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Asia
Economic Geography
Agriculture in Asia
Many countries in Asia have arable land:
Arable land is land that is good for farming.
 Tropical crops are grown in countries with
tropical climate zones: Rice is the most
important food crop in the tropical region of
Asia.

Tropical/Equatorial Zones
Humid Subtropical Zones
Humid Continental Climate
Mountains
 The most important mountain range in Asia
is the Himalaya Mountains.
 The Himalayas:
 separate India from China.
 block clouds from entering Western
China that are formed by monsoons
 isolate Tibet, which is claimed by China,
and make transportation difficult.
The Himalayas, con’t
MT. EVEREST
World’s Highest Peak at 29,029 feet
(higher than 21 Empire State buildings)
MT. EVEREST
Peak located between countries
of Nepal & Tibet, China
Mountains, con’t
 Among other large mountain ranges found in Asia include
the Hindu-Kush mountain range, which is west of the
Himalayas and north of India.
Mountains, con’t
 The world’s second highest peak is also found in south
Asian-located mountain range, but not in the Himalayas.
Instead, mountain peak K2 is found in the Karakoram
mountain range. The mountain range spans across
Pakistan, India and China.
Mountains in India
 The Western Ghats and Eastern Ghats are located near
the Deccan Plateau of south central India. These two
mountain ranges block moist winds and keep rain from the
reaching the Deccan Plateau region, making it very arid.
Mountains

Mount Fuji is
the tallest
mountain in
Japan at
12,388 ft. The
mountain is
located on the
island of
Honshu and it
is considered
sacred by
Shintos.
Plateaus and Uplands
Most of Western China is on a plateau
called the Plateau of Tibet. Farther north is
the Mongolian Plateau.
 The Korean Peninsula and the Japanese
Islands are mountainous.

Plateaus and Uplands
Rivers and Bodies of Water
The most important rivers in South Asia
are:
A. The Indus
B. The Ganges
C. The Brahmaputra
 The Ganges and Brahmaputra start in the
Himalayas and flow into the Bay of Bengal.
Both rivers flow through Bangladesh and as
a result, this country often floods during the
monsoon season.

The Ganges
While both the Indus and Ganges Rivers are
very important for India’s commerce and
transportation, the Ganges is one of the
most polluted rivers in the world due, in
part, to human use.
 One city along the Ganges, Varanasi, is
considered sacred by Hindus and the focal
point of pilgrimages and, therefore, human
use.

The Rivers of China

China has three major rivers that begin in
the Himalayas and flow into the East China
Sea or Yellow Sea.
River
Chinese Name
Yellow River (“River of Sorrow” due to floods)
Huang He
Yangtze River (longest; important to commerce) Chang
West River
Jiang
Xi Jiang
Grand Canal of China
Rivers in Southeast Asia

The longest river in Southeast Asia is the
Mekong River. This river starts in the
Himalayas and flows through China, Laos,
Cambodia, and Vietnam before emptying
into the South China Sea.
Mekong River
The Gobi Desert
The largest desert in this area is the Gobi
Desert.
 Although South Asia gets rain from the
monsoons but the Himalaya Mountains
block the rain from entering Western China.
Most of Western China and Mongolia are in
a rain shadow.

Gobi Desert
Islands

A group of islands is called an archipelago.
There are many archipelagoes, and you
have mapped four of them. What are they?
Crops






Besides rice, the other common tropical
crops grown in Asia include
tea
sugar cane
coffee
rubber, and
cocoa.
Crops

More than 50% of the world’d tea
production comes from the continent of
Asia:
India produces 27.4%
China produces 24.6%,
For a combined total production of 52% of the
world’s tea by these two countries, alone.
World Coffee Production
Methods of Farming
In the mountainous regions of Asia people
practice agricultural terracing, while in the
tropical regions people often use the slash
and burn method to farm which is often
identified with subsistence farming.
 In fact, although there are some large farm
operations in Asia, subsistence farming is
the norm in much of rural Asia.

Tea Plantation
Rice Terraces
The Green Revolution

The Green Revolution was a period of time
from the 1940s to the 1960s when new
strains of rice and other crops were
introduced to developing parts of the world.
These new crops produced more food per
square hectare and allowed food production
to keep pace with population growth.
Developed or Developing?
Although China is industrialized and India
has many factories and a growing tech
industry, both are still considered to be
developing nations.
 In fact, most countries in Asia are
developing, meaning they still largely rely
on agriculture for their economic base.

Developed

The following countries are developed
Japan, Taiwan, Singapore and South Korea.
Of these four, Japan is the oldest
industrialized nation in Asia.
Economic Systems

A.
B.
C.
There are three types of economic
systems:
Free Market Economy
Mixed Economy
Command Economy (Centrally Planned)
The only country in Asia with a strict command economy
is North Korea. Laos, Vietnam, and China are all
transitioning towards free market economies.
Japan




Japan has one of the largest fishing fleets in the
world.
Although Japan is known for its automobile
factories, in general the economy is moving
towards the service sector.
Japan is the economic leader in the region.
Japan is heavily dependent on imported raw
resources. It must import about 50% of its food
and most of its fuel.
China



Until 30 years ago, China was communist and had
a centrally planned or command economy.
However, in the last thirty years China has
transitioned towards a free market economy.
China, along with many countries in Asia, now
participate in the global market.
Due to rapid industrialization, China now faces
several environmental problems such as soil
erosion, air pollution, and the loss of arable land.
Population
China is the most populated country in the
world and India is the second most
populated country.
 China has instituted a one child policy in
order to limit population growth. India has
no policy.

Population
Parts of Asia are very densely populated
and parts of it are sparsely populated.
 Densely populated areas include Eastern
China, India, Japan, and most of Southeast
Asia.
 Sparsely populated areas are Western
China, Mongolia, and areas in the Himalaya
Mountains.

Economic Unions

The largest economic union in this region
is ASEAN, The Association of Southeast
Asian Nations. The members of ASEAN
are:
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Brunei
Indonesia
Vietnam
Philippines
Malaysia
F. Cambodia
G. Laos
H. Thailand
I. Singapore
J. Myanmar
ASEAN
ASEAN
Cities
Site = The physical location of a city.
 Situation = The economic, political,
cultural, or topographic factors that make a
city important.

Cities
City
Site
Singapore
Island
Hong Kong
Island
Situation
On a trade route, The
Strait of Malacca
Xian, China
Grew up on a trade
route,The Silk Road
Varanasi, India
Focal point for
Religious pilgrimage
Silk Road
World Tea Production
The Green Revolution



IR8 is a variety of rice that was genetically
engineered by the International Rice Research
Institute and introduced to India.
Regular Rice Yield = 1/2 ton per hectare
IR8 Rice Yield = 5 tons per hectare with no
fertilizer and 10 tons with fertilizer.
The Rivers of China

The Yangtze and Yellow Rivers flow through an
area that is flat in elevation called the North China
Plain. This area has intensive farming and the two
rivers are connected by The Grand Canal. The
type of dirt found here is called loess. It is a rich
soil that is yellow in color and normally deposited
by the wind.
Developed
Taiwan, Singapore, and South Korea are
considered newly industrialized countries
because they built most of their factories in
the last fifty years and the economy of these
countries no longer relies on agriculture.
 Japan is highly industrialized but it has been
industrialized since the late 19th century.

Population Pyramids
Population Pyramids
Cities
Asia has some of the largest cities in the
world.
 In Asia there is an extreme contrast between
urban areas and rural areas. People in rural
areas are still living a traditional lifestyle
and practicing subsistence farming.
 Many people are moving to cities to look
for jobs.
