ASIAN STUDIES

I. ASIA: GEOGRAPHICAL FEATURES AND ITS DEVELOPMENT

A. Geographical Features

• World’s largest continent (17,139,000 sq. miles – nearly 1/3 of the earth land).

• Geographically it is compact and unified

• Boundaries: Ural mountains from Europe; red Sea and Suez Canal from Africa

• It is a continent of physical contrast: Mt. Everest world’s highest mountain (29,028ft); Dead Sea (1,292ft. below sea level) as the lowest.

• Term Asia was derived from an early Agean term ASER which meant “sunrise”. ASIA was first used by Pindar, a Greek poet.

Regional Division of Asia

1. South Asia – centered on the Indian subcontinent. It includes India, Pakistan, Ceylon, Afghanistan, Himalayan Kingdoms of Nepal, Bhutan and Indian Protectorates,
Sikkim

2. Southeast Asia – a relatively recent term thaht came into usage during World War III. It covers Burma (Myanmar), Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia,
Singapore, Indonesia, Brunei and Philippines.

3. East Asia – China and Taiwan (Formosa), Korea, Japan. This region is more often referred to as Far East by the Westerners because it is part of Asia farthest east of
Europe.

4. Southeast Asia – known to Westerners as the Near East for these are countries nearest to Europe. More recently, Westerners refer to this region as Middle East for it
is midway between Westren Europe and East Asia. These include Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, People’s Republic of South
Yemen, Kuwait and the Tracial States.

B. ASIA in World History

1. Asia is the biggest continent

o It has very important economic potentials (varied resources)

o It also has demographic potentials – more than half of the world’s population is in Asia where there is low death rate, high birth rate and longer life expectancy

2. Asia was the seat of the world’s civilization

3. Asia’s nationalism is a powerful force which is shaping the future of Asia and the world

4. Asia is the home of religions

C. Pre-historic Asia

1. Earliest Man

• Asia is said to be the place which has yielded the greatest number of fossils of simian species. Ramapithecus fossils were discovered in Pakistan and in the Yunnan
Province of China. Ramapithecus fossils is sid to be the closest to man.

• Earliest man’s capacity for production was shown through the development of tools. Technology divides the evolutionary period of culure into:

a. Stone Age

b. Bronze Age

c. Iron Age

• Activities engaged in during Stone Age: food gathering, hunting. Mastery of fire was a great step in man’s emancipation from environment.

2. Peopling of the Pacific was the greatest feat of colonization. Migration took place in Southeast Asia, Australia and its island neighbors in the great Oceans
(Melanesia, Polynesia, Micronesia)

D. Birth of Civilization

1. Bronze Age (3,000 BC – 1800 BC) saw the birth of civilization

2. Early civilization started in the river valleys

Tigris-Euphrates - Mesopotamia

Nile - Egypt

Indus - India

Yellow - China
3. Characteristics/Indicators of Civilization

a. existence of political system

b. division of labor/occupation became specialized

c. system of writing

d. organized trade

e. existence of class structure

f. monumental architecture

g. representational art

4. Development of Religions

a. Hinduism - India

b. Buddhism - India

c. Christianity - Israel

d. Islamism - Saudi Arabia

e. Judaism - Israel

f. Zoroasterianism - Persia (Iran)

g. Shintoism - Japan

E. Warrior Groups Responsible for the Unification of the Peoples of Asia

1. HUNS (from Neolothic Period to about 12000 AD) also known as Hsiung Nus

o Horseriding people, semi-nomadic who attempted to move toward the fertile land of China. They were based in Mongolia thn extended to Manchuria, Central Asia
and even reached as far as the Slavic territories to Germany and Spain in the 5th century.

o Greatest leader was Attila who upon reaching Rome was persuaded by Pope Leo the Great to give up his plans to take Rome.

2. MONGOLS

o Based in Central Asia (near Lake Baal), they lived in small groups of few families. Basic social and political units were patriarchal clans; spiritual life was focused on
loyalty to clan. Polygamy necessitated the acquisition of wives outside of the clan and in most cases, wives were obtained through seizure.

o Genghis Khan (or Chinggis Khan) was formerly known as as Temujen. He acquired the name Genghis or Chinggis (meaning “universal ruler”) after successful
conquest were made by him. His empire extended as far as Middle East and Europe. They were noted for espionage and psychological warfare.

3. OTTOMAN TURKS – (11th Century)

o Original home near Gobi dessert, Siberia and Turkestan. “Ottoman” was derived from the third caliph Osman. They moved westward into Europe. Great leader was
Sulaiman.

Contribution of the Warrior Groups:

1. Advanced the knowledgde of metallurgy

2. Evolved different political systems

3. Fostered international trading

F. Development of Empire

1. Persian Empire (West Asia)

o Recognized as the first biggest empire especially during the time of Cyrus. Captivity of Babylon, the capital of the Chaldean empire in 539 BC signified the
ascendancy of this Aryan race over the older cultures. The empire included the Iranian Plateau, the Fertile Crescent, Anatolia, Sogdania, Egypt (conquered by
Cambyses). Darius moved westward through the Balkans only to be repulsed bb the Greeks in the “famous Battle of Marathon”. Eastward, Persian reached as far as
Punjab in India.

o Persian empire was known for its organized political system where the empire was divided into political units known as satrapes ruled by satraps. This satrapes could
be the equivalent of present day provinces.

o Zoroastrianism was advocated most especially during the time of Darius, when he declared that sovereignty was granted to him by Ahura Mazda because he
advocated this god’s teaching which was to act righteously and justly to all men.

o Lengua franca was Aramaic, serving as language of official communication

o Persia developed a system of communication by providing road network where messengers of the Great King rode back and forth from satrapes.

2. Indian Empire (South Asia)

o Indus valley civilization (Harappa and Mojendro Daro) was disintegrating in 1500 BC when Aryans entered north-west of India. Aryans or Indo-Aryans were
descendants of Indo-Europeans (from North Iranian plateau).

o Empire building was credited to the Mauryan Dynasty (321-183 BC), although to some historians, the Nada Dynasty laid the foundation of empire building but this
was cut short by Chandragupta Maurya who usurped the throne and in him the imperial idea materialized.

o Political system was similar to that of Persia where the empire was divided into province for administrative purposes.

o Hinduism evolved – which was a religion that blended the aborigines (Dravidians) manner of worship and the Aryans religious beliefs and practices.

o Brahmannical theories influenced the characterization of Kingship

o Caste system was institutionalized where Indian society was divided into Brahman, Kshatriya, Vaishya and Sudra.

o In 6th century BC, opposition to the rigidity of the Caste system led to the development of Buddhism and Jainism. Buddhist propagated a new concept of Dharma
which emphasized tolerance and non-violence.

o During the reign of Asoka (3th century BC) Buddhism aws accepted because he himself had become a zealous follower. He used the Buddhist religious principles fo
secular purposes such that his reforms was focused on humanity in internal administration and the abandonment of aggressive war. He termed his territorial expansion
as conquest of Righteousness.

G. Development of Trade

o Commerce between Europe and Asia began as early as the first century A.D.

o Trade/Commerce was conducted through land routes and sea routes

o Trade centers between 200AD to 1500 AD were:

1. Mediterranean – West Asian Trade Complex

2. Central Asia Trade Complex

3. Strait of Malacca – Indo China Trade Complex

4. Indian Ocean Trade Complex

o Effects of the Expansion of Trade

1. Spread of sericulture or silk culture (The Chinese were called “Seres” or “Serices” by the Romans. These two terms may have originated from the Chinese word for
silk.

By the 3th century AD Korea and Japan acquired the knowlegde of sericulture and by the 6th century Byzantium learned the secret of sericulture.

2. Buddhism spread to China and to the rest of Southeast Asia and Far East

3. Christianity and Islamism found their way to China and other parts of Asia

4. By 7th century centers of power were:

Tang Dynasty - China

Islam - West Asia

Byzantine - West Asia

5. Trade played an important role in defining Asia and Asian civilization to the Western world:

a. Earliest reference to Asia was made by Herodotus who wrote about the “nomad synethians who dwelt in Asia”.

b. Western world perceived Asia as the source of silk, spices and various exotic products

c. Asia and Europe were linked. Goods were exchanged and migration of people took place

d. Asian religions were spread to different parts of the world

e. Culture was enriched

II. ASIA’A TRANSITION

A. Age of Exploration and Discovery in Europe

B. Imperialism in Asia

1. Most countries in Asia came under colonial rule particulary those in Southeast Asia, except Thailand
2. China was under the “sphere of influence”

3. Korea (hermit Kingdom) and Japan went out into isolation to avoid the influences of western countries but eventually were opened to allow Western countries to
trade with tehm

C. Asia’s involvement with the West dragged her into 2 global wars. In World War II Japan actively led the war in the Pacific on the side of the Axis Powers. Japan
occupied most of the territories in Southeast Asia.

D. After the World War II, colonies occupied by Japan came again under Western rule but were eventually given independence. Korea was divided; so with Vietnam
due to ideology (Democracy advocated by USA and Communism by USSR)

E. Experience from colonial rule changed the outlook of most people in Asia.

III. GREAT CONTRIBUTION OF ASIA IN CIVILIZATION

A. Architecture and Engineering

o Great Walls – China (initial construction by Shing Huang Ti)

o Taj Mahal – India (contructed by Shah Jahan)

o Hanging Garden – Babylon (By Nebuchadnezzar)

o Pyramid – Egypt (in ancient time, Egypt was considered part of the Orient)

B. Form of Writing

o Hieroglphics – Egypt

o Cuneiform – Mesopotamia

o Sanskrit – India

C. Religions

D. Empire Building

E. Great Philosophers: Confucius, Lao Tzu, Mencius