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A single character opening every plate.
Also known as: Chinese plate province letter, Province abbreviation plate China
The character at the start of every mainland Chinese registration plate, naming the province the vehicle is registered in.
Names the province, region or municipality of registration.
Contexts: Road signage, Public information
Uses each province's traditional one-character abbreviation rather than an abbreviation of its modern name, so several characters are historical: 冀 for Hebei is the name of an ancient province, 粤 for Guangdong is the old name for the region, and 沪 for Shanghai is the name of a fishing weir. The plate carries a layer of historical geography no other part of the vehicle does.
Contexts: Road signage, Public information
Is followed by a Latin letter identifying the issuing authority within the province, with A conventionally the provincial capital, so the first two characters together locate a vehicle to a city.
Contexts: Road signage, Public information
One written character set at the left end of a plate, followed by a Latin letter and then a block of letters and numerals.
The plate colour that classifies the same vehicle.