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[[File:Map of the Chinese Diaspora in the World.svg|thumb|Countries with a significant population with Chinese ancestry.
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The Chinese people, or simply Chinese, are people or ethnic groups identified with Greater China, usually through ethnicity, nationality, citizenship, or other affiliation.
Chinese people are known as Zhongguoren () or as Huaren () by speakers of standard Chinese, including those living in Greater China as well as overseas Chinese. Although both terms both refer to Chinese people, their usage depends on the person and context. The former term is commonly (but not exclusively) used to refer to the citizens of the People's Republic of China —
普通名詞。中華民族的族人或中國大陸的人民。 noun, ethnic groups of Zhonghua Minzu, or people of China The term Huaren is used to refer to ethnic Chinese, and is more often used for those who reside overseas or are non-citizens of China.
The Han Chinese are the largest ethnic group in China, comprising approximately 92% of its Mainland China. CIA Factbook : "Han Chinese 91.6%" out of a reported population of 1,379 billion (July 2017 est.) They comprise approximately 95% of the population of Taiwan. They are also the world's largest ethnic group, comprising approximately 18% of the World population.
Outside China, the terms "Han Chinese" and "Chinese" are often conflated since those identifying or registered as Han Chinese are the dominant ethnic group in China. There are 55 officially-recognized ethnic minorities in China who are also Chinese by nationality.
People from Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), may also be referred to as "Chinese" in various contexts, though they are usually referred to as "Taiwanese people". The territory of Taiwan is disputed and the ROC has limited recognition of its sovereignty.
The term "Overseas Chinese" is used to refer to people of Chinese origin living overseas as well as Chinese citizens residing outside China, but more commonly the former.
Other ethnic groups in China include the Zhuang people, Hui people, Manchu people, Uyghur people, and Miao people, who make up the five largest ethnic minorities in mainland China, with populations of approximately 10 million or more. In addition, the Yi people, Tujia people, Tibetan people and Mongols each have populations between five and ten million.
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), recognizes 56 native Chinese ethnic groups. There are also several unrecognized ethnic groups in China.
The Han Taiwanese, who are Han Chinese people living in Taiwan, are usually categorized by the Taiwanese government into three main ethnic groups; the Hoklo Taiwanese, Taiwanese Hakkas, and waishengren (i.e. "Mainland Chinese people in Taiwan"). The Kinmenese people and Matsu Islands peoples are two other significant Han Taiwanese ethnic groups.
The Taiwanese Hoklos and Hakkas are both considered to be "native" populations of Taiwan since they first began migrating to Taiwan in significant numbers from Fujian and Guangdong over 400 years ago (they first began migrating to Taiwan in minor numbers several centuries earlier). They are often collectively referred to in Taiwanese Mandarin as "Benshengren" (meaning "people from Taiwan Province"). Those self-identifying as Hoklo culturally comprise approximately 70% of Taiwan's total population and the Hakkas comprise approximately 14% of Taiwan's total population.
Meanwhile, the so-called Mainlanders (Taiwanese) are mostly descended from people who migrated from mainland China to Taiwan during the 1940s and 1950s. They are often referred to in Taiwanese Mandarin as "Waishengren" (meaning "people from outside of this province"). The Mainlanders (Taiwanese) comprise approximately 14% of Taiwan's total population.
Collectively, the various Taiwanese indigenous peoples comprise approximately 2% of Taiwan's total population. The various Taiwanese indigenous peoples are believed to have been living in Taiwan for up to 6000 years prior to the colonization of Taiwan by China which began during the 17th century (Common Era).
The Chinese government instead has its own ethnic designations for Taiwanese people. Han Taiwanese people are considered to be Han Chinese people (no distinction is made), whereas the various recognized and unrecognized (by Taiwan) Taiwanese indigenous peoples are collectively recognized (by China) to be "Gaoshanren" (i.e. "High Mountain People"). The Gaoshanren are one of the 56 officially-recognized ethnic groups of China.
Within the People's Republic of China, a Hong Kong Special Administrative Region passport or Macao Special Administrative Region passport may be issued to Chinese nationals of Hong Kong or Macao, respectively.
The Nationality law of the Republic of China regulates nationality within the Republic of China (Taiwan). A person obtains nationality either by birth or by naturalization. A person with at least one parent who is a national of the Republic of China, or born in the ROC to stateless parents qualifies for nationality by birth.
The National Identification Card is an identity document issued to people who have Hukou system in Taiwan. The Resident Certificate is an identification card issued to residents of the Republic of China who do not hold a National Identification Card.
The relationship between ROC nationality and PRC nationality is disputed.
In Southeast Asia, people of Chinese descent call themselves 華人 (Huárén) instead of (中國人 Zhōngguórén) which commonly refers to the citizens of the People's Republic of China or the Republic of China. This is especially so in the Chinese communities of Southeast Asia. The term Zhongguoren has a more political or ideological aspect in its use; while many in China may use Zhongguoren to mean the Chinese ethnicity, some in Taiwan would refuse to be called Zhongguoren.
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