GEO Exam 2 (South Asia)

What countries does Mount Everest border?

China and Nepal.

How many people have died attempting an ascent of Mount Everest?

Over 340.

When does most rainfall come in South Asia?

Summer.

What areas of South Asia receive the most rainfall?

Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, South West India.

What is the most significant factor determining insolation?

Latitude.

Where is insolation most concentrated?

Where the sun’s rays are more nearly perpendicular.

What is insolation?

Exposure to the sun’s rays?

Subsolar point:

Latitude where sun angle is most perpendicular.

What makes the changing of subsolar point each year?

Constant direction of Earth’s tilt.

Strongly rising war air at the Equator creates:

Low pressure.

The Equatorial low is also known as the:

Intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ.)

The ITCZ is:

A very wet region with constant rain.

What causes the seasonal shift of the ITCZ:

The axial tilt with the change of greatest solar intensity.

Monsoonal winds force seasonal migration of ITCZ:

Farther north and south.

Without the monsoon, India would be:

A desert.

When does India get almost all of its rain?

Monsoon season (Summer.)

Rains feed headwaters of where in India:

Indus, Ganges, and Brahmaputra.

Indian rivers carry high silt load which:

Replenishes farmland downstream.

How much of Bangladesh is covered in water during the rainy season?

70%.

How much of the Bangladesh population live along the coast?

24 million (22%).

Why do Manta people live on boats?

Their villages have disappeared due to river delta erosion.

Where do the Manta people move during the dry season?

They move with the receding river to follow the fish.

Agricultural patters of South Asia:

until recently, most was traditional, small scale.

Rice where rainfall was plentiful (east and south.),

Wheat in west,

Increasing use of irrigation and cash crops (like cotton).

What was the Green Revolution in South Asia:

1960s-1970s,

New seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, tractors,

Goal: improve quality of life in rural areas and reduce migration to cities.

What were the benefits of the Green Revolution?

Pakistan is now self-sufficient agriculturally,

India rarely needs to import grain.

What were the costs of the Green Revolution:

Hurt small subsistence farmers,

Increased food supplies don’t always feed the poor — some are exported.

What is the main language of India?

Hindi. (3rd most spoken in the world.)

What groups are included in the caste system?

Varna, Jati, and Daltis.

What percentage of marriages still remain within caste groups?

90-95%

What is the dominant religion in Nepal and India?

Hinduism.

What is the dominant religion in Bhutan?

Buddhism.

What is the second most popular religion in India?

Islam.

Early Christianity in India:

ST. Thomas traveled to Kerala and founded the first church there in 52 AD.

He was martyred in 72 AD.

What part of India has about half of Christians?

South India.

Christians make up a large share of where in India?

northeastern provinces that are sparsely populated and tribal.

Why are there few Christian converts in India?

Because Hinduism frowns on conversion away from the faith.

Most converts are from secluded castes (Dalits) or are poor.

Where is the most Islam in South Asia?

Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Rise of Islamic fundamentalism is a problem in these areas.

What type of laws have been set in place to persecute members of Hindu and Christian communities in Islam dominated countries?

Antiblasphemy laws.

Where does violence against Muslims occur on South Asia?

India and Sri Lanka

Before British colonialism in 1700, what was South Asia called?

The Mughal Empire

What did the British do to India to meet the needs of British capitalism?

Reoriented the economy to a cash economy and discouraged domestic industries.

Who sustained economic exploitation of South Asia from 1760-1849?

the British East India Company.

Who was the direct colonial period with from 1858-1947 in India was a civil service system?

Englishmen in the top roles and higher-caste Anglo-Indians in upper middle levels.

What were the cash crops introduced in India?

Cotton, coffee, and tea.

What changed in infrastructure in India during the colonial period?

Taxes were increased to pay for road and railroad construction,

They were for exporting goods and deployment of British troops.

Why did impoverishment increase in India?

40% of farming population was landless by 1940,

Industrialization not emphasized,

Industry confined to port cities when most of India was rural.

What were the agreements in Partition?

1947,

Independence from Britain,

East and West Pakistan would be Muslim,

India would be Hindu.

How many were killed in skirmishes in Partition:

~1 million.

What were some of the reasons for partition?

Desire for Muslim homeland,

Muslim opposition to assimilation in Hindu society.

Hindu resentment of previous Muslim rule of India.

What was the aftermath of partition?

15 million refugees,

India and Pakistan separated and both countries started with ruined economies.

When and why did Pakistan and Bangladesh split?

1971, after a 2-week civil war.

Kashmir

Pakistan and India each rule part of it, but both claim it entirely.

Jammu and Kashmir:

A partly Hindu, partly Muslim district of India that had special status after independence in 1947.

Both regions ruled by Delhi, neither region is a state.

Northern Sri Lanka is dominated by:

Hindu Tamils.

What is the majority religion and language in Sri Lanka?

Buddhist and Sinhalese.

Who was the civil war between in Sri Lanka from 1983-2007?

Tamil Tigers and government.

How much of India’s children have stunted growth from poor nutrition.

39%

What percentage of rural Indians have no access to toilets?

70%

What is the poorest country in South Asia?

Nepal.

What South Asian country was closed to outsiders until recently?

Bhutan.