Sichuan, also Szechwan, province in southern China, crossed by the upper Yangtze River. The most populous and one of the largest Chinese provinces, it has as its economic focus the fertile Sichuan, or Red, Basin in the east. High mountains, loftiest and widest to the north and northwest of China, border the basin on all sides. Rice (grown in the summer) and wheat (grown in the winter) are the chief crops, while sugarcane, silk, and tung oil are also important. Large and only partly developed reserves of coal, petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, and salt brine support a variety of manufacturing industries. Major cities of the province are Chengdu, the capital; Nanchong; Neijiang; and Zigong (also known as Tzu-kung).

Sichuan was annexed by China during the Qin (Ch’in) dynasty (221-206 bc). In the 3rd century ad it was the center of the independent Shu Kingdom and was subsequently known under many other names before assuming the name Sichuan during the Song dynasty (960-1279). From 1911 to 1930 the region was ruled by several rival warlords. Modern economic development began during the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945), when China’s Nationalist government established Chongqing as its temporary capital. The province was nearly doubled in area in 1955, when it absorbed the former Sikang province. In 1996 the city of Chongqing separated from Sichuan, becoming an autonomous municipality directly under China’s central government. Sichuan has a population of 87,004,000 (2003 estimate).