continent

thumb|upright=1.6|Animated, colour-coded map showing four to seven continents – depending on the boundaries between the continents|convention and model, some continents may be consolidated or subdivided.

AI overview

A continent is a large landmass on Earth, though exactly how many continents exist and where their boundaries are drawn depends on which geographic convention or model is used. Continents matter because they provide a fundamental way to organize and discuss Earth's geography, though scientists and geographers don't always agree on the exact divisions.

AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

Described at

Who’s On First | Docs | Placetypes

Who’s on First is a gazetteer of places.

whosonfirst.org →

Link to a page describing this subject · 13,670 chars · not written by Vinony

Wikidata facts

Image: Continentes Wikipedia.svg

Show 7 more facts

OpenStreetMap tag: place=continent
Commons category: Continents
Commons gallery: Continents
equivalent class: schema.org/Continent
described at URL: wikispooks.com/wiki/Continent
P8168: Inha Babakova
NCI Thesaurus ID: C76349

Sources (2)

via Wikidata · CC0

~33 min read

Article

24 sections

Contents

Etymology
Definitions and application {{Anchor|Definition}}
Extent
Separation
Number
Eighth continent
Area and population
Other divisions
Supercontinents
Subcontinents
Submerged continents
Microcontinents
Geological continents
History of the concept
Early concepts of the Old World continents
European arrival in the Americas
Beyond four continents
Geology
Criticism
See also
Notes
References
Bibliography
External links

A continent is any of several large terrestrial geographical regions. Continents are generally identified by convention rather than any strict criteria. A continent could be a single large landmass, a landmass and nearby islands either on or beyond its continental shelf, or a part of a larger landmass, as in the case of Asia and Europe within Eurasia. Due to these varying definitions, the number of continents varies, up to seven or as few as four. Most English-speaking countries recognize seven continents. In order from largest to smallest in area, these seven are Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia (or sometimes Oceania or Australasia). Different variations with fewer continents merge some of these regions; examples of this are merging Asia and Europe into Eurasia, North America and South America into the Americas (or simply America), and Africa, Asia, and Europe into Afro-Eurasia.