Asia is the largest and most populous continent or region, depending on the definition. It covers 8.7 percent of the Earth's total surface area, or 29.8 percent of its land area, and it contains more than 60 percent of the world's human population.

Asia is traditionally defined as part of the landmass of Africa-Eurasia – with the western portion of the latter occupied by Europe – lying east of the Suez Canal, east of the Ural Mountains, and south of the Caucasus Mountains and the Caspian and Black Seas.

Etymology

---

The word Asia entered English, via Latin, from Ancient Greek Ασία (Asia; see also List of traditional Greek place names). This name is first attested in Herodotus (about 440 BC), where it refers to Asia Minor; or, for the purposes of describing the Persian Wars, to the Persian Empire, in contrast to Greece and Egypt. Herodotus comments that he is puzzled as to why three different women's names are used to describe a single land mass (Europa, Asia and Libya, referring to Africa), stating that most Greeks assumed that Asia was named after the wife of Prometheus but that the Lydians say it was named after Asias, son of Cotys who passed the name on to a tribe in Sardis.

More on [ Asia ]

BBC News | Asia-Pacific | World Edition

Chinese leader visits quake area
Fri, 16 May 2008 10:53:46 -0000
Hu Jintao flies to Sichuan Province, where it is feared up to 50,000 people may have died in Monday's earthquake.
Burma storm aid frustrations grow
Fri, 16 May 2008 07:23:04 -0000
Top aid officials ramp up pressure on Burma, as the military government insists it has cyclone aid under control.
US marine guilty of Japan assault
Fri, 16 May 2008 06:44:34 -0000
A US marine is convicted of assaulting a 14-year-old girl on the Japanese island of Okinawa.
Eight dead in Philippine robbery
Fri, 16 May 2008 08:16:29 -0000
At least eight people are shot and killed in a bank robbery in the Philippines, police say.
N Korea 'admits nuclear details'
Tue, 13 May 2008 20:03:00 -0000
A senior US diplomat says North Korea appears to have handed over full details of its plutonium programme.
Vietnam drugs haul 'largest ever'
Thu, 15 May 2008 15:42:04 -0000
Police in Vietnam say they have found nearly nine tons of cannabis in a shipment of blue jeans from Pakistan.

NYT > Asia Pacific

In Departure, China Invites Outside Help
Fri, 16 May 2008 06:43:57 -0000
China sought experts and equipment from Japan and Taiwan as President Hu Jintao visited the area affected by the earthquake.
Rescuers Aim for Chinese Villages Yet Unreached
Fri, 16 May 2008 07:07:02 -0000
Rescue workers are still struggling to reach untold numbers of remote villages, which could contribute tens of thousands more bodies to the earthquake death toll.
Western Experts Monitor China’s Nuclear Sites for Signs of Earthquake Damage
Fri, 16 May 2008 05:45:17 -0000
China’s main centers for making and storing nuclear arms lie in the earthquake zone, leading Western experts to look for signs of any damage that might allow radioactivity to escape.

L.A. Times - Asia

China allows foreign teams as quake toll rises
Fri, 16 May 2008 00:00:00 -0700
A Japanese team arrives in the disaster area, where more than 130,000 Chinese troops are said to be deployed. Officials estimate the death toll will reach 50,000. The Chinese government said Thursday that the number of people killed by this week's earthquake in Sichuan province would probably more than double to 50,000 as rescuers dug out more victims -- some still alive, but many more dead.
San Gabriel Valley's Chinese immigrants wait for word from home
Fri, 16 May 2008 00:00:00 -0700
Those from Sichuan lament the tragic circumstances that brought their homeland -- and its rich history, culture and cuisine -- to center stage. The fiery dishes spiked with Sichuan peppercorns began arriving on the table, but Tang Xiulan and her friends remained transfixed by a television screen above the restaurant's front door showing images of rescue efforts in their home province.
Pakistan says it has no knowledge of missile strike
Fri, 16 May 2008 00:00:00 -0700
The attack in the border region, if it was carried out by the U.S., could test the new government. It might have killed an Al Qaeda official. Pakistani leaders on Thursday disavowed any knowledge of a missile strike in a volatile border area where the United States has previously targeted Al Qaeda figures -- the first attack of its kind since the new government took office six weeks ago.

UN News Centre - Asia Pacific

Ban Ki-moon to send UN humanitarian chief to Myanmar
Thu, 15 May 2008 00:00:00 -0500
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says he plans to send the United Nations' highest-ranking aid official to Myanmar to boost efforts to tackle the crisis caused by Cyclone Nargis, which devastated the country at the beginning of the month.
Unlawful killings continue at heavy rate in Afghanistan, UN rights expert says
Thu, 15 May 2008 00:00:00 -0500
Afghan police and military forces, Taliban insurgents and foreign troops must step up efforts to prevent more civilian casualties, an independent United Nations human rights expert said today, warning that Afghanistan still suffers from large numbers of avoidable killings.
UN humanitarian officials in China reach out to offer help after quake
Thu, 15 May 2008 00:00:00 -0500
The United Nations Resident Coordinator in China is in contact with the country's authorities to offer UN tools and services to help in the rescue and recovery efforts following Monday's deadly earthquake.

Asia - Pacific - International Herald Tribune

In departure, China asks for outside help
By HOWARD W. FRENCH AND EDWARD WONG Fri, 16 May 2008 08:03:37 -0000
With the death toll rising rapidly, China sought disaster relief experts and heavy equipment needed for rescue operations from Japan and Taiwan.
Rescuers aim for Chinese villages yet unreached
By Jim Yardley Fri, 16 May 2008 01:44:31 -0000
Rescue workers are still struggling to reach untold numbers of remote villages, which could contribute tens of thousands more bodies to the earthquake death toll.
Superstition meets the Web, stinging Chinese authorities
By Andrew Jacobs Fri, 16 May 2008 00:44:39 -0000
Persistent rumors and tall tales by some Chinese bloggers are proving nettlesome to the authorities as they grapple with China's most calamitous disaster in a generation.
Western experts monitor China's nuclear sites for signs of damage
By WILLIAM J. BROAD Fri, 16 May 2008 08:03:37 -0000
China's main centers for making and storing nuclear arms lie in the earthquake zone, leading Western experts to look for signs of any damage that might allow radioactivity to escape.
9 killed in bank robbery in Philippines
Fri, 16 May 2008 08:03:37 -0000
At least eight bank employees and a security guard were lined up and shot dead in the head Friday in a bloody bank robbery south of Manila, the police said.
Blast in capital of Sri Lanka kills at least 6
Fri, 16 May 2008 08:03:37 -0000
At least six people were killed and 75 wounded in a blast that shook a commercial quarter of the Sri Lankan capital on Friday, doctors and the military said.

Subscribe to Asia RSS feed