China

Formal name: People's Republic of China, (Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo)
Capital:
Beijing Chief of state: President HU Jintao (since 15 March 2003)

Chief of the state: President HU Jintao (since 15 March 2003)
Head of government: Premier WEN Jiabao (since 16 March 2003)

Population: 1,330,044,544 (July 2008 est.)

Ethnic groups: Han Chinese 91.9%, Zhuang, Uygur, Hui, Yi, Tibetan, Miao, Manchu, Mongol, Buyi, Korean, and other nationalities 8.1%

Languages: Standard Chinese or Mandarin (Putonghua), Yue (Cantonese), Wu (Shanghaiese), Minbei (Fuzhou), Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese), Xiang, Gan, Hakka dialects and some minority languages.

Religions: Daoism (Taoism), Buddhism, Muslim 2%, Christian 4%

Area:
9,596,960 sq km, fourth largest country after Russia, Canada, and US.


Border countries: Afghanistan 76 km, Bhutan 470 km, Burma 2,185 km, India 3,380 km, Kazakhstan 1,533 km, North Korea 1,416 km, Kyrgyzstan 858 km, Laos 423 km, Mongolia 4,677 km, Nepal 1,236 km, Pakistan 523 km, Russia (northeast) 3,605 km, Russia (northwest) 40 km, Tajikistan 414 km, Vietnam 1,281 km.

Regional borders:
Hong Kong 30 km, Macau 0.34 km

Sea borders:
East China Sea, Korea Bay, Yellow Sea, and South China Sea, between North Korea and Vietnam

Climate: From tropical in south to subarctic in north

Terrain:
Mostly mountains, high plateaus and deserts in west; plains, deltas and hills in east

Lowest elevation:
Turpan Pendi -154 m in Xinjiang Province, NW China

Highest elevation:
Mount Everest 8,850 m at the border to Qinghai Province

Administrative divisions: 23 provinces (sheng) incl. Taiwan, 5 autonomous regions (zizhiqu) and 4 municipalities (shi)

Provinces:
Anhui, Fujian, Gansu, Guangdong, Guizhou, Hainan, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Jilin, Liaoning, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, Zhejiang . OBS. China considers Taiwan its 23rd province

Autonomous regions:
Guangxi, Nei Mongol, Ningxia, Xinjiang, Xizang (Tibet)

Municipalities:
Beijing, Chongqing, Shanghai, Tianjin