2.4 Cultural Factors Affecting Population Distriubtion Patterns in Monsoon Asia

Cultural factors make some regions more popular than others.

The three main cultural factors are:
- Proximity to education
- Proximity to employment
- Proximity to trade
- Historical factors because people want to live here infrastructure already exists

General notes about Monsoon Asia
Cultural factors make some regions more popular than others. Most people will locate where they can access the best possible standards of living. Many therefore move to the cities such as Beijing and Calcutta. Most cities are located on the coast or on major waterways. This is becuase most wealth in Monsoon Asia has come from trading raw materials such as rubber from Malaysia that are exported at major ports. These are located at good points of communication. Singapore and Hong Kong ae known as entrepot ports. This is where ships from Europe and America would pass through en route to the rest of the Asia. Historical factors have been important here since foreign money was often invested into these ports and they have therefore been seen as growth nodes for the region.

2.3 What are the natural factors affecting the population distribution patterns in MA?

The natural factors that affect population distribution in Monsoon Asia are soil fertility, relief and climate.

Soil fertility affects where people live in Monsoon Asia because people need fertile soil to be able to grow crops. For example, river plains are the most densely populated (over 100 people per sq km) in Monsoon Asia because they have excellent fertility. The Yangtze River delta is an area that has a population density of more than 100 people per sq km. Similarly, the Ganges river delta in India and Bangladesh is a good example of this, particularly in Bangladesh which is the world’s most densely populated country with 950 people per sq km. The flooding of the rivers in the Monsoon season allows the deposition of alluvium across the river/flood plains, making highly fertile soil and an excellent place to people to live in and grow crops.

Relief affects where people live in Monsoon Asia because people need to be accessible to other areas and need to easily build and develop land. For example, lowlands are the most densely populated regions and the mountainous areas are the least populated areas. The Kanto plains of Japan are where the cities Tokyo and Yokohama are built because of its flat land. Tokyo is the most populated city in the world with 27 million people in it. In contrast to this however, the island of Java in Indonesia is one of the most populated regions and yet is mountainous in its nature. People usually populate areas that are easy to build and modify. In Indonesia, people have adapted their way of living by carving terraces into the hillsides to make farming possible.

Climate affects where people live in Monsoon Asia because the people of Monsoon Asia rely on the monsoon rains to grow their crops. For example areas with low rainfall (<250mm/yr) are sparsely populated (<1 person per sq km). The Thar Desert in India and the Gobi Desert in China are both areas that receive less than 250mm of rainfall per year and have a low population density. Similarly the Himalayan ranges in Tibet and Bhutan have a low population density because of the low rainfall and also the freezing temperatures. People have populated areas with high rainfall and a warmer climate so they are able to grow crops and stay warm.

69% of Monsoons Asia’s population live in China and India because these two countries have the best combinations of the three natural factors. China and India both have an excellent amount of rainfall, excellent fertile soil in coastal and lowland areas.

MA population distribution

FQ 2. What are the population distribution patterns of Monsoon Asia?

1. 90% of MA's population live in onl 25% of the land area (similar to NZ)

2. 38% of MA's population live in urban areas (compared to with 86% in NZ)

3. 69% of MA's population live in China and India

4. Bangladesh is the most densely populated country on earth with 950 people per square kilometre

5. Tokyo is the most populated city in the world with 27 million people
these can be explained by looking at the population density in MA and the cultural and natural factors that contribute to these population patterns.

Mapping of MA's population density, when you click on the picture you would be able to view the world population density as well.

In Monsoon Asia it is sparsly populated in mountain areas located near/in China because there are less low-lands therefore less areas for people to grow plants or breed cattle. Also in deserts it is sparsly populated because it is dry and there are no water supplies for the soil to be fertile enough to produce crops.

Therefore it is dense in places such as river areas because it is easier to retrieve water to grow plants. Also it is dense in Coastal areas because it is more accessible to the ocean for food and trapnsort to other countries.

Population vs Land Size

This map is called a cartogram. Dictionary.com defines a cartogram as being

"a diagrammatic presentation in highly abstracted or simplified form, commonly of statistical data, on a map base or distorted map base."

This means that the map is drawn based on another statistic other than land size.

Compare the above cartogram to the the actual land size (below)...

This cartogram shows water resources in countries...

The next cartogram is showing the amount of waste collected...

These cartograms come from: http://www.sasi.group.shef.ac.uk/worldmapper/index.html

check out the other 366 that they have currently.

MA popn size

1.2 Total population of Monsoon Asia

3,473,970,357

(3 billion 4 hundred and 73 million 9 hundred and 70 thousand 3 hundred and 57 people) approximately 3 1/2 billion people.

East Asia 1,514,755,835 44%

South Asia 1,400,557,630 40%

South East Asia 558,656,892 16%

Total: 3,473,970,357 100%

The population sizes of different countries in Monsoon Asia vary alot. Six of the worlds most populated countries are found in Monsoon Asia: China, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Japan, Bangladesh.

1.3 Key characteristics of Monsoon Asia

- 21 countries
- has seasonal monsoons – influence population distribution patterns, influences how people live
- varied cultural environments – rural village; world’s largest cities; tiny island states; most populated countries; desperate poverty; wealth of Japan
- climate - lies in the Tropics; high temperatures; April-June summer
- mountains – orographic rainfall; NE India: wettest place on earth
- Rivers – has world’s greatest rivers; used for - transport, irrigation, water supply; cause flooding in lowlands
- Soils – floods create fertile soil
- Population distribution – dense - along rivers, coastal plains, where there is water and fertile soil; sparse – in deserts and forested mountain ranges

MA Population - Number of people

FQ1. How many people are there in MA? How many are there in particular countries in Monsoon Asia?

1.1 % of World Population