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Mainland China
*** Shopping-Tip: Mainland China
Image:MainlandChina.png thumb|380px|right|The highlighted area in the map is what is commonly known as "mainland China".
'''Mainland China''' ({{zh-stp|s=中国大陆|t=中國大陸|p=Zhōnggúo Dàlù}}, lit. "''The Chinese Massive Landmass''" or "Continental China") is an informal geographical term which is usually synonymous with the area currently administered by the
People's Republic of China (PRC); however, it usually excludes the two
Special Administrative Regions administered by the People's Republic of China:
Hong Kong and
Macau, which are governed under "
One Country, Two Systems" and have a high degree of
autonomy. It always excludes the area administered by the
Republic of China (ROC), namely
Taiwan,
Penghu,
Quemoy, and
Matsu (islands) Matsu islands. In contrast to the term
China proper, the term usually also includes
Tibet,
Xinjiang, and
Inner Mongolia.
Since "mainland China" describes a political and economic rather than geographic entity, it usually includes all offshore islands administered by the PRC, such as
Hainan. "Mainland China" (''Zhōngguó dàlù'') is commonly used both in Mainland China and on Taiwan, because it is a neutral term and does not contain implications about the
political status of Taiwan.
More recently, the term ''Zhōngguó nèidì'' (內地 "the inner regions of China") has become the most common term within Mainland China to refer to Mainland China. The term is used in such places as Canada.
In Taiwan, the term
Mainlander can refer to ''wàishěng rén'' (外省人, literal meaning: "external province person(s)"), who are the people who emigrated to Taiwan from Mainland China near the end of the
Chinese Civil War in 1949; children of ''wàishěng rén'', though born in Taiwan, can also be referred to as ''wàishěng rén''. The term Mainlander can also refer to ''dàlù rén'' (大陸人, literal meaning: "Mainland person(s)"), meaning the people who live on the Mainland now and the very small number of people who have emigrated from the Mainland to Taiwan recently.
Relations between Mainland China and Taiwan are typically known in Chinese as ''liǎng'àn guānxì'' (兩岸關係), which literally means "relations between the two sides/seashores (of the
Strait of Taiwan)" and is known in English as "
cross-straits relations". The term ''liǎng'àn'' (two shores) is often used when describing Mainland China and Taiwan collectively. Again these terms are commonly found because they are politically-neutral and do not contain implications about the nature of the relationship between Mainland China and Taiwan (see
political status of Taiwan). When Hong Kong is involved, the term ''liǎng'àn sāndì'' (''literally'' two shores, three places) is used.
The term is used more often since the transfers of
sovereignty, to the People's Republic of China, of Hong Kong in 1997 and Macao in 1999. Mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau have different
customs and
immigration control,
passports,
currency currencies,
stamps,
judiciary systems and
Court of Final Appeal courts of last resort,
public finance,
extradition, etc.
See also
*
Asia
*
Mainland
*
Economy of the People's Republic of China
Category:People's Republic of China *
Category:Republic of China
Category:China *
de:Festlandchina
es:China continental
fr:Chine continentale
id:Tiongkok Daratan
ja:中国大陸
ko:중국 대륙
nl:Continentaal China
pt:China continental
simple:Mainland China
sv:Fastlands-Kina
zh:中国大陆
{{ChineseText}}
'''Main article''':
Mainland China
Category:China
Category:People's Republic of China
*** Shopping-Tip: Mainland China
