This page links to documents related to the nation of Inductiveload/Portal:China. The most populous country in the world, China has a recorded history extending back over 4000 years, though a long and complex series of both unified Imperial dynasties and fractured warring states. Powerful literary, poetic, philosophical and religious traditions combined with meticulous recording and archiving of events, provides a large body of textual works.
Chinese literature, spanning several thousand years, covers the range from the earliest legends of mythical figures, dynastic histories and archives, to the "classics" of the pre-Qin and post-Qin periods and more recent vernacular Chinese works.
Child portals: Chinese classics
Chinese language covers a range of "Sinitic" languages and dialects of various degrees of mutual intelligibility. Today, the most widely spoken Chinese language is Mandarin. Other major varieties include Wu, Cantonese and Min. Older languages such as "Old" (including the literary "Classical" form) and "Middle" Chinese, extend the linguistic record back to 1250 BC.
Examples: San Tzu Ching (Wang Yinglin, Song dynasty, tr. Herbert Giles, 1900) • The Chinese Language Spoken at Fuh Chau (Moses Clark White, 1856)
Law of China, including laws and decrees of the Imperial dynasties, the Nationalist Government and the current Communist Party.
Examples: Constitution of the People's Republic of China (1982) • Copyright Law of the People's Republic of China (1990)
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Politics of China includes declarations, communiques and decrees of the national government of China, as well as political commentary regarding China.
Examples: Imperial Decree of Declaration of War against Foreign Powers (Emperor Guangxu, 1900) • Secretary Kissinger's Talks in China (Henry Kissinger, Deng Xiaoping and others, 1976) • Governor's Speech at Farewell Ceremony of Hong Kong Handover (1997)
History of China from semi-mythical accounts from thousands of years ago, through dozens of kingdoms and dynasties, the end of the Imperial government in the early 20th century, to the present-day Communist Party of China.
Child portals: Opium Wars • Lytton Report
Chinese culture covers the traditions, legends, customs and religions of the Chinese people throughout its history. As well as native Chinese works, foreign Sinologists have reported on Chinese culture and religion since the earliest missionaries visited in the 16th century.
Examples: Leaves from my Chinese Scrapbook (Frederic Henry Balfour, 1887) • Tao Te Ching (ca. 4th century, tr. James Legge, 1891) • The Spirit of the Chinese People (Gu Hongming, 1915)
Related portals: Confucianism • Taoism • Buddhism
Geography of China, containing descriptions of and travelogues about the natural and human features of China. China is currently divided into over 30 provinces and administrative areas.
Examples: Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China (1908) • CIA World Factbook, China (2004)
Encyclopedic articles
- "China," in The Nuttall Encyclopædia, (ed.) by James Wood, London: Frederick Warne and Co., Ltd. (1907)
- "China," in Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed., 1911)
- "China," in Catholic Encyclopedia, (ed.) by Charles G. Herbermann and others, New York: The Encyclopaedia Press (1913)
- "China," in The New Student's Reference Work, Chicago: F.E. Compton and Co. (1914)
- "China," in The World Factbook, (ed.) by CIA (1982)
- "China," in The World Factbook, (ed.) by CIA (1990)
- "China," in CIA World Fact Book, (ed.) by CIA (2004)