Indochina
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Indochina, or the Indochinese Peninsula, is a region in Southeast Asia. It lies roughly east of India, south of China, culturally influenced by both—hence the name (more specifically Vietnam harnessing the Chinese influence and Cambodia, Laos and Thailand the Indian influence).
Note that the term Sino-Indian is used to describe things relating to India and China. (e.g. Sino-Indian relations). The term Indochina is exclusively used to denote the region that comprises modern-day Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam.
Indochina comprises the territory of the following countries:
- in strict sense, only the former colonial French Indochina:
- in the wider sense, better described as Mainland Southeast Asia, it includes furthermore:
- Peninsular Malaysia (comprising the southern end of the Malay peninsula but none of the Malay islands)
- Myanmar (formerly Burma and part of British India until 1947)
- Thailand (formerly Siam)
The main religion in this region is Theravada or Hinayana Buddhism. Mahayana Buddhism is predominant in Vietnam, while Malaysia is a multi-religious nation, with Islam as the main religion, and adherants of Buddhism, Hinduism, and Christianity as major minorities.
