China's total area covers nearly 10 million square kilometres. Two-thirds of the country's territory is highlands and mountains, with a population living at an altitude of 1,000 to 4,000 meters above sea level and mountainous areas reaching 7,000 to 8,000 meters high. The climate varies from subarctic to subtropical.
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Most Han settled densely in the eastern part of the country—also called "inner China"—along the coast, on the plains, in river valleys, and the foothills. Most Han lives in the temperate zone, at elevations below 1,000 meters. Minorities are more sparsely spread over the remaining 55 percent of the country, located north, southwest, and west of the main Han settlement areas.
Inner China lends itself to intensive and sedentary agriculture, emphasizing grain crops supplemented by vegetables and fruits. Irrigation systems have long been used to reduce dependence on rainfall and damage from floods and droughts. These problems have diminished in recent decades.
Since 1949, the government has completed many hydraulic projects along the lower reaches of the Huang He (Yellow River) and Huai and Hai rivers. Major projects are planned for Yangzi (Chang Jiang) in the coming decades. In addition, introducing chemical fertilizers and insecticides has increased productivity even as hillside drainage and terracing projects have cleared additional land. On the contrary,
There are eight main geographic areas, which somewhat overlap with areas of culture or subculture (regional culture).
1. Northeast
Northeast. This area, formerly known as Manchuria and now known as Dongbei, consisted of the three provinces of Jilin, Liaoning, and Heilongjiang, as well as eastern Inner Mongolia. To the north, there are large areas of coniferous forest or mixed coniferous/broadleaf forest, which are rich sources of timber. In the south, large-scale mechanised farming is on the plains and reclaimed land.
Here are the majority of China's state farms. Dongbei has long, cold winters and heavy rains during the short, hot summers. An adequate water supply supports summer crops of wheat, corn, potatoes, sugar beets, soybeans, and gaoliang (sorghum). Some areas are warm enough to grow rice and cotton. Dongbei's leading source of wealth is industry.
Since 1949, Dongbei has grown rapidly as a significant industrial area, providing oil and petrochemical products, coal, iron and steel, motor vehicles, and various consumer products. The rapid population growth was mainly due to the massive Han immigration from northern China, beginning in the nineteenth century and increasing after 1949. Indigenous national minorities include Manchus, Koreans, Ewenki, Oroqen, Mongols, and Hui. They now constitute for less than 8% of the population.
2. North China Plain
North China Plain. This inner China region includes the provinces of Henan, Hebei, and Shandong and the northern parts of Jiangsu and Anhui. Moving from north to south, the area has 190 to 250 days of frost-free, light snowfall and hot (30°C), rainy summers. The rich deposits of the Huang He and its tributaries have enriched and built-up land in many areas.
Floods and droughts continue to be a problem due to erratic rainfall. Intensive agriculture: forests and grasslands have long been used for plowing, and about 40 percent of the total area is under cultivation. About 30 percent of the Chinese population lives here, mostly in agriculture. The average population density is 400 people per square kilometer, mainly concentrated in villages with a core of fifty to several hundred households surrounded by fields.
The main staple crops are spring wheat, corn, millet, and sweet potatoes, which are harvested in late summer and fall. Tobacco and cotton are important commercial crops. Some of the surplus rural labour has been absorbed into the industrial and commercial growth of large cities—such as Beijing, Jinan, Loyang, Shijiazhuang, and Tianjin—or industrial centres such as the Shengli oil field in Shandong and coastal development zones.
3. Loes Plateu
The northwestern plains are loess lands and steppe areas, encompassing the highly developed eastern provinces of Shanxi, Shaanxi and Gansu. One of the important centres of Chinese civilization in the past, the Loess Plateau remains predominantly Han. Heavy deposits of loess soil blown by the wind are fertile but brittle, prone to erosion, gullying and landslides.
Most of the land is infertile. Rainfall is unpredictable. Winter temperatures drop below freezing and summers are hot. Farming was most successful along the Huang He and Wei and Fen rivers. Wheat, millet, and corn are the main crops and some multiple plantings are possible. Rural areas support a lighter population density than the North China Plain, and the standard of living is generally much lower except in the southeast sector.
To the northwest and beyond the Great Wall, the desert begins. This region was once part of the Silk Road to Central Asia. Since 1949 mining and industry have become very important.
4. Northwest
Geographically and culturally part of Central Asia, the region includes western Gansu, Xinjiang, Ningxia, and parts of Inner Mongolia. Its topography is highly variable and includes vast expanses of desert and arid deserts, fertile oases, grassy plateaus, and high mountains. The Altai range rises to over 4,000 meters above sea level and Tianshan to 7,435. In some areas, the climate is generally dry, averaging only 10 centimeters of rain annually.
Populations are sparse on prairies and mountain meadows; in many places, less than one person per square kilometer. This region is a major source of Chinese sheep, cattle, horses and camels. Some areas are suitable for grain and cotton production. There are relatively few cities: the largest is Urumqi, and Kashgar, which was a stage on the old Silk Road. A large percentage of the population includes minority nationalities: Uigur, Hui, Kazak, Kyrgyz, Mongol, Tajik and others.
In Xinjiang, more than half of the population belongs to the Turkic-speaking minority, and nearly a third of Ningxia's population is Hui. Due to heavy Han immigration, the Mongols now make up no more than 15 percent of the population of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. In Xinjiang, more than half of the population belongs to the Turkic-speaking minority, and nearly a third of Ningxia's population is Hui.
Due to heavy Han immigration, the Mongols now make up no more than 15 percent of the population of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. In Xinjiang, more than half of the population belongs to the Turkic-speaking minority, and nearly a third of Ningxia's population is Hui. Due to heavy Han immigration, the Mongols now make up no more than 15 percent of the population of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.
5. Lower Yangzi/South Central China
Lower Yangzi/South Central China. Dominated today by Wuhan and Shanghai, major industrial and commercial cities, the area had an important urban center as well as a prosperous and productive agricultural sector even before the advent of the covenant port in the nineteenth century.
This includes suburban Shanghai Municipality, Jiangsu, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi provinces, and parts of Anhui and Zhejiang provinces. With lakes and many navigable waterways, it is one of the wealthiest and most densely populated areas in inner China.
The climate is mild, with 240 frost-free days and moderate rainfall.Double planting is standard, with winter wheat and summer rice alternating. For generations, cotton, silk, pork and poultry, vegetable farming, marine and freshwater fisheries, and rural industry have added to farmers' incomes. In recent years, the expansion of large cities, exploitation of rich natural resources, and a rapidly developing free market system have made this a leading area in industrial and agricultural products.
6. South Maritime
This vast area includes the southern provinces of Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong, Hainan, and Guangxi. It may have to be expanded to include Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan. The language is very diverse, and in some parts, there are large minority populations—particularly in Guangxi, where the minority population makes up nearly 40 percent of the total population.
Some scholars would divide the region into a tea and rice region in the north and a double rice region in the south. However, cultivation, population density, urbanization, and communications depend on altitude: much of the area is mountainous, and temperatures and soil quality vary. In the vicinity of the Pearl River Delta, near Guangzhou, which enjoys one of the highest standards of living in China, the population density is 2,000 people per square kilometer, while in the highlands, it is closer to 200 people per square kilometer. Yao, She, Li, and Zhuang generally lived in highland areas unsuitable for Han farming methods.
It is considered one of the wealthiest regions in China today. Along the coast, the Special Economic Zone and foreign investment have revitalized the modern economic sector and caused dramatic changes in living standards and lifestyles. And Zhuang generally lived in highland areas unsuitable for Han farming methods. It is considered one of the wealthiest regions in China today.
7. Southwest
The provinces of Sichuan, Yunnan, and Guizhou, along with western Hunan, are ethnically diverse. However, the Han ethnicity clearly makes up the majority. In Yunnan and Guizhou, the minority population was 32 percent and 26 percent, respectively, although they were under 4 percent in Sichuan. At least there are twenty-six different minority groups can be found in Yunnan.
Among the largest are Miao, Yi, Dong, Tujia, Hani, Dai, Tibetan, and Lisu. Most of the territory was once part of the Nanzhao Kingdom. Until recently, several important urban centers were inhabited mainly by non-Han people—for example, Dali and Lijiang in Yunnan. The climate generally ranges from temperate to tropical, depending on altitude and latitude.
Most of its territory is rugged mountains and plateaus, rising west into Tibet.Especially the minority groups who inhabit the mountains and highlands above 1,200 meters. The Han population was concentrated on the plains and at lower elevations near water sources for irrigation. However, irrigated agriculture and wet rice farming are also found among some minorities, particularly the Dai, Bai, and Naxi.
In recent years, the state has driven cash crops, especially tobacco, rubber, sugar, tea, coffee and tropical fruits in the southernmost region. Until the 1950s, slash-and-burn agriculture was practised in the highlands, where the population depended on wheat, buckwheat, potatoes, corn and others. Grain comes with hunting and gathering forests.
North Yunnan has become a major forest area. The dwindling mountain grasslands of northern Yunnan and eastern Sichuan are still used by Yi and Miao herders. Despite rich natural resources, road and rail transport and telecommunications remain underdeveloped in most regions.
Only the Sichuan Basin, which is highly industrialized, rich in energy resources and mineral resources, and connected by rail and river to Yangzi, match the productivity and wealth in inner China. There is a wide gap in living standards between Sichuan and the rest of the region and between the Han and other peoples of the region.
8. Tibetan Plateau
Tibet, Qinghai and western Sichuan are mainly located above 3,000 meters. Barley, buckwheat, and some wheat are grown in the southeastern valley, while grazing (cultivating yaks, sheep, goats, and horses) is widespread in Qinghai and western Tibet.
The traditional trade route from Tibet to Nepal and India, which closed in 1949, only recently reopened. Rich mineral deposits are just beginning to be discovered and exploited. Poor communication routes to inner China have helped make this the poorest region in the country.
The population density is low, there are few urban centers, and the majority of the population is non-Han. In addition to the large Tibetan population, minorities include the Hui, Lhoba, Moinba, Qiang, Sala (Salar), and Tu.