Page:Collier's New Encyclopedia v. 01.djvu/374

LEFT ASIA 298 ASIA found refuge in the wilder parts of the plateaus. In the Steppe region we find the same fauna as in Siberia, with the addition of the tiger, which occasionally reaches Lake Zaisan, and even Lake Baikal; the leopard and hyena coming from warmer regions; and a variety of endemic birds. The bison, which has now completely disappeared from Europe (with the exception of the Byelovyezh forests in western Russia), is still found in the forests of Caucasus ; also the same abundance of pheasants as on the Pacific littoral. Southern and southeastern Asia belong to a separate zoological domain. The heights of the Himalayas have the fauna of the Tibet portion of the high plateau; but on their S. slopes the fauna is purely Indian and Transgangetic, while a few African species are found on the plains of India and in the Deccan. As a whole the tropical fauna of Asia is richer than the African. It is characterized by the great number of carnivora, which find refuge in the jungles, and by the ele- phant, rhinoceros, wild buffalo, red deer, many long-armed apes and half-apes, huge bats, genets, and a variety of ser- pents and crocodiles; the bird fauna in- cludes vultures, a variety of parrots, pelicans and flamingoes. The fauna is still richer in the Indo-Chinese Peninsula, while in the archipelagos of southeastern Asia several Australian species add to its extent. Ethnography. — The aggregate popu- lation of Asia is estimated at 928,000,000, being thus more than one-half of the en- tire population of the globe. This popu- lation, however, is small, giving only an average of 53 inhabitants per square mile. It is greatest in those parts of Asia which are most favored by rains. The inhabitants of Asia belong to five different groups; the so-called Caucasian (fair type) in western Asia and India; the Mongolian in central and eastern Asia, as also in the Indo-Chinese Penin- sula; the Malay in Malacca and the In- dian Archipelago; the Dravidas in south- eastern India and Ceylon; and the Negritos and Papuas in the virgin for- ests of the Philippine Islands and Cel- ebes; also a sixth great division com- prising the stems which inhabit north- eastern Asia, the Hyperboreans, whose affinities are not yet well known. The Mongolian race alone embraces nearly seven-tenths of the population of Asia; the Malay, about two-tenths, and the Caucasian about one-tenth. Religions. — Asia has been the birth- place of religions; the Jewish, Buddhist, Christian, and Mohammedan having their origin in Asia, where they grow up un- m der the influence of still older religions, the Babylonian and that of Zoroaster, both also of Asiatic origin. At present the inhabitants of Asia belong chiefly to the Buddhist religion, which has 530,000,- 000 to 560,000,000 of followers, i. c, nearly one-third of mankind. The old faith of Hinduism has 187,000,000 of fol- lowers in India. Most of the inhabitants of western Asia, as also of part of cen- tral Asia, follov/ the religion of Islam; they may number about 90,000,000. The Christians number about 20,000,000 in Armenia, Caucasus, Siberia, and Tur- kestan. Jews are scattered mostly in western central Asia. Political Conditions. — While the coun- tries beyond the great plateau entered but quite recently within the domain of West- ern history, those on its Mediterranean slope have never ceased to exercise a powerful influence on Europe. At the very dawn of written history, that is, 50 centuries before our era, the great Akkadian Empire already influenced the ,; , inhabitants of the coasts of the Mediter- 'i ranean. Later on the Phoenicians extended their authority over northern Africa, and the -iEgean Sea; the Persians modified the development of Egypt; and at a very remote epoch an oasis of high civilization, grown up at the base of the Altai Moun- tains, spread itself to the W. over north- ern Europe. Alexander of Macedon pushed his conquests as far as Turkes- tan : and, later on, Rome conquered west- ern Asia, But the Greek and Arabian civilization in central Asia decayed under the raids of Mongolian tribes ; the Roman empire was absorbed by the East, and fell into decay at the very confines of Asia, on the shores of the Bosphorus; the Ar- sacides and Sassanides of Persia re- pulsed the Roman aggression and con- quered Roman provinces, while the great migrations of the first centuries of our era were due to mass movements from Asia into Europe. Ural-Altaians mi- grated to the Urals and thence to Hun- gary. Other Turanians, the Mervs, the Alans, the Avars, penetrated into Eu- rope from the S. E. Mongols abandoned plateaus, and invaded the Russian plains; the Arabs, following the S. coast of the Mediterranean, invaded Spain; and the empire of the Osmanlis arose on the ruins of the eastern Roman empire. By these invasions, Asia arrested the free development of Europe, and compelled the Germanic, Gallic, and Slavonic fed- erations to gather into powerful states of the Roman monarchical type. Portuguese ships, rounding the Cspe, founded the first European colonies in