3.1 Identifying the Boundaries

Of the world’s seven continents, Asia is the largest. Its physical landscapes, political units, and ethnic groups are both wide-ranging and many. South Asia extends south from the central part of the continent to the Indian Ocean. The principal boundaries of South Asia are the Indian Ocean, the Himalayas, and Afghanistan. The Arabian Sea borders Pakistan and India to the west, and the Bay of Bengal borders India and Bangladesh to the east. The western boundary is the desert region where Pakistan shares a border with Iran.

The realm was the birthplace of two of the world’s great religions, Hinduism and Buddhism, but significant Muslim populations and large groups of followers of various other religions exist. Hinduism, Islam, and Buddhism are the top three religions of South Asia. While Pakistan and Iran are Islamic republics, each represents a significant branch of that faith; Iran is predominantly Shia, and Pakistan is mostly Sunni. Religious differences are also evident on the eastern border of the realm, where Bangladesh and India share a border with Myanmar. Bangladesh is mainly Muslim, while most in India align themselves with Hinduism. In Myanmar, most follow Buddhist traditions. Also, Sikhism is the dominant religion in the Punjab region, located on India’s northern border with Pakistan.

The countries of South Asia include Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan, and the Maldives. The Himalayas, separating South Asia from East Asia along the border of China’s autonomous region of Tibet, are the highest mountains in the world and the dominant physical feature of the northern rim of South Asia. Other countries that share the Himalayas include Nepal, Bhutan, India, and Pakistan. Farther north, along with the Himalayan range, the traditional region of Kashmir is divided between India, Pakistan, and China. On the opposite side of the Himalayas are two island countries off the coast of southern India. The first is Sri Lanka, a large tropical island off India’s southeast coast, and the other is the Republic of Maldives, an archipelago (a group of islands) off the southwest coast of India. The Maldives comprises almost 1,200 islands barely rising above sea level; the highest elevation is seven feet, seven inches. Only about two hundred islands in the Maldives are inhabited.

Balancing natural capital and population growth is and will remain a primary issue. South Asia is highly populated, with about 1.7 billion people representing many ethnic and cultural groups. The diverse population has been brought together into political units rooted in the realm’s colonial past, primarily under Great Britain. British colonialism significantly impacted the realm; its long-term effects include political divisions and conflicts in places such as Kashmir and Sri Lanka.

Current globalizing forces are compelling South Asian countries to establish a trade network and institute economic policies among themselves. South Asia is not one of the three main economic core areas of the world; however, it is emerging to compete globally. Some would call India a part of the semi-periphery, which means it is not actually in the core or the periphery but displays qualities of both. All the same, India remains the dominant country of South Asia and shares either a physical or a marine boundary with all the other countries in the realm.

All countries north of Afghanistan were once part of the former Soviet Union. During the Cold War, South Asian countries were in the shadow of the superpowers and had to engage in diplomacy to balance their relationships between the Soviet Union and the United States. Communist China, an emerging economic power, has used Tibet as a buffer state with its rival, India. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia has been working to reestablish its global economy. Like India, Russia portrays the qualities of the semi-periphery. The United States has had a significant impact on the affairs of the South Asian realm, even though it is physically located on the other side of the world. The United States has been at war in neighboring Afghanistan since 2001 and has also been a significant economic trading partner with the countries of South Asia. Complicating the situation, the United States has developed an extensive trade relationship with neighboring China. Economic advancements and global trade have catapulted the countries of South Asia onto the world stage.

Chapter Updated: February 23, 2023