Chinese word for china

China
«China» in Simplified (top) and Traditional (bottom) Chinese characters
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	中國
Simplified Chinese	中国
Hanyu Pinyin	Zhōngguó
Literal meaning	Middle or Central State[1]
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Zhōngguó Bopomofo ㄓㄨㄥ   ㄍㄨㄛˊ Gwoyeu Romatzyh Jonggwo Wade–Giles Chung¹-kuo² Tongyong Pinyin Jhongguó Yale Romanization Jūnggwó MPS2 Jūngguó IPA [ʈʂʊ́ŋ.kwǒ] other Mandarin Xiao’erjing ﺟْﻮﻗُﻮَع Dungan Җунгуй Sichuanese Pinyin Zong1 gwe2 Wu Romanization Tson平-koh入 Gan Romanization Tung-koe̍t Chungkoet Xiang IPA Tan33-kwɛ24/ Hakka Romanization Dung24-gued2 Pha̍k-fa-sṳ Chûng-koet Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization Jùnggwok or Jūnggwok Jyutping Zung1gwok3 IPA [tsôŋ.kʷɔ̄ːk̚] or [tsóŋ.kʷɔ̄ːk̚] Southern Min Hokkien POJ Tiong-kok Tâi-lô Tiong-kok Eastern Min Fuzhou BUC Dṳ̆ng-guók Pu-Xian Min Hinghwa BUC De̤ng-go̤h Northern Min Jian’ou Romanized Dô̤ng-gŏ
Common name
Traditional Chinese	中華
Simplified Chinese	中华
Hanyu Pinyin	Zhōnghuá
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Zhōnghuá Bopomofo ㄓㄨㄥ   ㄏㄨㄚˊ Gwoyeu Romatzyh Jonghwa Wade–Giles Chung¹-hua² Tongyong Pinyin Jhonghuá Yale Romanization Jūnghwá MPS2 Jūnghuá IPA [ʈʂʊ́ŋ.xwǎ] other Mandarin Xiao’erjing ﺟْﻮ ﺧُﻮَ Wu Romanization tson平 gho平 Gan Romanization tung1 fa4 or Chungfa Hakka Romanization dung24 fa11 Pha̍k-fa-sṳ Chûng-fà Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization Jùng’wàh or Jūng’wàh Jyutping Zung1waa4 IPA [tsôŋ.wȁː] or [tsóŋ.wȁː] Southern Min Hokkien POJ Tiong-hôa Tâi-lô Tiong-huâ Eastern Min Fuzhou BUC Dṳ̆ng-huà
Tibetan name
Tibetan	ཀྲུང་གོ་
Transcriptions Tibetan Pinyin Krung-go
Zhuang name
Zhuang	Cungguek
Mongolian name
Mongolian script	ᠳᠤᠮᠳᠠᠳᠤ ᠤᠯᠤᠰ
Transcriptions SASM/GNC Dumdadu ulus
Uyghur name
Uyghur	جۇڭگو‎
Transcriptions Latin Yëziqi Junggo
Manchu name
Manchu script	ᡩᡠᠯᡳᠮᠪᠠᡳ ᡤᡠᡵᡠᠨ
Romanization	Dulimbai gurun

The names of China include the many contemporary and historical appellations given in various languages for the East Asian country known as Zhōngguó (中國/中国, «central country») in its national language, Standard Mandarin. China, the name in English for the country, was derived from Portuguese in the 16th century, and became common usage in the West in the subsequent centuries.^[2] It is believed to be a borrowing from Middle Persian, and some have traced it further back to Sanskrit. It is also thought that the ultimate source of the name China is the Chinese word «Qin» (Chinese: 秦), the name of the dynasty that unified China but also existed as a state for many centuries prior. There are, however, other alternative suggestions for the origin of the word.

Chinese names for China, aside from Zhongguo, include Zhōnghuá (中華/中华, «central beauty»), Huáxià (華夏/华夏, «beautiful grandness»), Shénzhōu (神州, «divine state») and Jiǔzhōu (九州, «nine states»). Hàn (漢/汉) and Táng (唐) are common names given for the Chinese ethnicity, despite the Chinese nationality (Zhōnghuá Mínzú) not referencing any singular ethnicity. The People’s Republic of China (Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó) and Republic of China (Zhōnghuá Mínguó) are the official names for the two contemporary sovereign states currently claiming sovereignty over the traditional area of China. «Mainland China» is used to refer to areas under the jurisdiction of the PRC, usually excluding Hong Kong and Macau.

There are also names for China used around the world that are derived from the languages of ethnic groups other than the Han; examples include «Cathay» from the Khitan language and «Tabgach» from Tuoba.

Sinitic names[edit]

Zhongguo[edit]

Pre-Qing[edit]

Zhōngguó (中國) is the most common Chinese name for China in modern times. The earliest appearance of this two-character term is on the bronze vessel He zun (dating to 1038–c. 1000 BCE), during the early Western Zhou period. The phrase «zhong guo» came into common usage in the Warring States period (475–221 BCE), when it referred to the «Central States»; the states of the Yellow River Valley of the Zhou era, as distinguished from the tribal periphery.^[3] In later periods, however, Zhongguo was not used in this sense. Dynastic names were used for the state in Imperial China and concepts of the state aside from the ruling dynasty were little understood.^[2] Rather, the country was called by the name of the dynasty, such as «Han» (漢), «Tang» (唐), «Great Ming» (Da Ming 大明), «Great Qing» (Da Qing 大清), as the case might be. Until the 19th century when the international system came to require a common legal language, there was no need for a fixed or unique name.^[4]

As early as the Spring and Autumn period, Zhongguo could be understood as either the domain of the capital or used to refer the Chinese civilization (zhuxia 諸夏 «the various Xia»^[5][6] or zhuhua 諸華 «various Hua»^[7][8]), and the political and geographical domain that contained it, but Tianxia was the more common word for this idea. This developed into the usage of the Warring States period when, other than the cultural-civilizational community, it could be the geopolitical area of Chinese civilization, equivalent to Jiuzhou. In a more limited sense it could also refer to the Central Plain or the states of Zhao, Wei, and Han, etc., geographically central amongst the Warring States.^[9] Although Zhongguo could be used before the Song dynasty period to mean the transdynastic Chinese culture or civilization to which Chinese people belonged, it was in the Song dynasty when writers used Zhongguo as a term to describe the transdynastic entity with different dynastic names over time but having a set territory and defined by common ancestry, culture, and language.^[10]

There were different usages of the term Zhongguo in every period. It could refer to the capital of the emperor to distinguish it from the capitals of his vassals, as in Western Zhou. It could refer to the states of the Central Plain to distinguish them from states in outer regions. The Shi Jing defines Zhongguo as the capital region, setting it in apposition to the capital city.^[11][12] During the Han dynasty, three usages of Zhongguo were common. The Records of the Grand Historian uses Zhongguo to denote the capital,^[13][14] and also uses the concept zhong («center, central») and zhongguo to indicate the center of civilization: «There are eight famous mountains in the world: three in Man and Yi (the barbarian wilds), five in Zhōngguó.» (天下名山八，而三在蠻夷，五在中國。)^[15][16] In this sense, the term Zhongguo is synonymous with Huáxià (華夏/华夏) and Zhōnghuá (中華/中华), names of China that were first authentically attested since Warring States period^[17] and Eastern Jin period,^[18][19] respectively.

From the Qin to Ming dynasty literati discussed Zhongguo as both a historical place or territory and as a culture. Writers of the Ming period in particular used the term as a political tool to express opposition to expansionist policies that incorporated foreigners into the empire.^[21] In contrast foreign conquerors typically avoided discussions of Zhongguo and instead defined membership in their empires to include both Han and non-Han peoples.^[22]

Qing[edit]

Zhongguo appeared in a formal international legal document for the first time during the Qing dynasty in the Treaty of Nerchinsk, 1689. The term was then used in communications with other states and in treaties. The Manchu rulers incorporated Inner Asian polities into their empire, and Wei Yuan, a statecraft scholar, distinguished the new territories from Zhongguo, which he defined as the 17 provinces of «China proper» plus the Manchu homelands in the Northeast. By the late 19th century the term had emerged as a common name for the whole country. The empire was sometimes referred to as Great Qing but increasingly as Zhongguo (see the discussion below).^[23]

Dulimbai Gurun is the Manchu name for China, with «Dulimbai» meaning «central» or «middle,» and «Gurun» meaning «nation» or «state.»^[24][25][26] The historian Zhao Gang writes that «not long after the collapse of the Ming, China [Zhongguo] became the equivalent of Great Qing (Da Qing)—another official title of the Qing state», and «Qing and China became interchangeable official titles, and the latter often appeared as a substitute for the former in official documents.»^[27] The Qing dynasty referred to their realm as «Dulimbai Gurun» in Manchu. The Qing equated the lands of the Qing realm (including present day Manchuria, Xinjiang, Mongolia, Tibet and other areas) as «China» in both the Chinese and Manchu languages, defining China as a multi-ethnic state, rejecting the idea that China only meant Han areas; both Han and non-Han peoples were part of «China». Officials used «China» (though not exclusively) in official documents, international treaties, and foreign affairs, and the «Chinese language» (Manchu: Dulimbai gurun i bithe) referred to Chinese, Manchu, and Mongol languages, and the term «Chinese people» (中國人; Zhōngguórén; Manchu: Dulimbai gurun i niyalma) referred to all Han, Manchus, and Mongol subjects of the Qing.^[28] Ming loyalist Han literati held to defining the old Ming borders as China and using «foreigner» to describe minorities under Qing rule such as the Mongols, as part of their anti-Qing ideology.^[29]

When the Qing conquered Dzungaria in 1759, they proclaimed that the new land was absorbed into Dulimbai Gurun in a Manchu language memorial.^[30][31][32] The Qing expounded on their ideology that they were bringing together the «outer» non-Han Chinese like the Inner Mongols, Eastern Mongols, Oirat Mongols, and Tibetans together with the «inner» Han Chinese, into «one family» united in the Qing state, showing that the diverse subjects of the Qing were all part of one family, the Qing used the phrase «Zhōngwài yījiā» (中外一家; ‘China and other [countries] as one family’) or «Nèiwài yījiā» (內外一家; ‘Interior and exterior as one family’), to convey this idea of «unification» of the different peoples.^[33] A Manchu language version of a treaty with the Russian Empire concerning criminal jurisdiction over bandits called people from the Qing as «people of the Central Kingdom (Dulimbai Gurun)».^{[34][35][36][37]} In the Manchu official Tulisen’s Manchu language account of his meeting with the Torghut Mongol leader Ayuki Khan, it was mentioned that while the Torghuts were unlike the Russians, the «people of the Central Kingdom» (dulimba-i gurun/中國; Zhōngguó) were like the Torghut Mongols, and the «people of the Central Kingdom» referred to the Manchus.^[38]

Mark Elliott noted that it was under the Qing that «China» transformed into a definition of referring to lands where the «state claimed sovereignty» rather than only the Central Plains area and its people by the end of the 18th century.^[39]

Elena Barabantseva also noted that the Manchu referred to all subjects of the Qing empire regardless of ethnicity as «Chinese» (中國之人; Zhōngguó zhī rén; ‘China’s person’), and used the term (中國; Zhōngguó) as a synonym for the entire Qing empire while using «Hàn rén» (漢人) to refer only to the core area of the empire, with the entire empire viewed as multiethnic.^[40]

Joseph W. Esherick noted that while the Qing Emperors governed frontier non-Han areas in a different, separate system under the Lifanyuan and kept them separate from Han areas and administration, it was the Manchu Qing Emperors who expanded the definition of Zhongguo (中國) and made it «flexible» by using that term to refer to the entire Empire and using that term to other countries in diplomatic correspondence, while some Han Chinese subjects criticized their usage of the term and the Han literati Wei Yuan used Zhongguo only to refer to the seventeen provinces of China and three provinces of the east (Manchuria), excluding other frontier areas.^[41] Due to Qing using treaties clarifying the international borders of the Qing state, it was able to inculcate in the Chinese people a sense that China included areas such as Mongolia and Tibet due to education reforms in geography which made it clear where the borders of the Qing state were even if they didn’t understand how the Chinese identity included Tibetans and Mongolians or understand what the connotations of being Chinese were.^[42] The Treaty of Nanking (1842) English version refers to «His Majesty the Emperor of China» while the Chinese refers both to «The Great Qing Emperor» (Da Qing Huangdi) and to Zhongguo as well. The Treaty of Tientsin (1858) has similar language.^[4]

In the late 19th century the reformer Liang Qichao argued in a famous passage that «our greatest shame is that our country has no name. The names that people ordinarily think of, such as Xia, Han, or Tang, are all the titles of bygone dynasties.» He argued that the other countries of the world «all boast of their own state names, such as England and France, the only exception being the Central States.»^[43] The Japanese term «Shina» was proposed as a basically neutral Western-influenced equivalent for «China». Liang and Chinese revolutionaries, such as Sun Yat-sen, who both lived extensive periods in Japan, used Shina extensively, and it was used in literature as well as by ordinary Chinese. But with the overthrow of the Qing in 1911, most Chinese dropped Shina as foreign and demanded that even Japanese replace it with Zhonghua minguo or simply Zhongguo.^[44] Liang went on to argue that the concept of tianxia had to be abandoned in favor of guojia, that is, «nation,» for which he accepted the term Zhongguo.^[45] After the founding of the Chinese Republic in 1912, Zhongguo was also adopted as the abbreviation of Zhonghua minguo.^[46]

Qing official Zhang Deyi objected to the western European name «China» and said that China referred to itself as Zhonghua in response to a European who asked why Chinese used the term guizi to refer to all Europeans.^[47]

In the 20th century after the May Fourth Movement, educated students began to spread the concept of Zhōnghuá (中華/中华), which represented the people, including 56 minority ethnic groups and the Han Chinese, with a single culture identifying themselves as «Chinese». The Republic of China and the People’s Republic of China both used the title «Zhōnghuá» in their official names. Thus, Zhōngguó became the common name for both governments, and «Zhōngguó rén» for their citizens, though Taiwanese people may reject being called as such. Overseas Chinese are referred to as huáqiáo (華僑/华侨), «Chinese overseas», or huáyì (華裔/华裔), «Chinese descendants» (i.e., Chinese children born overseas).

Middle Kingdom[edit]

The English translation of Zhongguo as the «Middle Kingdom» entered European languages through the Portuguese in the 16th century and became popular in the mid-19th century. By the mid-20th century the term was thoroughly entrenched in the English language to reflect the Western view of China as the inwards-looking Middle Kingdom, or more accurately the Central Kingdom. Endymion Wilkinson points out that the Chinese were not unique in thinking of their country as central, although China was the only culture to use the concept for their name.^[48] The term Zhongguo was also not commonly used as a name for China until quite recently, nor did it mean the «Middle Kingdom» to the Chinese, or even have the same meaning throughout the course of history (see above).^[49]

«Zhōngguó» in different languages[edit]

• Burmese: Alaï-praï-daï^{[citation needed]}
• Catalan: País del Mig (The Middle’s Country/State)
• Czech: Říše středu («The Empire of the Center»)
• Dutch: Middenrijk («Middle Empire» or «Middle Realm»)
• English: Middle Kingdom, Central Kingdom
• Finnish: Keskustan valtakunta («The State of the Center»)
• French: Empire du milieu («Middle Empire») or Royaume du milieu («Middle Kingdom»)
• German: Reich der Mitte («Middle Empire»)
• Greek: Mési aftokratoría (Μέση αυτοκρατορία, «Middle Empire») or Kentrikí aftokratoría (Κεντρική αυτοκρατορία, «Central Empire»)
• Hmong: Suav Teb (𖬐𖬲𖬤𖬵 𖬈𖬰𖬧𖬵), Roob Kuj (𖬌𖬡 𖬆𖬶), Tuam Tshoj (𖬐𖬧𖬵 𖬒𖬲𖬪𖬰)
• Hungarian: Középső birodalom («Middle Empire»)
• Indonesian: Tiongkok (from Tiong-kok, the Hokkien name for China)^[50]
• Italian: Impero di Mezzo («Middle Empire»)
• Japanese: Chūgoku (中国; ちゅうごく)
• Kazakh: Juñgo (جۇڭگو)
• Korean: Jungguk (중국; 中國)
• Li: Dongxgok
• Lojban: jugygu’e or .djunguos.
• Manchu: ᡩᡠᠯᡳᠮᠪᠠᡳ ᡤᡠᡵᡠᠨ (Dulimbai gurun) or ᠵᡠᠩᡬᠣ (Jungg’o) were the official names for «China» in Manchu language
• Mongolian: ᠳᠤᠮᠳᠠᠳᠤ ᠤᠯᠤᠰ (Dumdadu ulus), the official name for «China» used in Inner Mongolia
• Polish: Państwo Środka («The State of the Center»)
• Portuguese: Estado Central («Central State»)
• Russian: Срединное Царство (Sredínnoye Tsárstvo; «Middle Kingdom»)
• Slovak: Ríša stredu («The Empire of the Center»)
• Spanish: País del Centro (The Middle’s Country/State)
• Swedish: Mittens rike (The Middle’s Kingdom/Empire/Realm/State)
• Tibetan: Krung-go (ཀྲུང་གོ་), a PRC-era loanword from Mandarin; the normal Tibetan term for China (proper) is rgya nak (རྒྱ་ནག), lit. the «black country.»
• Toki Pona: ma Sonko
• Uyghur: جۇڭگو, romanized: Junggo
• Vietnamese: Trung Quốc (中國)
• Yi: ꍏꇩ(Zho guop)
• Zhuang: Cunghgoz (older orthography: Cuŋƅgoƨ)

«Zhōnghuá» in different languages[edit]

• Indonesian: Tionghoa (from Tiong-hôa, the Hokkien counterpart)
• Japanese: Chūka (中華; ちゅうか)
• Korean: Junghwa (중화; 中華)
• Kazakh: Juñxwa (جۇڭحوا)
• Li: Dongxhwax
• Manchu: ᠵᡠᠩᡥᡡᠸᠠ (Junghūwa)
• Tibetan: ཀྲུང་ཧྭ (krung hwa)
• Uyghur: جۇڭخۇا, romanized: Jungxua
• Vietnamese: Trung Hoa (中華)
• Yi: ꍏꉸ (Zho huop)
• Zhuang: Cunghvaz (Old orthography: Cuŋƅvaƨ)

Huaxia[edit]

The name Huaxia (華夏/华夏; pinyin: huáxià) is generally used as a sobriquet in Chinese text. Under traditional interpretations, it is the combination of two words which originally referred to the elegance of the traditional attire of the Han Chinese and the Confucian concept of rites.

• Hua which means «flowery beauty» (i.e. having beauty of dress and personal adornment 有服章之美，謂之華).
• Xia which means greatness or grandeur (i.e. having greatness of social customs/courtesy/polite manners and rites/ceremony 有禮儀之大，故稱夏).^[51]

In the original sense, Huaxia refers to a confederation of tribes—living along the Yellow River—who were the ancestors of what later became the Han ethnic group in China.^{[citation needed]} During the Warring States (475–221 BCE), the self-awareness of the Huaxia identity developed and took hold in ancient China.

Zhonghua minzu[edit]

Zhonghua minzu is a term meaning «Chinese nation» in the sense of a multi-ethnic national identity. Though originally rejected by the PRC, it has been used officially since the 1980s for nationalist politics.

Tianchao and Tianxia[edit]

Tianchao (天朝; pinyin: Tiāncháo), translated as «heavenly dynasty» or «Celestial Empire;»^[52] and Tianxia (天下; pinyin: Tiānxià) translated as «under heaven,» are both phrases that have been used to refer to China. These terms were usually used in the context of civil wars or periods of division, with the term Tianchao evoking the idea of the realm’s ruling dynasty was appointed by heaven;^[52] or that whoever ends up reunifying China is said to have ruled Tianxia, or everything under heaven. This fits with the traditional Chinese theory of rulership in which the emperor was nominally the political leader of the entire world and not merely the leader of a nation-state within the world. Historically the term was connected to the later Zhou Dynasty (c. 1046–256 BCE), especially the Spring and Autumn period (eighth to fourth century BCE) and the Warring States period (from there to 221 BCE, when China was reunified by the Qin state). The phrase Tianchao continues to see use on Chinese internet discussion boards, in reference to China.^[52]

The phrase Tianchao was first translated into English and French in the early 19th century, appearing in foreign publicans and diplomatic correspondences,^[53] with the translated phrase «Celestial Empire» occasionally used to refer to China. During this period, the term celestial was used by some to refer to the subjects of the Qing dynasty in a non-prejudicial manner,^[53] derived from the term «Celestial Empire». However, the term celestial was also used in a pejorative manner during the 19th century, in reference to Chinese immigrants in Australasia and North America.^[53] The translated phrase has largely fallen into disuse in the 20th century.

Translations for Tianxia include:

• Russian: Поднебесная (Podnebésnaya; lit. «under the heaven»)

Jiangshan and Heshan[edit]

Jiangshan (江山; pinyin: Jiāngshān) and Heshan (河山; pinyin: Héshān) literally mean «rivers and mountains». This term is quite similar in usage to Tianxia, and simply refers to the entire world, and here the most prominent features of which being rivers and mountains. The use of this term is also common as part of the phrase Jiangshan sheji (江山社稷; pinyin: Jiāngshān shèjì; lit. «rivers and mountains, soil and grain»), suggesting the need to implement good governance.

Jiuzhou[edit]

The name Jiuzhou (九州; pinyin: jiǔ zhōu) means «nine provinces». Widely used in pre-modern Chinese text, the word originated during the middle of Warring States period of China (c. 400–221 BCE). During that time, the Yellow River region was divided into nine geographical regions; thus this name was coined. Some people also attribute this word to the mythical hero and king Yu the Great, who, in the legend, divided China into nine provinces during his reign. (Consult Zhou for more information.)

Shenzhou[edit]

This name means Divine Realm^[54] or Divine Land (神州; pinyin: Shénzhōu; lit. ‘divine/godly provinces’) and comes from the same period as Jiuzhou meaning «nine provinces». It was thought that the world was divided into nine major states, one of which is Shenzhou, which is in turn divided into nine smaller states, one of which is Jiuzhou mentioned above.

Sihai[edit]

This name, Four Seas (四海; pinyin: sìhǎi), is sometimes used to refer to the world, or simply China, which is perceived as the civilized world. It came from the ancient notion that the world is flat and surrounded by sea.

Han[edit]

Han
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	漢
Simplified Chinese	汉
Hanyu Pinyin	Hàn
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Hàn Bopomofo ㄏㄢˋ Gwoyeu Romatzyh Hann Wade–Giles Han⁴ IPA [xân] Wu Romanization Hoe去 Gan Romanization Hon5 Hakka Romanization Hon55 Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization Hon Jyutping Hon3 IPA [hɔ̄ːn] Southern Min Hokkien POJ Hàn Tâi-lô Hàn Teochew Peng’im Hang3 Eastern Min Fuzhou BUC Háng Middle Chinese Middle Chinese xanC
Vietnamese name
Vietnamese alphabet	Hán
Chữ Hán	漢
Korean name
Hangul	한
Hanja	漢
Transcriptions Revised Romanization han
Japanese name
Kanji	漢
Kana	かん
Transcriptions Romanization kan

The name Han (漢/汉; pinyin: Hàn) derives from the Han dynasty (206 BC–AD 220), who presided over China’s first «golden age». The Han dynasty collapsed in 220 and was followed by a long period of disorder, including Three Kingdoms, Sixteen Kingdoms, and Southern and Northern dynasties periods. During these periods, various non-Han ethnic groups established various dynasties in northern China. It was during this period that people began to use the term «Han» to refer to the natives of North China, who (unlike the minorities) were the descendants of the subjects of the Han dynasty.

During the Yuan dynasty, subjects of the empire was divided into four classes: Mongols, Semu or «Colour-eyeds», Hans, and «Southerns». Northern Chinese were called Han, which was considered to be the highest class of Chinese. This class «Han» includes all ethnic groups in northern China including Khitan and Jurchen who have in most part sinicized during the last two hundreds years. The name «Han» became popularly accepted.

During the Qing dynasty, the Manchu rulers also used the name Han to distinguish the natives of the Central Plains from the Manchus. After the fall of the Qing government, the Han became the name of a nationality within China. Today the term «Han Persons», often rendered in English as Han Chinese, is used by the People’s Republic of China to refer to the most populous of the 56 officially recognized ethnic groups of China. The «Han Chinese» are simply referred to as «Chinese» by some.

Tang[edit]

Tang
Chinese name
Chinese	唐
Hanyu Pinyin	Táng
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Táng Bopomofo ㄊㄤˊ Gwoyeu Romatzyh Tarng Wade–Giles Tʻang² IPA [tʰǎŋ] Wu Romanization Daon平 Gan Romanization Tong Hakka Romanization Tong11 Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization Tòhng Jyutping Tong4 IPA [tʰɔ̏ːŋ] Southern Min Hokkien POJ Tông/Tn̂g Tâi-lô Tông/Tn̂g
Vietnamese name
Vietnamese alphabet	Đường
Chữ Hán	唐
Korean name
Hangul	당
Hanja	唐
Transcriptions Revised Romanization dang
Japanese name
Kanji	唐
Kana	とう (On), から (Kun)
Transcriptions Romanization tō (On), kara (Kun)

The name Tang (唐; pinyin: Táng) comes from the Tang dynasty (618–690, 705–907) that presided over China’s second golden age. It was during the Tang dynasty that South China was finally and fully Sinicized; Tang would become synonymous with China in Southern China and it is usually Southern Chinese who refer to themselves as «People of Tang» (唐人, pinyin: Tángrén).^[55] For example, the sinicization and rapid development of Guangdong during the Tang period would lead the Cantonese to refer to themselves as Tong-yan (唐人) in Cantonese, while China is called Tong-saan (唐山; pinyin: Tángshān; lit. ‘Tang Mountain’).^[56] Chinatowns worldwide, often dominated by Southern Chinese, also became referred to Tang people’s Street (唐人街, Cantonese: Tong-yan-gaai; pinyin: Tángrénjiē). The Cantonese term Tongsan (Tang mountain) is recorded in Old Malay as one of the local terms for China, along with the Sanskrit-derived Cina. It is still used in Malaysia today, usually in a derogatory sense.

Among Taiwanese, Tang mountain (Min-Nan: Tn̂g-soaⁿ) has been used, for example, in the saying, «has Tangshan father, no Tangshan mother» (有唐山公，無唐山媽; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Ū Tn̂g-soaⁿ kong, bô Tn̂g-soaⁿ má).^[57][58] This refers how the Han people crossing the Taiwan Strait in the 17th and 18th centuries were mostly men, and that many of their offspring would be through intermarriage with Taiwanese aborigine women.

In Ryukyuan, karate was originally called tii (手, hand) or karatii (唐手, Tang hand) because 唐ぬ國 too-nu-kuku or kara-nu-kuku (唐ぬ國) was a common Ryukyuan name for China; it was changed to karate (空手, open hand) to appeal to Japanese people after the First Sino-Japanese War.

Zhu Yu, who wrote during the Northern Song dynasty, noted that the name «Han» was first used by the northwestern ‘barbarians’ to refer to China while the name «Tang» was first used by the southeastern ‘barbarians’ to refer to China, and these terms subsequently influenced the local Chinese terminology.^[59] During the Mongol invasions of Japan, the Japanese distinguished between the «Han» of northern China, who, like the Mongols and Koreans, were not to be taken prisoner, and the Newly Submitted Army of southern China whom they called «Tang», who would be enslaved instead.^[60]

Dalu and Neidi[edit]

Dàlù (大陸/大陆; pinyin: dàlù), literally «big continent» or «mainland» in this context, is used as a short form of Zhōnggúo Dàlù (中國大陸/中国大陆, Mainland China), excluding (depending on the context) Hong Kong and Macau, and/or Taiwan. This term is used in official context in both the mainland and Taiwan, when referring to the mainland as opposed to Taiwan. In certain contexts, it is equivalent to the term Neidi (内地; pinyin: nèidì, literally «the inner land»). While Neidi generally refers to the interior as opposed to a particular coastal or border location, or the coastal or border regions generally, it is used in Hong Kong specifically to mean mainland China excluding Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. Increasingly, it is also being used in an official context within mainland China, for example in reference to the separate judicial and customs jurisdictions of mainland China on the one hand and Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan on the other.

The term Neidi is also often used in Xinjiang and Tibet to distinguish the eastern provinces of China from the minority-populated, autonomous regions of the west.

Official names[edit]

People’s Republic of China[edit]

People’s Republic of China
«People’s Republic of China» in Simplified (top) and Traditional (bottom) Chinese characters
Chinese name
Simplified Chinese	中华人民共和国
Traditional Chinese	中華人民共和國
Hanyu Pinyin	Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó Bopomofo ㄓㄨㄥ   ㄏㄨㄚˊ ㄖㄣˊ   ㄇㄧㄣˊ ㄍㄨㄥˋ   ㄏㄜˊ   ㄍㄨㄛˊ Gwoyeu Romatzyh Jonghwa Renmin Gonqhergwo Wade–Giles Chung¹-hua² Jên²-min² Kung⁴-ho²-kuo² Tongyong Pinyin Jhonghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó Yale Romanization Jūnghwá Rénmín Gùnghégwó MPS2 Jūnghuá Rénmín Gùnghéguó IPA [ʈʂʊ́ŋ.xwǎ ɻə̌n.mǐn kʊ̂ŋ.xɤ̌.kwǒ] other Mandarin Xiao’erjing ﺟْﻮﺧُﻮَ ژٌمٍ ﻗْﻮحْقُوَع Dungan Җунхуа Жынмин Гунхәгуй Sichuanese Pinyin Zong1 hua2 Zen2 min2 Gong4 hwe2 gwe2 Wu Romanization tson平 gho平 zin平 min平 gon去 ghu平 koh入 Gan Romanization Chungfa Ninmin Khungfokoet Xiang IPA /tan33 go13 ŋin13 min13 gan45 gu13 kwɛ24/ Hakka Romanization dung24 fa11 ngin11 min11 kiung55 fo11 gued2 Pha̍k-fa-sṳ Chûng-fà Ngìn-mìn Khiung-fò-koet Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization Jùng’wàh Yàhnmàhn Guhng’wòhgwok or Jūng’wàh Yàhnmàhn Guhng’wòhgwok Jyutping Zung1waa4 Jan4man4 Gung6wo4gwok3 IPA [tsôŋ.wȁː jɐ̏n.mɐ̏n kòŋ.wɔ̏ː.kʷɔ̄ːk̚] or [tsóŋ.wȁː jɐ̏n.mɐ̏n kòŋ.wɔ̏ː.kʷɔ̄ːk̚] Southern Min Hokkien POJ Tiong-hôa Jîn-bîn Kiōng-hô-kok Tâi-lô Tiong-huâ Jîn-bîn Kiōng-hô-kok Eastern Min Fuzhou BUC Dṳ̆ng-huà Ìng-mìng Gê̤ṳng-huò-guók Pu-Xian Min Hinghwa BUC De̤ng-huá Cíng-míng Gē̤ng-hó̤-go̤h Northern Min Jian’ou Romanized Dô̤ng-uǎ Nêng-měng Gō̤ng-uǎ-gŏ
Tibetan name
Tibetan	ཀྲུང་ཧྭ་མི་དམངས་སྤྱི མཐུན་རྒྱལ་ཁབ
Transcriptions Wylie krung hwa mi dmangs spyi mthun rgyal khab Tibetan Pinyin Zhunghua Mimang Jitun Gyalkab
Vietnamese name
Vietnamese alphabet	Cộng hoà Nhân dân Trung Hoa
Chữ Hán	共和人民中華
Thai name
Thai	สาธารณรัฐประชาชนจีน
Zhuang name
Zhuang	Cunghvaz Yinzminz Gunghozgoz
Mongolian name
Mongolian script	ᠪᠦᠭᠦᠳᠡ ᠨᠠᠶᠢᠷᠠᠮᠳᠠᠬᠤ ᠳᠤᠮᠳᠠᠳᠤ ᠠᠷᠠᠳ ᠤᠯᠤᠰ
Transcriptions SASM/GNC Bügüde nayiramdaqu dumdadu arad ulus
Uyghur name
Uyghur	جۇڭخۇا خەلق جۇمھۇرىيىتى‎
Transcriptions Latin Yëziqi Jungxua Xelq Jumhuriyiti Yengi Yeziⱪ Junghua Həlⱪ Jumⱨuriyiti SASM/GNC Junghua Hälk̂ Jumĥuriyiti Siril Yëziqi Җуңхуа Хәлқ Җумһурийити
Manchu name
Manchu script	ᡩᡠᠯᡳᠮᠪᠠᡳ ᠨᡳᠶᠠᠯᠮᠠᡳᡵᡤᡝᠨ ᡤᡠᠨᡥᡝ ᡤᡠᡵᡠᠨ
Romanization	Dulimbai niyalmairgen gunghe’ gurun

The name New China has been frequently applied to China by the Chinese Communist Party as a positive political and social term contrasting pre-1949 China (the establishment of the PRC) and the new name of the socialist state, Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó (in the older postal romanization, Chunghwa Jenmin Konghokuo) or the «People’s Republic of China» in English, was adapted from the CCP’s short-lived Chinese Soviet Republic in 1931. This term is also sometimes used by writers outside mainland China. The PRC was known to many in the West during the Cold War as «Communist China» or «Red China» to distinguish it from the Republic of China which is commonly called «Taiwan», «Nationalist China» or «Free China». In some contexts, particularly in economics, trade, and sports, «China» is often used to refer to mainland China to the exclusion of Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

The official name of the People’s Republic of China in various official languages and scripts:

• Simplified Chinese: 中华人民共和国 (pinyin: Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó) – Official language and script, used in mainland China, Singapore and Malaysia
• Traditional Chinese: 中華人民共和國 (pinyin: Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó; Jyutping: Zung1waa4 Jan4man4 Gung6wo4gwok3) – Official script in Hong Kong and Macau, and commonly used in Taiwan (ROC)
• English: People’s Republic of China – Official in Hong Kong
• Kazakh: As used within the Republic of Kazakhstan, Қытай Халық Республикасы (in Cyrillic script), Qıtay Xalıq Respwblïkası (in Latin script), قىتاي حالىق رەسپۋبلىيكاسى (in Arabic script); as used within the People’s Republic of China, جۇڭحۋا حالىق رەسپۋبليكاسى (in Arabic script), Жұңxуа Халық Республикасы (in Cyrillic script), Juñxwa Xalıq Respwblïkası (in Latin script). The Cyrillic script is the predominant script in the Republic of Kazakhstan, while the Arabic script is normally used for the Kazakh language in the People’s Republic of China.
• Korean: 중화 인민 공화국 (中華人民共和國; Junghwa Inmin Gonghwaguk) – Used in Yanbian Prefecture (Jilin) and Changbai County (Liaoning)
• Manchurian: ᡩᡠᠯᡳᠮᠪᠠᡳ ᠨᡳᠶᠠᠯᠮᠠᡳᡵᡤᡝᠨ ᡤᡠᠨᡥᡝ ᡤᡠᡵᡠᠨ (Dulimbai niyalmairgen gunghe’ gurun) or ᠵᡠᠩᡥᡡᠸᠠ ᠨᡳᠶᠠᠯᠮᠠᡳᡵᡤᡝᠨ ᡤᡠᠨᡥᡝᡬᠣ (Junghūwa niyalmairgen gungheg’o)
• Mongolian: ᠪᠦᠭᠦᠳᠡ ᠨᠠᠶᠢᠷᠠᠮᠳᠠᠬᠤ ᠳᠤᠮᠳᠠᠳᠤ ᠠᠷᠠᠳ ᠤᠯᠤᠰ (Bügüde nayiramdaqu dumdadu arad ulus) – Official in Inner Mongolia; Бүгд Найрамдах Хятад Ард Улс (Bügd Nairamdakh Khyatad Ard Uls) – used in Mongolia
• Portuguese: República Popular da China – Official in Macau
• Tibetan: ཀྲུང་ཧྭ་མི་དམངས་སྤྱི་མཐུན་རྒྱལ་ཁབ, Wylie: krung hwa mi dmangs spyi mthun rgyal khab, ZYPY: Zhunghua Mimang Jitun Gyalkab – Official in PRC’s Tibet
  • Tibetan: རྒྱ་ནག་མི་དམངས་སྤྱི་མཐུན་རྒྱལ་ཁབ, Wylie: rgya nag mi dmangs spyi mthun rgyal khab – Official in Tibet Government-in-Exile
• Uyghur: جۇڭخۇا خەلق جۇمھۇرىيىت (Jungxua Xelq Jumhuriyiti) – Official in Xinjiang
• Yi: ꍏꉸꏓꂱꇭꉼꇩ (Zho huop rep mip gop hop guop) – Official in Liangshan (Sichuan) and several Yi-designated autonomous counties
• Zaiwa: Zhunghua Mingbyu Muhum Mingdan – Official in Dehong (Yunnan)
• Zhuang: Cunghvaz Yinzminz Gunghozgoz (Old orthography: Cuŋƅvaƨ Yinƨminƨ Guŋƅoƨ) – Official in Guangxi

The official name of the People’s Republic of China in major neighboring countries official languages and scripts:

• Japanese: 中華人民共和国 (ちゅうかじんみんきょうわこく, Chūka Jinmin Kyōwakoku) – Used in Japan
• Russian: Китайская Народная Республика (Kitayskaya Narodnaya Respublika) – Used in Russia and Central Asia
• Hindi: चीनी जनवादी गणराज्य (Cīnī Janvādī Gaṇrājya) – Used in India
• Urdu: عوامی جمہوریہ چین (Awami Jamhoriya Cheen) – Used in Pakistan
• Burmese: တရုတ်ပြည်သူ့သမ္မတနိုင်ငံ (Tarotepyishusammataninengan) – Used in Myanmar
• Vietnamese: Cộng hòa Nhân dân Trung Hoa (共和人民中華) – Used in Vietnam
• Thai: สาธารณรัฐประชาชนจีน (Satharanarat Prachachon Chin) – Used in Thailand
• Khmer: សាធារណរដ្ឋប្រជាមានិតចិន – Used in Cambodia
• Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດປະຊາຊົນຈີນ (Sathalanalat Paxaxon Chin) – Used in Laos
• Nepali: जन गणतान्त्रिक चीन (Jana Gaṇatāntrika Cīna) – Used in Nepal

Republic of China[edit]

Republic of China
«Republic of China» in Traditional (top) and Simplified (bottom) Chinese characters
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	中華民國
Simplified Chinese	中华民国
Postal	Chunghwa Minkuo
Literal meaning	Central State People’s Country
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Zhōnghuá Mínguó Bopomofo ㄓㄨㄥ   ㄏㄨㄚˊ ㄇㄧㄣˊ   ㄍㄨㄛˊ Gwoyeu Romatzyh Jonghwa Min’gwo Wade–Giles Chung¹-hua² Min²-kuo² Tongyong Pinyin Jhonghuá Mínguó Yale Romanization Jūnghwá Mín’gwó MPS2 Jūnghuá Mínguó IPA [ʈʂʊ́ŋ.xwǎ mǐn.kwǒ] other Mandarin Xiao’erjing ﺟْﻮ ﺧُﻮَ مٍ ﻗُﻮَع Wu Romanization tson平 gho平 min平 koh入 Gan Romanization tung1 fa4 min4 koet7 or Chungfa Minkoet Hakka Romanization dung24 fa11 min11 gued2 Pha̍k-fa-sṳ Chûng-fà Mìn-koet Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization Jùng’wàh Màhn’gwok or Jūng’wàh Màhn’gwok Jyutping Zung1waa4 Man4gwok3 IPA [tsôŋ.wȁː mɐ̏n.kʷɔ̄ːk̚] or [tsóŋ.wȁː mɐ̏n.kʷɔ̄ːk̚] Southern Min Hokkien POJ Tiong-hôa Bîn-kok Tâi-lô Tiong-huâ Bîn-kok Eastern Min Fuzhou BUC Dṳ̆ng-huà Mìng-guók
Chinese Taipei
Traditional Chinese	中華臺北 or 中華台北
Simplified Chinese	中华台北
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Zhōnghuá Táiběi Bopomofo ㄓㄨㄥ   ㄏㄨㄚˊ ㄊㄞˊ   ㄅㄟˇ Gwoyeu Romatzyh Jonghwa Tairbeei Wade–Giles Chung¹-hua² Tʻai²-pei³ Tongyong Pinyin Jhonghuá Táiběi Yale Romanization Jūnghwá Táiběi MPS2 Jūnghuá Táiběi IPA [ʈʂʊ́ŋ.xwǎ tʰǎɪ.pèɪ] Hakka Pha̍k-fa-sṳ Chûng-fà Thòi-pet Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization Jùng’wàh Tòihbāk or Jūng’wàh Tòihbāk Jyutping Zung1waa4 Toi4bak1 IPA [tsôŋ.wȁː tʰɔ̏ːi.pɐ́k̚] or [tsóŋ.wȁː tʰɔ̏ːi.pɐ́k̚] Southern Min Hokkien POJ Tiong-hôa Tâi-pak Tâi-lô Tiong-huâ Tâi-pak Eastern Min Fuzhou BUC Dṳ̆ng-huà Dài-báe̤k
Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu
Traditional Chinese	臺澎金馬 個別關稅領域 or 台澎金馬 個別關稅領域
Simplified Chinese	台澎金马 个别关税领域
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Tái-Péng-Jīn-Mǎ Gèbié Guānshuì Lǐngyù Bopomofo ㄊㄞˊ   ㄆㄥˊ   ㄐㄧㄣ   ㄇㄚˇ ㄍㄜˋ   ㄅㄧㄝˊ ㄍㄨㄢ   ㄕㄨㄟˋ   ㄌㄧㄥˇ   ㄩˋ Gwoyeu Romatzyh Tair Perng Jin Maa Gehbye Guanshuey Liingyuh Wade–Giles Tʻai² Pʻêng² Chin¹ Ma³ Ko⁴-pieh² Kuan¹-shui⁴ Ling³-yü⁴ Tongyong Pinyin Tái Péng Jin Mǎ Gèbié Guanshuèi Lǐngyù Yale Romanization Tái Péng Jīn Mǎ Gèbyé Gwānshwèi Lǐngyù MPS2 Tái Péng Jīn Mǎ Gèbié Guānshuèi Lǐngyù IPA [tʰǎɪ pʰə̌ŋ tɕín mà] [kɤ̂.pjě kwán.ʂwêɪ lìŋ.ŷ] Southern Min Hokkien POJ Tâi Phîⁿ (or Phêⁿ) Kim Bé Kò-pia̍t Koan-sòe (or Koan-sè) Léng-he̍k (or Léng-e̍k) Tâi-lô Tâi Phînn (or Phênn) Kim Bé Kò-pia̍t Kuan-suè (or Kuan-sè) Líng-hi̍k (or Líng-i̍k)
Taiwan
Traditional Chinese	臺灣 or 台灣
Simplified Chinese	台湾
Postal	Taiwan
Literal meaning	Terraced Bay
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Táiwān Bopomofo ㄊㄞˊ   ㄨㄢ Gwoyeu Romatzyh Tair’uan Wade–Giles Tʻai²-wan¹ Tongyong Pinyin Táiwan Yale Romanization Táiwān MPS2 Táiwān IPA [tʰǎɪ.wán] other Mandarin Dungan Тэван Wu Romanization The平-uae平 [d̥e uɛ] Xiang IPA dwɛ13 ua44 Hakka Pha̍k-fa-sṳ Thòi-vàn or Thòi-vân Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization Tòihwāan Jyutping Toi4waan1 IPA [tʰɔ̏ːi.wáːn] Southern Min Hokkien POJ Tâi-oân Tâi-lô Tâi-uân Eastern Min Fuzhou BUC Dài-uăng
Portuguese: (Ilha) Formosa
Traditional Chinese	福爾摩沙
Simplified Chinese	福尔摩沙
Literal meaning	beautiful island
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Fú’ěrmóshā Bopomofo ㄈㄨˊ   ㄦˇ   ㄇㄛˊ   ㄕㄚ Gwoyeu Romatzyh Fwueelmosha Wade–Giles Fu²-êrh³-mo²-sha¹ Tongyong Pinyin Fú’ěrmósha Yale Romanization Fúěrmwóshā MPS2 Fúěrmóshā IPA [fǔ.àɚ.mwǒ.ʂá] Yue: Cantonese Jyutping Fuk1ji5mo1saa1 Southern Min Hokkien POJ Hok-ní-mô͘-sa
Republic of Taiwan
Traditional Chinese	臺灣民國 or 台灣民國
Simplified Chinese	台湾民国
Postal	Taiwan Minkuo
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Táiwān Mínguó Bopomofo ㄊㄞˊ   ㄨㄢ ㄇㄧㄣˊ   ㄍㄨㄛˊ Gwoyeu Romatzyh Tair’uan Min’gwo Wade–Giles Tʻai²-wan¹ Min²-kuo² Tongyong Pinyin Táiwan Mínguó Yale Romanization Táiwān Mín’gwó MPS2 Táiwān Mínguó Hakka Pha̍k-fa-sṳ Thòi-vàn Mìn-koet or Thòi-vân Mìn-koet Southern Min Hokkien POJ Tâi-oân Bîn-kok Tâi-lô Tâi-uân Bîn-kok
Tibetan name
Tibetan	ཀྲུང་ཧྭ་དམངས་གཙོའི། ་རྒྱལ་ཁབ
Transcriptions Wylie krung hwa dmangs gtso’i rgyal khab
Vietnamese name
Vietnamese alphabet	Trung Hoa Dân Quốc
Chữ Hán	中華民國
Zhuang name
Zhuang	Cunghvaz Minzgoz
Korean name
Hangul	중화민국
Hanja	中華民國
Transcriptions Revised Romanization Junghwa Minguk
Mongolian name
Mongolian Cyrillic	Дундад иргэн улс
Mongolian script	ᠳᠤᠮᠳᠠᠳᠤ ᠢᠷᠭᠡᠨ ᠤᠯᠤᠰ
Transcriptions SASM/GNC Dumdadu irgen ulus
Japanese name
Kanji	中華民国
Kana	ちゅうかみんこく
Transcriptions Romanization Chūka Minkoku
Uyghur name
Uyghur	جۇڭخۇا مىنگو‎
Transcriptions Latin Yëziqi Jungxua Mingo Yengi Yeziⱪ Junghua Mingo Siril Yëziqi Җуңхуа Минго
Manchu name
Manchu script	ᡩᡠᠯᡳᠮᠪᠠᡳ ᡳᡵᡤᡝᠨ ᡤᡠᡵᡠᠨ
Romanization	Dulimbai irgen’ Gurun

In 1912, China adopted its official name, Chunghwa Minkuo (rendered in pinyin Zhōnghuá Mínguó) or in English as the «Republic of China», which also has sometimes been referred to as «Republican China» or the «Republican Era» (民國時代), in contrast to the empire it replaced, or as «Nationalist China«, after the ruling Chinese Nationalist Party (Kuomintang). 中華 (Chunghwa) is a term that pertains to «China» while 民國 (Minkuo), literally «People’s State» or «Peopledom», stands for «republic».^[61][62] The name had stemmed from the party manifesto of Tongmenghui in 1905, which says the four goals of the Chinese revolution was «to expel the Manchu rulers, to revive Chunghwa, to establish a Republic, and to distribute land equally among the people.(Chinese: 驅除韃虜, 恢復中華, 創立民國, 平均地權; pinyin: Qūchú dálǔ, huīfù Zhōnghuá, chuànglì mínguó, píngjūn dì quán).» The convener of Tongmenghui and Chinese revolutionary leader Sun Yat-sen proposed the name Chunghwa Minkuo as the assumed name of the new country when the revolution succeeded.

With the separation from mainland China in 1949 as a result of the Chinese Civil War, the territory of the Republic of China has largely been confined to the island of Taiwan and some other small islands. Thus, the country is often simply referred to as simply «Taiwan«, although this may not be perceived as politically neutral. (See Taiwan Independence.) Amid the hostile rhetoric of the Cold War, the government and its supporters sometimes referred to itself as «Free China» or «Liberal China», in contrast to People’s Republic of China (which was historically called the «Bandit-occupied Area» (匪區) by the ROC). In addition, the ROC, due to pressure from the PRC, was forced to use the name «Chinese Taipei» (中華台北) whenever it participates in international forums or most sporting events such as the Olympic Games.

Taiwanese politician Mei Feng had criticised the official English name of the state «Republic of China» fails to translate the Chinese character «Min» (Chinese: 民; English: people) according to Sun Yat-sen’s original interpretations, while the name should instead be translated as «the People’s Republic of China,» which confuses with the current official name of China under communist control.^[63] To avoid confusion, the Chen Shui-ban led DPP administration began to put an aside of «Taiwan» next to the nation’s official name since 2005.^[64]

The official name of the Republic of China in various official languages and scripts:

• English: Republic of China – Official in Hong Kong, commonly used by the United States until 1979, Chinese Taipei – official designation in several international organizations (International Olympic Committee, FIFA, Miss Universe, World Health Organization), Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu – World Trade Organization, Governing authorities on Taiwan – Official name used by the United States from 1979
• Traditional Chinese: 中華民國 (pinyin: Zhōnghuá Mínguó; Jyutping: Zung1waa4 Man4gwok3), 中華臺北 (pinyin: Zhōnghuá Táiběi), 臺澎金馬個別關稅領域 (pinyin: Tái-Péng-Jīn-Mǎ Gèbié Guānshuì Lǐngyù), 臺灣 (pinyin: Táiwān) – Official script in Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan and the islands controlled by the ROC
• Simplified Chinese: 中华民国 (pinyin: Zhōnghuá Mínguó), 中華台北 (pinyin: Zhōnghuá Táiběi), 台澎金马个别关税领域 (pinyin: Tái-Péng-Jīn-Mǎ Gèbié Guānshuì Lǐngyù), 台湾 (pinyin: Táiwān) – Official language and script, used in Mainland China, Singapore and Malaysia
• Kazakh: As used within Republic of Kazakhstan, Қытай Республикасы (in Cyrillic script), Qıtay Respwblïkası (in Latin script), قىتاي رەسپۋبلىيكاسى (in Arabic script); as used within the People’s Republic of China, Жұңxуа Республикасы (in Cyrillic script), Juñxwa Respwblïkası (in Latin script), جۇڭحۋا رەسپۋبليكاسى (in Arabic script). The Cyrillic script is the predominant script in the Republic of Kazakhstan, while the Arabic script is normally used for the Kazakh language in the People’s Republic of China.
• Korean: 중화민국 (中華民國; Junghwa Minguk) – Official in Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture
• Manchurian: ᡩᡠᠯᡳᠮᠪᠠᡳ
  ᡳᡵᡤᡝᠨ
  ᡤᡠᡵᡠᠨ (Dulimbai irgen’ gurun)
• Mongolian: ᠳᠤᠮᠳᠠᠳᠤ
  ᠢᠷᠭᠡᠨ
  ᠤᠯᠤᠰ Дундад иргэн улс (Dumdadu irgen ulus) – Official for its history name before 1949 in Inner Mongolia and Mongolia; Бүгд Найрамдах Хятад Улс (Bügd Nairamdakh Khyatad Uls) – used in Mongolia for Roc in Taiwan
• Portuguese: República da China – Official in Macau, Formosa – former name
• Tibetan: ཀྲུང་ཧྭ་དམངས་གཙོའི་རྒྱལ་ཁབ།, Wylie: krung hwa dmangs gtso’i rgyal khab, ZYPY: Zhunghua Mang Zoi Gyalkab, Tibetan: ཐའེ་ཝན།, Wylie: tha’e wan – Official in PRC’s Tibet
  • Tibetan: རྒྱ་ནག་དམངས་གཙོའི་རྒྱལ་ཁབ, Wylie: rgya nag dmangs gtso’i rgyal khab – Official in Tibet Government-in-Exile
• Uyghur: جۇڭخۇا مىنگو, romanized: Jungxua Mingo – Official in Xinjiang
• Yi: ꍏꉸꂱꇩ (Zho huop mip guop) – Official in Liangshan (Sichuan) and several Yi-designated autonomous counties
• Zaiwa: Zhunghua Mindan – Official in Dehong (Yunnan)
• Zhuang: Cunghvaz Mingoz (Old orthography: Cuŋƅvaƨ Minƨƅoƨ) – Official in Guangxi

The official name of the Republic of China in major neighboring countries official languages and scripts:

• Japanese: 中華民国 (ちゅうかみんこく; Chūka Minkoku) – Used in Japan
• Korean: 중화민국 (中華民國; Junghwa Minguk) – Used in Korea
• Russian: Китайская Республика (Kitayskaya Respublika) – Used in Russia and Central Asia
• Hindi: चीनी गणराज्य (Cīna Gaṇrājya) – Used in India
• Urdu: جمہوریہ چین (Jumhūriyā Cīn) – Used in Pakistan
• Burmese: တရုတ်သမ္မတနိုင်ငံ (Tarotesammataninengan) – Used in Myanmar
• Vietnamese: Trung Hoa Dân Quốc (中華民國), Cộng hòa Trung Hoa (共和中華), Đài Loan (臺灣), Đài Bắc Trung Hoa (臺北中華) – Used in Vietnam
• Thai: สาธารณรัฐจีน (Satharanarat Chin) – Used in Thailand
• Khmer: សាធារណរដ្ឋចិន – Used in Cambodia
• Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດຈີນ (Sathalanalat Chin) – Used in Laos
• Nepali: गणतन्त्र चीन (Gaṇatāntrika Cīna) – Used in Nepal

Names in non-Chinese records[edit]

Names used in the parts of Asia, especially East and Southeast Asia, are usually derived directly from words in one of the languages of China. Those languages belonging to a former dependency (tributary) or Chinese-influenced country have an especially similar pronunciation to that of Chinese. Those used in Indo-European languages, however, have indirect names that came via other routes and may bear little resemblance to what is used in China.

Chin, China[edit]

Further information: Chinas

English, most Indo-European languages, and many others use various forms of the name China and the prefix «Sino-» or «Sin-» from the Latin Sina.^[65][66] Europeans had knowledge of a country known in Greek as Thina or Sina from the early period;^[67] the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea from perhaps the first century AD recorded a country known as Thin (θίν).^[68] The English name for «China» itself is derived from Middle Persian (Chīnī چین). This modern word «China» was first used by Europeans starting with Portuguese explorers of the 16th century – it was first recorded in 1516 in the journal of the Portuguese explorer Duarte Barbosa.^[69][70] The journal was translated and published in England in 1555.^[71]

The traditional etymology, proposed in the 17th century by Martin Martini and supported by later scholars such as Paul Pelliot and Berthold Laufer, is that the word «China» and its related terms are ultimately derived from the polity known as Qin that unified China to form the Qin Dynasty (秦, Old Chinese: *dzin) in the 3rd century BC, but existed as a state on the furthest west of China since the 9th century BC.^[67][72][73] This is still the most commonly held theory, although the etymology is still a matter of debate according to the Oxford English Dictionary,^[74] and many other suggestions have been mooted.^[75][76]

The existence of the word Cīna in ancient Indian texts was noted by the Sanskrit scholar Hermann Jacobi who pointed out its use in the Book 2 of Arthashastra with reference to silk and woven cloth produced by the country of Cīna, although textual analysis suggests that Book 2 may not have been written long before 150 AD.^[77] The word is also found in other Sanskrit texts such as the Mahābhārata and the Laws of Manu.^[78] The Indologist Patrick Olivelle argued that the word Cīnā may not have been known in India before the first century BC, nevertheless he agreed that it probably referred to Qin but thought that the word itself was derived from a Central Asian language.^[79] Some Chinese and Indian scholars argued for the state of Jing (荆, another name for Chu) as the likely origin of the name.^[76] Another suggestion, made by Geoff Wade, is that the Cīnāh in Sanskrit texts refers to an ancient kingdom centered in present-day Guizhou, called Yelang, in the south Tibeto-Burman highlands.^[78] The inhabitants referred to themselves as Zina according to Wade.^[80]

The term China can also be used to refer to:

• a modern state, indicating the People’s Republic of China (PRC) or the Republic of China (ROC), where recognized;
• «Mainland China» (中國大陸/中国大陆, Zhōngguó Dàlù in Mandarin), which is the territory of the PRC minus the two special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau;
• «China proper», a term used to refer to the historical heartlands of China without peripheral areas like Manchuria, Inner Mongolia, Tibet, and Xinjiang

In economic contexts, «Greater China» (大中華地區/大中华地区, dà Zhōnghuá dìqū) is intended to be a neutral and non-political way to refer to Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

Sinologists usually use «Chinese» in a more restricted sense, akin to the classical usage of Zhongguo, to the Han ethnic group, which makes up the bulk of the population in China and of the overseas Chinese.

List of derived terms[edit]

• Afrikaans: Sjina, spelling now obsolete and spelled as China (pronunciation is the same) (pronounced [ˈʃina])
• Albanian: Kinë (pronounced [kinə])
• Amharic: Chayna (from English)
• Armenian: Չինաստան (pronounced [t͡ʃʰinɑsˈtɑn])
• Assamese: চীন (pronounced [sin])
• Azeri: Çin (IPA: [tʃin])
• Basque: Txina (IPA: [tʃina])
• Bengali: চীন (pronounced [ˈtʃiːn])
• Burma: တရုတ် (pronounced [θˈjəʊt])
• Catalan: Xina ([ˈ(t)ʃi.nə])
• Chinese: 支那 Zhīnà (obsolete and considered offensive due to historical Japanese usage; originated from early Chinese translations of Buddhist texts in Sanskrit)
• Chinese: 震旦 Zhèndàn transcription of the Sanskrit/Pali «Cīnasthāna» in the Buddhist texts.
• Czech: Čína (pronounced [ˈtʃiːna])
• Danish: Kina (pronounced [ˈkʰiːnɑ])
• Dutch: China ([ʃiːnɑ])
• English: China
• Esperanto: Ĉinujo or Ĉinio, or Ĥinujo (archaic)
• Estonian: Hiina (pronounced [hiːnɑ])
• Filipino: Tsina ([tʃina])
• Finnish: Kiina (pronounced [ˈkiːnɑ])
• French: Chine ([ʃin])
• Galician: China (pronounced [ˈtʃinɐ])
• Georgian: ჩინეთი (pronounced [tʃinɛtʰi])
• German: China ([ˈçiːna] and [ʃiːnɑ], in the southern part of the German-speaking area also [ˈkiːna])
• Greek: Κίνα (Kína) ([ˈcina])
• Gujarati: Cīn ચીન (IPA [ˈtʃin])
• Hindustani: Cīn चीन or چين (IPA [ˈtʃiːn])
• Hungarian: Kína ([ˈkiːnɒ])
• Icelandic: Kína ([cʰiːna])
• Indonesian: Cina ([tʃina])
• Interlingua: China
• Irish: An tSín ([ənˠ ˈtʲiːnʲ])
• Italian: Cina ([ˈtʃiːna])
• Japanese: Shina (支那) – considered offensive in China, now largely obsolete in Japan and avoided out of deference to China (the name Chūgoku [tɕɯɡokɯ] is used instead); See Shina (word) and kotobagari.
• Javanese: ꦕꦶꦤ Cina (low speech level); ꦕꦶꦤ꧀ꦠꦼꦤ꧀ Cinten (high speech level)
• Kapampangan: Sina
• Khmer: ចិន ( [cən])
• Korean: Jina (지나; [t͡ɕinɐ])^{[citation needed]}
• Latvian: Ķīna ([ˈciːna])
• Lithuanian: Kinija ([kʲɪnʲijaː])
• Macedonian: Кина (Kina) ([kinɐ])
• Malay: Cina ([tʃina])
• Malayalam: Cheenan/Cheenathi
• Maltese: Ċina ([ˈtʃiːna])
• Marathi: Cīn चीन (IPA [ˈtʃiːn])
• Nepali: Cīn चीन (IPA [ˈtsin])
• Norwegian: Kina ([ˈçìːnɑ])
• Pahlavi: Čīnī
• Persian: Chīn چين ([tʃin])
• Polish: Chiny ([ˈçinɨ])
• Portuguese: China ([ˈʃinɐ])
• Romanian: China ([ˈkina])
• Serbo-Croatian: Kina or Кина ([ˈkina])
• Sinhala: Chinaya චීනය
• Slovak: Čína ([ˈtʂiːna])
• Spanish: China ([ˈtʃina])
• Somali: Shiinaha
• Swedish: Kina ([ˈɕîːna])
• Tamil: Cīnam (சீனம்)
• Thai: จีน (RTGS: Chin [t͡ɕiːn])
• Tibetan: Rgya Nag (རྒྱ་ནག་)
• Turkish: Çin ([tʃin])
• Vietnamese: Chấn Đán (震旦) ([t͡ɕən ɗǎn] or Chi Na (支那) ([ci na]) (in Buddhist texts).
• Welsh: Tsieina ([ˈtʃəina])
• Yiddish: כינע Khine ([ʽxɪnə])

Seres, Ser, Serica[edit]

Sēres (Σῆρες) was the Ancient Greek and Roman name for the northwestern part of China and its inhabitants. It meant «of silk,» or «land where silk comes from.» The name is thought to derive from the Chinese word for silk, sī (絲/丝; Middle Chinese sɨ, Old Chinese *slɯ, per Zhengzhang). It is itself at the origin of the Latin for silk, «sērica«. See the main article Serica for more details.

• Ancient Greek: Σῆρες Seres, Σηρικός Serikos
• Latin: Serica
• Old Irish: Seiria, as seen in Dúan in chóicat cest^[81]

This may be a back formation from sērikos (σηρικός), «made of silk», from sēr (σήρ), «silkworm», in which case Sēres is «the land where silk comes from.»

Sinae, Sin [edit]

Sīnae was an ancient Greek and Roman name for some people who dwelt south of the Seres (Serica) in the eastern extremity of the habitable world. References to the Sinae include mention of a city that the Romans called Sēra Mētropolis, which may be modern Chang’an. The Latin prefixes Sino- and Sin- as well as words such as Sinica, which are traditionally used to refer to China or the Chinese, came from Sīnae.^[82] It is generally thought that Chīna, Sīna and Thīna are variants that ultimately derived from Qin, which was the westernmost state in China that eventually formed the Qin Dynasty.^[68] There are however other opinions on its etymology (See section on China above). Henry Yule thought that this term may have come to Europe through the Arabs, who made the China of the farther east into Sin, and perhaps sometimes into Thin.^[83] Hence the Thin of the author of the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, who appears to be the first extant writer to employ the name in this form; hence also the Sinæ and Thinae of Ptolemy.^[67][68]

Some denied that Ptolemy’s Sinae really represented the Chinese as Ptolemy called the country Sērice and the capital Sēra, but regarded them as distinct from Sīnae.^[68][84] Marcian of Heraclea (a condenser of Ptolemy) tells us that the «nations of the Sinae lie at the extremity of the habitable world, and adjoin the eastern Terra incognita». The 6th century Cosmas Indicopleustes refers to a «country of silk» called Tzinista, which is understood as referring to China, beyond which «there is neither navigation nor any land to inhabit».^[85] It seems probable that the same region is meant by both. According to Henry Yule, Ptolemy’s misrendering of the Indian Sea as a closed basin meant that Ptolemy must also have misplaced the Chinese coast, leading to the misconception of Serica and Sina as separate countries.^[83]

In the Hebrew Bible, there is a mention of a faraway country Sinim in the Book of Isaiah 49:12 which some had assumed to be a reference to China.^[68][86] In Genesis 10:17, a tribes called the Sinites were said to be the descendants of Canaan, the son of Ham, but they are usually considered to be a different people, probably from the northern part of Lebanon.^[87][88]

• Arabic: Ṣīn صين
• French/English (prefix of adjectives): Sino- (i.e. Sino-American), Sinitic (the Chinese language family).
• Hebrew: Sin סין
• Irish: An tSín
• Latin: Sīnae
• Scottish Gaelic: Sìona

Cathay[edit]

This group of names derives from Khitan, an ethnic group that originated in Manchuria and conquered parts of Northern China early tenth century forming the Liao dynasty, and later in the twelfth century dominated Central Asia as the Kara Khitan Khanate. Due to long period of domination of Northern China and then Central Asia by these nomadic conquerors, the name Khitan become associated with China to the people in and around the northwestern region. Muslim historians referred to the Kara Khitan state as Khitay or Khitai; they may have adopted this form of «Khitan» via the Uyghurs of Kocho in whose language the final -n or -ń became -y.^[89] The name was then introduced to medieval and early modern Europe through Islamic and Russian sources.^[90] In English and in several other European languages, the name «Cathay» was used in the translations of the adventures of Marco Polo, which used this word for northern China. Words related to Khitay are still used in many Turkic and Slavic languages to refer to China. However, its use by Turkic speakers within China, such as the Uyghurs, is considered pejorative by the Chinese authority who tried to ban it.^[90]

• Belarusian: Кітай (Kitay, [kʲiˈtaj])
• Bulgarian: Китай (Kitay, IPA: [kiˈtaj])
• Buryat: Хитад (Khitad)
• Classical Mongolian: Kitad^[91]
• English: Cathay
• French: Cathay
• Kazakh: Қытай (Qıtay; [qətɑj])
• Kazan Tatar: Кытай (Qıtay)
• Kyrgyz: Кытай (Kıtaj; [qɯˈtɑj])
• Medieval Latin: Cataya, Kitai
• Mongolian: Хятад (Khyatad) (the name for China used in the State of Mongolia)
• Polish: Kitaj ([ˈkʲi.taj]; now archaic)
• Portuguese: Catai ([kɐˈtaj])
• Russian: Китай (Kitay, IPA: [kʲɪˈtaj])
• Serbo-Croatian: Kitaj or Китај (now archaic; from Russian)
• Slovene: Kitajska ([kiːˈtajska])
• Spanish: Catay
• Tajik: Хитой («Khitoy»)
• Turkmen: Hytaý («Хытай»)
• Ukrainian: Китай (Kytai)
• Uyghur: خىتاي, romanized: Xitay
• Uzbek: Xitoy (Хитой)

There is no evidence that either in the 13th or 14th century, Cathayans, i.e. Chinese, travelled officially to Europe, but it is possible that some did, in unofficial capacities, at least in the 13th century. During the campaigns of Hulagu (the grandson of Genghis Khan) in Persia (1256–65), and the reigns of his successors, Chinese engineers were employed on the banks of the Tigris, and Chinese astrologers and physicians could be consulted. Many diplomatic communications passed between the Hulaguid Ilkhans and Christian princes. The former, as the great khan’s liegemen, still received from him their seals of state; and two of their letters which survive in the archives of France exhibit the vermilion impressions of those seals in Chinese characters—perhaps affording the earliest specimen of those characters to reach western Europe.

Tabgach[edit]

The word Tabgach came from the metatheses of Tuoba (*t’akbat), a dominant tribe of the Xianbei and the surname of the Northern Wei emperors in the 5th century before sinicisation. It referred to Northern China, which was dominated by part-Xianbei, part-Han people.

• Byzantine Greek: Taugats
• Orhon Kok-Turk: Tabgach (variations Tamgach)

Nikan[edit]

Nikan (Manchu: ᠨᡳᡴᠠᠨ, means «Han/China») was a Manchu ethnonym of unknown origin that referred specifically to the ethnic group known in English as the Han Chinese; the stem of this word was also conjugated as a verb, nikara(-mbi), and used to mean «to speak the Chinese language.» Since Nikan was essentially an ethnonym and referred to a group of people (i.e., a nation) rather than to a political body (i.e., a state), the correct translation of «China (proper)» into the Manchu language is Nikan gurun, literally the «Nikan state» or «country of the Nikans» (i.e., country of the Hans).^{[citation needed]}

This exonym for the Han Chinese is also used in the Daur language, in which it appears as Niaken ([njakən] or [ɲakən]).^[92] As in the case of the Manchu language, the Daur word Niaken is essentially an ethnonym, and the proper way to refer to the country of the Han Chinese (i.e., «China» in a cultural sense) is Niaken gurun, while niakendaaci- is a verb meaning «to talk in Chinese.»

Kara[edit]

Japanese: Kara (から; variously written in kanji as 唐 or 漢). An identical name was used by the ancient and medieval Japanese to refer to the country that is now known as Korea, and many Japanese historians and linguists believe that the word «Kara» referring to China and/or Korea may have derived from a metonymic extension of the appellation of the ancient city-states of Gaya.

The Japanese word karate (空手, lit. «empty hand») is derived from the Okinawan word karatii (唐手, lit. «Chinese/Asian/foreign hand/trick/means/method/style») and refers to Okinawan martial arts; the character for kara was changed to remove the connotation of the style originating in China.

Morokoshi[edit]

Japanese: Morokoshi (もろこし; variously written in kanji as 唐 or 唐土). This obsolete Japanese name for China is believed to have derived from a kun reading of the Chinese compound 諸越 Zhūyuè or 百越
Bǎiyuè as «all the Yue» or «the hundred (i.e., myriad, various, or numerous) Yue,» which was an ancient Chinese name for the societies of the regions that are now southern China.

The Japanese common noun tōmorokoshi (トウモロコシ, 玉蜀黍), which refers to maize, appears to contain an element cognate with the proper noun formerly used in reference to China. Although tōmorokoshi is traditionally written with Chinese characters that literally mean «jade Shu millet,» the etymology of the Japanese word appears to go back to «Tang morokoshi,» in which «morokoshi» was the obsolete Japanese name for China as well as the Japanese word for sorghum, which seems to have been introduced into Japan from China.

Mangi[edit]

From Chinese Manzi (southern barbarians). The division of North China and South China under the Jin dynasty and Song dynasty weakened the idea of a unified China, and it was common for non-Han peoples to refer to the politically disparate North and South by different names for some time. While Northern China was called Cathay, Southern China was referred to as Mangi. Manzi often appears in documents of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty as a disparaging term for Southern China. The Mongols also called Southern Chinese Nangkiyas or Nangkiyad, and considered them ethnically distinct from North Chinese. The word Manzi reached the Western world as Mangi (as used by Marco Polo), which is a name commonly found on medieval maps. Note however that the Chinese themselves considered Manzi to be derogatory and never used it as a self-appellation.^[93][94] Some early scholars believed Mangi to be a corruption of the Persian Machin (ماچين) and Arabic Māṣīn (ماصين), which may be a mistake as these two forms are derived from the Sanskrit Maha Chin meaning Great China.^[95]

• Chinese: Manzi (蠻子)
• Latin: Mangi

See also[edit]

• Little China (ideology)
• Chinese romanization
• List of country name etymologies
• Names of the Qing dynasty
• Names of India
• Names of Japan
• Names of Korea
• Names of Vietnam
• Île-de-France, similar French concept

References[edit]

Citations[edit]

Sources[edit]

China is not called China

The reason why we use the name China in the west for the country is quite surprising. Like many English names for countries it is not the name used within the country itself. This is not uncommon as ‘Greece’ ➚ is known as ‘Hellas’ to the Greeks while ‘Egypt’ ➚ is ‘Misr’ to its people. The name China has been in use for thousands of years and is not easy to trace to its origin. It probably derives from the Sanskrit word ‘Chinasthana’ (meaning country to the East of India) or it might be possibly connected to the Qin (pronounced ‘Chin’) kingdom. The name was in use long before the First Qin Emperor (259 — 210 BCE) came to unify China. The Qin kingdom was the most westerly of the many smaller kingdoms that became China and so would have been the first kingdom reached when traveling overland from India and Central Asia. From ‘Chin’ the Greeks and Romans probably derived the term ‘Sinae’ which you find in words like ‘sinophile’ (someone who likes China) and ‘sinologist’ (someone studying China). In Roman times another name used was ‘Serica’, the land where silk came from. Serica is believed to be derived from the Chinese word for silk 丝 sī pronounced ‘ser’.

Other countries use different names for China following their history of contacts with the country. So ‘Cathay’ (as in Cathay Pacific Airline ➚) is in use in Russia and Central Asia which derives from the name of ‘Qidan’ people who ruled northern China in the 11th century.

China’s name in China — the Middle Kingdom

The Chinese people themselves have several names for their own country. 中国 Zhōng guó is the official one. It means literally middle or central kingdom or region and was based on the traditional view that China is the center of the civilized world surrounded by barbarians. The modern form of guo 国 has the character for the precious treasure jade 玉 enclosed within a boundary. The old version of guo was 國 which had a spear and mouth inside an enclosure, suggesting a person proclaiming ownership of an area.

Throughout dynastic history the formal name included the dynastic name so during the last Qing dynasty the country was 大清国 Dà qīng guó ‘Great Qing Kingdom’ and during the Ming dynasty 大明国 Dà míng guó ‘Great Ming Kingdom’.

Hua 华 was a name used by the early Han people, and this is used to refer to China as in 新华 Xinhua News agency. Unfortunately huá 华 is very similar to 花 huā meaning ‘flower’ and so from a misleading translation China was sometimes referred to as the ‘Flowery land’ in the 19th century. Central China and in particular the province of Hunan used to be called Zhonghuadi 中华地. Some westerners translated this as ‘Central flowery land’ rather than ‘Central splendid land’.
中华民国 Zhonghua Minguo refers to ‘The Republic of China’ (1912-1949) and still used in Chinese Taipei (Taiwan) while the full title
中华人民共和国 zhōng huá rén mín gòng hé guó Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo, refers to ‘The People’s Republic of China’. There are many other names that have been used over the years. One of the earliest hints of a china-centric view of the world comes from
天下 Tiān xià meaning all under heaven or our land. Much is made of this in the epic film Hero ➚ set at the end of the Warring States period. Another early name for China is 华夏 huá xià. There is also the name 九洲 Jiǔ zhōu Nine Regions as Yu the Great originally divided the land into nine regions. Somewhat more recently the term eighteen provinces 十八省 shí bā shěng has been used (there are actually 33 administrative regions).

神洲 Shén zhōu Divine Region is a poetic name for the country while more informally you may come across 祖国 zǔ guó, the fatherland, or simply 我国 wǒ guó, my country. Emphasizing the feeling of a single community there is also 国家 guó jiā or home country as jia means home or family.

With 92% of the Chinese population categorized as 汉
Han Chinese, the term ‘Han’, named after the Han dynasty, is also used to refer to China as a whole even though it rather excludes the many ethnic minorities. During Han dynasty times the rough geographic limits of the modern Chinese nation had already been set.

Name for the Chinese Language

Just as varied are the words used to refer to the language of the Chinese people. First of all there are several languages and many dialects spoken in China, there is no universal ‘Chinese’. The official and most widely used dialect of the Chinese language is that used in Beijing. Its historical association with the Imperial court has led to the term ‘Mandarin’ being used for the language, after the ‘mandarin’ officials who spoke it. ‘Mandarin’ was a term used by the Portuguese for the officials, it is now believed to be derived from a Malay word for ‘counselor’ or ‘minister’ (reflecting early contacts in the spice trade) which in turn shares its origin with the word ‘mantra’.

In China the official name for the language is 普通话 Pǔ tōng huà common speech. Reflecting the historical origin of the language of the Han people it is also known as 汉语 hàn yǔ. Other names include the name for China, so you will also hear 中文 zhōng wén where wen refers to the common written script rather than the spoken tongue which is 中国话 zhōng guó huà.

In China, common names for China include «Zhonghua» (中华/中華) and «Zhongguo» (中国/中國), while «Han» (汉/漢) and «Tang» (唐) are common names given for the Chinese ethnicity. Other names include Huaxia, Shenzhou and Jiuzhou. The People’s Republic of China and Republic of China («Taiwan») are official names given for the two contemporary sovereign states currently claiming sovereignty over the traditional area of China. «Mainland China» is used to refer to areas under the jurisdiction by the People’s Republic of China usually excluding Hong Kong and Macau.

In other parts of the world, many names of China exist, mainly transliterations of the dynasties «Qin» or «Jin» (e.g. China, Sino), and Han or Tang. There are also names for China based on a certain ethnic group other than Han, much like the Western rendering of all Arabs as «Saracens». Examples include «Cathay» based on the Khitan and «Tabgach» based on the Tuoba.

Sinitic names

In mainland China, the term Zhongguo is used to refer to all territories claimed by the PRC, including mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

Zhonghua is a more literary term sometimes used synonymously with Zhongguo; it appears in the official names of both the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of China. Tang is used among southern Chinese, though some restrict the term further to refer to just the Cantonese or some other south Chinese language group.

Zhongguo and Zhonghua

Zhongguo
Traditional Chinese	中國
Simplified Chinese	中国
Transcriptions Gan — Romanization Chungkoet Hakka — Romanization dung24 gued2 Mandarin — Hanyu Pinyin Zhōng guó — Wade–Giles Chung-kuo — Bopomofo ㄓㄨㄥ ㄍㄨㄛˊ Min — Hokkien POJ Tiong-kok — Min-dong BUC Dṳ̆ng-guók Wu — Romanization tson平 koh入 Cantonese (Yue) — Jyutping zung1 gwok3
Zhonghua
Traditional Chinese	中華
Simplified Chinese	中华
Transcriptions Hakka — Romanization dung24 fa11 Mandarin — Hanyu Pinyin Zhōng huá — Wade–Giles Chung-hua — Bopomofo ㄓㄨㄥ ㄏㄨㄚˊ Min — Hokkien POJ Tiong-hôa — Min-dong BUC Dṳ̆ng-huà Wu — Romanization tson平 gho平 Cantonese (Yue) — Jyutping zung1 waa4

China is called Zhōngguó in Mandarin Chinese. The first character zhōng (中) means «central» or «middle,» while guó (國/国) means «state» or «states,» and in modern times, «nation.» In ancient texts, Zhongguo, which can be either singular or plural, referred to the group of states in the central plain or to a state or city. The official name of the imperial dynasties referred to the Empire of the Great Qing, Empire of the Great Ming, and so forth, not Zhongguo. Although it was a common name often used in both Chinese and Western literature and references,^[1] only after 1911 it became the official one.^[2] Many Western works, however, use the term «middle kingdom» or «central kingdom.»^[3]

The term «zhōngguó» first appeared in text form in the Classic of History as the name for «the centre of civilization» or «Tianxia», depending on the interpretation.^[4] The first appearance of (中國) in an artifact was in the Western Zhou vessel He zun.^[5]

The general concept of the term «zhōngguó» originates from the belief that the Zhou Dynasty is the «centre of civilization» or «centre of the world», much like the «Middle Earth» concept of Europeans, while the ethnic groups in the four cardinals are called Eastern Yi, Southern Man, Western Rong and Northern Di respectively. However, there are different uses of the name «zhōngguó» in every period. It could refer to the guó (capital) of the Emperor, to distinguish from the guó of his vassals, as in Western Zhou; or it could refer to states in Central China, to distinguish from states in outer regions. It is also used, in later dynasties, by states who see themselves as the «legitimate» successors of previous dynasties, as in the case of the Southern Song Dynasty. Finally, it is used to mean the sovereignty in the traditional area «zhōngyuán (中原)» or «zhōnghuá (中華)», which both have the same origins, such as in the case of the Republic of China («Zhōnghuá Mínguó (中华民国/中華民國)») and the People’s Republic of China («Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó (中华人民共和国/中華人民共和國)»).

The Chinese character «guó» (国/國) originally had a different meaning from the English «state» or the modern Chinese concept «guójiā» (国家/國家), though it is taken to mean «state» today. In its origin, it refers to the area where the Tiānzǐ lives, while the outer areas governed by the same sovereign is called «yě» (野). For example, a riot of nobles living in the capital of Western Zhou is called «the Riot of the guó people».^[6] Gradually, the vassal states of the Tiānzǐ began to use the name «guó» as well. The Book of Han talked about an incident where the Gōng of one of the vassal states loved feeding cranes and gave them official posts in the government. «When the Northern Di attacked, the guó people were unwilling to fight, and the guó was destroyed.» ^[7] Thus, there was the need to classify the «guó» of the Tiānzǐ from that of the Gōng. Gradually, the name «zhōngguó» is used to refer to the «guó» of the Tiānzǐ. Mao Heng of the Han Dynasty gave an explanation: «Zhōngguó: the capital.» ^[8]

During the Spring and Autumn Period, it was used only to describe the states politically descended from the Western Zhou Dynasty, in the Yellow River (Huang He) valley, to the exclusion of states such as the Chu along the Yangtze River and the Qin to the west. However, by the time of the Han Dynasty, the states of Chu, Qin and others had linked themselves to the politics of «Zhōngguó» and were already considered integral parts of a newer «Zhōngguó». This usage of «Zhōngguó» has been translated into English as «the Central States.»

By the Han Dynasty, three usages of «Zhōngguó» are common. The Book of Poetry explicitly gives this definition that «Zhōngguó» is the capital; the Records of the Grand Historian uses the concept that China is the centre of civilization: «Eight famous mountains are there in Tianxia. Three are in Man and Yi. Five are in Zhōnghuá.» The Records of Three Kingdoms uses the concept of the central states in «Zhōnghuá», or the states in «Zhōnghuá» which is the centre, depending on the interpretation. It records the following monologue: «If we can lead the host of Wu and Yue to oppose Zhōngguó, then let us break off relations with them soon.» In this sense, the term Zhōngguó is synonymous with Zhōnghuá (中华/中華) and Huáxià (华夏/華夏), a name for «China» that comes from the Xia Dynasty.

During the period of division after the fall of the Han Dynasty, the term Zhōngguó was subjected to denote political legitimacy apart from the previous usages. It was used in this manner from the tenth century onwards by the competing dynasties of Liao, Jin and Song. The term Zhōngguó came to be related to geographic, cultural and political identity and less to ethnic origin.

Zhōngguó quickly came to include areas farther south, as the cultural and political unit (not yet a «nation» in the modern sense) spread to include the Yangtze River and Pearl River systems. By the Tang Dynasty it sometimes included barbarian regimes such as the Xianbei and Xiongnu, which submitted to the Han people.

In the nineteenth century, the term changed in its significance. The late Qing reformer Liang Qichao argued in a famous passage that «our greatest shame is that our country has no name. The names that people ordinarily think of, such as Xia, Han, or Tang, are all the titles of bygone dynasties.» Another reformer wrote that the other countries of the world «all boast of their own state names, such as England and France, the only exception being the Central States.» ^[9] Liang argued that in order to preserve the race (minzu, a term which he adopted from the Japanese usage) that the concept tianxia had to be abandoned in favor of guojia, that is, «nation,» for which he accepted the term Zhongguo. ^[10]

Finally, since the May Fourth Movement, educated students began to spread the concept of Zhōnghuá (中华/中華), which represented the people, including 56 minor ethnic groups and the Han Chinese, with a single culture identifying themselves as «Chinese». The Republic of China and the People’s Republic of China both used the title «Zhōnghuá» in their official names. Thus, «Zhōngguó» became the official names for both sovereigns. Overseas Chinese are referred to as huaqiao (华侨/華僑), literally «Chinese overseas», or huayi (华裔/華裔), literally «Chinese descendant» (i.e., Chinese children born overseas).

«Zhōngguó» in different languages

«Zhōnghuá» in different languages

• Japanese: Chūka (中華; ちゅうか)
• Korean: Junghwa, Chunghwa (중화; 中華)
• Kazakh: Juñxwa (حالىق)
• Li: Dongxhwax
• Indonesian: Tionghoa (from Tiong-hôa, the Hokkien counterpart)
• Vietnamese: Trung Hoa (中華)
• Zhuang: Cunghvaz (Old orthography: Cuŋƅvaƨ)
• Uyghur: جۇڭخۇا (Jungxua)
• Tibetan: ཀྲུང་ཧྭ (krung hwa)

Han

Han
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	漢
Simplified Chinese	汉
Transcriptions Gan — Romanization Hon Hakka — Romanization hon55 Mandarin — Hanyu Pinyin hàn Min — Hokkien POJ hàn Wu — Romanization hoe去 Cantonese (Yue) — Jyutping hon3
Japanese name
Kana	かん
Transcriptions — Romaji kan
Korean name
Hangul	한
Transcriptions — Revised Romanization han
Vietnamese name
Quốc ngữ	hán

The name Han (漢/汉; pinyin: hàn) comes from the Han Dynasty, who presided over China’s first golden age. During the Sixteen Kingdoms and Southern and Northern Dynasties periods, various non-Chinese ethnic groups invaded from the north and conquered areas of North China, which they held for several centuries. It was during this period that people began to use the term «Han» to refer to the natives of North China, who (unlike the invaders) were the descendants of the subjects of the Han Dynasty.

During the Yuan Dynasty Mongolian ruler divided people into four classes: Mongolians, «Color-eyeds», Hans, and «Southerns». Northern Chinese were called Han, which was considered to be the highest class of Chinese. It must be noted that this class «Han» includes all ethnic groups in northern China including Khitan and Jurchen who have in most part sinicized during the last two hundreds years. The name «Han» became popularly accepted.

During the Qing Dynasty, the Manchu rulers also used the name Han to distinguish the local Chinese from the Manchus. After the fall of the Qing government, the Han became the name of a nationality within China.

Today the term «Han Persons», often rendered in English as Han Chinese, is used by the People’s Republic of China to refer to the most populous of the 56 officially recognized ethnic groups of China. The «Han Chinese» are simply referred to as «Chinese» by some.

Tang

Tang
Chinese name
Chinese	唐
Transcriptions Gan — Romanization Tong Hakka — Romanization tong11 Mandarin — Hanyu Pinyin táng Min — Hokkien POJ tông/tn̂g Wu — Romanization daon平 Cantonese (Yue) — Jyutping tong4
Japanese name
Kana	とう (On), から (Kun)
Transcriptions — Romaji tō (On), kara (Kun)
Korean name
Hangul	당
Transcriptions — Revised Romanization dang
Vietnamese name
Quốc ngữ	đường

The name Tang (唐; pinyin: táng; Jyutping: tong4) comes from the Tang Dynasty (唐朝), who presided over China’s second golden age. It was during the Tang Dynasty that South China was finally and fully Sinicized; hence it is usually South Chinese who refer to themselves as «Tang». For example, Chinatowns worldwide are usually referred to generally as Tong-yan-gaai/Tng-lang-kay (唐人街; pinyin: tángrénjiē), or «Street of Tang People«, while China is called Tong-saan/Tng-sua (唐山), or «Tang Mountain».

Among Taiwanese, Tangshan has been used, for example, in the saying, «has Tangshan father, no Tangshan mother» (有唐山公、無唐山媽). This refers how the Han people crossing the Taiwan Strait were mostly men, whereas their offspring would be through marriage with Taiwanese aborigine women.

• Ryukyuan: 唐ぬ国 tō-nu-kuku, the Ryukyuan name for China

Huaxia

The name Huaxia (华夏/華夏; pinyin: huáxià), generally used as a sobriquet in Chinese text, is the combination of two words:

• Hua which means prosper.
• Xia which could mean the Xia dynasty or grandiose.

This word has been widely used to refer to the Huang He river valley, by analogy with Zhonghua, which means «middle prosper», before Han became popular.

Tianxia and Tianchao

Tianxia (天下; pinyin: Tiānxià) literally means «under heaven»; and Tianchao (天朝) means «Heavenly Dynasty». These terms were usually used in the context of civil wars or periods of division, in which whoever ends up reunifying China is said to have ruled Tianxia, or everything under heaven. This fits with the traditional Chinese theory of rulership in which the emperor was nominally the political leader of the entire world and not merely the leader of a nation-state within the world.

Jiangshan

Jiangshan (江山; pinyin: Jiāngshān) literally means «Rivers and mountains». This term is quite similar in usage to Tianxia, and simply refers to the entire world, and here the most prominent features of which being rivers and mountains. Use of this term is also common as part of the phrase «designing rivers and mountains» meaning maintaining and improving government and policy in the world.

Jiuzhou

The name Jiuzhou (九州; pinyin: jiǔ zhōu) means «nine domains». Widely used in pre-modern Chinese text, the word originated during the middle of Warring States Period of China. During that time, the Huang He river region was divided into nine geographical regions; thus this name was coined. (Consult Zhou for more information.)

Shenzhou

This name means Divine Land (神州; pinyin: Shénzhōu) and comes from the same period as Jiuzhou. It is still the most used sobriquet for China in contemporary Chinese text.^{[dubious – discuss]} It was thought that the world was divided into nine major states, one of which is Shenzhou, which is in turn divided into nine smaller states, one of which is Jiuzhou mentioned above.

Sihai

This name, Four Seas (四海; pinyin: sìhǎi), is sometimes used to refer to the world, or simply China, which is perceived as the civilized world. It came from the ancient notion that the world is flat and surrounded by sea.

Dalu

Dalu (大陆/大陸; pinyin: dàlù), literally «great land», means «continent» or «mainland». It is used as a short form of Zhōnggúo Dàlù (中国大陆/中國大陸, Mainland China), excluding Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. This term is used in official context in both the mainland and Taiwan, when referring to the mainland as opposed to Taiwan. Often also called 内地； pinyin: nèidì) by Hong Kongers.

Official names

People’s Republic of China

People’s Republic of China
Chinese name
Simplified Chinese	中华人民共和国
Traditional Chinese	中華人民共和國
Transcriptions Gan — Romanization Chungfa Ninmin Khungfokoet Hakka — Romanization dung24 fa11 ngin11 min11 kiung55 fo11 gued2 Mandarin — Hanyu Pinyin Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó — Bopomofo ㄓㄨㄥ ㄏㄨㄚˊ ㄖㄣˊ ㄇㄧㄣˊ ㄍㄨㄥˋ ㄏㄜˊ ㄍㄨㄛˊ Min — Hokkien POJ Tiong-hôa jîn-bîn kiōng-hô-kok — Min-dong BUC Dṳ̆ng-huà Ìng-mìng Gê̤ṳng-huò-guók Wu — Romanization tson平 gho平 zin平 min平 gon去 ghu平 koh入 Cantonese (Yue) — Jyutping zung1 waa4 jan4 man4 gung6 wo4 gwok3
Japanese name
Kanji	中華人民共和国
Kana	ちゅうかじんみんきょうわこく
Transcriptions — Romaji Chūka Jinmin Kyōwakoku
Korean name
Hangul	중화인민공화국
Hanja	中華人民共和國
Transcriptions — Revised Romanization Junghwa Inmin Gonghwaguk
Vietnamese name
Quốc ngữ	Trung Hoa Nhân dân Cộng hòa quốc (Sino-Viet.) Cộng hòa Nhân dân Trung Hoa (native)
Hán-Nôm	中華人民共和國 (Sino-Viet.) 共和人民中華 (native)

The name New China has been frequently applied to China by the Communist Party of China as a positive political and social term contrasting pre-1949 China (the establishment of the PRC) and the new socialist state. This term is also sometimes used by writers outside mainland China. The PRC was known to many in the West during the Cold War as «Communist China» or «Red China» to distinguish it from the Republic of China which is commonly called «Taiwan», «Nationalist China» or «Free China». In some contexts, particularly in economics, trade, and sports, «China» is often used to refer to mainland China to the exclusion of Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. In reporting by western news services, «China» typically refers to the People’s Republic of China including Hong Kong and Macau^{[citation needed]}, particularly when reporting politics. The official name of the People’s Republic of China in various official languages and scripts.

• Simplified Chinese: 中华人民共和国 (pinyin: Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó) — Official language and script, used in Mainland China, Singapore and Malaysia
• Traditional Chinese: 中華人民共和國 (pinyin: Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó, Jyutping: zung1 waa4 jan4 man4 gung6 wo4 gwok3) — Official in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau
• English: People’s Republic of China — Official in Hong Kong.
• Kazakh: As used within Republic of Kazakhstan, Қытай Халық Республикасы (in Cyrillic script), Qıtay Xalıq Respwblïkası (in Latin script), قىتاي حالىق رەسپۋبلىيكاسى (in Arabic script); as used within People’s Republic of China, Жұңxуа Халық Республикасы (in Cyrillic script), Juñxwa Xalıq Respwblïkası (in Latin script), جۇڭحۋا حالىق رەسپۋبليكاسى (in Arabic script). The Cyrillic script is the predominant script in the Republic of Kazakhstan, while the Arabic script is normally used for the Kazakh language in People’s Republic of China.
• Korean: 중화 인민 공화국 (Junghwa Inmin Gonghwaguk) — Used in Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture
• Mongolian: ^{[FN 3]} (Bügüde nayiramdaqu dumdadu arad ulus) — Official in Inner Mongolia; Бүгд Найрамдах Хятад Ард Улс (Bügd Nairamdakh Khyatad Ard Uls) — used in Mongolia
• Portuguese: República Popular da China — Official in Macau
• Tibetan: ཀྲུང་ཧྭ་མི་དམངས་སྤྱི་མཐུན་རྒྱལ་ཁབ, Wylie: krung hwa mi dmangs spyi mthun rgyal khab, ZYPY: Zhunghua Mimang Jitun Gyalkab — Official in PRC’s Tibet
  • Tibetan: རྒྱ་ནག་མི་དམངས་སྤྱི་མཐུན་རྒྱལ་ཁབ, Wylie: rgya nag mi dmangs spyi mthun rgyal khab — Official in Tibet Government-in-Exile
• Uyghur: جۇڭخۇا خەلق جۇمھۇرىيىت‎, ULY: Jungxua Xelq Jumhuriyiti — Official in Xinjiang
• Zaiwa: Zhunghua Mingbyu Muhum Mingdan — Official in Dehong
• Zhuang: Cunghvaz Yinzminz Gunghozgoz (Old orthography: Cuŋƅvaƨ Yinƨminƨ Guŋƅoƨ) — Official in Guangxi

Other languages:

• Arabic: علم جمهورية الصين الشعبية
• Bengali: গণপ্রজাতন্ত্রী চীন Gônoprojantontri Chin (People’s Republic of China) or গণচীন Gônochin (People’s China)
• Bishnupriya Manipuri: গণচীনর জাতীয় ফিরালহান
• Burmese: တရုတ်ပြည်သူ့သမ္မတနိုင်ငံ၏
• Catalan: República Popular de la Xina
• Czech: Čínská lidová republika
• Danish: Folkerepublikken Kina
• Dutch: Volksrepubliek China
• Esperanto: Popolrespubliko de Ĉinio
• Estonian: Hiina Rahvavabariik
• Filipino language: Republikang Popular ng Tsina
• Finnish: Kiinan kansantasavalta
• French: République populaire de Chine
• Gaelic: Daon-Phoblacht na Síne
• German: Volksrepublik China
• Greek: Λαϊκή Δημοκρατία της Κίνας
• Hebrew: הרפובליקה העממית של סין
• Hindi: चीनी जनवादी गणराज्य Chīnī Janvādī Gaņarājya
• Hungarian: Kínai Népköztársaság
• Indonesian language: Republik Rakyat Tiongkok (also for commonly use Republik Rakyat Cina, the latter also used in Malaysia)
• Italian: Repubblica popolare cinese
• Japanese 中華人民共和国 (Kana: ちゅうかじんみんきょうわこく; Romaji: Chūka Jinmin Kyōwakoku)
• Khmer: សាធារណរដ្ឋប្រជាមានិតចិន (Sathearanakroth Prorcheaminet Chen)
• Kirghiz: Kıtay El Respublikası
• Latvian Ķīnas Tautas Republika
• Lithuanian Kinijos liaudies respublika
• Macedonian: Народна Република Кина (Narodna Republika Kina)
• Novial: Populen Republike de China
• Persian: جمهوری خلق چین
• Polish: Chińska Republika Ludowa (abbreviation: ChRL)
• Romanian: Republica Populară Chineză
• Russian: Китайская народная республика (abbreviation: КНР, Kitaiskaya Narodnaya Respublika)
• Serbian: Народна Република Кина (Narodna Republika Kina)
• Slovak: Čínska ľudová republika
• Slovenian: Ljudska republika Kitajska
• Spanish: República Popular de China
• Tajik: Çumhurii Xalqii Cin
• Tatar: Kıtay Xalık Cömhüriyaten
• Thai: สาธารณรัฐประชาชนจีน (Satharanarat Prachachon Cheen : People’s Republic of China)
• Turkish: Çin Halk Cumhuriyeti
• Urdu: جۇڭخۇا خەلق جۇمھۇرىيىتى
• Uzbek: Xitoy Xalq Respublikasi
• Vietnamese: Cộng Hòa Nhân Dân Trung Hoa (Hán-Nôm: 共和人民中華)
  • Sino-Vietnamese: Trung Hoa Nhân dân Cộng hòa quốc (Hán-Nôm: 中華人民共和國)
• Yiddish: רעפובליקע פון כינע

Republic of China

Republic of China
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	中華民國
Simplified Chinese	中华民国
Transcriptions Gan — Romanization Chungfa Minkoet Hakka — Romanization dung24 fa11 min11 gued2 Mandarin — Hanyu Pinyin Zhōnghuá Mín’guó — Wade–Giles Chung-hua Min-kuo — Bopomofo ㄓㄨㄥ ㄏㄨㄚˊ ㄇㄧㄣˊ ㄍㄨㄛˊ Min — Hokkien POJ Tiong-hôa Bîn-kok — Min-dong BUC Dṳ̆ng-huà Mìng-guók Wu — Romanization tson平 gho平 min平 koh入 Cantonese (Yue) — Jyutping zung1 waa4 man4 gwok3
Japanese name
Kanji	中華民国
Kana	ちゅうかみんこく
Transcriptions — Romaji Chūka Minkoku
Korean name
Hangul	중화민국
Hanja	中華民國
Transcriptions — Revised Romanization Junghwa Minguk
Vietnamese name
Quốc ngữ	Trung Hoa Dân Quốc

Since its founding in 1912, the Republic of China has sometimes been referred to as «Republican China», in contrast to the empire it replaced, or as «Nationalist China«, after the ruling Chinese Nationalist Party (Kuomintang). It has also been referred to as the «Chinese Republic». Since the separation from mainland China since 1949 due to the Chinese Civil War, the territory of the Republic of China has largely been confined to the island of Taiwan (acquired in 1945 by the result of World War II) and a few other small islands. Thus, the country is often commonly referred to as simply «Taiwan«, although this may not be perceived as politically neutral. (See Taiwan Independence.) Amid the hostile rhetoric of the Cold War, the government sometimes referred to itself as «Free China», in contrast to communist People’s Republic of China. Democratized in 1996.

The official name of the Republic of China in various languages

• Traditional Chinese 中華民國 (pinyin: Zhōnghuá Mínguó; zhuyin: ㄓㄨㄥ ㄏㄨㄚˊ ㄇㄧㄣˊ ㄍㄨㄛˊ) — Official language and script
• Simplified Chinese: 中华民国 (pinyin: Zhōnghuá Mínguó)
• Japanese: Chūka Minkoku (中華民国^?)
• Korean: 中華民國 중화민국 Junghwa Minguk
• Bengali: চীন প্রজাতন্ত্র Chin Projatôntro
• Catalan: República de la Xina
• French: République de Chine
• German: Republik China
• Hebrew: הרפובליקה הסינית
• Mongolian: Бүгд Найрамдах Хятад Улс (Official in the State of Mongolia), ᠪᠦᠭᠦᠳᠡ ᠨᠠᠶᠢᠷᠠᠮᠳᠠᠬᠤ ᠳᠤᠮᠳᠠᠳᠤ ᠤᠯᠤᠰ (Official in Inner Mongolia)
• Macedonian: Република Кина (Republika Kina)
• Polish: Republika Chińska
• Serbian: Република Кина (Republika Kina)
• Spanish: República China
• Vietnamese: Trung Hoa Dân Quốc (中華民國)

Names in non-Chinese records

Names used in the rest of Asia, especially East and Southeast Asia, are usually derived directly from words in a language of China learned through the land-route. Those languages belonging to a former dependency (tributary) or Chinese-influenced country have a pronunciation especially similar pronunciation to that of Chinese. Those used in Indo-European languages, however, have indirect names that came via the sea-route and bear little resemblance to what is used in China.

First appeared before the Common Era

Chin

Popularized in the West by Marco Polo’s early 14th-century Il Milione, which used «Chin» as a transcription of Middle Persian Ṣīn (چین), from Sanskrit Cina (चीन, IPA: /c͡çiːnə/). The traditional etymology, proposed in the 17th century by Martin Martini and supported by many later scholars including Paul Pelliot is that the word is derived from the Qin state or dynasty (秦, Old Chinese: *dzin) which ruled China from 221 – 206 BC.^[11] This is still the most widely accepted theory.^[12] However, the Sanskrit name appears in both the Laws of Manu and the Mahabhārata^[13] in reference to a state located in the Tibetan-Burman borderlands. Another theory proposed by Geoff Wade is that this word is derived from Yelang, an ancient kingdom in present-day Guizhou whose inhabitants referred to themselves as Zina.^[14]

Barbosa (1516) and Garcia de Orta (1563) mentioned China.

• Albanian: Kinë (IPA [kinə])
• Amharic: Chayna (from English)
• Armenian: Չինաստան (pronounced [t͡ʃinasˈtan])
• Azeri: Çin (IPA [tʃin])
• Basque: Txina (IPA: [ˈtʃinə])
• Bangla/Bengali: Chin (চীন IPA: [t͡ʃin])
• Bosnian: Kina
• Catalan: Xina (IPA [ˈʃinə] or [ˈtʃina])
• Chinese: 支那 Zhīnà (obsolete and considered offensive due to historical Japanese usage; originated from early Chinese translations of Buddhist texts in Sanskrit)
• Croatian: Kina
• Czech: Čína (pronounced [ˈt͡ʃiːna])
• Danish: Kina
• Dutch: China
• English: China (pronounced /ˈtʃaɪnə/)
• Esperanto: Ĉinujo or Ĉinio, or Ĥinujo (archaic)
• Estonian: Hiina
• Filipino (Tagalog): Tsina
• Finnish: Kiina (Finnish pronunciation: [kiːnɑ])
• French: Chine ([ʃin])
• Georgian: ჩინეთი (Georgian pronunciation: [t͡ʃiːnɛtiː])
• German: China ([ˈçiːna], in some southern dialects also [ˈkiːna])
• Greek: Κίνα (Kína)
• Hindi: Chīn चीन (IPA [ˈt͡ʃiːn])
• Hungarian: Kína ([kiːnɒ])
• Icelandic: Kína
• Indonesian: Cina ([t͡ʃina])
• Interlingua: China
• Irish: An tSín ([ən ˈtʲiːnʲ])
• Italian: Cina ([ˈt͡ʃiːna])
• Japanese: Shina (支那) — considered offensive in China, now largely obsolete in Japan and avoided out of deference to China (the name Chūgoku is used instead); See Shina (word) and kotobagari.
• Khmer: ចិន (IPA: [cən])
• Korean: Jina (지나)
• Lithuanian: Kinija
• Macedonian: Кина (Kina)
• Malay: China ([t͡ʃina])
• Malayalam: Cheenan/Cheenathi
• Norwegian: Kina ([çiːnɑ] or [ʃiːnɑ])
• Pahlavi: Čīnī
• Persian: Chin چين ([t͡ʃin])
• Polish: Chiny ([ˈxinɨ])
• Portuguese: China ([ˈʃinɐ])
• Romanian: China ([ˈkiːna])
• Serbian: Kina or Кина ([kiːna])
• Slovak: Čína ([t͡ʃiːna])
• Spanish: China ([ˈtʃina])
• Swedish: Kina ([ˈɕiːna])
• Tamil: Cheenaa (சீனா)
• Thai: Jiin (จีน)
• Tibetan: Gya-nak (རྒྱ་ནག་)
• Turkish: Çin ([t͡ʃin])
• Urdu: Čīn چين ([t͡ʃiːn])
• Welsh: Tsieina

Seres (Σηρες)

Seres (Σῆρες) was the ancient Greek and Roman name for the northwestern part of China and its inhabitants. It meant «of silk,» or «land where silk comes from.» The name is thought to derive from the Chinese word for silk, «si» (simplified Chinese: 丝; traditional Chinese: 絲; pinyin: sī). It is itself at the origin of the Latin for silk, «serica«. See the main article Seres for more details.

Ser

An earlier usage than Sin, possibly related.

• Greek: Seres, Serikos
• Latin: Serica

This may be a back formation from serikos (σηρικος), «made of silk», from sêr (σηρ), «silkworm,» in which case Seres is «the land where silk comes from.»

Sin

A name possibly of origin separate from Chin.

• Arabic: Ṣin صين
• French/English (prefix of adjectives): Sino- (i.e. Sino-American), Sinitic (the Chinese language family).
• Latin: Sinæ

This name is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible in Genesis 10:17, where it is said that the Sinites are descendants of Canaan, the son of Ham.

It’s thought that this term may have come to Europe through the Arabs, who made the China of the farther east into Sin, and perhaps sometimes into Thin. Hence the Thin of the author of the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, who appears to be the first extant writer to employ the name in this form; hence also the Sinæ and Thinae of Ptolemy.

Some denied that Ptolemy’s Sinæ really represented the Chinese. But if we compare the statement of Marcianus of Heraclea (a condenser of Ptolemy), when he tells us that the «nations of the Sinae lie at the extremity of the habitable world, and adjoin the eastern Terra Incognita,» with that of Cosmas Indicopleustes, who says, in speaking of Tzinista, a name understood as referring to China,^{[citation needed]} that «beyond this there is neither habitation nor navigation», it seems probable that the same region is meant by both. Ptolemy’s misrendering of the Indian Sea as a closed basin—i.e., placing the Chinese coast along its eastern boundary—should not necessarily be seen as a counterargument, as also he described what is unmistakably India with similarly erroneous geography. Most scholars still believe Sinæ is China.^{[citation needed]}

Sinae

Sinae was an ancient Greek and Roman name for some people who dwelt south of the Seres in the eastern extremity of the inhabitable world. References to the Sinae include mention of a city that the Romans called Sera Metropolis, which is modern Chang’an. Although the name Sinae appears to be derived from the same etymological source as the Latin prefixes Sino- and Sin-, which are traditionally used to refer to China and the Chinese, there is some controversy as to the ultimate origin of these terms, as their use in historical texts of classical antiquity in the West appears to antedate the emergence of the Qin Dynasty and its empire, the name of which has often been cited as the source of Latin Sino- and Sin-.^{[citation needed]}

First appeared in the Common Era

China

English, most Indo-European languages, and many others use various forms of the name «China» and the prefix «Sino-» or «Sin-«. These forms are thought to be probably derived from the name of the Qin Dynasty that first unified the country (221–206 BCE).^[15] The Qin Dynasty unified the written language in China and gave the supreme ruler of China the title of «Emperor» instead of «King,» thus the subsequent Silk Road traders may have identified themselves by that name.

The term «China» can also be used to refer to:

• the modern states known as the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and (before the 1970s) the Republic of China (ROC)
• «Mainland China» (中国大陆/中國大陸, Zhōngguó Dàlù in Mandarin), which is the territory of the PRC minus the two special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau;
• «China proper», a term used to refer to the historical heartlands of China without peripheral areas like Manchuria, Inner Mongolia, Tibet, and Xinjiang

In economic contexts, «Greater China» (大中华地区/大中華地區, dà Zhōnghhuá dìqū) is intended to be a neutral and non-political way to refer to Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

Sinologists usually use «Chinese» in a more restricted sense, akin to the classical usage of Zhongguo 中国, to the Han ethnic group, which makes up the bulk of the population in China and of the overseas Chinese.

Kina

Kina is used to refer to China in North Europe now and the pronunciation is [ʃina]. This name still comes from the Qin Dynasty. In Swedish, Kinesiska means Chinese, the language used in Kina.

Cathay

This group of names derives from Khitan, an ethnic group that originated in Manchuria and conquered parts of Northern China. Due to long domination of Northern China by these non-Chinese conquerors, it was considered by northwestern people as the land of the Khitan. In English and in several other European languages, the name «Cathay» became widely used for all of China largely as a result of translations of the adventures of Marco Polo, which used this word for northern China.

• Bulgarian: Китай
• Classical Mongolian: Kitad
• English: Cathay
• Kazan Tatar: Qıtay
• Medieval Latin: Cataya, Kitai
• Mongolian: Хятад (Khyatad)^{[FN 2]}
• Buryat: Хитад (Khitad)
• Portuguese: Catai
• Russian: Китай (Kitáj)
• Slovene: Kitajska ([kiːˈtajska])
• Kazakh: Қытай (Qıtay)
• Turkmen: Hitaý
• Ukrainian: Китай (Kytai)
• Uygur: Hyty

There is no evidence that either in the 13th or 14th century, Cathayans, i.e. Chinese, travelled officially to Europe, but it is possible that some did, in unofficial capacity, at least in the 13th century. For, during the campaigns of Hulagu (the grandson of Genghis Khan) in Persia (1256–65), and the reigns of his successors, Chinese engineers were employed on the banks of the Tigris, and Chinese astrologers and physicians could be consulted. Many diplomatic communications passed between the Hulaguid Ilkhans and the Christian princes. The former, as the great khan’s liegemen, still received from him their seals of state; and two of their letters which survive in the archives of France exhibit the vermilion impressions of those seals in Chinese characters — perhaps affording the earliest specimen of those characters which reached western Europe.

Tabgach

«Tabgach» came from the metatheses of «Tuoba» (*takbat), a dominant tribe of the Xianbei, and the surname of the Northern Wei Dynasty in the 5th century before sinicisation. It referred to Northern China, which was dominated by half-Xianbei, half-Chinese people.

• Byzantine Greek: Taugats
• Orhon Kok-Turk: Tabgach (variations Tamgach)

Nikan

Manchu: Nikan was a Manchu ethnonym of unknown origin that referred specifically to the ethnic group known in English as the Han Chinese; the stem of this word was also conjugated as a verb, nikara(-mbi), and used to mean «to speak the Chinese language.» Since Nikan was essentially an ethnonym and referred to a group of people (i.e., a nation) rather than to a political body (i.e., a state), the correct translation of «China» into the Manchu language is Nikan gurun, literally the «Nikan state» or «country of the Nikans» (i.e., country of the Hans).

This exonym for the Han Chinese is also used in the Daur language, in which it appears as Niaken ([njakən] or [ɲakən]).^[16] As in the case of the Manchu language, the Daur word Niaken is essentially an ethnonym, and the proper way to refer to the country of the Han Chinese (i.e., «China» in a cultural sense) is Niaken gurun, while niakendaaci- is a verb meaning «to talk in Chinese.»

Kara

Japanese: Kara (から; variously written in kanji as 唐 or 漢). An identical name was used by the ancient and medieval Japanese to refer to the country that is now known as Korea, and many Japanese historians and linguists believe that the word «Kara» referring to China and/or Korea may have derived from a metonymic extension of the appellation of the ancient city-states of Gaya.

The Japanese word karate (空手, lit. «empty hand»), referring to a form of martial arts, was earlier also written as 唐手 (lit. «Chinese hand») in respect of its Chinese origin.

Morokoshi

Japanese: Morokoshi (もろこし; variously written in kanji as 唐 or 唐土). This obsolete Japanese name for China is believed to have derived from a kun reading of the Chinese compound 諸越 Zhūyuè or 百越 Bǎiyuè as «all the Yue» or «the hundred (i.e., myriad, various, or numerous) Yue,» which was an ancient Chinese name for the societies of the regions that are now southern China.

The Japanese common noun tōmorokoshi (トウモロコシ, 玉蜀黍), which refers to maize, appears to contain an element cognate with the proper noun formerly used in reference to China. Although tōmorokoshi is traditionally written with Chinese characters that literally mean «jade Shu millet,» the etymology of the Japanese word appears to go back to «Tang morokoshi,» in which «morokoshi» was the obsolete Japanese name for China as well as the Japanese word for sorghum, which seems to have been introduced into Japan from China.

Mangi

From Chinese Manzi (southern barbarians). The division of North China and South China under the Jin Dynasty and Song Dynasty weakened the dogma that China should be unified, and it was common for a time to call the politically disparate North and South by different names. While Northern China was called Cathay, Southern China was referred to as Mangi. Manzi often appears in documents of the Mongol Yuan Dynasty. The Mongols also called Southern Chinese «Nangkiyas» or «Nangkiyad», and considered them ethnically distinct from North Chinese. As Marco Polo used it, the word «Manzi» reached the Western world as «Mangi» (Machin). The Chinese, themselves, saw «Mangi» as a derogation and never used it as self appellation.^{[citation needed]}

• Chinese: Manzi (蠻子)
• Latin: Mangi

Footnotes

References

See also

• Chinese romanization
• List of country name etymologies
• Names of India
• Names of Japan
• Names of Korea
• Île-de-France (province), similar French concept