Intermediate quiz (quite tough) about the geography, history, traditions and language of China (5)
1. A magpie in a painting symbolizes a wish for what?
romance
children
peace
joy
The magpie is a harbinger of joy and as such is used in paintings to wish someone joy and happiness. If a magpie happens to be heard while ruminating on an action is considered a sign that the plan is the right one.
2. Which is the Chinese language most frequently spoken in Zhejiang province other than Mandarin?
yue (cantonese)
wu
hakka
jin
The Wu language is spoken by over 70 million people. Jiangsu, Shanghai and Zhejiang provinces are its heartland.
3. Tanggu or Binhai is the port area for which major city?
Xiamen
Guangzhou
Tianjin
Hong Kong
Tianjin is the port serving Beijing and much of north-eastern China.
4. Which province is known by the shortened name 'Lu'?
Jiangsu
Henan
Shandong
Ningxia
The modern province of Shandong was the center of the state of Lu way back in Zhou dynasty (1042-289BCE). The state of Lu is famous because Confucius was born and lived at Qufu the capital of the Lu kingdom.
5. What was the religion of the great explorer Zheng He?
Buddhist
Muslim
Daoist
Jewish
Zheng He (1371 - 1433) was a Muslim. His Muslim faith was a great aid in dealing with the mainly Arab traders he met on his travels; as this era was the zenith of Arab trade. His final journey took him as far as Mecca and Jeddah.
6. In which province did the Taiping rebellion begin?
Jiangxi
Zhejiang
Guangdong
Jiangsu
Hong Xiuquan was born in Fuyuan Springs, Guangzhou and it was in the bustling city that he came across the Christian Bible and founded his rebellion there. It soon spread to neighboring Guangxi province.
7. Why is Mongolia split into Outer and Inner Mongolia?
Outer Mongolia was Genghiz Khan's home
Revolution of 1924
Civil war of 1845
Chinese invasion of 1875
After the Russian Communist revolution of 1917 the Russians supported revolution in Outer Mongolia and it became a separate Communist state in 1924, at this time China was a Republic.
8. The magnificent Huangguoshu Waterfalls can be found in which province?
Guizhou
Shandong
Gansu
Yunnan
The Huangguoshu Waterfall, Guizhou is the largest in China, there are nine 'falls' of level; eight cataracts and one large waterfall. It is best to visit between May and October when the river level is high.
9. The Supreme Buddha (Siddhārtha Gautama) was born in which country that neighbors China?
India
Korea
Vietnam
Nepal
Gautama was born into a rich household in Nepal living a life of luxury but when at the age of 29 he saw the suffering of people in the outside world he determined to renounce all worldly pleasures and founded Buddhism.
10. Sun Yatsen's mausoleum is close to which major city?
Beijing
Wuhan
Chongqing
Nanjing
Sun Yatsen chose Nanjing as his Republican Capital of China in 1912, Beijing was still in the control of the northern warlords when he died in 1925.
11. Why is the Yellow River so called?
yellow was the Han dynastic color
pollution with yellow dye
carries yellow mud
rivers were named after colors
The Yellow River carries a heavy load of 'loess' which is yellowish calcareous clay from northern China. The Yellow River is heavily used by people along its route and on occasions it dries up before reaching the sea.
12. Which province is the coldest in summer?
Xinjiang
Inner Mongolia
Tibet
Beijing
Tibet has such a high altitude and thin atmosphere that it does not heat up much in the summer. In winter the coldest province by far in Heilongjiang.
13. K2 the second highest mountain in the world is on the border of China with which country?
Kyrgyzstan
India
Pakistan
Laos
K2 is on the border with Pakistan. It is in the Karakoram range and like Mount Everest is directly on the border so half is in Xinjiang, China the other half in Pakistan.
14. The Jesuit missionaries most impressed the Imperial court with their knowledge of what?
painting
astronomy
medicine
sword fighting
It was the new European methods in astronomy that really impressed the Chinese. Adam Schall and Ferdinand Verbiest in 1664 won a competition to make the most accurate prediction of a solar eclipse against the Chinese astronomers who used traditional Chinese methods.
15. In which province is the fictional Shangrila said to be located?
Yunnan
Guangxi
Shandong
Liaoning
The fictional heaven on Earth of Shangrila was created by James Hilton in his book 'Lost Horizon'. There is no location that exactly matches his descriptions but Mount Kawarkapo in Yunnan is as good as any. The Chinese have renamed Zhongdian as Shangrila to cash in on the story.
16. Imperial designs represent the Emperor as a dragon, but which creature represents the Empress?
phoenix
qilin
dove
pheasant
The Emperor and Empress are depicted as Dragon and Phoenix.
17. Which was China's most populous province in 2014?
Guangdong
Zhejiang
Hunan
Beijing
Guangdong is top with 106.8 million closely followed by Henan with 100.4 million. See our province table for the full stats.
18. The Chinese nuclear test facility of Lop Nur is located in which province?
Tibet
Inner Mongolia
Xinjiang
Heilongjiang
Lop Nur has been used as a nuclear testing site from 1959 to1996.
19. The Tiananmen Incident of 1976 occurred following the death of which leader?
Liu Shaoqi
Lin Biao
Zhou Enlai
Peng Dehuai
Zhou Enlai was the premier of China for much of the time since 1949. He was seen as affable and flexible rather than doggedly doctrinal. There was a mass outpouring of grief in Tiananmen Square to mark his death. The Gang of Four violently suppressed the crowds that gathered. Four thousand people were arrested.
20. Mount Lushan is close to which major famous lake?
Poyang Lake
Dongting Lake
Lake Nanyang
Lake Tai
Poyang Lake is in northern Jiangxi province just south of the Yangzi River.