East Asian Geography 10 Geographic Features

#1. East Asia features many islands & archipelagos Japan is an archipelago Chain of islands Over 3000 tiny islands

#2 The Ring of Fire is a narrow band of volcanoes that nearly encircles the Pacific Ocean. 75% of world’s active volcanoes are here.

Mt. Fuji

Jan earthquake

Tsunami of 2011

#3  China is home to 3 of the world’s largest cold deserts. –Gobi (largest desert in Asia) –Taklimakan (the sea of death) –Chang Tang (plateau of Tibet)

#4  Three major rivers are a lifeline to Asia –Yangtze (longest) –Huang He (Yellow) –Mekong  Greatly influence the way people live in Asia

Chinese civilization began on the Yellow River  Loess – fertile topsoil spread by wind; largely agricultural society

#5.China’s civilization developed over a long period in considerable isolation, protected by physiographic barriers and by sheer distance from other cultures.

 The Himalayas in the South  The Takla Makan& Gobi deserts to West & North

#6: Mountains & Plateaus are major feature of topography  Himalayas & Tibetan Plateau  4/5 th of Japan is mountainous terrain, thus not a lot of arable land.  Korea also features many mountainous areas.

Tibetan Plateau . All told, some two billion people in more than a dozen countries— nearly a third of the world's population—depend on rivers fed by the snow and ice of the plateau region.

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7.China’s enormous population is strongly concentrated in the country’s eastern regions. Western areas remain comparatively empty and unproductive.

In Japan  Most of the population lives in coastal plains and/or river valleys.  Kanto Plain very crowded  20,000 ppl. Per sq. mile

Subway pushers in Tokyo

#8: “The Land of Rice & Fish”  Rice is a staple  90% of this crop is grown in East Asia & consumed there.  The majority of people in E. Asia eat rice 2 or 3 times a day.  North of the Yangtze River, the climate is more suited for wheat growing  The close access to water=diet of fish.

#9: Natural Resources vary greatly according to region  China: very rich in natural resources –Oil, coal, iron, etc.  Japan is limited in natural resources & is dependent on other nations

#10: Much of Southeast Asia is covered by rainforest What kind of effects would this have?

China remains a dominantly rural society with limited urbanization and industrialization outside of its city centers. It is one of the world’s oldest continuous civilizations