The People's Republic of China (PRC) comprises most of the cultural, historic, and geographic area known as China. Since its founding in 1949, it has been led by the Communist Party of China (CPC). It is the world's most populous country, with a population of over 1,300,000,000, most of whom are classified as the Han Chinese ethnicity. It is the largest country in area in East Asia and the fourth largest in the world, after Russia, Canada, and the United States. The PRC borders 14 countries: Afghanistan, Bhutan, Myanmar, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrayzstan, Laos, Mongolia, Nepal, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Vietnam.

The People's Republic of China claims sovereignty over but does not administer the island of Taiwan, Penghu, Quemoy, and Matsu Island. Taiwan's political status is controversial; it is administered by the Republic of China, which is currently based in Taipei and is the PRC's predecessor government. The term Mainland China is sometimes used to denote the part of China under PRC's rule (usually excluding the two Special Aministrative Regions, Hong Kong and Macau).