Northern South Asia

Northern South Asia
Population~500,000,000 (2022)
DemonymNorthern South Asian
Countries
 Afghanistan
 Bangladesh
 Bhutan
 India (North India and Northeast India)
   Nepal
 Pakistan
LanguagesMost common first languages:
Time zonesUTC+5:30; UTC+5:45; UTC+06:00
Internet TLD.in, .bd, .np, .bt
Calling codeZone 8 & 9
ReligionsHinduism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Irreligion, Tribal, Jainism, Sikhism, Judaism Zoroastrianism
Ethnic groupsIndo-Aryan, Iranic, Tibeto-Burman, Kolarian, Khasi
Historical namesHindustan, Aryavarta

Northern South Asia is a geographical area in South Asia, and includes the country of Afghanistan, the Himalayas, parts of the Tibetan plateau and the northern region of the Indian subcontinent. The Indo-Gangetic Plain forms the dominant feature. Depending on definition, it covers some or all of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and India (specifically North India and Northeast India), and Pakistan.[1] Ethnolinguistically, northern South Asia is predominantly Indo-Aryan,[2][3] along with Iranic populations in Afghanistan and Balochistan, and diverse linguistic communities near the Himalayas.[4][5] Until the Partition of India in 1947, northern South Asia had a significant degree of cultural and political unity;[6] the 1947 partition, along with the 1971 secession of Bangladesh from Pakistan, resulted in significant inter-migration in the region.[7] Since the end of colonial rule in the region, some of its borders have been heavily contested (primarily between India and its neighbours Pakistan and China, as well as separatist movements in Northeast India), resulting in a significant military presence in the region and negative consequences for local peoples.[8][1][9] This tension in the region has also contributed to difficulties in sharing river waters among Northern South Asian countries;[10] climate change is projected to contribute significantly to this and other problems.[11][12]

Dominated by the Indo-Gangetic Plain, the region is home to about half a billion people and is the poorest region of the subcontinent.[1]

  1. ^ a b c "In the North of South Asia, an arc of peace". Hindustan Times. 25 October 2022. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
  2. ^ Ivani, Jessica K.; Paudyal, Netra; Peterson, John (30 August 2021). "Indo-Aryan – a house divided? Evidence for the east–west Indo-Aryan divide and its significance for the study of northern South Asia". Journal of South Asian Languages and Linguistics. 7 (2): 287–326. doi:10.1515/jsall-2021-2029. ISSN 2196-078X. S2CID 237343508.
  3. ^ Ishii, Hiroshi; Gellner, David N.; Nawa, Katsuo (2007). Social Dynamics in Northern South Asia. Manohar.
  4. ^ Daurio, Maya; Turin, Mark (2020). ""Langscapes" and language borders: Linguistic boundary-making in northern South Asia". Eurasia Border Review. 10 (1): 21. doi:10.14943/ebr.10.1.21.
  5. ^ Mohanty, David Bradley, Panchanan (2023), "Sociolinguistics of South Asia: Tibeto-Burman, Austroasiatic and other languages", The Routledge Handbook of Sociolinguistics Around the World (2 ed.), Routledge, pp. 184–196, doi:10.4324/9781003198345-17, ISBN 978-1-003-19834-5, retrieved 4 October 2023{{citation}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  6. ^ Pillalamarri, Akhilesh. "The Geopolitics of South Asian Political Stability". thediplomat.com. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
  7. ^ "CFP: ECSAS panel, "Imagining the city: Literary and religious practices of urbanity in early modern and modern South Asia," proposals due Jan 22 | H-Net". networks.h-net.org. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
  8. ^ Gellner, David, ed. (3 March 2014). Borderland Lives in Northern South Asia. Duke University Press. doi:10.26530/oapen_625238. ISBN 9780822355427.
  9. ^ Chowdhory, Nasreen; Mohanty, Biswajit (4 July 2023). "Dispossession, Border and Exception in South Asia: An Introduction". Journal of Borderlands Studies. 38 (4): 537–547. doi:10.1080/08865655.2023.2226404. ISSN 0886-5655. S2CID 259697352.
  10. ^ Hill, Doug. "Alternative Institutional Arrangements: Managing Transboundary Water Resources in South Asia". Academia.
  11. ^ Crow, B.; Singh, Nirvikar (2008). "The management of inter-state rivers as demands grow and supplies tighten: India, China, Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh". S2CID 129209899. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  12. ^ "Putting policy into practice to clean up South Asia's dirty air (commentary)". Mongabay Environmental News. 26 March 2019. Retrieved 4 October 2023.