The Old Plains of Southeast Asia During the Last Ice Age

The land mass of Southeast Asia during the Last Ice Age was incredibly different compared to what it is today. The region was much more isolated, with many islands now submerged underwater, and land bridges connecting areas that are now divided by ocean.

At the peak of the last glacial period, sea levels were significantly lower, due to much of the planet’s water being stored in ice sheets and glaciers. This meant that the coastline of Southeast Asia extended much further out than it does today, covering parts of the South China Sea, the Java Sea, the Bay of Bengal, and the Andaman Sea. This landmass is oftentimes referred to as Sundaland, which encompasses the Sunda shelf, the part of the Asian continental shelf that was exposed.

The islands of Sumatra, Java, Borneo, and many others were once connected to the mainland via a massive land bridge. This land bridge connected the modern-day Thai, Malaysian, and Indonesian mainland, allowing for some of the earliest human migrations from Africa to Asia.

During the last ice age, much of the area was covered in dry, grassy plains and savannas. The climate was much drier and cooler than it is today, and much of the vegetation and wildlife would have been significantly different.

Animals such as mammoths, woolly rhinoceroses, saber-toothed cats, giant bears, and giant elks were common in the region, and humans were also widespread. Early humans in the region would have relied heavily on hunting, fishing, and scavenging for food, as well as gathering fruits, nuts, and seeds.

The land mass of Southeast Asia during the Last Ice Age was a harsh and unforgiving environment, but it was also the cradle of early human migration and the source of many of the cultures and traditions that we see today. It is possible that relics of ancient and lost cities are hidden beneath the water bodies of today and some even believe Atlantis may lie in the Java Sea…