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102-686: Mainland Southeast Asia (historically known as Indochina or the Indochinese Peninsula ) is the continental portion of Southeast Asia . It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the west and the Pacific Ocean to the east. It includes the countries of Cambodia , Laos , Myanmar , Thailand and Vietnam as well as Peninsular Malaysia . The term Indochina (originally Indo-China )

204-449: A Chinese Ming emperor sent a princess, Hang Li Po , to Malacca, with a retinue of 500, to marry Sultan Mansur Shah after the emperor was impressed by the wisdom of the sultan. Hang Li Poh's Well (constructed 1459) is now a tourist attraction there, as is Bukit Cina , where her retinue settled. The strategic value of the Strait of Malacca , which was controlled by Sultanate of Malacca in

306-622: A dominant maritime power of Indian subcontinent, in 1025. The invasion reshaped power and trade in the region, resulted in the rise of new regional powers such as the Khmer Empire and Kahuripan . Continued commercial contacts with the Chinese Empire enabled the Cholas to influence the local cultures. Many of the surviving examples of the Hindu cultural influence found today throughout Southeast Asia are

408-756: A framework for the integration of commerce and regional responses to international concerns. China has asserted broad claims over the South China Sea , based on its nine-dash line , and has built artificial islands in an attempt to bolster its claims. China also has asserted an exclusive economic zone based on the Spratly Islands . The Philippines challenged China in the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague in 2013, and in Philippines v. China (2016),

510-574: A later edition of his Universal Geography , reasoning that it overemphasized Chinese influence, and suggested Chin-India instead. Nevertheless, Indo-China had already gained traction and soon supplanted alternative terms such as Further India and the Peninsula beyond the Ganges . Later, however, as the French established the colony of French Indochina (covering present-day Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam), use of

612-510: A majority of islands in this vast region remain uninhabited by humans. The land and sea area of Maritime Southeast Asia exceeds 2 million km . These are more than 25,000 islands of the area that comprise many smaller archipelagoes. The major groupings are: The seven largest islands are Borneo , Sumatra , Sulawesi and Java in Indonesia; and Luzon and Mindanao in the Philippines. In

714-513: A new local power emerged. Myinsaing Kingdom became the real ruler of Central Burma and challenged the Mongol rule. This resulted in the second Mongol invasion of Burma in 1300, which was repulsed by Myinsaing. The Mongols would later in 1303 withdrawn from Burma. In 1292, The Mongols sent envoys to Singhasari Kingdom in Java to ask for submission to Mongol rule. Singhasari rejected the proposal and injured

816-550: A part of Southeast Asia because of its cultural and religious ties to Mainland Southeast Asia. The eastern half of the island of New Guinea , which is not a part of Indonesia, namely, Papua New Guinea, is sometimes included as a part of Maritime Southeast Asia, and so are Guam , the Northern Mariana Islands , and Palau , which were all parts of the Spanish East Indies with strong cultural and linguistic ties to

918-553: A result of famine and forced labour during the Japanese occupation. The Allied powers who then defeated Japan (and other allies of Axis ) in the South-East Asian theatre of World War II then contended with nationalists to whom the occupation authorities had granted independence. Gujarat , India had a flourishing trade relationship with Southeast Asia in the 15th and 16th centuries. The trade relationship with Gujarat declined after

1020-698: A sea barrier that has persisted, as far as is known, even at the lowest sea levels of glacial maxima of the Pleistocene and the Holocene . Therefore we know when watercraft of some (admittedly unknown) description must have been used by humans to cross the sea. As of 2017, there were over 540 million people living in the region, with the most populated island being Java . The people living there are predominantly from Austronesian subgroupings and correspondingly speak western Malayo-Polynesian languages . This region of Southeast Asia shares social and cultural ties with both

1122-415: Is Yāvadvīpa  [ ms ] . Another possible early name of mainland Southeast Asia was Suvarṇabhūmi ("land of gold"), a toponym, that appears in many ancient Indian literary sources and Buddhist texts, but which, along with Suvarṇadvīpa ("island" or "peninsula of gold"), are also thought to refer to insular Southeast Asia. The origins of the name Indo-China are usually attributed jointly to

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1224-486: Is a transitional zone adjacent to the Wallace Line that is termed Wallacea . This is a zone where examples of animal and plant species from both sides can be found, but, particularly on smaller islands, there may be a greatly reduced number of terrestrial species. The biographical division of the region is important for understanding the spread of both modern and archaic humans into the region. The Wallace Line represents

1326-532: Is entirely in the Northern Hemisphere . East Timor and the southern portion of Indonesia are the parts of Southeast Asia that lie south of the equator . The region lies near the intersection of geological plates , with both heavy seismic and volcanic activities. The Sunda Plate is the main plate of the region, featuring almost all Southeast Asian countries except Myanmar , northern Thailand , northern Laos , northern Vietnam , and northern Luzon of

1428-490: Is evident in the Arab-Indonesian, Arab-Singaporean, and Arab-Malay populations who were at one time very prominent in each of their countries. Finally, the ruling classes embraced Islam and that further aided the permeation of the religion throughout the region. The ruler of the region's most important port, Malacca Sultanate , embraced Islam in the 15th century, heralding a period of accelerated conversion of Islam throughout

1530-604: Is geographically divided into two subregions, namely Mainland Southeast Asia (or the Indochinese Peninsula) and Maritime Southeast Asia . Mainland Southeast Asia includes : Maritime Southeast Asia includes : While Peninsular Malaysia is geographically situated in Mainland Southeast Asia, it shares many similar cultural and ecological affinities with surrounding islands, thus it is often grouped with them as part of Maritime Southeast Asia. Geographically,

1632-548: Is intimately related to a Chinese Muslim, Admiral Zheng He ." There are several theories to the Islamization process in Southeast Asia. Another theory is trade. The expansion of trade among West Asia, India, and Southeast Asia helped the spread of the religion as Muslim traders from South Arabia ( Hadhramaut ) brought Islam to the region with their large volume of trade. Many settled in Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia. This

1734-463: Is one of the most culturally diverse regions of the world. There are many different languages and ethnicities in the region. Historically, Southeast Asia was significantly influenced by Indian , Chinese , Muslim , and colonial cultures, which became core components of the region's cultural and political institutions. Most modern Southeast Asian countries were colonised by European powers. European colonisation exploited natural resources and labour from

1836-586: Is politically represented through the Pacific Islands Forum , a governing body which, up until 2022, included Australia, New Zealand and all independent territories in Melanesia , Micronesia, and Polynesia . Several countries of Maritime Southeast Asia, such as Indonesia and the Philippines, are dialogue partners of the Pacific Islands Forum, but none have full membership. Maritime Southeast Asia

1938-454: Is predominantly Buddhist with minority Muslim and Hindu populations. Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical southeastern region of Asia , consisting of the regions that are situated south of China , east of the Indian subcontinent , and northwest of the Australian mainland , which is part of Oceania . Southeast Asia is bordered to the north by East Asia , to

2040-647: Is the only country where its folk religion makes up the plurality. Recently, Vietnamese folk religion is undergoing a revival with the support of the government. Elsewhere, there are ethnic groups in Southeast Asia that resisted conversion and still retain their original animist beliefs, such as the Dayaks in Kalimantan , the Igorots in Luzon, and the Shans in eastern Myanmar. After

2142-542: Is the third most populous geographical region in Asia after South Asia and East Asia. The region is culturally and ethnically diverse, with hundreds of languages spoken by different ethnic groups. Ten countries in the region are members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), a regional organisation established for economic, political, military, educational, and cultural integration among its members. Southeast Asia

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2244-725: The Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India is also considered a part of Maritime Southeast Asia. Eastern Bangladesh and Northeast India have strong cultural ties with Mainland Southeast Asia and are sometimes considered transregional areas between South Asia and Southeast Asia. To the east, Hong Kong is sometimes regarded as part of Southeast Asia. Similarly, Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands have strong cultural ties with Maritime Southeast Asia and are sometimes considered transregional areas between Southeast Asia and Australia/Oceania. On some occasions, Sri Lanka has been considered

2346-620: The Austronesian peoples , who form the majority of the modern population in Brunei, Indonesia, East Timor, Malaysia, and the Philippines, migrated to Southeast Asia from Taiwan in the first seaborne human migration known as the Austronesian Expansion . They arrived in the northern Philippines between 7,000 BC to 2,200 BC and rapidly spread further into the Northern Mariana Islands and Borneo by 1500 BC; Island Melanesia by 1300 BC; and to

2448-650: The Chao Phraya (in Thailand ), and the Mekong (flowing through Northeastern Thailand , Laos , Cambodia and Vietnam ). To the south it forms the Malay Peninsula , located on which are Southern Thailand and Peninsular Malaysia ; the latter is variably considered part of Mainland Southeast Asia or separately as part of Maritime Southeast Asia . Mainland Southeast Asia contrasts with Maritime Southeast Asia , mainly through

2550-698: The Cocos (Keeling) Islands are located on the Australian Plate , south of the Sunda Trench . Even though they are geographically closer to Maritime Southeast Asia than mainland Australia , these two Australian external territories are not geologically associated with Asia as none of them is actually on the Sunda Plate . The UN Statistics Division 's geoscheme , which is a UN political geography tool created specifically for statistical purposes, has classified both island territories as parts of Oceania , under

2652-576: The East Indies or simply the Indies until the 20th century. Chinese sources referred to the region as Nanyang (" 南洋 "), which literally means the "Southern Ocean". The mainland section of Southeast Asia was referred to as Indochina by European geographers due to its location between China and the Indian subcontinent and its having cultural influences from both neighbouring regions. In the 20th century, however,

2754-594: The Equator . Island Southeast Asia is crossed by the Wallace Line . This line divides the flora and fauna of Asia from that of Australia and New Guinea with stretches of water that have always been too wide for plant and animal species to cross readily. The gaps are considered to be large enough to make accidental rafting from one side to another to be unlikely events. Apart from birds, species that have managed to cross this line include those that have been moved by humans. There

2856-531: The Indonesian region of Western New Guinea (Papua and West Papua ). Both countries share the island of New Guinea . Islands to the east of the Philippines make up the region of Micronesia . These islands are not biogeographically, geologically or historically linked to mainland Asia, and are considered part of Oceania by the United Nations , The World Factbook , and other organisations. The Oceania region

2958-688: The Maritime Southeast Asian countries, and straddles the Indomalayan and Australasian realms . The Indochinese Peninsula projects southward from the Asian continent proper. It contains several mountain ranges extending from the Tibetan Plateau in the north, interspersed with lowlands largely drained by three major river systems running in a north–south direction: the Irrawaddy (serving Myanmar ),

3060-581: The Old Javanese term " Nusantara " is also used as a synonym for Maritime Southeast Asia. The term, however, is nationalistic and has shifting boundaries. It usually only encompasses Peninsular Malaysia , the Sunda Islands , Maluku , and often Western New Guinea and excludes the Philippines . Stretching for several thousand kilometres, the area features a very large number of islands and boasts some of

3162-604: The Philippines , while the Sunda Plate only includes western Indonesia to as far east as the Indonesian province of Bali . The mountain ranges in Myanmar, Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia , and the Indonesian islands of Sumatra , Java , Bali , Lesser Sunda Islands , and Timor are part of the Alpide belt , while the islands of the Philippines and Indonesia as well as East Timor are part of

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3264-515: The Song dynasty passed decrees enabling private trade fleets. Demand for Southeast Asian products and trade was partially driven by the increase in China's population in this era, whereby it doubled from 75 to 150 million, as well as the loss of access to the northern Silk Road . The first record of Chinese trading ships venturing to Southeast Asia (which they called Nan Hai ) appear by the 11th century, though

3366-572: The Srivijaya kingdom of Sangrama Vijayatungavarman in Kadaram ( Kedah ); the capital of the powerful maritime kingdom was sacked and the king was taken captive. Along with Kadaram, Pannai in present-day Sumatra and Malaiyur and the Malayan peninsula were attacked too. Soon after that, the king of Kedah Phra Ong Mahawangsa became the first ruler to abandon the traditional Hindu faith, and converted to Islam with

3468-538: The Sultanate of Kedah established in 1136. Samudera Pasai converted to Islam in 1267, the King of Malacca Parameswara married the princess of Pasai, and the son became the first sultan of Malacca. Soon, Malacca became the center of Islamic study and maritime trade, and other rulers followed suit. Indonesian religious leader and Islamic scholar Hamka (1908–1981) wrote in 1961: "The development of Islam in Indonesia and Malaya

3570-516: The UNSD subregion "Australia and New Zealand" ( Australasia ). Some definitions of Southeast Asia may include Taiwan . Taiwan has sometimes been included in Southeast Asia as well as East Asia but is not a member of ASEAN . Likewise, a similar argument could be applied to some southern parts of mainland China , as well as Hong Kong and Macau , may also considered as part of Southeast Asia as well as East Asia but are not members of ASEAN . The region

3672-618: The 15th and early 16th century, did not go unnoticed by Portuguese writer Tomé Pires , who wrote in the Suma Oriental : "Whoever is lord of Malacca has his hand on the throat of Venice ." (Venice was a major European trading partner, and goods were transported there via the Straight.) Western influence started to enter in the 16th century, with the arrival of the Portuguese in Malacca, Maluku , and

3774-770: The Court ruled in favour of the Philippines and rejected China's claims. Indonesia is the largest country in Southeast Asia and is also the largest archipelago in the world by size (according to the CIA World Factbook ). Geologically, the Indonesian Archipelago is one of the most volcanically active regions in the world. Geological uplifts in the region have also produced some impressive mountains, culminating in Puncak Jaya in Papua , Indonesia at 5,030 metres (16,503 feet), on

3876-552: The Danish-French geographer Conrad Malte-Brun , who referred to the area as indo-chinois in 1804, and the Scottish linguist John Leyden , who used the term Indo-Chinese to describe the area's inhabitants and their languages in 1808. Scholarly opinions at the time regarding China's and India's historical influence over the area were conflicting, and the term was itself controversial—Malte-Brun himself later argued against its use in

3978-669: The Imperial Court, but the Hokkien diaspora facilitated informal trade and cultural exchange with Southeast Asia, settling among Southeast Asian polities during this time period. Despite not having the official sanction of the Chinese government these communities formed business and trade networks between cities such as Melaka , Hội An and Ayutthaya . Many of these Chinese businesspeople integrated into their new countries, becoming political officials and diplomats. Trade with China ceased after

4080-537: The Indian Ocean aided the colonisation of Madagascar, as well as commerce between Western Asia, eastern coast of India and Chinese southern coast. Gold from Sumatra is thought to have reached as far west as Rome. Pliny the Elder wrote in his Natural History about Chryse and Argyre , two legendary islands rich in gold and silver, located in the Indian Ocean. Their vessels, such as the vinta , were capable to sail across

4182-423: The Mongols tried to invade Đại Việt and Champa . The invasions were unsuccessful, yet both Dai Viet and Champa agreed to become tributary states to Yuan dynasty to avoid further conflicts. The Mongols also invaded Pagan Kingdom in Burma from 1277 to 1287, resulted in fragmentation of the Kingdom and rise of smaller Shan States ruled by local chieftains nominally submitted to Yuan dynasty. However, in 1297,

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4284-425: The Pacific Ring of Fire . Both seismic belts meet in Indonesia, causing the region to have relatively high occurrences of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, particularly in the Philippines and Indonesia . It covers about 4,500,000 km (1,700,000 sq mi), which is 8% of Eurasia and 3% of Earth's total land area. Its total population is more than 675 million, about 8.5% of the world's population. It

4386-438: The Papuan-related and East Asian-related branches of the Eastern non-African lineage. The hunter-gatherer individual had approximately ~50% "Basal-East Asian" ancestry, and was positioned in between modern East Asians and Papuans of Oceania. The authors concluded that East Asian-related ancestry expanded from Mainland Southeast Asia into Maritime Southeast Asia much earlier than previously suggested, as early as 25,000BC, long before

4488-425: The Philippines, the latter being settled by the Spaniards years later, which they used to trade between Asia and Latin America . Throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, the Dutch established the Dutch East Indies ; the French Indochina ; and the British Strait Settlements . By the 19th century, all Southeast Asian countries were colonised except for Thailand . European explorers were reaching Southeast Asia from

4590-493: The Portuguese invasion of Southeast Asia in the 17th century. The United States took the Philippines from Spain in 1898. Internal autonomy was granted in 1934, and independence in 1946. Most countries in the region maintain national autonomy. Democratic forms of government are practised in most Southeast Asian countries and human rights is recognised but dependent on each nation state. Socialist or communist countries in Southeast Asia include Vietnam and Laos. ASEAN provides

4692-426: The South China Sea. Mayon Volcano , despite being dangerously active , holds the record of the world's most perfect cone which is built from past and continuous eruption . Geographically, Southeast Asia is bounded to the southeast by the Australian continent , the boundary between these two regions is most often considered to run through Wallacea . Geopolitically, the boundary lies between Papua New Guinea and

4794-438: The caves of Borneo . Homo floresiensis also lived in the area up until at least 50,000 years ago, after which they became extinct. During much of this time the present-day islands of western Indonesia were joined into a single landmass known as Sundaland due to lower sea levels. Ancient remains of hunter-gatherers in Maritime Southeast Asia, such as one Holocene hunter-gatherer from South Sulawesi , had ancestry from both

4896-452: The collapse of the Song dynasty due to invasions and famine. It was restored during the Ming dynasty from the 14th to 16th centuries. The naval expeditions of Zheng He between 1405 and 1431 also played a critical role in opening up of China to increased trade with Southeast Asian polities. The Maritime Silk Route was disrupted by the colonial era in the 15th century, essentially being replaced with European trade routes. Shipbuilding of

4998-445: The countries (sovereign states and dependent territories) listed below. Ten of the eleven states of Southeast Asia are members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), while East Timor is an observer state. Papua New Guinea has stated that it might join ASEAN, and is currently an observer. Sovereignty issues exist over some islands in the South China Sea . * Administrative centre in Putrajaya . Southeast Asia

5100-482: The course of history and share a number of typological similarities. The countries of mainland Southeast Asia received cultural influence from both India and China to varying degrees. Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand are all influenced by Indian culture , only Vietnam is influenced by Chinese culture but still has minor influences from India, largely via the Champa civilization that Vietnam conquered during its southward expansion. Overall, Mainland Southeast Asia

5202-555: The departure of the Mongols, Wijaya established the Majapahit Empire in eastern Java in 1293. Majapahit would soon grow into a regional power. Its greatest ruler was Hayam Wuruk , whose reign from 1350 to 1389 marked the empire's peak when other kingdoms in the southern Malay Peninsula , Borneo , Sumatra , and Bali came under its influence. Various sources such as the Nagarakertagama also mention that its influence spanned over parts of Sulawesi , Maluku , and some areas of western New Guinea and southern Philippines , making it one of

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5304-523: The division of largely land-based lifestyles in Indochina and the sea-based lifestyles of the Indonesian archipelago and Philippine archipelago , as well as the dividing line between the Austroasiatic , Tai–Kadai , and Sino-Tibetan languages (spoken in Mainland Southeast Asia) and the Austronesian languages (spoken in Maritime Southeast Asia). The languages of the mainland form the Mainland Southeast Asia linguistic area : although belonging to several independent language families, they have converged over

5406-416: The dominant trading power in mainland Southeast Asia for about five centuries, provided passage for Indian and Chinese goods and assumed authority over the flow of commerce through Southeast Asia. In maritime Southeast Asia, the first recorded Indianised kingdom was Salakanagara , established in western Java circa second century CE. This Hindu kingdom was known by the Greeks as Argyre (Land of Silver). By

5508-413: The early people travelled along the south coast of Asia, first entered the Malay Peninsula 50,000–90,000 years ago. The Orang Asli, in particular the Semang who show Negrito characteristics, are the direct descendants of these earliest settlers of Southeast Asia. These early people diversified and travelled slowly northwards to China, and the populations of Southeast Asia show greater genetic diversity than

5610-469: The elite language of the region, which effectively made Southeast Asia part of the Indosphere . Most of the region had been Indianised during the first centuries, while the Philippines later Indianised c.  ninth century when Kingdom of Tondo was established in Luzon. Vietnam, especially its northern part, was never fully Indianised due to the many periods of Chinese domination it experienced. The first Indian-influenced polities established in

5712-458: The envoys, enraged the Mongols and made them sent a large invasion fleet to Java. Unbeknownst to them, Singhasari collapsed in 1293 due to a revolt by Kadiri, one of its vassals. When the Mongols arrived in Java, a local prince named Raden Wijaya offered his service to assist the Mongols in punishing Kadiri. After Kadiri was defeated, Wijaya turned on his Mongol allies, ambushed their invasion fleet and forced them to immediately leave Java. After

5814-522: The expansion of Austroasiatic and Austronesian groups. Distinctive Basal-East Asian (East-Eurasian) ancestry was recently found to have originated in Mainland Southeast Asia at ~50,000BC, and expanded through multiple migration waves southwards and northwards respectively. Geneflow of East Asian-related ancestry into Maritime Southeast Asia and Oceania could be estimated to ~25,000BC (possibly also earlier). The pre-Neolithic Papuan-related populations of Maritime Southeast Asia were largely replaced by

5916-411: The expansion of various East Asian-related populations, beginning about 50,000BC to 25,000BC years ago from Mainland Southeast Asia. The remainders, known as Negritos, form small minority groups in geographically isolated regions. Southeast Asia was dominated by East Asian-related ancestry already in 15,000BC, predating the expansion of Austroasiatic and Austronesian peoples . In the late Neolithic ,

6018-590: The fifth century CE, trade networking between East and West was concentrated in the maritime route. Foreign traders were starting to use new routes such as Malacca and Sunda Strait due to the development of maritime Southeast Asia. This change resulted in the decline of Funan, while new maritime powers such as Srivijaya , Tarumanagara , and Mataram emerged. Srivijaya especially became the dominant maritime power for more than 5 centuries, controlling both Strait of Malacca and Sunda Strait . This dominance started to decline when Srivijaya were invaded by Chola Empire ,

6120-407: The first millennium AD. It continued up to historic times. By around the 2nd century BCE, the Neolithic Austronesian trade networks in Southeast Asia connected with the maritime trade routes of South Asia , the Middle East , eastern Africa , and the Mediterranean , becoming what is now known as the Maritime Silk Route (or Maritime Silk Road). In addition to Austronesian sailors, the route

6222-498: The former western colonies under the concept of " Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere ". However, the Shōwa occupation regime committed violent actions against civilians such as live human experimentation, sexual slavery under the brutal " comfort women " system, the Manila massacre and the implementation of a system of forced labour , such as the one involving four to ten million romusha in Indonesia. A later UN report stated that four million people died in Indonesia as

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6324-427: The formerly dominant Southeast Asian trading ships ( jong , the source of the English term "junk") declined until it ceased entirely by the 17th century. Although Chinese-built chuán survived until modern times. There was new demand for spices from Southeast Asia and textiles from India and China, but these were now linked with direct trade routes to the European market, instead of passing through regional ports of

6426-429: The highest in Mount Kinabalu in Sabah , Malaysia, with a height of 4,095.2 m (13,436 ft) and Puncak Jaya on Papua, Indonesia at 4,884 m (16,024 ft). Other high mountains in the archipelago include Puncak Mandala , Indonesia at 4,760 m (15,620 ft) and Puncak Trikora , Indonesia, at 4,750 m (15,580 ft). The climate throughout the archipelago is tropical, owing to its position on

6528-461: The island of New Guinea ; it is the only place where ice glaciers can be found in Southeast Asia. The highest mountain in Southeast Asia is Hkakabo Razi at 5,967 metres (19,577 feet) and can be found in northern Burma sharing the same range of its parent peak, Mount Everest . The South China Sea is the major body of water within Southeast Asia. The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, and Singapore, have integral rivers that flow into

6630-450: The islands between mainland Southeast Asia and the continental shelf of Australia and New Guinea. There is some variability as to whether Taiwan is included in this. Peter Bellwood includes Taiwan in his definition, as did Robert Blust , whilst there are examples that do not. The 16th-century term " East Indies " and the later 19th-century term " Malay Archipelago " are also used to refer to Maritime Southeast Asia. In Indonesia,

6732-415: The lands they conquered, and attempted to spread European institutions to the region. Several Southeast Asian countries were also briefly occupied by the Japanese Empire during World War II . The aftermath of World War II saw most of the region decolonised. Today, Southeast Asia is predominantly governed by independent states. The region, together with part of South Asia, was well known by Europeans as

6834-407: The largest empire to ever exist in Southeast Asian history. By the 15th century CE however, Majapahit's influence began to wane due to many war of successions it experienced and the rise of new Islamic states such as Samudera Pasai and Malacca Sultanate around the strategic Strait of Malacca . Majapahit then collapsed around 1500. It was the last major Hindu kingdom and the last regional power in

6936-434: The latter groups (Micronesian and Polynesian groups) being from this region. The maritime connectivity within the region has been linked to it becoming a distinct cultural and economic area, when compared to the 'mainland' societies in the rest of Southeast Asia. This region stretches from the Yangtze delta in China down to the Malay Peninsula , including the South China Sea , Gulf of Thailand and Java Sea . The region

7038-413: The material cultures of India and China. Indonesians , in particular were trading in spices (mainly cinnamon and cassia ) with East Africa using catamaran and outrigger boats and sailing with the help of the Westerlies in the Indian Ocean. This trade network expanded to reach as far as Africa and the Arabian Peninsula , resulting in the Austronesian colonization of Madagascar by the first half of

7140-547: The natural sciences, the region is sometimes known as the Maritime Continent . It also corresponds to the biogeographical region of Malesia (not to be confused with "Malaysia"), with shared tropical flora and fauna . Geologically, the archipelago is one of the most active volcanic regions in the world, producing many volcanoes , especially in Java , Sumatra , and the Lesser Sunda Islands region, where most volcanoes over 3,000 m (9,800 ft) are situated. Tectonic uplifts also produced large mountains, including

7242-423: The ocean. Magellan's voyage records how much more manoeuvrable their vessels were, as compared to the European ships. A slave from the Sulu Sea was believed to have been used in the Magellan expedition as a translator. Studies presented by the Human Genome Organisation (HUGO) through genetic studies of the various peoples of Asia show empirically that there was a single migration event from Africa, whereby

7344-737: The peoples of mainland Southeast Asia and with other Austronesian peoples in the Pacific . Islam is the predominant religion, with Christianity being the dominant religion in the Philippines and East Timor. Buddhism , Hinduism , and traditional Animism are also practiced among large populations. Historically, the region has been referred to as part of Greater India , as seen in Coedes' Indianized States of Southeast Asia , which refers to it as "Island Southeast Asia"; and within Austronesia or Oceania , due to shared ethnolinguistic and historical origins of

7446-668: The region and Sri Lanka . Buddhism later established a strong presence in Funan region in the fifth century. In present-day mainland Southeast Asia, Theravada is still the dominant branch of Buddhism, practised by the Thai, Burmese, and Cambodian Buddhists. This branch was fused with the Hindu-influenced Khmer culture. Mahayana Buddhism established presence in Maritime Southeast Asia, brought by Chinese monks during their transit in

7548-407: The region and made contacts with local courts. Local rulers converted to Hinduism or Buddhism and adopted Indian religious traditions to reinforce their legitimacy, elevate ritual status above their fellow chief counterparts and facilitate trade with South Asian states. They periodically invited Indian Brahmins into their realms and began a gradual process of Indianisation in the region. Shaivism

7650-423: The region as Islam provided a positive force among the ruling and trading classes. Gujarati Muslims played a pivotal role in establishing Islam in Southeast Asia. Trade among Southeast Asian countries has a long tradition. The consequences of colonial rule, struggle for independence, and in some cases war influenced the economic attitudes and policies of each country. From 111 BC to 938 AD northern Vietnam

7752-513: The region before the arrival of the Europeans. Islam began to make contacts with Southeast Asia in the eighth-century CE, when the Umayyads established trade with the region via sea routes. However its spread into the region happened centuries later. In the 11th century, a turbulent period occurred in the history of Maritime Southeast Asia . The Indian Chola navy crossed the ocean and attacked

7854-523: The region came under contact with the Indian subcontinent c.  400 BCE , it began a gradual process of Indianisation where Indian ideas such as religions, cultures, architectures, and political administrations were brought by traders and religious figures and adopted by local rulers. In turn, Indian Brahmins and monks were invited by local rulers to live in their realms and help transforming local polities to become more Indianised, blending Indian and indigenous traditions. Sanskrit and Pali became

7956-639: The region en route to Nalanda . It is still the dominant branch of Buddhism practised by Indonesian and Malaysian Buddhists. The spread of these two Indian religions confined the adherents of Southeast Asian indigenous beliefs into remote inland areas. The Maluku Islands and New Guinea were never Indianised and its native people were predominantly animists until the 15th century when Islam began to spread in those areas. While in Vietnam, Buddhism never managed to develop strong institutional networks due to strong Chinese influence. In present-day Southeast Asia, Vietnam

8058-626: The region were the Pyu city-states that already existed circa second century BCE, located in inland Myanmar. It served as an overland trading hub between India and China. Theravada Buddhism was the predominant religion of these city states, while the presence of other Indian religions such as Mahayana Buddhism and Hinduism were also widespread. In the first century, the Funan states centered in Mekong Delta were established, encompassed modern-day Cambodia, southern Vietnam, Laos, and eastern Thailand. It became

8160-487: The region, specifically, the Philippines. East Timor and the eastern half of Indonesia (east of the Wallace Line in the region of Wallacea ) are considered to be geographically associated with Oceania due to their distinctive faunal features. Geologically, the island of New Guinea and its surrounding islands are considered as parts of the Australian continent , connected via the Sahul Shelf . Both Christmas Island and

8262-487: The rest of Indonesia , Malaysia , southern Vietnam , and Palau by 1000 BC. They often settled along coastal areas, replacing and assimilating the diverse preexisting peoples. The Austronesian peoples of Southeast Asia have been seafarers for thousands of years. They spread eastwards to Micronesia and Polynesia , as well as westwards to Madagascar , becoming the ancestors of modern-day Malagasy , Micronesians , Melanesians , and Polynesians . Passage through

8364-453: The result of the Chola expeditions. As Srivijaya influence in the region declined, The Hindu Khmer Empire experienced a golden age during the 11th to 13th century CE. The empire's capital Angkor hosts majestic monuments—such as Angkor Wat and Bayon . Satellite imaging has revealed that Angkor, during its peak, was the largest pre-industrial urban centre in the world. The Champa civilisation

8466-464: The richest marine, flora and fauna biodiversity on Earth. The main demographic difference that sets Maritime Southeast Asia apart from modern Mainland Southeast Asia is that its population predominantly belongs to Austronesian groups. The region contains some of the world's most highly urbanized areas—the Greater Manila Area , Greater Jakarta , Singapore , and Greater Kuala Lumpur —and yet

8568-535: The term became more restricted to territories of the former French Indochina (Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam). The maritime section of Southeast Asia is also known as the Malay Archipelago , a term derived from the European concept of a Malay race . Another term for Maritime Southeast Asia is Insulindia (Indian Islands), used to describe the region between Indochina and Australasia . The term "Southeast Asia"

8670-591: The term became more restricted to the French colony, and today the area is usually referred to as Mainland Southeast Asia. In biogeography , the Indochinese bioregion is a major region in the Indomalayan realm , and also a phytogeographical floristic region in the Oriental Paleotropical Kingdom . It includes the native flora and fauna of all the countries above. The adjacent Malesian Region covers

8772-399: The trade routes during this period remained dominated by Srivijaya . The Chinese development of their own maritime technologies led to the establishment of Chinese trading colonies in Southeast Asia, a boom in the maritime trade, and the emergence of the ports of " Chinchew " ( Quanzhou ) and " Canton " ( Guangzhou ) as regional trade centers in China. Chinese trade was strictly controlled by

8874-402: The west and from the east. Regular trade between the ships sailing east from the Indian Ocean and south from mainland Asia provided goods in return for natural products, such as honey and hornbill beaks from the islands of the archipelago. Before the 18th and 19th centuries, the Europeans mostly were interested in expanding trade links. For the majority of the populations in each country, there

8976-680: The west by South Asia and the Bay of Bengal , to the east by Oceania and the Pacific Ocean , and to the south by Australia and the Indian Ocean . Apart from the British Indian Ocean Territory and two out of 26 atolls of the Maldives in South Asia, Maritime Southeast Asia is the only other subregion of Asia that lies partly within the Southern Hemisphere . Mainland Southeast Asia

9078-520: The younger population of China. Solheim and others have shown evidence for a Nusantao maritime trading network ranging from Vietnam to the rest of the archipelago as early as 5000 BC to 1 AD. The Bronze Age Dong Son culture flourished in Northern Vietnam from about 1000 BC to 1 BC. Its influence spread to other parts Southeast Asia. The region entered the Iron Age era in 500 BC, when iron

9180-458: Was a significant export of east Africa, leading some authors to label the western leg of the trade route as the "Maritime Ivory Route". The Maritime Silk Route flourished until around the 15th century CE. Han and Tang dynasty records mention large Southeast Asian ships (that they called the kunlun po , 崑崙舶, "ships of the kunlun ") visiting coastal Chinese cities regularly to trade from as early as 3rd century CE. By around 900 to 1000 CE,

9282-501: Was already inhabited by Homo erectus from approximately 1,500,000 years ago during the Middle Pleistocene age. Distinct Homo sapiens groups, ancestral to Eastern non-African (related to East Asians as well as Papuans) populations, reached the region by between 50,000BC to 70,000BC, with some arguing earlier. Rock art (parietal art) dating from 40,000 years ago (which is currently the world's oldest) has been discovered in

9384-641: Was also heavily used by Tamil , Persian , and Arab sailors. It allowed the exchange of goods from East and Southeast Asia on one end, all the way to Europe and eastern Africa on the other. Although usually spoken of in modern times in the context of Eurocentric and Sinocentric luxury goods, the goods carried by the trading ships varied by which product was in demand by region and port. They included ceramics, glass, beads, gems, ivory, fragrant wood, metals (both raw and finished goods), textiles (including silk), food (including grain, wine, and spices), aromatics, and animals, among others. Ivory , in particular,

9486-445: Was coined in the early nineteenth century, emphasizing the historical cultural influence of Indian and Chinese civilizations on the area. The term was later adopted as the name of the colony of French Indochina (today's Cambodia , Laos , and Vietnam ). Today, the term Mainland Southeast Asia , in contrast to Maritime Southeast Asia , is more commonly referenced. In Indian sources, the earliest name connected with Southeast Asia

9588-598: Was comparatively little interaction with Europeans and traditional social routines and relationships continued. For most, a life with subsistence-level agriculture, fishing and, in less developed civilisations, hunting and gathering was still hard. Europeans brought Christianity allowing Christian missionaries to become widespread. Thailand also allowed Western scientists to enter its country to develop its own education system as well as start sending royal members and Thai scholars to get higher education from Europe and Russia. During World War II, Imperial Japan invaded most of

9690-523: Was dominated by the thalassocratic cultures of the Austronesian peoples . The first true long-distance maritime trade network in the Indian Ocean was by the Austronesian peoples of Island Southeast Asia. They established trade routes with Southern India and Sri Lanka as early as 1500 BC, ushering an exchange of material culture (like catamarans , outrigger boats , lashed-lug and sewn-plank boats , and paan ) and cultigens (like coconuts , sandalwood , and sugarcane ); as well as connecting

9792-668: Was first used in 1839 by American pastor Howard Malcolm in his book Travels in South-Eastern Asia . Malcolm only included the Mainland section and excluded the Maritime section in his definition of Southeast Asia. The term was officially used in the midst of World War II by the Allies , through the formation of South East Asia Command (SEAC) in 1943. SEAC popularised the use of the term "Southeast Asia", although what constituted Southeast Asia

9894-459: Was forged also in northern Vietnam still under Dong Son, due to its frequent interactions with neighbouring China. Most Southeast Asian people were originally animist , engaged in ancestors, nature, and spirits worship. These belief systems were later supplanted by Hinduism and Buddhism after the region, especially coastal areas, came under contact with Indian subcontinent during the first century. Indian Brahmins and traders brought Hinduism to

9996-544: Was located in what is today central Vietnam, and was a highly Indianised Hindu Kingdom. The Vietnamese launched a massive conquest against the Cham people during the 1471 Vietnamese invasion of Champa , ransacking and burning Champa, slaughtering thousands of Cham people, and forcibly assimilating them into Vietnamese culture. During the 13th century CE, the region experienced Mongol invasions , affected areas such as Vietnamese coast, inland Burma and Java . In 1258, 1285 and 1287,

10098-414: Was not fixed; for example, SEAC excluded the Philippines and a large part of Indonesia while including Ceylon . However, by the late 1970s, a roughly standard usage of the term "Southeast Asia" and the territories it encompasses had emerged. Although from a cultural or linguistic perspective the definitions of "Southeast Asia" may vary, the most common definitions nowadays include the area represented by

10200-466: Was often grouped with Australia and Oceania in the mid to late 1800s, rather than with mainland Asia. The term Oceania came into usage at the beginning of the 1800s, and the earlier definitions predated the advent of concepts such as Wallacea. Maritime Southeast Asia The terms Island Southeast Asia and Insular Southeast Asia are sometimes given the same meaning as Maritime Southeast Asia. Other definitions restrict Island Southeast Asia to just

10302-436: Was the dominant religious tradition of many southern Indian Hindu kingdoms during the first century. It then spread into Southeast Asia via Bay of Bengal , Indochina, then Malay Archipelago, leading to thousands of Shiva temples on the islands of Indonesia as well as Cambodia and Vietnam, co-evolving with Buddhism in the region. Theravada Buddhism entered the region during the third century, via maritime trade routes between

10404-450: Was under Chinese rule. Vietnam was successfully governed by a series of Chinese dynasties including the Han , Eastern Han , Eastern Wu , Cao Wei , Jin , Liu Song , Southern Qi , Liang , Sui , Tang , and Southern Han . Records from Magellan's voyage show that Brunei possessed more cannon than European ships, so the Chinese must have been trading with them. Malaysian legend has it that

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