Culture of China

The Culture of China is home to one of the world's oldest and most complex civilizations(文明). China boasts(自夸，自称) a history rich in over 5,000 years of artistic, philosophical, political, and scientific advancement. Though regional differences(地区差别) provide a sense of diversity (多样性，差异), commonalities(公共) in language and religion(宗教信仰) connect a culture distinguished by such significant contributions such as Confucianism(孔子学说，儒家思想) and Taoism(道教，道家学说). Confucianism was the official philosophy throughout most of Imperial(至高无上的) China's history and strongly influenced other countries in East Asia(东亚). Mastery of Confucian texts provided the primary criterion(标准) for entry into the imperial bureaucracy(官僚机构，官僚政治).

       With the rise of Western economic and military power beginning in the mid-19th century, Western systems of social and political organization gained adherents(信徒，追随者) in China. Some of these would-be reformers(维新派) rejected(拒绝) China's cultural legacy(遗赠，遗产), while others sought to combine the strengths of Chinese and Western cultures.

        China is a unified(统一的) nation consisting of many different ethnic groups(族群). Fifty-six different ethnic groups make up the great Chinese national family. Because the Han(汉朝，汉民族) people accounts for more than ninety percent of China's population, the remaining fifty-five groups are generally referred to as(被称为...) "ethnic minorities."(少数民族) Next to the majority Han, the Mongolian(蒙古族), Hui, Tibetan, and Uygur peoples comprise(由...组成) the largest ethnic groups. Although China's ethnic minorities do not account for a large portion of the population, they are distributed over(分部) a vast area, residing in(居住，存在于) every corner of China.

          Particularly since the implementation(旅行) of China's opening and reform policy(改革开放政策), the central government has increased investment in(在.....方面投资) minority areas and accelerated(加速) their opening to the outside world. This has resulted in an upsurge(高潮) of economic development in these areas. Each of China's ethnic minority groups possesses(拥有，掌握) a distinctive(有特色的，与众不同的) culture. The Chinese government respects minority customs, and works to preserve(维持), study, and collate the cultural artifacts of China's ethnic minority groups. The government vigorously(精神旺盛地，活泼地) supports the development of minority culture and the training of minority cultural workers, and fosters the development of traditional minority medicine(巫术，药).

          The relation among China's ethnic groups can be described as "overall integration(集成，综合), local concentration(局部浓度), mutual interaction(相互酌)." Concentrations(关注) of ethnic minorities reside within predominantly Han areas, and the Han people also reside in(居住) minority areas, indicating(要求，指示)that there has been extensive(广泛的，大量的) exchanges(交易所，市场) among China's ethnic groups since ancient times(古代，上古). With the development of the market economy, interaction among ethnic groups has become even more active in the areas of government, economics, culture, daily life, and marriage. Linked by interdependence(互相依赖), mutual assistance(互相帮助，互相援助), and joint development, their common goals and interests creating a deep sense of solidarity(团结一致), China's ethnic groups resemble(像，类似) a great national family, together building Chinese civilization.