1997 in China
The following lists events in the year 1997 in China.
Incumbents
- General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party: Jiang Zemin
- President: Jiang Zemin
- Premier: Li Peng
- Vice President: Rong Yiren
- Vice Premier: Zhu Rongji
Governors
- Governor of Anhui Province - Hui Liangyu
- Governor of Fujian Province - He Guoqiang
- Governor of Gansu Province - Sun Ying then Song Zhaosu
- Governor of Guangdong Province - Lu Ruihua
- Governor of Guizhou Province - Wu Yixia
- Governor of Hainan Province - Ruan Chongwu then Wang Xiaofeng
- Governor of Hebei Province - Ye Liansong then Yue Qifeng
- Governor of Heilongjiang Province - Tian Fengshan
- Governor of Henan Province - Ma Zhongchen then Li Keqiang
- Governor of Hubei Province - Jiang Zhuping
- Governor of Hunan Province - Yang Zhengwu then Chu Bo
- Governor of Jiangsu Province - Zheng Silin then Ji Yunshi
- Governor of Jiangxi Province - Shu Shengyou
- Governor of Jilin Province - Wang Yunkun then Hong Hu
- Governor of Liaoning Province - Wen Shizhen
- Governor of Qinghai Province - Tian Chengping then Bai Enpei
- Governor of Shaanxi Province - Cheng Andong
- Governor of Shandong Province - Li Chunting
- Governor of Shanxi Province - Sun Wensheng
- Governor of Sichuan Province - Song Baorui
- Governor of Yunnan Province - Li Jiating
- Governor of Zhejiang Province - Wan Xueyuan, Chai Songyue
Events
- January 21 – 1997 Jiashi earthquakes
- February 3 to 5 – Ghulja Incident
- February 25 – 1997 Ürümqi bus bombings
- April 29 - According to Chinese government official confirmed report, two passenger train collision on Rongjiawan Station, Hunan Province, 120 persons were fatalities with 230 persons were hurt.
- May 8 – China Southern Airlines Flight 3456
- July 1 – Transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong
- August – Typhoon Winnie (1997)
- September 19 – Election of the 15th Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party
- November 8 – 1997 Manyi earthquake
Culture
- 1997 Shanghai International Film Festival: The Woodlanders won the award for Best Feature Film
- List of Chinese films of 1997
Sport
- December 5–14 – 1997 AFC Women's Championship, in Guangdong
- Chinese Jia-A League 1997
- China at the 1997 East Asian Games
Births
- January - Fan Zhendong, Chinese professional table tennis player.
- April 3 - Zhao Xintong, Chinese professional snooker player.
- July 7 - Liu Yan (golfer)
- November - Xu Minghao, singer, member of Seventeen.
Deaths
- January 14 — King Hu, film director based in Hong Kong and Taiwan
- January 28 — Wong Shun-leung, Hong Kong martial artist
- February 2 — Qin Jiwei, general
- February 17 — Leonard Ho, Hong Kong film producer
- February 19 — Deng Xiaoping, 3rd Paramount Leader of China
- March 31 — Dorothy Liu, Hong Kong pro-Beijing politician
- April 9 — Wu Zuoren, painter
- April 11 — Wang Xiaobo, novelist and essayist
- April 26 — Peng Zhen, 4th Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress
- May 6 — Wang You, biochemist
- May 7 — Yip Hon, gambling tycoon
- May 16 — Wang Zengqi, writer
- May 25 — Luo Ergang, historian
- June 6 — Liao Shantao, mathematician
- June 10 — Zhou Lin, politician
- June 27 — Joseph Zong Huaide, Roman Catholic Bishop of Roman Catholic Diocese of Shandong
- June 28 — Yang Yichen, politician
- June 30 — Su Bingqi, archaeologist and co-founder of Peking University's archaeology program
- September 8 — Yu Jim-yuen, martial artist, actor, teacher and the master of China Drama Academy
- September 22 — Chiang Wei-kuo, Nationalist general and adopted son of Chiang Kai-shek
- September 23 — Lu Sheng, lieutenant general
- October 7 — Wan Laiming, animator
- October 17 – Fang Yi, former Vice Premier of China
- October 20 — Li Ruishan, politician
- October 26 — Teng Haiqing, military officer and politician
- November 8 — Lam Ching-ying, Hong Kong stuntman, actor, martial artist and action director
- November 9 — Wu Xiuquan, military officer and diplomat
- December 4 — Ho Sin Hang, Hong Kong entrepreneur, philanthropist and financier
- December 16 — Hu Ning, physicist and writer