Ancient China arose on the basis of Neolithic cultures that developed in the 5th - 3rd millennia BC. e. in the middle reaches of the Yellow River. The Yellow River basin became the main territory for the formation of the ancient civilization of China, which developed for a long time in conditions of relative isolation. Only from the middle of the 1st millennium BC. e. the process of expanding the territory begins in a southerly direction, first to the area of the Yangza basin, and then further to the south. At the end of our era, the state of Ancient China extended far beyond the Yellow River basin, although northern border, the ethnic territory of the ancient Chinese remains almost unchanged.
China occupies a significant part of the territory of East and Central Asia. The diversity of China's landscape is not surprising. This huge country stretches for five and a half thousand kilometers from the banks of the border Siberian Amur River in the north, to the tropical islands (at the latitude of Thailand) in the South China Sea in the south. And five thousand two hundred kilometers from west to east, from the Pamir passes to the Shandong Peninsula.
The terrain of China is predominantly mountainous, with significant elevation changes. There are two main parts of the territory - the western, or Central Asian, predominantly with high-mountain or plateau terrain, and the eastern, which is dominated by deeply dissected mid-altitude and low mountains, alternating with lowlands and plains. The south of the Central Asian part is occupied by the Tibetan Plateau.
Its base lies at an altitude of 4000-5000 meters. Along the outskirts of the highlands stretch the large mountain systems of the Karakoram, Kunlun, Nanshan and Sino-Tibetan mountains, with peaks of 7000-8000 meters or more. In the Himalayas, China owns only the northern slope, where the most high peak– Chomolungma (Chomolungma) or Everest - is located on the border of China and Nepal, 8848 meters above sea level. It is in these mountainous regions that the Yellow River and Yangtze originate, carrying their waters to the east - into the East China and South China Seas.
The north of the Central Asian part is a belt of plateaus, hills, plateaus and partly mountains. This belt includes in the West the Tarim and Dzungarian basins, separated by the Tien Shan mountain system, in the East - the elevated plains of the Gobi and Bargi and the Ordos plateau. The prevailing heights are 900-1200 meters. In the south are the Nanling Mountains, the Jianghan Plain, the Guizhou Plateau, the Sichuan Basin and the Yunnan Plateau. This part also includes large islands, mainly with mountainous terrain - Taiwan and Hainan.
Central regions China is the kingdom of the great Yangtze River, which supposedly divides the country into north and south. To the north of it is the Great Chinese Plain, through which another major river of China, the Yellow River, flows. The inhabitants of the plains built levees for many centuries in an effort to protect themselves and their fields from devastating floods.
The dams rose higher and higher as the river bed filled with silt, and now the Yellow River bed rises several meters above the surrounding area, the river flowing on its own sediment. To the south of the Yangtze, rice fields stretch for hundreds of kilometers - an integral part of Chinese landscapes. In the subtropical southeastern part of China rise the South China Mountains, the slopes of which are continuous terraces.
Here you can see tea plantations and the very “Chinese camellia” that has conquered the whole world.
In southern China, tea has been drunk for more than two thousand years. In the 9th century, tea spread from China to Japan, then to Korea. And tea came to Russia from Asia through Siberia. In 1567, Cossack atamans who visited China described a Chinese drink unknown in Rus'. A century later, tea appeared at the royal court, brought by Ambassador Vasily Starkov as a gift from the Mongol Khan.
Naturally, the climate in different areas of such a large country is different. China is within three climatic zones: temperate, subtropical and tropical. Differences in air temperature are especially pronounced in winter. So, in January in Harbin the temperature often drops to -20° C, and at this time in Guangzhou +15° C.
In summer the temperature difference is not so great. Climatic contrasts can be fully experienced in the northwestern part of China. Here the hot summer gives way cold winter. Winter is most severe in the areas west of the Greater Khingan ridge, where average January temperatures drop to -28° C, and the absolute minimum temperature reaches -50° C. But in the summer there is real heat here, especially in the intermountain basins. The hottest place in China is the Turfan depression, which is located north of the Taklamakan desert, in the spurs of the Tien Shan. In July, the air here heats up to +50° C.
In Beijing, the climate is more familiar to Russians. In the North China Lowland, despite the proximity of the sea, a continental climate prevails. In winter, from October to March, icy winds from Siberia blow here, but the humidity is low, making the frost relatively easy to bear. In winter, when it snows, the pagodas and courtyards of the Summer Palace look incredibly picturesque. Then a short spring comes and sandstorms hit the city. Summer in Beijing is much hotter than, for example, in Moscow. In September, golden foliage indicates the approach of autumn.
In Shanghai, the climate is much warmer; in winter the temperature rarely drops below zero, but the air humidity is very high and amounts to 85–95%. In summer it is very hot and humid. Even further south, Guangzhou enjoys a subtropical monsoon climate.
The summer monsoon carries a huge amount of water, so summers here are muggy and humid. In June–September there are heavy rains, typhoons often occur (their name comes from the Chinese phrase da feng - big wind), which cause downpours and hurricanes in these places. Winter is warm and humid.
The ideal time to travel to China is late spring, especially May. Warm and comfortable weather in most of China also occurs in the fall, in September–October, and in the south in November–December.
Article topic: Geographical position China
Main rivers of China:
Yangtze - Length - 6300 km. The basin area is 1,807,199 sq. km.
The catchment areas are Qinghai, Tibet, Yunnan, Sichuan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, Anhui, Jiangsu and Shanghai.
Outflow into the East China Sea
Yellow River - Length - 5464 km. The basin area is 752,443 sq. km.
Catchment areas - Qinghai, Sichuan, Gansu, Ningxia, Inner Mongolia, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Henan and Shandong
Outflow into the Bohai Sea
Heilongjiang - Length - 3420 km. The basin area is 1,620,170 sq. km.
Catchment areas - Inner Mongolia and Heilongjiang
Flow into the Sea of Okhotsk
Zhujiang - Length - 2197 km. The basin area is 452,616 sq. km.
Drainage areas - Yunnan, Guizhou, Guangxi, Guangdong
Outflow into the South China Sea
Lancangjiang - Length - 2153 km. The basin area is 161,430 sq. km.
Catchment areas - Qinghai, Tibet and Yunnan
Outflow into the South China Sea
Yalutsangpo - Length - 2057 km. The basin area is 240,480 sq. km.
Catchment areas – Tibet
Flow into the Bay of Bengal
Nujiang - Length - 2013 km. The basin area is 124,830 sq. km.
Catchment areas - Tibet and Yunnan
Flow into the Bay of Bengal.
Main lakes of China
Qinghai - Area - 4583 sq. km. Depth - 32.8 m. Height - 3196 m. Qinghai.
Shinkai - Area - 4500 sq. km. Depth - 10 m. Height - 69 m. Heilongjiang.
Poyang - Area - 3583 sq. km. Depth - 16 m. Height - 21 m. Jiangxi.
Dongting - Area - 2820 sq. km. Depth - 30.8 m. Height - 34.5 m. Hunan.
Hulun Nur - Area - 2315 sq. km. Depth - 8.0 m. Height - 545.5 m. Inner Mongolia.
Nam Tso - Area - 1940 sq. km. Height - 4593 m. Tibet.
Selling-Tso - Area - 1530 sq. km. Height - 4514 m. Tibet.
About a quarter of China's territory is washed by seas. The eastern and southeastern coasts of the country are washed by the waters of the Bohai (inland sea), Yellow, East China and South China seas. One after another, these seas form a water basin with a total area of 4.78 million square kilometers.
This I know
1. Describe the geographical location of China.
China is located in East Asia. From the east it is washed by the waters of the western seas Pacific Ocean. In the northeast, China borders with the DPRK and Russia, in the north - with Mongolia, in the northwest - with Russia and Kazakhstan, in the west - with Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Afghanistan, in the southwest - with Pakistan, India, Nepal and Bhutan , in the south - with Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam. The benefits of this geographical location are wide access to the Asia-Pacific region, which is now rapidly developing. The high mountainous terrain of Western China makes contact with its western neighbors difficult.
2. What place does China occupy in the world today?
Today's China is the largest state in the world. It ranks first in terms of population, second in value of products and services produced, and third in area. Almost all types of industrial products are produced in China. Modern China is one of the fastest growing economies in the world. Every 7-8 years the country doubles its production of goods and services. China is able to fully provide its population with everything they need. In addition, it is China that clothes and shoes half the world.
3. Tell us about the activities and lifestyle of the Chinese.
94% of the country's population are Chinese. Distinctive features The Chinese are hard work, organization, diligence, a special sense of the unity of man and nature. Most of the residents live in rural areas, but the number of city dwellers is growing. China has the world's largest labor force. The number of people employed on the farm is almost 50%. The majority of them (74%) are located in rural areas.
4. Compare the maps in Figures 206 and 207. Draw a conclusion about the relationship between population density and land use in agriculture. Name the crops that are grown: a) in the Southeast; b) in the North-East.
Population density is directly related to natural conditions. Since ancient times, people have inhabited the most suitable areas for agriculture. Therefore, areas of highest population density and agricultural areas coincide.
a) in the Southeast, irrigated rice, tea and other heat-loving crops are grown;
b) in the North-East barley, wheat, and sugar beets are grown.
I can do this
5. Fill out the table
This is interesting to me
6. Imagine that you are traveling around China. Write a letter to a friend about your impressions. Reveal in your letter the features of nature, life, everyday life, economic activity population of the country.
China is amazing country which is a must visit. The nature of China is diverse. There is a holiday here for every taste: for lovers of landscapes, alpine skiing, beach holidays, architecture lovers.
Residents of China tend to respect knowledge, scholarship, and books. Chinese people greet each other with a handshake. Entrepreneurs must carry business cards, the text on which must be printed in Chinese (preferably in gold ink) and English languages(just not red). The Chinese are extremely frugal, trying to quickly accumulate capital.
People in China dress quite normally, so you shouldn’t take anything special or extravagant with you. For formal events, bring a jacket and tie, a suit or a formal dress. It is best to use small but capacious suitcases or bags with wheels. Be prepared to change your clothes quite often; the weather in China is changeable.
Traveling around Beijing using the services of a rickshaw is an unforgettable experience. Although the pedicabs that stand outside hotels waiting for clients often charge quite a high price, it is definitely worth a ride.
It is not customary to tip, but a maid or porter at a hotel will not refuse 1-2 yuan.
The Chinese have never considered honesty a virtue, but cunning and deceit are traditional towards foreigners. The deception of a foreigner is considered a sign of great intelligence. Therefore, tourists are advised to bargain furiously and check the change against the light, as the money is often counterfeit.
7. Do you have Chinese goods in your home? What can you say about their quality and price? What Chinese goods would you recommend purchasing?
Today, Chinese goods are in every home. The majority of Chinese goods are consumer products and are not of very high quality. Today, absolutely everything is produced in China and of absolutely any quality. This situation arose for one simple reason: cheap labor, low environmental standards. That is why in China there is great amount factories and enterprises, the number of which amounts to tens of millions. The Chinese produce absolutely EVERYTHING: from food and socks to equipment for metalworking and heavy engineering. But many do not believe this, thinking that the Chinese are only capable of producing cheap consumer goods, plastic products and dangerous toys that our children break on the very first day.
However, today China produces many high and very high quality products. This is an iPhone and products apple company. Many of you may not be at all surprised by the technology that exists today, but, in fact, it is a real miracle. China is a supplier of metal profiles from which, attention!, high-speed trains are produced at European (including Bombardier) and Russian enterprises. China independently produces all cars for itself, of ABSOLUTELY ANY BRAND and they are all of excellent quality. I would say that they produce for themselves even better than we produce for ourselves. You can understand this if you drive such a car at least once: they are all jam-packed with electronics. They simply don’t have such bare-bones packages as ours.
But the current situation is such that Russia is a place for selling low-quality rubbish. Because there are still a lot of Russian people who will chase low prices, often neglecting quality. But on the other hand, the Chinese produce a lot of things and small things for us, the quality of which is not so important to us: some household items, plastic products, etc.
Therefore, it is difficult to deny, but we simply need many Chinese goods and are not ready to buy similar things from other producing countries, which will cost us an order of magnitude more and will last much longer. Even when buying another obviously low-quality item, many are attracted by the price of the product, and we know that we can buy another one of the same without any problems, because it is quite inexpensive.
8. Currently, China is one of the world leaders in terms of industrial production. However most of its population still has a low standard of living. Try to explain this fact.
Various sources claim that the welfare of the Chinese is growing and the average wages this is confirmed. However, if we talk about ordinary workers in factories and factories, and even more so about rural residents, their incomes are meager. This is due to the large labor market in China. The presence of a huge number of labor resources makes them cheap.
China, despite its rapid pace of development, is still unable to provide a decent standard of living for all residents of the country precisely because of their number.
CHINA
China is a developed country in East Asia, the largest country in the world by population (over 1.3 billion), and ranks third in the world in terms of territory, behind Russia and Canada.
What it is washed with, what it borders on.From the east, China is washed by the waters of the western seas of the Pacific Ocean. The area of China is 9.6 million km². China is the largest country in Asia. The total length of China's land borders is 22,117 km with 14 countries. The Chinese coastline stretches from the border with North Korea in the north to Vietnam in the south and is 14,500 km long. China is bordered by the East China Sea, Korea Bay, Yellow Sea and South China Sea. The island of Taiwan is separated from the mainland by the Taiwan Strait.
Climate. China's climate is very diverse, ranging from subtropical in the south to temperate in the north. On the coast, the weather is determined by the monsoons, which occur due to the different absorption properties of the land and ocean. Seasonal air movements and accompanying winds contain a large number of moisture in summer and quite dry in winter. The arrival and departure of the monsoons largely determine the amount and distribution of rainfall across the country. More than 2/3 of the country is occupied by mountain ranges, highlands and plateaus, deserts and semi-deserts. Approximately 90% of the population lives in coastal areas and floodplains of large rivers such as the Yangtze, Yellow River and Pearl. These areas are in a difficult ecological condition as a result of long and intensive agricultural cultivation and environmental pollution.
The southern and eastern regions of China often (about 5 times a year) suffer from destructive typhoons, as well as floods, monsoons, tsunamis and droughts. The northern regions of China are covered every spring by yellow dust storms, which originate in the northern deserts and are carried by winds towards Korea and Japan
Water resources. China has many rivers, with a total length of 220,000 km. Over 5,000 of them carry water collected from an area of more than 100 square meters. km each. China's rivers form internal and external systems. External rivers are the Yangtze, Yellow River, Nujiang and others with access to the Pacific, Indian and Northern Arctic Oceans, their total drainage area covers about 64% of the country's territory.
There are many lakes in China, the total area they occupy is approximately 80,000 square meters. km. There are also thousands of artificial lakes and reservoirs.
Relief. China's topography is very diverse, with high mountains, depressions, deserts and vast plains. There are usually three major geographical region:
· The Tibetan Plateau, with an altitude of more than 2000 m above sea level, is located in the southwest of the country
· The belt of mountains and high plains has an altitude of 200 x 2000 m, located in the northern part
· Low accumulative plains below 200 m in height and low mountains in the northeast, east and south of the country, where most of China's population lives.
The Great Plain of China, the Yellow River Valley and the Yangtze Delta unite near the sea coast, stretching from Beijing in the north to Shanghai in the south. The basin of the Pearl River (and its main tributary, the Xijiang) is located in southern China and is separated from the Yangtze River basin by the Nanling Mountains and the Wuyi Range (which is included in the list). World Heritage in China).
Vegetation.There are about 500 species of bamboo in China, forming 3% of the forests. Bamboo thickets, found in 18 provinces, are not only a habitat for many animals, but also a source of valuable raw materials. Their woody culms (stems) are widely used in industry.
Minerals.China is rich in various types of fuel and raw mineral resources. Especially great importance have reserves of oil, coal, and metal ores. China has deposits of nearly 150 world-known minerals. The main source of energy in China is coal, its reserves in the country account for 1/3 of the world's reserves. Coal deposits, the reserves of which China is inferior to few countries, are concentrated mainly in Northern China. To others important source energy resource is oil. In terms of oil reserves, China holds a prominent place among the countries of Central, Eastern and South-East Asia. Oil deposits have been found in various areas, but they are most significant in Northeast China, the coastal areas and shelf of Northern China, as well as in some inland areas
Population. There are about 55 people living in China various peoples each with its own customs, national costumes and in many cases with its own language. But for all their diversity and richness of cultural traditions, these peoples make up only about 7% of the country’s population, the main part of which is formed by the Chinese, who call themselves “Han”. Modernization of society and interethnic marriages inevitably lead to the erasure of differences between ethnic groups, and yet many of them are proud of their heritage and remain true to their customs and beliefs. Although China's natural population growth has already dropped to an average level, it is still growing much year after year due to the huge base figure. Between 1990 and 2000 the population grew by almost 12 million annually on average. The government's target is one child per family, with exceptions for ethnic minorities. The government's goal is to stabilize population growth at the beginning of the 21st century.
Population distribution.Land suitable for agricultural use makes up only 10% of China's territory, and it is located mainly in coastal provinces. Approximately 90% of China's total population lives in an area of only 40% total area countries. The most densely populated areas are the lower Yangtze Delta and the North China Plain. China's vast peripheral territories are virtually deserted. The average population density of the country, according to 1998 data, was 131 people per 1 sq. km.
Language. The Chinese have their own spoken and written language, Chinese, which is used both within and outside the country. The total number of Chinese speakers exceeds 1 billion people.
Largest cities China
1. Shanghai - 15,017,783 people 2. Beijing - 7,602,069 people 3. Xi'an - 4,091,916 people 4. Harbin - 3,279,454 people 5. Guangzhou (Canton) - 3,158,125 people 6. Dalian - 2,076,179 people
In total, there are 40 cities in China with a population of more than 1 million people.
Main industries.Today, the country's industrial structure is represented by more than 360 industries. In addition to the traditional ones, new modern ones have been created, such as: electronics, petrochemistry, aircraft manufacturing, metallurgy of rare and trace metals. Fuel and energy industries are among the weak links in China's industrial complex. Despite the presence of rich natural resources, the development of extractive industries in general lags behind manufacturing ones. In recent years, the capacity of the coal mining industry has increased significantly in China, and the production volume of enterprises exceeded 920 million tons already in 1989. The oil industry accounts for 21% of the production of fuel and energy resources. In general, there are more than 32 oil production enterprises in the country, total reserves oil amounts to 64 billion tons. Southern China and especially its Eastern zone are rich in natural gas reserves, which are estimated at 4 thousand billion tons. The largest center of gas production and processing is Senhua Province. Nevertheless, light industry sectors such as textiles and food are still leading in China, accounting for more than 21% of all industrial products produced. In terms of iron ore reserves, China ranks third (after Russia and Belgium). Ferrous metallurgy enterprises exceed 1.5 thousand and are located in almost all provinces and autonomous regions.
Agriculture.Since the 90s of the last century, China has ranked first in the world in the production of grains, meat, cotton, rapeseed, fruit, leaf tobacco, second in the production of tea and wool, and third or fourth in the production of soybeans, sugar cane and jute. In China big variety land resources, but there are many mountainous areas and few plains. Plains make up 43% of the country's total land area. China has 127 million hectares of arable land, which is approximately 7% of all arable land in the world.
China is the most populous country in the world, whose history began several thousand years ago. One of the most ancient civilizations on the planet, known for its numerous inventions and achievements, developed on its territory. How is China developing today and what advantages does it have? Read further in the article about the peculiarities of the economic and geographical position of the eastern state.
Two Chinas
Chinese civilization arose more than three thousand years BC and until the 19th century was one of the cultural and scientific centers East Asia. Its statehood was based on dynasties that replaced each other, most often through wars.
The peculiarities of China's geographical location allowed the ancient state to develop independently, isolated from other developed civilizations. Thanks to this, it has formed its own philosophy, its own system of values and writing, which is considered one of the oldest in the world. Chinese civilization is famous for its innovations, which have made a huge contribution to the history of human development. Among them are the invention of printing, paper, compass, hand crossbow, blast furnace, fork, gunpowder, toothbrush, making silk, salt, and growing soybeans.
There are currently two countries with the word "China" in their names: the People's Republic of China and Republic of China. Both of them are successors ancient state and do not recognize each other's sovereignty at the official level. The People's Republic includes the mainland, Hong Kong and Macau. This is what is usually meant by “China”, which will be used in this article. Republic of China on political map the world is considered a partially recognized entity. It covers several islands and is generally referred to as Taiwan.
Geographical location of China
China is considered one of the largest countries in the world. By different estimates it ranks either second or third in size. According to the World Bank, its area is 9,388,211 million km2.
The state is located in East Asia, surrounded by Russia, Mongolia, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, North Korea, Tajikistan, India, Nepal, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Afghanistan. The length of the land borders is about 21 thousand kilometers. However, there are also maritime borders that stretch for almost 15 thousand kilometers.
Access to the Pacific Ocean in the east is one of the main advantages of China's geographical location. The state is washed by South China, East China and Yellow seas, through which it borders Japan, South Korea and the Philippines.
The distance between the extreme western and eastern points of China is 5,700 kilometers, between the northern and southern - about 4,000 kilometers. The country is located in four time zones, but despite this, the single standard time UTC+8 operates within its borders. Besides Taiwan, there are about six more in China disputed territories, including East Turkistan, Aksai Chin, Shagsgam Valley, Arunachal Pradesh and several islands and archipelagos.
State of Taiwan
The Republic of China was established in 1911. In the past, it controlled the entire mainland of China, had global recognition, developed political relations, and was even among the founders of the UN.
After the defeat to the communists in civil war In 1949, the ROC government moved to Taiwan, establishing a new state there with its capital in Taipei. Today the state is partially recognized and includes the island of Taiwan, Matsu, Kinmen, Penghu and adjacent islets. Some countries do not officially recognize it, but have informal relations with it.
Climate
A significant part of the country lies in the temperate geographical zone, but the climate here is very heterogeneous and differs greatly in different regions. main reason This is a huge extent in both longitudinal and meridional directions.
The northwest has arid, sharply continental conditions with cold winters (up to -50) and hot summers (up to + 50). In spring, the region suffers from Asian dust storms. Hainan Island in the south is characterized by subequatorial conditions with sunny weather and annual temperature differences of only 3-4 degrees. It received the name “Eastern Hawaii”, as it is located at the same latitude with them.
Due to the geographical location of China, the southern and eastern parts are influenced by monsoons and are characterized by variable and unpredictable conditions. During the warm period, huge amounts of precipitation fall on the southeast coast. There are often prolonged downpours, typhoons, and hurricanes. The region also experiences droughts, and in winter there can be heavy snowfall.
Features of nature
Due to the huge area and peculiarities of the geographical location of China, a wide variety of landscapes and natural conditions. In the west of the country there are deserts and semi-deserts covered with dry steppes and xerophytic vegetation. To the east are low-lying river valleys.
Approximately 70% of China is mountainous. They stretch on the northern and western outskirts of the country, and are present in the center and east. Major arteries such as the Mekong, Yangtze, Salween and Yellow River begin in the mountain peaks. In the southwest is the Tibetan Plateau, the largest in area and height on the planet. Its peaks reach an average height of 4 km. In the northeast of the highlands there is the Tsaidam depression with a large number of swamps and salt lakes.
Due to China's unique geographical location, it contains a variety of natural zones - from taiga in the north to savannas and tropical forests in the south.
Economy
China is the most populous country in the world, with 1.4 billion people and a population density of 145.2 people/km2. Despite this, the state’s economy has been growing steadily for 20 years. recent years. Today it is the leader in terms of GDP at purchasing power parity and ranks second in terms of nominal GDP.
From the point of view of its economic and geographical position, China occupies an advantageous position, since it has a huge number of neighbors on the mainland and has access to the sea, which provides it with connections with other continents. The main trading partners of China are Brazil, Russia, Australia, Taiwan, the Republic of Korea, Japan, and the USA.
The main share of the state's economy is industry. China leads in the production of coal, tungsten, manganese, antimony, lead and zinc. It produces timber, oil, uranium, gas, and about 95% of the world's molybdenum and vanadium on a large scale. It is considered a space power, a nuclear power, and the largest supplier of pork and chicken. China has the largest number of industrial enterprises in the world, and due to this and its large production volumes, it is considered an industrial superpower.
The area of mainland China at 9.5 million square kilometers is approximately the size of the United States or all of Europe to the Urals. In terms of territory size, China ranks third in the world - taking into account the special administrative regions of Hong Kong, Taiwan and the islands, its area is 9.634 million km2.
From north to south, the length of Chinese territory is almost 50º (from the northernmost point in the vicinity of the city of Mohe, located at 53º31′ N to Cape Zenmuan (4º15′ N) in the south). From east to west, China extends almost 62º - from Heilongjiang province to the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region inclusive.
In kilometers, the length of the country from north to south is about 4500 km; from east to west - 4200 km. The coastline of all China's maritime borders is 14,000 km. The longest river is the Yangtze (6300 km), the highest mountain is Everest with 8844 m, the largest lake is Qinghai, with an area of about 5000 km².
REFERENCE: cities occupy 1.5% of the country's area, wetlands - 2%, deserts -6.5%, forests - 9%, deserts - 21%, pastures - 24%. Arable land accounts for 36% of the territory.
Main areas
The relief, climatic conditions and, consequently, the habitability of individual regions of the country vary greatly - from 400 people. per 1 km2 in some eastern provinces, up to 1 person or less per 1 km2 in the north-west of the country. The territory can be divided into three regions.
Southeast China is characterized by four large, densely populated floodplains. On the coast there are deltas of the most large rivers. Southeast coastline mountainous, and the south is more hilly. Maximum height region 500 meters above sea level.
To the west of the plains there are numerous plateau mountains and large basins: the Mongolian Plateau, Tarim Basin, Sichuan Basin, Loess Plateau or Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau. The mountains here range in height from 1000 to 2000 meters. The huge Loess Plateau, with an area of about 430 thousand km2, has very fertile soil and plays a vital role in the country's agriculture. The natural steppe and forest-steppe vegetation for this zone has been preserved only in hard-to-reach places unsuitable for agriculture. Cotton, kaoliang, millet and wheat are grown on artificial slope terraces.
Western China has a pronounced highland character with intermediate plateaus. The most big mountains: Himalayas, Tien Shan, Pamir and highlands of Tibet. The entire region is located at an altitude of 4,000 meters above sea level, making it one of the highest in the world. The west, along with Inner Mongolia, is also the driest part of the country, thanks to the Gobi and Taklamakan.
The climate is as varied as the geography: the west, north and northeast have a distinct continental climate with very cold winters and hot summers. On the other hand, in the south the climate is subtropical. Tibet has its own special highland climate.
Rivers and seas
The most important rivers in China are the Changjiang (Yangtze) and the Yellow River (Yellow River). Both of them climb Mount Kunlunshan. Chang Jiang then passes through Yunnan and Sichuan. Then Changjiang passes Wuhan, where it floods very widely. Near Shanghai it flows into the East China Sea. The length of the Changjiang is 6,300 km, making it the third longest river in the world. This is the most important waterway in China.
The 1,800 km long Emperor's Canal connects Changjiang to the Yellow River. The length of this river, which flows into the Yellow Sea, is 5464 km.
The Mekong River originates in Tibet and flows south through Yunnan. It then flows along the border between Laos and Burma, Laos and Thailand, after which it passes through Cambodia, Vietnam, and flows into the South China Sea. The length of the river is 4500 km.
In the east and southeast, China is surrounded by seas. To the northeast is the Yellow Sea, to the south is the East China Sea, and to the southeast is the South China Sea.
Borders with other countries
The People's Republic of China borders on 14 countries: India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Russia, Mongolia, North Korea, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, Bhutan and Nepal. 8 countries are neighbors by sea - Northern and South Korea, Japan, Philippines, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam. In terms of the number of neighboring countries, taking into account land and sea borders, China ranks first in the world.
The country is separated from its neighbors by a number of natural boundaries: the east and southeast by seas (Yellow, East China and South China), the south, southwest, west and northwest by high mountain ranges, the north by steppes and deserts, the north east – by the Amur and Ussuri rivers.
Loading...