South Asia

South Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities (see below), also includes the adjoining countries on the west and the east. It is surrounded (clockwise, from west to east) by Western Asia, Central Asia, Eastern Asia, Southeastern Asia and the Indian ocean.

South Asia typically consists of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Some definitions may also include Afghanistan, Myanmar, Tibet, the British Indian Ocean Territories and Iran.

South Asia is home to well over one fifth of the world's population, making it both the most populous and most densely populated geographical region in the world.^{[citation needed]} The region has often seen conflicts and political instability, including wars between the region's two nuclear-armed states, Pakistan and India. South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation is an economic cooperation organization in the region.

Contents 1 Definitions 1.1 Indian Subcontinent 1.2 Definition by South Asian Studies programs 2 Geography 3 History 4 Territory and region data 4.1 The core countries 4.2 Countries and territories from extended definitions 4.3 Regional groups of countries 5 Demographics 5.1 Ethnic groups 5.2 Languages 5.3 Religions 6 Economy 7 Politics 8 See also 9 Notes and References 10 External links

Definitions

Along with a number of core countries, South Asia differs in inclusion by different clubbing of countries, though essentially it mostly encompasses countries that were part of the former British Indian Empire,^[2] including the current territories of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh at the core, but also including Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), Burma (officially Myanmar) and Sikkim.^[3] The Aden Colony, British Somaliland and Singapore, though administered at various times under the Raj have not been proposed as any part of South Asia.^[4] It also encompasses the 562 protected princely states that became integral parts of the Union of India, but was not directly ruled by the Raj,^[5] including Hyderabad State, Kingdom of Mysore, State of Jammu and Kashmir, Baroda, and Gwalior.^[6] Sikkim joined India in 1975.^[7]

The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), a contiguous block of countries, started in with seven countries — Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka — when it was established in 1985, but was extended to include Afghanistan as an eight member in 2006.^[8] The World Bank grouping includes only the original seven members of SAARC, and leaves Afghanistan out.^[9] This bloc of countries include three independent countries that were not under the British rule - Nepal, Bhutan and Afghanistan. The South Asia Free Trade Agreement endorsed by SAARC has been signed by the seven original members of the organization, though it has a special provision for the Maldives.^[10]

The United Nations Population Information Network (POPIN) includes Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Islamic Republic of Iran, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka as part of South Asia, while Maldives, in view of its characteristics, was admitted as a member country of the Pacific POPIN subregional network in principle.^[11] Culturally, though not politically, Tibet has been identified as a part of South Asia,^[12] while the British Indian Ocean Territory has been connected to the region for security considerations.^[13] The United Nations scheme of sub-regions include all eight members of the SAARC as part of Southern Asia, along with Iran,^[14] while the Hirschmann-Herfindahl Index of United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific for the region includes only the original seven signatories of SAARC.^[15]

Afghanistan is otherwise considered as Central Asian or Middle-Eastern, Myanmar as Southeast Asian, and Tibet is otherwise considered Central Asian or East Asian.^[16] A lack of coherent definition for South Asia has resulted in not only a lack of academic studies, but also in a lack interest for such studies.^[17] Identification with a South Asian identity was also found to be significantly low among respondents in a two-year survey across Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.^[18]

Indian Subcontinent

The terminologies "Indian Subcontinent" or simply "The Subcontinent" are also in common usage to denote South Asia,^[19][20] as well as the "South Asian Subcontinent"^[21] or the "Indo-Pak Subcontinent",^[22] though "South Asia" has become the preferred term for its neutrality.^[23] The term South Asia is in more common use in Europe and North America, rather than the Subcontinent or the Indian Subcontinent.^[24][25] By dictionary entries, the term subcontinent signifies "having a certain geographical or political independence" from the rest of the continent,^[26] or "a vast and more or less self-contained subdivision of a continent."^[27] It may be noted that geophysically the Tsang Po river in Tibet is situated at the outside of the border of the Subcontinental structure, while the Pamir Mountains in Tajikistan is situated inside that border.^[28]

According to one clubbing of countries, it includes most parts of the South Asia, including those on the continental crust (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan), an island country on the continental shelf (Sri Lanka), and an island country rising above the oceanic crust (the Maldives).^[29] Another clubbing includes only Bangladesh, India and Pakistan, the mainstay of the British Raj, as the Subcontinent.^[30] This version also includes the disputed territory of Aksai Chin, which was part of British Indian princely state Jammu and Kashmir, but is now administered as a part of Chinese autonomous region of Xinjiang. A booklet published by the United States Department of State in 1959 includes Afghanistan, Ceylon (Sri Lanka), India, Nepal, and Pakistan as part of the "Subcontinent of South Asia".^[31] When the term Indian Subcontinent is used to mean the South Asia, the islands countries of Sri Lanka and the Maldives are sometimes not included,^[32] while Tibet and Nepal are included^[33] and excluded^[34] intermittently, depending on the context.

Definition by South Asian Studies programs

When the Centre of South Asian Studies at the University of Cambridge established in 1964, it was primarily responsible for promoting within the University the study of India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, the Himalayan Kingdoms (Nepal, Bhutan, and Sikkim^[35]), and Burma (now officially Myanmar). But, over the years it has also extended its activities to include Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Indonesia, the Philippines and Hong Kong.^[36] The Centers for South Asian Studies at both University of Michigan and University of Virginia list Tibet along with seven members of SAARC as a South Asian country, leaving the Maldives out.^[37][38] The South Asian Studies Program of Rutgers University and University of California, Berkeley Center for South Asia Studies do the same without leaving out the Maldives,^[39][40] while the South Asian Studies Program of Brandeis University defines the region as comprising "India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, and in certain contexts Afghanistan, Maldives, Myanmar, and Tibet".^[41] The similar program of Columbia University also includes Tibet, but leaves out both Afghanistan and the Maldives.^[42]

Geography

While the South Asia had never been a coherent geopolitical region, it has a distinct geographical identity.^[44] The boundaries of South Asia vary based on how South Asia is defined. South Asia's north, east, and west boundaries vary based on definitions used. South Asia's southern border is the Indian Ocean. The UN subregion of Southern Asia's northern boundary would be the Himalayas, its western boundary would be made up of the Iraq-Iran border, Turkey-Iran border, Armenia-Iran border, and the Azerbaijan-Iran border. Its eastern boundary would be the India-Myanmar border and the Bangladesh-Myanmar border. Most of this region is a subcontinent resting on the Indian Plate (the northerly portion of the Indo-Australian Plate) separated from the rest of Eurasia. It was once a small continent before colliding with the Eurasian Plate about 50-55 million years ago and giving birth to the Himalayan range and the Tibetan plateau. It is the peninsular region south of the Himalayas and Kuen Lun mountain ranges and east of the Indus River and the Iranian Plateau, extending southward into the Indian Ocean between the Arabian Sea (to the southwest) and the Bay of Bengal (to the southeast).

The region is home to an astounding variety of geographical features, such as glaciers, rainforests, valleys, deserts, and grasslands that are typical of much larger continents. It is surrounded by three water bodies — the Bay of Bengal, the Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea. The climate of this vast region varies considerably from area to area from tropical monsoon in the south to temperate in the north. The variety is influenced by not only the altitude, but also by factors such as proximity to the sea coast and the seasonal impact of the monsoons. Southern parts are mostly hot in summers and receive rain during monsoon period(s). The northern belt of Indo-Gangetic plains also is hot in summer, but cooler in winter. The mountainous north is colder and receives snowfall at higher altitudes of Himalyan ranges. As the Himalayas block the north-Asian bitter cold winds, the temperatures are considerably moderate in the plains down below. For most part, the climate of the region is called the Monsoon climate, which keeps the region humid during summer and dry during winter, and favors the cultivation of jute, tea, rice, and various vegetables in this region.

History

The remote pre-history of South Asia culminates in the Indus Valley Civilization, which is followed by the legends of ancient Vedic period and the sketchy references to the rise and fall of Mahajanapadas - the precursors of regional kingdoms and later ancient empires - ending in the historical accounts of medieval empires and the arrival of European traders who later became the rulers.

Almost all South Asian countries were under direct or indirect European Colonial subjugation at some point. Much of modern India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Myanmar were gradually occupied by Great Britain - starting from 1757, reaching their zenith in 1857 and ruling till 1947. Nepal and Bhutan were to some extent a protectorate of Great Britain until after World War II. The network of means of transportation and communication as well as banking and training of requisite workforce, and also the existing rail, post, telegraph, and education facilities have evolved out of the base established in the colonial era, often called the British Raj. Most of the region gained independence from Europe by the late 1940s. Tibet at times has governed itself as an independent state and at other times has had various levels of association with China^[45][46], it became under Chinese control in the 18th century^{[46][47][48][49]} in spite of British efforts to seize possession of this Chinese protectorate at the beginning of the 20th century. ^[50] Tibetan and Chinese views on the Sino-Tibetan relation vary significantly. The Tibetans saw the Dalai Lama's relation with the Manchu emperor in more of a religious light than what would be considered political.^[48]

Since 1947, most South Asian countries have achieved tremendous progress in all spheres.^{[citation needed]} Most notable achievements are in the fields of education; industry; health care; information technology and services based on its applications; research in the fields of cutting edge sciences and technologies; defence related self-reliance projects; international/global trade and business enterprises and outsourcing of human resources. Areas of difficulty remain, however, including religious extremism, high levels of corruption, disagreements on political boundaries, and inequitable distribution of wealth.

Territory and region data

2009 referenced population figures except where noted.

The core countries

This club of countries covers about 4,480,000 km² (1,729,738 mi²) or 10 percent of the Asian continent, and accounting for about 40 percent of Asia's population.

Name of country/region, with flag	Area (km²)	Population*	Population density (per km²)	Capital or Secretariat	Currency	Government/Common Market	Official languages	Coat of Arms
Bangladesh	147,570	156,050,883[51]	1057	Dhaka	Taka	Parliamentary republic	Bengali
Bhutan	38,394	691,141[51]	18	Thimphu	Ngultrum, Indian rupee	Constitutional monarchy	Dzongkha
India	3,287,240	1,166,079,217[51]	355	New Delhi	Indian rupee	Federal republic, Parliamentary democracy	Hindi, English and 20 other official languages
Nepal	147,181	28,563,377[51]	194	Kathmandu	Nepalese rupee	Democratic Republic	Nepali
Pakistan	803,940	176,242,949[51]	219	Islamabad	Pakistani rupee	Islamic Republic	Urdu, English, Balochi, Pashto, Punjabi, Siraiki, Sindhi[52]
Sri Lanka	65,610	21,324,791[51]	325	Sri Jayawardenapura-Kotte	Sri Lankan rupee	Democratic Socialist Republic	Sinhala, Tamil, English

Countries and territories from extended definitions

Afghanistan and the Maldives are included in the list of countries of South Asia more often than others in this group.

Name of country/region, with flag	Area (km²)	Population*	Population density (per km²)	Capital or Secretariat	Currency	Government/Common Market	Official languages	Coat of Arms
Afghanistan	647,500	33,609,937[51]	51.9	Kabul	Afghan afghani	Islamic republic	Dari (Persian), Pashto [1]
British Indian Ocean Territory	60	3,500	58.3	Diego Garcia	Pound sterling	British Overseas Territory	English
Iran	1,648,195	70,495,782 (2006 Census)[53][54]	40.3	Tehran	Iranian rial	Islamic republic	Persian, Constitutional status for regional languages [55]
Maldives	298	396,334[51]	1,329.9	Malé	Rufiyaa	Republic	Dhivehi
Burma	676,578	48,137,141[51][56]	71.1	Yangon	Myanmar kyat	Military Junta	Burmese; Jingpho, Shan, Karen, Mon, (Spoken in Myanmar's Autonomous States.)
PRC - Tibet Autonomous Region	1,228,400	2,740,000	2.2	Lhasa	Chinese yuan	Autonomous region of China	Tibetan, Mandarin Chinese	(Emblem of the Tibetan government in exile)

Regional groups of countries

Name of country/region, with flag	Area (km²)	Population*	Population density (per km²)	Capital or Secretariat	Currency	Countries included	Official languages	Coat of Arms
UN subregion of South Asia	6,285,724	1,653,457,908	263.04	N/A	N/A	Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Iran, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka	N/A	N/A
SAARC	3,989,969	1,549,348,689	388.31	Kathmandu	N/A	Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka	English or Hindi/Urdu as lingua franca

Demographics

Ethnic groups

South Asia, which consists of the nations of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, is ethnically diverse, with more than 2, 000 ethnic entities with populations ranging from hundreds of millions to small tribal groups. South Asia has been invaded and settled by many ethnic groups over the centuries including various Dravidian, Indo-Aryan and Iranian groups. The amalgamation of Dravidian, Indo-Aryan and local tribal cultures over the centuries created common culture, traditions and beliefs. The Vedic Sanskrit language and Vedic religion combined Indo-Aryan, Dravidian and local tribal beliefs to give rise to the ancient South Asian religions of Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism and also Sikhism, even though Sufi tradition of Islam had also significantly influenced nascent Sikhism and its holiest scripture. As a consequence, they share many similar cultural practices, festivals, and traditions. Throughout time, the traditions of different ethnic groups in South Asia have diverged, sometimes giving rise to strong local traditions, such as South Indian culture in earlier times. Other ethnic groups, successively streaming in later mainly from Central Asia and Iran, e.g. Sakas, Kushans, Huns etc. influenced pre-existing south Asian cultures. The last of these new arrivals were the Arabs, Turks and Pashtuns, however Arab influence was very limited in comparison to the Turks and Pashtuns; who brought in much cultural influence and furthered the Abrahamic religion of Islam to the western and northern parts of South Asia - the Punjabi, Sindhi, Pashtun, Baloch and Kashmiri people in areas principally located in the northern highlands and the Baluchistan plateau in Pakistan and the Indo-Gangetic plains in Pakistan and India - and contributed to the birth of Urdu, a syncretic language of combined Indic-Persian-Turkic-Arabic heritage, which is widely spoken today.

Languages

The largest spoken language in this region is now Hindi, its speakers numbering almost 422 million^[57]; the second largest spoken language is Bengali, with about 210 million speakers ^[58]. Urdu is also a major language spoken in the subcontinent, especially in Pakistan and India, and is similar linguistically to Hindi; Hindi and Urdu together make up Hindustānī. Other languages of this region fall into a few major linguistic groups: the Dravidian languages and the Indo-Aryan languages, a sub-branch of the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. The other great sub-branch of Indo-Iranian, the Iranian languages, also have significant minority representation in South Asia, with Pashtu and Baluchi being widely spoken along the northwestern fringes of the region, in modern-day Pakistan. Many Tibeto-Burman ethnic groups, who are speakers of their language-group, are found in northeast India, Tibet, Nepal, and Bhutan. Other small groups, speaking Austro-Asiatic languages, are also present in South Asia. English is another language which dominates South Asia, especially as a medium of advanced education and government administration; ethnic Englishmen and other Britons are now practically absent after their two centuries long colonial presence, although they have left an imprint of western culture in the elite society.

Most of South Asia writes using various abugidas of Brāhmī origin while languages such as Urdu, Pashto, and Sindhi use derivatives of the Perso-Arabic script. Not all languages in South Asia follow this strict dichotomy though. For example, Kashmiri is written in both the Perso-Arabic script and in the Devanagari script. The same can be said for Punjabi, which is written in both Shahmukhi and Gurmukhī. Dhivehi is written in a script called Tāna that shows characteristics of both the Arabic alphabet and of an abugida.

Religions

Afghanistan[1]	Sunni Muslim (80%), Shi'a Muslim (19%), other (1%)
Bangladesh[59]	Muslim (90%), Hindu (9%), Christian (.5%), Buddhist (.5%), Believers in tribal faiths (0.1%)
British Indian Ocean Territory[60]	Christian (45.55%), Hindu (38.55%), Muslim (9.25%), Non-Religious (6.50%), Atheist (0.10%), Other (0.05%)
Bhutan[61]	Buddhist (75%), Hindu (25%)
India[62][63]	Hindu (80.5%), Muslim (13.4%), Christian (2.3%), Sikh (1.9%), Buddhist (0.8%), Jain (0.4%), Others (0.6%)
Iran[64]	Shi'a Muslim (89%), Sunni Muslim (9%), Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, and Baha'i (2%)
Maldives[65]	Sunni Muslim (100%) (One must be a Sunni Muslim to be a citizen on the Maldives[66][67])
Myanmar[68]	Theravada Buddhism (89%), Muslim (4%), Christian (4%) (Baptist 3%, Roman Catholic 1%), Animist (1%), others (including Hinduism) (2%)
Nepal[69]	Hindu (80.6%), Buddhist (10.7%), Muslim (4.2%), Kirat (3.6%)
Pakistan[70]	Muslim (96.28%), Hindu (1.85%), Christian (1.59%), Ahmadi (0.22%)
Sri Lanka[71]	Theravada Buddhist (70.42%), Hindu (10.89%), Muslim (8.78%), Catholic (7.77%), Other Christian (1.96%), Other (0.13%)
Tibet	Tibetan Buddhism, Bön, Others

Economy

Sri Lanka has the highest GDP per capita in the region, while Nepal, Afghanistan, and Myanmar have the lowest. India is the largest economy in the region; it is the world's 12th largest or 4th largest by purchasing power adjusted exchange rates. Pakistan has the next largest economy and the second highest GDP per capita in the region, followed by Bangladesh. If Iran is counted, it is the richest economy and the second largest in region. According to a World Bank report in 2007, South Asia is the least integrated region in the world; trade between South Asian states is only 2% of the region's combined GDP, compared to 20% in East Asia.^[72]

According to the World Bank, 70% of the South Asian population and about 75% of South Asia's poor live in rural areas and most rely on agriculture for their livelihood.^[73] According to the Global Hunger Index, South Asia has the highest child malnutrition rate of world's regions.^[74] India contributes to about 5.6 million child deaths every year, more than half the world's total.^[75] The 2006 report mentioned that "the low status of women in South Asian countries and their lack of nutritional knowledge are important determinants of high prevalence of underweight children in the region" and was concerned that South Asia has "inadequate feeding and caring practices for young children".^[75]

Politics

India is the dominant political power in the region.^[76] It is contributed by the fact that it is by far the largest country in the covering around three-fourths the land area of the subcontinent.^[77] It also has the largest population of around three times the combined population of the 6 other countries in the subcontinent.^[78] India is also the most populous democracy in the world^[79] and is a nuclear power. The second largest country in the subcontinent area-wise and population-wise is Pakistan and has traditionally maintained the balance of power in the region due to its strategic relationships with Arab states^[80] and neighbouring China ^[81]. Pakistan is the 6th^[82] most populous country in the world and is also a nuclear power.

See also

• Greater India
• Indology
• South Asian cuisine
• Indian subcontinent

Notes and References

External links

• World Bank, South Asia Region
• BBC News South Asia
• Birding in South Asia
• South Asian Awareness Network Conference Website
• Digital South Asia Library

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v • d • e Countries and Territories of South Asia Bangladesh · Bhutan · India · Maldives · Nepal · Pakistan · Sri Lanka Sometimes included:  Afghanistan • Iran • Myanmar • British Indian Ocean Territory • Tibet

v • d • e Languages of South Asia Main articles Languages of India (list by number of speakers - scheduled) · Languages of Pakistan · Languages of Bangladesh · Languages of Nepal · Languages of Sri Lanka Historic languages Linguistic history of India • Sanskrit: Vedic Sanskrit · Classical Sanskrit · Prakrit: Dramatic Prakrit · Jain Prakrit · Pāli • Others: Middle Indic Contemporary languages Austronesian: Sri Lanka Malay • Dravidian: Brahui · Kannada · Malayalam · Tamil · Telugu · Tulu • Indo-Aryan: Angika · Assamese · Bhojpuri · Bengali · Dhivehi · Dogri · Gujarati · Hindi · Hindko · Kashmiri · Konkani · Magahi · Mahal · Maithili · Marathi · Nepali · Oriya · Punjabi · Saraiki · Sindhi · Sinhala · Urdu • Iranian: Balochi · Pashto · Persian · Saraiki · Tajik • Isolates: Andamanese · Burushaski · Kalto · Kusunda • Mon-Khmer: Khasi · Nicobarese • Munda: Ho · Korku · Mundari · Santali · Sora • European influence: English · French · Portuguese • Tibeto-Burman: Ao · Bodo · Garo · Kokborok · Meitei · Mizo · Nepal Bhasa · Sikkimese · Tenyidie · Tibetan Scripts Indus · Brahmi • Brahmic family: Devanagari · Sinhala · Telugu · Tamil · Gurmukhi · Bengali · Ranjana · Oriya · Malayalam · Kannada · Gujarati • Arabic: Arwi · Nasta'liq · Shahmukhi Language activism Hela Havula · Bengali Language Movement · Sanskrit revival · Pure Tamil movement · Nepal Bhasa movement · Madras anti-Hindi agitation of 1965 · Urdu movement

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