There are officially recognized ethnic groups in China. In terms of numbers however, Han Chinese is by far the largest group.Throughout history, many groups have merged into neighboring ethnicities or disappeared. At the same time, many within the Han identity have maintained distinct linguistic and regional cultural traditions. The term Zhonghua Minzu has been used to describe the notion of Chinese nationalism in general.[citation needed] Much of the traditional identity within the community has to do with distinguishing the family name.