The
Indian subcontinent is the peninsular region of
South Asia, which includes
India,
Bangladesh, and
Pakistan, usually also
Sri Lanka,
Nepal,
Bhutan, and some disputed territory currently controlled by
China, and sometimes
Myanmar. Geographically, the region is bound by the
Himalaya to the north and east, and the
Arabian Sea and the
Bay of Bengal to the south. The
Hindu Kush mountains between Pakistan and
Afghanistan/
Iran are usually considered the westernmost edge of the subcontinent. It is also known as
the Indo-Pak subcontinent, primarily in Pakistan. Being the only region in the world that is commonly described as a subcontinent, it is often simply called
the Subcontinent. The term
South Asia is often used synonymously with the term
Subcontinent, although technically
South Asia refers more specifically to a political entity (the various countries that make up the Subcontinent), while
the Subcontinent signifies a geographical area.
Geologically, this region is a
subcontinent because it rests on a
tectonic plate of its own, the
India Plate, separate from the rest of
Eurasia and was once a small continent before colliding with the
Eurasian Plate and giving birth to the Himalayan range and the
Tibetan plateau. Even now the India Plate continues to move northward with the result that the Himalaya are growing taller by a few centimetres each decade. In addition, the region is also home to an astounding variety of geographical features that are typical of much larger continents, such as
glaciers,
rainforests,
valleys,
deserts, and
grasslands in an area about half the size of the
United States.
See also
Links
Category:Peninsulas
Category:Continents
Category:South Asia
bg:Индийски субконтинент
de:Indischer Subkontinent
eo:Hindio
fr:Sous-continent indien
ja:インド亜大陸
sl:Indijska podcelina
sv:Indiska halvön
ta:இந்திய உபகண்டம்
th:อนุทวีปอินเดีย
nl:Indische subcontinent