China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the world's second-most populous country. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and borders fourteen countries by land. With an area of nearly 9.6 million square kilometers (3,700,000 sq mi), it is the third-largest country by total land area. The country is divided into 33 province-level divisions, inclusive of 22 provinces, five autonomous regions, four municipalities, and two semi-autonomous special administrative regions. Beijing is the national capital, while Shanghai is its most populous city and largest financial center.

The region has been inhabited since the Paleolithic era. Early Chinese dynasties, such as the Xia, Shang and the Zhou, emerged in the basin of the Yellow River before the late second millennium BCE. The eighth to third centuries BCE saw a breakdown in Zhou authority and significant conflicts, as well as the emergence of literature, philosophy, and historiography. In 221 BCE, China was unified under an emperor for the first time. Appointed non-hereditary officials began ruling counties instead of the aristocracy, ushering in more than two millennia of imperial dynasties including the Qin, Han, Tang, Yuan, Ming, and Qing. With the invention of gunpowder and paper, the establishment of the Silk Road, and the building of the Great Wall, Chinese culture—including languages, traditions, architecture, philosophy and technology—flourished and has heavily influenced East Asia and beyond.

China is a unitary one-party socialist republic led by the CCP, and the party de jure still considers itself committed to Marxism–Leninism. It is a founding member of the UN and one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council. It is a founding member of several multilateral and regional organizations such as the AIIB, the Silk Road Fund, the New Development Bank, and the RCEP. It is a member of the BRICS, the G20, APEC, the SCO, and the East Asia Summit. Making up around one-fifth of the world economy, the Chinese economy is the world's largest economy by GDP at purchasing power parity, the second-largest economy by nominal GDP, and the second-wealthiest country, albeit ranking poorly in measures of democracy, human rights and religious freedoms. The country has been one of the fastest-growing major economies and is the world's largest manufacturer and exporter, as well as the second-largest importer. China is a nuclear-weapon state with the world's largest standing army by military personnel and the second-largest defense budget. It is a great power and a regional power. (Full article...)

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Diagram of bracket and cantilever arms from the building manual Yingzao Fashi (published in 1103) of the Song Dynasty

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Zhejiang cuisine, alternatively known as Zhe cuisine, is one of the Eight Culinary Traditions of Chinese cuisine. Zhejiang cuisine contains four different styles, Hangzhou, Shaoxing, Ningbo, and Wenzhou (also known as Ou cuisine). It derives from the traditional ways of cooking in Zhejiang Province, which is located south of Shanghai and centred around Hangzhou, a historical Chinese capital. In general, Zhejiang cuisine is not greasy but has a fresh and soft flavour with a mellow fragrance. (Full article...)

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The Classic of Rites
The Classic of Rites
Credit: Snowyowls

The Classic of Rites, one of the Five Classics of Confucianism, which described social forms, ancient rites, and court ceremonies of the Zhou dynasty.

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In the news

13 March 2024 –
Seven people are killed and 27 others are injured in an explosion caused by a suspected gas leak at a restaurant in Langfang, Hebei Province, China. (China Daily) (China Daily)
5 March 2024 – Territorial disputes in the South China Sea
Four Philippine Coast Guard sailors are injured in contested waters when watercannons are deployed by the Chinese Coast Guard. The vessels were escorting a resupply convoy to a Philippine outpost in disputed territory at Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea, claimed by several nations. (CNN)
28 February 2024 –
China urges the world's largest nuclear states to negotiate a "no first use" treaty. China and India are currently the only two nuclear powers to formally maintain a no first use policy. (Reuters)
The Canadian government releases its report into the high-profile firings of two scientists from the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg, Manitoba, in 2021, stating that the pair worked closely and covertly with the Chinese government. (National Post)
23 February 2024 – 2024 Nanjing building fire
At least 15 people are killed and 44 more injured during a fire at an apartment block in Nanjing, China. (Al Jazeera)
22 February 2024 – 2024 Guangzhou bridge collapse
Five people are killed when a barge collides with the Lixinsha Bridge in Guangzhou, China. (Reuters) (The New York Times)

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China's Politics

Emblem of the Communist Party of China
Emblem of the Communist Party of China
Xi Jinping
Xi Jinping

The General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, officially General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, is head of the Chinese Communist Party and the highest-ranking official within China, a standing member of the Politburo and head of the Secretariat. The officeholder is usually considered the paramount leader of China.

According to the Constitution, the General Secretary serves as an ex officio member of the Politburo Standing Committee, China's de facto top decision-making body. Since the early 1990s, the holder of the post has been, except for transitional periods, the Chairman of the Central Military Commission, making the holder the Commander-in-chief of the People's Liberation Army.

The current General Secretary is Xi Jinping (picture), who took the office at the 18th National Congress on 15 November 2012.

National Emblem of the Republic of China
National Emblem of the Republic of China
Tsai Ing-wen
Tsai Ing-wen

The President of the Republic of China is the head of state of the Republic of China (ROC).

The Constitution names the president as head of state and commander-in-chief of the Republic of China Armed Forces (formerly known as the National Revolutionary Army). The president is responsible for conducting foreign relations, such as concluding treaties, declaring war, and making peace. The president must promulgate all laws and has no right to veto. Other powers of the president include granting amnesty, pardon or clemency, declaring martial law, and conferring honors and decorations.

The current President is Tsai Ing-wen (picture), since May 20, 2016. The first woman to be elected to the office, Tsai is the seventh president of the Republic of China under the 1947 Constitution and the second president from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).

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Wikipedias in languages found in China

粵語 / 广东话 (Cantonese)           古文 / 文言文 (Classical Chinese)           赣语 (Gan)           Hak-kâ-fa (Hakka)           قازاق تىلى (Kazakh)           中文 / 普通话 (Mandarin) (Now unable to access in
China Mainland because of the GFW)          
闽东语 (Min Dong)           闽南语 (Min-nan)           བོད་ཡིག (Tibetan)           ئۇيغۇرچە (Uyghur)           吴语 (Wu)           Sawcuengh (Zhuang)

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wiki incubator Xiang (湘语) wiki incubator Pu-Xian Min (莆仙话) wiki incubator Min Bei (闽北语)
wiki incubator lahu (拉祜族,拉祜语) wiki incubator Nuosu (彝族,彝语) wiki incubator hmong (苗族,苗语)
wiki incubator Bouyei (布依族,布依语) wiki incubator manchu (满族,满语) wiki incubator Xong (苗族,湘西苗语)
wiki incubator Daw (苗族,白苗苗语) wiki incubator xibo (锡伯族,锡伯语) wiki incubator salar (撒拉族,撒拉语)
wiki incubator цзинпо (景颇族,景颇语) wiki incubator Tai Nüa (傣族,德宏傣语) wiki incubator Amis (阿美族,阿美語)
wiki incubator Western Yugur (裕固族,西部裕固语) wiki incubator northern tujia (土家族,北部土家语)


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