Provinces of China

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  • 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.[1]

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

Cities directly under the Central Government

Provinces

Autonomous Regions

Special Administrative Regions

References

  • New Practical Chinese Reader 2 Textbook, Beijing Language and Culture University Press (2004), 222.
  1. Ray Huang, 1587: A Year of No Significance, Yale University Press (1981), 50.