Everything about The Borders Of The Continents totally explained
The
borders of the continents are the limits of the several
continents of the
Earth, as defined by various geographical, cultural, and political criteria.
Europe and Asia
The nature and boundaries of
Europe is more a sociopolitical question than a geographical one. Many geologists and geographers agree that Europe and
Asia share many common geographical features and they're sometimes referred to as the single continent
Eurasia. Although Europe is a distinct geographical entity, mostly a super-peninsula of the mainland of Asia, so is for example, the
Indian subcontinent which even resides on a different tectonic plate than the rest of Asia and Europe.
The eastern boundary of Europe has been variously defined since antiquity.
Herodotus regarded Europe as extending all the way to the
Eastern Ocean, and being as long as (and much larger than)
Africa and Asia together. The modern world is in consensus that Europe ends at the
Aegean Sea, the
Black Sea and the
Ural Mountains, but the boundaries between these latter two features are uncertain; that leading from the Urals to the Black Sea, for example, has been drawn by different authorities as at the
Don, the
Kuma-Manych Depression, the
Caucasus, the Russian frontier or the
Rioni River.
Western sources (for example the
National Geographic Society) usually state that the Europe-Asia boundary follows the
watershed of the
Ural Mountains from near Kara,
Russia on the
Kara Sea to the source of the
Ural River, then follows that river to the
Caspian Sea. The border then follows the watershed of the
Caucasus Mountains from the
Caspian Sea to the
Black Sea.
By this definition, the Ural Mountains are on the border of Europe and Asia, likewise for the Greater Caucasus (although
Mount Elbrus, which would be the highest point in Europe, is north of the watershed divide, and as such would be entirely in Europe by this definition). The Lesser Caucasus is located entirely in Asia. The Turkish city
Istanbul lies in both Europe and Asia, effectively making it a
transcontinental city.
Georgia and
Azerbaijan both have most of their territory in Asia, although each has small parts of its northern territory in Europe.
Russia and
Kazakhstan have both European (western) and Asian (eastern) parts. While Russia is generally considered a
European country that extends into Asia, Kazakhstan is considered a
Central Asian country that extends into Europe.
Three nations of the South Caucasus Georgia, Azerbaijan and
Armenia – have a strong sociopolitical claim to be European. Of the three, only Georgia and Azerbaijan are generally regarded as having portions of territory in Europe, but Armenia may be regarded as European for cultural and historical reasons. All three, however, are typically excluded from lists of European states.
According to the Russian definition, the boundary between Europe and Asia runs along the
Mugodzhar Hills, then down the
Emba River to the
Caspian Sea. From the
Caspian Sea it runs to the
Black Sea along the
Kuma-Manych Depression, marked by the rivers of the same name. This definition from
Strahlenberg was in use by Russian geographers since mid-18th century; it was officially recommended for use in textbooks by the Geographical Society of USSR in 1958. Strahlenberg's definition is also common in German language area . It places all of the
Caucasus, including countries of Georgia and Azerbaijan and North Caucasian republics of
Chechnya and
Dagestan, entirely in Asia.
Russia's
Vaygach Island and
Novaya Zemlya extend northward from the northern end of the
Ural Mountains and are a continuation of the chain into the
Arctic Ocean. They separate the European
Barents Sea and the Asian
Kara Sea, and may be considered part of
Europe or
Asia. The maps on this page show them with Europe. The Russian Arctic
archipelago of
Franz Josef Land farther north is also associated with Europe. All of these Arctic islands are part of the European
Arkhangelsk Oblast.
Lesser accepted Europe and Asia divisions
- Meso-Caucasus definition This definition defines the border between the Caspian and Black seas, as follows: The border goes between the Greater Caucasus and Lesser Caucasus, and is marked by the Rioni River and lower Kura River, although this border is ill-defined between the two rivers. This definition leaves a greater part of Georgia and Azerbaijan in Europe.
- Lesser Caucasus definition Though very rare, this definition defines the border between the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea as the watershed of the Lesser Caucasus. This definition places Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia almost entirely in Europe, and Iran almost entirely in Asia; however, some isolated spots of these four countries can be placed on the other continent.
- Political Russian division The division of Russia, considering the Russian Federal Subjects, is the following:
Culturally European states
Other nations have strong cultural ties with Europe, such as the northern African states of
Morocco,
Algeria,
Tunisia and
Egypt. However, the clear boundary of the
Mediterranean Sea excludes these nations geographically. Some in Egypt,
Israel, Morocco, Tunisia and
Cape Verde have shown ambition to become a state of the
European Union, but currently full membership is disallowed (Morocco applied to join, but was rejected on
geographical grounds). Of course, many other countries outside Europe have cultural and historical ties to Europe as a consequence of
colonization and
migration.
Politically European states
» See also Geographic criteria for EU membership
Europe ends in the west at the
Atlantic Ocean, although
Iceland and the
Azores archipelago (in the Atlantic, between Europe and North America) are usually considered European, as is the Norwegian
Svalbard archipelago in the
Arctic Ocean.
Greenland is geographically associated with North America but politically associated with Europe (as it's still part of
Denmark, although EU law no longer applies there).
Turkey, despite having only 3% of its land in Europe, has been a member of the
Council of Europe since 1949 and an official candidate for membership of the
European Union since 2005. Islands geographically associated with one continent sometimes have stronger political and cultural ties to another. For example,
Cyprus, an island geographically a part of Asia, was admitted to the Council of Europe in 1961 and joined the EU in 2004.
Cape Verde, an island group off the Atlantic coast of Africa, has also shown an interest in joining the EU.
Armenia,
Georgia, and
Azerbaijan, also geographically Asian states (although Azerbaijan and Georgia have a part of their land in Europe,) have all joined the Council of Europe.
Africa
The natural geographical boundaries of Africa are the Mediterranean Sea, the
Red Sea, and the
Gulf of Aden. The boundary between Africa and
Asia is usually from the
Gulf of Suez, or less frequently, from the
Gulf of Aqaba. On purely geological grounds, the boundary could be drawn along the fault-line into the
Jordan River valley (which would make
Israel,
Lebanon, and a small part of
Syria part of Africa.)
The usual line today is at the Isthmus of Suez along the path of the
Suez Canal. This makes the
Sinai Peninsula geographically Asian, and
Egypt a transcontinental country. A map of the recognized boundary between the two continents may be viewed
here. Nevertheless Egypt is commonly referred to as an African state, because most of its population and territory are there. Geopolitically, Egypt is sometimes regarded as an Asian state, and it's usually considered part of the transcontinental geopolitical region of the
Middle East.
In historical geography, several of the larger
Mediterranean islands have often been more akin to Africa than to Europe or Asia.
Ancient Egypt often ruled
Cyprus, and sometimes
Crete and
Rhodes. The
Roman Empire grouped
Crete with
Cyrenaica (in ancient
Libya.) The
Balearic Islands and half of
Sicily were ruled from
Carthage.
The
Canary Islands and
Madeira Islands are off the Atlantic coast of
Morocco, and although they're geographically part of
Africa, they're under the rule of
Spain and
Portugal, respectively, and geopolitically part of
Europe. Prior to Southwest European colonization, they were fully integrated into Africa.
Mayotte, situated in the
Mozambique Channel between Africa and
Madagascar (also geographically part of
Africa) is under the rule of
France, as are
Réunion Island east of Madagascar and some
scattered islands in the Indian Ocean also associated with Africa. The
Seychelles,
Mauritius, and
Comoros are island nations also associated with Africa.
Africa and Europe
The boundaries between
Europe and
Africa are almost entirely clear-cut and undisputed, since the two continents occupy opposite sides of the
Mediterranean Sea, of which the midway areas are mostly devoid of islands.
Spain owns the exclaves of
Ceuta and Melilla on the African mainland.
Sicily forms an extension of Europe into the heart of the Mediterranean, with only
Malta,
Pantelleria, and the
Pelagie Islands falling into question.
Malta is geographically associated with Africa but has geopolitically been considered part of
Europe since its
Christian reconquest. It is closer to the African mainland than the Italian mainland and has historically been associated with Africa much longer. The Maltese people speak a North African dialect of
Arabic and are descended from the ancient Libyans, Egyptians, and
Phoenicians, as well as the island's Islamic conquerors.
The Italian islands of
Pantelleria and the
Pelagie Islands are closer to
Tunisia on the African continent than
Sicily and thus part of
Africa. The Portuguese Atlantic island possession of the
Azores is slightly closer to Europe than Africa and is associated with Europe.
Africa and South America
Located in the
Atlantic Ocean, the uninhabited Brazilian island possessions of
Saint Peter and Paul Rocks,
Trindade and Martim Vaz are associated with South America whilst the British island possessions of
Ascension Island,
Saint Helena,
Tristan da Cunha, and
Gough Island are associated with Africa.
The Americas
The border between
North America and
South America has been drawn variously, generally somewhere along the
Isthmus of Panama.
One common demarcation follows the Darien Mountains watershed divide along the
Colombia-Panama boundary where the isthmus meets the South American continent. Another reckons the continental divide at the
Panama Canal, whereby Panama has territory on either side in both continents. Geopolitically (for example, not strictly geophysical), Panama is usually included with the other
North American countries in Central America. The border between North and South America has also been drawn (infrequently) between
Costa Rica and Panama, or at one of several other lines across the Isthmus of
Panama.
In non-Anglophone cultures,
America is thought of as one continent or
supercontinent encompassing the entire landmass between Alaska and
Tierra del Fuego. In this way, North, Central and South America are thought of as
regions of the greater landmass.
America is often regarded as a single continent in
Latin America,
Spain, and
Portugal, along with other countries. The
Olympic Rings represent the Americas with a single ring.
This collection of lands and regions in the
Western hemisphere is referred to as the
Americas by the English-speaking world. From a sociopolitical and
cultural perspective, the Americas are generally divided into
Anglo-America (the U.S.,
Canada, and the Anglo-Caribbean countries) where
English prevails and
Latin America (
Mexico, most of South America, and some of the Caribbean such as
Cuba and
Hispaniola;
Haiti and the
Dominican Republic) where
Romance languages generally predominate. Latin America – particularly
Hispanic America – is generally considered a transcontinental region straddling two continents, much like the
Middle East. Moreover, the
Guyanas are sometimes grouped with the
Caribbean region along with
Belize and
Bermuda (a British possession actually 1000 km east of the US mainland, also sometimes grouped with Anglo-America.) It isn't uncommon for what is geopolitically considered North America to be limited to the US, Canada, and sometimes Bermuda.
The
Galápagos Islands and
Malpelo Island in the eastern
Pacific Ocean are possessions of
Ecuador and
Colombia, respectively, and associated with
South America. The uninhabited French possession of
Clipperton Island 600 miles off the Mexican coast is associated with
North America. France also continues to control
French Guiana on the northern mainland of South America, as well as
Saint-Pierre and Miquelon off the coast of
Newfoundland and
Martinique,
Guadeloupe,
Saint-Barthélemy, and
Saint Martin in the North American Caribbean. The
Netherlands and the
United Kingdom are two other European nations that also continue to control islands in the Caribbean, and the
Netherlands Antilles are considered split between North and South America.
Europe and North America
The boundaries between
Europe and
North America are mostly clear-cut and undisputed, since the two continents occupy opposite sides of the North
Atlantic Ocean, of which the midway areas are devoid of islands, except in the north, where the line comes down to
Greenland and Iceland.
Iceland and the
Azores are protusions of the
Mid-Atlantic Ridge and are associated with and peopled from Europe.
Greenland not only is usually considered geographically North American, most of the Greenlander ancestry is from the
Inuit people indigenous to northern North America. The Norwegian Arctic islands of
Jan Mayen and
Svalbard archipelago are associated with Europe. Although Greenland is the closest land to them, they're much closer to Europe than to the North American mainland.
Asia and North America
The
Bering Strait and
Bering Sea separate the landmasses of
Asia and
North America, as well as forming the international boundaries between
Russia and the
United States, respectively. This national and continental boundary separates the
Diomede Islands in the Bering Strait, with Big Diomede in Russia and Little Diomede in the US. The
Aleutian Islands are an island chain extending westward from the
Alaska Peninsula toward Russia's
Komandorski Islands and
Kamchatka Peninsula, as well as an integral part of the transcontinental American state of
Alaska. Most of them are associated with North America, except for the westernmost
Near Islands group, which is on Asia's continental shelf beyond the
North Aleutians Basin and allows the US to be considered a transcontinental country without
Hawaii and other Oceanian island possessions.
The US therefore is situated in central and northwestern North America, northeastern Asia, and Oceania.
St. Lawrence Island in the northern Bering Sea belongs to Alaska and may be associated with either continent, as may the
Rat Islands in the Aleutian chain. The western Aleutian Islands belong to the transcontinental
Aleutians West Census Area. St. Lawrence Island belongs to the
Nome Census Area, which is also transcontinental if the island is associated with Asia.
Asia and Oceania
Indonesia is today more commonly referred to as one of the
Southeast Asian countries, and thus simply Asian.
East Timor, an independent state that was formerly a territory of Indonesia, is sometimes considered part of Oceania, but is classified by the
United Nations as part of the "South-Eastern Asia" block. It is
expected to join the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (External Link
), having been involved as an ASEAN Regional Forum member since independence, and has participated in the
Southeast Asian Games since
2003.
The Commonwealth of
Australia includes island possessions in Oceania and Southeast Asia.
Antarctica
Antarctica and its outlying islands have no permanent population. All land south of 60°S latitude is
terra nullius and the
Antarctic Treaty System holds all claims to such land in abeyance. Although
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands are closer to Antarctica, the inhabited
Falkland Islands are closer to
South America and the continental boundary separates them from the South Georgia group. These South Atlantic island groups were the object of contention in the
Falklands War between the United Kingdom and
Argentina, which maintains its
irredentist claims on the islands.
The following are sub-Antarctic island territories north of 60° and associated with Antarctica:
Australia: Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Macquarie Island
France: Crozet Islands, Île Amsterdam, Île Saint-Paul, Kerguelen Islands
New Zealand: Antipodes Islands, Auckland Islands, Campbell Islands (all disputed whether associated with Oceania or Antarctica)
Norway: Bouvet Island
South Africa: Prince Edward Islands (disputed whether associated with Africa or Antarctica)
United Kingdom: South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
Further Information
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