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The examples and perspective in this article deal primarily with Western culture and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please improve this article and discuss the issue on the talk page. (December 2012) |
This article is about Asia. For the Cold War terminology, see
Eastern Bloc.
An image of the "Eastern world" defined as
Asia
The term Eastern world refers very broadly to the various cultures or social structures and philosophical systems of Asia or geographically the Eastern cultures. This includes the Indian subcontinent (comprising Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, and Nepal), the Far East (comprising China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, Mongolia, Philippines, Indonesia, Japan, North Korea, South Korea), West Asia (Syria, Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen), North Asia (Russia) and Central Asia (Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, and Kyrgyzstan).
The division between "East" and west is a product of European cultural history, and of the distinction between European Christendom and the cultures beyond it to the East. With the European colonization of the Americas the East/West distinction became global. The concept of an Eastern, "Indian" (Indies) or "Oriental" sphere was emphasized by ideas of racial as well as religious and cultural differences. Such distinctions were articulated by Westerners in the scholarly tradition known as Orientalism and Indology. People from the East are known by certain regions in the West as "Oriental". During the Cold War, the term "Eastern world" was sometimes used as an extension of Eastern bloc, connoting the Soviet Union, China and their communist allies, while the term "Western world" often connoted the United States and its NATO allies such as the United Kingdom. The concept is often another term for the Far East—a region that bears considerable cultural and religious commonality. Eastern philosophy, art, literature, and other traditions, are often found throughout the region in places of high importance, such as popular culture, architecture and traditional literature. The spread of Buddhism and Hindu Yoga is partly responsible for this.
Eastern culture [edit]
The distribution of the two major families of world religion,
Dharmic religion and
Abrahamic religion, highlights the religious difference between the Far East and the rest of the world
Eastern culture has developed many themes and traditions. Some important ones are:
See also [edit]
References [edit]
- Ankerl, Guy (2000) [2000]. Global communication without universal civilization. INU societal research. Vol.1: Coexisting contemporary civilizations : Arabo-Muslim, Bharati, Chinese, and Western. Geneva: INU Press. ISBN 2-88155-004-5.
