Asia is the world’s biggest and most populous continent and for thousands of years, it was the center of human civilization with many ancient societies settling on the continent such as the Indus Valley Civilization, Babylon and Persia.
Over the 5000 years, that established civilizations in Asia have existed there have been hundreds if not thousands of cultures developing. In this piece of content, we will be going through all the national customs and traditions in Asia.
Saudi Arabia is one of the most important countries in Asia not just for being the country with the highest proven oil reserves in Asia but for also being the home of the city of Mecca which is the most important religious city for the estimated 1.8 billion Muslims around the world. Every single year, two million Muslim pilgrims converge on the city during the Hajj event, with all practicing Muslims being required to make the five-day pilgrimage at least once in their lives.
The country is very religious and is known for following the Quran very strictly with the holy Muslim book being used for deciding laws in the country, for example, smoking and consumption of alcohol by locals is banned in the country, although this is being relaxed for foreigners to try and boost the tourism industry in the country.
The most populous country in the world, for now, China has an ancient history with there being evidence that the country has existed since 1250 BC, and it has survived for over 3000 years. Due to the large size of the country and its population, there are a lot of distinct groups of Chinese people with small cultural differences between the north and the south, for example.
Chinese people’s customs and traditions are heavily related to the sea with the overwhelming part of the population living near coastal settlements in the Far East of the country next to the South China Sea.
Despite its large size, India is a fairly new country that has only come into existence in 1947 after it broke away from the British Empire. The country is currently set to overtake China in terms of population within the next few decades. India is extremely diverse with there being 22 official languages in the country, with Hindi and English being the most popular once that is also used at the federal government level.
The majority of the population of India are Hindus, which means that they do not consume beef or use products deriving from beef. Also, India is home to the world’s largest population of vegetarians with around 400 million vegetarians living in India alone, despite many Indians not consuming any meat they sure love spicy food.
Japan is an island that has been isolated from the rest of Asia for thousands of years which have allowed for a unique culture and society to develop on the island. In Japanese society, it is very important to fit in with everyone else instead of standing out, which is why the country has one of the lowest levels of crime and murders per capita in the world.
If you decide to visit Japan it is important that you make sure to show respect to the people that you interact with, this is done by bowing with the lower you bow, the more respect you are giving. Furthermore, it is expected in Japanese society that you bow lower for elderly people, who are respected strongly in Japan.
South Korea is a very modern country with the majority of the population living in the big cities of Seoul, Busan, Icheon, and Daegu. Despite being attached to mainland Asia and throughout history being occupied by other Asian major power such as Mongolia, China and Japan, the country has managed to foster a unique culture.
In South Korea, the family is very important with all families to keep in close contact, so you should not be surprised to see at weddings and family events that hundreds of relatives will be attending.
Music and movies are also very important in South Korea with the trendy new music genre of K-Pop taking over the world with groups such as BTS and Blackpink registering hit songs not just in South Korea but all around the world including the United States and Europe.
Mongolians to this day live a life that closely resembles that of their ancestors, with the estimated 3 million population of Mongolia a large part still live a nomadic lifestyle on the massive plains of the country where they survive by herding cattle, hunting and transporting their tens on horseback from place to place in order to always have enough fresh pasture for their animals to feed on.
Due to this, you will find that life in Mongolia revolves around living on the land, with everything being used to its full potential and not left to waste. Animals by-products are used to create clothes, tents and of course food, with Mongolian diets famously being very meat and dairy heavy.
Indonesia is another very new country that just got its independence from the Dutch in the past century, despite this the country is one of the most exciting economies in the world, and it is the most populous Muslim country in the entire world.
By visiting Indonesia, you will discover an entirely new world with the country consisting of hundreds of separate islands that over centuries have each developed their own separate culture and traditions. In Indonesia, this multiculturalism is celebrated and promoted by the government with the country being a federation which means that a lot of the local governments have extra autonomy to make the right decisions for them.
You will find by visiting Indonesia that they have a love for food such as fish and lamb Donner with pork not being widely eaten on the island due to the main religion being Islam. Furthermore, Indonesians have developed over the years their own unique type of clothing that is known for its amazing colors and patterns.
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