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Cultural Geography of Southeast Asia
Mainland Southeast Asia Influenced by India,
Chinese, Islamic, European and American cultures over 2,500 of years
520 million people live in region
2,500 years ago groups from China moved into region
Khmers- Cambodia, Vietnam
Mons- Myanmar Malays- Malay Peninsula
and Indonesia Developed agricultural
civilizations
Mainland SE Asia
Population densities vary across region
Laos lowest population densityVietnam highestPopulation concentrated along fertile
coastal plainReady supply of water,
transportation, fertile landMany moving to cities for economic
opportunity
Mainland Southeast Asia
Cities For centuries majority lived in
rural villages Many today moving to urban
areas Cities provide greater
opportunities and access 11 cities of more than 1 million Some countries have primate
city, economic center, major port, often the capital
Bangkok- 650% growth over 50 year period (1950-1998)
Public services not adequate, government trying offer incentives to have industry and cities return to rural areas
Outward Migration
Since 1970’s because of political and economic troubles many SE Asians left region
US has large numbers of immigrants from the region
Causes countries to lose skilled labor force needed for economic growth
Mainland SE Asia
Early Civilizations- agricultural, based on rice production, domesticated cattle and pigs
Funan- first empire in SE Asia, adopted Hinduism, Indian model of centralized government
Khmer Empire- surplus agriculture brought wealth to mainland
1100’s-1200’s Khmer Empire, based in present day Cambodia
Advanced irrigation and agriculture allowed them to feed huge population and diversify society
Angkor Wat architectural achievement, designed to resemble home of Hindu gods
Mainland SE Asia
Srivijaya Empire- based on island of Sumatra
Maritime empire controlled trade in the region 600-1300
Used navy to control Straits of Malacca
Vietnam- struggled against Chinese
China conquered region 111 B.C.
Introduced ideas about religion, government and philosophy
Mainland SE Asia
Western Colonization- 1500’s Europeans begin to control trade Siam (Thailand) was a buffer state
separating British and French controlled areas, only southeast Asian area to remain free from European control
Europeans brought change to region Built roads, railroads, improved harbors,
expanded mining, established commercial plantations
All profits went to westerners Increased tension and conflict in region Asians received low wages Plantation owners imported workers to meet
growing demand for goods, contributed to ethnic diversity of region
Mainland SE Asia
Post WWII- after war countries struggle to regain control of region, SE Asians wanted independence, after two decades all countries were independent of European powers
Communism divided Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia Vietnam- US unsuccessfully intervened in the 1960’s
and 1970’s to stop spread of communism Ethnic conflicts across region have resulted in militant
terrorist groups emerging (many anti- western) Some countries have recently moved toward
democracy, some are still communist (Laos, Vietnam), Myanmar is a military dictatorship
Cambodia: Population Decline
Since 1970’s population growth slow in Cambodia
1975-1979 lost 38% of population due to harsh rule by Khmer Rouge communist government
Forced people out of cities to countryside to become farmers
More than 1 million died Starvation, torture, execution
of people considered intellectuals (doctors, teachers)
Mainland SE Asia
Cultures in region reflect ethnic diversity China and India shaped much of the cultural development of the region Since 1945 literacy has increased in parts of region where there are
resources Health care is inadequate in many countries, mostly in rural areas Many different languages spoken Come from 2 major language families- Sino-Tibetan, Mon-Khmer Many languages reflect colonial power French (Vietnam) All major religions of the world are represented Buddhism is the predominant religion
Island SE Asia
Includes Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, East Timor, Philippines
Spices attracted outsiders to region Merchants from India came for spices
and introduced Hinduism and Buddhism
Chinese influenced cultures of Brunei and Singapore where more than 70% of population has Chinese ancestry
Around 800 A.D. Arab traders came and introduced Islam
1500’s Europeans arrive to take advantage of trade and natural resources
Island SE Asia
People live mostly along coastal plain, mountainous interiors are sparsely populated
Population growing faster than global average
Some islands have high population densities
Java has over 2,300 people per square mile
Singapore is the most densely populated country
People migrate to cities for economic and educational opportunities
Jakarta has over 10 million people, the government is trying to reduce overcrowding by relocating population to smaller islands
Island SE Asia
History of region is connected to control of trade routes
Different empires have profited from control of Straits of Malacca
Today Singapore owes its prosperity to these same trade routes
Europeans brought physical improvements After WWII many countries won their
independence from European powers 2002 East Timor, a Catholic country gained its
independence from largely Muslim Indonesia 1998 Indonesia moved toward democracy after
years of a dictatorship Philippines, East Timor and Singapore are
democracies Brunei and Malaysia are constitutional
monarchies
Island SE Asia
Since independence education and health care and quality of life have improved
Literacy rates are high Health care is better than mainland SE
Asia Indonesia has government sponsored
health care and Singapore has health care as good as developed countries
Indonesia has over 300 ethnic groups and 250 distinct languages, makes it hard to unify country
Other regional languages reflect colonialism; Philippines, Malaysia (English),
Islam is wide spread across the region, Indonesia is the largest Islamic country in the world
The Philippines are mostly Roman Catholic
Island SE Asia
Architecture- religious structures influenced by religion
Borobudur Temple- Indonesia, built of volcanic stone, stages of shrines represent Buddha's journey to enlightenment
Catholic Churches built by Spanish
Mosques found in Muslim countries