Southeast Asia includes the peninsula and islands east of India and Bangladesh and south of China. The region consists of Brunei, Cambodia, East Timor, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and most of Indonesia.
Most of Southeast Asia’s approximately 674 million people have Chinese or Malay ancestors. About half live in rural areas. The region’s largest urban centers surround the cities of Bangkok, in Thailand; Jakarta, in Indonesia; and Manila, in the Philippines. Buddhism and Islam are the area’s major religions. Most Filipinos are Christians.
Southeast Asia has rich, fertile soil. Its main agricultural products are rubber, rice, tea, and spices. The region’s forests produce most of the world’s teak. The coastal waters yield large quantities of fish. Parts of the area have rich petroleum deposits and tin and gem mines. Since the mid-1980’s, the manufacture of export goods has greatly contributed to rapid economic growth in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand.
Europeans, attracted by the area’s natural riches, began to take over Southeast Asia in the 1500’s. The United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, and the United States all have ruled parts of the region. Only Thailand escaped foreign control. After World War II (1939-1945), the Philippines and the major British colonies gained independence peacefully. Elsewhere in Southeast Asia, several groups fought for independence.
In the 1950’s, what had been the colony of French Indochina was divided into Cambodia, Laos, North Vietnam, and South Vietnam. In 1975, Communist North Vietnam conquered South Vietnam after the long and bitter Vietnam War. The Communists unified North and South Vietnam into the single country of Vietnam.
