洛阳唐三彩

唐三彩是指表面饰有黄、绿、白或黄、绿、蓝三色釉彩的陶器。它的生产历史可以追溯到距今1400余年前的南北朝时期，唐代（公元618～907年）达到鼎盛时期，故被后世称之为“唐三彩”。
洛阳位于中国中部的河南省，历史上曾为唐王朝的“东都”。迄今为止出土的唐三彩精品多出土于洛阳地区，又因洛阳出产的仿唐三彩器物精美逼真，所以人们又多称其为“洛阳唐三彩”。
唐三彩的制作工艺较为烦琐，首先要将制好的坯体在窑内烧至1100度左右，然后取出施彩，再入窑继续烧至900度左右。三彩釉质的主要成分是硅酸铝，呈色剂则为各种不同的金属氧化物，如浅黄为铁或锑，赭黄为铁，绿为铜，蓝为铜或钴，紫为锰。
唐三彩是中国唐代的艺术精华，它吸收了中国绘画、石刻、雕塑等工艺美术品的优点，采用印花、堆贴、刻画等形式的装饰图案，造型浑厚丰满、工整细腻，刀法简朴，线条流畅，充分显示了盛唐时期的精神面貌和艺术水平，具有独特的艺术风格和鲜明的民族特色。唐三彩制品种类繁多，主要可分为陶俑和日常生活用品两大类。
唐三彩的复制和仿制，在洛阳已有近百年的历史。新中国成立后，建立了洛阳美术陶瓷厂，并设立专门机构研究唐三彩的制作工艺，使“洛阳唐三彩”的工艺技巧和艺术水平达到了一个新高度。目前，“洛阳唐三彩”仍然是中国的传统出口商品，远销世界50多个国家和地区。

Luoyang Tang San Cai

Tang San Cai, also called Tricolor Glazed Pottery and a gem of ancient Chinese art, is a kind of handmade glazed ware of exquisite craftsmanship created in the Northern and Southern Dynasty (386-589) about 1,400 years ago. During the Tang Dynasty (618-907), the production of Tang San Cai reached its peak, which is part of the reason the pottery got the name of Tang San Cai.
Luoyang, named the eastern capital in ancient times, in Henan Province was the home of Tang San Cai, and most of unearthed Tang San Cai was found in Luoyang.
Tang San Cai is a polychrome handicraft with yellow, green, and white as its major tones. It is fired with lead glaze and presents a harmonious complex of varied colors, deep and light. The process is complicated: first, bake the ready mode in kilns until the temperature reaches 1,100oC, then take it out and apply glaze on it; bake it again in kilns at a temperature of about 900°C.
Tang San Cai items that have been unearthed include horses, humans, and even pillows, and camels, of which the pottery camel is one of the best. Its head rises high, as if telling stories about merchant caravans along the Silk Road in the remote past and the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty.
Being the gem of ancient Chinese art, Tang San Cai absorbed the advantages of Chinese painting, sculpture and stone carving. It features fleshy figures, regular and exquisite technics, compact carving traces, and smooth lines, indicating the high-level of the craft reached in the Tang Dynasty. Tang San Cai is mainly divided into pottery tomb-figures and daily commodities
After the founding of new China, specialized institutions have been set up to study the technics of making Tang San Cai, which has boosted the development of the craft. At present, Luoyang Tang San Cai is exporting to more than 50 countries and regions in the world.

天津杨柳青年画

杨柳青年画产于天津市郊的杨柳青镇。自明代崇祯年间（公元1627～1644年）就产生了这项工艺，距今已有300余年的历史。至清代（公元1644～1911年）中期，其技艺趋于成熟。因其制作精美而成为贡品，被选送入皇宫，自此声名远播。清末民初，由于农村经济的衰落和新式洋画的兴起，杨柳青年画曾一度陷入濒临灭绝的境地。新中国成立后经过抢救，才使杨柳青年画艺术得以保存下来。六十年代，杨柳青年画再创辉煌。工艺上不断出新，出现了在成版后再施以彩绘，晕粉描金的技法，产生了一批有影响的精品和人才。
杨柳青年画不同于一般年画，在工艺上采用木板套印，全部以手工绘制而成，需经过绘图、刻板、套印、描绘、着色、糊裱等十几道工序。它完美地将色彩与情调、民间绘画与国画风格，现实主义与浪漫主义相结合，给人以清新脱俗的感觉。作品题材广泛，内容生动，既反映人民的生活和风俗习惯，又有历史神话故事、民间传说、戏曲场面和风景花卉等。喜用寓意、装饰、象征的手法来表现主题。杨柳青年画不仅是民间艺术的典范，更是精美的艺术品，除在国内广受喜爱外，还远销俄罗斯、意大利、瑞典、法国、英国、比利时、加拿大、墨西哥、美国、日本、新加坡及香港等国家和地区。

New Year Pictures of Yangliuqing

The woodcut New Year pictures of Yangliuqing have a strong flavor of life. People in the Yangliuqing village and 32 villages nearby, 20 kilometers from the west of Tianjin City proper, are all engaged in making New Year pictures. The New Year pictures are a unique art form with even arrangement, forceful stokes, elegant colors and beautiful shapes.
Yangliuqing New Year pictures are different from other New Year pictures, for it is Xylograph in terms of craft. Xylograph of Yangliuqing originated in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), and matured in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) when it was chosen as an article of tributes to the imperial family. At the end of the Qing Dynasty, it was on the decline due to the prevalence of foreign paintings. In the 1960s, it finally recovered its splendor and improved the craft with the support from the new government.
The process of making a Yangliuqing New Year picture has a dozen steps like plotting, craving, to name a few. It perfectly relates color and emotion, folk painting and standard paining, realism and romanticism. It covers an extensive range of subjects like folk custom, legendary stories, historic events, and opera, usually via emblems and symbols to deliver the theme.
Yangliuqing New Year pictures are a gem of art and loved by people both at home and abroad. It is exported to Italy, France, Britain, Belgium, Japan, Canada, the US, Singapore and Mexico, etc.

景德镇青花瓷

景德镇位于江西省的东北部，以烧造瓷器而闻名，历来被誉为中国的“千年瓷都”。在景德镇出产的各类瓷器中，尤以青花瓷器最为突出。
景德镇青花瓷的烧造始于北宋时期（公元960～1127年）。到了元、明（公元13～17世纪）两代，青花瓷器的逐渐流行和对外贸易的不断扩大，使得景德镇青花瓷在生产技术和规模上都得以进一步提高。清代（公元1644～1911年）是青花瓷的鼎盛时期，景德镇青花瓷以其烧造精致而独占鳌头，成为中国近代青花瓷的代表。新中国建立后，在景德镇设立了人民瓷厂专门生产青花瓷器。
青花瓷是一种彩绘装饰瓷。它以含氧钴为着色剂，先在瓷坯上描绘花纹，再施一层透明白釉，入窑经1300℃左右高温烧制而成。青花瓷虽然着色单一，但它较五彩瓷器更显清丽、娟秀，因而广为众人所爱。景德镇青花瓷造型优美，色彩绚丽，装饰精美，是景德镇四大传统名瓷之一，它无铅无毒，耐酸耐磨，面色经久不退，素有“永不凋谢的青花”之称。
1979年景德镇青花瓷曾荣获国家金质奖章。1985年又连续获得莱比锡、布尔诺、波尔滋南国际博览会3枚金质奖章，自此景德镇青花瓷扬名世界。它是目前中国陶瓷行业获奖最多、规格最高的名优产品，远销世界各地。

Jingdezhen Blue & White Porcelain

Jiangxi is the home of Chinese porcelain and Jingdezhen has been the Porcelain Capital of a Thousand Years of China. Jingdezhen porcelain is the pearl in the treasure house of Chinese art and culture. Among its products, the most representative one is the blue and white porcelain.
Known as Xinping in ancient times, the city of Jingdezhen began to make porcelain as early as around 200BC in the Han Dynasty (206BC-220AD). During the reign of Emperor Jingde (1004-1007) of the Song Dynasty (960-1279), all the products made here bore the reign mark of Jingde, and the name of the city was therefore changed to Jingdezhen (Jingde Town).
The baking of the blue and white porcelain originated during the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127). During the Yuan and Ming dynasties (1271-1644), the blue and white porcelain became increasingly popular, and since the 14th century manufacturers have shipped the blue and white porcelains to world markets. The porcelain reached its peak in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Its thin, translucent quality and exotic motifs made it highly prized throughout Europe and the colonies, ranking first among the blue and white porcelains nationwide.
Jingdezhen porcelain has formed its own four special features, that is, white like jade, bright as a mirror, thin as paper, and sound like a chime. Using the same materials, the same artistic techniques, in some cases, the same kilns, porcelain from Jingdezhen is prized for its artistic qualities and function around the world.
The blue and white porcelain belongs to the color glaze porcelain. The coloring agent for it is cobalt oxide. The process is: first, paint on the unbaked mould with cobalt oxide, apply a layer of translucent glaze over it and bake it under a temperature of 1,300oC. The cobalt oxide is reduced under high temperature into a blue color, which is very bright and durable, without poisonous lead. Each monochrome-glazed porcelain has one single bright color with exquisite design. It requires a very good mastery of the control of temperature changes and the composition of contents. The blue and white porcelain is the most famous one of the four traditional porcelains produced in Jiangdezhen, renowned as the ever-lasting blue flower.
In 1979, Jingdezhen blue and white porcelain won the national golden prize. In 1985, it won three gold medals in succession at the international fairs held in Leipzig, Brno, etc. Ever since then, the name of Jingdezhen blue and white porcelain was spread far and wide. By far, it is the best product in the porcelain business with the most prizes and highest standard.

广东端砚

端砚产于中国南部广东省的肇庆市。它是中国传统的实用工艺美术品，与安徽歙砚、甘肃洮砚和澄泥砚并称为中国“四大名砚”。
据史料记载，端砚始于唐代武德年间（公元618～626年），历史悠久。制作端砚的端石出自于肇庆东郊的烂柯山一带。端石石质细腻纯净、娇嫩滋润，用其加工成的端砚具有“秀面多姿，呵气研墨，发墨不损笔毫”的特点，历来被人们视为文房至宝。
端砚的加工制作要经过采石、选料、雕刻、配盒四道工序。其中采石和雕刻是最重要的两道工序，要求极为严格。采石过程中不得使用炸药爆破，全靠手工操作，尽可能使采出的石料完好成材。雕刻要依照石材的特点构思施艺，注重立意、砚形和雕工。砚的四周多雕刻有云龙、花鸟、飞禽走兽、人物山水等图案，雕刻刀法上分深刀、浅刀、细刻和线刻几种。此外，端砚的配盒也十分考究，多以紫檀木、花梨木、红木等制作。
端砚的样式多种多样，制砚艺人们在保持传统技艺和特色的基础上，不断创新，开发出一系列精美实用的新产品。包括各种实用的淌池砚、单打砚、斗方砚以及融实用性和观赏性于一身的雕花长方砚、雕花天然砚等。近年来，为适应大量出口的需要，还开发出一批传统仿古样式的产品，为端砚的发展注入了新的活力。

Guangdong Duan Inkstone

Produced in Zhaoqing of Guangdong Province in south China, Duan Inkstone is reputed as one of the Four Famous Instones in China with She Inkstone in Anhui Province, Tao Inkstone in Gansu Province, and Chengni Inkstone in Shanxi Province.
According to documents, Duan Inkstone was first produced during the Wude reign (618-626) of the Tang Dynasty (618-907). It is made of Duan stone from the Duanxi River running at the foot of Lanke Mountain, hence the name. Famed as having fine nature and doing no harm to the brush, Duan Inkstone has earned a high reputation among Chinese scholars ever since.
The procedure to make a Duan Inkstone include four steps: stone picking, selection, engraving and box matching, among which stone picking and engraving are the two most important steps. It is very hard to hand-pick the stones with no flaw, and other alternative tools such as dynamite are forbidden. Engraving stresses good conception, fine shape of the stones and engraving skills, which usually has flying dragon, flowers and birds, figures, mountains and waters as the decoration. The matching boxes are also very daintily chosen, often made of purple sandalwood, and rosewood.
Duan Inkstone has various styles, and new-style products are designed one after another, such as Doufang inkstone, engraved rectangular inkstone and engraved natural inkstone, etc. In recent years, lots of archaized products were produced for the expanded export demand.

北京烤鸭

提起北京的饮食，首先令人想到的便是烤鸭，它现在已经成为首都北京一道驰名中外的特色美食。烤鸭的故乡在中国东部江苏省的南京市。明代永乐十九年（公元1421年），明成祖迁都北京，烤鸭也随之进入北京，并成为宫廷菜肴。自此北京地区的养鸭业也逐渐兴盛起来。以后经过对鸭子品种的不断改良，并采用人工“填鸭”法喂养，培育出毛色洁白，体态丰满，肉质细嫩的新品种——北京填鸭。用北京填鸭烤出的烤鸭味道鲜美，远胜其它，名声日盛，人们称其为“北京烤鸭”。
北京烤鸭可分为“焖炉烤鸭”和“挂炉烤鸭”两种。“焖炉烤鸭”和“挂炉烤鸭”所使用的原料和处理鸭子的方法是一致的。不同之处在于两者的烤制方法：“焖炉烤鸭”是以秫秸为燃料，先将烤炉的烤墙烤热，然后将鸭子放入炉内，关闭炉门，完全通过炉墙的热度和灼热的柴灰将鸭焖熟，具有肉质细嫩的特点。“挂炉烤鸭”则是以果木为燃料，在特制的烤炉中明火烤制而成，具有味道香美，表皮酥脆的特点。现在，在北京众多的烤鸭店铺之中，以烤制“焖炉烤鸭”的“便宜坊”和擅长“挂炉烤鸭”的“全聚德”最为闻名。
北京烤鸭的吃法有很多种。一般是将烤鸭切成片状，配以甜面酱、葱白和黄瓜条，并用特制的薄饼卷着吃。也可以用酱油和蒜泥拌匀，同鸭肉一起卷着吃。还有用空心芝麻烧饼夹烤鸭肉的吃法。剔净肉的鸭骨架还可熬汤，使食客可以同时品尝到鸭的两种烹饪方法。

Beijing Roasted Duck

Beijing Roasted Duck has the reputation of being the most delicious food in Beijing. It is usually a fixed item of dinner on any Beijing tour itinerary. Eating Beijing Roasted Duck is also one of the two things you are absolutely supposed to do while in Beijing -- the other one is climbing the Great Wall.
The hometown of roasted duck is actually Nanjing City of Jiangsu Province in East China. In the 19th year (1421) during the Yongle reign of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), the emperor moved the capital from Nanjing to Beijing, and hence roasted duck was introduced to Beijing and became an imperial dish.
Beijing ducks are called force-fed ducks, which are raised for the sole purpose of making the food. Force-fed, they are kept in cages which restrain them from moving about, so as to fatten them up and make the meat comparably tender.
Beijing Roasted Duck has two kinds: Menlu Roasted Duck (duck roasted in the oven) and Gualu Roasted Duck (duck roasted over the fire). The preparations include: first rubbing the ducks with spices, salt and sugar, and then hanging them in the air for some time. To make a Menlu Roasted Duck, first burn the Kaoliang stalks in the oven till the sides of the oven turn hot, then put the ready-duck inside until the duck is baked date-red and shining with oil by the heat of the oven and the remaining heat of the ash. To make a Gualu Roasted Duck, the ready-duck is baked in the oven directly over the burning wood of peach, jujube or date trees, which gives off a special fragrance, with very little smoke; bake until the duck becomes brown with rich grease perspiring outside and have a nice odor. The best roasted duck has a crisp skin and tender meat.
Beijing Roasted Duck is always served in well-cut slices. The chef cuts the meat into thin slices, each having a piece of skin and perfect with the complete layers of the meat. Then the meat is served with very thin pancakes, Chinese onions and special sauce -- usually sweet bean sauce. The way to eat it is to coat the thin pancake with sauce, slap on a few pieces of meat and roll up the pancake. Chopsticks are optional: it is much easier just to grab the thing with your bare hands. Normally there are many dishes served with the duck, including a dish of fine-cut shallot bars, a dish of cucumber bars and finally a dish of paste-like soy of fermented wheat flour. The dinner usually ends with a rich cream-colored duck soup made from the duck.

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中国地理 Geography
中华人民共和国位于亚洲大陆的东部、太平洋西岸。陆地面积约960万平方公里，仅次于俄罗斯和加拿大，是世界上第三大国。中国领土北起漠河以北的黑龙江江心，南到南沙群岛南端的曾母暗沙，南北相距约5500公里；东起黑龙江与乌苏里江汇合处，西到帕米尔高原，东西相距约5200公里。

中国陆地边界长达2.28万公里，东邻朝鲜，北邻蒙古，东北邻俄罗斯，西北邻哈萨克斯坦、吉尔吉斯斯坦、塔吉克斯坦，西和西南与阿富汗、巴基斯坦、印度、尼泊尔、不丹等国家接壤，南与缅甸、老挝、越南相连。东部和东南部同韩国、日本、菲律宾、文莱、马来西亚、印度尼西亚隔海相望。

Located in the east on the Asian continent on the western shore of the Pacific Ocean, the People's Republic of China has a land area of about 9.6 million sq km, and is the third-largest country in the world, next only to Russia and Canada.

From north to south, the territory of China stretches from the center of the Heilong River north of the town of Mohe to the Zengmu Reef at the southernmost tip of the Nansha Islands, covering a distance of 5,500 km. From east to west, the nation extends from the confluence of the Heilong and Wusuli rivers to the Pamirs, covering a distance of 5,200 km.

疆域领土

中华人民共和国位于亚洲大陆的东部、太平洋西岸。陆地面积约960万平方公里，仅次于俄罗斯和加拿大，是世界上第三大国。中国领土北起漠河以北的黑龙江江心，南到南沙群岛南端的曾母暗沙，南北相距约5500公里；东起黑龙江与乌苏里江汇合处，西到帕米尔高原，东西相距约5200公里。

中国陆地边界长达2.28万公里，东邻朝鲜，北邻蒙古，东北邻俄罗斯，西北邻哈萨克斯坦、吉尔吉斯斯坦、塔吉克斯坦， 西和西南与阿富汗、巴基斯坦、印度、尼泊尔、不丹

等国家接壤，南与缅甸、老挝、越南相连。东部和东南部同韩国、日本、菲律宾、文莱、马来西亚、印度尼西亚隔海相望。

中国大陆海岸线长约1.8万公里。海岸地势平坦，多优良港湾，且大部分为终年不冻港。中国大陆的东部与南部濒临渤海、黄海、东海和南海，海域面积473万平方公里。渤海为中国的内海，黄海、东海和南海是太平洋的边缘海。

在中国海域上，分布着5400个岛屿。其中最大为台湾岛，面积3.6万平方公里；其次是海南岛，面积3.4万平方公里。位于台湾岛东北海面上的钓鱼岛、赤尾屿，是中国最东的岛屿。散布在南海上的岛屿、礁、滩总称南海诸岛，为中国最南的岛屿群，依照位置不同称为东沙群岛、西沙群岛、中沙群岛和南沙群岛。

Territory

Located in the east on the Asian continent on the western shore of the Pacific Ocean, the People's Republic of China has a land area of about 9.6 million sq km, and is the third-largest country in the world, next only to Russia and Canada.
From north to south, the territory of China stretches from the center of the Heilong River north of the town of Mohe to the Zengmu Reef at the southernmost tip of the Nansha Islands, covering a distance of 5,500 km. From east to west, the nation extends from the confluence of the Heilong and Wusuli rivers to the Pamirs, covering a distance of 5,200 km.

With a land boundary of some 22,800 km, China is bordered by Korea to the east; Mongolia to the north; Russia to the northeast; Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the northwest; Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Sikkim and Bhutan to the west and southwest; and Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam to the south. Across the seas to the east and southeast are the Republic of Korea, Japan, the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia and Indonesia.

China's mainland coastline measures approximately 18,000 km, with a flat topography, and many excellent docks and harbors, most of which are ice-free all year round. The Chinese mainland is flanked to the east and south by the Bohai, Yellow, East China and South China seas, with a total maritime area of 4.73 million sq km. The Bohai Sea is China's continental sea, while the Yellow, East China and South China seas are marginal seas of the Pacific Ocean.

Some 5,400 islands dot China's territorial seas. The largest of these, with an area of about 36,000 sq km, is Taiwan, followed by Hainan with an area of 34,000 sq km. The Diaoyu and Chiwei islands, located to the northeast of Taiwan Island, are China's easternmost islands. The many islands, islets, reefs and shoals in the South China Sea, known collectively as the South China Sea Islands, are the southernmost island group of China. They are called the Dongsha (East Sandbar), Xisha (West Sandbar), Zhongsha (Middle Sandbar) and Nansha (South Sandbar) island groups according to their geographical locations.

动物和植物

中国是世界上野生动物种类最多的国家之一，仅脊椎动物就有6266种，其中陆栖脊椎动物2404种，鱼类3862种，约占世界脊椎动物总类的10%。大熊猫、金丝猴、华南虎、褐马鸡、丹顶鹤、朱、白鳍豚、扬子鳄等百余种中国特产的珍稀野生动物，闻名于世。毛色黑白相间的大型哺乳动物——大熊猫，体重可达135公斤，靠 吃嫩竹和竹笋为生，目前只剩下1000余只，由于极其珍贵，已成为世界保护野生动物的标志。丹顶鹤，体长可达1.2米以上，身上覆盖着白色羽毛，头顶上长着一小块丹红色的裸露皮肤，在东亚地区被视为“长寿”的象征。白鳍豚是世界上仅有的两种淡水鲸类之一，1980年首次在长江捕获一头雄性白鳍豚，引起世界豚类研究界的极大兴趣。

中国也是世界上植物资源最为丰富的国家之 一，仅高等植物就有3.2万余种。北半球寒、温、热各带植被的主要植物，在中国几乎都可以看到。 木本植物有7000多种，其中乔木2800余种，水杉、水松、银杉、杉木、金钱松、台湾杉、福建柏、珙桐、杜仲、喜树等为中国所特有。水杉是一种高大乔木，被列为世界古稀名贵植物。金钱松产于长江流域山地，叶子簇生在短枝上，状如铜钱，春夏苍绿，秋天变黄，是世界五大庭园珍贵树种之一。中国食用植物有2000余种；药用植物3000多种，长白山的人参、西藏的红花、宁夏的枸杞、云南和贵州的三七等，均属名贵药材。花卉植物种类极多，“花中之王”——牡丹，为中国固有，它花朵型大、多瓣，色彩艳丽，被推崇为中国的“国花”之一。

Fauna and Flora

Among those countries with the greatest diversity of wildlife, China has more than 6,266 species of vertebrates, 10 percent of the world's total. Among them, 2,404 are terrestrials and 3,862 are fish.More than 100 species of wild animals can be found only in China, including such rare animals as the giant panda, the snub-nosed monkey, the golden-haired monkey, South China tiger, brown-eared pheasant, red-crowned crane, red ibis, white-flag dolphin and Chinese alligator. The giant panda, which makes its home in the forests of the Upper Yangtze River in southwest China, weighs on average 135 kg and lives on tender bamboo leaves and bamboo shoots. Because it is extremely rare - just over 1,000 are left at present - the giant panda has become the symbol of the world's protected wild animals.

China's abundance of plant life ranks it among the top in the world. For example, with an area almost exactly that of the continental United States, China has nearly twice as many plant species, about 32,000 (compared to 17,000 for the U.S. and Canada combined) or one-eighth of the world's total. China's plant species include almost all the major plants that grow in the northern hemisphere's frigid, temperate and tropical zones. In addition, China has more than 7,000 species of woody plants, including 2,800-odd tree species. Found only in China are the metasequoia, Chinese cypress, Cathay silver fir, China fir, golden larch, Taiwan fir, Fujian cypress, dove-tree, eucommia and camplotheca acuminata. The metasequoia, a tall species of arbor, is considered to be one of the oldest and rarest plants in the world. The golden larch, one of only five species of rare garden trees in the world, grows in the mountainous areas in the Yangtze River Valley. Its coin-shaped leaves on short branches are green in spring and summer, turning yellow in autumn. China is home to more than 2,000 species of edible plants and over 3,000 species of medicinal plants. Ginseng from the Changbai Mountains, safflowers from Tibet, Chinese wolfberry from Ningxia and notoginseng from Yunnan and Guizhou are particularly well-known Chinese herbal medicines. China has a wide variety of flowering plants, including the world-renowned peony that is indigenous to China and considered one of the country's national flowers.

土地资源

形容中国的土地和矿产时，人们常常要用到许多庞大的数字。耕地、林地、草地、荒漠、滩涂等在中国都有大面积分布。耕地主要集中在东部，草原多分布在北部和西部，而森林大都集中在东北和西南边远地区。

中国现有耕地13004万公顷。东北平原、华北平原、长江中下游平原、珠江三角洲和四川盆地是耕地分布最为集中的地区。面积35万多平方公里的东北平原是中国第一大平原，大部分是黑色沃土，盛产小麦、玉米、大豆、高粱、亚麻和甜菜。华北平原大多是褐色土壤，土层深厚，农作物有小麦、玉米、谷子、棉花等。长江中下游平原地势低平，河流和湖泊星罗棋布，是中国主要的水稻、淡水鱼产区，素称“鱼米之乡”，并且盛产茶叶和桑蚕。被誉为“天府之国”的四川盆地多为紫色土 壤，气候暖湿，农作物可四季生长，盛产水稻、油菜和甘蔗。珠江三角洲盛产水稻，每年可收获二至三次。

中国的森林面积较小，约为15894万公顷。东北地区的大兴安岭、小兴安岭和长白山区，是中国最大的天然林区，遍布望不到边的红松、落叶松、黄花松等针叶林及白桦、柞树、水曲柳、杨树、榆树等阔叶林。其次为西南天然林区，该区主要树种有云杉、冷杉、云南松，还有珍贵的柚木、紫檀、樟、楠、红木等；云南省南部的西双版纳是中国少有的热带阔叶林区，森林植物多达5000余种，有“植物王国”之称。

中国的草地面积约40000万公顷。在从东北到西南绵延3000多公里的草原带上，分布着多个畜牧业基地。内蒙古草原为中国最大的天然牧场，出产著名的三河牛、三河马和蒙古绵羊。新疆天山南北也是中国重要的天然草场和牲畜良种基地，出产著名的伊犁马和新疆细毛羊。

中国耕地、森林、草地面积的绝对数量均居世界前列，但由于人口众多，按人口平均计算的相对数量却很少。尤其是耕地，仅为世界人均水平的三分之一。

世界上已知的矿产在中国均能找到，且储量丰富。目前，已经探明储量的矿产有158种，总储量居世界第三位。煤、铁、铜、铝、锑、钼、锰、锡、铅、锌、汞等主要矿产储量均居世界前列。其中煤炭基础储量为3317.6亿吨，主要分布在西北、华北地区，尤以新疆、山西、内蒙古最为丰富；铁矿石的基础储量为213.6亿吨，主要分布在东北、华北和西南地区。石油、天然气、油页岩、磷、硫等矿产也很丰富。石油主要蕴藏在西北地区，其次为东北、华北地区和东部沿海浅海大陆架。稀土金属的储量，比世界其他国家的稀土总量还多。

Land and Mineral Resources

Cultivated land, forests, grasslands, deserts and tidelands are distributed widely across China. Cultivated land is mainly located in east China, grasslands are mainly located in north and west China, and forests mainly in the remote northeastern and southwestern areas.

In China today, 130.04 million hectares of land is cultivated, mainly on the Northeast Plain, the North China Plain, the Middle-Lower Yangtze Plain, the Pearl River Delta and the Sichuan Basin. The fertile black soil of the Northeast Plain, the largest plain in China with an area of more than 350,000 sq km, abounds in wheat, corn, sorghum, soybeans, flax and sugar beet. The deep, brown topsoil of the North China Plain is planted with wheat, corn, millet and cotton. The Middle-Lower Yangtze Plain's flat terrain and many lakes and rivers make it particularly suitable for paddy rice and freshwater fish, hence its designation of "land of fish and rice." This area also produces large quantities of tea and silkworms.The purplish soil of the warm and humid Sichuan Basin is green with crops in all four seasons, including paddy rice, rapeseed and sugarcane, making it known as the "land of plenty." The Pearl River Delta abounds with paddy rice gathered 2-3 times every year.

Forests cover only 158.94 million ha of China. The Greater Hinggan, Lesser Hinggan and Changbai mountain ranges in the northeast are China's largest natural forest areas. Major tree species found here include conifers, such as Korean pine, larch and Olga Bay larch, and coniferous-broadleaf trees such as white birch, oak, willow, elm and Northeast China ash. Major tree species in the southwest include the dragon spruce, fir and Yunnan pine, as well as teak, red sandalwood, camphor, nanmu and padauk. Often called a "kingdom of plants," Xishuangbanna in the south of Yunnan Province is a rare tropical broadleaf forest area in China, playing host to more than 5,000 plant species.

Grasslands in China cover an area of 400 million ha, stretching more than 3,000 km from the northeast to the southwest. They are the centers of animal husbandry. The Inner Mongolian Prairie is China's largest natural pastureland, and home to the famous Sanhe horses, Sanhe cattle and Mongolian sheep. The important natural pasturelands north and south of the Tianshan Mountains in Xinjiang are ideal for stockbreeding. The famous Ili horses and Xinjiang fine-wool sheep are raised here.

China's cultivated lands, forests and grasslands are among the world's largest in terms of sheer area. But due to China's large population, the areas of cultivated land, forest and grassland per capita are small, especially in the case of cultivated land - only one-third of the world's average.

China is rich in mineral resources, and all of the world's known minerals can be found here. To date, geologists have confirmed reserves of 158 different minerals. These include 10 energy-related minerals, including oil, natural gas, coal, and uranium; 54 metallic minerals, including iron, manganese, copper, aluminum, lead and zinc; 91 non-metallic minerals, including graphite, phosphorus, sulfur and sylvite. The reserves of the major mineral resources, such as coal, iron, copper, aluminum, stibium, molybdenum, manganese, tin, lead, zinc and mercury, are in the world's front rank. China's basic coal reserves total 331.76 billion tons, mainly distributed in northeast China and north China, with Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Shanxi Province and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region taking the lead. China's 21.36 billion tons of the basic reserve of iron ore are mainly distributed in northeast, north and southwest China. The country also abounds in petroleum, natural gas, oil shale, phosphorus and sulphur. Petroleum reserves are mainly found in the northwest, northeast and north China, as well as in the continental shelves of east China. The national reserves of rare earth metals far exceed the combined total for the rest of the world.

河流、湖泊与山川

中国境内河流众多，流域面积在1000平方公里以上者多达1500余条。由于主要河流多发源于青藏高原，从河源到河口落差很大，因此中国的水力资源非常丰富，蕴藏量达6.8亿千瓦，居世界第一位。
河流分为外流河和内流河。注入海洋的外流河，流域面积约占全国陆地总面积的64%。长江、黄河、黑龙江、珠江、辽河、海河、淮河等向东流入太平洋；西藏的雅鲁藏布江向东流出国境再向南注入印度洋，河流的上方是长504.6公里、深6009米的世界第一大峡谷——雅鲁藏布江大峡谷；新疆的额尔齐斯河则向北流出国境注入北冰洋。流入内陆湖或消失于沙漠、盐滩之中的内流河，流域面积约占

全国陆地总面积的36%。新疆南部的塔里木河是中国最长的内流河，全长2179公里。

长江是中国第一大河，全长6300公里，仅次于非洲的尼罗河和南美洲的亚马孙河，为世界第三大河。其上游穿行于高山深谷之间，蕴藏着丰富的水力资源。长江也是中国东西水上运输的大动脉，天然河道优越，有“黄金水道”之称。长江中下游地区气候温暖湿润、雨量充沛、土地肥沃，是中国重要的农业区。黄河为中国第二长河，全长5464公里。黄河流域牧场丰美、农业发达、矿藏富饶，是中国古代文明的发祥地之一。黑龙江是中国北部的大河，全长4350公里，其中有3101公里流经中国境内；珠江为中国南部的大河，全长2214公里。除天然河流外，中国还有一条著名的人工河，那就是贯穿南北的大运河。它始凿于公元前五世纪，北起北京，南抵浙江杭州，沟通海河、黄河、淮河、长江、钱塘江五大水系，全长1801公里，是世界上开凿最早、最长的人工河。

中国境内湖泊众多，长江中下游地区和青藏高原是湖泊最多的两个地区。前者为淡水湖最集中的地区，主要有鄱阳湖、洞庭湖、太湖、洪泽湖等，其中江西省北部的鄱阳湖最大，面积3583平方公里；后者主要分布着咸水湖，有青海湖、纳木湖、奇林湖等，当中以青海省东北部的青海湖最大，面积4583平方公里。

Rivers and Lakes

China has over 1,500 rivers. Most of the major rivers - like the Yangtze - have their source on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and drop greatly from the source to the mouths. As a result, China is rich in water-power resources, leading the world in hydropower potential, with reserves of 680 million kw.
Known as Chang Jiang or "Long River" in Chinese, the Yangtze at 6,300 km is not only the longest river in China but in all of Asia. It is the third longest river in the world, next only to the Nile in Africa (6,670 km) and

the Amazon in South America (6,400 km). In its upper reaches, the Yangtze tumbles through steep, forested gorges. In its middle and lower reaches, the Yangtze River flows through important agricultural regions that have a warm and humid climate, plentiful rainfall and fertile soil.

Also known as the "golden waterway," the Yangtze serves as an important trade and transportation route. The second longest river in China is the Yellow River with a length of 5,464 km. The Yellow River valley was one of the birthplaces of ancient Chinese civilization. It has lush pasturelands along its banks, flourishing agriculture and abundant mineral deposits.

The Heilong River is a large river in north China with a total length of 4,350 km, of which, 3,101 km are in China. The Pearl River (Zhujiang), 2,214 km long, is a major river in south China. In addition, China has a famous man-made river - the Grand Canal, running from Beijing in the north to Hangzhou in Zhejiang Province in the south. Work first began on the Grand Canal as early as in the fifth century A.D. It links five major rivers: the Haihe, Yellow, Huaihe, Yangtze and Qiantang. With a total length of 1,801 km, the Grand Canal is the longest as well as the oldest man-made waterway in the world.

China's many rivers can be categorized as exterior and interior systems. The catchment area for the exterior rivers that empty into the oceans accounts for 64 percent of the country's total land area. The Yangtze, Yellow, Heilong, Pearl, Liaohe, Haihe and Huaihe rivers flow east, and empty into the Pacific Ocean. The Yarlungzangbo River in Tibet, which flows first east and then south into the Indian Ocean, boasts the Yarlungzangbo Grand Canyon, the largest canyon in the world, 504.6 km long and 6,009 m deep. The Ertix River flows north from the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region to the Arctic Ocean. The catchment area for the interior rivers that flow into inland lakes or disappear into deserts or salt marshes makes up about 36 percent of China's total land area. Its 2,179 km makes the Tarim River in southern Xinjiang China's longest interior river.

China's territory includes numerous lakes, most of which are found on the Middle-Lower Yangtze Plain and the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Freshwater lakes mostly lie in the former area, such as Poyang, Dongting, Taihu, and Hongze; while in the latter are saltwater lakes, such as Qinghai, Nam Co and Siling Co. Poyang Lake, in the north of Jiangxi Province and with an area of 3,583 sq km, is the largest one of its kind and Qinghai Lake, in northeast Qinghai Province and with an area of 4,583 sq km, is the largest one of its kind.

地势与地貌

百万年前，青藏高原隆起，地球历史上此一重大地壳运动形成了中国的地貌。从空中俯瞰中国大地，地势就像阶梯一样，自西向东，逐渐下降。受印度板块与欧亚板块的撞击，青藏高原不断隆起，平均海拔4000米以上，号称“世界屋脊”,构成了中国地形的第一阶梯。青藏高原上的喜马拉雅山主峰珠穆朗玛峰高达8848米，是世界第一高峰。第二阶梯由内蒙古高原、黄土高原、云贵高原和塔里木盆地、准噶尔盆地、四川盆地组成，海拔在1000米至2000米之间。跨过第二阶梯东缘的大兴安岭、太行山、巫山和雪峰山，向东直达海岸是第三阶梯，此阶梯地势下降到海拔500米至1000米以下，自北向南分布着东北平原、华北平原、长江中下游平原，平原的边缘镶嵌着低山和丘陵。再向东为中国大陆架浅海区，也就
是第四级阶梯，水深大都不足200米。山地、丘陵和高原占中国领土面积的65%。

Physical Features

China’s topography was completely formed around the emergence of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the most important geological event over the past several million years. Taking a bird’s-eye view of China, the terrain gradually descends from west to east like a staircase. Due to the collision of the Indian and Eurasian plates, the young Qinghai-Tibet Plateau rose continuously to become the top of the four-step “staircase,” averaging more than 4,000 m above sea level, and it is called "the roof of the world". Soaring 8,848 m above sea level on the plateau, Mt. Qomolangma is the world’s highest peak and the main peak of the Himalayas. The second step includes the
gently sloping Inner Mongolia Plateau, the Loess Plateau, the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, the Tarim Basin, the Junggar Basin and the Sichuan Basin, with an average elevation of between 1,000 m and 2,000 m. The third step, dropping to 500-1,000 m in elevation, begins at a line drawn around the Greater Hinggan, Taihang, Wushan and Xuefeng mountain ranges and extends eastward to the coast of the Pacific Ocean. Here, from north to south, are the Northeast Plain, the North China Plain and the Middle-Lower Yangtze Plain. Interspersed amongst the plains are hills and foothills. To the east, the land extends out into the ocean, in a continental shelf, the fourth step of the staircase. The water here is less than 200 m deep. The area of mountains and hills and plateaus account for 65 percent of the total land area of China.

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中国的大部分地区位于北温带，气候温和，四季分明，适宜人类居住与生存。大陆性季风气候是中国气候的主要特点。每年9月至次年4月，干寒的冬季风从西伯利亚和蒙古高原吹来，寒冷干燥，南北温差甚大。每年的4月至9月，暖湿的夏季风从东部和南
部海洋吹来，普遍高温多雨，南北温差甚小。中国从南至北呈现出赤道带、热带、亚热带、暖温带、温带、寒温带六个温度带；降水量从东南向西北逐渐减少，各地年平均降水量差异很大，东南沿海可达1500毫米以上，而西北内陆还不到200毫米。

China lies mainly in the north temperate zone, characterized by a warm climate and distinctive seasons, with a climate well suited for habitation. From September to April the following year, dry and cold winter monsoons blow from Siberia and the Mongolian Plateau, resulting in cold and dry winters and great differences in the temperatures of north and south China. From April to September, warm and humid summer monsoons blow from the seas in the east and south, resulting in overall high temperatures and plentiful rainfall, and little differences in the temperatures of north and south China. In terms of temperature, the nation can be sectored from south to north into equatorial, tropical, subtropical, warm-temperate, temperate, and cold-temperate zones. Precipitation gradually declines from the southeastern coastal areas to the northwestern inland areas , and the average annual precipitation varies greatly from place to place. In southeastern coastal areas, it reaches over 1,500 mm, while in northwestern areas, it drops to below 200 mm.