List of contemporary ethnic groups of Asia

The following is a list of contemporary ethnic groups of Asia. There has been constant debate over the classification of ethnic groups. Membership of an ethnic group tends to be associated with shared ancestry, history, homeland, language or dialect and cultural heritage; where the term "culture" specifically includes aspects such as religion, mythology and ritual, cuisine, dressing (clothing) style and other factors.

By the nature of the concept, ethnic groups tend to be divided into subgroups, may themselves be or not be identified as independent ethnic groups depending on the source consulted.

Asia here is considered to be approximately delimited from Oceania by the Weber Line in Wallacea located east of the Indonesian islands of Sulawesi, the Sula Archipelago, East Nusa Tenggara, and Barat Daya. It is delineated from Europe by Anatolia at the border between the Kocaeli and Istanbul Provinces, the Sea of Marmara, the Dardanelles, and the Aegean Islands, with those administered by Turkey being considered part of Asia and those by Greece being part of Europe; by the Greater Caucasus mountains with the North Caucasus being part of Europe and the South Caucasus being part of Asia; by Siberia at the border of the Volga, Northwestern, and Ural federal districts; and by Asian Kazakhstan at the border of the West Kazakhstan and Atyrau regions to the west and the Aktobe and Mangystau regions to the east and south. It is delimited from Africa by the Red Sea, Suez Canal, Bab-el-Mandeb, and Gulf of Aden; and from North America by the Chukchi Sea, Bering Strait, and Bering Sea along the Baker-Shevardnadze line. This does not fully align with conventional delimitations of Asia and is used primarily as a matter of convenience, as many publications about ethnic groups will only specify locations down to provinces, making more precise delimitation impractical.