Continents Of The World – GeeksforGeeks

A continent is any of multiple massive landmasses that rise above sea level, or we might say that continents are big expanses of land that rise above sea level. In the world, there are seven continents. Large ocean bodies separate them, and the actual layout of these landmasses varies. 

Continent of the World Map

List of Seven Continents Based on Population

ContinentPopulation (2020)Area(Km sq)DensityWorld Population ShareNumber of CountriesAsia4,641,054,77531,033.13115059.54%48Africa1,340,598,14729,648,4814517.20%54Europe747,636,02622,134,900349.59%44North America592,072,21221,330,000287.60%23South America430,759,76617,461,112255.53%12Australia/Oceania43,111,7048,486,46050.55%03Antarctica013,720,00000.00%0

Asia

Asia is the largest continent on the earth, spanning over a third of the total land area. The continent is present in the Eastern Hemisphere. There are around 48 countries recognized by the United Nations and a few other dependencies. The cancer tropic runs through this continent. The Ural Mountains separate this continent from Europe in the west. Eurasia is the landmass that connects Europe and Asia.

1. Area: 44,579000 sq km
2. Percentage of Land covered with respect to the total land area on earth: 29.8%
3. Oceans and seas: Arctic, Pacific, Indian Ocean, Red sea, Gulf of Oman, Gulf of Aden, Persian Gulf, Bering Sea, Sea of Okhotsk, Bay of Bengal, China sea
4. Important Lakes: Caspian sea, Aral sea, Lake Baikal, Balkhash
5. Average Elevation: 923m
6. No. of Countries in the continent: 50
7. Important Mountain Ranges: Tian shan, Ural mountain, Kamchatka ranges, Verkhoyansk mountains, western ghats, Jagros mountain range, Elburz range, Caucasus range
8. Major Plateau: Asia Minor, Anatolian plateau (turkey), Pamir Plateau
9. Major Deserts: Arabian desert, Gobi desert, Takla Makan, Karakum, Thar desert, Kalkulam, Dust-i-lut
10. Grasslands: Steppe
11. Latitude: 10 degrees South and 80 degrees North
12. Longitude: 25 degrees East and 170 degrees West
13. Land-Locked Countries: Total Ten- Kazakhstan (largest), Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Bhutan, Nepal, Mongolia, Laos

Africa

After Asia, Africa is the world’s second-largest continent. The Equator, often known as 0 degrees latitude, runs practically the whole length of the continent. The Northern Hemisphere encompasses a vast portion of Africa. It is the only continent where the Tropic of cancer, the Equator, and the Tropic of Capricorn all pass through.

Africa includes a total of 54 countries. It is the birthplace of the Nile, the world’s longest river, and also the Sahara, the world’s largest desert. Ethiopia, the world’s hottest region is also located in Africa. Mountain Atlas is located in the northwestern part of Africa. Other geographical areas’ locations are listed here.

1. Abyssinian Plateau: East Africa
2. Guiana Highlands: North-Western Africa
3. Okavango Basin: South-western Africa 
4. Area: 30,365,000 sq km.
5. Percentage of land covered with respect to the total land area on earth: 20.3%
6. Important Lakes: Lake Victoria, Tanganyika, Malawi, Chad, Rudolf, Albert
7. Oceans and seas: Indian Ocean, Red sea, Gulf of Guinea, Mediterranean sea, Atlantic ocean
8. Average Elevation: 600m
9. No. of countries in the continent: 54
10. Important mountain ranges: Atlas mountain, Drakensberg range
11. Major deserts: Sahara desert, Somali desert, Sonoran desert
12. Grasslands: Velds, Savanna
13. Latitude: 35 degrees South and 37 degrees North
14. Longitude: 50 degrees East and 17 degrees West
15. Land-locked countries: Total 16- Botswana, Burundi, Chad, Malabi, Lesotho, Rwanda, Mali, Niger, Zimbabwe, Swaziland, Uganda, Central African Republic, Burkina Faso, Zambia, South Sudan, Ethiopia

Europe

Europe is far smaller than Asia. To the west of Asia is the continent. It is traversed by the Arctic Circle. On three sides, it is surrounded by water. There are no deserts in Europe and was the central point of both World Wars. Europe also has World’s tiniest country, Vatican City. Euro is the single currency used throughout the countries in Europe. The most populous country in Europe is Germany and the most populous cities are London and Paris.

1. Area: 9,938,000 sq km
2. Percentage of land covered with respect to the total land area on earth: 6.7%
3. Oceans and seas: Arctic Ocean, Caspian Sea, Gulf of Finland, Mediterranean sea, Atlantic ocean, Black Sea, White Sea, Norwegian Sea, Baltic Sea, Gulf of Bothnia, Adriatic sea.
4. Important Lakes: Lake Ladoga, Onega, Peipus, Vanern, Vaitern
5. Average Elevation: 233m
6. No. of countries in the continent: 51
7. Important mountain ranges: Scandinavian range, Alps mountain range, Apennine range
8. Major Plateau: Meseta Plateau in the Iberian peninsula (Spain)
9. Grasslands: Steppe, Pustaz (Hungary), 
10. Latitude: 35 degrees North and 73 degrees North
11. Longitude: 25 degrees West and 65 degrees East
12. Land-locked countries: Total 18- Austria, Czech Republic, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Hungary, Serbia, Andorra, Azerbaijan, Slovakia, South, Ossetia, Armenia, Belarus, Lichtenstein, Vatican City, Kosovo, Macedonia, Moldova, San Marino

North America

North America is the third-largest continent on Earth. It has many climates: tropical, desert, continental, moderate, and even polar. In North America, there is a total of five time zones. The USA, which is the world’s largest economy is also situated in North America. The great lake in the world, Lake Superior, the largest freshwater lake in the world is also situated in North America. The Isthmus of Panama connects it to South America. The northern and western hemispheres encompass the entire continent.

1. Area: 24,709,000 sq km
2. Percentage of land covered with respect to the total land area on earth:16.2%
3. Oceans and seas: Pacific Ocean, Arctic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, Gulf of Alaska, Atlantic ocean, Bering sea, Hudson bay
4. Important Lakes: Lake Superior (Largest sweet water lake), Great slave, Huron, Michigan, Great bear, Ontario 
5. Average Elevation: 720m
6. No. of countries in the continent: 23
7. Important mountain ranges: Rocky mountain range, Appalachian mountain range, Cascade Range, Sierra Madre Oriental, Western Sierra Madre, Sierra Madre del Sur, Alaska.
8. Major Plateau: Chiapas plateau (Southern Mexico), Alaska/Ukraine plateau, Columbia Plateau, Great Basin Plateau, Colorado Plateau, Greenland Plateau.
9. Major desert: Mojave desert (South California)
10. Grasslands: Prairies
11. Latitude: 7 degrees North and 84 degrees North
12. Longitude: 20 degrees West and 180 degrees West

South America

South America had the world’s largest lake, The Amazon River. Anaconda, which is one of the largest snakes is also found on this continent. South America is also home to two of the world’s tallest volcanoes: Mt. Cotopaxi and Mt. Chimborazo. Brazil, which is situated in South America is the largest coffee producer.

1. Area: 17,840,000 sq km
2. Percentage of land covered with respect to the total land area on earth: 11.9%
3. Oceans and seas: Pacific ocean, Atlantic ocean, Caribbean sea
4. Important Lakes: Lake Maracaibo, Titicaca
5. Average Elevation: 554m
6. No. of countries in the continent: 12
7. Important mountain ranges: Cardilera de los Andes, 
8. Major Plateau: Patagonia plateau, 
9. Major deserts: Atacama (World’s driest desert), Sechura (Northwest Peru), Patagonia desert (Argentina and Chile)
10. Grasslands: Campos, Llanos, Pampas
11. Latitude: 12 degrees North and 55 degrees North
12. Longitude: 35 degrees West and 81 degrees West
13. Land-locked countries: Total Two- Bolivia, Paraguay

Australia

Australia is also referred to as the “Island Continent”. Australia is also the smallest continent in the world. There are only 3 countries. They are Australia, New Zealand, and Papua New Guinea. It is also known as the ” The Land Down Under” because it lies completely south of the equator.

1. Area: 7,687,000 sq km
2. Percentage of land covered with respect to the total land area on earth: 5.7%
3. Oceans and seas: Pacific ocean, Indian ocean, Tasman Sea, Timor Sea, Arafura Sea, Gulf of Carpentaria, Great Australian Bight, Coral sea
4. Important Lakes: Lake Eyre
5. Average Elevation: 308m
6. No. of countries in the continent: 14
7. Important mountain ranges: Great dividing range
8. Major desert: Australian desert (Great Victoria, Simpson, Gibson, Stuart, and great sandy desert areas combined formed the Australian desert)
9. Grasslands: Downs, Savanna, Canterbury (New Zealand)
10. Latitude: 10 degrees South and 80 degrees North
11. Longitude: 25 degrees East and 170 degrees West

Antarctica

Antarctica is a vast continent that spans the entire Southern Hemisphere. In the summers, Antarctica occupies 14.2 million square kilometers and with the vast sea ice that develops around the periphery during winters, the size doubles, Antarctica is also the world’s driest, windiest, emptiest, and coldest continent.

This continent’s south pole is about in the middle. It is permanently covered by heavy ice sheets due to its location in the South Polar zone. Human settlements are not permanent. Antarctica is home to many countries’ research sites. There are similar research sites in India at Maitri and Dakshin Gangotri. It is the world’s tallest continent in terms of average elevation. It can be found in the vicinity of the South Pole.

1. Area: 13,209,000 sq km
2. Percentage of land covered with respect to the total land area on earth- 8.9%
3. Average Elevation- 1846m
4. No. of countries in the continent- No permanent inhabitants
5. Important mountain ranges- Trans Antarctica mountain
6. Latitude- 10 degrees South and 80 degrees North
7. Longitude- 25 degrees East and 170 degrees West

Area- Wise Continents- Largest to Smallest

The 7 continents in order from largest to smallest are listed below:

1. Asia
2. Africa
3. North America
4. South America
5. Antarctica
6. Europe 
7. Australia

FAQs on Continents of the World

Question 1: How many continents are in the world?

Answer:

There are seven continents in the world: Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia.

Question 2: What is the name of all 7 continents?

Answer:

The names of the 7 continents are: Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia.

Question 3: Which continent does Russia belong to?

Answer:

Russia belongs to both Europe and Asia continents. 75 percent of the Russian population lives in Europe and 75 percent of Russian territory is in Asia.

Question 4: Which continent does Hawaii belong to?

Answer:

None. Hawai is politically part of North America but geographically not part of the continent.

My Personal Notes

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