Physical Geography of East Asia

FOR GEOG 143 STUDENTS OF UP MANILA

Continental East Asia

• China

• Mongolia

Peninsular East Asia

• North Korea

• South Korea

Insular/Archipelagic East Asia

• Japan

• Taiwan

Eurasian and Indo-Australian Plates Collision’s effects

1. Creation of the Himalayas

2. Uplifting of Tibet into an upland elevated landform

3. Waters of melting snow in Tibet provide the essential waters of China’s great rivers

4. Rise of China’s western mountain ranges

5. Carving out of valleys in Eastern China

Pacific Ring of Fire

• result of tectonic activity

• a line of volcanoes at the Western Pacific Ocean

Mt. Fuji

Japan’s highest volcano cone; highest peak

China’s Great Rivers

• Huang He “Yellow River”

• Yangtze (or Chang Jiang)

China’s other notable rivers

• Xi Jiang (West River)

• Zhujiang (Peark River)

• Yalu Jiang (Amnok River)

River bordering North Korea and China

Yalu Jiang (Amnok River)

Other name for Huang He

The cradle of Chinese civilization

Other name for Yangtze

“Blue River” → causes sadness every year due to its massive floods

Northern China

location of Huang He

Mid-Central China

location of the Yangtze

China’s Western Mountains

• Kunlun Shan

• Altun Shan

• Tien Shan

China’s notable or major valleys/plains

• North-Eastern Plain or the “Manchurian Plain”

• North China Plain

What rivers irrigate the North China Plain?

Huang He “Yellow River” and Liao River

China’s (North-) Eastern Plains/Manchurian Plain are watered by what rivers?

Songhua River and Liao River

Songhua River

the river that waters the Manchurian Plain

North-Eastern China Plain’s crops:

• barley

• corn

• flax

• millet

• soybeans

• wheat

North China Plain’s crops:

• cotton

• maize

• millet

• peanuts

• sesame seeds

• sorghum

• wheat

Factors for East Asia’s Climate

1. Mountain Ranges

2. Bodies of Water

East Asia’s Mountain Ranges

• Atlai Mountains (prominently in Mongolia)

• Himalayas (especially on the Tibet side)

• Japanese Alps: Hida, Kiso, Akaishi Mountains

• Kunlun Mountains (west of China)

• Qinglling Shandi Mountains (southeastern and east-central China)

Three Sacred Mountains of Japan

1. Mount Fuji

2. Mount Tateyama

3. Mount Haku

East Asia’s major deserts

• Gobi Desert

• Takla Makan Desert

East Asia’s major bodies of water

• East China Sea

• Sea of Japan

• South China Sea

• Yellow Sea

East Asian countries with humid continental climate?

• Japan

• North Korea

Yak

The animal most suited to Tibet’s highland climate due to:

• having more red blood cells → more efficient oxygen circulation

• larger lungs and heart than most cattle

Horse

The animal most suited in traversing steppe landscape such as in Mongolia

Uses for Goat in Mongolia

1. Cashmere — Mongolia’s number 1 export

2. meat and milk

Hanami

Japan’s celebration of cherry blossoms

Cherry Blossom heralds what?

The start of spring in Japan

China Proper

the nucleus of China:

• residence of majority of the population (Han Chinese)

• houses the central administrative region

• “Historic China”

China’s Autonomous Regions

1. Guangxi Zhuang

2. Inner Mongolia

3. Ningxia Hui

4. Xinjiang Uyghur

5. Xizang (Tibet)

Hainan

China’s major island; located on SCS

The Korean Peninsula’s major island

Jeju Island; southern part of the peninsula

Japan’s 4 Main Islands

1. Hokkaido

2. Honshu

3. Shikoku

4. Kyushu

Japan’s Plains

• Kanto Plain

• Nobu Plain

• Osaka Plain

• Ishikari Plain

Japan’s 2 main topographic problem

• lack of arable land

• vulnerable to earthquakes and tsunami

Japan’s warm water fishes

• sardine

• herring

• tuna

• mackerel

Japan’s cold water fishes

• cod

• halibut

• salmon

Japan’s cultivated seafoods

• Prawns

• Oysters

• Seaweeds

• Shrimp

Chungyang Mountain Range

Taiwan’s principle mountain group

What East Asian countries have deciduous forests (trees that shed leaves in autumn and grow new ones in the spring)?

• China

• Japan

• Korean Peninsula

• Taiwan

China’s 2 Special Administrative Regions (located on the SCS)

1. Hong Kong

2. Macau

East China’s man-made features

• The Great Wall of China

• Three Gorges Dam

• Korean Demilitarized Zone (KDMZ)