Zhejiang[a] is aneastern coastalprovince of thePeople's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city isHangzhou, and other notable cities includeNingbo andWenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered byJiangsu andShanghai to the north,Anhui to the northwest,Jiangxi to the west andFujian to the south. To the east is theEast China Sea, beyond which lies theRyukyu Islands. The population of Zhejiang stands at 64.6 million, the 8th largest in China. It has been called "the backbone of China" because it is a major driving force in the Chinese economy and being the birthplace of several notable people, including theChinese Nationalist leaderChiang Kai-shek and entrepreneurJack Ma. Zhejiang consists of 90 counties (incl. county-level cities and districts).
Zhejiang consists mostly of hills, which account for about 70% of its total area, with higher altitudes towards the south and the west. Zhejiang also has a longercoastline than any other mainland province of China. TheQiantang River runs through the province, from which it derives its name. Included in the province are three thousand islands, the most in China. The capitalHangzhou marks the end of theGrand Canal and lies onHangzhou Bay on the north of Zhejiang, which separatesShanghai andNingbo. The bay contains many small islands collectively called theZhoushan Islands.
Hangzhou is a historically important city of China and is considered aWorld City with a "Beta+" classification according toGaWC.[8] It includes the notableWest Lake. Variousvarieties of Chinese are spoken in Zhejiang, the most prominent beingWu Chinese. Zhejiang is also one of China's leading provinces in research and education. As of 2024[update], two major cities in Zhejiang ranked in the world's top 200 cities (Hangzhou 13th and Ningbo 123rd) by scientific research output, as tracked byNature Index.[9]
The area of modern Zhejiang was outside the major sphere of influence ofShang civilization during the second millennium BC. Instead, this area was populated by peoples collectively known as Dongyue.
UnderKing Goujian, Yue recovered from its early reverses and fully annexed the lands of its rival in473 BC. The Yue kings then moved their capital center from their original home aroundMount Kuaiji in present-dayShaoxing to the former Wu capital at present-daySuzhou. With no southern power to turn against Yue, Chu opposed it directly and, in 333 BC, succeeded in destroying it. Yue's former lands were annexed by theQin Empire in 222 BC and organized into acommandery named for Kuaiji in Zhejiang but initially headquartered inWu inJiangsu.
Kuaiji Commandery was the initial power base forXiang Liang andXiang Yu's rebellion against theQin Empire which initially succeeded in restoring the kingdom of Chu buteventually fell to theHan. Under theLater Han, control of the area returned to the settlement belowMount Kuaiji but authority over theMinyue hinterland was nominal at best and its Yue inhabitants largely retained their own political and social structures.
At the beginning of theThree Kingdoms era (AD 220–280), Zhejiang was home to the warlordsYan Baihu andWang Lang prior to their defeat bySun Ce andSun Quan, who eventually established theKingdom of Wu. Despite the removal of their court from Kuaiji toJianye (present-dayNanjing) and they continued development of the region and benefitted from influxes of refugees fleeing the turmoil in northern China. Industrial kilns were established and trade reached as far asManchuria andFunan (southernMainland Southeast Asia).
Zhejiang was part of theWu during theThree Kingdoms. Wu (229–280), commonly known as Eastern Wu or Sun Wu, had been the economically most developed state among theThree Kingdoms (220–280). The historical novelRomance of the Three Kingdoms records that Zhejiang had the best-equipped naval force. The story depicts how the states ofWei (魏) andShu (蜀), lack of material resources, avoided direct confrontation with the Wu. In armed military conflicts with Wu, the two states relied intensively on tactics of camouflage and deception to steal Wu's military resources including arrows and bows.
Despite the continuing prominence ofNanjing (then known as Jiankang), the settlement of Qiantang, the former name of Hangzhou, remained one of the three major metropolitan centers in the south to provide major tax revenue to the imperial centers in the north China. The other two centers in the south were Jiankang andChengdu. In 589, Qiantang was raised in status and renamed Hangzhou.
Following the fall ofWu and the turmoil of theWu Hu uprising against theJin dynasty (266–420), most of elite Chinese families had collaborated with the non-Chinese rulers and military conquerors in the north. Some may have lost social privilege and took refuge in areas south of the Yangtze River. Some of the Chinese refugees from North China might have resided in areas near Hangzhou. For example, the clan ofZhuge Liang (181–234), a chancellor of the state ofShu Han fromCentral Plain in north China during theThree Kingdoms period, gathered together at the suburb of Hangzhou, forming an exclusive, closed villageZhuge Village (Zhege Cun), consisting of villagers all with family name "Zhuge." The village has intentionally isolated itself from the surrounding communities for centuries to this day and only recently came to be known in public. It suggests that a small number of powerful, elite Chinese refugees from theCentral Plain might have taken refuge south of the Yangtze River. However, considering the mountainous geography and relative lack of agrarian lands in Zhejiang, most of these refugees might have resided in some areas in South China beyond Zhejiang, where fertile agrarian lands and metropolitan resources were available, mainly SouthernJiangsu, EasternFujian,Jiangxi,Hunan,Anhui and provinces where less cohesive, organized regional governments had been in place. Metropolitan areas ofSichuan was another hub for refugees, given that the state ofShu had long been founded and ruled by political and military elites from the Central Plain and North China. Some refugees from North China might have found residence in South China depending on their social status and military power in the north. Therump Jin state or theSouthern dynasties vied against some elite Chinese from theCentral Plain and south of the Yangtze River.
Zhejiang, as the heartland of theJiangnan (Yangtze River Delta), remained the wealthiest area during theSix Dynasties (220 or 222–589), Sui and Tang. After being incorporated into theSui dynasty, its economic richness was used for theSui dynasty's ambitions to expand north and south, particularly intoKorea and Vietnam. The plan led theSui dynasty to restore and expand the network which became theGrand Canal of China. The Canal regularly transported grains and resources from Zhejiang, through its metropolitan center Hangzhou (and its hinterland along both theZhe River and the shores ofHangzhou Bay) and fromSuzhou and thence to theNorth China Plain. The débâcle of the Korean war led to Sui's overthrow by theTang, who then presided over a centuries-long golden age for the country. Zhejiang was an important economic center of the empire'sJiangnan East Circuit and was considered particularly prosperous. Throughout theTang dynasty, The Grand Canal had remained effective, transporting grains and material resources toNorth China plain and metropolitan centers of the empire. As the Tang dynasty disintegrated, Zhejiang constituted most of the territory of the regional kingdom ofWuyue.
After the collapse of the Tang dynasty in 907, the entire area of what is now Zhejiang fell under the control of the kingdomWuyue established by KingQian Liu, who selectedHangzhou (a city in the modern day area of Zhejiang) as his kingdom's capital. Despite being under Wuyue rule for a relatively short period of time, Zhejiang underwent a long period of financial and cultural prosperity which continued even after the kingdom fell.
After Wuyue was conquered during the reunification of China, many shrines were erected across the former territories of Wuyue, mainly in Zhejiang, where the kings of Wuyue were memorialised, and sometimes, worshipped as being able to dictate weather and agriculture. Many of these shrines, known as "Shrine of the Qian King" or "Temple to the Qian King", still remain today, with the most popularly visited example being that nearWest Lake in Hangzhou.
China's province of Zhejiang during the 940s was also the place of origin of theHú family (Hồ in Vietnamese) from which the founder of theHồ dynasty who ruled Vietnam, EmperorHồ Quý Ly, came from.[15][16]
TheSong dynasty re-established unity around 960. Under the Song, the prosperity of South China began to overtake that of North China. After the north was lost to theJurchenJin dynasty in 1127 following theJingkang Incident, Hangzhou became the capital of the Song dynasty under the nameLin'an, which was renowned for its prosperity and beauty, it was suspected to have been the largest city in the world at the time.[17]
From then on, northern Zhejiang and neighboring southern Jiangsu have been synonymous with luxury and opulence in Chinese culture. TheMongol conquest and the establishment of theYuan dynasty in 1279 ended Hangzhou's political clout, but its economy continued to prosper. The famous travelerMarco Polo visited the city, which he called "Kinsay" (after the ChineseJingshi, meaning "Capital City") claiming it was "the finest and noblest city in the world."[18]
Greenware ceramics made fromceladon had been made in the area since the 3rd-centuryJin dynasty, but it returned to prominence—particularly inLongquan—during the Southern Song and Yuan. Longquan greenware is characterized by a thick unctuous glaze of a particular bluish-green tint over an otherwise undecorated light-grey porcellaneous body that is delicately potted. Yuan Longquan celadons feature a thinner, greener glaze on larger vessels with decoration and shapes derived from Middle Eastern ceramic and metalwares. These were produced in large quantities for the Chinese export trade to Southeast Asia, the Middle East and (during theMing) Europe. By the Ming, however, production was notably deficient in quality. It is in this period that the Longquan kilns declined, to be eventually replaced in popularity and ceramic production by the kilns ofJingdezhen inJiangxi.[19]
TheMing dynasty, which drove out the Mongols in 1368, finally established the present day province of Zhejiang with its borders having little changes since this establishment.
As in other coastal provinces, number of fortresses were constructed along the Zhejiang coast during the early Ming to defend the land againstpirate incursions. Some of them have been preserved or restored, such as Pucheng in the south of the province (Cangnan County).
A restored Qing era (1891) bridge on a coastal road
Under the late Ming dynasty and theQing dynasty that followed it, Zhejiang's ports were important centers of international trade.
"In 1727 the to-min or 'idle people' of Cheh Kiang province (aNingpo name still existing), the yoh-hu or 'music people' ofShanxi province, the si-min or 'small people' of Kiang Su (Jiangsu) province and theTanka people or 'egg-people' ofCanton (to this day the boat population there), were all freed from their social disabilities and allowed to count as free men."[20] "Cheh Kiang" is another romanization for Zhejiang. The Duomin (Chinese:惰民; pinyin:duò mín; Wade–Giles:to-min) are a caste ofoutcasts in this province.
During theFirst Opium War, the British navy defeatedEight Banners forces atNingbo andDinghai. Under the terms of theTreaty of Nanking, signed in 1843, Ningbo became one of the five Chinesetreaty ports opened to virtually unrestricted foreign trade. Much of Zhejiang came under the control of theTaiping Heavenly Kingdom during theTaiping Rebellion, which resulted in a considerable loss of life in the north-western and central parts of the province, sparing the rest of Zhejiang from the disastrous depopulation that occurred. In 1876,Wenzhou became Zhejiang's second treaty port.Jianghuai Mandarin speakers later came to settle in these depopulated regions of northern Zhejiang.
During theSecond Sino-Japanese War, which led intoWorld War II, much of Zhejiang was occupied by Japan and placed under the control of the Japanese puppet state known as theReorganized National Government of China. Following theDoolittle Raid, most of the B-25 American crews that came down in China eventually made it to safety with the help of Chinese civilians and soldiers. The Chinese people who helped them, however, paid dearly for sheltering the Americans. TheImperial Japanese Army began theZhejiang-Jiangxi Campaign to intimidate the Chinese out of helping downed American airmen. Imperial Japanese forces killed an estimated 250,000 Chinese civilians from the area of Hangzhou toNanchang and alsoZhuzhou while searching for Doolittle's men.[21]
After the People's Republic of China took control ofMainland China in 1949, theRepublic of China government based inTaiwan continued to control theDachen Islands off the coast of Zhejiang until 1955, even establishing a rival Zhejiang provincial government there. During theCultural Revolution (1966–76), Zhejiang was in chaos and disunity and its economy was stagnant, especially during the high tide (1966–69) of the revolution. The agricultural policy favoring grain production at the expense of industrial and cash crops intensified economic hardships in the province. Mao's self-reliance policy and the reduction in maritime trade cut off the lifelines of the port cities of Ningbo and Wenzhou. While Mao invested heavily in railroads in interior China, no major railroads were built in South Zhejiang, where transportation remained poor.[7]
Zhejiang benefited less from central government investment than some other provinces due to its lack of natural resources, a location vulnerable to potential flooding from the sea and an economic base at the national average. Zhejiang, however, has been an epicenter of capitalist development in China and has led the nation in the development of a market economy and private enterprises.[7] Northeast Zhejiang, as part of the Yangtze Delta, is flat, more developed and industrial.[7]
Zhejiang consists mostly of hills, which account for about 70% of its total area.[22] Altitudes tend to be the highest to the south and west and the highest peak of the province,Huangmaojian Peak (1,929 meters or 6,329 feet), is located there. Other prominent mountains includeMounts Yandang,Tianmu,Tiantai andMogan, which reach altitudes of 700 to 1,500 meters (2,300 to 4,900 ft).
Valleys and plains are found along the coastline and rivers. The north of the province lies just south of theYangtze Delta and consists of plains around the cities of Hangzhou,Jiaxing andHuzhou, where theGrand Canal of China enters from the northern border to end at Hangzhou. Another relatively flat area is found along the Qu River around the cities ofQuzhou andJinhua. Major rivers include theQiangtang andOu Rivers. Most rivers carve out valleys in the highlands, with plenty of rapids and other features associated with such topography. Well-known lakes include theWest Lake of Hangzhou and theSouth Lake of Jiaxing.
There are over three thousand islands along the rugged coastline of Zhejiang. The largest,Zhoushan Island, is mainland China's third largest island, afterHainan andChongming. There are also many bays, of whichHangzhou Bay is the largest. Zhejiang has a humid subtropical climate with four distinct seasons. Spring starts in March and is rainy with changeable weather. Summer, from June to September is long, hot, rainy and humid. Fall is generally dry, warm and sunny. Winters are short but cold except in the far south. Average annual temperature is around 15 to 19 °C (59 to 66 °F), average January temperature is around 2 to 8 °C (36 to 46 °F) and average July temperature is around 27 to 30 °C (81 to 86 °F). Annual precipitation is about 1,000 to 1,900 mm (39 to 75 in). There is plenty of rainfall in early summer and by late summer Zhejiang is directly threatened bytyphoons forming in the Pacific.
^abcNew districts established after 2010 census:Fuyang (Fuyang CLC),Lin'an (Lin'an CLC). These new districts not included in the urban area count of the pre-expanded city.
^abNew district established after 2010 census:Fenghua (Fenghua CLC). The new district not included in the urban area count of the pre-expanded city.
^New district established after 2010 census:Dongtou (Dongtou County). The new district not included in the urban area count of the pre-expanded city.
Several political figures who served as Zhejiang's top political office of Party Secretary have played key roles in various events in PRC history.Tan Zhenlin (term 1949–1952), the inaugural Party Secretary, was one of the leading voices against Mao'sCultural Revolution during the so-calledFebruary Countercurrent of 1967.Jiang Hua (term 1956–1968), was the "chief justice" on the Special Court in the case against theGang of Four in 1980. Three provincial Party Secretaries since the 1990s have gone onto prominence at the national level. They include CPC General Secretary and PresidentXi Jinping (term 2002–2007),National People's Congress Chairman and former Vice-PremierZhang Dejiang (term 1998–2002), andZhao Hongzhu (term 2007–2012), the Deputy Secretary of theCentral Commission for Discipline Inspection, China's top anti-corruption body. Of Zhejiang's fourteen Party Secretaries since 1949, none were native to the province.
Zhejiang was home toChiang Kai-shek and many high-ranking officials in theKuomintang, who fled to Taiwan in 1949 after losing the Civil War.
Harvesting tea leaves, Zhejiang province, May 1987Yu'ao, a fishing village on Dayu Bay in South Zhejiang (Cangnan County)
Zhejiang is one of the richest and most developed provinces in China. As of 2022[update], itsnominal GDP wasUS$1.15 trillion (CN¥ 7.77 trilion), about 6.42% of the country's GDP and ranked4th amongprovince-level administrative units; the province's primary, secondary and tertiary industries were worth CN¥232.48 billion (US$34.56 billion), CN¥3.3205 trillion (US$493.67 billion) and CN¥4.2185 trillion (US$627.18 billion) respectively.[2] Its nominal GDP per capita was US$17,617 (CN¥118,496) and ranked the6th in the country. The private sector in the province has been playing an increasingly important role in boosting the regional economy sinceEconomic Reform in 1978.[2] Zhejiang is generally regarded as having one of the strongest private sectors among Chinese provinces and its local governments typically adopt permissive business policies.[30]: 186
Zhejiang's main manufacturing sectors are electromechanical industries,textiles, chemical industries, food and construction materials. In recent years Zhejiang has followed its own development model, dubbed the "Zhejiang model", which is based on prioritizing and encouraging entrepreneurship, an emphasis on small businesses responsive to the whims of the market, large public investments intoinfrastructure, and the production of low-cost goods in bulk for both domestic consumption and export. As a result, Zhejiang has made itself one of the richest provinces and the "Zhejiang spirit" has become something of a legend within China. However, some economists now worry that this model is not sustainable, in that it is inefficient and places unreasonable demands on raw materials and public utilities, and also a dead end, in that the myriad small businesses in Zhejiang producing cheap goods in bulk are unable to move to more sophisticated or technologically more advanced industries.[31] The economic heart of Zhejiang is moving from North Zhejiang, centered on Hangzhou, southeastward to the region centered on Wenzhou and Taizhou.[7] Theper capita disposable income of urbanites in Zhejiang reached 55,574 yuan (US$8,398) in 2018, an annual real growth of 8.4%. The per capita disposable income of rural residents stood at 27,302 yuan (US$4,126), a real growth of 9.4%.[32]
Historical GDP of Zhejiang Province for 1978–present[2] (purchasing power parity of Chinese Yuan, asInt'l. dollar based on IMF WEO April 2023[33])
year
GDP
GDP per capita (GDPpc) based on mid-year population
Traditionally, the province is known as the "Land of Fish and Rice." True to its name,rice is the main crop, followed bywheat; north Zhejiang is also a center ofaquaculture in China, and theZhoushan fishery is the largestfishery in the country. The main cash crops includejute andcotton and the province also leads the provinces of China intea production. (The renownedLongjing tea is a product of Hangzhou.) Zhejiang's towns have been known for handicraft production of goods such assilk, for which it is ranked second among the provinces. Its many market towns connect the cities with the countryside.
In 1832, the province was exporting silk, paper, fans, pencils, wine,dates, tea and "golden-flowered"hams.[35]
Zhejiang has been leading the digital economy development in China, in recent years, the provincial economy has been boosted by the economic surge brought by internet corporations such as Alibaba and NetEase.[36][37]
Ningbo, Wenzhou,Taizhou and Zhoushan are important commercial ports. TheHangzhou Bay Bridge betweenHaiyan County andCixi, is the longest bridge over a continuous body of sea water in the world.
On Thursday, September 15, 2011, more than 500 people from Hongxiao Village protested over the large-scaledeath of fish in a nearby river. Angry protesters stormed the ZhejiangJinko Solar Company factory compound, overturned eight company vehicles, and destroyed the offices before police came to disperse the crowd. Protests continued on the two following nights with reports of scuffles, officials said. Chen Hongming, a deputy head ofHaining's environmental protection bureau, said the factory's waste disposal had failed pollution tests since April. The environmental watchdog had warned the factory, but it had not effectively controlled the pollution, Chen added.[38]
The predominant religions in Zhejiang areChinese folk religions,Taoist traditions andChinese Buddhism. According to surveys conducted in 2007 and 2009, 23.02% of the population believes and is involved inancestor veneration, while 2.62% of the population identifies as Christian, decreasing from 3.92% in 2004.[52] The reports did not give figures for other types of religion; 74.36% of the population may be either irreligious or involved inworship of nature deities, Buddhism,Confucianism, Taoism,folk religious sects. As of the mid-2010s, Zhejiang has 34,880 registered folk religious temples greater than 20 sqm and 10,000 registered places of worship of thefive doctrines (Buddhism, Taoism, Catholicism, Protestantism, Islam).[53][54][55]: 35
In mid-2015 the government of Zhejiang recognised folk religion as "civil religion" beginning the formal registration of the province's folk religious temples under the aegis of the provincial Bureau of Folk Faith.[56]Buddhism has an important presence since its arrival in Zhejiang 1,800 years ago.[57]
Catholicism arrived 400 years ago in the province andProtestantism 150 years ago.[57] Zhejiang is one of the provinces of China with the largest concentrations of Protestants, especially notable in the city ofWenzhou.[58] In 1999, Zhejiang's Protestant population comprised 2.8% of the provincial population, a small percentage but higher than the national average.[59]
The rapid development of religions in Zhejiang has driven the local committee of ethnic and religious affairs to enact policies to rationalise them[60] in 2014, variously named "Three Remodelings and One Demolition" operations or "Special Treatment Work on Illegally Constructed Sites of Religious and Folk Religion Activities" according to the locality.[61] These regulations have led to cases of demolition of churches and folk religion temples or the removal of crosses from churches' roofs and spires.[62] An exemplary case was that of theSanjiang Church.[63] Despite English-language media focused on Christian churches, only 2.3% of the buildings affected by the regulations were Christian churches; most of them were folk religious temples.[55]: 36
Islam arrived 1,400 years ago in Zhejiang. Today Islam is practiced by a small number of people including virtually all theHui Chinese living in Zhejiang.[57] In 2020, there are 117,000 Muslims in Zhejiang.[64] Another religion present in the province isShe shamanism (practiced byShe ethnic minority).
Temple of All-Heaven (都天廟Dōutiānmiào) in Longgang,Cangnan,Wenzhou
Temple of theChenghuangshen (City God) of Hangzhou, by night, in Wushan,Xihu
TheZhejiang Radio & Television Group, Hangzhou Radio & Television Group, Ningbo Radio & Television Group are the local broadcasters in Zhejiang Province.
A boat on one ofShaoxing's waterways, near the city center. North Zhejiang, known as the "Land of Fish and Rice", is characterized by its canals and waterways.
Zhejiang is mountainous and has therefore fostered the development of many distinct local cultures. Linguistically speaking, Zhejiang is extremely diverse. Most inhabitants of Zhejiang speak varieties ofWu, but those Wu dialects are very diverse, especially in the south, where one valley may speak a dialect completely unintelligible to the next valley a few kilometers away. Othervarieties of Chinese are spoken as well, mostly along the borders;Mandarin andHuizhou dialects are spoken on the border with Anhui, whileMin dialects are spoken on the border with Fujian. (SeeHangzhou dialect,Shaoxing dialect,Ningbo dialect,Wenzhou dialect,Taizhou dialect,Jinhua dialect andQuzhou dialect for more information)
Throughout history there have been a series oflingua francas in the area to allow for better communication. The dialects spoken in Hangzhou, Shaoxing and Ningbo have taken on this role historically. Since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949,Mandarin, which is not mutually intelligible with any of the Wu dialects, has been promoted as the standard language of communication throughout China. As a result, most of the population now can, to some degree, speak and comprehend Mandarin and cancode-switch when necessary. A majority of the population educated since 1978 can speak some Mandarin. Urban residents tend to be more fluent in Mandarin than rural people. Nevertheless, a Zhejiang accent is detectable in almost everyone from the area communicating in Mandarin and the home dialect remains an important part of the everyday lives and cultural identities of most Zhejiang residents.
Zhejiang is the home ofYue opera, one of the most prominent forms ofChinese opera.Yueju originated inShengzhou and is traditionally performed by actresses only, in both male and female roles. Other important opera traditions include Yongju (of Ningbo),Shao opera (ofShaoxing),Ouju (of Wenzhou),Wuju (ofJinhua), Taizhou Luantan (of Taizhou) and Zhuji Luantan (ofZhuji).
Fish being dried dockside in Pacao Harbor,Cangnan County
Longjing tea (also called dragon well tea), originating in Hangzhou, is one of the most prestigious, if notthe most prestigious Chinese tea. Hangzhou is also renowned for its silk umbrellas and hand fans.Zhejiang cuisine (itself subdivided into many traditions, including Hangzhou cuisine) is one of the eight great traditions ofChinese cuisine.
Since ancient times, north Zhejiang and neighboring south Jiangsu have been famed for their prosperity and opulence[citation needed] and simply inserting north Zhejiang place names (Hangzhou, Jiaxing, etc.) into poetry gave an effect of dreaminess, a practice followed by many noted poets. In particular, the fame of Hangzhou (as well asSuzhou in neighboring Jiangsu province) has led to the popular saying: "Above there is heaven; below there is Suzhou and Hangzhou" (上有天堂，下有苏杭), a saying that continues to be a source of pride for the people of these two still prosperous cities.
Guoqing Temple, founded in the Sui dynasty, the founding location ofTiantai Buddhism
Mount Mogan, a scenic mountain an hour from Hangzhou with many pre-World War II villas built by foreigners, along with one of Chiang Kai-shek's Kuomintang compounds
Zhejiang is one of China's leading provinces in research and education. As of 2024[update], two major cities in Zhejiang ranked in the world's top 200 cities (Hangzhou 13th and Ningbo 123rd) by scientific research output, as tracked byNature Index.[9]
^The data was collected by the Chinese General Social Survey (CGSS) of 2009 and by the Chinese Spiritual Life Survey (CSLS) of 2007, reported and assembled by Xiuhua Wang (2015)[52] in order to confront the proportion of people identifying with two similar social structures: ① Christian churches, and ② the traditional Chinese religion of the lineage (i.e. people believing and worshipping ancestral deities often organised intolineage "churches" andancestral shrines). Data for other religions with a significant presence in China (deity cults, Buddhism, Taoism, folk religious sects, Islam, et al.) was not reported by Wang.
^Vainker, Shelaugh.Chinese Pottery and Porcelain. London: British Museum Press, 1991.
^Edward Harper Parker (1903).China, past and present. London: Chapman and Hall, ld. p. 404.Archived from the original on 3 June 2013. Retrieved28 February 2012.the lot of both Manchu and Chinese bondsmen. In 1727 the to-min or "idle people " of Cheh Kiang province (a Ningpo name still existing), the yoh-hu or " music people " of Shan Si province, the si-min or "small people " of Kiang Su province, and the tan-ka or "egg-people" of Canton (to this day the boat population there), were all freed from their social disabilities, and allowed to count as free men. So far as my own observations go, after residing for a quarter of a century in half the provinces of China, north, south, east, and west, I should be inclined to describe slavery in China as totally invisible to the naked eye; personal liberty is absolute where feebleness or ignorance do not expose the subject to the rapacity of mandarins, relatives, or speculators. Even savages and foreigners are welcomed as equals, so long as they conform unreservedly to Chinese custom. On the other hand, the oldfashioned social disabilities of policemen, barbers, and playactors still exist in the eyes of the law, though any idea of caste is totally absent therefrom, and "unofficially" these individuals are as good as any other free men. Having now taken a cursory view of Chinese slavery from its historical aspect, let us see what it is in practice. Though the penal code forbids and annuls the sale into slavery of free persons, even by a husband, father, or grandfather, yet the number of free persons who are sold or sell themselves to escape starvation and misery is considerable. It is nominally a punishable offence to keep a free man or lost child as a slave; also for parents to sell their children without the consent of the latter, or to drown their girls; but in practice the law is in both cases ignored, and scarcely ever enforced;a fortiori the minor offence of selling children, even with their consent. Indeed, sales of girls for secondary wives is of daily occurrence, and, as we have seen, the Emperors Yung-cheng and K'ien-lung explicitly recognized the right of parents to sell children in times of famine, whilst the missionaries unanimously bear witness to the fact that the public sale of children in the streets—for instance, of Tientsin—was frequently witnessed during recent times of dearth. But slave markets and public sales are unknown in a general way. Occasionally old parents sell their children in order to purchase coffins for themselves. Only a few years ago a governor and a censor
^Census Office of the State Council of the People's Republic of China; Population and Employment Statistics Division of the National Bureau of Statistics of the People's Republic of China (2012).中国2010人口普查分乡、镇、街道资料 (1 ed.). Beijing:China Statistics Print.ISBN978-7-5037-6660-2.
^"Protest over factory pollution in E China enters third day".China Daily.Xinhua. 18 September 2011.Archived from the original on 19 September 2011. Retrieved19 September 2011.Hangzhou - Hundreds of villagers in East China's Zhejiang Province protested for the third day on Saturday at a solar panel manufacturer, whose parent is a New York-listed firm, over concerns of its harmful wastes.
^“正名”后的民间信仰 浙江新制度共创社会文化效益.Xinhua. 3 January 2017. Archived from the original on 27 April 2017. Retrieved27 April 2017.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link).
^Chen, Jinguo; Lin, Minxia (2016). Qiu, Yonghui (ed.).如何走向“善治”：浙江省民間信仰“社會治理”轉型的反思.Chinese Religion Report - Religion Blue Book - 2015 Edition. Social Science Literature Publishing House. Archived fromthe original on 27 April 2017. Retrieved27 April 2017.
^浙江省启动民间信仰活动场所登记编号 昨颁首张证书 [Zhejiang started yesterday to award registration certificates to folk religious activities]. Zhejiang News. 16 April 2015. Archived fromthe original on 27 April 2017. Retrieved19 May 2015.
^abc浙江省宗教概况.浙江省民族宗教事务委员会access-date=29 December 2014.Archived from the original on 29 December 2014.
^Nanlai Cao.Constructing China's Jerusalem: Christians, Power and Place in the City of Wenzhou. Stanford, Stanford University Press, 2010, 232 pp., Chapter One
^Statistics for the Protestant Church: China, Chinese Theological Review, 14, p. 154.
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