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South Asia

South Asia, also Southern Asia, is a south South

[i] or [[geography]... 

ern geopolitical region of the Asia Asia

Asia is the largest and most populous continent [i] or region, depending on the definition.... 

n continent Continent

A continent is a large continuous landmass [i]. ... 

 comprising territories on and in proximity to the Indian subcontinent Indian subcontinent

The Indian subcontinent is a peninsula landmass [i] of the Asia [i]n continent [i] occupying the Indian Plate [i] ... 

. It is surrounded by Western Asia Southwest Asia

Southwest Asia or Southwestern Asia is the southwestern portion [i] of Asia [i]. ... 

, Central Asia Central Asia

Central Asia is a vast landlocked [i] region of Asia [i]. ... 

, Eastern Asia East Asia

East Asia is a subregion [i] of Asia [i] that can be defined in either geographical [i] or cul ... 

, and Southeastern Asia Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion [i] of Asia [i], consisting of the countries th ... 

. The terms with cardinal direction Cardinal direction

In geography [i], the four cardinal directions are north [i], east [i], south [i] and west [i]. ... 

s are often equated with the Indian subcontinent, but they are not synonymous.

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Timeline

750   The first Buddhist Buddhism

Buddhism is a dharmic [i], non-theistic [i] religion [i], a way of life, a p ... 

 Pala king of Bengal Bengal

Bengal, known as Bngo , Bangla , Bngodesh , or Bangladesh in the Bengali language [i], ... 

, Gopala-I came to power in 750 in Gaur by election. This event is recognized as one of the first democratic Democracy

Democracy is a form of government [i] for a nation state, or for an organiz ... 

 events in the history of South Asia.

2005   A 6.7 magnitude earthquake rocks South Asia.



Encyclopedia


South Asia, also Southern Asia, is a south South

[i] or [[geography]... 

ern geopolitical region of the Asia Asia

Asia is the largest and most populous continent [i] or region, depending on the definition.... 

n continent Continent

A continent is a large continuous landmass [i]. ... 

 comprising territories on and in proximity to the Indian subcontinent Indian subcontinent

The Indian subcontinent is a peninsula landmass [i] of the Asia [i]n continent [i] occupying the Indian Plate [i] ... 

. It is surrounded by Western Asia Southwest Asia

Southwest Asia or Southwestern Asia is the southwestern portion [i] of Asia [i]. ... 

, Central Asia Central Asia

Central Asia is a vast landlocked [i] region of Asia [i]. ... 

, Eastern Asia East Asia

East Asia is a subregion [i] of Asia [i] that can be defined in either geographical [i] or cul ... 

, and Southeastern Asia Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion [i] of Asia [i], consisting of the countries th ... 

. The terms with cardinal direction Cardinal direction

In geography [i], the four cardinal directions are north [i], east [i], south [i] and west [i]. ... 

s are often equated with the Indian subcontinent, but they are not synonymous.


Definitions and usage

South Asia consists of the following territories:
  • Bangladesh Bangladesh

    Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia [i]. ... 

  • Bhutan Bhutan

    [i] and [[Tibet]... 

  • India India

    India , officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia [i]. ... 

  • Maldives Maldives

    Maldives, officially the Republic of Maldives, is an island nation [i] consisting of a group of atoll [i] ... 

  • Nepal Nepal

    Nepal, officially Kingdom of Nepal, is a landlocked [i] Himalayan [i] country [i] in South Asia [i] ... 

  • Pakistan Pakistan

    [i] located in [[South Asia]... 

  • Sri Lanka Sri Lanka

    Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka , is a tropical [i] island nation [i] ... 




The United Nations United Nations

name = United Nations
Nations Unies
... 

 subregion Subregion

A subregion is a conceptual unit which derives from a larger region [i] or continent [i] and is usually ... 

 of Southern Asia includes the above plus:
  • Afghanistan Afghanistan

    Afghanistan ; Persian [i]: ?????? ?????? ?????????, Pashto [i]:' ... 

  • Iran Iran



Throughout history, Iran has been of great geostrategic [i] importance because of its centr ... 



The term Indian subcontinent aptly describe those regions which geophysically lie on the Indian Plate India Plate

The India or Indian Plate is a minor tectonic plate [i]. ... 

, bordered on the north by the Eurasian Plate Eurasian Plate

The Eurasian Plate is a tectonic plate [i] covering Eurasia [i] except that it does not cover the Indian subcontinent [i] ... 

. Geopolitically, however, South Asia or Southern Asia subsumes the Indian subcontinent: it also includes territories found external to the Indian Plate and in proximity to it. Afghanistan Afghanistan

Afghanistan ; Persian [i]: ?????? ?????? ?????????, Pashto [i]:' ... 

, for instance, is sometimes grouped in this region due to sociopolitical ties to neighbouring Pakistan, whilst Pakistan especially the regions west of the Indus are sometimes described as being in the Middle East or due to historic connections, Central Asia. A good proportion of the Pakistani land mass is not on the Indian plate .

Demography and history

See History of South Asia, Ethnic Groups of South Asia


The peoples of the region possess several distinguishing features that set them apart anthropologically from the rest of Asia; the dominant peoples and cultures are Indo-Aryan Indo-Aryans

The Indo-Aryans are a wide collection of peoples united by their common status as the ethno-linguistic d... 

 and Dravidian, and have a great affinity with the Iranian Plateau Iranian plateau

The Iranian plateau is a major geologic formation in West Asia [i] that overlaps into both Central Asia [i] ... 

 and the Caucasus Caucasus

The Caucasus or Caucasia is a region in Eurasia [i] bordered on the south by Turkey [i] and Iran [i] ... 

. Persian Persian people

The Persians are an Iranian people [i] who speak the Persian language [i] and share a co ... 

, Arab and Turkish Turkish people

The Turks,, or the Turkish people, are a nation [i] in the meaning an ethnos [i], ... 

 cultural traditions from the west also form an integral part of Islamic Islam

Islam is a monotheistic [i] religion [i] based upon the Qur'an [i], which adherents believe w ... 

 South Asian South Asia

South Asia, also Southern Asia, is a south [i]ern geopolitical [i] region [i] of the Asia [i] ... 

 culture, but have been radically adapted to form a Muslim Muslim

A Muslim is an adherent of Islam [i]. ... 

 culture distinct from what is found in the Middle East Middle East

The Middle East is a subcontinent [i] for the historical [i] and cultural [i] ... 

.

South Asia ranks among the world World

World is refers primarily to a planet or to the Earth [i]. ... 

's most densely-populated regions. About 1.6 billion people live there — about a quarter of all the people in the world. The region's population density Population density

Population density is a measurement of population [i] per unit area or unit volume. ... 

 of 305 persons per square kilometre is more than seven times the world average.

The region has a long history. Ancient civilizations developed in the Dwaraka Dwarka

[i], [[India]... 

 region and the Indus River Indus River

The Indus is the longest and most important river [i] in Pakistan [i]. ... 

 Valley. The region was at its most prosperous before the 18th century, when the Mughal Empire Mughal Empire

The Mughal Empire, was an empire that at its greatest territorial extent ruled most of the Indian subcontinent [i] ... 

 held sway in the north; European Europe

Europe is one of the seven traditional continent [i]s of the Earth [i]. ... 

 colonialism Colonialism

See colony [i] and colonisation [i] for examples of colonialism which do not refer to Western colonialism. ... 

 led to its expansion in the region, by Portugal Portuguese India

Portuguese India was the aggregate of Portugal [i]'s colonial holdings in India [i]. ... 

 and Holland Netherlands

The Netherlands is the Europe [i]an part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands [i] , which is formed ... 

, and later Britain British Raj

The British Raj refers to the British rule of the Indian subcontinent [i], or present-day India [i], Bangladesh [i] ... 

 and to a lesser degree France French colonial empires

France [i] had colonial [i] possessions, in various forms, since the beginning of the 17th century [i] ... 

. Most of the region gained independence from Europe in the late 1940s 1940s

... 

.

See also

  • South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation

    South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation is the largest regional organization [i] in the world, ... 

  • History of South Asia
  • Indology
  • Desi
  • Islamic conquest of South Asia Muslim conquest in the Indian subcontinent

    The Muslim conquest of the Indian subcontinent took place during the ascendancy of the Rajput [i] Kingdo ... 

  • India India

    India , officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia [i]. ... 



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