Simplified Chinese Characters are standardized Chinese characters prescribed for use in Mainland China. It is one of many standard character sets of the contemporary Chinese written language. The government of the People’s Republic of China in Mainland China has promoted them for use in printing since the 1950s and 1960s, in an attempt to increase literacy. They are officially used in the People’s Republic of China and Singapore.
Traditional Chinese is currently used in the Republic of China/Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau. Overseas Chinese communities generally use traditional characters, but simplified characters are often used among mainland Chinese immigrants.