706-713 U8 CH25 S1 TWIP-860976 3/18/04 10:30 PM Page 706 pter ha C SoutheastSoutheast 2525 AsiaAsia Social Studies To learn more about the people and places of Southeast Asia, view Chapter Overview Visit The World and Its The World and Its People People Web site at twip.glencoe.com and Chapter 26 video. click on Chapter 25—Chapter Overviews to preview information about Southeast Asia. 706 706-713 U8 CH25 S1 TWIP-860976 3/18/04 10:31 PM Page 707 Identifying Main Ideas Make this foldable to help you identify key facts about the people and places of Southeast Asia. Step 1 Fold the paper from the top Step 2 Fold the triangle in half. Unfold. right corner down so the edges line up. Cut off the leftover piece. The folds will form an X that creates four equal sections. Fold a triangle. Cut off the extra edge. Step 3 Cut up one fold line and stop Step 4 Draw an X on one tab and label at the middle. This forms two triangular the other three the following: Mainland flaps. Countries, Indonesia, and Other Island Countries. Countries Island Other Indonesia Mainland Countries Step 5 Fold the X flap Mainland This makes a under the other flap and Countries Indonesia three-sided glue together. pyramid. Reading and Writing As you read, write main ideas inside the foldable under each appropriate pyramid wall. A High Price for Prosperity Some Southeast Asian countries— such as Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore—have become major economic centers. They manufacture goods and export natural resources. One possible negative impact of this economic prosperity might be the destruction of the region’s beautiful landscapes. ▼ ▼ Outdoor restaurants are popular in Singapore. 706-713 U8 CH25 S1 TWIP-860976 3/18/04 10:31 PM Page 708 Guide to Reading Main Idea 11 Life on the The countries of mainland Southeast Asia rely on agriculture as a major source of Mainland wealth. Terms to Know • precious gems • deforestation • socialism • civil war Tattoos and piercings in the United Reading Strategy States are no match for the Create a chart like this fashion statements found in one for each of these Southeast Asia. This countries: Myanmar, woman belongs to the Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Padaung ethnic group Vietnam. Fill in the found in Myanmar and right column on each Thailand. A series of chart with facts about brass rings covers her the countries. neck. The rings do not Country stretch the woman’s Topic Key Fact neck but actually push Land down her collarbone Economy and ribs. People South of China and east of India lies Southeast Asia. This region includes thousands of islands and a long arm of land called the Malay Peninsula. Several countries lie entirely on the mainland of Southeast Asia. They are Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. Myanmar Myanmar, also called Burma, is about the size of Texas. Rugged, steep mountains sweep through its western and eastern borders. Two wide rivers—the Irrawaddy (IHR•ah•WAH•dee) and the Salween— flow through vast lowland plains between these mountain ranges. Monsoons, or seasonal winds that blow over a continent for months at a time, cause wet summers and dry winters in Myanmar. About two-thirds of the country’s people farm. The main crops are rice, sugarcane, beans, and peanuts. Some farmers work their fields with tractors, but most rely on plows pulled by water buffalo. 708 CHAPTER 25 706-713 U8 CH25 S1 TWIP-860976 3/18/04 10:32 PM Page 709 Myanmar exports wood products, gas, and foods such as beans and rice. The country provides about 75 percent of the world’s teak- wood. Myanmar’s prized forests are decreasing, however, because of deforestation. This is the widespread cutting of trees. Fortunately, the country also exports precious gems. Precious gems are valuable stones such as rubies, sapphires, and jade. Almost 75 percent of Myanmar’s 49.5 million people live in rural areas. The most densely populated part of the country is the fertile Irrawaddy River valley.Many rural dwellers build their homes on poles above the ground for protection from floods and wild animals. The capital and largest city, Yangon (formerly called Rangoon), is famous for its modern university and its gold-covered Buddhist tem- ples. Buddhism is the main religion in Myanmar. Most people are of Burman heritage, and Burmese is the main language. Myanmar was part of British India for many years. It became an independent republic in 1948. Since then, military leaders have turned Myanmar into a socialist country. Socialism is an economic system in which most businesses are owned and run by the government. Some Southeast Asia: Political 100°E 110°E 120°E 130°E 90°E N R. in w W E ASIA d n i CHINA h S C MYANMAR TROPIC OF CANCER (BURMA) 140°E I r Hanoi PACIFIC OCEAN r Mandalay a . w R 20°N n LAOS a e Gulf d e d w of l Vientiane y a Chiang M R Tonkin Philippine S N e . Mai k o Sea Applying Map Skills Yangon n South THAILAND g Da Nang (Rangoon) R China Chao . Quezon City Phraya Bangkok VIETNAM Sea Manila R. CAMBODIA 1. What is the capital of Thailand? Phnom Penh PHILIPPINES Cebu 10°N Ho Chi Minh City Iloilo 2. Which countries lie Gulf of Thailand entirely on the mainland Zamboanga of Southeast Asia? Strait of Malacca Malay Davao Peninsula Bandar Seri BRUNEI Begawan Find NGS online map resources @ Kuala www.nationalgeographic.com/maps Medan Lumpur Celebes MALAYSIA Sea Sumatra SINGAPORE 0° EQUATOR Pontianak Borneo Moluccas Jayapura National capital Palembang Celebes Major city New Java Sea Guinea 0 mi. 400 Jakarta INDONESIA 0 km 400 Java Surabaya INDIAN Dili Miller Cylindrical projection OCEAN 10°S Bali EAST TIMOR Southeast Asia 709 706-713 U8 CH25 S1 TWIP-860976 3/18/04 10:32 PM Page 710 people have tried to build a democracy in Myanmar. A woman named Aung San Suu Kyi (AWNG SAN SOO CHEE) has become a leader in this struggle. In 1991 she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts but still faces opposition from the government today. Where is Myanmar’s most densely populated area? Thailand The map on page709 shows you that Thailand looks like a flower on a stem. The “flower” is the northern part, located on the mainland. The “stem” is a narrow strip on the Malay Peninsula. The country’s main waterway—the Chao Phraya (chow PRY•uh) River—flows through a central plain. Like Myanmar, Thailand has wet summer mon- soons and dry winter monsoons. Once called Siam, Thailand means “land of the free.”It is the only Life as a Monk After his grandfather Southeast Asian country that has never been a European colony. died, Nattawud Daoruang The Thai people trace their independence as a kingdom back to the became a novice Buddhist A.D. 1200s. Thailand is a constitutional monarchy with a king. monk. “You see,” he says, One of Thailand’s agricultural products is rubber. The government “Thai Buddhists believe has taken steps to limit deforestation to protect this industry.Thailand they can get to paradise by holding on to a monk’s is also one of the world’s leading producers of tin and tungsten. Most robe. So I became a monk manufacturing is located near Bangkok, the capital. Workers make for a month to help my cement, textiles, computers, and electrical appliances. Tourism is an grandfather get to para- important industry as well. dise. The novice monks Most of Thailand’s 63.1 million people belong to the Thai ethnic had to get up at 5:00 A.M. group and practice Buddhism. Hundreds of Buddhist temples called and meditate. After that, we had free time so we wats dot the cities and countryside. Buddhist monks, or holy read comics and played men, walk among the people to receive food offerings. games on the monks’ Play About 80 percent of Thais live in rural villages, although thousands Station™. In the afternoons, look for jobs in Bangkok. This city has beautiful temples and royal we walked around the vil- palaces that are surrounded by modern skyscrapers and crowded lage with the monks to get streets. Bangkok has so many cars that daily traffic jams last for hours. food and drink.” Thailand is a leading producer of what two elements? Laos and Cambodia Landlocked Laos is covered by mountains. Southern Laos includes a fertile area along the Mekong (MAY•KAWNG) River, Southeast Asia’s longest river. Once a French colony, Laos became independent more than fifty years ago. Laos is an economically poor country. Its Communist government has only recently allowed tourism. About 80 percent of Laos’s 5.6 million people live in rural areas. Farmers grow rice, sweet potatoes, sugarcane, and corn along the Mekong’s fertile banks. Industry is largely undeveloped because of isolation and years of civil war. A civil war is a fight among different groups within a country. Laos lacks railroads and has electricity in only a few cities. Vientiane (vyehn•TYAHN) is the largest city and capital. The Communist government discourages religion, but most Laotians remain Buddhists. 710 CHAPTER 25 706-713 U8 CH25 S1 TWIP-860976 3/18/04 10:33 PM Page 711 Architecture The temple of Angkor Wat in northwestern Cambodia was built during the 1100s. Dedi- cated to the Hindu god Vishnu, much of the temple is covered with elaborately carved char- acters from Hindu legends. The Khmer people designed Angkor Wat to represent the Hindu view of the universe.