Asia Online Test 6th Social Science Lesson 19 Questions in English

Asia is the largest and the most populous continent in the world. It covers about 30 percent of the world’s land area and about 60 percent of the world’s population.

Many perennial rivers flow through different parts of Asia. These river valleys are the cradles of ancient civilizations (Indus valley, Mesopotamian and Chinese civilizations).

Asia extends from 10˚11' South to 81˚12' North latitudes and from 26˚2' East to 169˚40' West, longitudes. It spreads for an area of 44 million km2

The Suez Canal separates Asia from Africa. The narrow Bering Strait separates Asia from North America.

Asia is surrounded by the Arctic Ocean in the north, Pacific Ocean in the east, Indian Ocean in the south and the Ural Mountains, Caucasus Mountains, Red Sea, Mediterranean Sea, Caspian Sea and Black Sea in the west.

There are forty-eight countries in Asia. The countries are grouped into several realms based on landscape and political status such as 1. East Asia 2. Southeast Asia 3. South Asia 4. Southwest and 5. Central Asia.

There are 12 landlocked countries in Asia. Asia is the land of long mountain ranges, snow-capped high mountains, vast plateaus, extensive plains, river valleys and sea coasts.

There are 12 landlocked countries in Asia. Among these, only one is doubly landlocked which means it is surrounded entirely by other landlocked countries.

The most extensive lowland in Asia is the Siberian plain. It extends from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Verkhoyansk Range in the east.

'Knot' refers to the convergence of mountain ranges. There are two knots found in Asia. They are 1. The Pamir Knot 2. The Armenian Knot.

The central highlands stretches from Turkey to the Bering Strait. There are two knots found in Asia. They are 1. The Pamir Knot 2. The Armenian Knot.

The Hindukush range, the Sulaiman range, the Himalayan range and the Tian Shan range radiate from the Pamir Knot.

The Hindukush range continues westward as the Elburz, whereas the Sulaiman range continues south west as the Zagros range.

The Elburz and the Zagros converge at the Armenian knot. The Taurus and the Pontine ranges radiate from the Armenian knot.

The Himalayan mountain range is the highest mountain range in the world Mt. Everest (8848 m) is the highest peak in Asia, as well as the world.

The lowest point in the world is located in Dead Sea in Asia. Intermontane plateaus are found in these mountain ranges.

Intermontane plateaus are found in these mountain ranges. The important plateaus are The plateau of Anatolia (Pontine to Taurus) The plateau of Iran (Elburz to Zagros mt) The plateau of Tibet (Kunlun to Himalayas)

Tibet is called the ‘Roof of the world’ and it is also known as the third pole because of its cold weather, largest reserve of freshwater and inhospitable environment.

The Khyber Pass is located in the Sulaiman range, the Bolan Pass is located in Toba Kakar range.

The four important southern plateaus are the Arabian Plateau (Saudi Arabia), Deccan Plateau (India), Shan Plateau (Myanmar) and the Yunnan Plateau (China).

The southern plateaus are relatively lower than the northern plateaus. Among these plateaus, the Arabian Plateau is the largest Plateau.

The great plains are formed by the major rivers of Asia. They are the West Siberian plain (Ob and Yenisey), Manchurian Plain (Amur), Great Plain of China (Yangtze and Sikiang), Indo-Gangetic Plain (Indus and Ganga), Mesopotamian plain (Tigris and Euphrates) and the Irrawaddy plain (Irrawaddy).

The Philippines, Japan islands and Indonesia are the major archipelagos in Asia. Smaller archipelagos are also located in the Indian Ocean such as the islands. of Maldives and Lakshadweep in the Arabian Sea.

Bahrain is in the Persian Gulf. Sri Lanka is an island, which is located in the Bay of Bengal. Numerous islands are found in the Pacific coast of Southeast Asia. Kuril, Taiwan, Singapore and Borneo are the important island groups.

The Philippines, Japan islands and Indonesia are the major archipelagos in Asia. A group of islands is called an archipelago. The largest archipelago is Indonesia.

The rivers of Asia originate mostly from the central highlands. The Ob, Yenise and Lena are the major rivers that flow towards the north and drain into the Arctic Ocean.

The rivers of Asia originate mostly from the central highlands. The Euphrates and Tigris flow in West Asia.

The Amur, Huang He, Yangtze and Mekong rivers flow in the south and south eastern parts of Asia.

Yangtze originates in Tibetan plateau and outflows in East China sea with a Length of 6,350 Km is the longest river in Asia.

The Three Gorges dam has been constructed across the river Yangtze. It is the largest power station dam in the world. It full fills ten percent of power needs of China.

Asia exhibits a variety of climate. The northern part of Asia experiences severe long winter and cool summer. (Winter -37°C and Summer 10°C).

The south, south east and eastern parts of Asia are strongly influenced by monsoon winds. Summer is hot and humid while winter is cool and dry.

In India, Mawsynram (11871 mm) receives the highest rainfall. So, this place is called the wettest place in the world.

Deserts are found along the western part of Asia. The cold deserts of Asia are Gobi and Taklamakan.

Deserts are found along the western part of Asia. The major hot deserts are the Arabian (Saudi Arabia) and Thar (India and Pakistan) deserts. The largest desert in Asia is the Arabian Desert.

Natural vegetation depends upon rainfall, temperature and soil. As Asia stretches from the equator to poles, all types of vegetation are found here. Some rare species are found in Asia. (OrangUtan, Komodo Dragon, Giant panda).

A Desert is a large area that gets very low rainfall and very few plants and animals. There are two types of deserts found in Asia, Hot and cold deserts.

Rub’al Khali desert is the largest, continuous sandy desert in the world.It is found in the southeastern part of Saudi Arabia.

The areas found in and around the equator have uniform climate throughout the year. There is no winter. The average temperature is 27°C and the mean rainfall is 1270 mm.

Long and dry winter, short and cool summer found in Siberia, Himalayas with Coniferous trees - Pine, Fir, Spruce and Siberian Tiger, Brown bear, Wolf.

Permanent snow cover found Beyond the snow line with Lichen, mosses, Grass as flora and Polar bear, Lemming, Reindeer, Arctic fox as fauna

Asia holds an important place in the production of Iron, Coal, Manganese, Bauxite, Zinc, Tungsten, Petroleum, Tin etc. Oil and Natural Gas found in the west Asian countries. One third of the world’s oil is produced in Asia.

One third of the world’s oil is produced in Asia. Among the west Asian countries, Iran has a considerable wealth of mineral resources.

Asia has the largest deposits of iron ore in the world. China and India are the important iron ore deposit countries of Asia.

Coal is a fossil fuel. Asia has the largest deposits of coal in the world. China and India are the largest producers of coal in Asia.

Petroleum is a mineral oil. The largest petroleum reserves are found in South West Asia. The important petroleum producing countries are Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iran, Bahrain, Qatar and UAE. South China, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, India, Russia are the other important petroleum producing countries in Asia.

Bauxite is found in India and Indonesia. India is the largest producer of Mica in the world. Tin is found in Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia.

Only about 18 percent of the total area is cultivable in Asia. Agriculture is the chief occupation of the people here. The river valleys in the South, South East and East Asia have rich alluvial soil.

India has the largest area of arable lands in Asia. Most of the west Asian countries cultivate their crops where the ground water level is nearer to the surface.

Iraq practices agricultural activities based on the availability of rainfall and supply of water from Euphrates and Tigris rivers.

Rice and Wheat are the staple food crops in Asia. China and India are the leading producers of rice in the world.

Monsoon Asia is suitable for rice cultivation because of the abundant rainfall, fertile plains and availability of labour. Thailand is called the Rice bowl of South East Asia.

The Banaue rice terraces were built 2000 year ago by the Ifugaos people in the Philippines. It is located approximately about 1524 m above sea level.

Wheat is grown in the temperate regions of Asia. Russia, India, China and Pakistan are the leading producers of wheat in Asia.

Jute and cotton are the important natural fibres cultivated in Asia. One third of the world’s cotton is produced by Asia.

The tropical wet and dry climate is suitable for sugarcane cultivation in Asia. India, Indonesia and Philippines are the major producers of sugarcane.

Malaysia and Thailand are the leading producers of natural rubber. India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia are important producers of plantation crops.

Dates are produced in west Asia, among the countries Iran is the largest producer of dates in the world.

Fishing is an important economic activity in Asia. It is prevalent in open seas as well as inland water bodies. China and Japan are the leading fishing nations.

Fishing is the mainstay of the national economy in Maldives. Pearl fishing (Bahrein) is popular in the eastern coast of Arabia.

In China, Manchurian, Shanghai Wuhan, Peking—Shenyang, Guangdone Hongkong regions are the major industrial regions. In Japan, the major regions are Tokyo, Yokohama and Osaka-Kyoto regions.

In India, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Coimbatore, Bengaluru and Chotanagpur are the important industrial regions.

Transport is the backbone of the economic development of a region. Many Asian countries are developing their transport network for their economic progress. Roadway is the most common mode of transport in Asia.

The Asian Highway 1(AH 1) is the longest highway among the Asian Highway Network (20557 km). It connects Tokyo to Turkey. The Asian Highway 43 (AH 43) runs from Agra in India to Matara in Sri Lanka (3024 km).

The Trans - Siberian Railways (9258 km) is the longest rail route in the world. It is a transcontinental railway line which connects Leningrad and Vladivostok. The Trans Asian Railway links Singapore and Istanbul in Turkey. The Shinkansen, bullet train is the world famous super express train that runs between Osaka and Tokyo in Japan at a speed of 352 km/h. The Indian railway network is the second largest railway network in Asia.

The Cape of Good Hope route connects Europe to South Asia. The Trans Pacific route connects the ports of eastern Asia to the ports of western American countries.

The population is unevenly distributed because of various physical features. China and India alone cover’s three fifth of Asia’s population.

The population density in Asia is 143 persons per Km2. India, Japan, Bangladesh and Singapore have high population density.

ANKORWAT is a world heritage site. It was built by king Suriya Varma II in 1100 AD(CE) at Cambodia. 'Ankorwat' means 'the city of temples' in Khmer language. It is the largest Hindu Temple in the world.

Among the seven wonders of the world, two are located in Asia (The Tajmahal in India, The Great wall of China). The people of Yemen built a mud skyscraper thousands of years ago.

Thai in Thailand, Bhangra, Kathak and Bharathanatyam in India are also important dances in Asia. Tinikling is the national dance of Philippines.

Europe is the sixth largest continent in size and the third largest in population in the world. It has diverse landforms and people.

Europe spreads from 34º 51' North latitude to 81º 47' North latitude and from 24º33' West longitude to 69º 03' East longitude. The Prime Meridian 0º longitude passes through Greenwich in England.

Europe is surrounded by the Arctic Ocean in the North, the Black Sea and Mediterranean Sea in the south, the Atlantic Ocean in the west and the Ural mountains in the east. So it looks like a giant peninsula. Europe is called as the 'Peninsula of Peninsulas.

The European Union (EU) is an economic and political union of 28 member countries for their welfare. It has own flag and the common currency, the Euro (€).

The Volga is the longest river in Europe. The river Danube passes through nine countries in Europe.

The Alps mountain of Europe separates the Mediterranean climate from the cold climate of the north and acts as a climate divider

North Atlantic Drift is a warm ocean current which brings warmth to the western Europe. The westerly wind further transports warmth across Europe.

Asia and Europe are integrated geographically and separated politically. Europe is the giant peninsula of Asia.

The important parallels such as the Equator, Tropic of Cancer, Arctic Circle pass through Asia. Only the Arctic Circle passes through Europe.

Wheat is the dominant crop throughout Europe. Barley, Oats, sugar beet, rye, potatoes and hay are also common crops.

Europe is the third most populous continent, after Asia and Africa. The population of Europe was 742 million in 2018, which accounted for 9.73% of the world’s population. The population density in Europe is 34 persons / km2.

The pyramid-shaped Matterhorn mountain is located in the Swiss Alps a height of 4478 m. It is popular for its shape.

The physiography of Asia can be divided into five major groups. They are; The Northern lowlands The Central High Mountains, The Southern Plateaus The Great Plains and The Island Groups

Numerous islands are found in the Pacific coast of Southeast Asia. Kuril, Taiwan, Singapore and Borneo are the important island groups.

The areas found in and around the equator have uniform climate throughout the year. There is no winter. The average temperature is 27°C and the mean rainfall is 1270 mm.

Tin is found in Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia.

India, Pakistan, China and Bangladesh are the leading producers of jute.

The Shinkansen, bullet train is the world famous super express train that runs between Osaka and Tokyo in Japan at a speed of 352 km/h.

A fjord is a narrow and deep sea inlet between steep cliffs. It helps to reduces the speed of wind, irrespective of its direction. The force of sea waves are also controlled. Hence, areas with fjords are best suited for natural harbors.

Dogger Bank in North Sea is an important fishing ground in Europe.

Monaco, Malta, San Marino, and the Netherlands are the most densely populated countries; Iceland and Norway have very low density of population.

Wheat is the dominant crop throughout Europe. Barley, Oats, sugar beet, rye, potatoes and hay are also common crops.

Viticulture is mostly practiced in Italy, France and Germany.

Europe is an industrially developed continent in the world. It has great diversity in its topography, climate and soil. These interact to produce varied patterns of agricultural activities such as Mediterranean agriculture, Dairy farming, mixed livestock and crop farming and horticulture.