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Asia (/ˈeɪʒə/ ^ⓘ AY-zhə, UK also /ˈeɪʃə/ AY-shə) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which has long been home to the majority of the human population, was the site of many of the first civilisations. Its 4.7 billion people constitute roughly 60% of the world's population.

Asia shares the landmass of Eurasia with Europe, and of Afro-Eurasia with both Europe and Africa. In general terms, it is bounded on the east by the Pacific Ocean, on the south by the Indian Ocean, and on the north by the Arctic Ocean. The border of Asia with Europe is a historical and cultural construct, as there is no clear physical and geographical separation between them. A commonly accepted division places Asia to the east of the Suez Canal separating it from Africa; and to the east of the Turkish straits, the Ural Mountains and Ural River, and to the south of the Caucasus Mountains and the Caspian and Black seas, separating it from Europe.

Since the concept of Asia derives from the term for the eastern region from a European perspective, Asia is the remaining vast area of Eurasia minus Europe. Therefore, Asia is a region where various independent cultures coexist rather than sharing a single culture, and the boundary between Europe is somewhat arbitrary and has moved since its first conception in classical antiquity. The division of Eurasia into two continents reflects East–West cultural differences, some of which vary on a spectrum. (Full article...)

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Featured article

Slow lorises are nocturnal strepsirrhine primates in the genus Nycticebus that live in the rainforests of South and Southeast Asia. They are threatened by habitat loss and fragmentation from deforestation, selective logging, and slash-and-burn agriculture, as well as by collection and hunting for the wildlife trade, including the exotic pet trade, and for use in traditional medicine and as bushmeat. Because of these and other threats, all five species of slow loris are listed as either "Vulnerable" or "Endangered" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Their conservation status was originally listed as "Least Concern" in 2000 because of imprecise population surveys and the frequency in which these primates were found in animal markets. Because of their rapidly declining populations and local extinctions, their status was updated and in 2007 the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) elevated them to Appendix I, which prohibits international commercial trade. Local laws also protect slow lorises from hunting and trade, but enforcement is lacking in most areas.

Traditional beliefs regarding slow lorises have been part of the folklore of Southeast Asia for at least several hundred years. Their remains are buried under houses and roads to bring good luck, and every part of their body is used in traditional medicine to make products ranging from love potions to unproven cures for cancer, leprosy, epilepsy, and sexually transmitted diseases. The primary users of this traditional medicine are urban, middle-aged women who are reluctant to consider alternatives. (Full article...)

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Uzbekistan, officially the Republic of Uzbekistan, is a doubly landlocked country located in Central Asia. It is surrounded by five countries: Kazakhstan to the north, Kyrgyzstan to the northeast, Tajikistan to the southeast, Afghanistan to the south, and Turkmenistan to the southwest, making it one of only two doubly landlocked countries on Earth, the other being Liechtenstein. The country has a population of more than 37.5 million, making it the most populous country in Central Asia. Uzbekistan is a member of the Organization of Turkic States. Uzbek, spoken by the Uzbek people, is the official language and spoken by the majority of its inhabitants, while Russian and Tajik are significant minority languages. Islam is the predominant religion, and most Uzbeks are Sunni Muslims.

The first recorded settlers in the land of what is modern Uzbekistan were Eastern Iranian nomads, known as Scythians, who founded kingdoms in Khwarazm, Bactria, and Sogdia in the 8th–6th centuries BC, as well as Fergana and Margiana in the 3rd century BC – 6th century AD. The area was incorporated into the Achaemenid Empire and, after a period of Greco-Bactrian rule and later by the Sasanian Empire, until the Muslim conquest of Persia in the seventh century. The early Muslim conquests and the subsequent Samanid Empire converted most of the people into adherents of Islam. During this period, cities began to grow rich from the Silk Road, and became a centre of the Islamic Golden Age. The local Khwarazmian dynasty was destroyed by the Mongol invasion in the 13th century, leading to a dominance by Mongol peoples. Timur in the 14th century established the Timurid Empire. Its capital was Samarkand, which became a centre of science under the rule of Ulugh Beg, giving birth to the Timurid Renaissance. The territories of the Timurid dynasty were conquered by Kipchak Shaybanids in the 16th century. Conquests by Emperor Babur towards the east led to the foundation of the Mughal Empire in India. Most of Central Asia was gradually incorporated into the Russian Empire during the 19th century, with Tashkent becoming the political centre of Russian Turkestan. In 1924, national delimitation created the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic as a republic of the Soviet Union. It declared independence as the Republic of Uzbekistan in 1991. (Full article...)

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Featured biography

Tata in 2011

Ratan Naval Tata (28 December 1937 – 9 October 2024) was an Indian industrialist and philanthropist. He served as the chairman of Tata Group and Tata Sons from 1991 to 2012 and he held the position of interim chairman from October 2016 to February 2017. In 2000, he received the Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian honour in India, followed by the Padma Vibhushan, the country's second highest civilian honour, in 2008.

Ratan Tata was the son of Naval Tata, who was adopted by Ratanji Tata, son of Jamshedji Tata, the founder of the Tata Group. He graduated from Cornell University College of Architecture with a bachelor's degree in architecture. He had also attended the Harvard Business School (HBS) Advanced Management program in 1975. He joined the Tata Group in 1962, starting on the shop floor of Tata Steel. He later succeeded J. R. D. Tata as chairman of Tata Sons upon the latter's retirement in 1991. During his tenure, the Tata Group acquired Tetley, Jaguar Land Rover, and Corus, in an attempt to turn Tata from a largely India-centric group into a global business. (Full article...)

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General images

The following are images from various Asia-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1The Qing conquest of the Ming and expansion of the empire (from History of Asia)
Image 2A view of the Fort St George in 18th-century Madras. (from History of Asia)
Image 3Robert Clive and Mir Jafar after the Battle of Plassey, 1757 by Francis Hayman (from History of Asia)
Image 4The early Muslim conquests, 622–750 (from History of Asia)
Image 5Deoksugung, the palace where Emperor Gojong established Korean Empire. (from History of Asia)
Image 6Map of Asia (from Culture of Asia)
Image 7Philippine cuisine (from Culture of Asia)
Image 8the Goryeo ware, which shows splendid culture of Goryeo in mediaeval Korea. (from History of Asia)
Image 9The Qing Empire in 1832. (from History of Asia)
Image 10Detail of Chinese silk from the 4th century BCE. The characteristic trade of silk through the Silk Road connected various regions from China, India, Central Asia, and the Middle East to Europe and Africa. (from History of Asia)
Image 11British troops taking Zhenjiang from Qing troops (from History of Asia)
Image 12Projected shares of global GDP by region to 2050 (from Asian Century)
Image 13Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jeruslam (from Culture of Asia)
Image 14The Song dynasty and main polities in Asia c. 1200 (from History of Asia)
Image 15Eunpyeong Hanok Village in Seoul, South Korea (from Culture of Asia)
Image 16The First Persian Empire at its greatest extent, c. 500 BC (from History of Asia)
Image 17The Grand Mosque in Kuwait City, one of the largest mosques in the region (from Culture of Asia)
Image 18Kabsa also called Majboos, famous in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, and United Arab Emirates (from Culture of Asia)
Image 19The Delhi Sultanate. (from History of Asia)
Image 20Political cartoon depicting the Afghan Emir Sher Ali with the rival "friends" the Russian Bear and British Lion (1878) (from History of Asia)
Image 21The Mughal ambassador Khan’Alam in 1618 negotiating with Shah Abbas the Great of Iran. (from History of Asia)
Image 22The Taj Mahal, Agra, India (from Culture of Asia)
Image 23A stone image of the Buddha (from Culture of Asia)
Image 24India's middle-class population of 300 million is growing at an annual rate of 5%. Shown here is an upmarket area in South Mumbai. (from Asian Century)
Image 25Here a Jesuit, Adam Schall von Bell (1592–1666), is dressed as an official of the Chinese Department of Astronomy. (from History of Asia)
Image 26Đại Việt, Champa, Angkor Empire and their neighbours, late 13th century (from History of Asia)
Image 27Sun temple at Konarka, Odisha, India (from Culture of Asia)
Image 28Map of Asia for early 20th century (from History of Asia)
Image 29Political map of Asia in 1860 (from History of Asia)
Image 30The Great Wall of China at Jinshanling (from Culture of Asia)
Image 31The Hindu-Buddhist temple of Angkor Wat. (from History of Asia)
Image 32Angkor Wat, Khmer Empire (from Culture of Asia)
Image 33Dome of the Rock, an Islamic shrine in Jerusalem. (from Culture of Asia)
Image 34Byzantine and Sassanian Empires in 600 AD (from History of Asia)
Image 35A Confucian ritual ceremony in Jeju, South Korea (from Culture of Asia)
Image 36Daily life of people from the Song period at the capital, Bianjing, today's Kaifeng (from History of Asia)
Image 37The third Inter-Korean Summit, which was held in 2018, between South Korean president Moon Jae-in and North Korean supreme leader Kim Jong Un. It was a historical event that symbolized the peace of Asia. (from History of Asia)
Image 38Battle of Talas between Tang dynasty and Abbasid Caliphate c. 751 (from History of Asia)
Image 39The Han dynasty and main polities in Asia c. 200 BC (from History of Asia)
Image 40The Syriac Orthodox Saint Ahoadamah Church was a 7th-century church building in the city of Tikrit, one of the oldest in the world until its destruction by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant on 25 September 2014. (from Culture of Asia)
Image 41Detail of the Dragon Throne used by the Qianlong Emperor of China, Forbidden City, Qing dynasty. Artifact circulating in U.S. museums on loan from Beijing (from Culture of Asia)
Image 42Korean peninsula in 476 AD. There are three kingdoms and Gaya Union in the picture. This picture shows the heyday of Goguryeo (from History of Asia)
Image 43Traditional Rajasthani garments from Jaipur, Rajasthan (from Culture of Asia)
Image 44The Russian Znamensky Cathedral in Tyumen built in 1768 (from Culture of Asia)
Image 45Tang dynasty Chinese poet Li Bai, in a 13th-century depiction by Liang Kai (from Culture of Asia)
Image 46Population concentration and boundaries of the Western Zhou dynasty in China (from History of Asia)
Image 47The Silk Road in Asia (from History of Asia)
Image 48Borobudur, a Buddhist temple in Indonesia (from Culture of Asia)
Image 49Map of Marco Polo's travels (from History of Asia)
Image 50Daian-ji temple at Nara, Japan (from Culture of Asia)
Image 51Balhae in the north, Later Silla in the south (from History of Asia)
Image 52Machiya in Heian period (from History of Asia)
Image 53Invasions, destruction and possible population movements during the Late Bronze Age collapse, beginning c. 1200 BC (from History of Asia)
Image 54Gojong (1852–1919), the 26th king of Joseon dynasty and the first emperor of Korean Empire. (from History of Asia)
Image 55The global contribution to world's GDP by major economies from 1 AD to 2003 AD according to Angus Maddison's estimates. Before 18th century, China and India were the two largest economies by GDP output. (from Asian Century)
Image 56Gyeonghoeru of Gyeongbokgung, the Joseon dynasty's royal palace. (from History of Asia)
Image 57Some henges at Göbekli Tepe in Turkey were erected as far back as 9600 BC, predating those of Stonehenge, by over seven millennia. (from History of Asia)
Image 58A typical example of Dravidian architecture (from Culture of Asia)
Image 59The Taipei 101 skyscraper in Taipei, Taiwan, which was the tallest building in the world from 2004 to 2010 (from Asian Century)
Image 60Language families in South Asia (from Culture of Asia)
Image 61Hinduism expansion in Asia, from its heartland in Indian Subcontinent, to the rest of Asia, especially Southeast Asia, started circa 1st century marked with the establishment of early Hindu settlements and polities in Southeast Asia. (from History of Asia)
Image 62Indonesian Balinese cuisine (from Culture of Asia)
Image 63Map of Vietnam showing the conquest of the south (the Nam tiến, 1069–1757). (from History of Asia)
Image 64Ancient ziggurat, Iraq (from Culture of Asia)
Image 65East Asian cultural sphere (from Culture of Asia)
Image 66Sculpture of Prince Shōtoku (from History of Asia)
Image 67The Great Wave off Kanagawa, c. 1830 by Hokusai, an example of art flourishing in the Edo Period (from History of Asia)
Image 68Chicken tikka, a well-known dish across the globe, reflects the South Asian cooking style. (from Culture of Asia)
Image 69Badshahi Mosque built under the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb in Lahore, Pakistan (from Culture of Asia)

Featured picture

Petronas Towers

Credit: SomeFormOfHuman

The Petronas Towers, also known as the Petronas Twin Towers are twin skyscrapers. According to the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH)'s official definition and ranking, they were the tallest buildings in the world from 1998 to 2004 and remain the tallest twin towers in the world. The buildings are a landmark of Kuala Lumpur, along with nearby Kuala Lumpur Tower.

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Did you know...

... that novvot, a popular traditional candy in the Middle East and Central Asia, is often served with tea and has roots in Persian cuisine?
... that Blackpink's "Pink Venom" incorporates the sounds of traditional Korean instruments such as the geomungo?
... that writer Naoko Sato was initially worried that the character Kat would come off as "too Japanese" for overseas audiences?
... that Syrian artist Kefah Ali Deeb painted an empty chair as her vision of victims and refugees?
... that a train station in Singapore repeatedly had issues with the design of its stairs?
... that after her 2019 death in rural China, Huang Wenxiu was elevated into a national model by the Chinese Communist Party?
... that Eleanor Hadley, a 29-year-old doctoral candidate in economics, was recruited by the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers to implement antitrust policies in occupied Japan?
... that Elham Mahamid Ruzin, a blind Muslim Arab, won a silver medal for Israel at the 2024 Paris Paralympics?
... that Whisnu Sakti Buana served as the mayor of Surabaya, Indonesia, for just one week in 2021?
... that of thirty-five Palestinians killed in the West Bank in January 2023 by Israeli forces and settlers, twenty were from the Jenin refugee camp?

Updated: 21:05, 17 April 2025

In the news

17 April 2025 – Gaza war: The Israel Defense Forces begins the expansion of the recently-established Morag Corridor buffer zone to include the southern Gaza city of Rafah, intending to connect it with the Philadelphi Corridor. Witnesses report the Israeli demolition of structures in Rafah. (Al Jazeera) (RBC Ukraine); At least 37 people, including children, are killed in a series of Israeli strikes against displaced Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, according to Gaza's civil defence agency. (BBC News)
17 April 2025 – Red Sea crisis: March–April 2025 United States attacks in Yemen; The United States Navy launches a wave of missile strikes across Houthi-controlled Yemen, killing at least one person in Sanaa. (AP)
17 April 2025 –: The death toll of the capsized Hong Hai 16 disaster two days ago off Occidental Mindoro, Philippines, rises to four. Seven others are still missing. (Philippine News Agency); The Government of Myanmar pardons and releases 4,893 prisoners, including thirteen foreigners who will be deported from the country, and 22 political prisoners, ahead of the country's New Year. (DW) (Radio Free Asia)

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Major Religions in Asia

Middle East

Central Asia and Caucasus

Indian Subcontinent

Southeast Asia

East Asia

Selected panorama

Credit: Bluemangoa2z

The Hajj is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims, and a mandatory religious duty for Muslims that must be carried out at least once in their lifetime by all adult Muslims who are physically and financially capable of undertaking the journey, and can support their family during their absence.

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