List of ethnic groups in China

[1][needs update] Besides the Han Chinese majority, 55 other ethnic (minority) groups are categorized in present-day China, numbering approximately 105 million people (8%), mostly concentrated in the bordering northwest, north, northeast, south and southwest but with some in central interior areas.

Officially recognized ethnic groups receive or have received certain benefits over Han Chinese under the regional ethnic autonomy system, including affirmative action, exemptions from the one-child policy, designated seats in political organs and government support to preserve their culture.

[6][non-primary source needed] Soon after the establishment of the People's Republic of China, 39 ethnic groups were recognized by the first national census in 1954.

The last change was the addition of the Jino people in 1979, bringing the number of recognized ethnic groups to the current 56.

[7] The following ethnic groups living in China are not recognized by the Chinese government: During the Fifth National Population Census of the People's Republic of China held in 2000, 734,438 people on the mainland were recorded as belonging to "undistinguished ethnic groups"—of these, 97% resided in Guizhou.