Asia's The Beautiful Woman Alive Atlas
In a fit of ambitious curiosity and anti-jingoism, we sought out a Woman We Love... in every country on the planet. Not necessarily the sexiest, but still — a resource.Forget Miss Universe. Well, not altogether. But what's the point of a beauty pageant, really? Shouldn't the women of the world be celebrated for who they are, even if they do happen to look damn fine in a bikini? That's what we thought, anyway, when Esquire.com sought out early in 2010 to find exactly what we found in Minka Kelly, this year's Sexiest Woman Alive, in 193 other women: something different, something beautiful, something that reveals a little bit more about who we are. Put it all together with a little help from the editors of Esquire's 17 international editions and, yeah, you've got some sashes, but also presidents, human-rights activists, models with legitimate hearts of gold, and this one incredible actress from India. Our list is highly subjective and far from scientific — feel free to find your country in the thumbnails below and suggest alternatives — but it's kinda like the United Nations: just useful enough to keep college kids studying it. And now, introducing our ambassadors...
Afghanistan
Malalai Joya
Albania
Angela Martini
Algeria
Kerima
Andora
Melissandre Fuentes
Antigua and Barbuda
Stephanie Winter
Argentina
Cristina Fernández de Kirchner
Armenia
Anna Condo
Australia
Isabel Lucas
Austria
Nicola Mar
Azerbaijan
Mehriban Aliyeva
Bahamas, The
Shakara Ledard
Bahrain
Maryam Yusuf Jamal
Bangladesh
Anika Kabir Shokh
Barbados
Rihanna
Belarus
Tanya Dziahileva
Belize
Felicita Arzu
Benin
Chantal Boni
Bhutan
Tshering Yangzom-Tashigang
Bolivia
Carla Ortiz
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Ivana Milicevic
Botswana
Tirelo Ramasedi
Brazil
Gisele Bundchen
Brunei
Maria
Bulgaria
Rali Ivanova
Burkina Faso
Georgie Badiel
Burma
Aung San Suu Kyi
Burundi
Khadja Nin
Cambodia
Somaly Mam
Cameroon
Calixthe Beyala
Canada
Rachel McAdams
Cape Verde
Lura
Central African Republic
Monique Bozize
Chad
Kaltouma Nadjina
Chile
Siboney Lo
China
Liu Wen
Colombia
Sofia Vergara
Comoros
Sakina M'sa
Costa Rica
Maria Teresa Rodriguez
Côte d'Ivoire
Marguerite Abouet
Croatia
Monika Jakisic
Cuba
Daisy Fuentes
Cyprus
Demetra Olymbiou
Czech Republic
Zina Tovickova
Denmark
Helena Christensen
Djibouti
Fathia Ali Bourrale
Dominica
Dominican Republic
Dania Ramirez
Ecuador
Lady Mina Lastra
Egypt
Hanan Turk