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South Asia is a geo-cultural region comprising the modern states of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, and the Maldives. Often Afghanistan is also included, sometimes with the northern part of Afghanistan placed in Central Asia.
It includes the region sometimes called the Indian subcontinent. It contains well over a fifth of the world's population and, after Sub-Saharan Africa, is also one of the world's poorest regions.
This region has a long history and ancient civilisations have sprung up from the Indus Valley. The region was the most prosperous till the 17th century. After the colonists began to conquer the region, the region started to fall apart in the feud between Britain, France, Portugal and Holland. Deciding to quit after WW2, the region was partitioned into India and the two Pakistans one of which became Bangladesh. Afghanistan had already got Independance. Nepal did not want to join India and remained independant wheras Bhutan got Independance from India.
See also: History of South Asia
Southern Asia sometimes refers to all of Asia that was not part of the Soviet Union.