41 Facts About China

China, officially the People’s Republic of China is a country in East Asia. 

China has a total area of 9,596,960 square km. 

Beijing is its capital and Shanghai is its largest city. 

Chinese is the official language of China. 

Renminbi (yuan; ¥) (CNY) is its official currency.

Russia, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bharat, North Korea, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, Laos, and Vietnam are China's land neighbours (thus, China has the most number of neighbours touching its borders).

China has the most people on the planet.

China supplied the toilet paper.

Toilet paper was not available to the general public; only the Emperor was permitted to use it.

Cricket fighting is a popular amusement sport in China.

China operates on a single time zone, which is unusual for a country of its size.

Historians believe that in 1000 B.C., the Chinese invented football or soccer for many people.

In addition to toilet paper, the Chinese invented paper, gunpowder, the compass, and the art of printing.

The word China is thought to have originated with the Qin dynasty, which ruled over the country from 221 B.C. to A.D. 1912.

The Chinese language is the world's oldest language still in use for writing.

To save fuel while cooking, the Chinese cut their food into small pieces, eliminating the need for knives, and thus the chopsticks were born.

Over 3,000 years ago, the Chinese invented the kite, which they used to scare their enemies during the war!

Ice cream was invented by the Chinese by simply combining milk, rice, and snow.

By A.D. 130, the Chinese had developed the ability to detect earthquakes. This was accomplished using a device invented by Zhang Heng, an astronomer and literary scholar.

They began drilling for natural gas before the fourth century, nearly 2,300 years before the Westerners.

When a tea leaf fell into the emperor's pot by accident, the beautiful relationship between the Chinese and tea was born.

The Chinese invented the water wheel in A.D. 31 and the iron plough much earlier than the Europeans.

The Chinese adore the colour red. This colour represents happiness to them, which is why it is frequently used in their festivals and most functions expressing Chinese culture.

By A.D. 1092, the Chinese had developed a mechanical clock that could accurately tell time.

Grow your small finger's nail as a sign of rank. In ancient China, wealthy men and women grew these nails and decorated them with gold to protect themselves.

The Three Gorges Dam is the world's largest man-made dam. It crosses the Yangtze River.

The easiest and most certain way to die in ancient China was to smuggle the secret of silk production. You would be executed if you were caught doing this.

The discovery of silk is similar to the discovery of tea. It is said that a silkworm cocoon fell into the emperor's wife's cup of hot tea, forming fine silk threads.

In the second century B.C., the Chinese were the first to discover how blood circulates in the body. This is a long time before the Europeans arrived.

Archaeologists discovered the remains of Peking Man or Homo Erectus in China.

The UNESCO World Heritage Site 'Capital-Hangzhou Grand Canal,' also known as the "Grand Canal," is the world's longest canal or artificial river, stretching 1,776 km (1,104 miles).

Can you imagine wearing clothing made of paper or light body armour? This is how strong and long-lasting ancient Chinese paper was.

The Chinese have also been to space. This occurred on September 27, 2008, when the first Chinese astronaut, Zhi Zhigang, walked in space.

Every Chinese person turns one year older on New Year's Day, so their birthday is celebrated. This is why the Chinese New Year is the country's most important holiday.

During WWII, the Chinese port of Shanghai played an important role in the rescue of Jews. The reason for this was that it was the first and only port of entry that allowed Jews to enter without a visa.

The Chinese were the first to use the devastating effects of gas in warfare. They did it 2000 years before it was used in WWI.

The Chinese invented and first used the crossbow.

In 25 B.C., the Chinese invented the suspension bridge. The Chinese were 1,800 years ahead of the Westerners when they built the first one.

The bat is a lucky symbol for the Chinese.

The Chinese list of olds and firsts is far from complete. The Lunar Calendar is the world's oldest calendar, dating back to 2600 B.C. It also takes 60 years to finish.

In 1974, the tomb of Qin, the first emperor credited with uniting China, was discovered. His tomb contained thousands of life-sized soldiers, chariots, and horses, as well as poems.