Asia

Asia

Largest Countries:
Russia, China
Number of Countries:
51
Land Area:
49.2M km² (33.06%)

Asia is the largest and most populous of Earth's continents, and is located in both the northern and southern hemispheres. Asia comprises 33.06% of the world's land area, along with 60.31% of the world's current population. It also has the fourth-highest ranked growth rate today, and its population almost quadrupled during the 20th century. The estimated population for Asia is 5,005,339,144.

5,005,339,144
Total Population
101.66/km²
Density
60.31%
% of World Population
-2.3M -0.05%
Annual Growth

Asia Population by Country

< 1M
1M - 10M
10M - 50M
50M - 100M
100M - 300M
> 300M

51 countries

Country
Population
Density
India FlagIndia1,476,630,000449
China FlagChina1,412,910,000146
Indonesia FlagIndonesia287,887,000151
Pakistan FlagPakistan259,300,000294
Bangladesh FlagBangladesh177,818,0001,205
Russia FlagRussia143,394,0008
Japan FlagJapan122,428,000324
Philippines FlagPhilippines117,724,000344
Vietnam FlagVietnam102,177,000308
Iran FlagIran93,168,50057
Turkey FlagTurkey87,926,100112
Thailand FlagThailand71,559,600139
Myanmar FlagMyanmar55,184,80082
South Korea FlagSouth Korea51,600,400515
Iraq FlagIraq48,007,400110
Afghanistan FlagAfghanistan45,047,10069
Yemen FlagYemen42,961,70081
Uzbekistan FlagUzbekistan37,724,20084
Malaysia FlagMalaysia36,385,100110
Saudi Arabia FlagSaudi Arabia35,165,80016
Nepal FlagNepal29,629,400201
North Korea FlagNorth Korea26,633,700221
Syria FlagSyria26,472,500143
Sri Lanka FlagSri Lanka23,348,300356
Taiwan FlagTaiwan23,011,300636
Kazakhstan FlagKazakhstan21,083,6008
Cambodia FlagCambodia18,051,200100
Jordan FlagJordan11,589,500130
United Arab Emirates FlagUnited Arab Emirates11,574,700138
Tajikistan FlagTajikistan10,978,60077
Azerbaijan FlagAzerbaijan10,454,900121
Israel FlagIsrael9,647,690465
Laos FlagLaos7,974,02034
Turkmenistan FlagTurkmenistan7,736,63016
Kyrgyzstan FlagKyrgyzstan7,400,46037
Hong Kong FlagHong Kong7,378,6006,684
Singapore FlagSingapore5,905,7508,318
Lebanon FlagLebanon5,897,470564
Palestine FlagPalestine5,692,790915
Oman FlagOman5,671,46018
Kuwait FlagKuwait5,102,770286
Georgia FlagGeorgia3,804,64055
Mongolia FlagMongolia3,556,8002
Qatar FlagQatar3,173,560274
Armenia FlagArmenia2,930,92099
Bahrain FlagBahrain1,675,5702,190
Timor-Leste FlagTimor-Leste1,436,92097
Bhutan FlagBhutan802,21421
Macau FlagMacau723,18821,981
Maldives FlagMaldives531,5171,772
Brunei FlagBrunei469,77581

Asia Overview

Asia is the largest and most populous of earth’s continents and its located in both the northern and eastern hemispheres. Asia comprises a full 30% of the world’s land area with 60% of the world’s current population. It also has the highest growth rate today, and its population almost quadrupled during the 20th century. The estimated population for Asia in 2016 is 4.4 billion.

Asia comprises the eastern 4/5 of Eurasia, bounded by the Pacific Ocean on the east, the Indian Ocean on the south and the Arctic Ocean on the north. There are a total of 48 countries in Asia. In 2016, the population of Asia is estimated at 4,434,846,235. Russia is excluded from Asia’s population, although there are about 40 million Russians who live in Asia, or east of the Ural Mountains.

Most Populous Countries in Asia

Asia has the two most populous countries in its borders: China and India. China is currently the most populous country on earth with an estimated population in 2016 of 1,377,124,512. It accounts for 31.69% of Asia’s total population and over 18% of the world’s population. India is not too far behind with an estimated population of 1,285,800,000, accounting for 29.36% of the continent’s population amd 17.5% of the world’s population. It’s estimated that India’s population will surpass China’s by 2022, when each country will have a population of about 1.45 billion people.

Least Populous Countries in Asia

The least populous country in Asia is the Maldives, with an estimated population of 345,000. The Maldives is also one of the smallest countries on earth with just 298 square kilometers (115 square miles) of area, 99% of which is water. This tiny country has a population density of 1,065 people per square kilometer (2,758/square mile), which makes it the 12th most densely populated country on earth.

Following behind the Maldives is Brunei, the 50th least populous country in Asia with an estimated 2016 population of 421,000. Located in Southeast Asia, Brunei is surrounded by Sarawak, Malaysia, and it’s divided into two parts. It’s the only sovereign state fully on the island of Borneo, and one of the richest countries due to its natural gas and petroleum fields with a public debt that remains below 3%.

Asia's Population Growth

Asia Population

Asia’s growth rate is very high, quadrupling in the last century. Given its wealth of resources and ecological and biological variety, it’s in the perfect position to support this growth as well. Unfortunately, Asia’s rapid growth and fast economic development is threatening its limited resources through quick expansion, destruction of natural habits and urbanization.

It’s predicted that Asia’s population will continue to grow for quite some time, which will continue to strain its resources. Based on current estimates, it’s projected that national populations will grow in every country of Asia with the exception of Japan and Kazakhstan through 2050. Some countries, including Afghanistan, Nepal and Pakistan, will double in population during this time while India, Vietnam, Malaysia and other countries will see especially high growth rates.

Unfortunately, it’s currently projected that the countries which will grow the fastest are the ones with the lowest income in the world, and these countries will be the least capable of handling the extra stress on resources.

Is Asia a Continent?

Yes, Asia is a continent. It is the largest and most populous continent. It borders the Indian Ocean to the south, the Pacific Ocean to the east, and the Arctic Ocean to the north.

Regions of Asia

Central Asia

Some of the countries in this region include:

This area has a population size of 84.9M and covers about 4M square miles.

Eastern Asia

Some of the countries in this region include:

This area has a population size of 1.6B and covers about 11.9M square miles.

South Central Asia

Some of the countries in this region include:

This area has a population size of 2.1B and covers about 6.5M square miles.

Southeast Asia

Some of the countries in this region include:

This area has a population size of 704.8M and covers about 4.5M square miles.

Southern Asia

Some of the countries in this region include:

This area has a population size of 2.1B and covers about 6.9M square miles.

The Middle East

Some of the countries in this region include:

This area has a population size of 515.2M and covers about 7.3M square miles.

Western Asia

Some of the countries in this region include:

This area has a population size of 317.7M and covers about 4.8M square miles.

Sources

  1. World Population Prospects (2024 Revision) - United Nations population estimates and projections.

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