A provincial dataset of agricultural land use area in China (1924–2024)

This dataset covers 31 provincial‑level administrative units in mainland China (excluding Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan) from 1924 to 2024. It provides annual areas (in 10⁴ ha) of six agricultural land types: cultivated land, garden land, forest land, grassland, aquaculture and fishing water surface, and facility agricultural land. The data were integrated from multi‑source historical materials (official statistics, historical archives, remote‑sensing interpretations, and international reconstruction databases). A backward anchoring reconstruction method was applied to fill missing values for 1924–1949. The dataset also includes the original benchmark values (anchor points) used for reconstruction. It is suitable for long‑term studies on land‑use change, agricultural transition, ecological policy assessment, and historical geography.