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Asia
*** Shopping-Tip: Asia
{{otheruses}}
'''Asia''' is the largest and most populous region or
continent depending on the definition. It is traditionally defined as part of the
landmass of
Africa-
Eurasia lying east of the
Suez Canal, east of the
Ural Mountains, and south of the
Caucasus Mountains and the
Caspian Sea Caspian and
Black Seas. About 60% of the world's
human population lives in Asia.
Image:LocationAsia.png thumb|250px|World map showing Asia.
Etymology
The word ''Asia'' entered English, via
Latin, from
Ancient Greek Ασία (''Asia''; see also
List of traditional Greek place names). This name is first attested in
Herodotus (about 440 BC), where it refers to
Asia Minor; or, for the purposes of describing the
Persian Wars, to the
Persian Empire, in contrast to
Greece and
Egypt. Herodotus comments that he is puzzled as to why three different women's names are used to describe a single land mass (
Europa, Asia and
Libya, referring to Africa), stating that most Greeks assumed that Asia was named after the wife of
Prometheus but that the
Lydians say it was named after
Asias, son of
Cotys who passed the name on to a tribe in
Sardis.
Even before Herodotus,
Homer knew of a
Troy Trojan ally named
Asios Hyrtakides Asios, son of
Hyrtacus, a ruler over several towns, and elsewhere he describes a marsh as ασιος (Iliad 2, 461). The Greek term may be derived from
Assuwa, a
14th century BC confederation of states in Western Anatolia.
Hittite language Hittite ''assu-'' "good" is probably an element in that name.
Alternatively, the ultimate etymology of the term may be from the
Akkadian language Akkadian word ''(w)aṣû(m)'', cognate of Hebrew יצ×?, which means "to go out" or "to ascend", referring to the direction of the
sun at sunrise in the
Middle East, and also likely connected with the Phoenician word ''asa'' meaning east. This may be contrasted to a similar etymology proposed for ''Europe'', as being from
Semitic languages Semitic ''erēbu'' "to enter" or "set" (of the sun). However, an originally Mesopotamian or Middle Eastern perspective would not explain how the term "Asia" first came to be associated with Anatolia as lying ''west'' of the Semitic speaking area.
Definition and boundaries
{{seealso|Geography of Asia}}
Image:Asia satellite orthographic.jpg thumb|280px|Satellite view of Asia.
Medieval Europeans considered Asia as a continent, a distinct landmass. The European concept of the three continents in the
Old World goes back to
classical antiquity with the
etymology of the word rooted in the ancient
Near East Near and
Middle East. The demarcation between Asia and
Africa is the
Isthmus of
Suez Canal Suez and the
Red Sea. The boundary between Asia and
Europe is commonly believed to run through the
Dardanelles, the
Sea of Marmara, the
Bosporus, the Black Sea, the Caucasus Mountains, the Caspian Sea, the
Ural River to its source, and the Ural Mountains to the
Kara Sea near Kara,
Russia. However, modern discovery of the extent of Africa and Asia made this definition rather anachronistic, especially in the case of Asia, which would have several regions that would be considered distinct landmasses if these criteria were used (for example, South Asia and East Asia).
Geologists and physical geographers no longer consider Asia and Europe to be separate continents. It is either defined in terms of geological landmasses (physical geography) or tectonic plates (geology). In the former case, Europe is a western peninsula of
Eurasia or the Africa-Eurasia landmass. In the latter, Europe and Asia are parts of the Eurasian plate, which excludes the Arabian and Indian tectonic plates.
In human geography, there are two schools of thought. One school follows historical convention and treats Europe and Asia as different continents, categorizing Europe, East Asia (the Orient), South Asia (British India), and the Middle East (Arabia and Persia) as specific regions for more detailed analysis. The other schools equate the word "continent" in terms of geographical region when referring to Europe, and use the term "region" to describe Asia in terms of physical geography. Because in linguistic terms, "continent" implies a distinct landmass, it is becoming increasingly common to substitute the term "region" for "continent" to avoid the problem of disambiguation altogether.
There is much confusion in European languages with the term "Asian". Because a category implies homogenity, the term "Asian" almost always refers to a subcategory of people from Asia rather than referring to "Asian" defined in term of "Asia". The fact that in American English, Asian refers to East Asian (Orientals), while in British English, Asian refers to South Asian reflects this confusion. Sometimes, it is not even clear exactly what "Asia" consists of. Some definitions exclude
Turkey, the Middle East, or Russia. The term is sometimes used more strictly in reference to
Asia Pacific, which does not include the Middle East or Russia, but does include islands in the
Pacific Ocean — a number of which may also be considered part of
Australasia or
Oceania. Asia contains the
Indian subcontinent, Arabian subcontinent, as well as a piece of the North American plate in Siberia.
{{further|
Transcontinental nation#Countries in both Asia and Europe}}
{{seealso|Copenhagen criteria#Geographic_criteria for the definition of Europe}}
{{seealso|Orientalism}}
Territories and regions
Image:Location-Asia-UNsubregions.png thumb|225px|[[subregion|Regions of Asia:
{{legend|#0000ff|
North Asia Northern Asia}}
{{legend|#ff00ff|
Central Asia}}
{{legend|#00ff00|
West Asia Western Asia}}
{{legend|#ff0000|
South Asia Southern Asia}}
{{legend|#ffff0a|
East Asia Eastern Asia}}
{{legend|#ffcc00|
Southeast Asia Southeastern Asia}}]]
Image:Asia-map.png right|thumb|225px|Political map of Asia.
{| border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" style="border:1px solid #aaa; border-collapse:collapse"
|- bgcolor="#ECECEC"
! Name of territory,
with
flag
!
List of countries by area Area(km²)
!
List of countries by population Population(
1 July 2002 est.)
!
List of countries by population density Population density(per km²)
!
Capital
|-
| colspan=5 style="background:#eee;" | '''
Central Asia:'''
[ Continental regions as per :Image:United Nations geographical subregions.png UN categorisations/map except #endnote Russia note 8 (Encyclopaedia Britannica source). Depending on definitions, various territories cited below (notes 2, 7-10, 12-14, 16-18) may be in Transcontinental nation one or both of Asia and Europe, Africa, or Oceania.]
|-
| {{flagicon|Kazakhstan}}
Kazakhstan[ Kazakhstan is sometimes considered a transcontinental country in Central Asia (UN region) and Eastern Europe; population and area figures are for Asian portion only.]
| align="right" | 2,346,927
| align="right" | 13,472,593
| align="right" | 5.7
|
Astana
|-
| {{flagicon|Kyrgyzstan}}
Kyrgyzstan
| align="right" | 198,500
| align="right" | 4,822,166
| align="right" | 24.3
|
Bishkek
|-
| {{flagicon|Tajikistan}}
Tajikistan
| align="right" | 143,100
| align="right" | 6,719,567
| align="right" | 47.0
|
Dushanbe
|-
| {{flagicon|Turkmenistan}}
Turkmenistan
| align="right" | 488,100
| align="right" | 4,688,963
| align="right" | 9.6
|
Ashgabat
|-
| {{flagicon|Uzbekistan}}
Uzbekistan
| align="right" | 447,400
| align="right" | 25,563,441
| align="right" | 57.1
|
Tashkent
|-
| colspan=5 style="background:#eee;" | '''
Eastern Asia:'''
|-
| {{flagicon|China}}
People's Republic of China China[ The current state is formally known as the People's Republic of China (PRC), which is subsumed by the China titular entity and civilisation.]
| align="right" | 9,584,492
| align="right" | 1,284,303,705
| align="right" | 134.0
|
Beijing
|-
| {{flagicon|Hong Kong}}
Hong Kong (China)
[ Hong Kong is a Special Administrative Region (SAR) of the PRC.]
| align="right" | 1,092
| align="right" | 7,303,334
| align="right" | 6,688.0
| —
|-
| {{flagicon|Japan}}
Japan
| align="right" | 377,835
| align="right" | 126,974,628
| align="right" | 336.1
|
Tokyo
|-
| {{flagicon|Macau}}
Macau (China)
[ Macau is a Special Administrative Region (SAR) of the PRC.]
| align="right" | 25
| align="right" | 461,833
| align="right" | 18,473.3
| —
|-
| {{flagicon|Mongolia}}
Mongolia
| align="right" | 1,565,000
| align="right" | 2,694,432
| align="right" | 1.7
|
Ulaanbaatar
|-
| {{flagicon|North Korea}}
North Korea
| align="right" | 120,540
| align="right" | 22,224,195
| align="right" | 184.4
|
Pyongyang
|-
| {{flagicon|South Korea}}
South Korea
| align="right" | 98,480
| align="right" | 48,324,000
| align="right" | 490.7
|
Seoul
|-
| {{flagicon|Taiwan}}
Taiwan[ Taiwan is a political status of Taiwan contested territory of the PRC (Taiwan, Province of China) and the Republic of China (ROC): the two are not co-terminous and the ROC is United Nations member states not recognised by the UN as a sovereign state.]
| align="right" | 35,980
| align="right" | 22,548,009
| align="right" | 626.7
|
Taipei
|-
| colspan=5 style="background:#eee;" | '''
Northern Africa:'''
|-
| {{flagicon|Egypt}}
Egypt[ Egypt is generally considered a transcontinental country in Northern Africa (UN region) and Western Asia; population and area figures are for Asian portion only, east of the Suez Canal (Sinai Peninsula).]
| align="right" | 63,556
| align="right" | 1,378,159
| align="right" | 21.7
|
Cairo
|-
| colspan=5 style="background:#eee;" | '''
Northern Asia:'''
[ Russia is generally considered a transcontinental country in Eastern Europe (UN region) and northern Asia; population and area figures are for Asian portion only.]
|-
| {{flagicon|Russia}}
Russia
| align="right" | 13,115,200
| align="right" | 39,129,729
| align="right" | 3.0
|
Moscow
|-
| colspan=5 style="background:#eee;" | '''
Southeastern Asia:'''
|-
| {{flagicon|Brunei}}
Brunei
| align="right" | 5,770
| align="right" | 350,898
| align="right" | 60.8
|
Bandar Seri Begawan
|-
| {{flagicon|Cambodia}}
Cambodia
| align="right" | 181,040
| align="right" | 12,775,324
| align="right" | 70.6
|
Phnom Penh
|-
| {{flagicon|Indonesia}}
Indonesia[ Indonesia is often considered a transcontinental country in Southeastern Asia (UN region) and Oceania.]
| align="right" | 1,919,440
| align="right" | 231,328,092
| align="right" | 120.5
|
Jakarta
|-
| {{flagicon|Laos}}
Laos
| align="right" | 236,800
| align="right" | 5,777,180
| align="right" | 24.4
|
Vientiane
|-
| {{flagicon|Malaysia}}
Malaysia
| align="right" | 329,750
| align="right" | 22,662,365
| align="right" | 68.7
|
Kuala Lumpur
|-
| {{flagicon|Myanmar}}
Myanmar Myanmar (Burma)
| align="right" | 678,500
| align="right" | 42,238,224
| align="right" | 62.3
|
Yangon Yangon (Rangoon)
|-
| {{flagicon|Philippines}}
Philippines
| align="right" | 300,000
| align="right" | 84,525,639
| align="right" | 281.8
|
Manila
|-
| {{flagicon|Singapore}}
Singapore
| align="right" | 693
| align="right" | 4,452,732
| align="right" | 6,425.3
|
Singapore
|-
| {{flagicon|Thailand}}
Thailand
| align="right" | 514,000
| align="right" | 62,354,402
| align="right" | 121.3
|
Bangkok
|-
| {{flagicon|Timor-Leste}}
Timor-Leste Timor-Leste (East Timor)[ Timor-Leste is often considered a transcontinental country in Southeastern Asia (UN region) and Oceania.]
| align="right" | 15,007
| align="right" | 952,618
| align="right" | 63.5
|
Dili
|-
| {{flagicon|Vietnam}}
Vietnam
| align="right" | 329,560
| align="right" | 81,098,416
| align="right" | 246.1
|
Hanoi
|-
| colspan=5 style="background:#eee;" | '''
Southern Asia:'''
|-
| {{flagicon|Afghanistan}}
Afghanistan
| align="right" | 647,500
| align="right" | 27,755,775
| align="right" | 42.9
|
Kabul
|-
| {{flagicon|Bangladesh}}
Bangladesh
| align="right" | 144,000
| align="right" | 133,376,684
| align="right" | 926.2
|
Dhaka
|-
| {{flagicon|Bhutan}}
Bhutan
| align="right" | 47,000
| align="right" | 2,094,176
| align="right" | 44.6
|
Thimphu
|-
| {{flagicon|India}}
India
| align="right" | 3,064,898
| align="right" | 1,045,845,226
| align="right" | 341.2
|
New Delhi
|-
| {{flagicon|Iran}}
Iran
| align="right" | 1,648,000
| align="right" | 66,622,704
| align="right" | 40.4
|
Tehran
|-
|
Image:JKseal.gif 20px Jammu and Kashmir[ Jammu and Kashmir is a contested territory of India (with flag), Pakistan, and the People's Republic of China PRC. Srinagar is the summer capital of the Indian province; Jammu is the winter capital.]
| align="right" | 222,236
| align="right" | 10,069,917
| align="right" | 45.3
|
Srinagar,
Jammu
|-
| {{flagicon|Maldives}}
Maldives
| align="right" | 300
| align="right" | 320,165
| align="right" | 1,067.2
|
Malé
|-
| {{flagicon|Nepal}}
Nepal
| align="right" | 140,800
| align="right" | 25,873,917
| align="right" | 183.8
|
Kathmandu
|-
| {{flagicon|Pakistan}}
Pakistan
| align="right" | 803,940
| align="right" | 147,663,429
| align="right" | 183.7
|
Islamabad
|-
| {{flagicon|Sri Lanka}}
Sri Lanka
| align="right" | 65,610
| align="right" | 19,576,783
| align="right" | 298.4
|
Colombo
|-
| colspan=5 style="background:#eee;" | '''
Western Asia:'''
|-
| {{flagicon|Armenia}}
Armenia[ Armenia is sometimes considered a transcontinental country: geographically in Western Asia, it has historical and sociopolitical connections with Europe.]
| align="right" | 29,800
| align="right" | 3,330,099
| align="right" | 111.7
|
Yerevan
|-
| {{flagicon|Azerbaijan}}
Azerbaijan[ Azerbaijan is often considered a transcontinental country in Western Asia (UN region) and Eastern Europe; population and area figures are for Asian portion only. Naxçivan is an autonomous exclave of Azerbaijan bordered by Armenia, Iran, and Turkey.]
| align="right" | 41,370
| align="right" | 3,479,127
| align="right" | 84.1
|
Baku
|-
| {{flagicon|Bahrain}}
Bahrain
| align="right" | 665
| align="right" | 656,397
| align="right" | 987.1
|
Manama
|-
| {{flagicon|Cyprus}}
Cyprus[ The island of Cyprus is sometimes considered a transcontinental territory: geographically in the Mediterranean Sea and approximate to the western Asian mainland, it has historical and sociopolitical connections with Europe. The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), distinct from the ''de jure'' Republic of Cyprus in the south (with a predominantly Greek population), is recognised only by Turkey.]
| align="right" | 9,250
| align="right" | 775,927
| align="right" | 83.9
|
Nicosia Nicosia (LefkoÅŸa)
|-
| {{flagicon|Palestine}}
Gaza Strip Gaza[ Gaza Strip Gaza and West Bank, collectively referred to as the "Occupied Palestinian Territory" by the UN, are Palestinian territories territories occupied by Israel but under ''de facto'' administration of the Palestinian National Authority.]
| align="right" | 363
| align="right" | 1,203,591
| align="right" | 3,315.7
|
Gaza
|-
| {{flagicon|Georgia}}
Georgia (country) Georgia[ Georgia (country) Georgia is often considered a transcontinental country in Western Asia (UN region) and Eastern Europe; population and area figures are for Asian portion only.]
| align="right" | 20,460
| align="right" | 2,032,004
| align="right" | 99.3
|
Tbilisi
|-
| {{flagicon|Iraq}}
Iraq
| align="right" | 437,072
| align="right" | 24,001,816
| align="right" | 54.9
|
Baghdad
|-
| {{flagicon|Israel}}
Israel
| align="right" | 20,770
| align="right" | 6,029,529
| align="right" | 290.3
|
Jerusalem
|-
| {{flagicon|Jordan}}
Jordan
| align="right" | 92,300
| align="right" | 5,307,470
| align="right" | 57.5
|
Amman
|-
| {{flagicon|Kuwait}}
Kuwait
| align="right" | 17,820
| align="right" | 2,111,561
| align="right" | 118.5
|
Kuwait City
|-
|
Image:Flag of Lebanon.PNG 20px Lebanon
| align="right" | 10,400
| align="right" | 3,677,780
| align="right" | 353.6
|
Beirut
|-
|
Image:Az-nakh1.gif 20px Nakhichevan Naxçivan (
Azerbaijan)
[ Azerbaijan is often considered a transcontinental country in Western Asia (UN region) and Eastern Europe; population and area figures are for Asian portion only. Naxçivan is an autonomous exclave of Azerbaijan bordered by Armenia, Iran, and Turkey.]
| align="right" | 5,500
| align="right" | 365,000
| align="right" | 66.4
|
Nakhichevan (city) Naxçivan
|-
| {{flagicon|Oman}}
Oman
| align="right" | 212,460
| align="right" | 2,713,462
| align="right" | 12.8
|
Muscat, Oman Muscat
|-
| {{flagicon|Qatar}}
Qatar
| align="right" | 11,437
| align="right" | 793,341
| align="right" | 69.4
|
Doha
|-
| {{flagicon|Saudi Arabia}}
Saudi Arabia
| align="right" | 1,960,582
| align="right" | 23,513,330
| align="right" | 12.0
|
Riyadh
|-
| {{flagicon|Syria}}
Syria
| align="right" | 185,180
| align="right" | 17,155,814
| align="right" | 92.6
|
Damascus
|-
| {{flagicon|Turkey}}
Turkey[ Turkey is generally considered a transcontinental country in Western Asia (UN region) and Southern Europe; population and area figures are for Asian portion only, excluding all of Istanbul Province Istanbul.]
| align="right" | 756,768
| align="right" | 57,855,068
| align="right" | 76.5
|
Ankara
|-
| {{flagicon|United Arab Emirates}}
United Arab Emirates
| align="right" | 82,880
| align="right" | 2,445,989
| align="right" | 29.5
|
Abu Dhabi
|-
| {{flagicon|Palestine}}
West Bank[ Gaza Strip Gaza and West Bank, collectively referred to as the "Occupied Palestinian Territory" by the UN, are Palestinian territories territories occupied by Israel but under ''de facto'' administration of the Palestinian National Authority.]
| align="right" | 5,860
| align="right" | 2,303,660
| align="right" | 393.1
| —
|-
| {{flagicon|Yemen}}
Yemen
| align="right" | 527,970
| align="right" | 18,701,257
| align="right" | 35.4
|
Sanaá
|-
|- style=" font-weight:bold; "
| Total
| align="right" | 44,309,978
| align="right" | 3,816,775,642
| align="right" | 86.1
|}
''Notes:''
Economy
{| class="wikitable" style="width:300px;" align="right"
|+
'''Economy of Asia'''During 2003 unless otherwise stated
|-
|Population:
| 4.001 billion (2002)
|-
|
Gross domestic product GDP (
List of countries by GDP (PPP) PPP):
|
US$18.077 trillion
|-
|
Gross domestic product GDP (
List of countries by GDP Currency):
| $8.782 trillion
|-
|GDP/capita (
List of countries by GDP (PPP) per capita PPP):
| $4,518
|-
|GDP/capita (
List of countries by GDP (Nominal) per capita Currency):
| $2,195
|-
|Annual growth of
per capita GDP:
|
|-
|Income of top 10%:
|
|-
|
Millionaires:
| 2.0 million (0.05%)
|-
|
Unemployment
|
|-
|Estimated female
income
|
|-
| align="center" colspan="2" |
Most numbers are from the UNDP from 2002, some numbers exclude certain countries for lack of information.
|-
| align="center" colspan="2" | {{World economy infobox footer}}
|}
{{main|Economy of Asia}}
In terms of
gross domestic product (
Purchasing Power Parity PPP), the largest national economy within Asia is that of the
PRC (
People's Republic of China). Over the last decade, China's and
India's economies have been growing rapidly, both with an average annual growth rate above 7%. PRC is the world's second largest economy after the US, followed by
Japan and
India as the world's third and fourth largest economies respectively (then followed by the European nations:
Germany,
United Kingdom UK,
France and
Italy).
In terms of
exchange rates (nominal GDP) however, Japan has the largest economy in Asia and second largest of any single nation in the world, after surpassing the Soviet Union (measured in
Net Material Product) in 1986 and Germany in 1968. (NB: A number of supernational economies are larger, such as the
EU,
NAFTA or
APEC). Economic growth in Asia since
World War II to the 1990's had been concentrated in few countries of the
Pacific Rim, and has spread more recently to other regions. In the late 80's and early 90's Japan's economy was almost as large as that of the rest of the continent combined. In 1995, Japan's economy nearly equalled the USA to tie the largest economy in the world for a day, after the Japanese currency reached a record high of 79
yen. However, since then Japan's currency has corrected and China has grown to be the second largest Asian economy, followed by India in terms of exchange rates. It is expected that China will surpass Japan in currency terms to have the largest nominal GDP in Asia within a decade or two.
Trade blocs:
*
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation
*
Asia-Europe Meeting Asia-Europe Economic Meeting
*
Association of Southeast Asian Nations
*
Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement
*
Commonwealth of Independent States
*
South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation
*
South Asia Free Trade Agreement (proposed)
Natural resources
Asia is by a considerable margin the largest continent in the
world, and is rich in natural resources, such as
Petroleum and
iron.
High productivity in agriculture, especially of
rice, allows high population density of countries in the warm and humid area. Other main agricultural products include
wheat and
chicken.
Forestry is extensive throughout Asia except Southwest and Central Asia.
Fishing is a major source of food in Asia, particularly in Japan.
Manufacturing
Manufacturing in Asia has traditionally been strongest in East and Southeast Asia, particularly in
PRC,
Taiwan,
Japan,
South Korea and
Singapore. The industry varies from manufacturing cheap goods such as
toys to high-tech goods such as
computers and
automobile cars. Many companies from
Europe,
North America, and
Japan have significant operations in the developing Asia to take advantage of its abundant supply of cheap labor.
One of the major employers in manufacturing in Asia is the
textile industry. Much of the world's supply of clothing and footwear now originates in Southeast Asia.
Financial and other services
Asia has three main financial centers. They are in
Hong Kong,
Singapore and
Tokyo. Call centers are becoming major employers in
India and the
Philippines, due to the availablity of many well-educated English speakers. The rise of the business process
outsourcing industry has seen the rise of India and China as the other financial centers.
Early history
{{main|History of Asia}}
Image:Asia 1892 amer ency brit.jpg thumb|200px|Map of Asia, 1892.
The history of Asia can be seen as the distinct histories of several peripheral coastal regions
East Asia,
South Asia, and the
Middle East ; linked by the interior mass of the
Central Asiansteppes.
The coastal periphery was home to some of the world's earliest known civilizations, each of them developing around fertile river valleys. The civilizations in
Mesopotamia, the
Indus Valley, and the
Yangtze River Yangtze shared many similarities, and may well have exchanged technologies and ideas such as
mathematics and the wheel. Other innovations, such as that of writing, seem to have been developed individually in each area. Cities, states and empires developed in these lowlands.
The central steppe region had long been inhabited by horse-mounted nomads, and from the steppes they could reach all areas of Asia. The earliest postulated expansion out of the steppe is that of the
Indo-Europeans, who spread their languages into the Middle East, India, and in the
Tocharians, to the borders of China. The northernmost part of Asia, including much of
Siberia, was largely inaccessible to the steppe nomads, owing to the dense forests, the climate, and the
tundra. These areas remained very sparsely populated.
The center and the peripheries were mostly kept separated by mountains and deserts. The
Caucasus and
Himalaya mountains and the
Karakum Desert Karakum and
Gobi Desert Gobi deserts formed barriers that the steppe horsemen could cross only with difficulty. While technologically and socially, the urban city dwellers were more advanced, in many cases they could do little in a military aspect to defend against the mounted hordes of the steppe. However, the lowlands did not have enough open grasslands to support a large horsebound force; for this and other reasons, the nomads who conquered states in China, India, and the Middle East often found themselves adapting to the local, more affluent societies.
Religion
A large majority of people in the world who practice a religious faith practice one founded in Asia.
Religions founded in Asia and with a majority of their contemporary adherents in Asia include:
*
Bahá'à Faith: slightly more than half of all adherents are in Asia
*
Buddhism:
Cambodia,
China,
Japan,
Korea,
Laos,
Malaysia,
Mongolia,
Myanmar,
Singapore,
Sri Lanka,
Thailand,
Vietnam, parts of northern, eastern, and western
India, and parts of central and eastern
Russia (Siberia).
**
Mahayana Buddhism: China, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam.
**
Theravada Buddhism: Cambodia, parts of China, Laos, mainly northern parts of Malaysia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, as well as parts of
Vietnam.
**
Vajrayana Buddhism: Parts of China,
Mongolia, parts of northern and eastern
India, parts of central, eastern
Russia and
Siberia.
*
Hinduism:
India,
Nepal,
Bangladesh,
Sri Lanka,
Pakistan,
Malaysia,
Singapore,
Bali.
*
Islam:
Central Asia Central,
South Asia South, and
Southwest Asia,
Malaysia,
Philippines Brunei and
Indonesia.
**
Shia Islam: largely to specific
Iran,
Azerbaijan, parts of
Iraq,
Bahrain, parts of
Afghanistan, parts of
India, parts of
Pakistan.
**
Sunni Islam: dominant in the rest of the regions mentioned above.
*
Jainism:
India
*
Qadiani:
Pakistan,
Bangladesh,
India.
*
Shinto:
Japan
*
Sikhism:
India,
Malaysia,
Hong Kong
*
Daoism:
China,
Korea,
Vietnam,
Singapore, and
Taiwan
*
Zoroastrianism:
Iran,
India,
Pakistan
*
Shamanism:
Siberia
*
Animism: Eastern
India
Religions founded in Asia that have the majority of their contemporary adherents in other regions include:
*
Christianity (
Lebanon,
Syria,
Palestinian territories Palestine,
Armenia,
Georgia (country) Georgia,
South Korea,
Singapore,
Malaysia,
Indonesia,
East Timor,
Pakistan,
India and the
Philippines)
*
Judaism (slightly fewer than half of its adherents reside in Asia;
Israel,
Iran,
India,
Syria.)
See also
{{commons|Asia}}
*
Assuwa
*
Asia Minor
*
Pan-Asianism
*
Asian Century
References
* "Asia". ''[http://www.columbiagazetteer.org/ The Columbia Gazetteer of the World Online]''. 2005. New York: Columbia University Press.
External links
-
http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/asia.html
-
http://www.freeworldmaps.net/asia/index.html
{{Continent}}
{{Region}}
Category:Asia
Category:Continents
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bn:�শিয়া
zh-min-nan:A-chiu
bs:Azija
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bg:Ð?зиÑ?
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ceb:Asya
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da:Asien
de:Asien
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eu:Asia
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he:×?סיה
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ka:�ზი� (ქვეყნის ნ�წილი)
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kw:Asi
sw:Asia
ht:Azi
ku:Asya
la:Asia
lv:Ä€zija
lb:Asien
lt:Azija
li:Azië
jbo:zdotu'a
hu:Ã?zsia
mk:Ð?зија
mg:Azia
mt:Asja
ms:Asia
mo:Ð?Ñ?иÑ?
my:အာရ္ဟá€?á€á€¯á€€á€¹â€Œ
nl:Azië
ja:アジア
no:Asia
nn:Asia
nrm:Âsie
oc:Asia
nds:Asien
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pt:Ã?sia
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su:Asia
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tl:Asya
ta:ஆசியா
th:ทวีปเà¸à¹€à¸Šà¸µà¸¢
vi:Châu �
chr:Ꭰá??áŽ
tr:Asya
uk:Ð?зіÑ?
yi:×?×–×™×¢
zh-yue:亞洲
zh:亚洲
zh:Template:Asia
Image:Asia_satellite_plane.jpg right|100px
{|
|
{{sisterlinkswp|Category:Asia}}
{{commonscat|Asia}}
The
continent of '''Asia''' is defined by subtracting
Europe and
Africa from the great land mass of
Africa-Eurasia. About 60% of the world's population live in Asia.
The region of '''Asia''' is the continent of Asia plus nearby
islands in the
Indian Ocean Indian and
Pacific Oceans. It also includes Indonesia.
{{catmore}}
|}
Category:Geography
Category:Continents
af:Kategorie:Asië
ar:تصنيÙ?:آسيا
an:Category:Asia
ast:CategorÃa:Asia
bg:КатегориÑ?:Ð?зиÑ?
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de:Kategorie:Asien
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es:CategorÃa:Asia
eo:Kategorio:Azio
eu:Kategoria:Asia
fa:رده:آسیا
fo:Bólkur:Asia
fr:Catégorie:Asie
fy:Kategory:Aazje
gl:Category:Asia
ko:분류:아시아
io:Category:Azia
id:Kategori:Asia
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he:קטגוריה:×?סיה
ka:კ�ტეგ�რი�:�ზი�
csb:Kategòrëjô:Azëjô
kw:Category:Asi
la:Categoria:Asia
lv:Category:Ä€zija
lb:Category:Asien
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hu:Kategória:�zsia
mk:Категорија:Ð?зија
ms:Kategori:Asia
mo:Category:Ð?Ñ?иÑ?
nl:Categorie:Azië
nds:Kategorie:Asien
ja:Category:アジア
no:Kategori:Asia
os:Категори:Ð?зи
pl:Kategoria:Azja
pt:Categoria:Ã?sia
ro:Categorie:Asia
ru:КатегориÑ?:Ð?зиÑ?
se:Category:Ã?sia
sq:Category:Azia
sh:Category:Azija
scn:Category:Asia
sk:Kategória:�zia
sl:Kategorija:Azija
sr:Категорија:Ð?зија
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vi:Thể loại:Châu �
tr:Kategori:Asya
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war:Category:Asya
zh:Category:亚洲
pam:Category:Asia
see
Asia
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