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Ethnic Groups of the People's Republic of China


 

Ethnic Groups

China is a comprising 56 state-recognized nationalities officially termed “ethnic minorities.” These ethnic minority groups do not necessarily self-identify as such, and are not equally represented in China. The largest ethnic group is the Han (91.6), and the largest non-Han minority groups are Tibetans, Mongols, and Uyghurs. These territories (Tibet, Inner Mongolia, and Xinjiang) are resource-rich and these ethnic groups often dispute the autonomous regions. Numerous human rights violations and independence movements have caused major instability in these regions and international criticism of the Chinese Communist Party’s ethnic minority policies. There are ethnic groups that are still seeking official recognition by the state.

List of China’s Ethnic Minority Groups

Ethnic Group

2010 Population Percentage

2010 Population

Han

91.6474%

1,220,844,520

Zhuang

1.2700% 16,926,381

Hui

0.7943% 10,586,087

Manchu

0.7794% 10,387,958

Uyghur

0.7555% 10,069,346

Miao

0.7072% 9,426,007

Yi

0.6538% 8,714,393

Tujia

0.6268% 8,353,912

Tibetan

0.4713% 6,282,187

Mongol

0.4488% 5,981,840

Dong

0.2161% 2,879,974

Bouyei

0.2153% 2,870,034

Yao

0.2098% 2,796,003

Bai

0.1451% 1,933,510

Korean

0.1374% 1,830,929

Hani

0.1246% 1,660,932

Li

0.1098% 1,463,064

Kazakh

0.1097% 1,462,588

Dai

0.0946% 1,261,311

She

0.0532% 708,651

Lisu

0.0527% 702,839

Dongxiang

0.0466% 621,500

Gelao

0.0413% 550,746

Lahu

0.0365% 485,966

Va

0.0322% 429,709

Sui

0.0309% 411,847

Nakhi

0.0245% 326,295

Qiang

0.0232% 309,576

Tu

0.0217% 289,565

Mulao

0.0162% 216,257

Xibe

0.0143% 190,481

Kyrgyz

0.0140% 186,708

Jingpo

0.0111% 147,828

Daur

0.0099% 131,992

Salar

0.0098% 130,607

Blang

0.0090% 119,639

Maonan

0.0076% 101,192

Tajik

0.0038% 51,069

Pumi

0.0032% 42,861

Achang

0.0030% 39,555

Nu

0.0028% 37,523

Ewenki

0.0023% 30,875

Gin

0.0021% 28,199

Jino

0.0017% 23,143

De'ang

0.0015% 20,556

Bonan

0.0015% 20,074

Russian

0.0012% 15,393

Yugur

0.0011% 14,378

Uzbek

0.0008% 10,569

Monba

0.0008% 10,561

Oroqen

0.0006% 8,659

Derung

0.0005% 6,930

Hezhen

0.0004% 5,354

Gaoshan

0.0003% 4,009

Lhoba

0.0003% 3,682

Tatars

0.0003% 3,556

Undistinguished

0.0480% 640,101

Naturalized Citizen

0.0001% 1,448

Table: http://mz.china.com.cn/?action-viewnews-itemid-4643

 

Source: Minority Rights Group International, World Directory of Minorities and Indigenous Peoples - China: Overview, October 2009, available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/4954ce5b23.html [accessed 31 January 2014]

 



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