從晚清開始，中國同外國的傳統朝貢關係，開始由條約關係逐漸取代。條約系主權國之間嘅約定，點喺條約中稱呼自己就體現咗對自己嘅身份嘅認同。中國大陸學者李揚帆認為，喺通常情況下，清朝以「中國」和「中華」代表國家，而以「大清」代表政府 。
From the late Qing Dynasty onwards, the traditional tributary relationship between China and foreign countries began to gradually replace the treaty relationship. A treaty is an agreement between sovereign states, and how to call oneself in a treaty reflects the recognition of one's own identity. Chinese mainland scholar Li Yangfan believes that under normal circumstances, the Qing Dynasty used "China" and "China" to represent the state, and "Daqing" to represent the government.