China is the world's most populous country with about 1.3 billion people—20 percent of the Earth's population. Occupying most of East Asia, it is the fourth largest country in area (after Russia, Canada, and the U.S.). China's geography is highly diverse, with hills, plains, and river deltas in the east and deserts, high plateaus, and mountains in the west. Climate is equally varied, ranging from tropical in the south (Hainan) to subarctic in northeastern China (Manchuria). China's geography causes an uneven population distribution; 94 percent live in the eastern third of the country. Shandong province, with its mild coastal climate, has 91 million people, but Tibet, with its harsh mountain plateau climate, has only 2.6 million. The coastal regions are the most economically developed—acting as a magnet for an estimated 90 million Chinese migrants from the poor rural interior.

China Flag and Fast Facts

Population 1,303,701,000 Capital Beijing; 10,849,000 Area 9,596,960 square kilometers (3,705,405 square miles) Language Chinese (Mandarin), Cantonese, other dialects and minority languages Religion Taoist, Buddhist, Muslim

Currency yuan, also referred to as the Renminbi Life Expectancy 71 GDP per Capita U.S. $4,700 Literacy Percent 86

	Sunlight brightens the flanks of China's Great Wall—one of the most ambitious construction projects in human history. The wall was a barrier between China and "barbarian" lands.