Encyclopñdia Britannica, Inc., is a leader in reference and education publishing whose products can be found in many media, from the Internet to mobile phones to books. A pioneer in electronic publish- ing since the early 1980s, Britannica launched the first encyclopedia on the Internet in 1994. It also continues to publish and revise its famed print set, first released in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1768. Encyclopñdia Britannica's contributors include many of the greatest writers and scholars in the world, and more than 110 Nobel Prize winners have written for Britannica. A professional editorial staff ensures that Britannica's content is clear, current, and correct. This book is principally based on content from the encyclopedia and its contributors. Contributors Jonathan Mirsky, who contributed The Central Country, has taught Chinese, Chinese History and Literature at Cambridge University, the University of Pennsylvania, and Dartmouth College. From 1993 to 1998 he was East Asia editor of The Times (London) based in Hong Kong. He has also written for the Observer, the Economist, and the Independent. He is a regular writer for the New York Review of Books, the Times Literary Supplement, the International Herald Tribune, and The Spectator. In 1989 Dr Mirsky was named British newspapers' International Reporter of the Year for his coverage of the demonstrations at Tiananmen Square that year. In 1999 he was a Shorenstein Fellow at Harvard. In 2002 he was the I. F. Stone Fellow in the Graduate School of Journalism at the University of California, Berkeley. Dorothy-Grace Guerrero, who contributed The Perils of China's Explosive Growth, is a Senior Research Associate of Focus on the Global South, a special project of Chulalongkorn University Social Research Institute in Bangkok. Frances Wood, who contributed The Chinese Dynasties, is head of the Chinese Department at the British Library. She is also the author of, among other books, Did Marco Polo Go to China?, The Silk Road and The First Emperor of China. THE GUIDE TO MODERN CHINA A comprehensive introduction to the the world's new economic giant Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. www.britannica.com First print edition published in the UK by Robinson, an imprint of Constable & Robinson Ltd, 2008 Text © 2008 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. ‘The Central Country’ © 2008 Jonathan Mirsky ‘The Perils of China’s explosive Growth’ © 2008 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. ‘The Chinese Dynasties’ © 2008 Frances Wood The right of Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., Jonathan Mirsky and Frances Wood to be identified as the authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs & Patents Act, 1988. Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, and the Thistle logo are registered trademarks of Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. This eBook edition published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. ISBN 978-1-59339-225-3 No part of this work may be produced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. CONTENTS List of Illustrations and Maps vii Introduction The Central Country by Jonathan Mirsky ix The Perils of China's Explosive Growth xvi by Dorothy-Grace Guerrero Part 1 Context ChinaÐFacts and Figures 3 1 Overview 9 Part 2 History 2 The Rise of the Republic (1912±49) 33 3 The People's Republic (1949±2007) 72 Part 3 The Nation Today 4Government and Society 121 5 The Economy 134 VI CONTENTS Part 4Culture 6 Religion 159 The Chinese Dynasties by Frances Wood 202 7 The Arts 216 8 Calligraphy and Painting 226 9 Architecture 244 10 Music 261 11 Literature 273 12 Everyday Life in Modern China 298 Part 5 Places 13 The Major Sites to Visit 315 Index 367 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS AND MAPS Illustrations Sun Yat-sen Corbis-Bettman, courtesy of Encyclopñdia Brit- annica Inc. Mao Zedong Encyclopñdia Britannica Inc. Chinese Communist Troops Baldwin Ward/Corbis, courtesy of Encyclopñdia Britannica Inc. Deng Xiaoping Wally McNamee/Corbis, courtesy of Encyclo- pñdia Britannica Inc. Scene from a ``jingxi'' Marc Garanger/Corbis, courtesy of Encyclopñdia Britannica Inc. Agricultural produce market in northern Beijing Zhang Shuyuan/Xinhua News Agency, courtesy of Encyclopñdia Britannica Inc. Looking north from the Forbidden City Todd Gipstein/ Corbis Excavated statues of the Terracotta Army Wilfried Krecich- wost ± The Image Bank/Corbis, courtesy of Encyclopñdia Britannica Inc. VIII LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS AND MAPS The Great Goose Pagoda Werner Forman/Corbis The Great Wall Frans Lemmens/Zefa/Corbis Bank of China Tower Corbis Beijing National Stadium CSPA/Newsport/Corbis Maps China 8 Central Beijing 316 The Great Wall of China 336 Hong Kong 349 All maps # Encyclopñdia Britannica Inc. INTRODUCTION The Central Country Jonathan Mirsky Zhonghuo. The name says it all: China, the ``Central Country''. Nowadays, China may be central only in name, but its claim to be first, most, and largest arouse expectations, fears, and hopes that it will make the twenty first century its own. For what other country and head of state could London literally be turned red? That is what happened during a recent exhibition of Chinese art from the imperial collection at the Royal Academy. On the night of the opening, central London was illuminated from the Thames to the West End by red floodlights. When China's President Hu Jintao and Queen Elizabeth visited the show to view the Manchu emperor's favourite objects the building was closed all day to the public; Mr Hu and his royal host had the place to themselves for 50 minutes. And why not? What country, after all, could have given the world such engineering marvels as the Great Wall or the world's X INTRODUCTION highest railway (to Tibet) or is said to have invented the compass, gunpowder, block- and movable-type printing, paper, porcelain, and silk weavingÐall inventions, one might say, that should be known by every school-child. And how about winnowing machines, wheelbarrows, non-choking harnesses for draught animals, the crossbow, the kite, the suspension bridge, watertight compartments in ships, fore and aft sails, canal lock gates, and deep borehole drilling? All these, too, the Chinese assert they invented, and their claims are echoed in many quarters. Size matters. Within its borders China embraces the world's largest population. More striking still, there have always been more Chinese, including non-Hans (ethnic minorities), than any other peopleÐalready fifty million in the first century after the birth of Christ. Today, China's army is the world's largest, as is its civil service, and there are more cities in China with populations of a million or more than in any other country. And if surviving after birth and leading a long life are signs of a successful society, Chinese live-birth rates and longevity now exceed those in most developing countries and are nearly the equal of developed countries. China is usually described as the world's oldest continuous civilization; unlike Egypt and Greece, many of the basic elements of Chinese culture, especially the written language and the habits and manners of its people, remain intact today. These character- istics have survived not only the invasions of non-Chinese peo- ples, notably the Mongols and Manchus, but during those long occupations the conquerors themselves adopted many Chinese habits and institutions. Nor, despite the humiliations of the unequal treaties of the nineteenth century, has China properÐ excluding Hong Kong and TaiwanÐever been colonized. Some Western influences have in their time been harsh, but somehow, what may be called the ``China magic'' has succeeded in turning much Western influence to China's advantage, while many traditional values have been retained, especially in the country- side. Starbucks and Vuitton may be objects of desire but many up-to-date Chinese prefer traditional remedies to foreign drugs. INTRODUCTION XI Such cultural continuities and adaptations have always marked the Chinese and their rulers, especially the government formed after the communist triumph in 1949. Communism, a Western notion, was transfigured in China; and while it is nowadays a cliche to say that the country is no longer communist (in the Cold War sense of the term), its basic political organization and authority can still be recognized, to use the Chinese term, as ``socialism with Chinese characteristics''. Indeed, two things are made plain in the education of the youngest Chinese school childÐthat the Communist Party saved China and there can be no other leading group, and that Chinese civilization is the oldest and finest. As for the non-Han Chinese living within China's borders, some 55 identified ethnic minor- ities, it is emphasized that their best hopes for the future lie in the adoption of Han culture. While there is considerable disagreement about the extent, and cost, of the transformation, China's economic rise since 1980 has been breathtaking. As this book shows, the standard of living in the largest cities has risen significantly, foreign businesses have flooded into the country, and, more recently, China's investment in foreign banks and other institutions has been unrivalled by any other developing country. Many urban Chinese now dress, read, travel internally and abroad, pray, and employ themselves in ways unthinkable 20 years ago. Beijing has broken out of its previous stand-alone foreign policy and now participates in a myriad of international organiz- ations and activities. It has been a major player during interna- tional crises such as North Korea's development of nuclear weapons and the crackdown on internal opposition in Myanmar (Burma). After the re-absorption of Hong Kong in 1997, Beijing kept its word to guarantee the policy of ``One China Two Systems''Ðpolitical dissent and the opposition press have not been erased and when Hong Kong people resisted the imposition of a new sedition law with enormous demonstrations, Beijing withdrew the proposed legislation.