Scosci

• Culture


  The sum of customs, beliefs, and attitudes that makes a group of people different from another group
• Language


  Conveyed through language, which influences the way a group of people thinks and reflects their behavior
• Language is either spoken or written
• Language


  Creates a significant aspect in one's ethnic or national identity
• Austro-Asiatic language


  Viewed as the origin of several languages or dialects in Southeast Asia
• Ethnolinguistic group


  A group of people that share a language, common ethnicity, and cultural heritage
• Ethnicity


  Being part of a group with members who have a common language, share the same beliefs, traits, traditions, and have the same ancestors
• Ethnic group


  A group of humans whose members' identity with each other through a common heritage that is real or presumed
• Ethnic identity


  Recognition of a group's distinctiveness in terms of their common cultural, linguistic, religious, and behavioral traits which differs them from other groups
• Role of Language in the Development of Culture


  • It has a social function - it is the means by which customs, traditions, values, and beliefs are conveyed and preserved
  • Serves as a clear link to the past usually in the form of literature
  • Serves as natural barrier between cultural groups
  • Way of preserving the cultural heritage and identity of a group
• China


  • Has the largest number of ethnic groups among the East Asian Countries
  • Recognizes 56 ethnic groups with differing languages and cultures
  • Han is China's largest ethnic group, making them the largest ethnic group in the world
  • Chinese influence are seen in food, arts, religion in the region
  • The writing system of the Han Chinese has long been a unifying factor in East Asia
• Other ethnic groups of East Asia

  • Tibetans
  • Uyghurs
  • Kazakhs
  • Manchus
  • Mongols
• Chinese system of writing passed on to Korea and in Vietnam, forming a vital element in the system of writing of Japan Hiragana and Katakana used in addition to the Chinese characters
• Hangul, alphabet of Korea was invented later years
• Koreans and Japanese have distinct regional cultures and minority groups
• Crossing national borders, ethnic groups like the Mongols have communities in China
• Many Chinese live in Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, and Philippines
• Speakers of Tibeto-Burman languages live in parts of Southwest China, Myanmar (Burma), and North-East India
• Communities of ethnic Koreans live in Russia and China
• Miao (Hmong people) who migrated into South and East Asia hundreds years ago populated the different countries in the world
• The language families in the region of East Asia


  • Sinitic
  • Tibeto-Burman
  • Japonic
  • Ainu languages
  • The Korean language
  • Mongolic
  • Tungusic
  • Turkic
  • Miao-Yao
• Aryans


  • An Indo-European speaking people, largely influence the present ethnic and linguistic make-up of South Asia
  • Migrated in southwest and south Asia
  • Invaded northern India in 2000 BCE
  • Largest ethno-linguistic group in South Asia
• The Southern Indian states are of Dravidian culture, characterized by the distinctive use of Dravidian language
• Sri Lankan languages namely Sinhalese and Tamil have both Indo-Aryan and Dravidian influences
• Bangladesh and the West Bengal provinces of India are of Bengali heritage and culture
• Bangladesh has a predominant Tibeto-Burman influence
• Pakistan share Iranian heritage, Indo-Aryan is widely spoken in Pakistan and most of the North, West and East India and Nepal
• Dravidian languages are spoken in South India and St Lanka
• The Bhutanese on the other hand, speak Dzongkhag, descendants of the old Tibetan language
• Religions historically founded in South Asia

  • Hinduism
  • Islam
  • Buddhism
• Present-day inhabitants of mainland Southeast Asia are largely influenced by series of Chinese migration from southern China in the past
• As Chinese-speaking people migrated southward from North China during the Zhou period, the original inhabitants of South China, moved into uplard enclaves in southern China
• Those who migrated to the south were among the ancestors of the Burmans, the Laos, and the Thais, and are also the ancestors of some of the Southeast Asian minorities like the Hmong, the Shan and the Karen
• Ethnic groups in Myanmar

  • Shan
  • Karen
  • Kachin
  • Burman
  • Achang
  • Padaung
  • Kayah
• Ethnic groups in Thailand

  • Miao
  • Mon
  • Thai
  • Ho
  • Muong
• Ethnic groups in Vietnam

  • Akha
  • Vietnamese
  • Chinese
• 69% of the ethnic group in Laos are of Lao heritage and the other are of Aoloum, Hmong Yad, Vietnamese, Chinese and Thai
• 90% of Cambodia's population is of Khmer origin, others composed of the Chinese, Vietnamese, Cham and Khmer Loeu
• Malaysia


  • Composed of several ethnic groups, Malay is the major ethnic group
  • Ethnic Bumiputra in Sabah and Sarawak, the Bajoas and Orang Asli
• Javanese comprises the largest ethnic group in Indonesia, remaining group is composed of the Austronesian-Malays and Sudanese