
, a minor Ming official who led the peasant revolt. The last Ming
committed suicide when the city fell. The Manchu
then allied with Ming Dynasty general
and overthrew Li's short-lived
, and subsequently seized control of Beijing, which became the new capital of the Qing Dynasty. In total, the
cost as many as 25 million lives.
The Qing Dynasty, which lasted until 1912, was the last imperial dynasty of China. In the 19th century, the Qing Dynasty adopted a defensive posture towards European
, even though it engaged in an
of its own into Central Asia. At this time, China awoke to the significance of the rest of the world, the West in particular. As China opened up to foreign trade and missionary activity,
produced by
was forced onto Qing China. Two
with Britain weakened the Emperor's control. Western imperialism proved to be disastrous for China:
&The end of the Opium War marked the beginning of Western imperialism in China. Unequal treaties, imposed at the end of the war, forced China to relinquish Hong Kong, open new &Treaty Ports& to foreign trade, pay indemnities to her vanquishers, and allow foreigners to live and work on Chinese soil free of the jurisdiction of Chinese law (extraterritoriality). Over the years new wars with Western powers would expand these impositions on China's national sovereignty, culminating in the Treaty of Shimonoseki, which ended the Sino-Japanese War of 1894–95.&
A 19th-century painting depicting the
The weakening of the Qing regime, and the apparent humiliation of the unequal treaties in the eyes of the Chinese people, led to increasing domestic disorder. In late 1850, southern China erupted in the
, a violent civil war which lasted until 1864. The rebellion was led by, who was partly influenced by an idiosyncratic interpretation of
. Hong believed himself to be the son of God and the younger brother of Jesus. Although the Qing forces were eventually victorious, the civil war was one of the bloodiest in human history, costing at least 20 million lives (more than the total number of fatalities in World War I), with some estimates of up to 40 million.
followed the Taiping Rebellion, such as the
(1855–67),
(), Miao Rebellion (1854–73),
() and the
These rebellions each resulted in an estimated loss of several million lives, and had a devastating impact on the fragile economy. The flow of British opium hastened the empire's decline. In the 19th century, the age of colonialism was at its height and the great
today, about 35 million
live in Southeast Asia. Emigration rates were strengthened by domestic catastrophes such as the
, which claimed between 9 and 13 million lives in northern China. From 108 BC to 1911 AD, China experienced 1,828 known famines, or nearly one per year, somewhere in the empire.
of 1894–95, which was fought over influence in Korea, Japanese troops defeated Qing forces.
While China was wracked by continuous war,
succeeded in rapidly modernizing its military, and set its sights on the conquest of Korea and
. At the request of the Korean emperor, the Qing government sent troops to aid in suppressing the
in 1894. However, Japan also sent troops to Korea, leading to the
, which resulted in Qing China's loss of influence in the
as well as the cession of Taiwan (including the Pescadores) to Japan in 1895.
Following this series of defeats,
for the empire to become a modern Meiji-style
was drafted by the
in 1898, but was opposed and stopped by the, who placed Emperor Guangxu under house arrest in a coup d'état. The ill-fated
of , in which westerners in Beijing were targeted
en masse, resulted in as many as 115,000 deaths.
was formally abolished in 1906.
By the early 20th century, mass civil disorder had begun, and calls for reform and revolution were heard across the country. The 38-year-old Emperor Guangxu died under house arrest on 14 November 1908, suspiciously just a day before Cixi's own death. With the throne empty, he was succeeded by Cixi's handpicked heir, his two-year-old nephew
, who became the Xuantong Emperor. Guangxu's consort became the
. In another coup d'état in 1912,
overthrew Puyi, and forced Longyu to sign the abdication decree as regent, ending over two thousand years of imperial rule in China.
Longyu died, childless, in 1913.
Republic of China ()Main articles:
, the father of modern China (seated on right), and, later
On 1 January 1912, the
was established, heralding the end of Imperial China.
(the KMT or Nationalist Party) was proclaimed provisional president of the republic. However, the presidency was later given to Yuan Shikai, a former Qing general, who had ensured the defection of the entire
from the Qing Empire to the revolution. In 1915, Yuan proclaimed himself
, but was forced to abdicate and reestablish the republic in the face of popular condemnation, not only from the general population but also from among his own Beiyang Army and its commanders.
After Yuan Shikai's death in 1916, China was politically fragmented, with an internationally recognized but virtually powerless national government seated in Beijing. Regional warlords exercised actual control over their respective territories. In the late 1920s, the nationalist Kuomintang, under
, was able to reunify the country under its own control with a series of deft military and political maneuverings, known collectively as the
. The Kuomintang moved the nation's capital to
and implemented &political
&, an intermediate stage of political development outlined in Sun Yat-sen's
program for transforming China into a modern democratic state. Effectively, political tutelage meant one-party rule by the Kuomintang, but the party was politically divided into competing cliques. This
made it difficult for Chiang to battle the
, which the Kuomintang had been warring against since 1927 in the. This war continued successfully for the Kuomintang, especially after the Communists retreated in the
, until the
and Japanese aggression forced Chiang to confront
(), a part of
, forced an uneasy alliance between the Kuomintang and the Communists. The Japanese && in northern China –
&kill all, burn all and destroy all&
– led to numerous
being committed against the in all, as many as 20 million Chinese civilians died. An estimated 200,000 Chinese
in the city of Nanjing alone during the Japanese occupation. Japan unconditionally surrendered to China in 1945. Taiwan, including the Pescadores, was put under the administrative control of the Republic of China, which immediately claimed sovereignty. China emerged victorious but war-ravaged and financially drained. The continued distrust between the Kuomintang and the Communists led to the resumption of civil war. In 1947, constitutional rule was established, but because of the ongoing unrest many provisions of the
were never implemented in mainland China.
People's Republic of China (1949–present)Main article:
Major combat in the
ended in 1949 with the Communist Party in control of
, and the Kuomintang retreating offshore, reducing the ROC's territory to only
, Hainan, and their surrounding islands. On 1 October 1949,
proclaimed the People's Republic of China, which was commonly known in the West as &Communist China& or &Red China& during the
. In 1950, the
succeeded in
from the ROC, occupying
, and defeating the majority of the remaining Kuomintang forces in
provinces, though some Kuomintang holdouts survived until much later.
proclaiming the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949.
Mao encouraged population growth, and under his leadership the Chinese population almost doubled from around 550 million to over 900 million. However, Mao's
, a large-scale economic and social reform project, resulted in
between 1958 and 1961, mostly from starvation. Between 1 and 2 million
were executed as &counterrevolutionaries.& In 1966, Mao and his allies launched the
, which would last until Mao's death a decade later. The Cultural Revolution, motivated by power struggles within the Party and a fear of the
, led to a major upheaval in Chinese society. In October 1971, the PRC
in the United Nations, and took its seat as a permanent member of the Security Council. In that same year, for the first time, the number of countries recognizing the PRC surpassed those recognizing the ROC in Taipei as the government of China. In February 1972, at the peak of the
in Beijing. However, the US did not
the PRC as China's sole legitimate government until 1 January 1979.
After Mao's death in 1976 and the arrest of the
, who were blamed for the excesses of the Cultural Revolution,
quickly wrested power from Mao's anointed successor
. Although he never became the head of the party or state himself, Deng was in fact the && of China at that time, his influence within the Party led the country to
. The Communist Party subsequently loosened governmental control over citizens' personal lives and the
were disbanded with many peasants receiving multiple land leases, which greatly increased incentives and agricultural production. This turn of events marked China's transition from a planned economy to a mixed economy with an increasingly open market environment, a system termed by some &&; the Communist Party of China officially describes it as &&. China adopted its current
on 4 December 1982.
The death of pro-reform official
helped to spark the
, during which students and others campaigned for several months, speaking out against corruption and in favour of greater political reform, including democratic rights and freedom of speech. However, they were eventually put down on 4 June when
troops and vehicles entered and forcibly cleared the square, resulting in numerous casualties. This event was widely reported and brought worldwide condemnation and sanctions against the government. The && incident in particular became famous.
The city of Shanghai has become a symbol of China's rapid economic expansion since the 1990s.
and Premier
, both former mayors of Shanghai, led the nation in the 1990s. Under Jiang and Zhu's ten years of administration, China's economic performance pulled an estimated 150 million peasants out of poverty and sustained an average annual gross domestic product growth rate of 11.2%. The country formally joined the
Although rapid economic growth has made the Chinese economy the world's second-largest, this growth has also severely impacted the country's resources and environment. Another concern is that the benefits of economic development has not been distributed evenly, resulting in a wide development gap between urban and rural areas. As a result, under President
and Premier
, the Chinese government initiated policies to address these issues of equitable distribution of resources, though the outcome remains to be seen. More than 40 million farmers have been displaced from their land, usually for economic development, contributing to the
which took place across China in 2005 alone. Living standards have improved significantly but political controls remain tight. Although China largely succeeded in maintaining its rapid rate of economic growth despite the
, its growth rate began to slow in the early 2010s, and the economy remains overly focused on fixed investment.
Preparations for a major Communist Party leadership change in late 2012 were marked by factional disputes and political scandals, such as the
. During China's
in November 2012, Hu Jintao and Wen Jiabao were replaced as President and Premier by
and, who formally took office in 2013.
GeographyMain article:
A composite satellite image showing the topography of China.
in Guangxi.
in Guangxi.
Political geographyThe People's Republic of China is the
country in the world by land area after
and is either the
by total area, after Russia, Canada and, depending on the definition of total area, the United States. China's total area is generally stated as being approximately 9,600,000 km
(3,700,000 sq mi). Specific area figures range from 9,572,900 km
(3,696,100 sq mi) according to the
, 9,596,961 km(3,705,407 sq mi) according to the UN Demographic Yearbook, to 9,596,961 km
(3,705,407 sq mi) according to the
, and 9,640,011 km(3,722,029 sq mi) including
, which are controlled by China and claimed by India. None of these figures include the 1,000 square kilometres (386.1 sq mi) of territory ceded to China by
following the ratification of a Sino-Tajik border agreement in January 2011.
China has the
, measuring 22,117 km (13,743 mi) from the mouth of the
except Russia, which also borders 14. China extends across much of East Asia, bordering
in Southeast A India,
, Nepal and
in South A
, Tajikistan,
in Central A a small section of
in Northeast Asia. China's border with India is
, and was a key cause of the 1962
Additionally, China shares maritime boundaries with
, Japan, Vietnam, the
and Taiwan. The PRC and the Republic of China (Taiwan) make mutual claims over each other's territory and the frontier between areas under their respective control is closest near the islands of
coast, but otherwise run through the
. The PRC and ROC assert identical claims over the entirety of the
, and the southernmost extent of these claims reaches
, which would form a maritime frontier with
Landscape and climate
, the world's highest mountain, in
The territory of China lies between
. China's landscapes vary significantly across its vast width. In the east, along the shores of the
, there are extensive and densely populated
, while on the edges of the Inner Mongolian plateau in the north, broad
predominate. Southern China is dominated by hills and low mountain ranges, while the central-east hosts the
of China's two major rivers, the
. Other major rivers include the
. To the west, major mountain ranges, most notably the Himalayas, and high
feature among the more arid landscapes of the north, such as the
. The world's highest point,
(8848m), lies on the Sino-Nepalese border. The country's lowest point, and the world's fourth-lowest, is the dried lake bed of
(&#m) in the.
A major environmental issue in China is the continued
, particularly the Gobi Desert, which is currently
. Although barrier tree lines planted since the 1970s have reduced the frequency of
, prolonged drought and poor agricultural practices have resulted in
plaguing northern China each spring, which then spread to other parts of East Asia, including Korea and Japan. According to China's environmental watchdog, Sepa, China is losing a million acres (4,000 km²) per year to desertification. Water quality,
have become important issues in China's relations with other countries. Melting
in the Himalayas could potentially lead to
for hundreds of millions of people.
China's climate is mainly dominated by
, which lead to pronounced temperature differences between winter and summer. In the winter, northern winds coming from high-latitude ar in summer, southern winds from coastal areas at lower latitudes are warm and moist. The climate in China differs from region to region because of the country's highly complex
BiodiversityMain article:
, China's most famous
species, at the
China is one of 17
, lying in two of the world's major
. 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
. The country signed the
on 11 June 1992, and became a party to the convention on 5 January 1993. It later produced a
, with one revision which was received by the convention on 21 September 2010.
FaunaChina is home to at least 551 species of
(the third-highest such number in the world), 1,221 species of birds (eighth), 424 species of reptiles (seventh) and 333 species of amphibians (seventh). China is the most biodiverse country in each category outside of the tropics. Wildlife in China share habitat with and bear acute pressure from the
. At least 840
in China, due mainly to human activity such as habitat destruction, pollution and poaching for food, fur and ingredients for
. Endangered wildlife is protect by law and the country has over 360
, the country's most famous endangered and
species, lives in protected nature reserves in
province. A number of other species, such as the
, are virtually extinct in the wild and survive only in captive breeding programs.
As the country has grown wealthier in recent years, domestic appetite has grown for wildlife products, leading to a sharp rise in
such as ivory, rhino horns, shark fins, and threatening wildlife in other countries. Laws prohibiting illegal animal trade are unevenly enforced.
FloraChina has over 32,000 species of vascular plants and is home to a variety of forest types. Cold
forests predominate in the north of the country, supporting animal species such as
, along with over 120 bird species. Moist
forests can have thickets of
as an understorey, replaced by
in higher montane stands of
forests, which dominate central and southern China, support as many as 146,000 species of flora. Tropical and seasonal
, though confined to
, contain a quarter of all the animal and plant species found in China.
FungiThe number of species of
recorded in China, including
-forming species, is not known with precision, but probably exceeds 10,000. More than 2,400 species were listed by the mycologist S.C. Teng in the first modern treatment of Chinese fungi in the English language, which was published in 1996. More than 5,000 species of &higher fungi& – mainly
– were reported in 2001 for tropical China alone, and nearly 4,000 species of fungi were reported in 2005 for northwestern China. The exploration and classification of the fungi of China is currently being pursued under the auspices of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, with the production of many volumes in the
Flora Fungorum Sinicorum
series of publications. The issue of fungal conservation, long overlooked in China, was first addressed in the early 2010s, with pioneer publications evaluating the conservation status of individual species.
Environmental issuesMain article:
project is Asia's largest.
In recent decades, China has suffered from
. While regulations such as the 1979 Environmental Protection Law are fairly stringent, they are poorly enforced, as they are frequently disregarded by local communities and government officials in favour of rapid economic development. As a result, public protests and riots over environmental issues have become increasingly common.
Environmental campaigners have warned that
is becoming a severe threat to Chinese society. According to the Chinese, roughly 300 million Chinese do not have access to safe drinking water, and 40% of China's rivers had been polluted by industrial and agricultural waste by late 2011. This crisis is compounded by increasingly severe water shortages, particularly in the north-east of the country. Additionally, numerous major Chinese coastal cities, including
, are deemed to be highly vulnerable to large-scale flooding.
However, China is the world's leading investor in
, with $52 billion invested in 2011 alone. China produces more
than any other country, and
projects, such as
, are widely pursued at the local level. By 2009, over 17% of China's energy was derived from renewable sources – most notably
plants, of which China has a total installed capacity of 197 GW. In 2011, the Chinese government announced plans to invest four trillion yuan (US$618.55 billion) in water infrastructure and
projects over a ten-year period, and to complete construction of a flood prevention and anti-drought system by 2020.
PoliticsMain article:
The People's Republic of China, along with
, is one of the world's four remaining
. The Chinese government has been variously described as communist and socialist, but also as authoritarian, with heavy restrictions remaining in many areas, most notably on
. Its current political/economic system has been termed by its leaders as &&.
The country is ruled by the
(CPC), whose power is enshrined in
is hierarchical, whereby local People's Congresses are
, and all higher levels of People's Congresses up to the
by the People's Congress of the level immediately below. The political system is partly decentralized, with limited democratic processes internal to the party and at local village levels, although these experiments have been marred by corruption. There are
, referred to in China as democratic parties, which participate in the National People's Congress and the
in Beijing, where the
Compared to its closed-door policies until the mid-1970s, the liberalization of China has resulted in the administrative climate being less restrictive than before. China supports the Leninist principle of &&, but the elected National People's Congress has been described as a && body. The incumbent
, who is also the
. The current
, who is also a senior member of the
There have been some moves toward political liberalization, in that open contested elections are now held at the village and town levels. However, the Party retains effective control over government appointments: in the absence of meaningful opposition, the CPC wins by default most of the time. Political concerns in China include lessening the growing gap between rich and poor and fighting corruption within the government leadership. Nonetheless, the level of public support for the government and its management of the nation is among the highest in the world, with 86% of Chinese citizens expressing satisfaction with their nation's economy according to a 2008
Administrative divisionsMain articles:
The People's Republic of China has administrative control over 22
, and considers
to be its 23rd province, although Taiwan is currently governed by the Republic of China, which disputes the PRC's claim. China also has five subdivisions officially termed
, each with a desig and two
(SARs), which enjoy a degree of political autonomy. These 22 provinces, five autonomous regions, and four municipalities can be collectively referred to as &&, a term which usually excludes the SARs of Hong Kong and
. None of these divisions are recognized by the ROC government, which claims the entirety of the PRC's territory.
Foreign relationsMain article:
with former US President
The PRC has diplomatic relations with 171 countries and maintains. Its
is disputed by the
and a it is thus the largest and most populous
was the first western country to establish diplomatic relations with the PRC on 9 May 1950. In 1971, the PRC replaced the Republic of China as the sole representative of China in the United Nations and as one of the five permanent members of the. China was also a former member and leader of the
, and still considers itself an advocate for
. Along with Brazil, Russia, India and South Africa, China is a member of the
group of emerging major economies, and hosted the group's
in April 2011.
Under its interpretation of the
, Beijing has made it a precondition to establishing diplomatic relations that the other country acknowledges its claim to Taiwan and severs official ties with the government of the Republic of China. Chinese officials have protested on numerous occasions when foreign countries have made diplomatic overtures to Taiwan, especially in the matter of armament sales. Political meetings between foreign government officials and the
are also opposed by China, as the latter considers
to be formally part of China.
Much of current Chinese foreign policy is reportedly based on
, and is also driven by the concept of &harmony without uniformity&, which encourages diplomatic relations between states despite ideological differences. This policy has led China to support states that are
or repressive by Western nations, such as
, North Korea and
. Conflicts with foreign countries have occurred at times in China's recent history, particularly with the United S for instance, the
during the
in May 1999 and the
involving a U.S. spy plane in April 2001. Relations with many Western nations suffered for a time following the military crackdown on the
, although in recent years China has improved its diplomatic links with the West. China furthermore has an increasingly close economic relationship with Russia, and the two states often vote in unison in the UN Security Council. In recent decades, China has followed a policy of
for trade and bilateral co- in 2012, Sino-African trade totalled over US$160 billion. China has furthermore strengthened its ties with major South American economies, becoming the largest trading partner of Brazil and building strategic links with
A meeting of
leaders in 2007, with China's
second from right.
Trade relationsIn recent decades, China has played an increasing role in calling for
and security pacts amongst its Asia-Pacific neighbors. In 2004, it proposed an entirely new
(EAS) framework as a forum for regional security issues, pointedly excluding the United States. The EAS, which includes
, India, Australia and New Zealand, held its inaugural summit in 2005. China is also a founding member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), along with Russia and the Central Asian republics.
In 2000, the
approved &permanent normal trade relations& (PNTR) with China, allowing Chinese exports in at the same low tariffs as goods from most other countries. Both
asserted that
would gradually open China to democratic reform. Bush was furthermore an advocate of Chinese entry into the
(WTO). China has a significant
with the United States, its most important export market. In the early 2010s, US politicians argued that the
was significantly undervalued, giving China an unfair trade advantage.
Territorial disputes
Map depicting territorial disputes between the PRC and neighboring states. For a larger map,
Main article:
In addition to claiming all of Taiwan, China has been involved in a number of other international territorial disputes. Since the 1990s, China has been involved in negotiations to resolve its disputed land borders, including a
and an undefined border with. China is additionally involved in multilateral disputes over the ownership of several small islands in the East and South China Seas. These issues have led to friction between China and western nations,, which is seen in some quarters as attempting to
Emerging superpower statusChina is regularly hailed as a potential
, with certain commentators citing its rapid economic progress, growing military might, very large population, and increasing international influence as signs that it will play a prominent global role in the
. Others, however, warn that
and demographic imbalances could slow or even halt China's growth as the century progresses. Some authors also question the definition of &superpower&, arguing that China's large economy alone would not qualify it as a superpower, and noting that it lacks the military and cultural influence of the United States.
Sociopolitical issues and reformSee also:
, social activists, and some members of the Communist Party of China have all identified the need for social and political reform. While economic and social controls have been greatly relaxed in China since the 1970s,
is still tightly restricted. The
states that the &fundamental rights& of citizens include
. However, in practice, these provisions do not afford significant protection against criminal prosecution by the state. Rural migrants to China's cities often find themselves treated as
system, which controls access to
. Property rights are often poorly protected, and taxation disproportionately affects poorer citizens. However, a number of rural taxes have been reduced or abolished since the early 2000s, and additional social services provided to rural dwellers.
Censorship of political speech and information, most notably on the Internet, is openly and routinely used in China to silence criticism of the government and the ruling
. In 2005,
ranked China 159th out of 167 states in its Annual World Press Freedom Index, indicating a very low level of perceived press freedom. The government has suppressed demonstrations by organizations that it considers a potential threat to &social stability&, as was the case with the
. The Communist Party has had mixed success in controlling information: a powerful and pervasive media control system faces equally strong market forces, an increasingly educated citizenry, and technological and cultural changes that are making China more open to the wider world.
A number of foreign governments and
also routinely criticize
, alleging widespread
violations such as detention without trial, forced confessions,
, restrictions of fundamental rights, and
. The government has responded to foreign criticism by arguing that the notion of human rights should take into account a country's present level of
, and focus more on the people's rights to subsistence and development in poorer countries. It emphasizes the rise in the
for the average Chinese since the 1970s, as well as improvements in workplace safety and efforts to combat natural disasters such as the perennial
floods. Furthermore, some Chinese politicians have spoken out in support of democratisation, although
. In 2010, Premier
stated that China needs &to gradually improve the democratic election system so that state power will truly belong to the people and state power will be used to serve the people.& Despite his status, Wen's comments were later censored by the government. Although the Chinese government is increasingly tolerant of NGOs which offer practical, efficient solutions to social problems, such &third sector& activity remains heavily regulated.
MilitaryMain article:
With 2.3 million active troops, the People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the largest standing military force in the world, commanded by the
(CMC). The PLA consists of the
(PLAGF), the
(PLAN), the
(PLAAF), and a
nuclear force, the
. According to the Chinese government, China's military expenditure in 2012 totalled US$100 billion, constituting the
. However, other nations, such as the United States, have claimed that China does not report its real level of military spending, which is allegedly much higher than the official budget. A 2007 report by the
noted that &China's actions in certain areas increasingly appear inconsistent with its declaratory policies&. For its part, China claims it maintains an army purely for defensive purposes.
As a recognised
state, China is considered both a major regional military power and a
. As of August 2011, China's Second Artillery Corps is believed to maintain at least 195, including 75
. Nonetheless, China is the only one of the
Permanent Members to have relatively limited
capabilities. To offset this, it has developed numerous power projection assets – its
entered service in 2012, and it maintains a substantial fleet of, including several
submarines. China has furthermore established a network of foreign military relationships that has been compared to a
Members of a Chinese military honor guard. China possesses the largest standing army in the world, with around 2.3 million active personnel. Its ground forces alone total 1.7 million soldiers.
China has made significant progress in modernizing its air force since the early 2000s, purchasing Russian fighter jets such as the
, and also manufacturing its own modern fighters, most notably the
. China is furthermore engaged in developing an indigenous, the
, and numerous
. China has also updated its ground forces, replacing its ageing
with numerous variants of the modern
tank, and upgrading its battlefield
systems to enhance its
capabilities. In addition, China has developed or acquired numerous advanced missile systems, including
,and submarine-launched nuclear ICBMs. As a result of these breakthroughs, China has been perceived as attempting to match the United States in military technology, although some analysts note that the American military remains far more capable than the PLA.
EconomyMain articles:
building in
financial district. Shanghai has the
in the world, totalling US$304 billion in 2011.
As of 2013, China has
in terms of nominal GDP, totalling approximately US$8.227 trillion according to the
(IMF). However, China's 2012 nominal GDP per capita of US$6,075 puts it
(out of 183 countries on the IMF list) in global GDP per capita rankings. If
is taken into account in total GDP figures, China is again second only to the United States – in 2012, its PPP GDP reached $12.405 trillion, corresponding to $9,161 per capita.
From its founding in 1949 until late 1978, the People's Republic of China was a Soviet-style centrally
or capitalism. To propel the country towards a modern, industrialized communist society,
instituted the
in the early 1960s, although this had decidedly mixed economic results. Following Mao's death in 1976 and the consequent end of the
and the new Chinese leadership began to
and move towards a more market-oriented
under one-party rule.
was dismantled and farmlands were privatized to increase productivity. Foreign trade was focused upon as a major vehicle of growth, leading to the creation of
(SEZs), first in
and then in other Chinese cities. Inefficient
(SOEs) were restructured by introducing western-style management systems, with unprofitable ones being closed outright, resulting in massive job losses. Modern-day China is mainly characterized as having a market economy based on private property ownership, and is one of the leading examples of
. The state still dominates in strategic &pillar& industries (such as energy and
), but private enterprise has expanded enormously, with around 30 million private businesses recorded in 2008.
initiated China's market-oriented reforms.
Since economic liberalization began in 1978, China's investment- and export-led economy has grown more than a hundredfold and is the fastest-growing major economy in the world. According to the IMF, China's
between 2001 and 2010 was 10.5%, and the Chinese economy is predicted to grow at an average annual rate of 9.5% between 2011 and 2015. Between 2007 and 2011, China's economic growth rate was equivalent to all of the
countries' growth combined. According to the
index announced by
in February 2011, China has a very high 3G growth rating. Its high productivity, low labor costs and relatively good infrastructure have made it a global leader in manufacturing, but its undervalued exchange rate has caused friction with other major economies, and it has also been widely criticised for manufacturing large quantities of
China is a member of the
and is the world's largest trading power, with a total international trade value of US$3.87 trillion in 2012.
reached US$2.85 trillion by the end of 2010, an increase of 18.7% over the previous year, making its reserves by far the world's largest. China owns an estimated $1.6 trillion of US. China, holding over US$1.16 trillion in US
, is the largest foreign holder of
. China is the world's third-largest recipient of inward
(FDI), attracting $115 billion in 2011 alone, marking a 9% increase over 2010. China also increasingly invests abroad, with a total outward FDI of $68 billion in 2010, and a number of major takeovers of foreign firms by Chinese companies.
screen.width*0.7) {this.resized= this.width=screen.width*0.7; this.alt='Click here to open new window\nCTRL+Mouse wheel to zoom in/out';}" onmouseover="if(this.width>screen.width*0.7) {this.resized= this.width=screen.width*0.7; this.style.cursor='hand'; this.alt='Click here to open new window\nCTRL+Mouse wheel to zoom in/out';}" onclick="if(!this.resized) {} else {window.open(this.src);}" onmousewheel="return imgzoom(this);" alt="" />A graph comparing the 2012 nominal GDPs of major economies
in US$ billions, according to
China now ranks 29th in the
, although it is only ranked 135th among the 179 countries measured in the
. In 2011, 61 Chinese companies were listed in the
. Measured by total revenues, three of the world's top ten most valuable companies are Chinese, including fifth-ranked
, sixth-ranked
and seventh-ranked
(the world's largest electric utilities company).
China's middle-class population (defined as those with annual income of at least US$17,000) had reached more than 100 million by 2011, while the number of individuals worth more than 10 million yuan (US$1.5 million) was estimated to be 1.02 million in 2012, according to the
. Based on the Hurun rich list, the number of US dollar billionaires in China increased from 130 in 2009 to 251 in 2012, giving China the world's second-highest number of billionaires. China's domestic retail market was worth over 20 trillion yuan (US$3.2 trillion) in 2012, and is now growing at over 12% annually. China is also now the world's second-largest consumer of luxury goods behind Japan, with 27.5% of the global share. However, in recent years, China's rapid economic growth has contributed to severe consumer inflation, leading to increased government regulation. In the early 2010s, China's economic growth rate began to slow amid global economic turmoil, although it remains the world's fastest-growing major economy.
, a major shopping street in Shanghai.
The Chinese economy is highly energy-inten China became the world's largest
in 2010, and still relies on coal to supply over 70% of its energy needs. Coupled with lax environmental regulations, this has led to massive water and
, leaving China with 20 of the world's 30 most polluted cities. Consequently, the government has promised to use more
, planning to make renewables constitute 30% of China's total energy production by 2050. Efforts have also been made to streamline bureaucracy and reduce wastefulness by government enterprises.
Science and technologyMain articles:
[tr][/tr][tr]By era[/tr]This box:
Value in dollars of high-tech exports by country in 2009. The value of Chinese high-tech exports was more than twice that of any other nation.
HistoricalChina was a world leader in science and technology until the
, such as,
), later became widespread in Asia and Europe. Chinese mathematicians were the first to use
. However, Chinese scientific activity entered a prolonged decline in the fourteenth century. Unlike the European scientists of the
, medieval Chinese thinkers did not attempt to reduce observations of nature to mathematical laws, and they did not form a scholarly community offering
and progressive research. There was an increasing concentration on literature, the arts, and public administration, while science and technology were seen as trivial or restricted to limited practical applications. The causes of this
continue to be debated.
After repeated military defeats by Western nations in the 19th century, Chinese reformers began promoting modern science and technology as part of the
. After the Communist victory in the Chinese Civil War in 1949, efforts were made to organize science and technology based on the model of the. However, Mao Zedong's
of 1966–76 had a catastrophic effect on Chinese research, as academics were persecuted and the training of scientists and engineers was severely curtailed for nearly a decade. After Mao's death in 1976, science and technology was established as one of the
, and the Soviet-inspired academic system was gradually reformed.
Modern eraSince the end of the Cultural Revolution, China has become one of the world's leading technological powers, spending over US$100 billion on scientific research and development in 2011 alone. Science and technology are seen as vital for achieving economic and political goals, and are held as a source of national pride to a degree sometimes described as &techno-nationalism&. Prominent Chinese scientists have included the oncologist
, who became the first doctor to cure a solid cancer with
in 1956. Chinese-born physicists have won the
three times to date.
China is rapidly developing its education system with an emphasis on
; in 2009, it produced over 10,000 Ph.D. engineering graduates, and as many as 500,000
graduates, more than any other country. China is also the world's second-largest publisher of
, producing 121,500 in 2010 alone, including 5,200 in leading international scientific journals. Chinese technology companies such as
have become world leaders in telecommunications and personal computing, and Chinese
are consistently ranked among the
. China is furthermore the world's largest investor in renewable energy technology.
The Chinese space program is one of the world's most active, and is a major source of national pride. In 1970, China launched its first satellite,
. In 2003, China became the third country to independently send humans into space, with
's spaceflight aboard
; as of June 2013,
have journeyed into space. In 2008, China conducted its first
mission. In 2011, China's first space station module,
, was launched, marking the first step in a project to assemble
by 2020. The
includes a
, and possibly a manned
in 2025. Experience gained from the lunar program may be used for future programs such as the
. However, some foreign analysts have accused China of covertly using its civilian space missions for military purposes, such as the launch of surveillance satellites.
InfrastructureCommunicationsMain article:
China currently has the
of any country in the world, with over 1 billion users as of May 2012. It also has the world's largest number of
. By December 2010, China had around 457 million internet users, an increase of 19% over the previous year, and by the end of 2011 the number of internet users had exceeded 500 million. According to the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC), China's average internet connection speed in 2011 was 100.9
/s, less than half of the global average of 212.5 kbit/s.
, the country's two largest broadband providers, accounted for 20% of global broadband subscribers, whereas the world's ten largest broadband service providers combined accounted for 39% of the world's broadband customers. China Telecom alone serves 55 million broadband subscribers, while China Unicom serves more than 40 million. The massive rise in internet use in China continues to fuel rapid broadband growth, whereas the world's other major broadband ISPs operate in the mature markets of the developed world, with high levels of broadband penetration and rapidly slowing subscriber growth. Several Chinese telecommunications companies, most notably
, have become highly profitable in overseas markets, but have also been accused of spying for the Chinese military.
TransportMain article:
There are over 85,000 km (52,800 mi) of divided expressways in China.
A high-speed
leaving, Shanghai, in 2006.
Since the late 1990s, China's national
network has been significantly expanded through the creation of a network of, known as the National Trunk Highway System (NTHS). By the end of 2011, China's expressways had reached a total length of 85,000 km (53,000 mi), second only to the highway network of the United States. Private car ownership is growing rapidly in China, which surpassed the United States as the world's largest automobile market in 2009, with total car sales of over 13.6 million. Analysts predict that annual car sales in China may rise as high as 40 million by 2020. A side-effect of the rapid growth of China's road network has been a significant rise in traffic accidents, mostly caused by poorly enforced traffic laws – in 2011 alone, around 62,000 Chinese died in road accidents, and efforts to improve traffic safety have had limited success.
China also possesses
, with over 9,676 km (6,012 mi) of service routes. Of these, 3,515 km (2,184 mi) serve trains with top speeds of 300 km/h (190 mph). In 2011, China produced its first high-speed trains built entirely without foreign assistance. China intends to operate approximately 16,000 km (9,900 mi) of high-speed rail lines by 2020.
systems are also rapidly developing in China's major cities, in the form of networks of underground or
systems. China is additionally developing its own
system, dubbed
, which began offering commercial navigation services across Asia in 2012, and is planned to offer global coverage by 2020.
As of 2012, China is the world's largest constructor of new airports, and the Chinese government has begun a US$250 billion five-year project to expand and modernize domestic air travel. However, long-distance transportation remains dominated by railways and charter bus systems. Railways are the vital carrier in C they are monopolized by the state, and divided into various railway bureaux in different regions. Due to huge demand, the system is regularly subject to overcrowding, particularly during holiday seasons, such as
during the
. The Chinese rail network carried an estimated 1.68 billion total passengers in 2010 alone. In urban areas,
remain an extremely common mode of transport, despite the increasing prevalence of automobiles – as of 2012, there are approximately 470 million bicycles in China.
DemographicsMain article:
A 2009 population density map of the People's Republic of China. The eastern coastal provinces are much more densely populated than the western interior.
recorded the population of the People's Republic of China as approximately 1,338,612,968. About 21% of the population (145,461,833 128,445,739 females) were 14 years old or younger, 71% (482,439,115 455,960,489 females) were between 15 and 64 years old, and 8% (48,562,635 53,103,902 females) were over 65 years old. The population growth rate for 2006 was 0.6%.
By end of 2010, the proportion of mainland Chinese people aged 14 or younger was 16.60%, while the number aged 60 or older grew to 13.26%, giving a total proportion of 29.86%
. The proportion of the population of workable age was thus around 70%.
Although a middle-income country by Western standards, China's rapid growth has
of its people out of poverty since 1978. Today, about 10% of the Chinese population lives below the poverty line of US$1 per day, down from 64% in 1978. Urban unemployment in China reportedly declined to 4% by the end of 2007, although true overall unemployment may be as high as 10%.
With a population of over 1.3 billion and dwindling natural resources, China is very concerned about its
and has attempted, with mixed results, to implement a strict
policy, known as the &.& The government's goal is one child per family, with exceptions for ethnic minorities and a degree of flexibility in rural areas. It is hoped that population growth in China will
in the early decades of the 21st century, though some projections estimate a population of anywhere between 1.4 billion and 1.6 billion by 2025. China's family planning minister has indicated that the one-child policy will be maintained until at least 2020.
Population of China from 1949 to 2008.
The one-child policy is resisted, particularly in rural areas, because of the need for agricultural labour and a traditional preference for boys (who can later serve as male heirs). Families who breach the policy often lie during the census.
The decreasing reliability of Chinese population statistics since family planning began in the late 1970s has made evaluating the effectiveness of the policy difficult. Data from the 2010 census implies that the
may now be around 1.4. The government is particularly concerned with the large imbalance in the
at birth, apparently the result of a combination of traditional preference for boys and family planning pressure, which led to a ban on using
devices for non-emergency applications, in an attempt to prevent
According to the 2010 census, there were 118.06 boys born for every 100 girls, which is 0.53 points lower than the ratio obtained from a population sample survey carried out in 2005. However, the gender ratio of 118.06 is still beyond the normal range of around 105 percent, and experts warn of increased social instability should this trend continue. For the population born between the years 1900 and 2000, it is estimated that there could be 35.59 million
than males. Other demographers argue that perceived gender imbalances may arise from the underreporting of female births. A recent study suggests that as many as three million Chinese babies are hidden by their parents every year. According to the
, males accounted for 51.27 percent of the total population, while females made up 48.73 percent of the total.
Ethnic groupsMain articles:
China officially recognizes 56 distinct ethnic groups, the largest of which are the
, who constitute about 91.51% of the total population. The Han Chinese – the
– outnumber other ethnic groups in every province, municipality and autonomous region except
, and are descended from ancient
tribes living along the
Ethnic minorities account for about 8.49% of the population of China, according to the 2010 census. Compared with the 2000 population census, the Han population increased by 66,537,177 persons, or 5.74%, while the population of the 55 national minorities combined increased by 7,362,627 persons, or 6.92%.
The 2010 census recorded a total of 593,832 foreign citizens living in China. The largest such groups were from South Korea (120,750), the United States (71,493) and Japan (66,159).
LanguagesMain articles:
1990 map of Chinese ethnolinguistic groups.
The languages most spoken in China belong to the
family. There are also several major
within the Chinese language itself. The most spoken varieties are
of over 70% of the population),
(includes),
. Non-Sinitic languages spoken widely by ethnic minorities include
., a variety of Mandarin based on the
, is the official national language of China and is used as a
between people of different linguistic backgrounds.
was the written standard in China for thousands of years, and allowed for written communication between speakers of various unintelligible languages and dialects in China.
baihua, is the written standard, based on the Mandarin dialect and first popularized in Ming Dynasty novels. It was adopted, with significant modifications, during the early 20th century as the national standard. Classical Chinese is still part of the high school curriculum, and is thus intelligible to some degree to many Chinese. Since their promulgation by the government in 1956,
have become the official standardized
within mainland China, supplanting the use of the earlier.
UrbanizationSee also:
Since 2000, China's cities have expanded at an average rate of 10% annually. It is estimated that China's urban population will increase by 400 million people by 2025, when its cities will house a combined population of over one billion. The country's urbanization rate increased from 17.4% to 46.6% between 1978 and 2009, a scale unprecedented in human history. Between 150 and 200 million
work part-time in the major cities, returning home to the countryside periodically with their earnings.
Today, China has dozens of cities with one million or more long-term residents, including the three
of Beijing, Hong Kong, and S by 2025, the country will be home to 221 cities with over a million inhabitants. The figures in the table below are from the 2008 census, and are only estimates of the urban populations within admini a different ranking exists when considering the total municipal populations (which includes suburban and rural populations). The large && of migrant workers make conducting censuses in u the figures below include only long-term residents.
EducationMain article:
in Beijing.
In 1986, China set the long-term goal of providing compulsory nine-year basic education to every child. As of 2007, there were 396,567 primary schools, 94,116 secondary schools, and 2,236 higher education institutions in China. In February 2006, the government advanced its basic education goal by pledging to provide completely free nine-year education, including textbooks and fees. Free compulsory education in China consists of elementary school and middle school between the ages of 6 and 15; almost all children in urban areas continue with three years of high school.
As of % of the population over age 15 are literate, compared to only 20% in 1950. In 2000, China's literacy rate among 15-to-24-year-olds was 98.9% (99.2% for males and 98.5% for females). In March 2007, the Chinese government declared education a national &strategic priority&; the central budget for national scholarships was tripled between 2007 and 2009, and 223.5 billion yuan (US$28.65 billion) of extra state funding was allocated between 2007 and 2012 to improve compulsory education in rural areas.
In 2009, Chinese students from Shanghai achieved the world's best results in mathematics, science and literacy, as tested by the
(PISA), a worldwide evaluation of 15-year-old school pupils' scholastic performance.
The quality of
varies considerably across the country. The consistently top-ranked universities in mainland China are:
HealthMain article:
, together with its counterparts in the provincial health bureaux, oversees the health needs of the Chinese population. An emphasis on public health and preventive medicine has characterized Chinese health policy since the early 1950s. At that time, the Communist Party started the
, which was aimed at improving sanitation and hygiene, as well as treating and preventing several diseases. Diseases such as
, which were previously rife in China, were nearly eradicated by the campaign. After Deng Xiaoping began instituting economic reforms in 1978, the health of the Chinese public improved rapidly due to better nutrition, although many of the free public health services provided in the countryside disappeared along with the People's Communes. Healthcare in China became mostly
, and experienced a significant rise in quality. The national life expectancy at birth rose from about 35 years in 1949 to 73.18 years in 2008, and infant mortality decreased from 300 per thousand in the 1950s to around 23 per thousand in 2006. Malnutrition as of 2002
stood at 12% of the population, according to United Nations
sources. In 2009, the government began a large-scale healthcare provision initiative worth US$124 billion, which is expected to eventually cover 90% of China's population.
As of 2012, China's national average
at birth is 74.8 years, and its
is 15.6 per thousand births. 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
and hundreds of millions of
, a possible future
, and an increase in
among urban youths. China's large population and densely populated cities have led to serious disease outbreaks in recent years, such as the 2003 outbreak of
, although this has since been largely contained. Pollution is proving to be a particularly severe threat – in 2007, estimates of annual excess deaths in China from air and water pollution were placed at 760,000 people, and as many as 500 million Chinese lacked access to clean drinking water in 2005.
In 2011, China was estimated to be the third-largest supplier of
in the world. However, the Chinese population has suffered from the development and distribution of
ReligionMain article:
is the initial site of the
branch of Chinese Buddhism, originally built in 598 AD during the
is guaranteed by China's constitution, although religious organizations which lack official approval can be subject to state persecution. An accurate estimate of the number of religious adherents is hard to obtain because of a lack of official data, but there is a general consensus that religious belief has been enjoying a resurgence in China since the late 1980s. A 1998 survey reported by
found that 59% (over 700 million) of the population was. A later survey, conducted in 2007, found that there were 300 million religious believers in China, constituting 23% of the population, as distinct from the official figure of 100 million.
, the Chinese civilization has been influenced by various religions, including local
and numerous new religions. Of these, Taoism and Buddhism have had the greatest impact in shaping Chinese culture. Taoism is the most notable Chinese indigenous institutional religion, often including and managing local folk religion, while
in the 1st century and became widely influential in certain periods of the history of China.
, northeast China. By 1921, Harbin had a
of around 100,000, feeding the growth of Christianity in the city.
is one of the
in the world.
Today, according to different surveys,
religions, which sometimes fall under the label of Taoism or are administered by the Taoist clergy, are the dominant, being practiced by over 30% of the Chinese population. Buddhism is practiced by between 10.85% and 18% of the Chinese.
is practiced by 3.2%, 4% to 5% of the population, while
by 2% of the population.
Some of the
practice their
, for example
is the traditional religion of the
that of the
that of the
. The traditional indigenous religion of
, while most of
, a form of
. However, Tibetan Buddhism has also spread to other areas of China adopted by many
(Dacheng) and its subsets
(Ami