Asimiliar name for South Asia is the Indian Subcontinent. A subcontinent is a huge land mass that is smaller than a continent, Today, eight independent nations occupy this region. Although India is very large, south asia also includes Pakistan,Bangledesh,Nepel,and Bhutan and the isalnd nations of Sri Lanka and the Madives. Located in northwest south asia, Afghanistan is also considered to be part of south asia.
At its widest, the subcontinent stretches about 2,500 miles(4,023 km)from east to west and almost the same distance going from north to south. This huge region contains a variety of landforms. Three of these landforms shape the major geographic regions of south asia: the northern mountains, the northern plains, and the Deccan Plateau.
Mountains seperate south asia from the rest of the continent. Stretching 1,500 miles(2,414km) from east to west, the snow capped peaks of the Himalayas rise above the clouds. They create a massive wall that divides the indian subcontinent from the interior of asia. Many of the worlds tallest and largest mountains are found in the Himalayas. At least 50 of the mountains are over a mile high, including mt. everest which is on the border of Tibet and Nepel.
To the northwest lie the Hindu Kush. while smaller in area than the Himalayas, the Hindu Kush are just as high and certainly just as rugged. Indeed, the word kush means "death," and the mouintains were given this name because of the danger they pose to travelers and people.
Although the mountains form a barrier they can be crossed. In the west, several passes cut through the mountains, making travel possible. among the best known is the Kyber pass through the Hindu Kush.
The northern mountains are iportant for other reasons. The great river systems of the subcontinent have there sources in streams and fed by melting snows from the mountains. also, the mountains help farmers be allowing them to raise crops such as wheat and rice. Farmers also raise goats on the mountians. People living in these mountain valleys have had to adapt and have done it wellthrough many years of hard struggle but have eventually figured out a way of life.