The term Indochina (originally Indo-China) was coined in the early nineteenth century, emphasizing the historical cultural influence of Indian and Chinese civilizations on the area. The term was later adopted as the name of the colony of French Indochina (today's Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam). Today, the term Mainland Southeast Asia, in contrast to Maritime Southeast Asia, is more commonly referenced.
In Indian sources, the earliest name connected with Southeast Asia is Yāvadvīpa [ms].[1] Another possible early name of mainland Southeast Asia was Suvarṇabhūmi ("land of gold"),[1][2] a toponym, that appears in many ancient Indian literary sources and Buddhist texts,[3] but which, along with Suvarṇadvīpa ("island" or "peninsula of gold"),[1] are also thought to refer to insular Southeast Asia.[1]
The origins of the name Indo-China are usually attributed jointly to the Danish-French geographer Conrad Malte-Brun, who referred to the area as indo-chinois in 1804, and the Scottish linguist John Leyden, who used the term Indo-Chinese to describe the area's inhabitants and their languages in 1808.[4] Scholarly opinions at the time regarding China's and India's historical influence over the area were conflicting, and the term was itself controversial—Malte-Brun himself later argued against its use in a later edition of his Universal Geography, reasoning that it overemphasized Chinese influence, and suggested Chin-India instead.[5] Nevertheless, Indo-China had already gained traction and soon supplanted alternative terms such as Further India and the Peninsula beyond the Ganges. Later, however, as the French established the colony of French Indochina (covering present-day Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam), use of the term became more restricted to the French colony,[6] and today the area is usually referred to as Mainland Southeast Asia.[7]
The countries of mainland Southeast Asia received cultural influence from both India and China to varying degrees.[9] Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand are all influenced by Indian culture, only Vietnam is influenced by Chinese culture but still has minor influences from India, largely via the Champa civilization that Vietnam conquered during its southward expansion.[citation needed]
^Kitiarsa, Pattana (2010). "Missionary Intent and Monastic Networks: Thai Buddhism as a Transnational Religion". Sojourn: Journal of Social Issues in Southeast Asia. 25 (1): 115–116. doi:10.1355/sj25-1e. ISSN0217-9520. JSTOR41308138. King Asoka in the third century BC is widely cited as the model monarch who organized networks of missionaries to preach the teachings of the Buddha outside India including to Suvarnabhumi or mainland Southeast Asia.
^Vimalin Rujivacharakul; et al., eds. (2013). Architecturalized Asia : mapping a continent through history. Hong Kong University Press. p. 89. ISBN9789888208050.
^Wesseling, H. L. (2015). The European Colonial Empires: 1815–1919. Routledge. ISBN9781317895060.
^Keyes, Charles F. (1995). The golden peninsula : culture and adaptation in mainland Southeast Asia (Pbk. reprint ed.). University of Hawaii Press. p. 1. ISBN9780824816964.
^"Malaysia". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. 28 September 2016. Archived from the original on 15 October 2021. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
^"Thailand". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. 28 September 2016. Archived from the original on 10 June 2021. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
^"Myanmar". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. 28 September 2016. Archived from the original on 1 December 2021. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
^"Cambodia". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. 28 September 2016. Archived from the original on 10 June 2021. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
^"Vietnam". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. 28 September 2016. Archived from the original on 10 June 2021. Retrieved 24 January 2021.