China is the world's third largest country by area and has the largest population. China includes more than 3400 offshore islands. The capital is Beijing; the country's largest city is Shanghai. More than one-fifth of the world's total population lives within China's borders. Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou are major cultural centers, which contain most of the renowned museums, theaters, and cultural displays.

In Beijing are the Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, the Mao Zedong Memorial Hall, and the Museum of the Chinese Revolution. Great monuments include the famous "Democracy Wall," with its big-character posters; the Summer Palace; the Temple of Heaven; the Ming dynasty tombs; and the Great Wall.

In Shanghai are the Museum of Art and History, the Museum of Natural Sciences, and the Garden of the Mandarin Yu. Guangzhou is the home of one of China's major zoos; the Guangzhou Museum; Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall (1931); Yuexiu Park, with its Ming dynasty Zhenhai Pagoda; the Temple of the Six Banyan Trees; and the Huaisheng Mosque.

Near Xi'an (Sian) is one of the most impressive works of Chinese antiquity a terra-cotta army of more than 6000 life-size figures that were found in the tomb of the Ch'in emperor Shih Huang Ti, who died in 210 BC.