China - An Introduction
Perth High School Confucius Classroom
Introductory Presentation 1
China - Asian Superpower
China - An Introduction
• An ancient AND modern civilisation
• A rich and complex history• Superb cultural legacy• The most populous nation
on Earth• Many nationalities • Socialist government• Very diverse landscapes• Plants and Animals
China - History
• Origins of Chinese Kingdom lost in mythology
• First Emperor in• Many Imperial Dynasties:
Xin, Han, Ming, Tang, Manchu
• The Great Wall(s!)• Many religions and
philosophers e.g. Confucius• Republic founded in • Socialist republic from 1949
China - Culture
• Religions - Buddhism, Taoism, Islam
• Art - painting, fabrics, sculpture, furniture, etc.
• Architecture• Philosophy - Confucian
thought, etc. • Music - Beijing Opera• Kites - Wei Fang kitemaking
tradition
Who Are the Chinese?
• The most populous nation on earth
• Population = 1.3 billion• 20% of world population• Population was only 0.5
billion in 1950 • One child per family policy
since 1979• Most Populated Province -
Henan (92.56 million, almost twice the UK)
China - Many Nations
• 55 different nationalities
• Predominantly Han Chinese (olive green colour)
• Only 2.5 million Tibetans (golden colour)
• Mongolians (lilac colour)
• Other minorities are small
China - Landscape
• Western third mostly mountains, snow and desert - very sparsely populated
• Northern edge borders the Gobi Desert
• South-western part tropical - dense forest/jungle
• Remaining central and eastern zones are very diverse - river valleys, plains, mountains, loess plateau
China - Government
• China is governed by the Communist Party of China
• President Hu Jintao and Prime Minister Wen Jiabao are the leaders of China
• The Politburo (led by the 2 named above) currently has 25 members
• There are 22 provincial governments, as well as 4 major cities, 5 autonomous regions and 2 special administrative regions
China - Flora and Fauna• China is probably most famous for
its Giant Pandas• They are the subject of an
intensive breeding programme to prevent extinction
• Many of the garden plants in Scottish gardens are native to China and were brought back by British 19th and 20th century plant collectors
• Edinburgh Zoo has recently had red pandas and is currently bidding for some giant pandas
• Despite population pressure, China has a very rich range of animals, plants and insects (-->)
Including 12-inch centipedes!!