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China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), 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 9.6 million square kilometers (3,700,000 sq mi), making it the third-largest country by area. It is divided into 33 province-level divisions, including two special administrative regions. Beijing is the capital, while Shanghai is the most populous city by urban area. Its geography features the vast Central Plain, major rivers such as the Yangtze and Yellow River, deserts, subtropical and temperate forests, and mountain ranges such as the Himalayas.

The first humans in China arrived during the Paleolithic. By the 2nd millennium BCE, dynastic states had emerged. The 1st millennium BCE saw political turmoil and cultural growth. In 221 BCE, China was unified under the Qin and the succeeding Han dynasty, ushering in two millennia of imperial rule across periods of unity and division. Its achievements include widespread cultural influence, the Silk Road, and the invention of gunpowder, paper, printing, and the compass. After increased Western political, economic, and philosophical influence, the 1911 Revolution overthrew the empire and established the Republic of China (ROC). The Warlord Era and Chinese Civil War followed, interrupted by Japan's invasion. This ended in a Chinese victory in 1945. In 1949, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) proclaimed the People's Republic of China and forced the ROC's retreat to Taiwan. Both sides claim political legitimacy. CCP attempts to advance communism faltered through famine and political turmoil. The reform and opening up that began in 1978 moved China towards a market economy, spurring economic growth.

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 organizations. China is the world's largest manufacturer and makes up about one-fifth of the global economy. It is the second largest economy on Earth. International organizations rank China poorly in measures of democracy and human rights. Since the 2020s, it has been described as a superpower due to its large military, nuclear stockpile, and influence in geopolitics, science and technology, manufacturing, economics and culture.

Chinese art and culture has influenced much of Asia. Chinese characters are among the oldest writing systems on Earth, with a literary tradition dating back millennia to the Chinese classics. China is the birthplace of Confucianism and Daoism, which form the traditional three teachings of Chinese philosophy and folk religion alongside Buddhism. Chinese cuisine is diverse and highly regional, with rice as a staple in the south and wheat in the north. It has over 60 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including the Great Wall and Grand Canal. The Han, mostly speakers of Sinitic languages, are China's dominant ethnicity, although it is home to 55 recognized minorities, including the Hui, Mongols, Tibetans, Uyghurs, and Zhuang.