The
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
(United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) has designated 99
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
s in 5 countries (also called "
state parties") of
East Asia
East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both Geography, geographical and culture, ethno-cultural terms. The modern State (polity), states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. ...
:
China,
Mongolia
Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million, ...
,
North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and T ...
,
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...
and
Japan.
In this region,
China is home to the most inscribed sites with number of 55.
The first sites from the region (and only sites designated in the 1980s or before) were the
Great Wall of China
The Great Wall of China (, literally "ten thousand ''li'' wall") is a series of fortifications that were built across the historical northern borders of ancient Chinese states and Imperial China as protection against various nomadic gro ...
,
Mount Tai
Mount Tai () is a mountain of historical and cultural significance located north of the city of Tai'an. It is the highest point in Shandong province, China. The tallest peak is the '' Jade Emperor Peak'' (), which is commonly reported as being ...
, the
Peking Man Site at Zhoukoudian,
Imperial Palace of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the
Mogao Caves
The Mogao Caves, also known as the Thousand Buddha Grottoes or Caves of the Thousand Buddhas, form a system of 500 temples southeast of the center of Dunhuang, an oasis located at a religious and cultural crossroads on the Silk Road, in Gansu p ...
and the
Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor, and all of them were in China.
Each year, UNESCO's
World Heritage Committee
The World Heritage Committee selects the sites to be listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including the World Heritage List and the List of World Heritage in Danger, defines the use of the World Heritage Fund and allocates financial assistance ...
may inscribe new sites on the list, or delist sites that no longer meet the criteria. Selection is based on
ten criteria: six for
cultural heritage (i–vi) and four for
natural heritage (vii–x).
Some sites, designated "mixed sites," represent both cultural and natural heritage. In Eastern Asia, there are 74 cultural, 21 natural, and four mixed sites.
The World Heritage Committee may also specify that a site is
endangered
An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and in ...
, citing "conditions which threaten the very characteristics for which a property was inscribed on the World Heritage List." In this region there are no sites currently listed as endangered, nor have been listed previously. Possible danger listing has been considered by UNESCO in a number of other cases.
Although a number of sites in
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
have been proposed, interference from PRC has prevented any site on the island from being listed.
Taipei Times
/ref>
Legend
:Site; named after the World Heritage Committee's official designationhectare
The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100- metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre is ...
s and acres. If available, the size of the buffer zone has been noted as well. A value of zero implies that no data has been published by UNESCO
:Year; during which the site was inscribed to the World Heritage List
:Description; brief information about the site, including reasons for qualifying as an endangered site, if applicable
World Heritage Sites
Performance of East Asia in UNESCO
The performance of Southeast Asia is contrasted by the performance of South and East Asia. Eastern Asian countries are noted with 'EA'.
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from: 0 till: 55 color:black text:"China EA" (55)
from: 0 till: 38 color:redl text:"India" (38)
from: 0 till: 23 color:orange text:"Japan EA" (23)
from: 0 till: 14 color:blue text:"South Korea EA" (14)
from: 0 till: 9 color:blue text:"Indonesia" (9)
from: 0 till: 8 color:blue text:"Vietnam" (8)
from: 0 till: 8 color:blue text:"Sri Lanka" (8)
from: 0 till: 6 color:blue text:"Pakistan" (6)
from: 0 till: 6 color:blue text:"Philippines" (6)
from: 0 till: 5 color:blue text:"Mongolia EA" (5)
from: 0 till: 5 color:blue text:"Thailand" (5)
from: 0 till: 4 color:blue text:"Malaysia" (4)
from: 0 till: 4 color:blue text:"Nepal" (4)
from: 0 till: 3 color:blue text:"Bangladesh" (3)
from: 0 till: 3 color:blue text:"Cambodia" (3)
from: 0 till: 3 color:blue text:"Laos" (3)
from: 0 till: 2 color:blue text:"Afghanistan" (2)
from: 0 till: 2 color:blue text:"Myanmar" (2)
from: 0 till: 2 color:blue text:"North Korea EA" (2)
from: 0 till: 1 color:blue text:"Singapore" (1)
from: 0 till: 0 color:blue text:"Bhutan" (0)
from: 0 till: 0 color:blue text:"Maldives" (0)
from: 0 till: 0 color:blue text:"Brunei" (0)
from: 0 till: 0 color:blue text:"Timor-Leste" (0)
barset:skip
Notes
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:World Heritage Sites In Asia And Australasia, List Of
*
Asia
Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...