official_language bhutan
Shanghai (": Zånhae " ), often abbreviated as Hu or Shen , is one of the four direct - controlled municipalities of the People ' s Republic of China . It is the most populous city proper in the world , with a population of more than 24 million . It is a global financial centre and transport hub , with the world ' s busiest container port . Located in the Yangtze River Delta in East China , Shanghai sits on the south edge of the mouth of the Yangtze in the middle portion of the ___MASK33___ coast . The municipality borders the provinces of Jiangsu and Zhejiang to the north , south and west , and is bounded to the east by the East China Sea . Bhutan ( / butn / ; Dzongkha        Dru Ü , IPA : ( u y ) ) , officially the Kingdom of Bhutan , is a landlocked country in South Asia at the eastern end of the Himalayas . It is bordered to the north by China and to the south , east and west by India . To the west , it is separated from Nepal by the Indian state of Sikkim , while farther south it is separated from Bangladesh by the Indian states of Assam and West Bengal . Bhutan ' s capital and largest city is Thimphu . Bhutan existed as a patchwork of minor warring fiefs until the early 17th century . At that time the lama and military leader Ngawang Namgyal , the first Zhabdrung Rinpoche , who was fleeing religious persecution in Tibet , unified the area and cultivated a distinct Bhutanese identity . In the early 20th century , Bhutan came into contact with the British Empire and retained strong bilateral relations with India upon its independence . In 2006 , based on a global survey , Business Week rated Bhutan the happiest country in Asia and the eighth - happiest in the world . The country ' s landscape ranges from subtropical plains in the south to the sub - alpine Himalayan heights in the north , where some peaks exceed 7 , 000 metres ( 23 , 000 ft ) . Its total area was reported as approximately 46 , 500 km2 ( 18 , 000 sq mi ) in 1997 and 38 , 394 km2 ( 14 , 824 sq mi ) in 2002 . Bhutan ' s state religion is Vajrayana Buddhism and the population , as of 2015 estimated as 770 thousand people , is predominantly Buddhist . Hinduism is the second - largest religion . In 2008 , Bhutan made the transition from absolute monarchy to constitutional monarchy and held its first general election . As well as being a member of the United Nations , Bhutan is a member of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation ( SAARC ) and hosted SAARC ' s sixteenth summit in April 2010 . Tripura is a state in Northeast India . The third - smallest state in the country , it covers and is bordered by Bangladesh ( East Bengal ) to the north , south , and west , and the Indian states of Assam and Mizoram to the east . In 2011 the state had 3 , 671 , 032 residents , constituting 0 . 3 % of the country ' s population . The ___MASK2___ Hindu people form the ethno - linguistic majority in Tripura . Indigenous communities , known in India as scheduled tribes , form about 30 per cent of Tripura ' s population . The Kokborok speaking Tripuri people are the major group among 19 tribes and many subtribes . Hong Kong , officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People ' s Republic of China , is an autonomous territory on the Pearl River Delta of East Asia . Macau lies across the delta to the west , and the ___MASK33___ province of Guangdong borders the territory to the north . With a total land area of and a population of over 7 . 3 million of various nationalities , it ranks as the world ' s fourth most densely populated sovereign state or territory . Bengal ( bgl ; ___MASK2___ :    ,      and    ) is a region in Asia which is located in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal . Geographically , it is made up by the Ganges - Brahmaputra delta system , the largest such formation in the world ; along with mountains in its north ( bordering the Himalayan states ) and east ( bordering Northeast India and Burma ). A landlocked state or landlocked country is a sovereign state entirely enclosed by land , or whose only coastlines lie on closed seas . There are currently 48 such countries , including four partially recognised states . Only two , Bolivia and Paraguay in South America , lie outside Afro - Eurasia ( the Old World ). Assam (; " Ôxôm " ; " Asam "; " Âshám " ) is a state in northeastern India . Located south of the eastern Himalayas , Assam comprises the Brahmaputra Valley and the Barak Valley along with the Karbi Anglong and Dima Hasao districts with an area of . Assam , along with Arunachal Pradesh , Nagaland , Manipur , Mizoram , Tripura , and Meghalaya , is one of the " Seven Sister States ". Geographically , Assam and these states are connected to the rest of India via a strip of land in West Bengal called the Siliguri Corridor or " Chicken ' s Neck ". Assam shares an international border with Bhutan and Bangladesh ; and its culture , people and climate are similar to those of South - East Asia  comprising the elements in India  s Look East policy . The Himalayas , or Himalaya , ( or ) are a mountain range in Asia separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau . The Druk Gyalpo ( lit . " Dragon King " or the King of Bhutan ) is the head of state of the Kingdom of Bhutan . In the ___MASK81___ , Bhutan is known as " Drukyul " which translates as " The Land of Dragons ". Thus , while Kings of Bhutan are known as " Druk Gyalpo " (" Dragon King "), the Bhutanese people call themselves the " Drukpa ", meaning " Dragon people ". East India is a region of India consisting of the Indian states of Bihar , Jharkhand , West Bengal , Odisha and also the union territory Andaman and Nicobar Islands . West Bengal ' s capital Kolkata is the largest city of this region . The Kolkata Metropolitan Area is the country ' s third largest . The states of Odisha and West Bengal share some cultural and linguistic characteristics with Bangladesh . Odisha is the only state of India , which has a classical language Odia , a classical dance Odissi and a classical music Odissi music . ___MASK2___ is the most spoken language of this region and it is also the second most spoken language in India after Hindi . Odia is the only language in east India accorded the status of a Classical Language of India . Together with Bangladesh , West Bengal formed the ethno - linguistic region of Bengal before partition in 1947 . The modern state of Odisha was known as Kalinga , Odra desha and Utkala in ancient times . It was ruled by indigenous rulers of the Mahameghavahana dynasty , Eastern Ganga dynasty and Gajapati Dynasty . West Bengal is an Indian state , located in East India on the Bay of Bengal . It is India ' s fourth - most populous state , with over 91 million inhabitants . It has a total area of , making it similar in size to Serbia . A part of the ethno - linguistic Bengal region , it borders Bangladesh in the east and Nepal and Bhutan in the north . It also has borders with five Indian states , including Odisha , Jharkhand , Bihar , Sikkim and Assam . Sikkim is a northeastern state of India . It borders China in its north and east , Bhutan in its east , Nepal in its west and the Indian state of West Bengal in its south . Sikkim is also located close to the Siliguri Corridor near Bangladesh . Sikkim is the least populous and second smallest among the Indian states . A part of the Eastern Himalaya , Sikkim is notable for its biodiversity , including alpine and subtropical climates , as well as being a host to Kanchenjunga , the highest peak in India and third highest on Earth . Sikkim ' s capital and largest city is Gangtok . Almost 25 % of the state is covered by the Khangchendzonga National Park . Central Asia or Middle Asia is the core region of the Asian continent and stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to China in the east and from Afghanistan in the south to Russia in the north . It is also colloquially referred to as " the ' stans " ( as the six countries generally considered to be within the region all have names ending with the ___MASK21___ suffix "- stan ", meaning " land of ") and is within the scope of the wider Eurasian continent . The Hindu Kush ( ___MASK37___ , ___MASK21___ and ), also known in Ancient ___MASK11___ as the Caucasus Indicus or Paropamisadae , is an mountain range that stretches near the Afghan - Pakistan border , from central Afghanistan to northern Pakistan . It forms the western section of the " Hindu Kush Himalayan Region " (" HKH "). It divides the valley of the Amu Darya ( the ancient " Oxus ") to the north from the Indus River valley to the south . South America is a continent located in the western hemisphere , mostly in the southern hemisphere , with a relatively small portion in the northern hemisphere . It is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas , which is the model used in nations that speak Romance languages . The reference to South America instead of other regions ( like ___MASK97___ America or the Southern Cone ) has increased in the last decades due to changing geopolitical dynamics ( in particular , the rise of Brazil ). Chennai ; formerly known as Madras or ) is the capital of the Indian state of ___MASK4___ Nadu . Located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal , it is one of the biggest cultural , economic and educational centres in South India . According to the 2011 Indian census , it is the sixth - largest city and fourth - most populous urban agglomeration in India . The city together with the adjoining regions constitute the Chennai Metropolitan Area , which is the 36th - largest urban area by population in the world . Chennai is among the most visited Indian cities by foreign tourists . It was ranked 43rd most visited city in the world for year 2015 . The Quality of Living Survey rated Chennai as the safest city in India . Chennai attracts 45 percent of health tourists visiting India , and 30 to 40 percent of domestic health tourists . As such , it is termed " India ' s health capital ". As a growing metropolitan city in a developing country , Chennai confronts substantial pollution and other logistical and socio - economic problems . Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal , is a landlocked central Himalayan country in South Asia . It has a population of 26 . 4 million and is the 93rd largest country by area . Bordering China in the north and India in the south , east , and west , it is the largest sovereign Himalayan state . Nepal does not border Bangladesh , which is located within only 27 km ( 17 mi ) of its southeastern tip . It neither borders Bhutan due to the Indian state of Sikkim being located in between . Nepal has a diverse geography , including fertile plains , subalpine forested hills , and eight of the world ' s ten tallest mountains , including Mount Everest , the highest point on Earth . Kathmandu is the nation ' s capital and largest city . It is a multiethnic nation with ___MASK59___ as the official language . Sri Lanka ( or ; Sinhalese :         ', ___MASK4___ :     " Ilakai "), officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka ( formerly known as Ceylon ), is an island country in South Asia near south - east India . Sri Lanka has maritime borders with India to the northwest and the Maldives to the southwest . Indonesia ( or ; ___MASK67___ : ), officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a unitary sovereign state and transcontinental country located mainly in Southeast Asia with some territories in Oceania . Situated between the Indian and Pacific oceans , it is the world ' s largest island country , with more than seventeen thousand islands . At , Indonesia is the world ' s 14th - largest country in terms of land area and world ' s 7th - largest country in terms of combined sea and land area . It has an estimated population of over 260 million people and is the world ' s fourth most populous country , the most populous Austronesian nation , as well as the most populous Muslim - majority country . The world ' s most populous island of Java contains more than half of the country ' s population . The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world ' s oceanic divisions , covering ( approximately 20 % of the water on the Earth ' s surface ). It is bounded by Asia on the north , on the west by Africa , on the east by Australia , and on the south by the Southern Ocean or , depending on definition , by Antarctica . It is named after the country of India . The Indian Ocean is known as " Ratnkara ", "" the mine of gems "" in ancient Sanskrit literature , and as " Hind Mahsgar ", "" the great Indian sea "", in ___MASK9___ . China , officially the People ' s Republic of China ( PRC ), is a unitary sovereign state in East Asia . With a population of over 1 . 381 billion , it is the world ' s most populous country . The state is governed by the Communist Party of China , and its capital is Beijing . It exercises jurisdiction over 22 provinces , five autonomous regions , four direct - controlled municipalities ( Beijing , Tianjin , Shanghai , and Chongqing ), and two mostly self - governing special administrative regions ( Hong Kong and Macau ), and claims sovereignty over Taiwan . The country ' s major urban areas include Shanghai , Guangzhou , Beijing , Chongqing , Shenzhen , Tianjin and Hong Kong . China is a great power and a major regional power within Asia , and has been characterized as a potential superpower . Macau ( literally : " Bay Gate "), ( in ___MASK94___ , which is still widely used in the city ) also spelled Macao ( in ___MASK54___ ), officially the Região Administrativa Especial de Macau da República Popular da China , is an autonomous territory on the western side of the Pearl River Delta in East Asia . Macau is bordered by the city of Zhuhai in China to the North and the Pearl River Estuary to the East and South . Hong Kong lies about to its East across the Delta . With a population of 650 , 900 living in an area of , it is the most densely populated region in the world . South Asia or Southern Asia is a term used to represent the southern region of the Asian continent , which comprises the sub - Himalayan SAARC countries and , for some authorities , adjoining countries to the west and east . Topographically , it is dominated by the Indian Plate , which rises above sea level as Nepal and northern parts of India situated south of the Himalayas and the Hindu Kush . South Asia is bounded on the south by the Indian Ocean and on land ( clockwise , from west ) by West Asia , Central Asia , East Asia , and Southeast Asia . Thimphu ( formerly spelled as Thimbu ), is the capital and largest city of the Kingdom of Bhutan . It is situated in the western central part of Bhutan and the surrounding valley is one of Bhutan ' s " dzongkhags ", the Thimphu District . The ancient capital city of Punakha was replaced by Thimphu when it was established as capital in 1955 , and in 1961 Thimphu was declared as the capital of the Kingdom of Bhutan by His Majesty The 3rd Druk Gyalpo Jigme Dorji Wangchuck . Jurisdiction ( from the ___MASK97___ " ius , " meaning " law " and "" meaning " to speak ") is the practical authority granted to a legal body to administer justice within a defined area of responsibility , e . g ., Michigan tax law . In the federations like USA , areas of jurisdiction apply to local , state , and federal levels ; e . g . the court has jurisdiction to apply federal law . The Communist Party of China ( CPC ) is the founding and ruling political party of the People ' s Republic of China ( PRC ). The CPC is the sole governing party of China , although it coexists alongside eight other legal parties that comprise the United Front ; these parties , however , hold no real power or independence from the CPC . It was founded in 1921 , chiefly by Chen Duxiu and Li Dazhao . The party grew quickly , and by 1949 the CPC had driven the nationalist Kuomintang ( KMT ) government from mainland China after the ___MASK33___ Civil War , thus leading to the establishment of the People ' s Republic of China . The CPC is currently the world ' s second largest political party with a membership of 88 . 76 million as of 2016 ( while the Indian Bharatiya Janata Party appears to have remained the largest with a membership of 110 million as of the previous year , 2015 ). It also controls the world ' s largest armed force , the People ' s Liberation Army . The Arabian Sea is a region of the northern Indian Ocean bounded on the north by Pakistan and Iran , on the west by northeastern Somalia and the Arabian Peninsula , and on the east by India . Historically the sea has been known by other names including the Erythraean Sea and the ___MASK21___ Sea . Its total area is and its maximum depth is . The Gulf of Aden is in the southwest , connecting the Arabian Sea to the Red Sea through the strait of Bab - el - Mandeb , and the Gulf of Oman is in the northwest , connecting it to the ___MASK21___ Gulf . Kathmandu ( ___MASK59___ pronunciation : ) is the capital city of the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal , the largest Himalayan state in Asia . It is the largest metropolis in Nepal , with a population of 1 . 4 million in the city proper , and 5 million in its urban agglomeration across the Kathmandu Valley , which includes the towns of Lalitpur , Kirtipur , Madhyapur Thimi and Bhaktapur . Kathmandu is also the largest metropolis in the Himalayan hill region . Asia is Earth ' s largest and most populous continent , located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres and sharing the continental landmass of Eurasia with the continent of Europe . Asia covers an area of , about 30 % of Earth ' s total land area and 8 . 7 % of the Earth ' s total surface area . The continent , which has long been home to the majority of the human population , was the site of many of the first civilizations . Asia is notable for not only its overall large size and population , but also dense and large settlements as well as vast barely populated regions within the continent of 4 . 4 billion people . Tibet ( Tibetan Pinyin : " boe ", ; / i t  s¹ /) is a region on the Tibetan Plateau in Asia . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpa , Qiang , and Lhoba peoples and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han ___MASK33___ and Hui people . Tibet is the highest region on Earth , with an average elevation of . The highest elevation in Tibet is Mount Everest , Earth ' s highest mountain , rising 8 , 848 m ( 29 , 029 ft ) above sea level . Europe is a continent that comprises the westernmost part of Eurasia . Europe is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north , the Atlantic Ocean to the west , and the Mediterranean Sea to the south . To the east and southeast , Europe is generally considered as separated from Asia by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains , the Ural River , the Caspian and Black Seas , and the waterways of the ___MASK74___ Straits . Yet the non - oceanic borders of Europe  a concept dating back to classical antiquity  are arbitrary . The primarily physiographic term " continent " as applied to Europe also incorporates cultural and political elements whose discontinuities are not always reflected by the continent ' s current overland boundaries . India , officially the Republic of India (" Bhrat Gaarjya "), is a country in South Asia . It is the seventh - largest country by area , the second - most populous country ( with over 1 . 2 billion people ), and the most populous democracy in the world . It is bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south , the Arabian Sea on the southwest , and the Bay of Bengal on the southeast . It shares land borders with Pakistan to the west ; China , Nepal , and Bhutan to the northeast ; and Myanmar ( Burma ) and Bangladesh to the east . In the Indian Ocean , India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka and the Maldives . India ' s Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a maritime border with Thailand and Indonesia . Its capital is New Delhi ; other metropolises include Mumbai , Kolkata , Chennai , Bangalore , Hyderabad and Ahmedabad . Gangtok is a municipality , the capital and the largest town of the Indian state of Sikkim . It also is the headquarters of the East Sikkim district . Gangtok is located in the eastern Himalayan range , at an elevation of . The town ' s population of 100 , 000 belongs to different ethnicities such as ___MASK59___ , Lepchas and Bhutia . Nestled within higher peaks of the Himalaya and enjoying a year - round mild temperate climate , Gangtok is at the centre of Sikkim ' s tourism industry .