CTAmap: A continuous vector dataset of Chinese administrative divisions from 2000 to 2026

CTAmap is a continuous, high-precision vector dataset of Chinese administrative divisions covering the period from 2000 to 2026. It provides topologically consistent administrative boundaries at the provincial, prefectural, and county levels. The dataset is constructed using a "hybrid reconstruction framework" that integrates the 2020 national baseline vector with underlying micro-level spatial units (township and village vectors) to accurately reconstruct historical spatial reorganizations. All boundary units are strictly matched with the official statutory records and the 6-digit administrative division codes published by the Ministry of Civil Affairs of China. It serves as a spatial baseline for long-term Earth system science, historical census data integration, and spatial downscaling analyses. Folder Structure: The repository is organized into three main directories: logs/: Contains the annual modification logs. This folder includes detailed textual records of administrative division changes, tracking the historical evolution and providing official evidence for spatial reconstructions. shp/: Contains the spatial vector data in standard Shapefile format. gpkg/: Contains the spatial vector data in GeoPackage format. Temporal and Hierarchical Organization: Within both the shp/ and gpkg/ directories, the data is structured chronologically and hierarchically: There are 27 continuous year-specific folders, named from 2000 to 2026. Inside each year folder, the vector files are further categorized into three subfolders representing the administrative levels: Provincial_level/: Provincial-level administrative boundaries (e.g., provinces, municipalities). Prefectural_level/: Prefectural-level administrative boundaries (e.g., prefecture-level cities, autonomous prefectures). county_level/: County-level administrative boundaries (e.g., counties, districts, county-level cities).