中央(zhōng yāng) - centre, middle; central authorities in Mandarin

中央 (zhōng yāng) is the exact centre of something: the middle of a square, a table, a room or a pitch. It is more precise and more formal than 中间, which simply means somewhere in between.

It has a second life in politics. Used alone, 中央 means the central government or the party centre, as opposed to 地方 (local government). 中央电视台 and 中央银行 use it the same way.

The trap is confusing it with 中心. 中心 is a hub, an institution or a focus, so a shopping centre is 购物中心 and never 购物中央. 中央 is the geometric middle or the political centre, nothing else.