Provinces of China

• Chinese: 省 (shěng)

Today, the People's Republic of China contains four cities governed directly under the central government, 22 Provinces (plus Taiwan), five Autonomous Regions, and two Special Administrative Regions. Many of these provinces are continuous from traditional political divisions.

Each of these regions also has a standard one-character abbreviation. Some of these are based on ancient states associated with that territory (for example, Lǔ 魯 for Shandong province), while others are simply characters taken from the fuller placename (for example, Zhè 浙 for Zhejiang province).

The provinces were historically divided into counties (県, xiàn). In the Ming Dynasty, there were roughly 1,100 counties in the empire, each governed by a magistrate appointed by the Emperor.

Each of the following divisions is listed followed by its standard abbreviation, and administrative center (provincial capital).

Cities directly under the Central Government

• Běijīng 北京 (京, Jīng)
• Shànghǎi 上海 (滬, Hù)
• Tiānjīn 天津 (津, Jīn)
• Chóngqìng 重慶 (渝, Yú)

Provinces

• Héběi 河北 (冀, Jì), Shíjiāzhuāng
• Shānxī 山西 (晋, Jìn), Tàiyuán
• Liáoníng 遼寧 (遼, Liáo), Shěnyáng
• Jílín 吉林 (吉, Jí), Chángchūn
• Hēilóngjiāng 黑龍江 (黑, Hēi), Hā'ěrbīn (Harbin)
• Jiāngsū 江蘇 (蘇, Sū), Nánjīng
• Zhèjiāng 浙江 (浙, Zhè), Hángzhōu
• Ānhuī 安徽 (皖, Wǎn), Héféi
• Fújiàn 福建 (閩, Mǐn), Fúzhōu
• Jiāngxī 江西 (贛, Gàn), Nánchāng
• Shāndōng 山東 (魯, Lǔ), Jǐnán
• Hénán 河南 (豫, Yù), Zhèngzhōu
• Húběi 湖北 (鄂, È), Wǔhàn
• Húnán 湖南 (湘, Xiāng), Chángshā
• Guǎngdōng 廣東 (粵, Yuè), Guǎngzhōu
• Hǎinán 海南 (瓊, Qióng), Hǎikǒu
• Sìchuān 四川 (川, Chuān), Chéngdū
• Guìzhōu 貴州 (黔, Qián), Guìyáng
• Yúnnán 雲南 (滇, Diān), Kūnmíng
• Shǎnxī 陜西 (陜, Shǎn), Xī'ān
• Gānsù 甘肅 (甘, Gān), Lánzhōu
• Qīnghǎi 青海 (青, Qīng), Xīníng
• (Táiwān 臺灣／台湾 (臺／台, Tái), Táiběi)

Autonomous Regions

• Inner Mongolia (內蒙古, Nèiměnggǔ), Hohhot
• Guǎngxī 廣西 (桂, Guì), Nánníng
• Tibet (西藏, Xīzàng), Lhasa
• Níngxià 寧夏 (寧, Níng), Yínchuān
• Xīnjiāng 新疆 (新, Xīn), Ürümqi

Special Administrative Regions

• Hong Kong 香港
• Macao 澳門

References

• New Practical Chinese Reader 2 Textbook, Beijing Language and Culture University Press (2004), 222.