India is called a sub-continent because, India has common land boundaries with seven countries?Afghanistan and Pakistan to the north-west, China, Nepal and Bhutan to the north, and Bangladesh and Myanmar to the east. To the south, across the sea lies the island of Sri Lanka separated by the Palk Strait and the Maldives. The land mass comprising Afghanistan, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives is isolated in a remarkable way from the rest of Asia forming a sub-division of the continent. This landmass is known as the Indian subcontinent.