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Asia

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Asia is the largest continent in our world.

Afro-Eurasia (orthographic projection)
Afro-Eurasia (orthographic projection)

It covers more than 44 million square kilometres of land. This area is about 30% of all land on Earth. Most of the people in the world live here. There are about 4.7 billion people in Asia. This number is roughly 60% of the whole human population.

Afro-Eurasia (orthographic projection)
Afro-Eurasia (orthographic projection)

It is a massive place with many different people.

Asia sits near several very large oceans. The Pacific Ocean is to the east. The Indian Ocean is to the south. The Arctic Ocean is to the north.

Asia (orthographic projection) without New Guinea
Asia (orthographic projection) without New Guinea

Asia shares a large landmass with Europe called Eurasia. The Suez Canal separates Asia from the continent of Africa. To the east, the Bering Strait sits between Asia and North America. The distance between Russia and the United States is only 4 kilometres at their closest point. The map shows how these large lands fit together.

Many different kinds of weather exist across the continent. Some parts of West and Central Asia have hot deserts. Southeast Asia has green, tropical jungles. The center and east have temperate areas. North Asia has very cold subarctic and polar areas.

Afro-Eurasia (orthographic projection) political
Afro-Eurasia (orthographic projection) political

These different climates allow many types of living things to thrive. The land changes a lot depending on where you stand.

History shows that Asia has been a very busy place. It was home to some of the first human civilisations. Many major religions began here, such as Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam.

Emblem of India
Emblem of India

The Silk Road was a famous trading path through the land. China and India were both major economic powers in the past. China had the highest GDP per capita until the year 1500.

Emblem of Israel
Emblem of Israel

These connections helped different cultures meet and share ideas.

The name "Asia" has a very old story. Some believe it comes from a Bronze Age word called Assuwa. This word once described a small part of Anatolia.

Anaximander world map (mul)
Anaximander world map (mul)

Ancient Greeks used the name to talk about certain lands. Later, the Romans used it for a province in western Anatolia. One of the first writers to call the whole continent Asia was Pliny. Today, the continent is a place where many independent cultures live together.

Coat of arms of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
Coat of arms of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus

It remains a vital part of our global home.

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🖼️ Images & Media (49)
File:Coat of arms of Singapore.svg
Coat of arms of Singapore.svg
File:Anaximander world map (mul).svg
Anaximander world map (mul).svg
File:Coat of arms of Malaysia.svg
Coat of arms of Malaysia.svg
File:Emblem of Israel.svg
Emblem of Israel.svg
File:Coat of Arms of The Kingdom of Bahrain.svg
Coat of Arms of The Kingdom of Bahrain.svg
File:Emblem of Bhutan.svg
Emblem of Bhutan.svg
File:Coat of arms of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.svg
Coat of arms of the Turkish Republic of...
File:Africa (orthographic projection).svg
Africa (orthographic projection).svg
File:Coat of arms of Egypt (Official).svg
Coat of arms of Egypt (Official).svg
File:Coat of arms of Iraq.svg
Coat of arms of Iraq.svg
File:Afro-Eurasia (orthographic projection).svg
Afro-Eurasia (orthographic projection).svg
File:Afro-Eurasia (orthographic projection) political.svg
Afro-Eurasia (orthographic projection)...

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