Asian Culture

In this document I will explore some key features of Asian culture.

Asia is known for being a hub of cultural and religious diversity. It is a nest of 48 countries, including; China, India, Japan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Afghanistan. As implied, this large array of countries allows for a wide diversity of people.

Facts

Festivals are a huge part of this culture, some of the most famous are; china- Chinese new year, dragon boat festival, autumn moon festival. Hindu- Diwali. Japan – National foundation day, Emperor’s birthday. India- republic day, independence day.

There are over 1600 temples in Japan (Kyoto).

Asia covers ⅓ of the earth’s surface.

China produces 45 billion chopsticks per year.

South Korea holds a separate valentines day for single people.

South East Asia is home to the world’s largest flower, and world’s smallest mammal.

Indonesia is the world’s fourth most popular country.

Russia and Turkey sit among both Asian and European territory.

Asia hosts a varied climate.

Over 2300 languages are spoken throughout the continent.

These are 12 landlocked countries.

Asia is home to the world’s tallest mountain, Mount Everest.

Asia is the birth place of all major religions.

There are many countries that make up the Asian continent, I have listed them below.

East Asia; China, Japan, South Korea, North Korea, Mongolia.

South Asia; India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Iran, Bhutan, Afghanistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Maldives.

West Asia; Cyprus, Bahrain, Qatar, Armenia, Georgia, Kuwait, Palestine, Oman, Lebanon, Israel, United Arab Emirates, Azerbaijan, Jordan, Syria, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, turkey.

South Eastern Asia; Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar, Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos, Singapore, Timor-leste, Brunei.

Central Asia; Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan.

China; Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macao.

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Some stereotypes that may be associated with Asia and its inhabitants are;  cuisines, sharing food, street fashion, family, symbolism, tradition., greetings, bowing, pale or olive toned skin, chopsticks, rice, music, politics, population control, uniform and authority.

As previously explored, a culture is much more than the stereotypes it’s recognized by, below I will explore some other factors that play a part in making up Asian cultures.

As just noted, over 2,300 languages are spoken across Asia. The main, dominant languages are as follows; Mandarin (1.1 billion speakers), Arabic (The official language for 26 Asian countries), Malay (33.12 million speakers), Persian (62 million speakers), Bangala (300 million speakers), and Hindi (600 million speakers).

Additionally, there are a wide range of religions celebrated across the continent, including; Hinduism (26.1%), Islam (25.7), no religion (20%), Buddhism (11.3%), Folk religions (8.6%), Christianity (7.2%).

Due to the large area of this continent, and implied by the large range of regions followed and languages spoken, there is huge ethnic diversity. The ethnic make-up of the continent is as follows; overall population is 4,744,162,517 making up around 59.4% of the world’s population. The highest populated country in Asia is China, hosting 1,439,323,776, followed by India at 1,380,004,385, and in third place is Indonesia with 2,73,523,615 inhabitants.

Some popular fashion and beauty trends include; slender figures, pale skin, long dark hair, glass skin, light and neutral makeup, high SPF worn daily, V jawlines, big round eyes, slender noses, small faces, crochet, bohemian styles, cargo style clothing, tropical print, black and dark colors, long peplum, leather, pencil skirts, neon colors and lace.

Additionally, music is a huge part of Asian culture, some highly popularized genres include; K-pop, punk rock, J-pop, canto pop, classical music and hip hop.

Architecture is a huge part of Asian expression. Many influences in architecture come from ancient religions such as Hindu and Buddhist beliefs, as well as taking huge inspiration from nature. Many buildings are presented like temples, with large and complex spaces, as well as modern popularized open plan homes.

As for most countries, sport is a big part of Asian culture, but the music scene seems to dominate over any other entertainment industry. Some popular sports in Asia include; football, boxing, badminton, table tennis, basketball and cricket.

Famous faces

Bruce Lee

Icon in martial arts cinema, known for popularizing the martial arts genre within mainstream media worldwide. Also paved the way for the modern sport ‘mixed martial arts.’

Brandon Lee

Son of Bruce Lee, actor and martial artist. He got his big break with his role as Eric Draven in the Crow, however this also cut his career short – as he died an accidental death during the production of this movie.

Jet Li

(Li Lian Jie)Film actor, producer, retired Wushu performing martial artist, and five time gold medalist.

Jackie Chan

International movie star, stunt man and martial artist.

Michelle Yeoh

Renowned actress and Oscar winner.

Manny Pacqioa

Internationally successful boxer, nicknamed ‘pac man’. He is regarded one of the greatest professional boxers of all time, and also served as a senator for the Philippines from 2016-2022.

Archnie Panjabi

Actress, and feminist speaker.

Rain

International k-pop star and actor. He and his wife are known as the richest celebrity couple in Korea.

Kristi Yamaguchi

Author, Figure skater, Olympic gold medalist, two time World Champion and founder of the Always dream foundation. She was titled the first Asian American woman to win a gold medal in a Winter Olympic competition

Mindy Kaling

Pioneering actress, known mainly for her role as main character in the Mindy project. Her work is widely recognized, as evident by her two Screen Actors Guild Awards, Tony Award and nominations for six Prime time Emmy Awards

Chow Yun Fatt

International movie star.

Jeremy Lin

Professional basket ball player, signed with the NBA from 2011-2019.

Henry Golding

Actor, famous for his role in crazy rich Asians. He has also been a presenter on the BBC’s ‘The Travel Show’ since 2014.

Constance Wu

Actress known best for her work in crazy rich Asians, and Hustlers. Constance was included on Time magazines list of 100 most influential people, in 2017, and has earned several nominations for her work, including; a Golden Globe Award, four Critics’ Choice Awards, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and two TCA Awards

Steven Yeun

Actor, most famous for his role in the walking dead.

Gautam Adani

Author, billionaire industrialist and founder pf Adani Group.

Hwang Dong-hyuk

Film maker who gained international success in 2020 with his creation; Squid Games. He was included on the Times list of 100 must influential people, in 2022.

Xi Jinping

Current Chinese president. He has also previously served as the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party and chairman of the Central Military Commission

Yoon Suk-yeol

South Korea’s current president. He previously served as the prosecutor general of South Korea.

Karunda Nundy

Supreme court lawyer, known for championing womens rights, and reforming anti rape laws.

Umar Ata Bandial

Chief of justice in Japan.

Peng Shuai

Now retired, professional tennis Player. Ranked world No. 1 doubles player by the WTA, in February 2014, becoming the first Chinese tennis player to achieve this ranking.

Hoda khamosh

Women’s rights activist, journalist and poet.

Shreya Ghoshal

Professional singer, admired for her wide and versatile vocal range.

Alia Bhatt

Known as Bollywood’s number one, and highest paid actress, she has appeared in Forbes: India’s Celebrity 100 list since 2014 and was awarded the TIME 100 Impact Award in 2022

Simone Ashley

Actress, most famously known for her roles in hit Netflix series; Bridgerton and Sex-Education.