Chapter 3 Continents Countries and Capitals Objective understanding

Chapter 3 Continents, Countries and Capitals Objective: understanding the major landmasses of the world, and gaining general insight about the countries in the world

Continents n The major landmasses of the world are; Europe n Asia n Africa n North America n South America n Antarctica n Australia/Oceania n http: //go. hrw. com/atlas/norm_htm/world. htm

Continents by Size #1 Asia - (44, 579, 000 sq km) #2 Africa - (30, 065, 000 sq km) #3 North America - (24, 256, 000 sq km) #4 South America - (17, 819, 000 sq km) #5 Antarctica - (13, 209, 000 sq km) #6 Europe - (9, 938, 000 sq km) #7 Australia/Oceania - (7, 687, 000 sq km) http: //www. graphicmaps. com/geoquiz/thelist. htm

Continents by population #1 Asia - (3, 674, 000) #2 Africa - (778, 000) #3 Europe - (732, 000) #4 North America - (483, 000) #5 South America - (342, 000) #6 Australia/Oceania - (31, 000) #7 Antarctica - (0)

Continents by the number of countries #1 Africa - (53) #3 Europe - (46) #2 Asia - (44) #4 North America - (23) #5 Australia/Oceania - (14) #6 South America - (12)

Europe The landmass that extends from the Ural Mountains in Russia on the east and the Bosporus Strait in Turkey to the Atlantic Ocean on the west. n Also includes the islands/nations of the United Kingdom, Ireland, Iceland Malta. n http: //go. hrw. com/atlas/norm_htm/europe. htm

Asia n n n The landmass that extends from the Bosporus Strait in Turkey on the west, the Ural Mountains in Russia on the north and the Suez Canal in Egypt on the south to the Pacific Ocean on the east. Also includes islands/nations of Cyprus, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Japan, Taiwan, Indonesia and the Philippines. Since Europe and Asia are connected at the Ural Mountains, the entire landmass is called Eurasia. http: //go. hrw. com/atlas/norm_htm/asia. htm

Africa The landmass bordered by the Atlantic Ocean on the west, the Indian Ocean on the east, the Mediterranean Sea on the north and the Red Sea and Suez Canal on the northeast. n Includes the islands/nations of the Seychelles, Comoros, Mauritius, Reunion, Sao Tome and Principe, Madagascar, Cape Verde, and the Canary Islands. n http: //go. hrw. com/atlas/norm_htm/africa. htm

North America The landmass bordered by the Atlantic Ocean on the east, the Pacific Ocean on the west, the Arctic Ocean on the north and the nation of Colombia on the south. n Includes Greenland, Bermuda, the Bahamas and the islands of the Caribbean Sea. n http: //go. hrw. com/atlas/norm_htm/namerica. htm

South America The landmass bordered by the Pacific Ocean on the west, the Atlantic Ocean on the east and the nation of Panama on the north. n Includes the Galapagos Islands and the Falkland Islands. n http: //go. hrw. com/atlas/norm_htm/samerica. htm

Antarctica n n n The landmass on the very southeast, bordered by the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. The world's coldest and most inaccessible region Largely covered by floating pack ice The Antarctic is much colder than the Arctic, only inhabitants are visiting scientists. Various nations claim different parts of the Antarctic mainland. In 1959, twelve nations signed the Antarctic Treaty and agreed that Antarctica should be used for peaceful purposes only.

Australia n The landmass bordered by the Indian Ocean on the west, south and northwest; the Timor Sea, the Arafura Sea and the Gulf of Carpentaria on the north; the Coral Sea on the east and northeast; and the Tasman Sea on the southeast. http: //www. atlapedia. com/online/maps/physical/Australia. htm http: //go. hrw. com/atlas/norm_htm/oceania. htm

Oceans of the World n n Oceans cover 70% of the Earth’s surface. They affect the weather and temperature by absorbing the heat (solar radiation) coming from the sun. All oceans on earth are connected to each other. There are four oceans: the Pacific (the biggest and the deepest), Atlantic, Indian and Arctic (the smallest). In 2000, another is labeled as the Southern Ocean (surrounds Antarctica, really the southern portion of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans). http: //www. enchantedlearning. com/subjects/ocean/

Island Groups n n Islands are generally associated with the nearest continent to them, except the islands in the Pacific Ocean. The islands in the Pacific Ocean are collectively referred to as “Oceania” (the continent of Australia is also included in Oceania). Islands especially in warm climates attracts travelers. Some are visited as part of a travel to a mainland country (such as the Greek islands when traveled to Greece), some are destinations themselves. The most popular are in the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean.

Caribbean n n Caribbean islands are the islands in the Caribbean Sea. They do not include the Bahamas and Bermuda. Antilles: another name for the Caribbean Islands. Great Antilles: the largest ones including Cuba, Hispaniola (countries of Haiti and the Dominican Republic), Jamaica and Puerto Rico. Lesser Antilles: those Caribbean islands not among the Greater Antilles. http: //www. unspoiledislands. com/sunscribers/map. cfm

Pacific n n n Polynesia: includes the islands within the triangle of Hawaii, New Zealand Eastern Island. It does not include Fiji, though it includes Tuvalu. The term “Polynesia” means many islands. Melanesia: the islands from New Guinea to Fiji and New Caledonia. Micronesia: the islands in the western Pacific, including islands from Palau to Kiribati, the Marshalls and Nauru. The term “Micronesia” means small islands. http: //www. mapsouthpacific. com/pacific/index. html

Major Mountain Ranges n n n Rockies; North American range running from Alaska to Mexico. It covers the Sierra Nevada range between California and Nevada. Sierra Madre (Occidental); the continuation of the Rockies, runs through Mexico in the north-south direction. Andes; a South American mountain chain, running in a north-south direction, primarily in Ecuador, Bolivia, Peru, Chile and Argentina. http: //www. eduplace. com/ss/maps/pdf/americas_phys. pdf

n n Alps; a European mountain chain running in an eastwest direction, primarily in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Italy and Slovenia. Himalaya; An Asian mountain chain running in an east-west direction, primarily in China (Tibet), Bhutan, Nepal, India, and Pakistan. http: //www. eduplace. com/ss/maps/pdf/world_phys. pdf (also see the world map on page 5 of your course book)

Countries of the World n n n According to UN, there are 191 countries in the world (excluding the Vatican City). There are 193 countries (including Taiwan and the Vatican City). Places commonly confused as being countries include Puerto Rico, Bermuda, and Greenland. http: //geography. about. com/library/weekly/aa 091399. htm n The countries of the World and their Capitals http: //geography. about. com/library/misc/blnationalcapitals. htm

Countries in Europe and their Capitals n n n n n Iceland Ireland United Kingdom Portugal Spain France Norway Sweden Finland Reykjavik Dublin London Lisbon Madrid Paris Oslo Stockholm Helsinki

n n n Denmark Netherlands Belgium Luxembourg Germany Switzerland Liechtenstein Italy Monaco Austria Czech Republic Copenhagen Amsterdam Brussels Luxembourg Berlin Bern Vaduz Rome Monte Carlo Vienna Prag

n n n n n Hungary Poland Slovakia Croatia Bosnia and Herzegovina Albania The Former Yugoslav Rep. of Macedonia Estonia Latvia Lithuania Budapest Warsaw Bratislava Zagreb Sarajevo Tirana Skopje Tallinn Riga Vilnius

n n n Belarus Ukraine Romania Bulgaria Greece Moldova Malta Russia Slovenia Serbia and Montenegro Andorra Minsk Kiev Bucharest Sofia Athens Chisinau Valletta Moscow Ljubljana Belgrade Andorra La Vella

http: //www. eduplace. com/ss/maps/pdf/eur_country. pdf Geography Game: http: //www. nationalgeographic. com/geospy/

Countries in Asia http: //www. eduplace. com/ss/maps/pdf/asia_pacific. pdf

Countries in Africa http: //www. eduplace. com/ss/maps/pdf/afr_asia_pol. pdf

Countries in North America http: //www. eduplace. com/ss/maps/pdf/n_america. pdf

Countries in South America http: //www. eduplace. com/ss/maps/pdf/s_america. pdf

Countries in Oceania http: //www. eduplace. com/ss/maps/pdf/se_asia_pac_pol. pdf