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63-542: The site of Shuozhou was the ancient Chinese frontier town of Mayi ( 马邑 ), which was used as a trading post between China and the Xiongnu nomads of the eastern Eurasian steppe . In 201   BC, the founder of the Han dynasty Liu Bang (posthumously known as Emperor Gaozu or the "High Ancestor") moved Han Xin from his fief around Yuzhou in Henan to Mayi, where he was attacked by

126-586: A result of the civil war. However, because they are not controlled by the PRC, they are not included as part of "mainland China." Hong Kong and Macau have been territories of the PRC since 1997 and 1999 respectively. However, due to the One Country, Two Systems policy, the two regions maintain a degree of autonomy, hence they are not governed as part of mainland China. Geographically speaking, Hong Kong and Macau are both connected to mainland China in certain areas (e.g.

189-521: A result, the concept of China proper fell out of favour in China. The Eighteen Provinces of the Qing dynasty still largely exist, but their boundaries have changed. Beijing and Tianjin were eventually split from Hebei (renamed from Zhili), Shanghai from Jiangsu, Chongqing from Sichuan, Ningxia autonomous region from Gansu , and Hainan from Guangdong. Guangxi is now an autonomous region . The provinces that

252-411: A single language if the criterion of mutual intelligibility is used to classify its subdivisions. In polls the majority of the people of Taiwan call themselves "Taiwanese" only with the rest identifying as "Taiwanese and Chinese" or "Chinese" only. 98% of the people of Taiwan are descendants of immigrants from mainland China since the 1600s, but the inclusion of Taiwan in the definition of China proper,

315-466: Is based on the succession of states principle. According to sinologist Colin Mackerras , foreign governments have generally accepted Chinese claims over its ethnic minority areas, because to redefine a country's territory every time it underwent a change of regime would cause endless instability and warfare. Also, he asks, "if the boundaries of the Qing were considered illegitimate, why should it go back to

378-662: Is no fixed extent for China proper , as many administrative, cultural, and linguistic shifts have occurred in Chinese history . One definition refers to the original area of Chinese civilization, the Central Plain (in the North China Plain ); another to the Eighteen Provinces of the Qing dynasty. There was no direct translation for "China proper " in the Chinese language at the time due to differences in terminology used by

441-538: Is still a controversial subject. See History of Taiwan and Political status of Taiwan for more information. [REDACTED]  This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Government . Mainland China " Mainland China ", also referred to as " the Chinese mainland ", is a geopolitical term defined as the territory under direct administration of

504-457: The Central Plain and did not administer as part of a regular province of China proper. On the other hand, Taiwan was a new acquisition of the Qing dynasty, and it was placed under the administration of Fujian , one of the provinces of China proper. Eastern Kham in Greater Tibet was added to Sichuan , while much of what now constitutes northern Burma was added to Yunnan . Near the end of

567-536: The First French Empire , which Napoleon managed to expand all the way to Moscow . According to Harry Harding , the concept can date back to 1827. But as early as in 1795, William Winterbotham adopted this concept in his book. When describing the Chinese Empire under the Qing dynasty, Winterbotham divided it into three parts: China proper, Chinese Tartary , and the states tributary to China . He adopted

630-518: The People's Republic of China (PRC) in the aftermath of the Chinese Civil War . In addition to the geographical mainland, the geopolitical sense of the term includes islands such as Hainan , Chongming , and Zhoushan . By convention, territories outside of mainland China include: In Taiwan it is also often used to refer to all territories administered by the PRC. The term is widely used in all of

693-538: The inland but still translated mainland in English, is commonly applied by SAR governments to represent non-SAR areas of PRC, including Hainan province and coastal regions of mainland China, such as "Constitutional and Mainland Affairs" ( 政制及內地事務局 ) and Immigration Departments. In the Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (as well as the Mainland and Macau Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement )

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756-569: The "government of China". With the democratisation of Taiwan in the 1990s and the rise of the Taiwanese independence movement, some people began simply using the term "China" instead. Due to their status as colonies of foreign states during the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the phrase "mainland China" excludes Hong Kong and Macau . Since the return of Hong Kong and Macau to Chinese sovereignty in 1997 and 1999 , respectively,

819-588: The "people of the Central Kingdom" (dulimba-i gurun; 中國 , Zhongguo) were like the Torghut Mongols, and the "people of the Central Kingdom" referred to the Manchus. While the Qing dynasty used "China" (Zhongguo) to describe non-Han areas, some Han scholar-officials opposed the Qing emperor's use of Zhongguo to refer to non-Han areas, using instead Zhongguo to mark a distinction between the culturally Han areas and

882-677: The CPG also uses the Chinese characters 内地 "inner land", with the note that they refer to the "customs territory of China". References to the PRC and other lost continental territories as the mainland began appearing in Taiwan state documents as early as 1954. Legal definitions followed in the 1990s. The 1991 Additional Articles of the Constitution of the Republic of China stated that "the handling of people's rights and obligations and other affairs between

945-469: The Han people, the majority ethnic group of China and with the extent of the Chinese languages, an important unifying element of the Han ethnicity. However, Han regions in the present day do not correspond well to the Eighteen Provinces of the Qing dynasty. Much of southwestern China, such as areas in the provinces of Yunnan , Guangxi , and Guizhou , was part of successive dynasties of ethnic Han origin, including

1008-535: The Han people. Chinese civilization developed from a core region in the North China Plain, and expanded outwards over several millennia, conquering and assimilating surrounding peoples, or being conquered and influenced in turn. Some dynasties, such as the Han and Tang dynasties, were particularly expansionist, extending far into Inner Asia , while others, such as the Jin and Song dynasties, were forced to relinquish

1071-527: The Japanese invasion of Mongolia, Manchuria , and other parts of China. Gu's article sparked a heated debate on the definition and origin of " Zhonghua minzu " (Chinese nation), which contributed to unifying the Chinese people in the Second Sino-Japanese War , and to an extent shaped the later established concept of Zhonghua minzu. Today, China proper is a controversial concept in China itself, since

1134-603: The Liao Dynasty, is one of the main sites of the region. It was built entirely of wood, without using nails, and serves as a museum of calligraphy . There are also some paleolithic ruins, and ancient gravesites from the Dongyi people. The Dayun Expressway ( Datong — Yuncheng ) passes through it, and it has 5 specialized train lines. Shuozhou Zirun Airport opened on December 18, 2023. China proper China proper , also called Inner China , are terms used primarily in

1197-490: The Manchu language. The Qing emperors equated the lands of the Qing state (including both "China proper" and present day Manchuria, Xinjiang, Mongolia, Tibet and other areas) as "China" in both the Chinese and Manchu languages, defining China as a multiethnic state, rejecting the idea that China only meant Han-populated areas in "China proper", proclaiming that both Han and non-Han peoples were part of "China", using "China" to refer to

1260-663: The Ming dynasty and the Eighteen Provinces of the Qing dynasty. However, these areas were and continue to be populated by various non-Han minority groups, such as the Zhuang , the Miao people , and the Bouyei . Conversely, Han people form the majority in most of Manchuria, much of Inner Mongolia, many areas in Xinjiang and scattered parts of Tibet today, not least due to the expansion of Han settlement encouraged by

1323-447: The Ming dynasty in China proper, the Qing court decided to continue to use the Ming administrative system to rule over former Ming lands, without applying it to other domains under Qing rule, namely Manchuria , Mongolia , Xinjiang , Taiwan and Tibet . The 15 administrative units of the Ming dynasty underwent minor reforms to become the "Eighteen Provinces" ( 一十八行省 ; Yīshíbā Xíngshěng , or 十八省 ; Shíbā Shěng ) of China proper under

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1386-481: The North China Plain itself to rivaling regimes founded by peoples from the north. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox Chinese dynasty of ethnic Han origin and the second-last imperial dynasty of China. It governed fifteen administrative entities, which included thirteen provinces ( Chinese : 布政使司 ; pinyin : Bùzhèngshǐ Sī ) and two "directly-governed" areas. After the Manchu-led Qing dynasty succeeded

1449-519: The PRC referring to itself as the "mainland side" dealing with the "Taiwan side"). In fact, the PRC government mandates that journalists use “Taiwan” and “the Mainland” (Dàlù) as corresponding concepts. But in terms of Hong Kong and Macau, the PRC government refers to itself as "the Central People's Government". In the People's Republic of China, the term 内地 (Nèidì, 'inland') is often contrasted with

1512-553: The People's Republic of China. The Exit and Entry Administration Law of the People's Republic of China ( Chinese : 中华人民共和国出境入境管理法 ) defines two terms in Chinese that are translated to "mainland": In the PRC, usage of the two terms is not strictly interchangeable. To emphasise the One-China policy and not give the ROC "equal footing" in cross-strait relations , the term must be used in PRC's official contexts with reference to Taiwan (with

1575-571: The Qing dynasty, there was an effort to extend the province system of China proper to the rest of the empire. Taiwan was converted into a separate province in 1885, but was ceded to Japan in 1895. Xinjiang was reorganized into a province in 1884. Manchuria was split into the three provinces of Fengtian , Jilin and Heilongjiang in 1907. There was discussion to do the same in Tibet, Qinghai (Kokonor), Inner Mongolia, and Outer Mongolia, but these proposals were not put to practice, and these areas were outside

1638-489: The Qing dynasty. It was these eighteen provinces that early Western sources referred to as China proper. There are some minor differences between the extent of Ming China and the extent of the eighteen provinces of Qing China: for example, some parts of Manchuria were Ming possessions belonging to the province of Liaodong (now Liaoning ), which is inside the Ming Great Wall ; however, the Qing conquered it before entering

1701-410: The Qing in official documents, international treaties, and foreign affairs, and the "Chinese language" (Dulimbai gurun i bithe) referred to Chinese, Manchu, and Mongol languages, and the term "Chinese people" ( 中國人 , Zhongguo ren; Manchu: Dulimbai gurun i niyalma) referred to all Han, Manchu, and Mongol subjects of the Qing. When the Qing conquered Dzungaria in 1759 , they proclaimed that the new land

1764-402: The Qing to refer to the regions. Even to today, the expression is controversial among scholars, particularly in mainland China , due to issues pertaining to contemporary territorial claim and ethnic politics. Outer China usually includes the geographical regions of Dzungaria , Tarim Basin , Gobi Desert , Tibetan Plateau , Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau , and Manchuria . It is not clear when

1827-612: The Regulations on People Relations between Taiwan and mainland China defined the mainland as areas claimed but not controlled by the ROC, corresponding to "areas under control of the Chinese Communists " (within the de facto borders of the People's Republic of China ). Views of the term "mainland China" ( 中國大陸 ) vary on Taiwan. During the Dangguo era , the KMT had previously referred to

1890-518: The Ryukyus and Japan , who paid tribute to Qing China or were vassal states of China but were not part of China. In the early 20th century, a series of Sino-Japanese conflicts had raised Chinese people's concern for national unity, and the concept of a unified, undivided Chinese nation became more popular among Chinese scholars. On Jan 1, 1939, Gu Jiegang published his article "The term 'China proper' should be abolished immediately", which argued that

1953-560: The West in reference to the traditional "core" regions of China centered in the southeast. The term was first used by Westerners during the Manchu -led Qing dynasty to describe the distinction between the historical "Han lands" ( 漢地 )—i.e. regions long dominated by the majority Han population—and the "frontier" regions of China where more non-Han ethnic groups and new foreign immigrants (e.g. Russians ) reside, sometimes known as "Outer China". There

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2016-551: The Xiongnu. Finding himself distrusted by the Han emperor, Han Xin allied with the Xiongnu instead and joined them on their raids against China until his death in battle in 196   BC. Mayi was subsequently the capital of Dai Prefecture and the scene of an attempted ambush of the Xiongnu by Chinese troops in 133   BC. During the chaos between the fall of the Sui and rise of the Tang , Mayi

2079-654: The above territories as well as internationally, including by many Overseas Chinese communities. In 1949, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the People's Liberation Army had largely defeated the Kuomintang (KMT)'s National Revolutionary Army in the Chinese Civil War . This forced the Kuomintang to relocate the government and institution of the Republic of China to the relative safety of Taiwan , an island which

2142-663: The annual mean is 7.42 °C (45.4 °F). Typifying the influence of the East Asian Monsoon , over three-fourths of the annual 399 millimetres (15.7 in) of precipitation occurs from June to September. It is a centre of industry, and its notable industries are primarily mining of coal and other ores such as iron , bauxite , mica , manganese , and graphite . Other economic sectors include agriculture , chemical industry , ceramics , and fishing . Western tourists rarely come to this area of China, but there are some attractions. The Yingxian Tower , built in 1056 during

2205-531: The borders of Ming China, in effect refusing to acknowledge the legitimacy of the Qing dynasty. Han Chinese intellectuals gradually embraced the new meaning of "China" and began to recognize it as their homeland. The Qing dynasty referred to the Han-inhabited 18 provinces as "nèidì shíbā shěng" ( 內地十八省 ), which meant the "interior region eighteen provinces", or abbreviated it as "nèidì" ( 內地 ), "interior region" and also as "jùnxiàn" ( 郡县 ), while they referred to

2268-560: The concept of "China proper" in the Western world appeared. However, it is plausible that historians during the age of empires and the fast-changing borders in the eighteenth century, applied it to distinguish the 18 provinces in China's interior from its frontier territories. This would also apply to Great Britain proper versus the British Empire , which would encompass vast lands overseas. The same would apply to France proper in contrast to

2331-523: The concept of China proper probably had appeared between 1645 and 1662 and this concept may reflect the idea that identifies China as the territory of the former Ming dynasty after the Ming–Qing transition . The concept of "China proper" also appeared before this 1795 book. It can be found in The Gentleman's Magazine , published in 1790, and The Monthly Review , published in 1749. In the nineteenth century,

2394-464: The current official paradigm does not contrast the core and the periphery of China. There is no single widely used term corresponding to it in the Chinese language . The separation of China into a "China proper" dominated by Han people and other states for ethnic minorities such as East Turkestan ( Chinese Turkestan ) for the Uyghurs impugns on the legitimacy of China's current territorial borders, which

2457-620: The different peoples. A Manchu language version of a treaty with the Russian Empire concerning criminal jurisdiction over bandits called people from the Qing as "people of the Central Kingdom (Dulimbai Gurun)". In the Manchu official Tulisen 's Manchu language account of his meeting with the Torghut Mongol leader Ayuki Khan , it was mentioned that while the Torghuts were unlike the Russians,

2520-626: The free area and the mainland can be specially stipulated by law", and used the legal term "mainland area" without defining its geographical boundaries. The 1992 Regulations on the Relations between the People in Taiwan and the Mainland defined "Taiwan" as areas controlled by the ROC and "mainland" as "the territory of the Republic of China." The related Cross-Strait Act called those under PRC jurisdiction - excluding those in Hong Kong and Macau - as "people of

2583-677: The late Qing dynasty set up have also been kept: Xinjiang became an autonomous region under the People's Republic of China, while the three provinces of Manchuria now have somewhat different borders, with Fengtian renamed as Liaoning. When the Qing dynasty fell, Republican Chinese control of Qing territories, including of those generally considered to be in "China proper", was tenuous, and non-existent in Tibet and Mongolian People's Republic (former Outer Mongolia ) since 1922, which were controlled by governments that declared independence from China. The Republic of China subdivided Inner Mongolia in its time on

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2646-463: The late Qing dynasty, the Republic of China, and the People's Republic of China. Ethnic Han is not synonymous with speakers of the Chinese language. Many non-Han ethnicities, such as the Hui and Manchu, are essentially monolingual in the Chinese language, but do not identify as ethnic Han. The Chinese language itself is also a complex entity, and should be described as a family of related languages rather than

2709-684: The mainland area", and used " free area of the Republic of China " to describe areas under ROC control. The issue on the mainland's territory also stated in the Judicial Yuan Interpretation No. 328 in 1993. In 2012, the Supreme Court of the Republic of China 's judgment #900 labeled the Macao Special Administrative Region as the "Mainland's Macau Area". The 2002 amendments to the Implementation Rules of

2772-531: The mainland, although the People's Republic of China later joined Mongol-inhabited territories into a single autonomous region. The PRC joined the Qamdo area into the Tibet area (later the Tibet Autonomous Region ). The Republic of China officially recognized the independence of Mongolia in 1946, which was also acknowledged by the PRC government since its founding in 1949. China proper is often associated with

2835-438: The much smaller Ming in preference to the quite extensive Tang dynasty boundaries?" There is no fixed geographical extent for China proper, as it is used to express the contrast between the core and frontier regions of China from multiple perspectives: historical, administrative, cultural, and linguistic. One way of thinking about China proper is to refer to the long-standing territories held by dynasties of China founded by

2898-427: The name of Kiang-nan ( 江南 , Jiāngnán) province, which had been called South Zhili ( 南直隶 , Nán-Zhílì) during the Ming dynasty and was renamed to Kiang-nan (i.e., Jiangnan ) in 1645, the second year after the Qing dynasty replaces the Ming dynasty. This 15-province system was gradually replaced by the 18-province system between 1662 and 1667. Using the 15-province system and the name of Kiang-nan Province indicates that

2961-456: The non-Han areas of China such as the Northeast , Outer Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang, and Tibet as "wàifān" ( 外藩 ) which means "outer feudatories" or "outer vassals", or as "fānbù" ( 藩部 , "feudatory region"). These wàifān were fully subject to and governed by the Qing government and were considered part of China (Zhongguo), unlike wàiguó ( 外國 , "outer/foreign countries") like Korea, Vietnam,

3024-469: The north of the New Territories ). Additionally, the islands contained within Hong Kong (e.g. Hong Kong Island ) and Macau are much closer to mainland China than Taiwan and Hainan, and are much smaller. In Hong Kong and Macau, the terms "mainland China" and "mainlander" are frequently used for people from PRC-governed areas (i.e. not Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau). The Chinese term Neidi ( 內地 ), meaning

3087-537: The opinions of Du Halde and Grosier and suspected that the name of "China" came from Qin dynasty . He then said: "China, properly so called,... comprehends from north to south eighteen degrees; its extent from east to west being somewhat less..." However, to introduce China proper, Winterbotham still used the outdated 15-province system of the Ming dynasty , which the Qing dynasty maintained until 1662. Although Ming dynasty also had 15 basic local divisions, Winterbotham uses

3150-546: The provincial system of China proper when the Qing dynasty fell in 1912. The Provinces of the Qing Dynasty were: Some of the revolutionaries who sought to overthrow Qing rule desired to establish a state independent of the Qing dynasty within the bounds of the Eighteen Provinces, as evinced by their Eighteen-Star Flag . Others favoured the replacement of the entire Qing dynasty by a new republic, as evinced by their Five-Striped Flag. Some revolutionaries, such as Zou Rong , used

3213-474: The rest of the PRC. Nonetheless, Hainanese people still refer to the geographic mainland as "the mainland" and call its residents "mainlanders". Before 1949, the Kinmen and Matsu islands, were jointly governed with the rest of Fujian Province under successive Chinese governments. The two territories are generally considered to belong to the same historical region, Fujian Province, which has been divided since 1949 as

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3276-535: The term Zhongguo Benbu ( 中国本部 ) which roughly identifies the Eighteen Provinces. When the Qing dynasty fell, the abdication decree of the Xuantong Emperor bequeathed all the territories of the Qing dynasty to the new Republic of China , and the latter idea was therefore adopted by the new republic as the principle of Five Races Under One Union , with Five Races referring to the Han, Manchus, Mongols, Muslims (Uyghurs, Hui etc.) and Tibetans. The Five-Striped Flag

3339-492: The term 境外 ('outside the border') for things outside the mainland region. Examples include "Administration of Foreign-funded Banks" ( 中华人民共和国外资银行管理条例 ; 中華人民共和國外資銀行管理條例 ) or the "Measures on Administration of Representative Offices of Foreign Insurance Institutions" ( 外国保险机构驻华代表机构管理办法 ; 外國保險機構駐華代表機構管理辦法 ). Hainan is an island, but is nevertheless commonly considered to be part of the "mainland" politically, because its government, legal and political systems do not differ from

3402-503: The term "China proper" was sometimes used by Chinese officials when they were communicating in foreign languages. For instance, the Qing ambassador to Britain Zeng Jize used it in an English language article, which he published in 1887. "Dulimbai Gurun" is the Manchu name for China ( 中國 , Zhongguo; "Middle Kingdom"). After conquering the Ming, the Qing identified their state as "China" (Zhongguo), and referred to it as "Dulimbai Gurun" in

3465-604: The term "China" ( 中國 ). The former term is generally preferred by the Pan-Blue Coalition led by the KMT, while the latter term is preferred by the Pan-Green Coalition led by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which opposes the term "mainland" and its suggestion that Taiwan is part of China. This has caused many political debates. Other geography-related terms which are used to avoid mentioning

3528-527: The territories newly acquired by the Qing empire. In the early 19th century, Wei Yuan 's Shengwuji (Military History of the Qing Dynasty) calls the Inner Asian polities guo , while the seventeen provinces of the traditional heartland, that is, "China proper", and three eastern provinces of Manchuria are called " Zhongguo ". Some Ming loyalists of Han ethnicity refused to use Zhongguo to refer to areas outside

3591-527: The territories under the control of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) by several different names, e.g. "(territory controlled by the) Communist bandits ", "occupied/unfree area (of China)", "Communist China" (as opposed to either "Nationalist China" or "Democratic China"), "Red China" (as opposed to "Blue China"), and "mainland China (area)". In modern times, many of these terms have fallen out of use. The terms "mainland China" ( 中國大陸 ) or "the mainland" ( 大陸 ) still remain in popular use, but some also simply use

3654-551: The two territories have retained their legal, political, and economic systems. The territories also have their distinct identities. Therefore, "mainland China" generally continues to exclude these territories, because of the " one country, two systems " policy adopted by the Chinese government towards the regions. The term is also used in economic indicators, such as the IMD Competitiveness Report. International news media often use "China" to refer only to mainland China or

3717-424: The widely accepted area covered by "China proper" is not the actual territory of any of the Chinese dynasties . Gu further theorized that " 中国本部 ", the Chinese and Japanese term equal to "China proper" at the time, actually originated from Japan and was translated into "China proper", hence the concept of "China proper" was developed by Japanese people, and it had become a tool to divide Chinese people, making way for

3780-560: Was placed under its control after the surrender of Japan at the end of World War II in 1945. With the establishment of the People's Republic of China on October 1, 1949, the CCP-controlled government saw itself as the sole legitimate government of China, competing with the claims of the Republic of China, whose authority is now limited to Taiwan and other islands . This resulted in a situation in which two co-existing governments competed for international legitimacy and recognition as

3843-546: Was absorbed into "China" (Dulimbai Gurun) in a Manchu language memorial. The Qing expounded on their ideology that they were bringing together the "outer" non-Han peoples like the Manchus, Mongols, Uighurs and Tibetans together with the "inner" Han people, into "one family" united under the Qing state, showing that the diverse subjects of the Qing were all part of one family, the Qing used the phrase "Zhong Wai Yi Jia" ( 中外一家 ) or "Nei Wai Yi Jia" ( 內外一家 , "interior and exterior as one family"), to convey this idea of "unification" of

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3906-418: Was adopted as the national flag, and the Republic of China viewed itself as a single unified state encompassing all five regions handed down by the Qing dynasty. The People's Republic of China, which was founded in 1949 and replaced the Republic of China on the Chinese mainland, has continued to claim essentially the same borders, with the only major exception being the recognition of an independent Mongolia . As

3969-437: Was the base of the would-be emperor Liu Wuzhou . The seat of government is in Shuocheng District , the urban core of the city. Shuozhou has a continental, monsoon -influenced semi-arid climate ( Köppen BSk ), with cold, very dry, and somewhat long winters, and warm, somewhat humid summers. The monthly 24-hour average temperature ranges from −9.8 °C (14.4 °F) in January to 21.9 °C (71.4 °F) in July, and

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