The Bubonic plague is generally associated with Europe, partly because the course of the pandemic in Asia is not as thoroughly documented as it is for Europe, especially culture-wise.

What we do know is that several diseases, including the Black Plague, had an effect on Eastern Asian countries. As of 1200, China had a total population of more than 120 million, but a 1393 census found only 65 million Chinese surviving. Besides famine and upheaval, the majority of these people died due to illnesses. However, it is very difficult to determine what diseases caused these declines in population.

The use of the word mors nigra came from within Europe around the mid 14th-century (Simon de Covino or Couvin). In Asia, however, flu like diseases like the Bubonic plague hadn't been identified specifically and were grouped together with similar diseases. Egyptian scholar Al-Mazriqi wrote that "more than three hundred tribes all perished without apparent reason in their summer and winter encampments" (Orent, 106) Modern historians can only guess whether this was due to the Bubonic plague or other bacterial infections.

There is no doubt people in Eastern Asian countries did die from the Black Plague, but due to vague historical records and a shortage of information, it is nearly impossible to even attempt to determine with as much accuracy as with Europe how many did.

Kohn, George C. (2008). Encyclopedia of plague and pestilence: from ancient times to the present.

Francis Aidan Gasquet, The Black Death of 1348 and 1349, 2nd ed.