Hebei Province Called "Ji" for short, Hebei is in north China, on the coast of the Bohai Sea. Surrounding Beijing and close to Tianjin, Hebei covers 187,700 square km, with a population of 68.508 million at the end of 2005. Shijiazhuang is the provincial capital.

Shanxi Province Called "Jin" for short, Shanxi is located west of the Taihangshan Mountain in north China. It covers 156,000 square km, with a population of 33.5521 million at the end of 2005. Taiyuan is the provincial capital.

Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Called "Inner Mongolia" for short, the region is on the northern frontier of China, bordered by Mongolia and Russia on the north. It covers 1.1975 million square km, with a population of 23.864 million at the end of 2005, including 4.2112 million Mongolians. Hohhot is the regional capital.

Liaoning Province Called "Liao" for short, Liaoning is located in the southern part of northeast China and faces the Yellow Sea and the Bohai Sea on the south, with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to its east. It covers 145,900 square km, with a population of 42.21 million at the end of 2005. Shenyang is the provincial capital.

Jilin Province Called "Ji" for short, Jilin lies in the middle of northeast China, bordered by Russia and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea on the southeast. It covers 187,400 square km, with a population of 27.16 million at the end of 2005, representing a year-on-year increase of 75,000. Changchun is the provincial capital.

Heilongjiang Province Called "Hei" for short, Heilongjiang lies to the northernmost part of northeast China, adjoining Russia on the east and north. It covers more than 460,000 square km, with a population of 38.2 million at the end of 2005. Harbin is the provincial capital.

Jiangsu Province Called "Su" for short, Jiangsu is located on the lower reaches of the Yangtze River and the Huaihe River along the coast of the Yellow Sea. It covers 102,600 square km, with a permanent population of 74.745 million at the end of 2005, representing a year-on-year increase of 420,000. Nanjing is the provincial capital.

Zhejiang Province Called "Zhe" for short, Zhejiang in east China lies along the coast of the East China Sea. It covers 101,800 square km, with a permanent population of 48.98 million at the end of 2005. The province's total coastline stretches 6,486 km, the longest in China. Among the province's many islands, 3,061 have a land area of 500 square meters or more. Hangzhou is the provincial capital.

Anhui Province Called "Wan" for short, Anhui lies to the northwest of east China, with both the Yangtze River and Huaihe River crossing it. It covers 139,600 square km and has a registered permanent population of 65.16 million at the end of 2005. Hefei is the provincial capital.

Fujian Province Called "Min" for short, Fujian on the southeastern coast of China, faces Taiwan Province across the sea. Its territory includes 121,400 square km of land and 136,300 square km of sea. Its coastline stretches 3,324 km, the second longest in the country. Its permanent population stood at 35.35 million at the end of 2005. Fuzhou is the provincial capital.

Jiangxi Province Called "Gan" for short, Jiangxi is located south of the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. It covers 166,900 square km, with a population of 43.112 million at the end of 2005 of which 15.995 million are urban residents and the rest are rural residents. Nanchang is the provincial capital.

Shandong Province Called "Lu" for short, Shandong sits on the lower reaches of the Yellow River, bordering the Yellow Sea and the Bohai Sea. It covers 156,700 square km, with a population of 92.48 million at the end of 2005. Jinan is the provincial capital.

Henan Province Called "Yu" for short, Henan, which comprised the major part of the Central Plains in ancient China, is located on the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River. It covers 167,000 square km, with a population of 97.68 million at the end of 2005, of whom 29.94 million or 30.65 percent are urban residents and the rest 69.35 percent or 67.74 million live in rural areas. Zhengzhou is the provincial capital.

Hubei Province Called "E" for short, Hubei lies north of Dongtinghu Lake on the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. It covers 185,900 square km, with a population of 60.31 million at the end of 2005, including 57.1 million permanent residents. Wuhan is the provincial capital.

Hunan Province Called "Xiang" for short, Hunan is located south of Dongtinghu Lake, along the southern banks on the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. It covers 211,800 square km, with a population of 67.321 million at the end of 2005, of whom 24.909 million live in urban areas and 42.412 million in rural areas. Changsha is the provincial capital.

Guangdong Province Called "Yue" for short, Guangdong lies south of the Nanling Mountains, along the coast of the South China Sea. It covers 178,000 square km, with a permanent population of 91.94 million at the end of 2005. Guangzhou is the provincial capital.

Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Called "Gui" for short, Guangxi lies to the western part of south China, faces Beibu Gulf on the south and adjoins Viet Nam on the southwest. It covers 237,700 square km, with a population of 49.25 million at the end of 2005. Nanning is the regional capital.

Hainan Province Called "Qiong" for short, the province encompassing the Hainan Island, and the Xisha, Nansha and Zhongsha Islands and the surrounding seas, covers a land area of 35,000 square km and a sea area of approximately 2 million square km. Hainan Island is China's second largest island after Taiwan, with an area of 33,900 square km. Zengmu Shoal of Nansha Archipelago is the southernmost part of Chinese territory. Its permanent population stood at 8.28 million at the end of 2005. Haikou is the provincial capital.

Sichuan Province Called "Chuan" or "Shu" for short, Sichuan is located on the upper reaches of the Yangtze River in the southwest of China. It covers 485,000 square km, with a population of 87.5 million at the end of 2005. Chendu is the provincial capital.

Guizhou Province Called "Qian" or "Gui" for short, Guizhou lies to the east of the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, southwest China. It covers 176,100 square km, with a population of 39.3112 million at the end of 2005, representing a year-on-year increase of 274,200. Guiyang is the provincial capital.

Yunnan Province Called "Dian" or "Yun" for short, Yunnan on the southwestern frontier of China is bordered by Myanmar, Laos and Viet Nam. It covers 394,000 square km, with a population of 44.504 million at the end of 2005. Kunming is the provincial capital.

Tibet Autonomous Region Called "Zang" for short, Tibet lies on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau on the southwestern border of China, adjacent to India, Nepal, Bhutan and Myanmar. It covers 1.2749 million square km. Its total population stood at 2.77 million at the end of 2005, a year-on-year increase of 33,200. Lhasa is the regional capital.

Shaanxi Province Called "Shaan" or "Qin" for short, Shaanxi is located on the middle reaches of the Yellow River. It covers 205,600 square km, with a population of 37.2 million at the end of 2005, including 13.85 million urban residents and 23.35 million rural residents. Xi'an is the provincial capital.

Gansu Province Called "Gan" or "Long" for short, Gansu is located on the middle reaches of the Yellow River in northwest China, with its northwestern part adjacent to Mongolia. It covers 454,400 square km, with a population of 25.9436 million at the end of 2005. Lanzhou is the provincial capital.

Qinghai Province Called "Qing" for short, Qinghai is located on the upper reaches of the Yangtze and Yellow rivers in west China. It covers 721,200 square km, with a population of 5.432 million at the end of 2005, of whom 2.1323 million or 39.25 percent live in urban areas and the rest 60.75 percent or 3.2997 million, in rural areas. Xining is the provincial capital.

Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region Called "Ning" for short, Ningxia is located on the middle reaches of the Yellow River in the northwest of China. It covers 62,800 square km, with a population of 5.962 million at the end of 2005. Yinchuan is the regional capital.

Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Called "Xin" for short, Xinjiang lies to the northwestern border of China, adjacent to Mongolia, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India. Covering an area of 1.6558 million square km, Xinjiang is the largest of all Chinese provinces and autonomous regions, with a population of 20.1035 million at the end of 2005, a year-on-year increase of 472,400. Urumqi is the regional capital.

Taiwan Province Called "Tai" for short, Taiwan is located on the continental shelf off the southeastern coast of China's mainland. It is the largest island of China, covering 36,188 square km. The Taiwan Province consists of the Taiwan Island of 35,873 square km, 21 adjunct islands and the 64 islets of Penghu Archipelago. According to the statistics provided by the relevant authorities of Taiwan, the province had a population of more than 23 million by the end of 2003. Taipei is the provincial capital.