East Asia

UNIT 9

Physical CharacteristicsMountains influence the region

population settlement patterns ability of people to moveclimate

MountainsHimalayasWestern and Eastern GhatsMount Fuji-Japan

Varied climate regions--ranging from tropical wet to humid continental

Many natural hazards--monsoons, typhoons, volcanoes, and earthquakes

Monsoon--a seasonal shift in the prevailing winds that influences large climate regions

Typhoon--a destructive tropical storm occurring in the western Pacific Ocean or the China Sea, similar to a hurricane

Influence of water--(rivers, seas, and ocean currents) on agriculture, trade, and transportation

Important bodies of water--Arabian Sea, Indian Ocean, Bay of Bengal, Ganges River, Indus River, Brahmaputra River, Pacific Ocean, Yangtze River (Chaing Jiang), Mekong River, Yellow River (Huang He)

Area have abundant arable land

areas of loessPlateau of Tibet hard to live onGobi Desert--second largest in

the world

Economic Characteristics

Varied economies in the region ranging from subsistence/commercial agriculture to high-tech industrial manufacturing

Active participation in global markets

Many newly industrialized countries--South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore

Japan is the economic leader of the area

China is in a transition period--from a centrally planned economy to more of a tradition free market economy

Agricultural advancements and technology are enabling greater food production-- “Green Revolution”

Environmental degradationdeforestation fishing is important

Many countries are members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) which was set up with the US

main crops are rice and tropical crops such as bananas

Disputed Areas

• North Korea and South Korea —two countries that are conflicted North Korea is communist and South Korea is a democracy.

• The Peoples Republic of China and Taiwan- Divided after Communist took over China in 1949

• China and Tibet- China took over Tibet in 1949. There is a movement to encourage the Chinese to return Tibet to the Buddhist. Tibet is the homeland of the Buddhist.

Cultural CharacteristicsAreas of extremely dense and

sparse populationsevere contrast between rural

and urban areasserious religious conflicts--

primarily between Hindus and Muslims

deep respect for ancestorsReligious diversity--

Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism, Christianity, Taoism, Shinto, Confucianism are the major religions

Important cities--Tokyo, Japan; Beijing, China; New Delhi,India

Tokyo, Japan

Tokyo, Japan

Capital of Japan and part of the most urbanized area on Earth; on the island of Honshu

One of the world’s major global cities; home of a major stock market

Tokyo, Japan

Historically hit by several major earthquakes, most recently in 1923

The Tokyo area has a larger economy than all but 7 countries

Very efficient public transportation; center of culture, trade, and education

Beijing, China

Beijing, China

Capital of China and the center of culture, politics and education (although Hong Kong and Shanghai are more important for trade and economics); host of 2008 Summer Olympics

Forbidden City in Beijing was the home of many Chinese emperors

Tiananmen Square was the center of political protests in recent years

Cultural landscape--Taj Mahal, Angkor Wat, Great Wall of China, floating markets, mosques,minarets, pagodas, temples and shrines, terraced rice fields

Angkor Wat

Angkor Wat

Angkor Wat

Located in the jungles of Cambodia; built in the 12th century as a Hindu temple

Later became a center of Buddhist worship; largest religious structure in the world

Great Wall of China

Himalayas

Mount Fuji

Mount Fuji—outside of Tokyo

Mt. Fuji

Himalayas—Mt. Everest

Gobi Desert

Buddha

Buddha in New Delhi

Shinto Shrine

Temple

Pagoda

Pagoda

Temple

The Great Wall of China was built to keep out invaders.

Great Wall of China

Built by a series of Chinese dynasties to keep out Mongol and Turkic invaders from the north around 200 B.C.

Possibly as many as one million people died during its construction

The Wall was minimally successful in keeping out the invaders

About 80% of the Wall is now in disrepair

In Asia, many people live on the water. Vendors on small boats sell goods in areas of Southeast Asia; Many in Thailand and Vietnam Pictured below is a floating market.

Terraced rice fields

Terracing creates usable farmland in mountainous areas of China, Southeast Asia

High population of Asia demands that land isn’t wasted

Planting rice in a terraced rice field.

Temple in Asia

Religious Temple

A religious shrine in an intersection. What sign of globalization do you see in the photo?

Today, China's half-a-million square kilometer Loess plateau is very favorable for farms and grazing if the rainfall is enough, Nearly the whole Loess Plateau is being exploited by agriculture and it has about one-fifth of China's tillable land and supports more than one-fifth of its population.

Blowing sand from the Gobi Desert creates loess landforms in China.

Cultural heritageSilksBatikwood and ivory carvingideograms--unique alphabets

jewels

Batik

Batik: “painting” technique using melted wax on fabric; common in Indonesia and

Malaysia

Batik fabric is made in India.

Chinese silk rug

Silks: famous Chinese silk has been traded for thousands of years

Wood and ivory carving: India is famous for ivory carvings from the

tusks of elephants; ivory trade has been illegal in most countries since 1989

Drought Silk

Ideograms

A character or symbol representing an idea or a thing without expressing the

pronunciation. A stop sign is an example of an ideogram.

Chinese calligraphy characters and translation.

Jewels

Many jewels are mined in Asia.

Jewels were frequently used in art in Asian countries such as India and China

Sapphires and rubies are found in Southeast Asia