CHina
• Mix of thousands of years of tradition and rapid modernization
• Largest population in the world• Over 1.3 billion• 19.3% of world’s population
• Main ethnicity (~92%) = Han
• Named for powerful dynasty
• Other 8% = 55 different ethnic groups
Lesser Known Areas
• Mongolia (not actually part of China, just FYI)• Mostly ethnic Mongolians• Historical tidbit: Mongolians once had the largest land empire
in the world (China to E. Europe)• think Genghis Khan
• Tibet• Ruled by China since the 1950s• NOT classified as Chinese separate histories and cultures
• Taiwan• Mostly descendants of Chinese settlers• ~2% of the population = aborigines (original inhabitants)
• Yes, they are related to similar groups in the South East Asia and Pacific regions
Too Many people
• ~90% of the population lives on 1/6 of the land• Most people live near the Huang He and Chiang Jiang
rivers• What are the other names for these two rivers?
• Urban centers located in these valleys (Shanghai, Beijing)
• Urbanization + population growth overcrowded cities
• Rural to urban shift• Migration to cities• Leads to labor shortages on farms
• Gov’t must limit population growth• 1979: One child law
Brief History
• Culture hearth – center from which ideas and practices spread to surrounding areas
• Began more than 5,000 years ago, dynasties ruled until early 1900s
• 1890s - Carved up into spheres of influence (areas in which certain Euro. countries had exclusive trading rights)
• Post WWI overthrow of Qing dynasty• Communist (People’s Republic of China) vs. Nationalist
• Nationalists flee to Taiwan (Republic of China)
• Modern Mongolia formed
Life in China
• Education/Healthcare• Communist gov’t pushes literacy and better
healthcare with basic services
• Language/Religion• Ideograms – pictures or symbols that represent ideas• Most people speak Mandarin• Many identify as atheist b/c the communist gov’t
discourages religion• Some still practice Buddhism, Confucianism, and
Daoism (also seen as Taoism)
• Arts (see next slide)
People
• Ethnically homogeneous• Homogeneous = same
• 78% of people live along the coasts of the southern island of Honshū• Tokyo world’s most populous urban area
• Northern island of Hokkaidō is very rural w/ few people
• Tons of urbanization• Great public transportation
• Bullet train (>160 mph)
Brief History
• Influenced by China and Korea
• Shogunate
• Shogun = military ruler supported by samurai (warriors)
• History of isolationism
• Military power through the end of WWII• Expansion into Korea and Manchuria (China)• WWII – surrendered after bombings of Hiroshima and
Nagasaki
• Rebuilt into world economic power (2nd largest economy)
Life
• Education/Healthcare• Education is highly regarded, mandatory through age 15• Gov’t provides a lot of the healthcare
• Language/Religion• Language developed in isolation but began borrowing from
Chinese and western languages• Practice Buddhism and Shintoism
• Arts• haiku
• Family/Leisure• Being part of the group is more important than being an
individual• Acculturation – absorbing popular culture from other countries
• baseball
People
• Ethnically homogeneous
• Small groups of Chinese and Japanese
• 2/3 of population lives in cities such as Seoul (S. Korea) and P’yongyang (N. Korea)
• Urbanization and migration problems similar to China
• N. Korea = 60% urban
• S. Korea = 80% urban
Brief History
• Constantly facing aggression by China and Japan
• Independent until late 1800s
• Annexed by Japan in 1910
• Independent again after 1945
• Divided into North (communist) and South (capitalist)
• Demilitarized zone 38th parallel
Life• North Korea
• Education is the vehicle for communist ideology• Provides healthcare but people still lack access to
food, water, and heating supplies
• South Korea• Education improving• Healthcare system built w/ help from UN
• Both• Korean is main language, borrows from Chinese and
Japanese• Mostly Confucian but also Buddhist and Christian