MAJOR GEOGRAPHIC QUALITIES OF EAST ASIA

– Physical Geography dominated by extremes– One of the world’s earliest culture hearths; China’s long coherent history.– Rapid Economic Growth– Influence of ideas from traditional Chinese Thought– World’s most populace realm: Population Concentration on Coasts and Lowlands

– Environmental Stress– Urban-Rural disparities– Increasing energy demands

– POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC FORCES CONTINUE TO TRANSFORM TRADITIONAL CULTURAL LANDSCAPES.

– Flashpoints: Taiwan-China, North & South Korea, disputed islands in the South China Sea

Regions of the Realm

• China Proper — eastern half; the core • Xizang (Tibet) — tall mountains and high

plateaus; sparsely populated• Xinjiang — vast desert basin and mountain

rims; a cultural contact zone• Mongolia — a desert, buffer state• The JaKoTa triangle– Japan, South Korea, Taiwan– Rapid economic development

Physiography

Total area is about 9.3 million sq. km (3.6 million sq. mi.)

Longitudinal extent is comparable to the United States; Latitudinal range from northern Quebec to central Caribbean

Mainland bordered (surrounded) by ocean, high mountains, steppe country, and desert

Vast and varied topography:

High plateaus and mountains in the west

Lower mountains and plains in the east

Vulnerable to earthquakes

Regions of the Realm: China

• China Proper• Xizang (Tibet)• Xinjiang

(Chinese Turkestan)

Warm

Cold

Wet

Dry

Climatic Gradients

POPULATION DENSITY

One-Child Policy• Policy implemented in 1979• Cultural preference for male children• Severe gender imbalance– 118 males born for every 100 females on average; some

provinces >125:100• The One-Child Policy has disrupted natural population growth• Major implications for lack of women to marry—female kidnapping and smuggling• Small younger generation to care for large elderly generation

Elizabeth J. Leppman

Population Pyramid, 2008

Percentage of total population

Age

Data source: U.S. Bureau of the Census

Famine of theGreat Leap Forward

Post-famine rebound

One-child policybegins

Children of post-famine reboundgeneration

One-child families

Women outliving men

In its 2000 census, China found the proportion of boys through age 4 was more than 120 to every 100 girls at those ages.

There are over 30 million more males than females.

In most societies, the normal sex ratio for this age group is only 105 to 100 or less.

What are some of the social, cultural impacts?

Average life expectancy at birth in 2000 and increase in life expectancy 1990 - 2000 by province (in years)

HOMEWORK: Watch the following Hans Rosling Video titled “What Stops Population Growth.”

What are the top 3 points that Rosling’s data visualization expresses? Explain each and then formulate three questions to apply this information to China.

You can find the video at http://vimeo.com/2905893 or on the Gapminder site.

Historical Development of China: Relative Location

• Isolation– Natural protective barriers– Distance– Inward looking (“central kingdom”) with minor

incidences of cultural diffusion– Effects of one ocean• A history of emperors who restricted use of the coastline,

except in local circumstances• Today the ocean is playing a major role in the economic

(and cultural) transformation of coastal China.

中國Zhōngguó=Middle Kingdom

Chinese Perspectives

• One of the world’s great culture hearths• Continuous civilization for over 4,000 years• Chinese view of China as the center of the civilized

world• Inward looking and closed society, especially at certain periods• History of cycles of unity vs. disunity

A. WinklerPrins

Kong Fuzi (Confucius)

• 551– 479 B.C. (Spring and Autumn Period—time of disunity)

• China’s most influential philosopher and teacher• Focused on the suffering of ordinary people• Emphasized that human virtues, rather than godly

connections, should determine a person’s place in society

• Teachings have dominated Chinese life and thought for more than 20 centuries

• Teachings took on spiritual aspects after his death — Confucianism

ColonialSpheres

of Influence

Extraterritoriality

• A doctrine of European international law• Employed in China during the late 1800s• Afforded immunity from local jurisdiction• Constituted an erosion of Chinese sovereignty• Distinct enclaves evolved

Qingdao, Shandong Province, was the German treaty port. German architecture is still visible in the cultural landscape.A. WinklerPrins

Revolutions• End of the Qing (Manchu) Dynasty, founding of

Republic of China (1911)• Communist Revolution:– Founding of Chinese Communist Party in Shanghai,

1921– Civil war and Long March– War against the Japanese (World War II)– Resumed civil war– Communist victory under Mao Zedong (1949)

Elizabeth J. Leppman

Economic Initiatives

• Special Economic Zones (SEZ)– 7 SEZ’s established; 3 in Guangdong Province– Investment incentives: low taxes, import/export

regulations eased, land leases simplified, etc.

• Open cities– First 4 coastal cities, increased to 15 cities– National investment focused on Shanghai

• Open coastal areas– Also designed to attract foreign investments– Concentrated along pacific coast deltas and

peninsulas

Current Political Divisions

China’s Political Map• Central-government-administered municipalities

(shi’s): 4– Beijing (capital); Tianjin (port city); Shanghai

(largest city); Chongqing (interior river port)• Autonomous regions: 5– Nei Mongol (Inner Mongolia); Ningxia Hui;

Xinjiang Uygur (Chinese Turkestan); Guangxi Zhuang (South); Xizang (Tibet)

• Provinces: 22– Grow in size from east to west

• Special Administrative Regions: 2

Note Autonomous Regions where ethnic minorities dominate.

China’s Population Distribution

Xizang (Tibet)A harsh physical environmentSparsely populatedCame under Chinese control during the Manchu

dynasty in 1720Gained separate status in the late 19th centuryChinas’ communist regime took control in the 1950’sBuddhism, the Dalai Lama, and monasteriesFormally annexed in 1965 and administered as an autonomous region

Train to Lhasa

Xinjiang

• Comprises one-sixth of China’s total land area

• A dry region of high mountains and basins

• Han Chinese are a minority here, now about 40% of the population, but control all aspects of life– Hanification (Sinicization)

• Muslim Uyghurs account for half of the population

• Boasts extensive reserves of oil and natural gas

A. WinklerPrins

西藏Xīzàng=Western Treasure Chest

新疆Xīnjiāng=New Territory

Booming Pacific Rim

Hong Kong

• Means “fragrant harbor”: an excellent deep water port• Boomed during the Korean war• 7 million people within 1,036 sq. km (400 sq. mi.)• Economy is larger than half of the world’s countries• July 1, 1997: British transferred control to China• Hong Kong renamed Xianggang (same meaning but

in Mandarin pronunciation)• Acquired a new status as special administrative

region (SAR), with Macau following suit in 1999

China Today

• Booming economy– One of the world’s

fastest growing #2– Large, low-wage

labor pool• Rapid urbanization• Radical social change,

especially in coastal areas

• Environmental concerns on all fronts

The Jakota TriangleJapan, Korea, Taiwan

Characteristics– Great cities– Enormous consumption of raw materials, many

imported– State-of-the-art industries– Voluminous exports– Global links– Trade surpluses– Rapid development

Challenges– Social problems– Political uncertainties– Vulnerabilities

GEOPOLITICAL RISKS(ISSUES AND CONCERNS)

Taiwan’sTaiwan’s political status political statusChina’sChina’s rising power rising powerJapan’sJapan’s waning power waning powerThe The KoreaKorea issue issueUSUS role and relations in the realm role and relations in the realm

JaKoTaTriangle

China and Taiwan

Taiwan & China

Taiwan• Also known as Formosa• Very mountainous• Approximate area: 36,260 sq. km (14,000 sq. mi.)• Population: 22.9 million• 78% urbanized• Per capita income: >$16,250• Strong and diverse economy• Free market democracy

TAIWANEastern two-thirds is mostly rugged mountains running north-south

In the west, the Chianan Plains are where the vast majority of the Taiwan's population live.

Taiwan's highest point is Yu Shan at nearly 13,000 feet.

TAIWANTAIWANHistorical background:– A Chinese province for centuries ?????– Colonized by Japan in 1895– Returned to China (Nationalists) after WWII– 1949 – Chinese Nationalists (supported by the US) fled from

the mainland and established the Republic of China (ROC)

• The Future of Taiwan– Regarded by China as a “wayward” province– Possible flashpoint– Trade as integrating force

•Transportation •Resources•Cities

Japan

A. WinklerPrins

OUTLINE OF JAPANESE HISTORY

600 - 800 Chinese cultural influence600 - 800 Chinese cultural influence 1000 -1300 War, Medieval society arises, shoguns evolve1000 -1300 War, Medieval society arises, shoguns evolve 1600 -1867 Tokugawa Shogunate:1600 -1867 Tokugawa Shogunate:

isolation, foreigners and Christianity expelled, individualistic culture, isolation, foreigners and Christianity expelled, individualistic culture, emphasis on Shinto belief systememphasis on Shinto belief system

1853 - Commodore Perry acquires new treaties with the 1853 - Commodore Perry acquires new treaties with the outsideoutside

MEIJI RESTORATIONMEIJI RESTORATION

• 1868 Rebellion brought in reformers• Reinstated the emperor and began to transform Japan from a

Feudal society with pre-machine age technology to an industrial power

• Adopted aspects of the British model• Launched a systematic study of the industrialized world

– Very different approach than China during the same period. • Focus was on industrialization and education system

EXPANSIONIST JAPANEXPANSIONIST JAPAN

TaiwanTaiwan 18951895KoreaKorea 19101910Pacific IslandsPacific Islands post WWIpost WWIManchuriaManchuria 19311931ChinaChina 19371937Hong KongHong Kong 19391939Southeast AsiaSoutheast Asia 19411941

JAPAN’S POST WWII TRANSFORMATIONJAPAN’S POST WWII TRANSFORMATION

1945 –1952: Allied Occupation1945 –1952: Allied Occupation– Economic reshapingEconomic reshaping– Labor legislationLabor legislation– ConstitutionConstitution– Civil rightsCivil rights– Land reformLand reform– U.S. “Helping hand” policyU.S. “Helping hand” policy

Japan’sCore Area

Note most agricultureand manufacturing incoastal areas.

Declining Japanese Population

• Population: 128 million*• Birth rate: 9 births/1,000• Death rate: 9 deaths/1,000• Natural Increase: 0 %• Life expectancy: 79 (M), 86 (F)• Urbanization: 79%

* Predicted to decline to 121 million by 2025

Korea: Northand South

Superimposed boundary along cease-fire line in Korean War

KOREAKOREA

The size of “Idaho” but with a population of 72 The size of “Idaho” but with a population of 72 million (million (Idaho, 1.5 millionIdaho, 1.5 million))

Turbulent political historyTurbulent political history::– A A dependencydependency of China of China– A A colonycolony of Japan’s of Japan’s– DividedDivided along the 38 along the 38thth parallel by Allied Powers > WWII parallel by Allied Powers > WWII

(1945) (1945) Korean Demilitarized ZoneKorean Demilitarized Zone

– Cease-fire line established in1953Cease-fire line established in1953

Demilitarized ZoneDemilitarized Zone

View from the North & view from the SouthView from the North & view from the South

North Korea’s Border with China and N. Korean DefectorsNorth Korea’s Border with China and N. Korean Defectors

•There are over 3 million North Koreans in Northern China

• About 300,000 are refugees •Many North Korean refugees are there to attempt to get to South Korea

North Korea’s Border with ChinaNorth Korea’s Border with China

View from the North & view from the SouthView from the North & view from the South

The Koreas

• Population 25,500,000 48,900,000

• Life expectancy 68 (M)/73 (F) 74 (M)/81 (F)

• GNI/capita ~$ 1,000 $ 21,850

• Agriculture restrictive good

• % Urban 60 82

North-South Contrasts• North Korea– Antiquated state enterprises– Inefficient, non-productive agriculture, much hunger,

even famines– Limited trade – former Soviet Union and China– Nuclear power – “axis of evil”– Regional threat

• South Korea– Modern factories– Intensive, increasingly mechanized agriculture– Extensive trade – U.S., Japan, and Western Europe

Land Use Patterns

Rugged MountainsIndustrial AreaMain Rice ProducingSecondary Rice ProducingFree Trade Zone

Note more rice-producing land in South.

SEOULSEOUL Capital Capital of Korea (late 1300s - early 1900s)of Korea (late 1300s - early 1900s) 10 million people10 million people Located in the northwest corner of South Korea – Located in the northwest corner of South Korea –

just south of the DMZjust south of the DMZ The The urban-industrial centerurban-industrial center!!

– Textiles, clothing, footwear, electronic Textiles, clothing, footwear, electronic goodsgoods

VulnerabilitiesVulnerabilities??

NORTH KOREA

North Korean leader Kim Jong Il and his son Kim Jong Un attend the massive military parade in Pyongyang, North Korea on Sunday, Oct. 10, 2010.

Mongolia

• Steppe and desert physical environment• Sparsely populated with an estimated 2.7 million

inhabitants• Part of the Chinese Empire from late 1600s until

1911• Functions as a buffer state• Became a People’s Republic in the 1920s• Free elections in 1990• Economy is focused on herding and animal products