South Asia

American  

[south ey-zhuh, ey-shuh] / ˈsaʊθ ˈeɪ ʒə, ˈeɪ ʃə /

noun

1. the countries and land area of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, India, the Maldives, Nepal, and Pakistan.

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Other Word Forms

• South Asian
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of South Asia

First recorded in 1940–45

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

South Asia

In a report last year, the World Bank found that Pakistan has lost economic ground compared with the rest of South Asia.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 17, 2026

"We do see some hot spots... it's really concentrated in Sub-Saharan Africa and parts of South Asia."

From Barron's ● Jun. 16, 2026

But across Europe, East Asia and South Asia, the turn is toward nuclear power.

From Salon ● May 21, 2026

A year after the four-day India-Pakistan conflict brought South Asia to the edge of a dangerous escalation, the region has drifted into a brittle and deeply uneasy equilibrium.

From BBC ● May 7, 2026

Almost forty species of cotton exist worldwide, of which four have been domesticated, two in the Americas, two in the Middle East and South Asia.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann