China’s Sexual Revolution

Read an article on perception, prohibitions and changes in the field of sexuality in China.

Chinese people are experiencing their sexual rebirth, which started approximately 25 years ago, in their own way. People hug, hold hands, even kiss. In public. It was not like this before. In the old times, women who had sexual intercourse before the marriage faced death sentence. Now times are changing fast in the field of sexuality together with China’s economic and social progress.

China's sexual revolution is causing people to become more liberal 

The research, done in 1997, showed that 40% of couples never kissed or hugged before they were married. Holding hands was unthinkable and two decades ago, arranged marriages were something quite ordinary.

Another research, done later, showed a different situation among the students. Participants were students from different parts of the country and it lasted for four years. The results revealed that 25% of students had sexual intercourse before their graduation, 22% of male and 18% of female students had more than six sexual partners.

A research was also done among the citizens of Shanghai – 50% of men felt that girl’s virginity is no longer important. This is a huge step forward for China, considering the fact that a couple was unable to book a room in the hotel, if they did not show their marriage certificate. Things are changing. Especially when it comes to students, the progress is shown in both mind and actions.

China used to be "The Whore of the Orient"

China's sexual revolution is in a way return to the situation of the past. It is not a revolution as some call this period. China was quite liberal in times of Tang and Han Dynasty. Women were allowed to divorce, they could date, and in some regions they were even allowed to walk around topless. Shanghai was called "The Whore of the Orient" up to the 20th century. With the arrival of communism to power in 1949, China changed in many ways.

China's  sexual revolution is bringing the country closer to the West

Silence and abstinence are not the best ways to confront sexuality. Education and information are key elements. We must all use them, especially when we are talking about intimacy, which has a long-lasting effect on our lives. Not only sex education, but also disclosure of rights help bring China closer to the West.

Some (rightfully) warn about the negative consequences, like teenage pregnancy, spreading of sexually transmitted diseases and unhealthy love philosophy. The appropriate sexual education includes information on contraception, sexual diseases and love. Prostitution is also coming back to China. Everything has its price.

Despite China's sexual revolution sexuality on the Internet and TV is forbidden

Public display of sexuality is still in its early stages. Conservative attitude still prevails. Not only on TV, they also banned 44.000 internet pages and arrested more than 800 people suspected of involvement in the internet pornography.

"Premarital sex is immoral and considered a taboo" is still the official statement of China. China does not understand that young people find forbidden things even more appealing, and that DVDs coming from abroad are not all that hard to get.


We all have our own values and beliefs we try to follow and hope that they will bring us good life. We try different things – some more, some less appropriate. China is no exception. Europe and the rest of the world also faced many ups and downs in the perception of sexuality. It seems that curiosity and indulgence are firmly rooted in the human nature, so we keep returning to our roots, which are growing stronger.