Geography of China

China is situated in the Southeast Asia along the coastline of the Pacific Ocean covering a total area of 9,596,961 sq km with a coastline of 14,500 km. It extends nearly 5,026 km in the East bordering the East China Sea, Korea Bay, Yellow Sea, and South China Sea with different landforms such as broad plains, expansive deserts, and lofty mountain ranges, including vast areas of inhospitable terrain. On the other hand, the Western part is dotted with sunken basins, rolling plateaus, and towering massifs, including a portion of the highest tableland on earth. China has many border countries such as Korea, Vietnam, Laos, Burma, India, Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Mongolia, and Russia.

Given to its vast extensive territory, China has a variety of landforms, which has supported the industry and agriculture of the country. Two-thirds of Chinese territory is made up of mountainous land and very rough terrains, creating the ground for forestry, mineral and hydropower resources and tourism.

The plain in the East can be divided into three parts and Qinghai-Tibet Plateau that rises more than 4000m above sea-level forms the first part spangled with peaks, valleys and innumerable lakes. On the Southwestern border of the plateau lies the Himalayan Range with the world's highest peak, Mt. Everest. Lower mountains like Mt. Taishan, Mt. Huashan, and Mt. Emeishan in the East also attract the visitors. The second part is formed by the vast area of North and East of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau with extensive basins and highlands. Here the Turpan Basin in Xinjiang is 154m below sea-level being the lowest depression in China.

The third part is formed by the vast rolling hills and plains extending from the Greater Hinggan and Taihang ranges in the North to the foothills of the Wushan Mountains and the Yunnan-Guizhou Highlands in the South.

Broadly, the geography of China is characterized by North, South, Northwest and the Qinghai-Tibetan areas. Owing to its diverse geographical divisions, people in each region have distinctive life styles and customs. The North and South regions are situated in the Eastern monsoon area with almost 95 percent of the Chinese population concentrating here. The other two regions, the Northwest and Qinghai-Tibetan regions that occupy 55 percent of the land, have fewer people, although most of the ethnic groups cluster there.

With the Yangtze River being the third longest river in the world, china has many rivers and lakes. The Yellow River is just behind the Yangtze, both flowing into the Pacific Ocean. There are other rivers like Yarlung Zangbo and Irtysh River. Apart from rivers, lakes in China also form the main part   providing valuable resources such as aquatic products, petroleum, natural gas, mines and renewable resources including tide power. Most of the lakes are found in the Middle-Lower Yangtze Plain and Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and the beautiful fresh water lake, Qinghai Lake is the largest in China. Other fresh water lakes include Poyang Lake, Dongting Lake and Taihu Lake.

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