East and Southeast Asia

Physical Features

• These areas of Asia have varying physical features and climates

• The physical features help determine where people live and the climate of the areas where people live

• The location of this region also make it susceptible to certain natural hazards such as monsoons, typhoons, volcanoes, tsunamis and earthquakes

Mountains, Plateaus, and Deserts

• The Himalayas border the western areas of this region

• The Himalayas create dry conditions on the Plateau of Tibet

• The dry conditions create 2 deserts (Taklimakan and Gobi)

• The Tian Shan Mountain range is also located in the western portions of this region

• This region is also highly volcanic. These volcanoes create mountains. The most famous of these being Mt. Fuji in Japan

Rivers and Seas

• Major rivers in this region include the Yangtze (Chiang Jiang), Yellow (Huang He), Irrawaddy, and Mekong

• These rivers serve as means for transportation of people and goods

• These rivers are also used to irrigate fields and create hydroelectric power to this region

• These rivers deposit soil into rich fertile deltas; this soil is called loess

• Loess has a yellow color which leads to the names Yellow R. and Yellow S.

• These rivers also dump into major seas (S. China and Yellow)

Islands and Peninsulas

• There are several nations in this region that are island nations

• These islands are high islands and a part of the Ring of Fire

• These island nations are also archipelagos

• This region contains three main peninsulas (Korean, Indochina, and Malay)

Resources

• The resources of E and SE Asia include the following: tin, petroleum, gem stones, iron ore, coal, fish, and soil both volcanic and loess

Climate

• The areas of E and SE Asia contain a wide variety of climates

• These climates include arid and semiarid in the North

• Humid subtropical and humid continental climates can be found in the East

• In the Southern areas the primary climates are tropical wet and tropical wet and dry

Human and Environment Interaction

• Three Gorges Dam• this dam is being built over the Yangtze R.• Positive: controls flooding, generates electricity,

makes the area more accessible by ships• Negatives: human cost of moving cities and

people, cost, environmental issues such as changing the climate and temperature of the water and animal habitats

• Overpopulation

• the cities of E. Asia are overcrowded to the point where they can no longer expand

• pollution due to the overcrowding and business

• in Japan 60% of the people live on 3% of the land

• Solutions include building smaller homes, living in apartments, commuting to the cities

• Ring of Fire

• this is an area located near the fault lines of several tectonic plates

• it is exposed to earthquakes, tsunami and volcanoes

• to help in preparing for these natural hazards these nations have increased their building codes, practiced natural disaster drills, and created more ways to warn people of these disasters

Economic Characteristics

• The economies of this region vary depending on the government and resources of the nation

• Economic activity varies from subsistence farming to high-tech industrial production

• The nations of China and N. Korea have traditionally had command economies

• Most people in these nations live in areas where they can easily farm

• The Chinese have enough agricultural resources to feed all of their citizens

• Mongolia’s economy depends on herding and livestock

• The livestock can be sold and they can use other materials from these animals (wool)

• One of the main agricultural crops in E and SE Asia is rice; the monsoon floods the paddies and allows for the growth of this crop

• The harvesting of tropical fruits is a major part of the economy of the southern island nations

• The economic leader of this regions is Japan• Japan has to import most of the resources that is uses

with its industry, but they export a lot technology to nations around the world

• There are a few nations in this region which have industrialized recently; these include S. Korea, Taiwan, and Singapore

• These nations produce technological goods which are then sold world wide

• China is also a major world leader in trade• The Chinese have been able to use cheap labor and

relaxed sanctions on business to save money during production and make a huge profit from trade worldwide

• The relaxed business practices have harmed the environment (pollution, dumping, and the use of outdated products such as lead based paint)

• The Chinese have been transitioning from a centralized command economy to one of a more free market economy, while still maintaining a communist government

• S. Korea’s economy is based on industry such as steel, chemical industries, cars, and the world’s largest ship building industry

• The fishing industry is large part of the economy of SE Asia, especially the islands

• The island nations have many port cities and attract a lot of tourism

• The nations of SE Asia have established the ASEAN (Association of S. E. Asian Nations) which serves the same purpose as NAFTA and the EU

Cultural Characteristics

• China is home to the worlds oldest continuous civilization

• China was ruled by dynasties from 1700 B.C. until 1900

• The Qin Dynasty united China into one large empire and the Han Dynasty extended the empire into Asia

• The Japanese established themselves around 1200 when the emperor instituted a shogun to serve as a military dictator over the Japanese clans

• These clans used hired soldiers called samurai to protect them

• The Mongolians had the largest empire in the world when it was under the leadership of Genghis Khan

• Most of these nations have a rich artistic history which can be seen in its paintings, pottery, and music

• The cultures of China and Japan overlap in these areas

• The Chinese invented gunpowder, printing, silk, the compass, and noodles

• These Asian nations also have created distinct alphabets; in some cases these alphabets include the use of ideograms

• Asian cultures have a deep respect for family and ancestry

• In some cases 2 to 3 generations of a family may live in the same house (both sides)

• This respect for family is evident in the religious beliefs of this region

• Confucianism is a belief system in which order, education, and hierarchy are important for a stable society

• Taoism is a belief system that stresses the preservation and restoration of harmony between the individual and the universe

• Confucianism and Taoism are prominent in China

• Shinto is an animist religion from Japan, and at one time was the official religion of Japan

• Shinto is a collection of rituals and methods meant to mediate the relations of humans and kami, or spirits

• While these are prominent religious beliefs, the formal religions of Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism are present

• Islam is present in the island nations of SE Asia (Indonesia)

• There is a definite contrast in urban and rural life

• The cities in Asia (Tokyo, Beijing) are as modern as any city around the world

• The cities are major economic centers and in some cases port cities

• The country side of Asia is as poor as any region in the world

• People still live in village areas and farm for themselves or to sell at market (subsistence)

Places and Things of Interest

Angkor Wat, Thailand

Great Wall of China

Mt. Fuji, Japan

Vietnam

Floating Market, Thailand

Pagoda

Shinto Shrine

Terraced fields

Silk

Batik

Shwedagon PagodaMyanmar