China 🇨🇳
China is a country in Asia with a population of 1,425,887,337. Its capital is Beijing. The official currency is CNY, and the main languages are Mandarin.
Quick facts
- Capital: Beijing
- Continent: Asia
- Population: 1,425,887,337
- Area: 9,596,961 km²
- Density: 149 people per km²
- Currency: CNY
- Languages: Mandarin
- ISO code: CN
Where China sits
China 🇨🇳 is one of 48 countries in Asia, with its capital at Beijing. It covers 9,596,961 square kilometres — 4th in the world — and is home to about 1,425,887,337 people, 1st globally.
The countries it shares a continent with include India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Japan. If you are learning geography region by region — which works far better than alphabetically, because memory for places is spatial — those are the ones to learn alongside it.
How China compares
Raw figures are hard to hold on their own, so it helps to anchor them. In population, China sits closest to India and United States. In land area, its nearest counterparts are United States and Canada.
At 149 people per square kilometre it is about 2.5 times the world average of 59.4. It ranks higher by population than by area, so it is more crowded than its size alone suggests.
Mandarin is an official language in 3 countries here, among them Singapore and Taiwan. The CNY is used by China and no one else.
To see China next to every other country, sort the country rankings by population, area or density; its currency and languages are listed alongside every other country's in world currencies and world languages.
How to remember China
Beijing is in the north of China, and its name means 'northern capital'. For the flag, picture one big star with four small stars each pointing towards its centre, all in the top corner.
The flag of China: red and yellow
🇨🇳 The flag is a red flag with one large yellow five-pointed star and four smaller yellow stars in an arc around it, in the top corner by the flagpole. Red represents the Communist Revolution. When the flag was designed, the large star stood for the Communist Party and the four small stars for four social classes of China.
Region and neighbours
China is a very large country in East Asia, with the Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau in the west and a long coast on seas of the Pacific Ocean in the east. It shares land borders with 14 countries: Mongolia, Russia, North Korea, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, India, Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan.
- Mongolia 🇲🇳 — capital Ulaanbaatar
- Russia 🇷🇺 — capital Moscow
- North Korea 🇰🇵 — capital Pyongyang
- Vietnam 🇻🇳 — capital Hanoi
- Laos 🇱🇦 — capital Vientiane
- Myanmar 🇲🇲 — capital Naypyidaw
- India 🇮🇳 — capital New Delhi
- Bhutan 🇧🇹 — capital Thimphu
- Nepal 🇳🇵 — capital Kathmandu
- Pakistan 🇵🇰 — capital Islamabad
- Afghanistan 🇦🇫 — capital Kabul
- Tajikistan 🇹🇯 — capital Dushanbe
- Kyrgyzstan 🇰🇬 — capital Bishkek
- Kazakhstan 🇰🇿 — capital Astana
Three facts about China
- China is the world's second-most populous country after India, with more than 1.4 billion people.
- China's 60 World Heritage Sites include the Great Wall and the Grand Canal.
- Mount Everest, on China's border with Nepal, is the highest point on Earth.
Sources: Wikipedia: China, Wikipedia: Flag of China, Wikipedia: Beijing, CIA World Factbook.
Quiz yourself on China
- Asian capitals quiz — match China to Beijing
- Asian flags quiz — spot the China flag among its neighbours
Quizzes that include China
Three angles are worth covering for any country — where it is, what its flag looks like, and what its capital is. For China those are:
- Asia map quiz — place it on a blank map
- Asia flags quiz — identify its flag among its neighbours
- Asia capitals quiz — match it to Beijing
- China capital quiz — five quick questions starting with China
- Daily Map Challenge — five countries to find on a blank world map, the same five for everyone each day
Doing all three for one continent before moving on is far more efficient than learning flags globally, then capitals globally, then the map.
Read more about China
- Capital of China: Beijing — the capital in detail, with size and density rankings
- All 48 countries of Asia
Nearby countries
- Afghanistan 🇦🇫 — capital Kabul
- Armenia 🇦🇲 — capital Yerevan
- Azerbaijan 🇦🇿 — capital Baku
- Bahrain 🇧🇠— capital Manama
- Bangladesh 🇧🇩 — capital Dhaka
- Bhutan 🇧🇹 — capital Thimphu
- Brunei 🇧🇳 — capital Bandar Seri Begawan
- Cambodia 🇰🇠— capital Phnom Penh
- Georgia 🇬🇪 — capital Tbilisi
- India 🇮🇳 — capital New Delhi
- Indonesia 🇮🇩 — capital Jakarta
- Iran 🇮🇷 — capital Tehran
Frequently asked questions
What are the colours of the China flag?
The flag of China is a red flag with one large yellow five-pointed star and four smaller yellow stars in an arc around it, in the top corner by the flagpole. Red represents the Communist Revolution. When the flag was designed, the large star stood for the Communist Party and the four small stars for four social classes of China.
Which countries border China?
China shares land borders with Mongolia, Russia, North Korea, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, India, Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan.
How can I remember the capital of China?
Beijing is in the north of China, and its name means 'northern capital'. For the flag, picture one big star with four small stars each pointing towards its centre, all in the top corner.