SOUTHEAST ASIA

BY: SHARON WESTERHOLMLA VERNIA HIGH SCHOOL

SE Asia Geography

• Southeast Asia is located, just like it sounds, in the southeast portion of the continent of Asia. It is south of China and to the east of India.

• Located near the equator & partly two mainland peninsulas.• Much of Southeast Asia is islands (archipelagos) in the

Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. • Two major Seas are the South China Sea and the Philippine

Sea. • Formed by colliding plates; mountainous terrain

Indochinese Peninsula

Malay Pens.

Malay archipelago

Physical features

• Mountains that dominate landscape & form boundaries; cordilleras run mainly north to south

• Form part of the Ring of Fire• Volcanoes• Rivers provide transportation, communication

& food

Climate & Vegetation

• Much of Southeast Asia is rainforest and the climate is very wet & hot because of location

• Up to 188 inches of rain a year!• The wet weather makes the area prime for rice

patty agriculture making rice the main staple in the Southeast Asian diet.

• Malaysia is site of perhaps the oldest rainforest in the world

FACTS

• Indonesia is the leading producer of petroleum and home to the Komodo dragon.

• Thailand raises orchids for exports.• East Timor became fully independent in 2002.• Myanmar is the country formally known as

Burma.• The largest book in the world is said to be in the

Kuthodaw Pagoda in Myanmar.

…more facts

• Ha Long Bay in Vietnam was named one of the "New Seven Wonders of Nature.“

• Hundreds of animals in Southeast Asia are on the brink of extinction. This includes the Sumatran Tiger and the Sumatran Rhino.

• Indonesia is the fourth most populous country in the world.

• There are around 20,000 islands in Malay archipelago.