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{{otheruses}}
]
] of Asia.]]
'''Asia''' is the world's largest and most populous ] or region, depending on the definition. It covers 8.6% of the ]'s total surface area, or 29.4% of its ] area, and it contains more than 60% of the world's ].

Asia is traditionally defined as part of the ] of ] – with the western portion of the latter occupied by ] – lying east of the ], east of the ], and south of the ] and the ] and ]s.
==Etymology==
{{wiktionary|Asia}}
The word ''Asia'' entered English, via ], from ] Ασία (''Asia''; see also ]). This name is first attested in ] (about 440 BC), where it refers to ]; or, for the purposes of describing the ], to the ], in contrast to ] and ]. Herodotus comments that he is puzzled as to why three women's names are used to describe one land mass (], Asia and ], referring to Africa), stating that most Greeks assumed that Asia was named after the wife of ] but that the ] say it was named after ], son of ] who passed the name on to a tribe in ].

Even before Herodotus, ] knew of a ] ally named ], son of ], a ruler over several towns, and elsewhere he describes a marsh as ασιος (Iliad 2, 461). The Greek term may be derived from ], a 14th century BC confederation of states in Western ]. ] ''assu-'' = "good" is probably an element in that name.

Alternatively, the ultimate ] of the term may be from the ] word ''{{Unicode|(w)aṣû(m)}}'', which means "to go out" or "to ascend", referring to the direction of the ] at sunrise in the ], and also likely connected with the Phoenician word ''asa'' meaning east. This may be contrasted to a similar etymology proposed for ''Europe'', as being from ] ''erēbu'' "to enter" or "set" (of the sun). However, this etymology is considered doubtful, because it does not explain how the term "Asia" first came to be associated with Anatolia, which is ''west'' of the Semitic-speaking areas, unless they refer to the viewpoint of a ]n sailor sailing through the straits between the ] and the ].

==Definition and boundaries==
Medieval ]ans considered Asia as a continent – a distinct landmass. The European concept of the three continents in the ] goes back to ], but during the Middle Ages was notably due to ] (see ]). The demarcation between Asia and ] is the ] of ] and the ]. The boundary between Asia and ] is commonly considered to run through the ], the ], the ], the Black Sea, the Caucasus Mountains, the Caspian Sea, the ] to its source, and the Ural Mountains to the ] near Kara, ]. While this interpretation of tripartite continents (i.e., of Asia, Europe, and Africa) remains common in modernity, discovery of the extent of Africa and Asia have made this definition somewhat anachronistic. This is especially true in the case of Asia, which would have several regions that would be considered distinct landmasses if these criteria were used (for example, ] and ]).

Generally, geologists and physical geographers do not consider Asia and Europe to be separate continents. Physiographically, Asia is the major eastern constituent of the continent of ] – with Europe being a northwestern ] of the landmass – or of ]: geologically, Asia, Europe, and Africa comprise a single continuous landmass (save the ]) and share a common ]. Almost all of Europe and most of Asia sit atop the ], adjoined on the south by the ] and ]s, and with much of ] situated on the ].
In geography, there are two schools of thought. One school follows historical convention and treats Europe and Asia as different continents, categorizing ]s within them for more detailed analysis. The other school equates the word "continent" with a geographical ] when referring to Europe, and use the term "region" to describe Asia in terms of physiography. Since, in linguistic terms, "continent" implies a distinct landmass, it is becoming increasingly common to substitute the term "region" for "continent" to avoid the problem of disambiguation altogether.

Given the scope and diversity of the landmass, it is sometimes not even clear exactly what "Asia" consists of. Some definitions exclude ], the Middle East, Central Asia and Russia while only considering the Far East, Southeast Asia and the Indian Subcontinent to compose Asia.<ref>World University Service of Canada. Asia-WUSC WorldWide. 2006. October 7, 2006. <http://www.wusc.ca/expertise/worldwide/asia/>.</ref> The term is sometimes used more strictly in reference to the ] region, which does not include the Middle East or Russia<ref>BBC News 2006. September 9, 2006. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/>.</ref>, but does include islands in the ] &mdash; a number of which may also be considered part of ] or ] although Pacific Islanders are commonly not considered Asian.<ref>American Heritage Book of English Usage. Asian. 1996. September 29, 2006. <http://www.bartleby.com/64/C006/007.html>.</ref>

==='Asian' as a demonym===
The ] ']' often refers to a category of people from a ] of Asia instead of being used as a mere ] for anyone from the (Asian) continent. In ], 'Asian' usually refers to South Asian, but may also refer to other Asian groups.<ref>Color Q World. Clarifying the Definition of Asian. 2005. October 1, 2006. <http://www.colorq.org/PetSins/article.asp?y=2005&m=5&x=5_7>.</ref> In the ], ']' is usually taken to mean ]s due to the historical and cultural influences of ] and ] on the U.S. up to the 1960s and in preference to the terms ']' and ']'; however, the term is increasingly taken to include ]s, and ]s due to the increasing demographics of these groups.<ref> Accessed ]-].</ref>

:''See also: ], ], ], ].''

==Territories and regions==
<!--{{editnote | NOTE: The countries in this table are categorized according to the scheme for geographic subregions used by the United Nations etc., and data included are per sources in cross-referenced articles. Where they differ, provisos are clearly indicated. If you have arguments or evidence to the contrary, please provide them on the talk page and await until the consensus supports making proposed edits. Thank you!-->

] of Asia:
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<div style="clear:both"/>
{| border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" style="border:1px solid #aaa; border-collapse:collapse"
|- bgcolor="#ECECEC"
! Name of ]<ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;Continental regions as per ], except 12. Depending on definitions, various territories cited below (notes 6, 11-13, 15, 17-19, 21-23) may be in ] Asia and ], ], or ].<br></ref> and<br>territory, with ]
! ]<br>(km²)
! ]<br>(] ] est.)
! ]<br>(per km²)
! ]
|-
| colspan=5 style="background:#eee;" | ''']:'''
|-
| {{flagicon|Kazakhstan}} ]<ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;] is sometimes considered a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe; population and area figures are for Asian portion only.<br></ref>
| align="right" | 2,346,927
| align="right" | 13,472,593
| align="right" | 5.7
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Kyrgyzstan}} ]
| align="right" | 198,500
| align="right" | 4,822,166
| align="right" | 24.3
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Tajikistan}} ]
| align="right" | 143,100
| align="right" | 6,719,567
| align="right" | 47.0
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Turkmenistan}} ]
| align="right" | 488,100
| align="right" | 4,688,963
| align="right" | 9.6
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Uzbekistan}} ]
| align="right" | 447,400
| align="right" | 25,563,441
| align="right" | 57.1
| ]
|-
| colspan=5 style="background:#eee;" | ''']:'''
|-
| {{flagicon|China}} ]<ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;The current ] is formally known as the ] (PRC), which is subsumed by the ]. Figures given are for ] only, and do not include ], ], and ].<br></ref>
| align="right" | 9,584,492
| align="right" | 1,384,303,705
| align="right" | 134.0
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Hong Kong}} ] (PRC)<ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;] is a ] (SAR) of the PRC.<br></ref>
| align="right" | 1,092
| align="right" | 7,303,334
| align="right" | 6,688.0
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Japan}} ]
| align="right" | 377,835
| align="right" | 126,974,628
| align="right" | 336.1
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Macau}} ] (PRC)<ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;] is a ] (SAR) of the PRC.<br></ref>
| align="right" | 25
| align="right" | 461,833
| align="right" | 18,473.3
| —
|-
| {{flagicon|Mongolia}} ]
| align="right" | 1,565,000
| align="right" | 2,694,432
| align="right" | 1.7
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|North Korea}} ]
| align="right" | 120,540
| align="right" | 22,224,195
| align="right" | 184.4
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|South Korea}} ]
| align="right" | 98,480
| align="right" | 48,324,000
| align="right" | 490.7
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Taiwan}} ] (]) <ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;Figures are for ] under the ''de facto'' control of the ROC government. Claimed in whole by the PRC; see ].<br></ref>
| align="right" | 35,980
| align="right" | 22,548,009
| align="right" | 626.7
| ]
|-
| colspan=5 style="background:#eee;" | ''']:'''
|-
| {{flagicon|Egypt}} ]<ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;] is generally considered a transcontinental country in Northern Africa and Western Asia; population and area figures are for Asian portion only, east of the ] (]).<br></ref>
| align="right" | 63,556
| align="right" | 1,378,159
| align="right" | 21.7
| ]
|-
| colspan=5 style="background:#eee;" | ''']:'''
|-
| {{flagicon|Russia}} ]<ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;] is generally considered a transcontinental country in Eastern Europe (UN region) and ]; population and area figures are for Asian portion only.<br></ref>
| align="right" | 13,115,200
| align="right" | 39,129,729
| align="right" | 3.0
| ]
|-
| colspan=5 style="background:#eee;" | ''']:'''
|-
| {{flagicon|Brunei}} ]
| align="right" | 5,770
| align="right" | 350,898
| align="right" | 60.8
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Cambodia}} ]
| align="right" | 181,040
| align="right" | 12,775,324
| align="right" | 70.6
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Indonesia}} ]<ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;] is often considered a transcontinental country in Southeastern Asia and ]; figures do not include ] and ], frequently reckoned in Oceania (]/]).<br></ref>
| align="right" | 1,419,588
| align="right" | 227,026,560
| align="right" | 159.9
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Laos}} ]
| align="right" | 236,800
| align="right" | 5,777,180
| align="right" | 24.4
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Malaysia}} ]
| align="right" | 329,750
| align="right" | 22,662,365
| align="right" | 68.7
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Myanmar}} ]
| align="right" | 678,500
| align="right" | 42,238,224
| align="right" | 62.3
| ]<ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;The administrative capital of ] was officially moved from ] to a militarised greenfield just west of ] on 6 November 2005.</ref>
|-
| {{flagicon|Philippines}} ]
| align="right" | 300,000
| align="right" | 84,525,639
| align="right" | 281.8
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Singapore}} ]
| align="right" | 693
| align="right" | 4,452,732
| align="right" | 6,425.3
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Thailand}} ]
| align="right" | 514,000
| align="right" | 62,354,402
| align="right" | 121.3
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Timor-Leste}} ]<ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;] is often considered a transcontinental country in Southeastern Asia and ].<br></ref>
| align="right" | 15,007
| align="right" | 952,618
| align="right" | 63.5
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Vietnam}} ]
| align="right" | 329,560
| align="right" | 81,098,416
| align="right" | 246.1
| ]
|-
| colspan=5 style="background:#eee;" | ''']:'''
|-
| {{flagicon|Afghanistan}} ]
| align="right" | 647,500
| align="right" | 27,755,775
| align="right" | 42.9
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Bangladesh}} ]
| align="right" | 144,000
| align="right" | 133,376,684
| align="right" | 926.2
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Bhutan}} ]
| align="right" | 47,000
| align="right" | 672,425
| align="right" | 14.3
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|India}} ]<ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;Includes ], a contested territory among India, ], and the ].<br></ref>
| align="right" | 3,287,590
| align="right" | 1,045,845,226
| align="right" | 318.2
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Iran}} ]<!--{{editnote | NOTE: Do not alter or move this entry without discussion -- in the UN scheme for countries/regions (used in the table), Iran is in Southern Asia, not Western Asia.-->
| align="right" | 1,648,000
| align="right" | 68,467,413
| align="right" | 41.5
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Maldives}} ]
| align="right" | 300
| align="right" | 320,165
| align="right" | 1,067.2
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Nepal}} ]
| align="right" | 140,800
| align="right" | 25,873,917
| align="right" | 183.8
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Pakistan}} ]
| align="right" | 803,940
| align="right" | 147,663,429
| align="right" | 183.7
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Sri Lanka}} ]
| align="right" | 65,610
| align="right" | 19,576,783
| align="right" | 298.4
| ]
|-
| colspan=5 style="background:#eee;" | ''']:'''
|-
| {{flagicon|Armenia}} ]<ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;] is sometimes considered a transcontinental country: physiographically in ], it has historical and sociopolitical connections with Europe.<br></ref>
| align="right" | 29,800
| align="right" | 3,330,099
| align="right" | 111.7
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Azerbaijan}} ]<ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;] is often considered a transcontinental country in Western Asia and Eastern Europe; population and area figures are for Asian portion only. ] is an autonomous ] of Azerbaijan bordered by ], ], and ].<br></ref>
| align="right" | 41,370
| align="right" | 3,479,127
| align="right" | 84.1
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Bahrain}} ]
| align="right" | 665
| align="right" | 656,397
| align="right" | 987.1
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Cyprus}} ]<ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;The island of ] is sometimes considered a transcontinental territory: in the Eastern Basin of the ] south of ], it has historical and sociopolitical connections with Europe. The ] (TRNC), distinct from the ''de jure'' Republic of Cyprus in the south (with a predominantly Greek population), is recognised only by Turkey.<br></ref>
| align="right" | 9,250
| align="right" | 775,927
| align="right" | 83.9
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Palestine}} ]<ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;] and ], collectively referred to as the "Occupied Palestinian Territory" by the UN, are ] partially occupied by ] but under ''de facto'' administration of the ].<br></ref>
| align="right" | 363
| align="right" | 1,203,591
| align="right" | 3,315.7
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Georgia}} ]<ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;] is often considered a transcontinental country in Western Asia and Eastern Europe; population and area figures are for Asian portion only.<br></ref>
| align="right" | 20,460
| align="right" | 2,032,004
| align="right" | 99.3
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Iraq}} ]
| align="right" | 437,072
| align="right" | 24,001,816
| align="right" | 54.9
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Israel}} ]
| align="right" | 20,770
| align="right" | 6,029,529
| align="right" | 290.3
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Jordan}} ]
| align="right" | 92,300
| align="right" | 5,307,470
| align="right" | 57.5
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Kuwait}} ]
| align="right" | 17,820
| align="right" | 2,111,561
| align="right" | 118.5
| ]
|-
| ] ]
| align="right" | 10,400
| align="right" | 3,677,780
| align="right" | 353.6
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Azerbaijan}} ] (])<ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;] is often considered a transcontinental country in Western Asia and Eastern Europe. ] is an autonomous ] of Azerbaijan bordered by ], ], and ].<br></ref>
| align="right" | 5,500
| align="right" | 365,000
| align="right" | 66.4
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Oman}} ]
| align="right" | 212,460
| align="right" | 2,713,462
| align="right" | 12.8
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Qatar}} ]
| align="right" | 11,437
| align="right" | 793,341
| align="right" | 69.4
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Saudi Arabia}} ]
| align="right" | 1,960,582
| align="right" | 23,513,330
| align="right" | 12.0
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Syria}} ]
| align="right" | 185,180
| align="right" | 17,155,814
| align="right" | 92.6
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Turkey}} ]<ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;] is generally considered a transcontinental country in Western Asia and Southern Europe; population and area figures are for Asian portion only, excluding all of ].</small><br></ref>
| align="right" | 756,768
| align="right" | 57,855,068
| align="right" | 76.5
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|United Arab Emirates}} ]
| align="right" | 82,880
| align="right" | 2,445,989
| align="right" | 29.5
| ]
|-
| {{flagicon|Palestine}} ]<ref>&nbsp;&nbsp;] and ], collectively referred to as the "Occupied Palestinian Territory" by the UN, are ] by ] but under ''de facto'' administration of the ].<br></ref>
| align="right" | 5,860
| align="right" | 2,303,660
| align="right" | 393.1
| —
|-
| {{flagicon|Yemen}} ]
| align="right" | 527,970
| align="right" | 18,701,257
| align="right" | 35.4
| ]
|-
|- style=" font-weight:bold; "
| Total
| align="right" | 43,810,582
| align="right" | 3,902,404,193
| align="right" | 89.07
|}

==Economy==
{| class="wikitable" style="width:300px;" align="right"
|+ <big>'''Economy of Asia'''</big><br><small>During 2003 unless otherwise stated</small>
|-
|Population:
| 3,958,768,100 (2006 Estimate)
|-
|] (]):
|]18.077 trillion
|-
|] (]):
| $8.782 trillion
|-
|GDP/capita (]):
| $4,518
|-
|GDP/capita (]):
| $2,143|-
|Annual growth of <br> per capita GDP:
|
|-
|Income of top 10%:
|
|-
| ]s:
| 2.0 million (0.05%)
|-
|]
|
|-
|Estimated female<br> ]
|
|-
| align="center" colspan="2" | <small>Most numbers are from the ] from 2002, some numbers exclude certain countries for lack of information.</small>
|-
| align="center" colspan="2" | {{World economy infobox footer}}
|}
{{main|Economy of Asia}}

In terms of ] (]), the largest national economy within Asia is that of ]. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the economies of ]]]<ref>, Legal Issues of Economic Integration, Kluwer Law International, Volume 33, Number 3, pp. 263-304, 2006. by </ref> and ] have been growing rapidly, both with an average annual growth rate of more than 7%. China has the world's second-largest economy after the United States, followed by ] and ].

However, in terms of ] (nominal GDP), Japan has the largest economy in Asia and second-largest of any single nation in the world, after surpassing the Soviet Union (measured in ]) in 1986 and Germany in 1968. (NB: A number of supernational economies are larger, such as the ], ] or ]). Economic growth in Asia since ] to the 1990s had been concentrated in few countries of the ], and has spread more recently to other regions.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Japan's economy was almost as large as that of the rest of the continent combined. In 1995, Japan's economy nearly equalled that of the USA to tie the largest economy in the world for a day, after the Japanese currency reached a record high of 79 ]. But since then, Japan's currency has corrected and China has grown to be the second-largest Asian economy, followed by India, in terms of exchange rates. It is expected that China will surpass Japan in currency terms to have the largest nominal GDP in Asia within a decade or two.

Trade blocs:
*]
*]
*]
*]
*]
*]

===Natural resources===
Asia is the largest continent in the ] by a considerable margin, and it is rich in natural resources, such as ] and ].

High productivity in agriculture, especially of ], allows high population density of countries in the warm and humid area. Other main agricultural products include ] and ].

Forestry is extensive throughout Asia, except in Southwest and Central Asia. ] is a major source of food in Asia, particularly in Japan.

===Manufacturing===
Manufacturing in Asia has traditionally been strongest in East and Southeast Asia, particularly in ], ], ], ] and ]. The industry varies from manufacturing cheap goods such as ]s to high-tech products such as ]s and ]. Many companies from ], ], and ] have significant operations in Asia's developing countries to take advantage of its abundant supply of cheap labour.

One of the major employers in manufacturing in Asia is the ] industry. Much of the world's supply of clothing and footwear now originates in Southeast Asia.

===Financial and other services===
Asia has three main financial centres: in ], ], and ]. ]s and ] (BPOs) are becoming major employers in ] and the ] due to the availability of a large pool of highly-skilled, ] workers. The rise of the business process ] industry has seen the rise of India and China as other financial centres.

==Early history==
{{main|History of Asia}}
]
The history of Asia can be seen as the distinct histories of several peripheral coastal regions: ], ], and the ], linked by the interior mass of the ] ].

The coastal periphery was home to some of the world's earliest known civilizations, each of them developing around fertile river valleys. The civilizations in ], the ], and the ] shared many similarities. These civilizations may well have exchanged technologies and ideas such as ] and the wheel. Other innovations, such as writing, seem to have been developed individually in each area. Cities, states, and empires developed in these lowlands.

The central steppe region had long been inhabited by horse-mounted nomads who could reach all areas of Asia from the steppes. The earliest postulated expansion out of the steppe is that of the ], who spread their languages into the Middle East, India, and the borders of China, where the ] resided. The northernmost part of Asia, including much of ], was largely inaccessible to the steppe nomads, owing to the dense forests, climate, and ]. These areas remained very sparsely populated.

The center and the peripheries were mostly kept separated by mountains and deserts. The ] and ] mountains and the ] and ] deserts formed barriers that the steppe horsemen could cross only with difficulty. While the urban city dwellers were more advanced technologically and socially, in many cases they could do little in a military aspect to defend against the mounted hordes of the steppe. However, the lowlands did not have enough open grasslands to support a large horsebound force; for this and other reasons, the nomads who conquered states in China, India, and the Middle East often found themselves adapting to the local, more affluent societies.

].]]

==Languages and literature==
Asia is home to several ] and many ]s. Most Asian countries have more than one language that is natively spoken. For instance, according to ], more than 600 languages are spoken in ], more than 415 languages spoken in ], and more than 100 are spoken in the ]. ] has many languages and dialects in different provinces. ], however, is home to only one language, albeit one with high dialectal diversity.

===Nobel prizes===
The ] ], a ] ], ], and ] from ], now in ], ], became in 1913 the first Asian ]. He won his ] for notable impact his prose works and poetic thought had on ], ], and other national literatures of ] and the ]s. He also wrote the ].

Tagore is said to have named another Bengali Indian Nobel prize winner, the 1998 laureate in Economics, ]. Sen's work has centered around global issues including famine, welfare, and third-world development. Amartya Sen was Master of Trinity College, Cambridge University, U.K., from 1998-2004, becoming the first Asian to head an 'Oxbridge' College.

Other Asian writers who won Nobel Prizes include ] (], 1966), ] (], 1994), ] (], 2000) and ] (], 2006)
Also,] of Iran was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her significant and pioneering efforts for democracy and human rights, especially for the rights of women and children. She is the first Iranian and the first Muslim woman to receive the prize.

In 2006 Dr. Mohammad Yunus from Bangladesh and Grameen Bank he established to lend money to poor people especially women in Bangladesh was awarded Nobel Peace prize. Dr. Yunus received his Ph.D. in economics from Vanderbilt University, United States. He is internationally known for the concept of micro credit which allows poor and destitutes with little or no collateral to borrow money. The borrowers typically pay back money within specified period of time and the incidence of default is very low.

==Beliefs==
===Mythology===
The story of ] find reference in most of the regions of Asia. The story is first found in ], in the '']''. ] tells about an ] of ] in the form of a ] who warned ] of a terrible flood. In ancient ], ], the Chinese ruler ], had to spend 10 years to control a deluge which swept out most of ancient China and was aided by the goddess ] who "fixed" the "broken" sky through which huge rains were pouring. The story is also found in the ], ] and ].

List of mythologies native to Asia:
*]
*]
*]
*]
*]
**]
*]
**]
**]
*]
*]
**]
**]
**]
*]
**]
**]
**]
*]
**] (Modified indigenous Kurdish belief)
**]
*]
**]
**]
**]
*]
**]
**] (Indigenous Mongol, Tartar & Kazakh belief)

===Philosophy===
{{main|Eastern philosophy}}
] forms an integral part of Hindu philosophy.]]
Asian philosophical traditions originated in India and China and cover a large spectrum of philosophical thoughts and writings. ] includes ] and ]. They include elements of nonmaterial pursuits, whereas another school of thought from India, ], preached the enjoyment of material world.

] was founded by Chinese philosopher ], who lived 605-520 B.C. ] was founded by ], who lived 563-483 B.C.

During the 20th century, in the two most populous countries of Asia, two dramatically different political philosophies took shape. ] gave a new meaning to ], and redefined the concepts of ] and ]. During the same period, ]’s ] ] was crystallized.

===Religions===
The ]s of ], ], ] and the ] originated in ]. The ]s of ], ], ] and ] originated in ]. In ], particularly in ] and ], ], ], ] and ] took shape. Other religions of Asia include the ], ] practiced in ], and ] practiced in the eastern parts of the ] and in ].

Today 30% of ] live in the ]n regions of ], ] and ]. The world's largest single Muslim community (within the bounds of one nation) is in ]. There are also significant Muslim populations in China, ], ], the ], ] and most of West Asia and ].

In the ] and ], ] is the predominant religion; it was introduced by the ]s and the ], respectively. In ], ] is the predominant religion. Various ] sects have adherents in portions of the ], as well as China and India.

A large majority of people in the world who practice a religious faith practice one founded in Asia.

Religions founded in Asia and with a majority of their contemporary adherents in Asia include:
*]: Bangladesh, India, Pakistan.
*]: Eastern India, Japan, tribal ].
*]: slightly more than half of all adherents are in Asia.
*]: Tibet.
].]]
*]: Tibet, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, Japan, Korea, Laos, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, parts of India and parts of central and eastern Russia (Siberia).
**]: Bhutan, China, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, parts of the Philippines.
**]: Cambodia, parts of China, Chittagong Hill Tracts, West Bengal, Laos, mainly northern parts of Malaysia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, as well as parts of Vietnam.
**]: Parts of China, Mongolia, Tibet, parts of northern and eastern India, parts of central, eastern Russia and Siberia.
*]: China, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, Vietnam.
*]: Bangladesh, Bhutan, Indonesia ], India, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Singapore and South Asian immigrants in West Asia.
*]: Central Asia, South Asia, and Southwest Asia, Maritime Southeast Asia, ] Philippines , ], ] Myanmar.
**]: largely to specific Iran, Azerbaijan, parts of Iraq, Bahrain, parts of Afghanistan, parts of India, parts of Pakistan.
**]: dominant in the rest of the regions mentioned above.
*]: India.
*]: Indonesia
*]: Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Siberia.
*]: Japan.
*]: India, Malaysia, Hong Kong.
*] : Iran, Iraq, Syria, Turkey.
*]: Pakistan, Iran.
*]: Iran, India, Pakistan.

Religions founded in Asia that have the majority of their contemporary adherents in other regions include:
*]: Armenia, East Timor, Georgia, India, Indonesia, Lebanon, Malaysia, Pakistan, Palestinian territories, Philippines, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Syria.
*]: slightly fewer than half of its adherents reside in Asia; Israel, India, Iran, Russia, Syria.

==See also==
{{portal}}
{{commons|Asia}}
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==Notes==
<div class="references-small" style="-moz-column-count:2; column-count:2;">
<references />
</div>

==References==
* "Asia". ''''. 2005. New York: Columbia University Press.
* World Conflicts: Asia and the Middle East ''''. Edited by Carl L. Bankston III. New York: Salem Press.

==External links==
*

{{Continents of the world}}
{{Regions of the world}}

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Revision as of 20:24, 29 January 2007