Question

what distinguishing features provide evidence of Indian versus chinese influence in different parts of southeast asia

Answer 1

Southeast Asia has a mix of influences from its neighbors China and India. In Southeast Asia, people are ethnically Asian with eyes that are dark-skinned because of their proximity to the tropics. At first glance they could seem more influenced by the Chinese culture, although the Indian culture has given Buddhism as the main religion of the region. The languages are influenced by ancient languages of India. Buddhism has been noticed in the main temples that have a characteristic Buddhist architecture influenced by India, since the southeast Asiatic was a colony of India and its largest immigrant population is precisely the Indian subcontinent. Apart from that the clothing in many places is more similar to that of China as well as its gastronomy. All this is due to its thousands of years of religious and cultural syncretism of those cultural giants that merged creating a very unique and rich culture such as that of the countries of Southeast Asia.