China is the world's oldest continuous civilisation, and has been one of the most powerful countries on Earth for thousands of years! It has a long and amazing history full of clever inventions, amazing Empires and some very smart people. So read on to find out a little bit more about this often misunderstood giant!

For more high-quality country facts, check out these Japanese culture facts, these Northern Ireland facts, or even these Arctic circle facts! There's a whole world of facts out there!

But back to China! Let's go!

1. China is HUGE!

China is the fourth largest country in the world by land area, covering about 9.6 million square kilometers. That means it's almost as big as the entire continent of Europe! It has all sorts of different landscapes ranging from the towering Himalayas in the southwest to the vast deserts in the northwest, and from lush forests to long coastlines. It's also home to some of the planet's biggest cities, and we'll visit some of them soon!

2. The Great Wall is... well, Great!

The Great Wall of China is the longest wall in the world, stretching over 13,000 miles. That’s more than half the circumference of the Earth! It was built over several dynasties, starting as early as the 7th century BC, to protect China from invasions. It's actually a myth that you can see it from space - because whilst it's very long it's also pretty narrow compared to mountains and other things it passes over. Still pretty great, though.

3. The Terracotta Army

In 1974, farmers discovered the Terracotta Army buried near the tomb of China's first emperor, Qin Shi Huang. The army includes over 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots, and 670 horses, all made of terracotta clay, and no two soldiers' faces are exactly alike! This is one of China's greatest historical finds, and definitely one of the wonders of the world!

4. Paper was invented in China

As we'll see - the Chinese have invented a LOT of cool things. One of which was paper - it was invented in China during the Han Dynasty around 105 AD by a court official named Cai Lun. Before paper, people wrote on materials like bamboo, silk, or even animal bones. Paper made writing much easier, and changed the world!

5. The Chinese language is ancient!

Mandarin Chinese is the most spoken language in the world, with about 1.3 billion native speakers. That’s nearly one in every six people on Earth! Mandarin uses characters instead of an alphabet, and there are over 50,000 characters (though you only need about 2,500 to read a newspaper). It's an ancient language, and you can trace it's history back to the time of Ancient Egypt! In fact, modern Mandarin works in a similar way to hieroglyphics in that every character is a whole word.

6. The World's Biggest Palace

The Forbidden City in Beijing is the largest ancient palace in the world. It has over 980 buildings and covers 180 acres. For almost 500 years, it was the home of emperors and the political center of the Chinese government. Even though the Emperors are long gone, it's still used for ceremonial events today!

7. China invented ice cream?

Did you know that ice cream might have been invented in China around 200 BC? Legend says that the Chinese mixed milk, rice, and snow to create the first version of this sweet treat. There are other claims to Chinese inventions that we don't have hard proof for - like that they invented sandwiches and football. There is evidence for each of these things, but a lot or argument about whether they "count" or not. There's no denying the Chinese are a clever bunch though!

8. The home of fireworks

What we can be sure of though is that the Chinese invented gunpowder in the 9th century, and the Chinese were the first to use it for fireworks. They initially used fireworks to scare away evil spirits before they became a popular way to celebrate festivals. It was later that the same technology was used to make guns and cannons.

9. The world's best food?

China has one of the most diverse and delicious cuisines in the world. From spicy and numbing Sichuan and Hunan dishes to sweet Cantonese specialities, each region has its own unique flavors. There are thousands of years of history and countless styles in Chinese cuisine. Even Chinese people living in the west have invented their own fusion dishes, like fortune cookies and prawn toast!

10. The world's fastest trains

China has some of the fastest trains in the world, including the Shanghai Maglev, which can travel at speeds up to 431 km/h (268 mph). The extensive high-speed rail network makes it easy to travel across the vast country quickly. For a country with so many people they need a good transport system, and the Chinese one is among the world's most modern and efficient.

11. The world's biggest solar park

China is leading the world in renewable energy and has built the world's largest solar farm, the Tengger Desert Solar Park, which covers 43 square kilometers. That's like having 10,000 football fields covered with solar panels! With so much desert in the west of the country, there is plenty of space for solar parks!

12. The world's longest bridge

The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge is the longest sea bridge in the world, stretching 55 kilometers (34 miles). It connects the cities of Hong Kong, Zhuhai, and Macau and includes an underwater tunnel! Many of these big Chinese construction projects were built at amazing speeds!

13. Pandas!

Giant pandas are native to China and are considered a national treasure. They mainly live in bamboo forests in the mountains of central China. There are only about 1,800 pandas left in the wild, and China has many conservation programs to protect them. For a long time pandas were endangered animals, but thanks to conservation efforts they have now been taken off the endangered list!

14. The world's largest population

China has the largest population of any country in the world, with about 1.4 billion people. That's more than the entire population of North America and Europe combined! When Chinese people travel home for Chinese New Year every year, it's the largest migration of people on Earth! And it happens ever year!

15. Green China?

China is doing a lot of work for green energy. It's trying to be carbon neutral by 2060 by doing things like planting trees and using renewable energy sources. Often people point out that China produces a lot of pollution - which is true - but China has only been doing this for 50 years, whilst the West has been making a mess since the 1800s! So whatever happens in future, the world needs China!