China

Everything in China seems larger than life, and perceptions of the country must be adjusted to its enormous scale. Its culture and its civilization go back thousands of years. Its vast area of more than 3,690,000 square miles (9,560,000 square kilometers) is the third largest in the world, after Russia and Canada. With a population of more than 1 billion, it is Earth's most populated country.

China Fact Summary

Official Name. People's Republic of China (in Chinese, Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo).

Capital. Beijing.

China. Named by Europeans for ancient Ch'in Dynasty.

Coat of Arms. Five stars above Gate of Heavenly Peace, in Beijing, surrounded by border of ears of grain, with drapings knotted in center of cogwheel at base. Large star symbolizes mutual progress of four classes (workers, farmers, small holders, and patriotic capitalists), each represented by a small star.

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