Did you know that there are 7 different regions of China which are often cited in official sources when describing China's geography, climate, economy and governance?
Each of these regions are comprised of several Chinese provinces which are in close proximity and share certain geographical and cultural similarities.
Keep reading to view a map and learn more about the 7 regions of China.
Why Does China Have Regions?
China is a very large and populous country with 22 provinces (23 if Taiwan is included), 5 autonomous regions, 4 municipalities and 2 special administrative regions (Hong Kong and Macau).
Sometimes it isn't practical to provide information specific to each province, so a broader method is required to describe different parts of the country.
A good example of this would be during a national weather forecast. In China it is also a popular way to refer to a region's food styles and tourism resources.
Such systems are very common, particularly in larger countries. For example, the United States Census Bureau defines 4 regions of their country - Northeast, Midwest, South and West.
Map of the Regions of China
The below map uses color coding to identify the 7 regions of China:
🟠North China 🟡Northeast China 🟢East China 🟣South China 🔵Central China 🟤Southwest China 🔴Northwest China
The 7 Regions of China
In Chinese these regions are typically called "中国七大地理地区" which means "7 Geographical Regions of China"
Here is some data on each:
🟠North China (华北)
- Name in Pinyin: Huabei
- Population: 137,250,000 (10.2% of China's total)
- Area: 1,556,828 square kilometres (16.2% of China's total)
- Provinces:
- Beijing (北京)
- Tianjin (天津)
- Hebei (河北)
- Shanxi (山西)
- Inner Mongolia (内蒙古)
🟡Northeast China (东北)
- Name in Pinyin: Dongbei
- Population: 109,100,000 (8.1%)
- Area: 790,600 square kilometres (8.2%)
- Provinces:
- Liaoning (辽宁)
- Jilin (吉林)
- Heilongjiang (黑龙江)
🟢East China (华东)
- Name in Pinyin: Huadong
- Population: 406,180,000 (30.1%)
- Area: 798,741 square kilometres (8.3%)
- Provinces:
- Shanghai (上海)
- Jiangsu (江苏)
- Zhejiang (浙江)
- Anhui (安徽)
- Fujian (福建)
- Jiangxi (江西)
- Shandong (山东)
- Special Note: In circumstances where Taiwan (台湾) is included, it is usually considered to be a province within this region
🟣South China (华南)
- Name in Pinyin: Huanan
- Population: 175,153,500 (13.0%)
- Area: 453,790 square kilometres (4.7%)
- Provinces:
- Guangdong (广东)
- Guangxi (广西)
- Hainan (海南)
- Hong Kong (香港) - note: not included when referring to "Mainland China"
- Macau (澳门) - note: not included when referring to "Mainland China"
🔵Central China (华中)
- Name in Pinyin: Huazhong
- Population: 222,390,000 (16.5%)
- Area: 564,700 square kilometres (5.9%)
- Provinces:
- Henan (河南)
- Hubei (湖北)
- Hunan (湖南)
🟤Southwest China (西南)
- Name in Pinyin: Xinan
- Population: 199,670,000 (14.8%)
- Area: 2,367,200 square kilometres (24.6%)
- Provinces:
- Chongqing (重庆)
- Sichuan (四川)
- Guizhou (贵州)
- Yunnan (云南)
- Tibet (西藏)
🔴Northwest China (西北)
- Name in Pinyin: Xibei
- Population: 100,890,000 (7.5%)
- Area: 3,113,100 square kilometres (32.1%)
- Provinces:
- Shaanxi (陕西)
- Gansu (甘肃)
- Qinghai (青海)
- Ningxia (宁夏)
- Xinjiang (新疆)
Usage Examples
Here are some examples of where the system of 7 Regions in China are used:
- To highlight different provinces on China's "National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System" - China's main company registration database
- Weather forecasts by the National Meteorological Center of China Meteorological Administration
- Throughout the country to describe different regions of China is the college textbook "中国自然地理" (China Physical Geography)
- As a basis for the address code part of the China ID card numbering system
Aren't There Only 6 Regions in China?
It is true that sometimes China is divided into 6 regions and when this happens it is usually because the South China (华南) and Central China (华中) regions are being combined.
In such cases this combined region is known as South Central China (中南) or just Central China.
An example of this is on the National Bureau of Statistics of China website which presents data that has South China and Central China regions listed together under "Central China":
