Insular South Asia is an ill-defined region, consisting at a minimum of all islands in the Southern region of Asia, principally Sri Lanka, the Maldives and the Laccadives.[1][2][3] Other sources also apply the term to the Malay Archipelago in Southeast Asia encompassing Brunei, Indonesia, East Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and East Timor.[4][5]
It was an important region during the initial European colonisation of South Asia and Southeast Asia.[6][3]