The history of the great continent of Asia is rich and full of culture. Asia makes up 30% of the worlds land area and has about 60% of its people, according to World Book Encyclopedia. As a direct result of the size of this continent, it is also the most diverse continent in the world. All of the major religions were also established right in Asia according to The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, including Buddhism, Hinduism and Christianity to name a few. Asia also has the world’s highest and lowest points located on its continent and its economy ranks amongst the top in the world. With all of this in mind the question, what makes Asia such a thriving continent; is pertinent.

Asia has been the most populated continent since the 1960’s and has produced more capital than any other region to date. Asia was the first continent to establish cities, enforce laws and also the first to begin a farmer merchant relationship. Nearly 50% of the people of Asia make their living off of farming, yet and still with the overflow of people there still isn’t enough food in some Asian countries to accommodate everyone. This great continent has consistently been ahead of the rest of the world in many different areas; only to leave everyone else left guessing, how do they do it?

Asia’s economy varies from very rich to very poor, with the best economic development coming from Japan and the worse from countries like Afghanistan, Cambodia and Nepal. According to Britannica, based on region Southwest Asia is predominately made up of middle class income, North, Central and South Asia is made up of a lower income population and Eastern Asia is the most prosperous with an upper class income. In the East, South and Southeast parts of Asia, industry is growing quickly; as the industry expands, these countries continue to flourish. Japan, China and India rank among the largest economies in the world! On the other hand most of the other Asian nations have very little manufacturing and depend a great deal on agriculture. Exporting has brought huge profit to Asia; among these included are vegetables, oil, zinc, iron ore, granite, nickel and even gold to name a few. Some countries trade things such as tea, rubber and tin also as a way to boost their economy. Other countries became contractors for foreign firms manufacturing things such as electronics, toys, clothes and shoes. Ultimately the different countries