<Tr> <Td> <Ul> <Li> </Li> <Li> </Li> <Li> </Li> </Ul> </Td> </Tr> <Ul> <Li> </Li> <Li> </Li> <Li> </Li> </Ul> <P> The names of China include the many contemporary and historical appellations given in various languages for the East Asian country known as Zhongguo (中國 / 中国) in its official language . China, the name in English for the country, was derived from Portuguese in the 16th century, and became popular in the mid 19th century . It is believed to be a borrowing from Middle Persian, and some have traced it further back to Sanskrit . It is also generally thought that the ultimate source of the name China is the Chinese word "Qin" (Chinese: 秦), the name of the dynasty that unified China but also existed as a state for many centuries prior . There are however other alternative suggestions for the origin of the word . </P> <P> Chinese names for China, aside from Zhongguo, include Zhonghua (中華 / 中华), Huaxia (華夏 / 华夏), Shenzhou (神州) and Jiuzhou (九州). Han (漢 / 汉) and Tang (唐) are common names given for the Chinese ethnicity . The People's Republic of China (Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó) and Republic of China (Zhōnghuá Mínguó) are the official names for the two contemporary sovereign states currently claiming sovereignty over the traditional area of China . "Mainland China" is used to refer to areas under the jurisdiction by the PRC usually excluding Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan . </P>

Where does the country name china come from