1. Cultural Geography Project
China
Cultural Geography Project
By Tahniat, Nilufar, Demarco, John

2. History
China is one of the oldest countries in the world, with a recorded history of over 5000 years.
China experienced many dynasties such as, Qin Dynasty, Tang Dynasty, Han Dynasty, and Ming Dynasty.
The People’s Republic of China is located East Asia
It consists of 22 provinces, 5 autonomous region, and 2 self-governing “special administrative regions”.

3. Facts about China HDI 0.719 Total GDP 9.24 trillion USD GDP per capita
(Human development Index)
0.719
Total GDP
(Gross Domestic Product)
9.24 trillion USD
GDP per capita
$6,807 USD
NIR
(Natural Increase Rate)
0.5%
Total Population
1.357 billion
Literacy Rate
95.1%
Data obtained from: The World Bank

4. Music
Short video of Peking opera
Peking opera
A popular musical drama originated in Beijing, China in the 18th century.
It consists of high-pitched vocals, percussion, and instruments such as, suona and jinghu.

5. Traditional Instruments
Guzheng
A Chinese plucked zither with 18 strings.
An ancient instrument from thousands of years ago and became extremely popular since the Tang Dynasty.
Erhu
A two-stringed bowed instrument
Emerged in 10th century

6. Modern Music Cantopop Mandopop
Popular in Southern China where Cantonese is spoken, especially in Hong Kong.
Share similar style as Western Pop music.
Originated in Shanghai and later Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore.
Influenced by K-pop through Cultural Diffusion
Joey Yung
Andy Lau

7. Food Major cuisines include: Cantonese (e.g. Dim sum)
Sichuan (focus on spiciness)
Fujian (focus on seafood)
Fujian cuisines are mainly seafood due to its geographic location near the sea.
Jiangsu and Anhui cuisines share many similarities through cultural diffusion and their physical location.

8. Szechuan Cuisine
Fujian Cuisine
Zhejiang Cuisine
Shanghai Cuisine

9. Language Good Morning -> 早安 (Zǎo ān) Hello -> 您好 (Nín hǎo)
Mandarin
The official language of China
With more than 960 native speakers
Originated in Northern China
Based on the Beijing Dialects
Good Morning -> 早安 (Zǎo ān)
Hello -> 您好 (Nín hǎo)
Subway -> 地鐵 (Dìtiě)
Airport -> 機場 (Jīchǎng)

10. Other languages and dialects
Cantonese
Spoken in Southern China
With 62,000,000 native speakers
The official language of two special administrative region of China, Hong Kong and Macau.
Due to time-distance decay, Cantonese is only common in Southern China and did not spread to the North.
Dialects
There are hundreds of dialects in China
Each province has their distant dialects
Ex. Wu (77 million), Min (72 million),
Hakka (30 million)

11. Ethnicity China is a multi-ethic country with 56 ethnicity.
Han Chinese is the majority of the population (91.6%)
The minority groups live mostly in western and Northwestern China.
Minority groups include the Zhuang (1.3%), Hui (0.8%) and Mongol (0.45%).

12. The conflicts and ethic tensions in China between the minorities and Han Chinese is an example of Centrifugal force.
The same cultural background among Han Chinese is a Centripetal force that unite the population.

13. Religion
China has been a multi-religious country since the ancient times.
Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism are the main religions that shaped the Chinese culture.
Many people in China are “non- believer”, though most of them practice some form of ancestor worship or folk religions.

15. Environment The air pollution in Beijing forces people to wear mask.
Wearing mask has become a culture in Beijing to avoid the harmful and toxic air.

16. Popular vs. Folk Culture
Popular Culture
Folk Culture
Cantopop & Mandopop music
Chinese New Year
Hollywood Movie
Dragon Boat Festival
Japanese Anime
Mid-Autumn Festival
American Fast Food
Ancestor worship
Learning English
Strong Family Value
European Fashion
Martial Art
New Technology (e.g. iPhone)
Confucianism

17. Popular cultures are heavily influenced by the West.
The Custom of eating with a round table has influenced Chinese people for thousands of years.
Chinese people also practice cultural appropriation by adopting custom such as, using knife and folk to eat and producing their own pop music.

18. Placelessness can be used to describe metropolitan cities in China such as, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Hong Kong, becoming more westernized and globalized.
The folk culture of China create Cultural Landscape in which temples are built everywhere in China.

19. Popular tourist destinations
Forbidden City
(Beijing)
Great Wall of China
(Beijing)

20. Terracotta Army Mount Huang
(Xi'an)
Mount Huang
(Anhui)

21. Bibliography
ChinaHighlights. (2013, January 1). China History. Retrieved December 3, 2014, from
Dewey, C., & Fisher, M. (2013, May 23). A surprising map of where the world’s atheists live. Retrieved December 3, 2014, from live/
Kahn, J., & Yardley, J. (2007, August 25). As China Roars, Pollution Reaches Deadly Extremes. Retrieved December 3, 2014, from
Lilly, A. (2009, July 8). A Guide to China's Ethnic Groups. Retrieved December 3, 2014, from
LAPETINA, A. (2014, January 13). 10 little-known historical facts about American Chinese food. Retrieved December 3, 2014, from
Touropia. (2014, July 15). 10 Top Tourist Attractions in China. Retrieved December 3, 2014, from
Travel China Guide. (2013, January 1). Chinese Language, Mandarin Learning, Chinese Characters, Dialects. Retrieved December 3, 2014, from
Uloocn. (2006, July 12). Peking opera. Retrieved December 3, 2014, from
World Bank Group. (2014, January 1). Retrieved December 3, 2014, from
WENZHOU. (2014, November 1). Cracks in the atheist edifice. Retrieved December 3, 2014, from

22. Tahniat
Nilufar
Demarco
John