First stage:
History of Asian exploration - limited information on the geography of Asia was known to the ancient peoples of Mesopotamia. The campaigns of Alexander the Great (4th century BC), Egypt's trade with India, and the existence of a trade route ("silk road") from China to Asia Minor contributed to the gradual accumulation of information about Asia. However, deeper knowledge about this part of the land was obtained later.

Second phase:
In the 7th century Buddhist monk Xuanzang, who wandered around Central and Central Asia, India, presented information on the geography, ethnography and history of the countries he saw in one of his main works, Notes on the Countries of the West, completed in 648.

The Arab traveler and geographer Ibn Khordadbeh (IX-X centuries) described the provinces of Asia Minor. Biruni compiled a work on India, Masudi gave a geographical and historical description of the Muslim countries, India, China, Palestine, Ceylon.

In the IX-X centuries. various regions of Central and Western Asia were studied by Mukadassi, Ibn Sina, Ibn Fadlan and Ibn Rust. The Arab traveler Idrisi (XII century), who lived most of his life in Sicily, described Asia Minor, which he visited, in a consolidated geographical work.

In the XIV century. Ibn Battuta, who visited many Asian countries, wrote a great work in which he gave a very colorful and lively description of these countries, including information about minerals.

In the XII-XIII centuries. Europeans who made Crusades, collect information about the countries of Central and South Asia. In 1253-55, the Flemish traveler, the monk Rubruk, undertook a trip to Mongolia for diplomatic purposes. The report on this most significant (before M. Polo) journey of a European to Asia contained valuable information on the geography of Central Asia (in particular, it indicated that the Caspian Sea is not a sea, but a lake).

A significant contribution to the development of ideas about Asia was made by the traveler M. Polo (1271-1295), who lived in China for about 17 years. The “Book” (1298), written from his words in a Genoese prison, where he ended up during the war between Venice and Genoa, first introduced Europeans to Persia, Armenia, China, India, etc. It was a reference book for such great navigators as Columbus , Vasco da Gama, Magellan and others.

The Venetian merchant and traveler M. Conti, who wandered in India in 1424 and visited the islands of Ceylon, Sumatra, Borneo, and Java, on behalf of the Pope in 1444, dictated a report on this journey.

In 1468-1474 the Russian merchant A. Nikitin undertook a journey to India. His travel notes, containing multilateral observations, were published under the title "Journey Beyond the Three Seas."

In the middle of the XV century. Europeans began to look for sea routes to Asia. Portuguese sailors reached India in 1497-1499 (Vasco da Gama), visited Malacca, Macau, the Philippines, Japan. In the second half of the XVI-XVII centuries. the Dutch, British, and Spaniards continued to penetrate into the countries of South Asia.

In 1618-1619, the Siberian Cossack I. Petlin visited Mongolia and China, plotted the route on a map, and described what he saw in a book translated into English, French and other languages.

One of the first Europeans in 1690-1692 visited Japan, the German naturalist and physician E. Kaempfer, who collected extensive material on the nature, history and life of the people. His book, published in 1728 in London, served for a long time as the main source of information about Japan.

During this period, the greatest contribution to the study of the northern regions of Asia, where Europeans did not penetrate, was made by Russian explorers. By the end of the 16th century, after Yermak's campaign, Western Siberia became known in general terms.

In 1639, I. Yu. Moskvitin with a detachment of Cossacks reached the coast of the Sea of ​​Okhotsk. In 1632-1638, a detachment led by E. P. Khabarov studied the Lena River basin. In 1649-1653 he crossed the Stanovoy Range, traveled to the Amur region, and was the first to map it. In 1643-1646, a detachment of V. D. Poyarkov passed along the rivers Lena, Aldan, Zeya and Amur, who also presented drawings of the routes traveled and collected valuable information about the Far East.

In 1648, the expedition of S. I. Dezhnev rounded the Chukchi Peninsula and discovered the strait separating Asia from America, and the cape, which is the extreme northeastern point of Asia. The Siberian Cossack V. V. Atlasov traveled around Kamchatka in 1697-1699, reached the Northern Kuril Islands and compiled a description (“skaski”) of the discovered lands.

In the 17th century Russian explorers, despite the extremely difficult climatic conditions, overcoming vast expanses, discovered almost the whole of Siberia. This stage ended with the compilation of the first maps of Siberia, made by the Tobolsk governor P. Godunov and his countryman geographer and cartographer S. Remizov.

Third stage:
During this period, exploration of the north and northeast of the Asian continent by Russian travelers and navigators continued. By decree of Peter I, the Kamchatka expeditions are equipped, led by V. Bering, A. Chirikov was an assistant.

The first expedition (1725-1730) went overland through Siberia to Okhotsk, and then, after building ships, Bering went to sea, rounded the shores of Kamchatka and Chukotka, discovered the island of St. Lawrence and passed through the strait, which now bears his name.

The Second Kamchatka Expedition (1733-1741), also known as the Great Northern Expedition due to the scope of its work, occupies an outstanding place in the history of the study of the Arctic and northern regions of Asia. The Asian shores of the Arctic Ocean were mapped, the Commander, Aleutian and other islands were discovered, and the shores of Alaska were explored.

Separate detachments were led by the Laptev brothers, V.V. Pronchishchev, S.I. Chelyuskin (whose names are immortalized on geographical map). A great contribution to the study of Central Asia was made by missionaries who gave in the early 18th century. description of China, Mongolia and Tibet.

AT late XVIII in. Russian traveler and naturalist PS Pallas explored Eastern Siberia and Altai. In 1800-1805 Ya. Sannikov discovered and described the Stolbovoy and Faddeyevsky Islands of the Novosibirsk archipelago, suggested the existence of Sannikov land to the north of it.

In 1811, V. M. Golovnin undertook a trip to the Kuril Islands, compiled their inventory and map. During the expedition, he was captured by the Japanese. His memoirs about his stay in captivity in 1811-1813, containing information about the country and the customs of the Japanese, became the first description of Japan in Russian.

In 1821-1823, P. F. Anzhu explored the coast of the Arctic Ocean (between the mouths of the Olenek and Indigirka rivers), performing a number of astronomical and geomagnetic observations.

Wikipedia

F. P. Wrangel in 1820-1824 led an expedition to study the northern coast of Eastern Siberia. According to information received from the Chukchi, he determined the position of the island in the Chukchi Sea, later named after him.

In 1829, at the invitation of the Russian government, A. Humboldt undertook a trip to the Urals, Altai, to the southwestern part of Siberia, to the shores of the Caspian Sea, to the Kyrgyz steppes, the results of which were covered in the works "Central Asia" and "Fragments on the Geology and Climatology of Asia ". F. P. Litke during world travel in 1826-1829 he explored the eastern coast of Asia and Kamchatka.

Fourth stage:
From the middle of the XIX century. the role of systematic research carried out by scientific institutes, geographical societies and topographical services of England, France, the Netherlands, Germany, Japan and China is sharply increasing. The number of monographic descriptions of Asia has increased.

The Russian Geographical Society, founded in 1845, is developing work in Siberia and the Far East. In 1856-1857, P.P. Semenov-Tyan-Shansky traveled to the Tien Shan (gave his first orographic scheme), explored the western spurs of the Trans-Ili Alatau, and was the first European to climb the slopes of the Khan-Tengri massif. In memory of his achievements in the study of the Tien Shan in 1906, "Tyan Shan" was added to his surname.

A. P. Fedchenko in 1868-1871 made several trips around Turkestan, the first Russian traveler visited the Alai Valley, discovered the Zaalai Range, explored the lower reaches of the Syr Darya River.

In 1872-1876 A. I. Voeikov visited South and Western Asia, China, Japan, India, Central Asia, collecting valuable information about the climate of various regions of Asia. In 1877-1880, I. D. Chersky gave a detailed geographical and geological description of the Baikal coast.

In 1870-1885, four expeditions were organized to Central Asia under the leadership of N. M. Przhevalsky, who discovered many previously unknown remote areas - Kunlun, Nanshan, Tibet, etc. His research was continued by Russian travelers - M. V. Pevtsov, G. E. Grumm - Grzhimailo, G. Ts. Tsybikov. V. A. Obruchev, who worked a lot in Central Asia, made three expeditions to the Transcaspian region (1886-1888), discovered a number of ridges in the Nanshan mountains, the Daursky ridge, etc., explored the Beishan highlands.

In the end XIX- early XX centuries Russian scientists (I. V. Mushketov, L. S. Berg) continue systematic studies of Asia. The construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway also stimulated regular surveys of the territories adjacent to it.

For the first time, the northeastern passage from Europe to the Far East was carried out in 1878-1879 by N. Nordenskiöld, later (1911-1915) this route, only from east to west, was repeated by the expedition of B. A. Vilkitsky. During this period, in-depth geographical studies began by scientists from Asian countries (Japan, China, India, Indonesia).

Since the middle of the XX century. research is being intensified in the Russian part of Asia, connected with the national economic development of a vast territory, regional scientific centers and institutes are being created, conducting work on mapping (including large-scale) and the integrated study of Siberia and the Far East. Regular voyages along the Northern Sea Route are being established. Systematic research is being carried out by international expeditions.

Author Viktor Kuznentsov asked a question in Other about cities and countries

The opening of the Ways to Asia, how many were there? when was it opened and by whom? (meaning the most ancient discoveries by Man.) and got the best answer

Answer from Helga[guru]
The initial stage of the study of Asia.
Campaigns of Alexander the Great (4th century BC), Egypt's trade with India, the presence of a trade route ("silk road") from China to Asia Minor
The second stage of the study of Asia. Exploration of Asia by scientists and travelers of the East (7th-17th centuries).
Buddhist monk Xuanzang, presented information on geography, ethnography and history in "Notes on the countries of the West." Ibn Khordadbeh (9th-10th centuries), Biruni, Masudi. In the 9th-11th centuries. - Muqadassi, Ibn Sina, Ibn Fadlan and Ibn Rusta, Idrisi (12th century), Ibn Battuta.
European exploration of Asia.
Rubruk, undertook a trip for diplomatic purposes to Mongolia. M. Polo (1271-95), who lived in China for about 17 years. The Venetian merchant and traveler M. Conti, who wandered in India in 1424, visited the islands of Ceylon, Sumatra, Borneo, Java. In 1468-74, the Russian merchant A. Nikitin undertook a trip to India.
in 1497-99 (Vasco da Gama), visited Malacca, Macau, Philippines, Japan. In 1618-19 the Siberian Cossack I. Petlin visited Mongolia and China, in 1690-92 the German doctor E. Kaempfer visited Japan. The study of Asia by Russian explorers.
By the end of the 16th century , after Yermak's campaign, Western Siberia became known. In 1639, I. Yu. Moskvitin with a detachment of Cossacks reached the coast of the Sea of ​​Okhotsk. In 1632-38, a detachment led by E. P. Khabarov studied the Lena River basin. In 1649-53 he crossed the Stanovoy Range, traveled to the Amur region, and was the first to map it. In 1643-46, a detachment of V. D. Poyarkov passed along the rivers Lena, Aldan, Zeya and Amur, who also presented drawings of the routes traveled and collected valuable information about the Far East. In 1648, the expedition of S. I. Dezhnev rounded the Chukchi Peninsula and discovered the strait separating Asia from America, and the cape, which is the extreme northeastern point of Asia. The Siberian Cossack V. V. Atlasov traveled around Kamchatka in 1697-99, reached the Northern Kuril Islands and compiled a description (“skaski”) of the discovered lands.
The third stage of the exploration of Asia (18th - mid-19th centuries).
By decree of Peter I, the Kamchatka expeditions are equipped, led by V. Bering, A. Chirikov was an assistant. The first expedition (1725-30) went overland through Siberia to Okhotsk, and then, after building ships, Bering went to sea, rounded the shores of Kamchatka and Chukotka, discovered the island of St. Lawrence and passed through the strait, which now bears his name. The Second Kamchatka Expedition (1733-41), also known as the Great Northern Expedition due to the scope of its work, occupies an outstanding place in the history of the study of the Arctic and northern regions of Asia. The Asian shores of the Arctic Ocean were mapped, the Commander, Aleutian and other islands were discovered, and the shores of Alaska were explored. Separate detachments were led by the Laptev brothers, V.V. Pronchishchev, S.I. Chelyuskin (whose names are immortalized on a geographical map). A great contribution to the study of Central Asia was made by missionaries who gave in the early 18th century. description of China, Mongolia and Tibet. At the end of the 18th century Russian traveler and naturalist PS Pallas explored Eastern Siberia and Altai. In 1800-05 Ya. Sannikov discovered and described the Stolbovoy and Faddeyevsky Islands of the Novosibirsk archipelago, suggested the existence of Sannikov land to the north of it. In 1811, V. M. Golovnin undertook a trip to the Kuril Islands, compiled their inventory and map. During the expedition, he was captured by the Japanese. In 1821-23, P. F. Anzhu explored the coast of the Arctic Ocean (between the mouths of the Olenek and Indigirka rivers), who made a number of astronomical and geomagnetic observations. F. P. Wrangel in 1820-24 led an expedition to explore the northern shores of Eastern Siberia. According to information received from the Chukchi, he determined the position of the island in the Chukchi Sea, later named after him. In 1829, at the invitation of the Russian government, A. Humboldt undertook a trip to the Urals, Altai, and the southwestern part of Siberia. F. P. Litke, during a round-the-world trip in 1826-29, explored the eastern coast of Asia and Kamchatka.
The fourth stage of the Exploration of Asia (mid 19th - early 20th centuries).
further see in the comment
Viktor Kuznentsov
Sage
(19099)
Hello Helga! ... Thank you for the informative and informative answer. I learned a lot of interesting things for myself, I, to be honest, did not know this question, or knew only superficially. I think that for many users, this question will be a revelation. Thank you again. Run to visit Me, on the page. I will be very glad. Viktor Kuznetsov. Sailor.

Answer from Chupanka[guru]
Personally, I only remember the Silk Road

Answer from Laziz Baratov[guru]
Why Asia and not Europe? usually America is discovered, Asia is the cradle of mankind, humanity was born in Africa, and it grew in Asia. and no one in Asia opened the road, it was Asia that paved the way to Europe. Mesopotamia, Mesopotamia, Babylon, Persia, China, India are ancient countries with a high civilization, and Europe was sleeping at that time, but it woke up in time and overtook Asia

Answer from Yergey Safonov[guru]
Why open them when no one else has closed them? - the continent is called Eurasia - it has been united since the split of Gondwana: no one forbids walking back and forth ... and the ancients were not at all so stupid - they knew all the ways, roads ...

Answer from Dmitry Borisov[guru]

History of research Initial stage Limited information on the geography of Asia was known to the ancient peoples of Mesopotamia. Campaigns of Alexander the Great (4th century BC) - Egypt's trade with India, the presence of a trade route ("silk road") from China to Asia Minor contributed to the gradual accumulation of information about Asia. However, deeper knowledge about this part of the land was obtained later. Second stage (7th-17th centuries) Exploration of Asia by scientists and travelers of the East the Buddhist monk Xuanzang, who wandered around Central and Central Asia, India, presented information on the geography, ethnography and history of the countries he saw in one of his main works, Notes on the Countries of the West, completed in 648. The Arab traveler and geographer Ibn Khordadbeh (9 -10 centuries) described the provinces of Western Asia. Biruni compiled a work on India, Masudi gave a geographical and historical description of the Muslim countries, India, China, Palestine, Ceylon. In the 9th-11th centuries. various regions of Central and Western Asia were studied by Mukadassi, Ibn Sina, Ibn Fadlan and Ibn Rust. The Arab traveler Idrisi (12th century), who lived most of his life in Sicily, described Asia Minor, which he visited, in a consolidated geographical work. In the 14th century Ibn Battuta, who visited many Asian countries, wrote a great work in which he gave a very colorful and lively description of these countries, including information about minerals. exploration of Asia by Europeans In the 12th-13th centuries. Europeans who made crusades collect information about the countries of Central and South Asia. In 1253-55, the Flemish traveler, the monk Rubruk, undertook a trip to Mongolia for diplomatic purposes. The report on this most significant (before M. Polo) European travel to Asia contained valuable information on the geography of Central Asia (in particular, it indicated that the Caspian Sea is not a sea, but a lake). A significant contribution to the development of ideas about Asia was made by the traveler M. Polo (1271-95), who lived in China for about 17 years. The "Book" (1298), written from his words in a Genoese prison, where he ended up during the war between Venice and Genoa, first introduced Europeans to Persia, Armenia, China, India, etc. It was a reference book for such great navigators as Columbus , Vasco da Gama, Magellan and others. The Venetian merchant and traveler M. Conti, who wandered in India in 1424, visited the islands of Ceylon, Sumatra, Borneo, Java, on behalf of the Pope in 1444 dictated a report on this journey. In 1468-74 the Russian merchant A. Nikitin undertook a journey to India. His travel notes, containing many-sided observations, were published under the title "Journey Beyond Three Seas". In the middle of the 15th century. Europeans began to look for sea routes to Asia. Portuguese sailors reached India in 1497-99 (Vasco da Gama), visited Malacca, Macau, the Philippines, Japan. In the second half of the 16-17 centuries. the Dutch, British, and Spaniards continued to penetrate into the countries of South Asia. In 1618-19, the Siberian Cossack I. Petlin visited Mongolia and China, plotted the route on a map, and outlined what he saw in a book translated into English, French and other languages. One of the first Europeans to visit Japan in 1690-92 was the German naturalist and physician E. Kaempfer, who collected extensive material on the nature, history, and way of life of the people. His book, published in 1728 in London, served for a long time as the main source of information about Japan. exploration of Asia by Russian explorers During this period, the greatest contribution to the exploration of the northern regions of Asia, where Europeans did not penetrate, was made by Russian explorers. By the end of the 16th century , after Yermak's campaign, Western Siberia became generally known

How people discovered their land Tomilin Anatoly Nikolaevich

Chapter three. How Asia was discovered

How did Asian dating begin?

The areas of ancient civilizations in Asia were separated from each other by barren deserts and high mountains. And there were no roads at all. Even on a flat steppe, rarely anyone dared to embark on a journey. In the steppe - nomads. If you meet - do not expect mercy. Perhaps that is why it was so difficult to travel from state to state, from one historical region to another.

True, archaeologists occasionally find things in Western countries, for example, from Ancient China or India, but it is difficult to say how they got to Europe. The ancient Chinese traded with Greece and Rome through intermediaries, along a chain. From one hand to another, from another to a third. And these intermediaries were different nations.

But gradually, little by little, more and more information accumulated among the peoples. First, they learned about the closest neighbors, then about those who lived next to their neighbors, and so on ... Even before the beginning of our era, the Chinese knew, for example, the Korean Peninsula in the east, they knew the Japanese islands, the islands of Taiwan and Hainan in East China and South -Chinese seas. And in 138 BC, the first Chinese journey to the far West took place. And it happened like this...

For a long time, the Chinese, who lived between the Huang He and Yangtze rivers in the lands of the North China Plain, suffered from the raids of cruel nomadic Huns. No matter how hard the commanders tried, the Chinese soldiers, recruited from the poor, could not cope with the Hunnic cavalry. And the Huns seemed to be born on horseback. With whooping and shouting they flew into the villages and just as suddenly disappeared, leaving behind blood, death and ruin.

The Chinese emperors tried to make alliances of "peace and kinship" with the Huns. They married pampered princesses to wild Hun leaders. Tried to pay tribute. They built Wan-li-chang-cheng - the Great Stone Wall more than four thousand kilometers long ... Nothing helped.

The Huns took beautiful princesses away. Tribute was taken. And the raids didn't stop. No walls were a hindrance to them ...

The advisers of the Chinese emperors thought for a long time: what to do? Probably, only born nomads can fight the Huns. And therefore, you need to look for allies. It was then that the decision arose to send an embassy to the neighboring people - the Yuezhi. The Yuezhi were in many ways similar to the Huns. They also wandered, spoke in an incomprehensible language. But like the Chinese, they suffered a lot of insults from the Huns.

Early in the morning on the appointed day, one hundred horsemen rode out of the gates of the imperial palace in pairs. Ahead of all, on a magnificent horse, a man in rich clothes was prancing. He was accompanied by a short Hun, who sat tenaciously on a nondescript, hairy horse. They were the imperial ambassador Zhang Qian, an officer of the palace guards and his servant and bodyguard of Tanya. Tanya was indeed a Hun by birth. But he had already lived in China for a long time, served as a translator and helped the owner in everything.

The riders rode past rice fields and flowering plains until they appeared on the hills of the Wan-li-chang-cheng tower. Seeing the imperial seal, the guards opened the iron gates, and the emperor's envoys, one by one, got out of the Celestial Empire. But it is clear that happiness has turned its back on them. Before the tops of the watchtowers were out of sight, the Huns swooped in. Resistance was useless. Obeying the order, Zhang Qian turned his horse after the leader of the detachment.

Addition

Asia is the largest part of the world, almost a third of all land. In the north, it begins far beyond the Arctic Circle. Encased in a white shell, the Arctic Ocean guards its northern borders.

In the south, the Asian islands go beyond the hot equator, and the green waves of the warm indian ocean wash their shores.

In the east, the borders of Asia are guarded by formidable waves Pacific Ocean. In the west - the Ural Mountains.

The Chinese embassy would have had a bad time if not for Tanya. He spoke with the shanyu - the Hun leader - and soon his master and all his companions were released from custody. Moreover, the leader of the Huns ordered the young Zhang Qian to be married to the daughter of one of his associates and granted him almost complete freedom. Almost - because the imperial ambassador could no longer return home or continue his journey ...

Zhang Qian lived among the Huns for ten long years. During this time, he traveled a lot with them, learned their language and collected a lot of information not only about the nomads themselves, but also about those who lived next to them and who had not been heard of in China before him. He learned that the Huns defeated the Yuezhi and pushed them back to Central Asia.

The day came when Zhang Qian, together with his wife and little son, accompanied by part of his retinue and faithful Tanya, nevertheless fled from the Huns. With great difficulty, he found, passing from one people to another, the leader of the Yuezhi and offered him a military alliance on behalf of his emperor. But the Yuezhi did not want to hear about a new war. Trading is another matter. And they told Zhang Qian about the ancient trade routes that passed north and south of the Tien Shan.

Zhang Qian waited a whole year to see if the stubborn leader would change his mind. Not wait. On the other hand, he studied the country well, and when the time came to get back, he could consider himself the most knowledgeable person in the geography of Central and Central Asia.

On the way back, Zhang Qian decided to cross the northern border of the Pamirs. He called these places the Onion Mountains - so many wild onions grew there.

However, the road to the thinned embassy was soon again blocked by the Huns. Only a year later, the faithful Tanya brought his master and his family out of captivity. Without funds and supplies, they wandered again to the east. It's good that Tanya had a bow and arrows in her hands. Without a miss, he beat fearless birds and animals, getting food for a small caravan.

Tears welled up in Zhang Qian's eyes when around the last bend he saw a battlement wall made of wild stone. This is where the homeland began.

Almost thirteen years continued his journey. The young officer was completely forgotten both at home and at court. But the meeting was all the more joyful. Zhang Qian received a princely title. The emperor appointed him the head of a large detachment and ... immediately sent him to fight against the Huns.

At first, Zhang Qian's luck did not leave him. But military happiness is changeable, and with it the mercy of the emperor changes. The envious courtiers tried to slander the traveler. And now, demoted and disgraced, he is sentenced to death.

All the accumulated wealth went to pay off death. Until recently, rich and noble, Zhang Qian turned out to be a poor man, deprived of titles and privileges. However, this life did not last long. Soon the emperor again needed knowledgeable person to lead the embassy to western lands. He summoned Zhang Qian, hastily "forgave" him and sent him out of the state. The imperial ambassador again traveled around the places he had visited. Explored the Central Tien Shan and sent his assistants to India.

Zhang Qian returned to the Chinese capital almost at the age of ninety. Here he finally found peace after a stormy life.

Years passed, and the power of the Huns was broken. Travel through the lands of Central and Central Asia has become safer. In the footsteps of Zhang Qian, Chinese merchants, ambassadors and scouts moved west. The Chinese discovered the Roman Empire and began to trade actively with the Romans in silk and other goods. The Great Silk Road stretched from the shores of the Pacific Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea.

From the book Heroic Rus' [Pagan titans and demigods] author Prozorov Lev Rudolfovich

author

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From the book How people discovered their land author Tomilin Anatoly Nikolaevich

Chapter seven. How the icy continent was discovered In search of the southernmost continent I have already said that two thousand years ago, ancient philosophers assumed that a huge dry land - the Southern continent - should lie in the Southern Hemisphere. This idea lived for centuries, overgrown

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From the book Russian Roots. We Hold the Sky [Three bestsellers in one volume] author Prozorov Lev Rudolfovich

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It rises sooner or later before every lover of history and geography. After all, everyone has heard wonderful stories about Columbus, Vasco da Gama and numerous conquistadors who conquered the expanses of North and South America. However, everything is not so simple with Eurasia, because there was no one traveler who would own the laurels of the discoverer of the largest continent on the planet. Therefore, it will be problematic to name the one who discovered Eurasia. The name of this person is unknown.

It would be more correct to focus on the main stages of research and description of features geographical location mainland and people who took part in numerous expeditions, the purpose of which was to study the world around us.

Who was the first to discover Eurasia. The first people on the continent

All the main stages of evolution of the human species passed in Africa and, only fully formed, began to expand to the neighboring continent. Until recently, Africa and Eurasia were connected by the relatively wide Isthmus of Suez, and only in the XlX century. it was torn apart by an artificially created shipping channel.

It was along this isthmus and the Red Sea, which was very shallow at that time, that the first Homo sapiens crossed to the Middle East, settling on the Arabian Peninsula. Such a significant event happened, according to some estimates, about 70,000 years ago.

According to the common among modern theory scientists, people, leaving Africa, slowly moved east along the coasts in search of new sources of food, which they were served by shellfish that lived in shallow water. This path was long and difficult and took about 25,000 years, and of course, the route was not so direct - numerous groups fought back and went deep into the continent. Thus, those who discovered the continent of Eurasia were the first people who came out with African continent However, it will take many more millennia for mankind to comprehend its place in the world.

Who discovered Eurasia and in what year. The emergence of the term

Europeans are used to believing that the primacy in geographical discoveries unconditionally belongs to them. And although the contribution of European navigators, traders and travelers is really great, one should not discount the Asian explorers, who also contributed to the study of the geography of the continent.

However, the Europeans still gave the name to the mainland. For a long time, after the outlines of the continent were more defined, a variety of terms were used in the scientific literature to name the largest continent of the Earth.

For example, Alexander Humboldt, the great German scientist, one of whose specializations was geography, used the name Asia for the entire continent, without dividing it into parts of the world. But his Austrian colleague Eduard Suess in the 1880s had already added the prefix "euro" and thus formed the name Eurasia, which quickly entered into scientific use.

Great northern expeditions

If the southern shores of Eurasia were mastered by mankind for many tens of thousands of years, then the northern outskirts of the continent remained unexplored for a long time, as severe climatic conditions prevented this.

First of all, the powers that had access to the North Atlantic were interested in the study of the northern regions, and especially Russian empire, whose borders passed through unexplored and undescribed lands. The Russians began to move north in the 15th century, but they reached Kamchatka only in the 15th century.

The first Russian citizens who came to the Kamchatka Peninsula were people from the detachment of the great Russian explorer and discoverer of the north-east of Siberia, Mikhail Stadukhin. This, however, was an overland expedition.

Bering Strait

For a long time, researchers were occupied with the question of the existence of a bridge between Eurasia and North America, but it was not so easy to answer it. Answering the question of who discovered Eurasia, one cannot avoid mentioning the name of the famous Danish navigator and Russian citizen Vitus Bering, who made a huge contribution to the exploration of the coasts of the northeastern part of the Eurasian continent.

The first sea expedition, the purpose of which was to discover the strait or prove its absence, took place in 1724, when, on the personal order of Peter I, Bering set sail, as a result of which he entered the Chukchi Sea without encountering obstacles and not seeing the American coast. Thus, it was proved that the two continents were separated by a strait, which was named after its discoverer.

The success of the first Kamchatka expedition inspired researchers to organize a whole series of campaigns that went down in history under the name of the Great Northern Expedition. Each of these campaigns brought more and more information about the coast of the Arctic Ocean, and the outlines of the mainland became more and more clear, as if emerging from the sea haze.

Colonization and international cooperation

Arguing about who was the first to discover and explore Eurasia, one cannot name one name, but one can recall the numerous travelers who contributed to the exploration of unknown lands and cartography.

At the turn of the XV-XVl centuries, the leaders in the exploration of overseas lands were the Portuguese, but they were in no hurry to share their knowledge, rightly fearing competition. However, the competitors' curiosity was so great that no obstacles could stop the spies of neighboring states from penetrating the holy of holies of Portuguese cartography - the Indian House, the place where information about the newly discovered lands was stored.

It was as a result of a special spy operation planned by order of Duke Ercole l d "Este that the famous map was stolen from this vault, which went down in history under the name Cantino Planisphere. On this map you can see the world as it seemed to the Portuguese in the 15th century. On this map the coast of Brazil and a narrow strip of the southern and southeastern coasts of Eurasia are visible.

Great Explorers

Today we can confidently say that a special contribution to the study of Eurasia was made by such researchers as Vasco da Gama, who reached the shores of India, and Willem Barents, who stubbornly sought the northern route to the East Indies, but discovered and explored the Arctic.

Age of the Greats geographical discoveries stretched over more than two centuries and included studies of Spanish and Portuguese navigators who were looking for new routes to India, as well as campaigns of Russian Cossacks to Siberia and to the Pacific coast. Therefore, answering the question of who discovered and explored Eurasia, one can name such names: Bering, Vasco da Gama, Timofey Yermak, as well as the names of many other remarkable people.

When studying the question of who discovered Eurasia, it is impossible to name one person. This continent is so large that in different periods of history in different places it was explored by different people. We will find out who took part in the most important expeditions, thanks to which humanity has a complete picture of the world around us.

History of Eurasia exploration

Eurasia is the largest continent on the globe, which is characterized by a wide variety of relief and climatic conditions. It consists of two parts of the world, which were historically divided - Asia and Europe.

Eurasia is the cradle of many ancient civilizations that have developed on the continent for many millennia. The scientific and cultural heritage of Ancient China, India, Babylon, Assyria laid the foundation for the scientific potential of our time.

Rice. 1. Ancient civilizations of Eurasia.

The following factors served as the impetus for the development of the mainland:

• The need to develop trade relations. So at the end of the III century. BC e. The first trade route connecting China, Europe, India and the Middle East was formed.
• Military raids, seizure of territories and strengthening the power of militant tribes.

Eurasia was gradually discovered by its inhabitants, who did not even guess about the size of the mainland. For example, the Phoenicians were the first to discover the Mediterranean coast. The ancient Greeks continued to explore new territories. They sailed in many seas of Europe, discovered the Apennine and Balkan Peninsulas, reached the lands of modern Spain and France.

Period of great geographical discoveries

However, the greatest surge of discoveries occurred in the period from the Middle Ages until the twentieth century, when, thanks to brave travelers, humanity was able to get a complete picture of the largest continent on the planet.

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Eurasian explorers lived at different times in different countries. They opened one part of the mainland, then another. A truly great discovery was the fact that all these parts belong to one continent, which later became known as Eurasia.