Asia
The word Asia first appeared in Hittite records around 1400 BCE, referring to a confederation of Assuwan states that rebelled against King Tudhaliya I. Ancient Greeks later adopted the term to describe Anatolia and the territory of the Achaemenid Empire, contrasting it with Greece and Egypt. Herodotus reported that some Lydians claimed the name came from Asies, son of Cotys, who passed it to a tribe at Sardis. Roman writers eventually used Asia to denote the province located in western Anatolia before Pliny applied it to the entire continent. The boundary between Europe and Asia remained fluid for centuries until Greek geographers like Anaximander placed it along the Phasis River in Georgia during the 6th century BCE. By the time of Alexander the Great, scholars agreed the Tanais River separated the two landmasses. In 1730, Philip Johan von Strahlenberg published an atlas proposing the Ural Mountains as the definitive border after Peter the Great died five years earlier. Over the next hundred years, various proposals emerged until the Ural River prevailed in the mid-19th century.
About 1.8 million years ago, Homo erectus left Africa and lived in East and Southeast Asia until roughly 110,000 years ago. Modern humans migrated into South Asia approximately 60,000 years ago along the Indian Ocean coast. Researchers believe these early travelers interbred with Denisovans, an archaic human species found in Southeast Asia. Before modern humans arrived, Flores was occupied by Homo floresiensis, a small archaic human species. Ancestors of East Eurasians split from Ancient West Eurasians about 46,000 years ago while migrating out of the Iranian Plateau hub. Evidence suggests the first people in the Americas diverged from Ancient East Asians around 36,000 years ago and expanded northwards into Siberia. There they encountered and interacted with Paleolithic Siberian populations known as Ancient North Eurasians. This interaction gave rise to both Paleosiberian peoples and Ancient Native Americans. Modern South Asians are descendants of Western Eurasian ancestries combined with indigenous East Eurasian components called Ancient Ancestral South Indians.
The earliest civilizations developed around fertile river valleys including Mesopotamia, the Indus Valley, and the Yellow River. These societies shared similarities yet developed writing individually rather than exchanging it immediately. The central steppe region remained inhabited by horse-mounted nomads who could reach all areas of Asia from the steppes. The Indo-Europeans spread their languages into West Asia, South Asia, and borders of China where Tocharians resided. The Mongol Empire conquered a large part of Asia in the 13th century, extending from China to Europe. Before this invasion, the Song dynasty reportedly had approximately 120 million citizens. A census following the invasion reported roughly 60 million people. The Black Death originated in the arid plains of Central Asia before traveling along the Silk Road. European involvement became significant from the Age of Discovery onward when Christopher Columbus and Vasco da Gama paved new routes in the late 15th century. The Russian Empire expanded into northwestern Asia from the 17th century, eventually controlling Siberia and most of Central Asia by the end of the 19th century.
Western imperialism in Asia from the 18th to 20th centuries coincided with the Industrial Revolution in the West. The British Empire first dominated South Asia after traders conquered most regions in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Direct British rule followed a failed revolt in 1857. The completion of the Suez Canal in 1869 increased British access to India and furthered European influence over Africa and Asia. Western powers began dominating China during what later became known as the century of humiliation. The British-supported opium trade and subsequent Opium Wars forced China into importing more than it exported. Japan's rapid rise during the Meiji era allowed it to control parts of East Asia and briefly much of Southeast Asia. The breakup of the Ottoman Empire in the early 20th century led to the Middle East being contested and partitioned by Britain and France. With World War II ending in 1945, many Asian countries freed themselves from colonial rule. India gained independence alongside the creation of Pakistan, which split again into Bangladesh in 1971. The Cold War strained relations between India and Pakistan while affecting Asia generally.
Asia covers 30% of Earth's total land area and has the longest coastline at approximately 62,800 kilometers. It is bounded on the east by the Pacific Ocean, south by the Indian Ocean, and north by the Arctic Ocean. The Himalayas between Nepal and China form the tallest mountain range in the world. The Gobi Desert lies within Mongolia while the Arabian Desert stretches across much of the Middle East. Climates range from Arctic and subarctic conditions in Siberia to tropical zones in southern India and Southeast Asia. Some of the largest daily temperature ranges on Earth occur in western sections of the continent. Monsoon circulation dominates across southern and eastern sections due to the Himalayas forcing thermal low formation that draws moisture during summer. Southwestern sections remain hot year-round. Siberia acts as one of the coldest places in the Northern Hemisphere and serves as a source for arctic air masses reaching North America. The most active place on Earth for tropical cyclone activity lies northeast of the Philippines and south of Japan.
China became the largest economy on the continent with India following closely behind. Japan was the largest economy in Asia and second-largest globally after surpassing the Soviet Union in 1990 and Germany in 1968. This ended in 2010 when China overtook Japan to become the world's second largest economy. In 1995, Japan's currency reached a record high of 79 yen per US dollar, making its economy nearly equal to that of the United States for a single day. Manufacturing has traditionally been strongest in East and Southeast Asia particularly within China, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, India, the Philippines, and Singapore. Many companies from Europe, North America, South Korea, and Japan operate in developing Asian countries to utilize cheap labor and developed infrastructure. In 2010, Asia had 3.3 million millionaires slightly below North America's 3.4 million. By 2011, Asia topped Europe in number of millionaires. Citigroup reported in 2012 that total wealth of people in Asia with over $100 million in assets exceeded their North American counterparts for the first time.
Many major religions originated in West Asia including Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Druze faith, and Bahá'í Faith. Judaism is practiced primarily in Israel where Jews constitute about 75.6% of the population numbering roughly 6.1 million. Christianity spread widely across Asia with more than 286 million adherents recorded in 2010. Catholicism predominates in the Philippines and Timor-Leste while Eastern Orthodoxy dominates Armenia and Georgia. Islam originated in the Hejaz located in modern-day Saudi Arabia and has at least 1 billion Muslims constituting around 23.8% of Asia's total population. Indonesia currently holds the largest Muslim population globally followed by Pakistan and India. Hinduism represents around 25% of Asia's population with over 80% of both India and Nepal adhering to it. Buddhism is the majority religion in Cambodia, Thailand, Burma, Japan, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Laos, and Mongolia. Jainism exists mainly in India and overseas Indian communities while Sikhism appears in Northern India and Southeast Asian diaspora. The Dalai Lama received the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, Norway in 1989.
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Common questions
When did the word Asia first appear in historical records?
The word Asia first appeared in Hittite records around 1400 BCE. It referred to a confederation of Assuwan states that rebelled against King Tudhaliya I.
Who proposed the Ural Mountains as the border between Europe and Asia for Asia?
Philip Johan von Strahlenberg published an atlas in 1730 proposing the Ural Mountains as the definitive border after Peter the Great died five years earlier. The Ural River prevailed as the boundary by the mid-19th century.
How many millionaires were there in Asia in 2011 compared to Europe?
By 2011, Asia topped Europe in number of millionaires. In 2010, Asia had 3.3 million millionaires slightly below North America's 3.4 million.
Which religion has the largest Muslim population globally within Asia?
Indonesia currently holds the largest Muslim population globally followed by Pakistan and India. Islam originated in the Hejaz located in modern-day Saudi Arabia and has at least 1 billion Muslims constituting around 23.8% of Asia's total population.
When did China become the world's second largest economy?
China overtook Japan to become the world's second largest economy in 2010. Japan was the largest economy in Asia and second-largest globally after surpassing the Soviet Union in 1990 and Germany in 1968.