Asia

Asia is the world’s largest continent and the most populous, forming the eastern portion of the Eurasian landmass.

Asia is the world’s largest continent and the most populous, forming the eastern portion of the Eurasian landmass. It is not a culturally or geographically uniform region, but a vast area of extreme diversity in climates, landscapes, peoples, languages, and religions. Asia covers about 44.6 million square kilometres, roughly one-third of Earth’s land surface, and contains about three-fifths of the world’s population.

Geography

Asia spans a vast range of environments, from tropical and temperate zones to arctic regions. It includes major mountain systems, plateaus, plains, deserts, and extensive island chains. The continent contains the highest point on Earth’s surface, Mount Everest, and the lowest, the Dead Sea shoreline.

Population and culture

Asia has the largest population of any continent and includes extraordinary linguistic, ethnic, and religious diversity. Major world religions such as Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism originated in Asia.

Regional divisions

Geographers commonly divide Asia into subregions such as East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Central Asia, West Asia, and North Asia. These divisions are used for study of history, politics, and culture.

Definition and boundaries

Asia is partly a geographic convention rather than a strictly separate physical unit, because it is connected to Europe as part of Eurasia. Its western boundary is often defined by features such as the Ural Mountains, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus, and the Black Sea.