Mainland Southeast Asia

Continental portion of Southeast Asia

"Indochina" redirects here. For the French colonial regime, see French Indochina.

Mainland Southeast Asia
Indochinese Peninsula
Indochina

Population| 243,201,036 (1 July 2019)
Countries|

* Cambodia
* Laos
* Malaysia (peninsular portion only)
* Myanmar
* Singapore
* Thailand
* Vietnam

Mainland Southeast Asia (historically known as Indochina and 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, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam as well as Peninsular Malaysia.[1]

The term Indochina (originally Indo-China) was coined in the early nineteenth century, emphasizing the historical cultural influence of Indian and Chinese civilizations on the region. The term was later adopted as the name of the colony of French Indochina (present-day Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam). Today, the term "Mainland Southeast Asia" is more commonly used, in contrast to Maritime Southeast Asia for the island groups off the coast of the peninsula.

## Terminology

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1886 map of Indochina, from the Scottish Geographical Magazine

In Indian sources, the earliest name connected with Southeast Asia is Yāvadvīpa [ms].[2] Another possible early name of mainland Southeast Asia was Suvarṇabhūmi ("land of gold"),[2][3] a toponym, that appears in many ancient Indian literary sources and Buddhist texts,[4] but which, along with Suvarṇadvīpa ("island" or "peninsula of gold"),[2] are also thought to refer to insular Southeast Asia.[2]

The origins of the name Indo-China are usually attributed jointly to 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.[5] 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 a later edition of his Universal Geography, reasoning that it overemphasized Chinese influence, and suggested Chin-India instead.[6] 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 the term became more restricted to the French colony,[7] and today the area is usually referred to as Mainland Southeast Asia.[8]

## Biogeography

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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 the Maritime Southeast Asian countries, and straddles the Indomalayan and Australasian realms.[9]

## Geography

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Climate of Southeast Asia Mekong River

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), 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.[citation needed] Most of it has a tropical climate except for subtropical places such as Northern Vietnam.[10]

## Culture

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Ethnolinguistic groups of mainland Southeast Asia

Mainland Southeast Asia contrasts with Maritime Southeast Asia, mainly through 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 the course of history and share a number of typological similarities.[citation needed]

The countries of mainland Southeast Asia received cultural influence from both India and China to varying degrees.[11] 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.[citation needed]

Overall, Mainland Southeast Asia is predominantly Buddhist[12][13][14][15][16][17] with minority Muslim and Hindu populations.[18][19]

## See also

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* Asia portal
* Geography portal

Related regional concepts

* Mainland Southeast Asia linguistic area
* Southeast Asian Massif
* Zomia

Sub-regions

* Golden Chersonese
* Golden Triangle
* Greater Mekong Subregion

## References

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1. ^ "Southeast Asia". Britannica. Retrieved 8 April 2025.
2. ^ a b c d Wheatley, Paul (1961). The Golden Khersonese: Studies in the Historical Geography of the Malay Peninsula before A.D. 1500. Kuala Lumpur: University of Malaya Press. pp. 177–184. OCLC 504030596.
3. ^ Kitiarsa, Pattana (2010). "Missionary Intent and Monastic Networks: Thai Buddhism as a Transnational Religion". Sojourn: Journal of Social Issues in Southeast Asia. 25 (1): 115–116\. doi:10.1355/sj25-1e. ISSN 0217-9520. JSTOR 41308138. "King Asoka in the third century BC is widely cited as the model monarch who organized networks of missionaries to preach the teachings of the Buddha outside India including to Suvarnabhumi or mainland Southeast Asia."
4. ^ Sailendra Nath Sen (1999). Ancient Indian History and Civilization. New Age International. ISBN 9788122411980. Retrieved 30 November 2018.
5. ^ Vimalin Rujivacharakul; et al., eds. (2013). Architecturalized Asia : mapping a continent through history. Hong Kong University Press. p. 89\. ISBN 9789888208050.
6. ^ Malte-Brun, Conrad (1827). Universal Geography, Or, A Description of All the Parts of the World, on a New Plan, According to the Great Natural Divisions of the Globe: Improved by the Addition of the Most Recent Information, Derived from Various Sources : Accompanied with Analytical, Synoptical, and Elementary Tables, Volume 2. A. Finley. pp. 262–3.
7. ^ Wesseling, H. L. (2015). The European Colonial Empires: 1815–1919. Routledge. ISBN 9781317895060.
8. ^ Keyes, Charles F. (1995). The golden peninsula : culture and adaptation in mainland Southeast Asia (Pbk. reprint ed.). University of Hawaii Press. p. 1\. ISBN 9780824816964.
9. ^ "Biogeographic region – Fauna". Encyclopedia Britannica. Archived from the original on 15 March 2023. Retrieved 15 December 2019.
10. ^ "Vietnam Climate". WorldData.info. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
11. ^ Marion Severynse, ed. (1997). The Houghton Mifflin Dictionary Of Geography. Houghton Mifflin Company. ISBN 0-395-86448-8.
12. ^ "Malaysia". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. 28 September 2016. Archived from the original on 15 October 2021. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
13. ^ "Thailand". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. 28 September 2016. Archived from the original on 10 June 2021. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
14. ^ "Myanmar". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. 28 September 2016. Archived from the original on 1 December 2021. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
15. ^ "Cambodia". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. 28 September 2016. Archived from the original on 10 June 2021. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
16. ^ "Vietnam". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. 28 September 2016. Archived from the original on 10 June 2021. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
17. ^ 2008 Report on International Religious Freedom (Report). U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. September 2008. Archived from the original on 6 July 2019. Retrieved 19 December 2016.
18. ^ SIDDIQUE, SHARON (1981). "Some Aspects of Malay-Muslim Ethnicity in Peninsular Malaysia". Contemporary Southeast Asia. 3 (1): 76–87\. ISSN 0129-797X. JSTOR 25797648. Archived from the original on 1 April 2023. Retrieved 27 July 2021.
19. ^ "The Minority Muslim Experience in Mainland Southeast Asia: A Different Path". Routledge & CRC Press. Archived from the original on 27 April 2023. Retrieved 27 July 2021.

## Further reading

[edit]

* Bernard Philippe Groslier (1962). The art of Indochina: including Thailand, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. Crown Publishers.
* History of the mountain people of southern Indochina up to 1945 (Bernard Bourotte, i.e. Jacques Méry), U.S. Agency for International Development, 195? (PDF)

## External links

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mainland Southeast Asia.

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Timeline of sovereign states in Mainland Southeast Asia since the 1st century AD

Chinese controlled-area

Vietnamese states

Cham people's states

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Khmer people's states

Malays' states

Mon people's states

Tai people's states

Bai people's state

Rakhine people's state

Bamar people's state

Pyu people's state

Western Colony

Unknown

Muang Then (c. 6th–11th century)

Ngưu Hống (c. 10th–1432)

Tai Federation (c. 16th–1955)

Western Han (111 BC–501)

Tonkin (1883–1950)

Liang dynasty (502–544)

Annam (1883–1950)

Vạn Xuân (544–602)

North Vietnam (1945–1975)

Sui dynasty (602–618)

Tang dynasty (618–938)

South Vietnam (1955–1975)

Tĩnh Hải Quân (939–968)

French Cochinchina (1862–1949)

Đại Việt (968–1804)

Việt Nam/Đại Nam (1804–1945)

Champa (192–1832)

Lâm Ấp (192–629)

Simhapura (c. 4th–8th century)

Xitu (c. Mid 5th–6th century)

Quduqian (c. 300–before 1480)

Khmer Empire (802–1431)

Kampuchea (1945)

Chenla (510–802)

French Cambodia (1863–1954)

Funan (68–627)

Gangga Negara (c. 2nd century–1026)

Old Pahang (c. 5th century–1454)

Pahang Sultanate (1470–1623)

Johor Sultanate (1528–1855)

Malacca Sultanate (1400–1511)

Straits Settlements (1826–1946)

Majapahit (1293–1527)

Unfederated Malay States (1895–1946)

Singhasari (1222–1292)

Federated Malay States (1895–1946)

Malayan Union (1946–1948)

Singapura (1299–1398)

Malacca (1946–1957)

Melayu (1028–1347)

Penang (1946–1957)

Srivijaya (671–1025)

Fed. Malaya (1948–1963)

Melayu (671–692)

Kedah Tua (c. 5th–9th century)

Pan Pan (c. 300–700)

Singapore (1946–1958)

Chi Tu (c. 2nd–7th century)

Langkasuka (1st–15th century)

Reman (1810–1902)

Patani (1457–1902)

Tambralinga (970–1365)

Setul (1808–1916)

Lavo (Mon) (468–902)

Nakhon Si Thammarat (c. 13th century–1782)

Lavo (Khmer) (c. 903–1000)

Lavo (Thai) (c. 1000–1388)

Canasapura (c. 7th–9th century)

Ayutthaya (1351–1767)

Phrip-phri (Thai) [th] (c. 10th–13th century)

Phimai (1767–1768)

Phrip-phri (Mon) [th] (c. 6th–10th century)

Phitsanulok (1767–1770)

Sukhothai (1238–1438)

Thonburi (1767–1782)

Singhanavati (c. 658–1107)

Rattanakosin (1782–1932)

Ngoenyang (638–1292)

Kotrabun [th] (c. 1st century BC–958)

Lan Na (1292–1775)

Early Laos city-states (c. 6th–13th century)

Chiang Mai (1802–1899)

Lan Xang (1353–1707)

Phuan (c. 13th century–1893)

Vientiane (1707–1828)

Haripuñjaya (629–1292)

Luang Phrabang (1707–1893)

Dvaravati (c. 201–1099)

Champasak (1713–1904)

Mon city-states (c. 573 BC–825)

French Laos (1893–1953)

Thaton (c. 400 BC–1057)

Pong (c. 1st century–1479)

Möng Mao (568–1604)

Nanzhao (738–902)

Shan (1215–1555)

Mogaung

Mogaung (1215–1479, 1484–1495)

Waithali (370–818)

Laymro (1237–1430)

Dhanyawadi (c. Early 4th century–369)

Mrauk U (1430–1785)

Ava (1365–1555)

Sagaing (1315–1362)

Konbaung Empire (1752–1885)

Prome (1482–1542)

British Burma (1824–1948)

Pinya (1313–1362)

Myinsaing (1297–1313)

Restored Taungoo (1599–1752)

Pagan (849–1297)

Toungoo Empire (1510–1599)

Sri Ksetra (c. 3rd century–1050s)

Hanthawaddy (1287–1552)

Tagaung (c. 1st century–1050s)

Restored Hanthawaddy (1740–1757)

Pyu city-states (c. 2nd century BC–1050)

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Timeline of sovereign states in Mainland Southeast Asia since the 1st century

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Regions of Asia

Central
(The 'stans)|

* Roof of the World
* Greater Middle East
* Aral Sea
* Aralkum Desert
* Caspian Sea
* Dead Sea
* Sea of Galilee
* Tartary
* Transoxiana
* Turan
* Greater Khorasan
* Ariana
* Arachosia
* Khwarazm
* Sistan
* Kazakhstania
* Kazakh Steppe
* Betpak-Dala
* Eurasian Steppe
* Kazakh Steppe
* Mongolian–Manchurian grassland
* Iranian plateau
* Altai Mountains
* Pamir Mountains
* Tian Shan
* Badakhshan
* Wakhan Corridor
* Wakhjir Pass
* Mount Imeon
* Mongolian Plateau
* Western Regions
* Taklamakan Desert
* Karakoram
* Trans-Karakoram Tract
* Siachen Glacier
* Tibetan Plateau

East
(Northeast)|

* Orient
* Japanese Archipelago
* Northeastern Japan Arc
* Sakhalin Island Arc
* Korea
* Gobi Desert
* Taklamakan Desert
* Greater Khingan
* Mongolian Plateau
* Inner Asia
* Greater Central Asia
* Inner Mongolia
* Outer Mongolia
* China proper
* Manchuria
* Northeast China
* Northeast China Plain
* Outer Manchuria
* Mongolian–Manchurian grassland
* North China Plain
* Yan Mountains
* Liaodong Peninsula
* High-mountain Asia
* Himalayas
* Tibetan Plateau
* Karakoram
* Kunlun Mountains
* Qilian Mountains
* Hengduan Mountains
* Tarim Basin
* Qinling Mountains
* Sichuan Basin
* Northern Silk Road
* Hexi Corridor
* Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau
* Lingnan
* Liangguang
* Jiangnan
* Jianghuai
* Guanzhong
* Huizhou
* Wu
* Jiaozhou
* Zhongyuan
* Shaannan
* Ordos Loop
* Loess Plateau
* Shaanbei
* Hamgyong Mountains
* Central Mountain Range
* Japanese Alps
* Suzuka Mountains
* Leizhou Peninsula
* Gulf of Tonkin
* Yangtze
* Yangtze Delta
* Yellow River
* Pearl River Delta
* Yenisei Basin
* Altai Mountains
* Wakhan Corridor
* Wakhjir Pass
* Far East/Pacific Asia
* Ring of Fire
* Asia–Pacific
* Tropical Asia

North
(Siberia)|

* Arctic
* Arctic Circle
* Inner Asia
* Northeast
* Ural
* Ural Mountains
* Far East/Pacific Asia
* Russian Far East
* Okhotsk–Manchurian taiga
* Beringia
* Chukchi Peninsula
* Kamchatka Peninsula
* Extreme North
* Tartary
* Siberia
* Baikalia (Lake Baikal)
* Baraba steppe
* Khatanga Gulf
* Transbaikal
* West
* Amur Basin
* Yenisei Gulf
* Yenisei Basin
* Sikhote-Alin
* Kolyma
* Bering Strait
* Ring of Fire
* Outer Manchuria
* Asia–Pacific

Southeast
(East Indies)|

* Orient
* Sundaland
* Mainland/Indochina
* Northern Triangle temperate forests
* Maritime/Malay Archipelago
* Peninsular Malaysia
* Sunda Islands
* Greater Sunda Islands
* Lesser Sunda Islands
* Indonesian Archipelago/Nusantara
* Wallacea
* Timor
* Philippine Archipelago
* Luzon
* Mindanao
* Visayas
* Leyte Gulf
* Gulf of Thailand
* East Indies
* Nanyang
* Alpide belt
* Far East/Pacific Asia
* Ring of Fire
* Asia–Pacific
* Tropical Asia

South
(Indian
Subcontinent)|

* Subregions
* Eastern
* Northern
* Northwestern
* Southern
* Orient
* Greater India
* Indian subcontinent
* Himalayas
* Kangchenjunga
* Nanda Devi
* Hindu Kush
* Bactria
* Carnatic region
* Tamilakam
* Western Ghats
* Eastern Ghats
* Ganges Basin
* Ganges Delta
* Guzgan
* Pashtunistan
* Punjab
* Balochistan
* Gedrosia
* Makran
* Marathwada
* Kashmir
* Kashmir Valley
* Pir Panjal Range
* Thar Desert
* Indus Valley
* Indus River Delta
* Indus Valley Desert
* Indo-Gangetic Plain
* Eastern Coastal Plains
* Kalinga
* Western Coastal Plains
* Meghalaya subtropical forests
* Lower Gangetic Plains moist deciduous forests
* Northwestern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows
* Doab
* Bagar tract
* Great Rann of Kutch
* Little Rann of Kutch
* Deccan Plateau
* Coromandel Coast
* Konkan
* False Divi Point
* Hindi Belt
* Ladakh
* Aksai Chin
* Gilgit-Baltistan
* Baltistan
* Shigar Valley
* High-mountain Asia
* Karakoram
* Saltoro Mountains
* Siachen Glacier
* Bengal
* Bay of Bengal
* Gulf of Khambhat
* Gulf of Kutch
* Halar
* Gulf of Mannar
* Palk Strait
* Trans-Karakoram Tract
* Wakhan Corridor
* Wakhjir Pass
* Lakshadweep
* Laccadive Islands
* Aminidivi
* Paropamisadae
* Andaman and Nicobar Islands
* Andaman Islands
* Nicobar Islands
* Maldives
* Alpide belt
* Asia–Pacific
* Tropical Asia
* Tibetan Plateau

West
(Middle East and
South Caucasus)|

* Red Sea
* Hanish Islands
* Caspian Sea
* Mediterranean Sea
* Zagros Mountains
* Elam
* Persian Gulf
* Pirate Coast
* Strait of Hormuz
* Greater and Lesser Tunbs
* Al-Faw Peninsula
* Gulf of Oman
* Gulf of Aqaba
* Gulf of Aden
* Balochistan
* Arabian Peninsula
* Najd
* Al-Yamama
* Hejaz
* Tihamah
* Eastern Arabia
* South Arabia
* Hadhramaut
* Arabian Peninsula coastal fog desert
* Al-Sharat
* Tigris–Euphrates
* Mesopotamia
* Upper Mesopotamia
* Lower Mesopotamia
* Sawad
* Nineveh Plains
* Akkad (region)
* Babylonia
* Suhum
* Eastern Mediterranean
* Mashriq
* Eber-Nari
* Kurdistan
* Levant
* Levantine corridor
* Syria region
* Palestine region
* Transjordan
* Jordan Rift Valley
* Philistia
* Golan Heights
* Hula Valley
* Galilee
* Canaan
* Gilead
* Syrian Desert
* Judea
* Samaria
* Arabah
* Aram
* Aram-Naharaim
* Negev
* Phoenicia
* Retjenu
* Anti-Lebanon Mountains
* Bekaa valley
* Levantine Sea
* Sinai Peninsula
* Arabian Desert
* Fertile Crescent
* Iranian Azerbaijan
* Hauran
* Iranian plateau
* Dasht-e Kavir
* Armenian highlands
* Caucasus
* Caucasus Mountains
* Greater Caucasus
* Lesser Caucasus
* South Caucasus
* Shirvan
* Kur-Araz Lowland
* Lankaran Lowland
* Alborz
* Absheron Peninsula
* Kartli
* Anatolia
* Taurus Mountains
* Aeolis
* Paphlagonia
* Phasiane
* Isauria
* Ionia
* Bithynia
* Cilicia
* Cappadocia
* Caria
* Corduene
* Chaldia
* Doris
* Lycaonia
* Lycia
* Lydia
* Galatia
* Pisidia
* Pontus
* Mysia
* Arzawa
* Speri
* Sophene
* Biga Peninsula
* Troad
* Tuwana
* Alpide belt

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