Due to
China's large
population and area, the '
political divisions of
China' have always consisted of several levels since ancient times. The constitution of the
People's Republic of China provides for three
de jure levels of government. Currently, however, there are five practical (
de facto) levels of local government: the province, prefecture, county, township, and village. The
Republic of China on
Taiwan uses a
different system.
The provinces serve an important cultural role in China. People tend to be identified in terms of their native provinces, and each province has a stereotype that corresponds to their inhabitants. Most of the provinces of China have boundaries which were established in the late
Ming Dynasty. Major changes since then have been the reorganization of provinces in the Northeast after the Communist takeover of
mainland China in 1949 and the establishment of autonomous regions which are based on Soviet nationality theory.
Levels
The
Constitution of the People's Republic of China provides for three levels: the province, county, and township. However, two more levels have been inserted in actual implementation: the prefecture, under provinces; and the village, under townships. (There is a sixth level, the
district public office, under counties, but it is being abolished.)
Each of the levels correspond to a level in the
Civil service of the People's Republic of China.
Province level
The
People's Republic of China administers 33 province-level (省级 ''shěngjí'') divisions, including 22 provinces, five autonomous regions, four municipalities, and two special administrative regions:
Provinces are theoretically subservient to the PRC central government, but in practice provincial officials have a large amount of discretion with regard to economic policy. Unlike the
United States, the power of the central government was (with the exception of the military) not exercised through a parallel set of institutions until the early 1990s. The actual practical power of the provinces has created what some economists call
federalism with Chinese characteristics.
Most of the
provinces, with the exception of the provinces in the northeast, have boundaries which were established during the
Yuan,
Ming, and
Qing dynasties. Sometimes provincial borders veer markedly away from cultural or geographical boundaries, a phenomenon described as "dog's teeth interlocking" (犬牙交错 quǎnyájiāocuò). This was an attempt by the imperial government to discourage
separatism and warlordism through a
divide and rule policy. Nevertheless, provinces have come to serve an important cultural role in China. People tend to be identified in terms of their native provinces, and each province has a stereotype that corresponds to their inhabitants.
The most recent administrative changes have included the elevation of
Hainan and
Chongqing to provincial level status and the organization of
Hong Kong and
Macau as
Special Administrative Regions.
Provinces
Provinces (省/省 ''shěng'') are the most common type of province-level division.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Name !! Chinese (
T) !! Chinese (
S) !!
Pinyin !!
Postal map spelling !! Abbreviation !! Capital !! List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Anhui||安徽||安徽||Ānhuī||Anhwei||皖 wǎn||
Hefei||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Fujian||福建||福建||Fújiàn||Fukien||闽 mǐn||
Fuzhou||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Gansu||甘肅||甘肃||Gānsù||Kansu||甘 gān ''or'' 陇 lǒng||
Lanzhou||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Guangdong||廣東||广东||Guǎngdōng||Kwangtung||粤 yuè||
Guangzhou||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Guizhou||貴州||贵州||Gùizhōu||Kweichow||黔 qián ''or'' 贵 gùi||
Guiyang||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Hainan||海南||海南||Hǎinán||Hainan||琼 qióng||
Haikou||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Hebei||河北||河北||Héběi||Hopeh||冀 jì||
Shijiazhuang||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Heilongjiang||黑龍江||黑龙江||Hēilóngjiāng||Heilungkiang||黑 hēi||
Harbin||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Henan||河南||河南||Hénán||Honan||豫 yù||
Zhengzhou||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Hubei||湖北||湖北||Húběi||Hupeh||鄂 è||
Wuhan||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Hunan||湖南||湖南||Húnán||Hunan||湘 xiāng||
Changsha||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Jiangsu||江蘇||江苏||Jiāngsū||Kiangsu||苏 sū||
Nanjing||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Jiangxi||江西||江西||Jiāngxī||Kiangsi||赣 gàn||
Nanchang||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Jilin||吉林||吉林||Jílín||Kirin||吉 jí||
Changchun||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Liaoning||遼寧||辽宁||Liáoníng||Fengtien||辽 liáo||
Shenyang||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Qinghai||青海||青海||Qīnghǎi||Tsinghai||青 qīng||
Xining||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Shaanxi||陝西||陕西||Shǎnxī||Shensi||陕 shǎn ''or'' 秦 qín||
Xi'an||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Shanxi||{{lang|zh|山西||山西||Shānxī||Shansi||晋 jìn||
Taiyuan||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Shandong||山東||山东||Shāndōng||Shantung||鲁 lǔ||
Jinan||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Sichuan||四川||四川||Sìchuān||Szechuan||川 chuān ''or'' 蜀 shǔ||
Chengdu||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Yunnan||雲南||云南||Yúnnán||Yunnan||滇 diān ''or'' 云 yún||
Kunming||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Zhejiang||浙江||浙江||Zhèjiāng||Chekiang||浙 zhè||
Hangzhou||
List of county-level divisions
|}
Disputed area
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Name !! Chinese (
T) !! Chinese (
S) !!
Pinyin !! Abbreviation !! Capital !! List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Taiwan||臺灣 or 台灣 ||台湾||Táiwān||台 tái||
Jhongsing Village||
List of county-level divisions
|}
Since its founding in 1949, the
People's Republic of China has considered Taiwan to be its 23rd province. However, the
Republic of China currently controls this province, which consists of Taiwan island and the
Pescadores. The ROC also controls one county of
Fuchien (or Fukien) province:
Kinmen; and part of a second county:
Lienchiang.
Autonomous regions
Autonomous regions (自治區/自治区 ''zìzhìqū'') are province-level divisions with a designated
ethnic minority, and are guaranteed more rights under the constitution. For example, they have a chairman (where regular provinces have governors), who must be of the ethnic group as specified by the autonomous region (
Tibetan,
Uyghur, etc)
Autonomous regions were established after communist takeover, following
Soviet nationality policy. There are five in total.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Name
! Chinese (
T)
! Chinese (
S)
!
pinyin
! Designated
minority
! Local name
! Abbreviation
! Capital
! List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region
| 廣西壯族自治區
| 广西壮族自治区
| Guǎngxī Zhuàngzú Zìzhìqū
|
Zhuang
|
Zhuang -
Gvangjsih Bouxcuengh Swcigih
| 桂 Guì
|
Nanning
|
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
| 內蒙古自治區
| 内蒙古自治区
| Nèiměnggǔ Zìzhìqū
|
Mongol
|
Mongolian -
ᠥᠪᠦᠷ ᠮᠣᠨᠺᠤᠯᠤᠨ ᠥᠪᠡᠷᠲᠡᠺᠡᠨ ᠵᠠᠰᠠᠬᠤ ᠣᠷᠤᠨ /
Öbür Mongghul-un Öbertegen Jasaqu Orun
| 内蒙古 Nèiměnggǔ
|
Hohhot
|
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region
| 寧夏回族自治區
| 宁夏回族自治区
| Níngxià Húizú Zìzhìqū
|
Hui
| ''(The Hui speak
Chinese)''
| 宁 níng
|
Yinchuan
|
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region
| 新疆維吾爾自治區
| 新疆维吾尔自治区
| Xīnjiāng Wéiwúěr Zìzhìqū
|
Uyghur
|
Uyghur -
شىنجاڭ ئۇيغۇر ئاپتونوم رايونى /
Shinjang Uyghur Aptonom Rayoni
| 新 xīn
|
Ürümqi
|
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Tibet Autonomous Region
| 西藏自治區
| 西藏自治区
| Xīzàng Zìzhìqū||
Tibetan
|
Tibetan -
བོད་རང་སྐྱོང་ལྗོངས /
| 藏 zàng
|
Lhasa
|
List of county-level divisions
|}
Municipalities
Municipalities (直轄市/直辖市 ''zhíxiáshì'') are large cities that have the same administrative level as provinces. Municipalities directly control county-level divisions, without an intervening prefecture-level. In practice, the actual metropolitan area of a municipality is only a tiny fraction of its total area; the rest of the municipality consists of towns and farmland.
Chongqing is an extreme example of this — the rural population of this municipality exceeds its urban population.
There are 4 municipalities in the
People's Republic of China.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Name !! Chinese (
T) !! Chinese (
S) !!
pinyin !! Abbreviation !! List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Beijing||北京||北京||Běijīng||京 jīng||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Chongqing||重慶||重庆||Chóngqìng||渝 yú||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Shanghai||上海||上海||Shànghǎi||沪 hù||
List of county-level divisions
|-
|
Tianjin||天津||天津||Tiānjīn||津 jīn||
List of county-level divisions
|}
Special administrative regions
Special administrative regions (特別行政區/特别行政区 tèbiéxíngzhèngqū) (SARs) are local administrative regions with a high degree of autonomy under the
One country, two systems arrangement, and come directly under the
Central People's Government, as provided in the articles 12 of both
basic laws of the two SARs.
Unlike provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities, whose legal basis is provided for in Article 30 of the
1982 Constitution, special administrative regions are provided for in Article 31. The two SARs were established in 1997 and 1999 when the sovereignty of the two entities was transferred (from the
United Kingdom and
Portugal respectively) to the People's Republic of China.
The two special administrative regions come directly under the Central People's Government. As opposed to other provincial-level administrative divisions (provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions), SARs reserve a much higher level of autonomy, with their own
courts of last resort,
legal systems,
passports,
currencies,
customs control,
immigration policies,
extradition, etc., except
diplomatic relations and
national defence. The SARs participate in various international organisations and sporting events as separate members/teams from the PRC.
Both SARs are small, and neither uses the administrative structure of
mainland China. Hong Kong is divided into 18
districts, each with a consultative
district council. Macau is administered as a whole by the SAR Government, with no further divisions, after the Portuguese-era
municipalities were abolished.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Name !! Chinese (
T) !! Chinese (
S) !!
Pinyin !! Abbreviation
|-
|
Hong Kong||香港||香港||Xiānggǎng||港 gǎng
|-
|
Macau||澳門||澳门||Àomén||澳 ào
|}
See also:
★
Districts of Hong Kong
★
Municipalities of Macau
Prefecture level
:''For a complete listing of all the prefecture-level divisions of China, see the article for each province.''
Prefecture-level (地级 ''dìjí'') divisions are the second level of the administrative structure. As of
December 31,
2005, this structure consisted of 333 divisions composed of:
★
prefecture-level cities (283)
★
prefectures (17)
★
autonomous prefectures (30)
★
Leagues (3) -- ''
Inner Mongolia only''
'''
Prefecture-level cities''' (地级市 ''dìjíshì'') form the vast majority of prefecture-level divisions. Prefecture-level cities are generally composed of an urban center and surrounding rural areas much larger than the urban core, and thus are not "
cities" in the strict sense of the term.
Most provinces are divided into only prefecture-level cities and contain no other second-level administrative units. Of the 22 provinces and 5 autonomous regions only 3 provinces (
Yunnan,
Guizhou,
Qinghai) and 2 autonomous regions (
Xinjiang,
Tibet) have more than three
second-level or prefecture-level divisions that are not prefecture-level cities.
'''
Prefectures''' (地区 ''dìqū'') are another level of government found at the prefecture-level. These were formerly the dominant second-level division, which is why this administrative level is often called "prefecture-level". However, they were replaced for the most part by
prefecture-level cities rom
1983 to the
1990s. Today, prefectures exist mostly in
Xinjiang and
Tibet only.
'''
Leagues''' (盟 ''méng'') are effectively the same as prefectures, but they are to be found only in
Inner Mongolia. Like prefectures, leagues have mostly been replaced with prefecture-level cities. The unique name is a holdover from earlier forms of administration in Mongolia.
'''
Autonomous prefectures''' (自治州 ''zìzhìzhōu'') are prefectures with one or more designated
ethnic minorities. These are mostly to be found in China's western regions.
County level
:''For a complete listing of all the county-level divisions of China, follow the links in these
tables''
As of
December 31,
2005, there are 2872 county-level (县级 ''xiànjí'') divisions, including 862 districts, 374 cities, 1464 counties, 117 autonomous counties, 49 banners, 3 autonomous banners, 2 special districts and 1 forestry district in mainland China (the
Republic of China governs 23 county-level divisions, including 18 counties and 5 provincial municipalities).
Counties (县 ''xiàn'') are the most common county-level division. Counties have continuously existed since the
Warring States Period, much earlier than any other level of government in China. In
Sinologist literature, ''xian'' are often translated as "districts" or "prefectures".
Autonomous counties (自治县 ''zìzhìxiàn'') are counties with one or more designated
ethnic minorities. These are analogous to autonomous regions (at the province-level) and autonomous prefectures (at the prefecture-level).
Inner Mongolia has
banners (旗 ''qí'') and
autonomous banners (自治旗 ''zìzhìqí''), which are the same as counties and autonomous counties except in name. The name is a holdover from earlier forms of administration in Mongolia.
County-level cities (县级市 ''xiànjíshì'') are, like prefecture-level cities, not "
cities" in the traditional sense of the word, since they are actually large administrative regions that cover both urban and rural areas. It was popular for counties to become county-level cities in the
1990s, though this has since been halted.
Districts (市辖区 ''shìxiáqū'' or simply 区 ''qū'') are another type of county-level division. These were formerly the subdivisions of urban areas, consisting of built-up areas only. In recent years, however, many counties have been converted into districts, so that today districts are often just like counties, with towns, villages, and farmland.
There are also a few special county-level divisions. There is a county-level forestry district (林区 ''línqū'') in
Hubei province,
Shennongjia, that is a county-level division; so are two special districts (特区 ''tèqū'') in
Guizhou province,
Liuzhi and
Wanshan.
Township level
As of
December 31,
2005 there were 41636 township-level (乡级 ''xiāngjí'') divisions. These include 19522
towns, 14677
township, 1092
ethnic townships, 181
sumu, 1
ethnic sumu, 6152
subdistricts, and 11
district public offices.
In general, urban areas are divided into
subdistricts (街道办事处 ''jiēdàobànshìchù'' or simply 街道 ''jiēdào'' "street road", or 街办 ''jiēbàn''?, literally "street offices"), while rural areas are divided into
towns (镇 ''zhèn''),
townships (乡 ''xiāng''), and
ethnic townships (民族乡 ''mínzúxiāng'').
Sumu (苏木 ''sūmù'') and
ethnic sumu (民族苏木 ''mínzúsūmù'') are the same as townships and ethnic townships, but are unique to
Inner Mongolia.
★
District public offices (区公所 ''qūgōngsuǒ'') are a vestigial level of government. These once represented an extra level of government between the county- and township-levels. Today there are very few of these remaining and they are gradually being phased out.
Village level
The
village level (村级 ''cūnjí'') serves as an organizational division (census, mail system) and does not have much importance in political representative power. Basic local divisions like
neighborhoods and
communities are not informal like in the West, but have defined boundaries and designated heads (one per area):
In urban areas, every subdistrict of a district of a city administers many
communities (社区 ''shèqū'' or 小区 or 居住区) or
neighborhoods (居民区 ''jūmínqū''). Each of them have a
neighborhood committee (社区居民委员会 ''jūmínwěiyuánhùi'' or simply 居委会 ''jūwěihùi'') to administer the dwellers of that neighborhood or community. Rural areas are organized into
village committees (村民委员会 ''cūnmínwěiyuánhùi'' or simply 村委会 ''cūnwěihùi'') or villager groups (村民小组 ''cūnmínxiǎozǔ''). A "village" in this case can either be a natural village (自然村 ''zìráncūn''), one that spontaneously and naturally exists, or an
administrative village (行政村 ''xíngzhèngcūn''), which is a bureaucratic entity.
Special cases
Although every single administrative division has a clearly defined level associated with it, sometimes an entity may be given ''more'' autonomy than its level allows for.
For example, a few of the largest prefecture-level cities are given more autonomy. These are known as
sub-provincial cities (副省级市 ''fùshěngjíshì''), meaning that they are given a level of power higher than a prefecture, but still lower than a province. Such cities are ''half a level'' higher than what they would normally be. Although these cities still belong to provinces, their special status gives them a high degree of autonomy within their respective provinces.
A similar case exists with some county-level cities. Some county-level cities are given more autonomy. These cities are known as
sub-prefecture-level cities (副地级市 ''fùdìjíshì''), meaning that they are given a level of power higher than a county, but still lower than a prefecture. Such cities are also ''half a level'' higher than what they would normally be. Sub-prefecture-level cities are often not put into any prefecture (i.e. they are directly administered by their province).
A concrete example is the
Pudong District of
Shanghai. Although its status as a
district of a
direct-controlled municipality would define it as prefecture-level, the district head of Pudong is given sub-provincial powers. In other words, it is ''half a level'' higher than what it would normally be.
Summary
This table summarizes the divisions of the area administered by the
People's Republic of China as of
December 31,
2005.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Level !! Name !! Types
|----------------------------------------------------
| 1 || Province level ||
★
Provinces (省 ''shěng'') (22)
★
Autonomous regions (自治区 ''zìzhìqū'') (5)
★
Municipalities (直辖市 ''zhíxiáshì'') (4)
★
Special administrative regions (特别行政区 ''tèbié xíngzhèngqū'') (2)
|----------------------------------------------------
| 2 || Prefecture level ||
★
Prefectures (地区 ''dìqū'') (17)
★
Autonomous prefectures (自治州 ''zìzhìzhōu'') (30)
★
Prefecture-level cities (地级市 ''dìjíshì'') (283)
★
Leagues (盟 ''méng'') (3)
|----------------------------------------------------
| 3 || County level ||
★
Counties (县 ''xiàn'') (1464)
★
Autonomous counties (自治县 ''zìzhìxiàn'') (117)
★
County-level cities (县级市 ''xiànjíshì'') (374)
★
Districts (市辖区 ''shìxiáqū'') (852)
★
Banners (旗 ''qí'') (49)
★
Autonomous banners (自治旗 ''zìzhìqí'') (3)
★ Forestry areas (林区 ''línqū'') (1)
★ Special districts (特区 ''tèqū'') (2)
|----------------------------------------------------
| 4 || Township level ||
★
Townships (乡 ''xiāng'') (14677)
★
Ethnic townships (民族乡 ''mínzúxiāng'') (1092)
★
Towns (镇 ''zhèn'') (19522)
★
Subdistricts (街道办事处 ''jiēdàobànshìchù'') (6152)
★
District public offices (区公所 ''qūgōngsuǒ'') (11)
★
Sumu (苏木 ''sūmù'') (181)
★
Ethnic sumu (民族苏木 ''mínzúsūmù'') (1)
|----------------------------------------------------
| 5 ||
Village level (informal) ||
★
Neighborhood committees (社区居民委员会 ''jūmínwěiyuánhùi'')
★
★
Neighborhoods or
communities (社区)
★
Village committees (村民委员会 ''cūnmínwěiyuánhùi'') or
Village groups (村民小组 ''cūnmínxiǎozǔ'')
★
★
Administrative villages (行政村 ''xíngzhèngcūn'')
★
★
Natural villages (自然村 ''zìráncūn'')
|----------------------------------------------------
|}
The ambiguity of the word "city" in China
Due to the complexity of the political divisions, the Chinese word "市"(shì) or in English "city", have many different meanings.
By its political level, when a "city" is referred, it can be a:
★ LV 1:
:
★
Municipality of China, for example,
Beijing
★ LV 2:
:
★
Sub-provincial city, for example,
Shenyang
:
★
Prefecture-level city, for example,
Baoding
★ LV 3:
:
★
Sub-prefecture-level city, for example,
Jiyuan
:
★
County-level city, for example,
Yiwu
When used in the statistical data, the word "city" may have three different meanings:
★ The area administrated by the city. For the municipality, the sub-provincial city, or the prefecture-level city, a "city" in this sense includes all of the counties, county-level cities,
city districts that the city governed. For the
Sub-prefecture-level city or the
County-level city, it includes all of the
subdistricts,
towns and
townships that it has.
★ The area comprised by its the urban
city districts and suburb
city districts. The difference between the urban district and the suburb districts is that an urban district is only comprised by the
subdistricts, while a suburb district also have
towns and
townships to govern rural areas. In some sense, this definition is approximately the
metropolitan area. This definition is not applied to the sub-prefecture-level city and the county-level city since they do not have
city districts under them.
★ The urban area. Sometimes the urban area is referred as (市区 shìqū). For the municipality, the sub-provincial city, and the prefecture-level city, it is comprised by the urban city district and the adjacent
subdistricts of the suburb city districts. For the sub-prefecture-level city and the county-level city, only central
subdistricts are included. This definition is close to the strict meaning of "city" in western countries.
It is extremely important to specify the definition of "city" when referring to statistical data of Chinese cities. Otherwise, confusions may arise. For example,
Shanghai is the largest city in China by the population in the urban area, but it is a smaller city than
Chongqing by the population within the administration area.
History
Before the establishment of the
Qin Dynasty, China was ruled by a network of kings, nobles, and tribes. The rivalry of these groups culminated in the
Warring States Period, and the
state of Qin eventually emerged dominant.
The
Qin Dynasty was determined not to allow China to fall back into disunity, and therefore designed the first hierarchical administrative divisions in China, based on two levels: ''jùn''
commanderies and ''xiàn''
counties. The
Han Dynasty that came immediately after added ''
zhōu'' (usually translated as "provinces") as a third level on top, forming a three-tier structure.
The
Sui Dynasty and
Tang Dynasty abolished commanderies, and added
circuits (''dào'', later ''lù'' under the
Song) on top, maintaining a three-tier system that lasted through the
Song Dynasty. (As a second-level division, ''zhou'' are translated as "prefectures".) The Mongol-established
Yuan Dynasty introduced the modern precursors to
provinces, bringing the number of levels to four. This system was then kept more or less intact until the
Qing Dynasty, the last imperial dynasty to rule China.
The
Republic of China streamlined the levels to just provinces and
counties, and made the first attempt to extend political administration beyond the county level by establishing
townships below counties. This was also the system officially adopted by the
People's Republic of China in
1949, which defined the administrative divisions of China as three levels: provinces,
counties, and
townships.
In practice, however, more levels were inserted.
Greater administrative areas were inserted on top of provinces, but they were soon abolished, in
1954.
Prefectures were inserted between provinces and counties; they continue be ubiquitously applied to nearly all areas of China.
District public offices were inserted between counties and townships; once ubiquitous as well, they are currently being abolished, and very few remain.
The most recent developments major developments have been the establishment of
Chongqing as a
municipality and the creation of
Hong Kong and
Macau special administrative regions.
Reform
In recent years there have been calls to reform the administrative divisions and levels of China. Rumours of an impending major reform have also spread through various online bulletin boards.
The abolition of
district public offices is an ongoing reform to remove an extra level of administration from between the county and township levels. There have also been calls to abolish the prefecture level, and some provinces have transferred some of the power prefectures currently hold to the counties they govern. There are also calls to reduce the size of the provinces. The ultimate goal is to reduce the different administration levels from five to three, (Provincial, County, Village) reducing the amount of corruption that goes on in between and reducing the number of government workers to reduce budget.
See also
★
Tiao-kuai, something like
federalism
External links
★ Maps showing the political division of China, detaled to county level:
[1] [2]
★
Schematic Representation of the Provinces of China
★
Literal Meaning and Brief History of the Provinces
★
Statistics
★
Descriptions of the levels (in
Traditional Chinese)
★
★ An
all-in-one-page version
★
Political divisions down to town-level (in
Simplified Chinese)
★
Provincial, prefecture, and many county maps
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