Han Chinese

Han
Total population
1,300,000,000 worldwide
Regions with significant populations
Areas of high populations
People's Republic of China 1,207,541,842 World Factboook - China - Hong Kong 6,593,410 World Factboook - Hong Kong - Macau 433,641 World Factboook - Macau Taiwan 22,575,365 World Factboook - Taiwan Singapore 2,684,936 [1] Christmas Island, Australia 1,045 World Factboook - Christmas Island Indonesia 7,566,200 [2] Minority populations Thailand 7,053,240 [3] Malaysia 6,590,500 [4] America 3,376,031 [5] Canada 1,612,173 [6] Peru 1,300,000 [7] Vietnam 1,263,570 [8] Philippines 1,146,250 [9] Myanmar 1,101,314 [10] Russia 998,000 [11] Australia 620,000 [12] Japan 519,561 [13] Cambodia 343,855 [14] England 296,623 [15] France 230,515 [16] India 189,470 [17] Laos 185,765 [18]
Languages
Standard: Mandarin; Some Areas: Yue Chinese (including Cantonese), Min Chinese, Wu Chinese (including Shanghainese), Xiang Chinese, Gan Chinese, Guan Chinese
Religions
Chinese Buddhism, Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, Mahayana, Agnostic, and Islam (in some areas).

Han Chinese (also called Han) (Simplified Chinese: 汉族; Traditional Chinese: 漢族; Pinyin: hàn zú) is an ethnic group from China. 90% of the people living in China and more than 97% of the people in Taiwan are Han. Out of the entire human population in the world, 19% are Han. Han Zu in Chinese means "Han ethnic group." Another name for Han Zu can be Han Ren, which means "Han people," which is written as 汉人 in simplified Chinese or 漢人 in traditional Chinese.

The name

The name "Han" comes from the Han Dynasty that united China as one country. During the Han Dynasty, many tribes felt that they belonged to the same ethnic group. Also, the Han Dynasty is said to be the high point in Chinese civilization. During the Han Dynasty, China was able to increase its power and influence to other parts of Asia.

There are some slang words and different names for Han amongst some Han people, especially in southern China and in Vietnam. In languages like Cantonese, Hakka and Min Nan, the word "Táng Rén" is also used. "Táng Rén" is written as "唐人" and it literally means "the people of Tang." It is pronounced "Tong Yan" in Cantonese. "唐人" comes from another Chinese dynasty, the Tang Dynasty. The Tang Dynasty is also another peak point of the Chinese civilization. Within English-speaking Han communities, the word "Chinatown" in Chinese is "Táng Rén Jiē" which means "street of the Tang people."

Another phrase used by the Han people, especially overseas Chinese, is "Hua Ren" (Simplified Chinese: 华人; Traditional Chinese: 華人; Pinyin: huá rén). It comes from "Zhong Hua" (Simplified Chinese: 中华; Traditional Chinese: 中華; Pinyin: zhōng huá), a poetic name for China. The translation of this is "ethnic Chinese".

Culture

See also: Confucianism and Confucius

Han China is one of the world's oldest civilizations. Chinese culture dates back thousands of years. Some Han people believe they share common ancestors, distantly related to the Yellow Emperor and Yan Emperor, who existed thousands of years ago. Hence, some people of Han call themselves "Descendants of the Yan Emperor" or "Descendants of the Yellow Emperor."

Throughout the history of China, Chinese culture has been influenced by Confucianism. Confucianism was the official philosophy throughout most of Imperial China's history, and becoming a professional of Confucian texts was needed to be part of the imperial bureaucracy.

Related pages

• Nationalities of China

Other websites

• Defining Han Identity in Chinese Ethnology and Archaeology Research website on Han identity by Ph.D. candidate
• How the Han Chinese became the world's biggest tribe – Yahoo News/AFP Sept 15, 2004