Just how big is China really?
China is one of the largest countries in the world. We’ve seen it on a map, but it’s hard to envisage just how big it is. Here are some facts and comparisons to help you understand China’s huge size – and put its population and diversity into perspective!
How many people live in China?
- China has the largest population of a single country in the world. Its current population is over 1.4 billion, which is 18% of the whole world’s population! Compare that to the US, whose population makes up for a comparatively tiny 4.2% and the UK, which makes up for just 0.9%.
- Shanghai is the third most populated city in the world, with a population of over 27 million. That’s over three times that of New York City’s 8.5 million.
- China has over 600 hundred cities, over 100 of which are home to over 1 million people. Compare that to the US, with only 10 cities with over 1 million people, or the UK, with only one city with a population over this number: London.
What is the size of China?
- China is the fourth largest country in the world. It’s so large that some parts of China are closer to countries like Turkey and Egypt than other parts of China. For example, if you’re in Akto in Western China, you’re closer to the Maldives than you are to Da Hinggan Ling, a prefecture in North-East China.
- China is 9.6 million km2, whilst the UK is 243,000 km2. That means that China is 39 times bigger than the UK. An equivalent comparison is that the Leaning Tower of Pisa is 39 times taller than the average UK woman.
- By car, travelling from Beijing to Shanghai is a 1,200km journey that takes about 12 hours – the same amount of time as driving from London to Salzburg, a route that takes you through four different countries!
- Travelling from the northernmost point of China, Mohe county in Da Hinggan Ling, to the southernmost point, Hai’an in Guangdong, would take you 53 hours by car on a 4,900km journey. That’s the equivalent of driving from Plymouth to the very top of Scotland and back down again, twice!
How diverse is China’s population?
- Due to China’s population and size, it is a diverse country, composed of 56 different ethnic groups. In Shanghai, you’ll find world-leading technology companies and the latest iPhone in every passerby’s hand. Venture out into to interact with minority peoples with a different way of life, like the Bai people in Yunnan, a province in South-West China. Unlike those living in China’s cities, most Bai people make their living from the land, are Buddhist and participate in their own festivals.
- Over 70% of people in China speak Mandarin, but there are still many other major languages. Most are related to Mandarin – they are collectively called hanyu, and 92% of the Chinese population speak one of these languages. But these languages are still very different; although they are related, they are as different as English, Italian and French to each other. Along with these hanyu languages, there are about 300 minority languages which correspond with geographical areas.
What does Chinese rule look like?
- China exercises jurisdiction over 22 provinces, five autonomous regions, four direct-controlled municipalities and two special administrative regions.
- China’s smallest province, Hainan, is approximately three times larger than the UK’s biggest county, Yorkshire.
- Autonomous regions in China are home to large populations of a specific minority group. China’s largest autonomous region, Xinjiang in North-West China, has an area of 1.665 million km2. That means seven UKs could fit into this region!
