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Why does China have the highest population?

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  • Why does China have the highest population?

    I was just thinking of this.. What about China is it, that allowes it to have the highest population?? Even in ancient times, China (or the kingdoms that would eventually make up China) had populations higher than anywhere else in the world.

    Is it Geography? Did china have more resources available than anywhere else in the world that allowed for steady growth? Or was it a culture of love:)) that made for china's demographic dominance?

    Or perhaps, it has something to do with the out of Africa theory.

    Ancient man wandered across the super landmass that makes up Europe/Africa/Asia.. And seeing as China is as far as you can go on that landmass while not freezing to death in Siberia, or going for a swim in the oceans...

    Then naturally I would assume, that more and more of these wandering people would have ended up in China?

    What say you?
    Last edited by Canmoore; 26 Apr 08,, 00:23.

  • #2
    The ancient China was an agriculture civilization. To the country, more people means more manpower to do cultivation, so the country would be more wealth. Because ancient China was an agriculture civilization, so the farmers were restricted to land. To families, more family members means more power in the region. And also more family members to do cultivation would bring more weath to the family. For thousands of years, China developed a culture which is favorite of more people.

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    • #3
      Put all the Europeans in the US, Canada, South America, and other settler countries into Europe and Europe will have the same amount of population density as India and China. The main difference is that neither China nor India moved a large majority of their population to other lands.

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      • #4
        Hmm why would the population move? Only if they dont have enough resources in the vicinity to grow and prosper.

        Both India and China had enough resources to cater to a variety of civilizations. They had 3 greatest rivers and hence their respective civilizations.
        A grain of wheat eclipsed the sun of Adam !!

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        • #5
          Originally posted by xunil View Post
          The ancient China was an agriculture civilization. To the country, more people means more manpower to do cultivation, so the country would be more wealth. Because ancient China was an agriculture civilization, so the farmers were restricted to land. To families, more family members means more power in the region. And also more family members to do cultivation would bring more weath to the family. For thousands of years, China developed a culture which is favorite of more people.
          Interesting, however, it is human nature to desire prestige,strength and power in ones family name. In order to increase your families control of the 'pie' of a region.

          As for being agricultural based.. nearly all ancient civilzations such as Egypt, Mesopotamia were built upon agriculture. The Romans viewed farming as the most noble of all occupations...

          However, there populations have never been anywhere near what China's has been.

          I wonder, do you mean that families competed amongst each other to produce enough offspring to saturate an area with ones family?

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          • #6
            Originally posted by Canmoore View Post
            Interesting, however, it is human nature to desire prestige,strength and power in ones family name. In order to increase your families control of the 'pie' of a region.

            As for being agricultural based.. nearly all ancient civilzations such as Egypt, Mesopotamia were built upon agriculture. The Romans viewed farming as the most noble of all occupations...

            However, there populations have never been anywhere near what China's has been.
            Chinese is not a ethnic group, but a culture group. There were many ethnic group in the land of China in ancient time, slowly they accept the main stream culture of China and become Chinese. Because China was geographic isolated in ancient time, the main stream culture was always strong and not disrupted. So other ethnic group steadily merged into the main culture group. Egypt, Mesopotmia and Roman were not like this.

            I wonder, do you mean that families competed amongst each other to produce enough offspring to saturate an area with ones family?
            No, not that aggressive. People just think it's good to have more kids. Just like people think it's good to have more money.
            Last edited by xunil; 26 Apr 08,, 07:17.

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            • #7
              duh, coz chinese girls are the hottest.
              There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that "My ignorance is just as good as your knowledge."- Isaac Asimov

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              • #8
                Originally posted by Canmoore View Post
                I was just thinking of this.. What about China is it, that allowes it to have the highest population?? Even in ancient times, China (or the kingdoms that would eventually make up China) had populations higher than anywhere else in the world.
                It has everything to do with the political inclinations and outlooks of the constituent peoples. On a population density basis, many European countries have far greater densities than China - even a China excluding Tibet and East Turkestan (which would increase Chinese population density quite a bit).

                <nitpick>The British Empire had a higher population than anywhere else in the world for quite some time in history. Even today the area that used to be the British India - India, Pakistan and Bangladesh combined - has a greater population than China will with its maximum claims.</nitpick>

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by Canmoore View Post
                  As for being agricultural based.. nearly all ancient civilzations such as Egypt, Mesopotamia were built upon agriculture. The Romans viewed farming as the most noble of all occupations...

                  However, there populations have never been anywhere near what China's has been.
                  The lands that became China had one pre-historic advantage in agriculture, as opposed to the countries you listed: Plenty of gentle and rolling hill-ranges to trap clouds and divert glacial rivers to maximum possible area. A millions of years old collision's after-effects means that from the high Himalayas down to Tibetan Plateau, down to Central Chinese hills, and finally down to Coastal plains.

                  Also you must give due credit to the Chinese, in that they never enshrined agriculture as the ultimate foundation of virtue. Definitely they respected it, but didn't put it on the pedestal like the Romans of the Republic Era did, or the Japanese society did until quite recently. The Chinese were quite flexible in recognizing the advantages that merchants as well as the producers.

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                  • #10
                    Originally posted by astralis View Post
                    duh, coz chinese girls are the hottest.
                    Dunno' how that translates to having a large population, seeing how the other accepted images of "hot girls" are rather from thinly populated Scandinavia... but I will give you this much though: Chinese babies after a few weeks are humongous! I can definitely see evolutionary/survival advantages in gaining weight asap if you were likely to run into famines or drought.

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                    • #11
                      Fascinating! I went with a friend to the China exhibit that came to the Canadian Museum of Civilization. It was really neat seeing all the ancient artifacts and sculptures.

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                      • #12
                        I was under the impression that Confucian thought looked down upon commerce as a form of earning unsuitable for the "virtuous". (that didn't stop wealthy merchants from becoming part of the gentry scholars, of course)

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                        • #13
                          It was the form of agriculture

                          Originally posted by xunil View Post
                          Chinese is not a ethnic group, but a culture group. There were many ethnic group in the land of China in ancient time, slowly they accept the main stream culture of China and become Chinese. Because China was geographic isolated in ancient time, the main stream culture was always strong and not disrupted. So other ethnic group steadily merged into the main culture group. Egypt, Mesopotmia and Roman were not like this.


                          No, not that aggressive. People just think it's good to have more kids. Just like people think it's good to have more money.
                          It was the form of agriculture in China that was different from Europe. Rice cultivation may be labour intensive, but per acre it produced more calories than the traditional uses of land in Europe which involved a combination of cattle hearding with wheat and barley production. The low level of cattle use in China meant that a higher portion of the biomass produced was eaten by people.

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                          • #14
                            becouse they are here longer
                            "Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well-armed lamb contesting the vote!" B. Franklin

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                            • #15
                              The fertility of the soil in the Yangzi and Yellow River region and rice horticulture, which is both capable of sustaining a large population as well as requiring it to be exploited fully.
                              All those who are merciful with the cruel will come to be cruel to the merciful.
                              -Talmud Kohelet Rabbah, 7:16.

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