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Chinese name |  ['four' 'river'] |
| Population | 81,300,000 | |
| Area | 487,700 | |
| Capital | Chengdu | |
| Main Industries | agriculture, mining | |
| GDP | 12,926 | |
| Foreign Trade | 11,021 | |
| Ethnic minorities | 5% | |
| Urbanization | 36% | |
Sichuan (Four rivers) Province is an important and interesting Province. It is surrounded by mountain ranges that form a natural basin. It is a large province, about the size of France and with a much higher population. Known as the 'rice bowl' of China it very heavily farmed with every precious parcel of land under cultivation. The warm climate and access to water from its many rivers make irrigation easy. The Sichuan (Szechwan) cuisine is widely praised for its use of chilli and spices.
In 1997 the large size and population (over 100 million) of Sichuan led to the splitting of the new 'municipality' of Chongqing on the Yangzi as a separate administrative region.
