Asia Continent Facts
The Asian continent includes 48 countries that are members of the United Nations with the population of More than 4.4 billion people.
Asia’s neighbor continents are Africa and Europe to the west and the Pacific Ocean to the east.
Here are some interesting Asia Continent facts
FACT #1. The current population of Asia is 4,588,098,603 as of Friday, August 2, 2019, based on the latest United Nations estimates. [source]
FACT #2. The population of Asia is equivalent to 59.66% of the total world population.
FACT #3. Asia covers an area of 44,579,000 square kilometres (17,212,000 sq mi). It is about 30% of Earth’s total land area and 8.7% of the Earth’s total surface area.[source]
FACT #4. The 10 Largest Countries in Asia are: Russia (Top), China, India, Kazakhstan, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Mongolia, Indonesia, Pakistan, Turkey. The largest city of Asia in Shanghai in China.
FACT #5. The Maldives is one of the smallest countries in the world and also Asia’s smallest country.
FACT #6. The highest mountain in the world is Mount Everest in Asia.
FACT #7. The tallest buildings in the world are in Asia. The 828-meter (2,717 ft) tall Burj Khalifa in Dubai (Asia) is the tallest building in the world.
FACT #8. The best mango in the world is from the Philippines. The mango variety was listed as the sweetest in the world by the 1995 edition of the Guinness Book of World Records.
FACT#9. Asia continent is the largest producer of mango and in Asia, India is known as the largest producer of mango in the world.
FACT #10. With 23,615.39 km3 (5,670 cu mi) of water, The largest lake and deepest freshwater lake in the world is in Asia named Baikal Lake. In 1996, UNESCO declared Baikal Lake a World Heritage Site.
FACT #11. 11 The Baikal seal (Pusa sibirica), found only in the Lake Baikal, also known as the nerpa. It is one of the only freshwater seal species in the world.
FACT #12. 90% of the world’s rice is consumed in Asian countries.
FACT #13. Asia has the highest number of billionaires in the world.
FACT #14. The largest democracy in the world (India) also belongs to Asia.
FACT #15. Asia is about 30% of Earth’s total land area but the population of Asis is 59.66% of the total world population.
FACT #16. Asia as a continent also has the largest part of the distribution of the world population. The below table will help to understand the share of each continent in the global population.
|Continent||Distribution of the global population (source)|
|Latin America & the Caribbean||8.37|
FACT #17. It will be also interesting to know that 2 out of 7 wonders of the world is from Asia. These two wonders are:
The Taj Mahal, Agra (India): The Taj Mahal is a mausoleum of white marble built by the Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan, in the loving memory of his favourite wife, Mumtaz Mahal. It is situated on the bank of the Yamuna river in the Indian city of Agra. Tourists come across the world to see the beauty and architecture of the Taj Mahal.
Great Wall of China (China): Winding its way through the Liaoning, Jilin, Ningxia, Hunan, and several other provinces in China, stands the Great Wall of China, the world’s largest structure built for military and defence purposes. Visible even from the surface of the moon, the Wall was built in 220 BC under Qin Shi Huang.
Several sections of fortifications were brought together to form a united defence system against invaders from the north. Slowly, but surely the Great Wall measuring about 20,000 km in length was fully constructed till the end of the Ming dynasty’s rule from 1368-1644. Architecturally sound, the wall, which epitomizes human suffering and is sung of in many Chinese ballads, is of great strategic and historic importance to China.
- Gobi Desert – Gobi Desert (500,000 square miles) is the largest desert in Asia. Extending from northern China into Mongolia.
- Karakum Desert – 135,000 square miles
- Kyzylkum Desert – 115,000 square miles
- Takla Makan Desert – 123,550 square miles
- Thar Desert – 77,000 square miles
FACT #19. Yangtze River of China, is the longest river in both Asia and the third-longest river in the world, with a length of 3,915 miles (6,300 km).
FACT: 20. Mukesh Ambani (Net Worth 89 billion USD )owner of Reliance Industries from India is the richest man in Asia.
FACT:21. Asia is the origin of the four most practised religions in the world – Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism.
FACT 22. After Monaco, Japan, from Asia is the second oldest population in the world. About 29 % of the total population of Japan was 65 years and older as of mid-2020.
FACT #23. Do you know what is Ring of Fire? Well, the Ring of Fire, is a path along the Pacific Ocean characterized by active volcanoes and frequent earthquakes. Seventy-five percent of Earth’s volcanoes are located along the Ring of Fire.
The length of the Ring Of Fire is approximately 40,000 kilometres (24,900 miles). This is also known as the Girdle of Fire or the Circum-Pacific belt.
There are 15 countries in the ring of fire; Indonesia (Asia), New Zealand, Papa New Guinea, Philippines(Asia), Japan (Asia), United States, Chile, Canada, Guatemala, Russia, Peru, Solomon Islands, Mexico and Antarctica.
FACT #24. Indonesia is among one of the countries that are located within the Ring Of Fire. Indonesia from Asia leads the world with the largest number of active volcanoes. In Indonesia, there are 147 volcanoes and out of which 129 are active volcanos.
Do you know about the Year Without a Summer?
The year 1816 is known as the year without summer for millions of people in parts of Europe and North America leading to failed crops and near-famine conditions.
The reason for such a condition was the eruption of Mount Tambora volcano in Indonesia in April 1815. This event is recorded as the largest volcanic explosion in recorded history. This explosion was so loud that it was heard on Sumatra island more than 1,200 miles (1,930 km) away.
Mount Tambora eruption spewed millions of tons of dust, ash and sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere, resulting in temporarily changing the world’s climate and dropping global temperatures by as much as 3 degrees.
List of Asian capitals by region
Hong Kong (SAR of China)
Macau (SAR of China)
Pyongyang, North Korea
Seoul, South Korea
Taipei, Taiwan *
Camp Justice, BIOT (UK) *
New Delhi, India
Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, Sri Lanka
Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei
Dili, East Timor
Flying Fish Cove, Christmas Island (Australia)
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Phnom Penh, Cambodia
West Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands (Australia)
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Episkopi Cantonment, Akrotiri and Dhekelia (UK) *
Jerusalem, Israel *
Kuwait City, Kuwait
North Nicosia, Northern Cyprus *
Ramallah, Palestine (de facto) *
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Stepanakert, Artsakh *
Sukhumi, Abkhazia *
Tskhinvali, South Ossetia *