Continent

A continent (Latin terra continens " continuous land " ) is a closed solid land mass in the original sense of the word. In many languages ​​the word for continent also comes from the Latin continens. In German there next to the name of continent света in Russian according Части ( " part of the earth ").

The Encyclopædia Britannica defines the term continent geographically, " one of the larger contiguous land masses, namely Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia ( in order of size ) '. The continents in the geographical sense make up 29.3 percent of the earth's surface, which is about 148 million square kilometers. The rest occupy the oceans, seas and islands.

Today in Geography and Geology respectively different divisions of the continents are common. Geopolitically, there are the continents of Asia, Europe, North America, South America, Africa, Australia, Oceania and Antarctica.

Definitions

The publication of the prestigious National Geographic Society, the American magazine of the same name ( " NatGeo " ), also referred to as continents distinctive regions, areas of the earth and also specifies the number of parts, namely - seven. One publication of a teaching aid ( a practice sheet ) of the traditional British Royal Geographical Society is given this number as well. The six larger (Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica and Europe) are listed in both. The only difference relates to the designation of the smallest Earth region. The U.S. source they called, translated into German, each as Australia and the UK as Oceania. Thus, after the reading of the current British school form Australia is a part of the continent Oceania. At this fineness is read how versatile can be the problem to find a definition for the term continent.

The publication of the NatGeo Society leads to the geographical definition as an example of Japan here - this island or island group belongs to the continent of Asia, although it is not made of continental crust. After this publication, the land area of the continents as well as islands such as Japan, Greenland and the Caribbean island states are included. Only a small part of the earth's surface is not among them. From continents geological- tectonic independent (in the sense of " self-employed " ) are active individual or groups of islands such as Mauritia, Zealandia New Zealand / New Caledonia / South Pacific Islands, French Polynesia and Hawaii group, since they were micro- continents in itself. Separated would all continents ultimately by the oceans. As far as the U.S. definition of "National Geographic", according to their types in addition to those already mentioned archipelagos of Madagascar, the Maskarenenrücken ( archipelagos Seychelles / Reunion), and each of the Kerguelen Archipelago and Jan Mayen more micro- continents. This means a subdivision in the seven continents mentioned, extended to seven micro- continents. The latter also reflects the increasing exploration of the tectonics of microplates. ( See also → microplate )

Topographical and traditionally is meant by a continent a large contiguous land mass, which is defined completely or almost completely by water or other natural boundaries. Even large land masses that are connected only by a narrow isthmus ( such as between Africa and Asia as well as between North and South America) are usually considered different continents. Here, however, there are differing views as to whether it is not even a single upper-or super, with two sub- or two completely separate continent (s).

Geologic comprises a continent and the continental shelf belonging to it, so the continental shelf in the shallow sea. The lighter continental crust, which also includes the continental shelf, is different with a lower density of 2.7 g / cc and a different chemical composition of the oceanic crust, which has an average density of about 3.0 g / cm ³.

Besides these two, there is also a historical- political dimension. Evidence of this is the fact that Europe still is considered its own continent, although according to the aforementioned geo- technical conditions should not be. In the publication of NatGeoSociety the U.S., this is formulated as follows: " continent " has more than just a physical definition ".

The constantly occurring cycle of formation, development and adaptation of linguistic and ethnic characteristics and the exchange on within a larger area, which does not work on continental borders to the same extent, is the process of continuous birth and rebirth of continents in socio - cultural terms. Amazingly, as for example, have developed despite the same or at least similar Indo-European Indo-European language and roots, and an ever- existing broad land connection differing cultural groups in the continents of Asia and Europe.

So strong we like the present-day distribution of the land masses on the earth appear, it shall geologically just a snapshot represents the continents due to plate tectonics constantly on the move and have been in the history of our planet several times to form a single large land mass ( supercontinent such as Pangaea ) combined and then separated into smaller continents ( continental drift ).

Number of continents

Based on the above-mentioned three sources can already be four different models of definition of the continents occupy, because the known Encyclopædia Britannica noted in another set that Europe and Asia to some extent in the whole continent as large ( Eurasia ) ARE APPLICABLE. Other models are in the following table to. Depending on the model - without the micro- continents - from four to seven continents counted:

Some other sources are of the opinion ( as in the teaching aid of the Royal Geographic described ) that Oceania is the correct name of this Pacific continent instead of Australia.

History of counting methods

The attempt to determine the number of continents on the globe, runs through the entire era. The counting and perspectives vary widely. Herodotus originally divided the world into three continents: Europe, Asia, and Libya ( Africa today ). His tripartite division was considered for the entire antiquity as binding.

With the discovery of America and the colonization of the modern era have dominion over the counting of the continents disagreement. Controversial are mainly the division into North and South America and the division in Europe and Asia.

• From a historical perspective, America is considered a continent that has been conquered by Europeans in the 15th and 16th centuries. Geologically, it consists of two continents, North America and South America, who received only by the emergence of the Isthmus of Panama a land connection.

• For historical reasons, Europe and Asia are distinguished. Hecataeus of Miletus recorded in the 6th century BC in its geography, the border of the Aegean Sea via the Marmara Sea and the Black Sea to the Don. In modern times it has become naturalized in Europe to view the Urals as the eastern border of Europe to Asia. However, Europe and Asia are also considered together as Eurasia. Eurasia forms a contiguous land mass, which is also largely rests on the same tectonic plate, only in the south of Eurasia are several separate smaller plates.

The Olympic rings that were designed as a symbol in 1913, symbolizing the five ( participating in the Olympic Games ) continents (Africa, America, Asia, Australia and Europe).

There are also other deviating organizations. Two noteworthy geological tectonic models are derived from the first time in 1912 published concept of Alfred Wegener from that at the end of the Paleozoic, all the continents were united in a supercontinent Pangaea and slowly through splitting due to active volcanism from each other in the so-called continental drift (later: Plate Tectonics) apart moving.

For historical and political category, the attempts to resolve Central America or the Middle East as a separate continents, and the summary of the islands of the Pacific Ocean belonging to a continent Oceania.

Continents and oceans are the largest geographical units (landscapes ) of the earth. The continents are separated by oceans, the continental shelf ( = continental shelf ) is one of the continent. (So ​​New Guinea is clearly one of Oceania, (residual) Indonesia to Asia). The resulting continents are the natural environment and human geographical units. Thus, the human geographical factors are necessarily in Europe and partly in America consulted open already at the border inventions of the continents, but they are (as well as animal and plant world, which include the physical geography ) always mitbestimmend when a continent is defined precisely because it is a unit of the " earth's surface ". So there are the seven continents, whereby the oceanic islands impute the nearest continents, such as the Pacific Islands Oceania. Oceanic islands are not real solid land mass, but always volcanic nature, ie volcanoes and eroded down to sea level volcanoes, which eventually become atolls. Strictly speaking - according to the definition: " separated by oceans " - there are two other continents ( which also fauna and flora are independent and by definition match): Madagascar and New Zealand.

Comparison of the Continents: Area and population

The Seven Continents each make up less than one- tenth of the earth's surface. The area of ​​the largest (Asia ) and the smallest continent (Australia / Oceania ) differ by a factor of five.

The settlement is on the climate and the existing livelihoods depend. Also, for historical reasons, the world's population is very unevenly distributed. Antarctica is only temporarily inhabited by a few researchers and visitors. Less than one percent of the world population lives in Australia and Oceania. In Europe, America and Africa each slightly more than one-eighth of the world's population lives. However, almost two-thirds live in Asia, and this especially in China and India.

Naming

The names of the continents are in the original Latin form all female and end according to uniform -a.

• Africa (lat. Africa) was in ancient times, just as the name for today's Tunisia, which was named by the Romans after the tribe of Africa to Carthage so.
• America (Latin America ) was named to the proposal from Martin Waldseemüller after Amerigo Vespucci, who sailed the coast of South America shortly after Christopher Columbus. At that time, could not be overlooked, strictly speaking, that there are two different land masses that are connected only by a relatively narrow land bridge.
• Antarctica ( Antarctica Latin ) was named for its location in the middle of Antarctica, back, its name in Greek ἀνταρκτικός ( antarktikos, " the Arctic over "). The term ἀρκτις ( arctic ) is derived from the Greek word for bear ἀρκτός ( arktos ) and means " land under the Great Bear ".
• Asia ( Asia Latin ) comes from the Assyrian of Assu = " Sunrise " and " East". Asia also appears in Greek mythology. There she is one of the Oceanids and the mother of Prometheus, Atlas and Epimetheus. The Romans identified with Asia a province in the west of present-day Turkey.
• Australia (lat. Australia) comes from the Latin Terra Australis = " Southern Land ".
• Europe has its name possibly from the Greek Erebus = " dark ", that is, in a figurative sense for the West. This derivation is, however, controversial. The name Europe also appears in a Greek legend. Here the Virgin Europe from their home in Phoenicia by Zeus in the guise of a bull abducted to Crete ( see cradle of Europe ).

Special

• Turkey, Russia and Kazakhstan are both on the European and on the Asian continent.
• Istanbul is considered the only city in the world that is situated on two continents - Europe and Asia, on both sides of the Bosporus. However, are located in Russia as in Kazakhstan, some cities on both banks of the river Ural; this applies, for Oral, Magnitogorsk and Orenburg.
• Spain and France have parts of the country outside of Europe; in Spain, these inter alia, in and around Africa, while France include areas in South America and on oceanic, African, North American and Antarctic islands.
• The Kingdom of the Netherlands, parts of the country in Europe and North America ( Caribbean).
• The Kingdom of Denmark to the European belonging island of Greenland is located on the North American continent.
• For the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland associated overseas territories extend over several continents, same applies to the United States.
• The African country of Egypt for belonging Sinai is considered one of Asia.
• The archipelago of Madeira, despite their political affiliation to Portugal in Africa, as well as the belonging to Spain's Canary Islands. Also include the westernmost islands of the Azores (Portugal ), Corvo and Flores, the American continental plate.
• By Indonesia the border between Asia on the one hand and Australia and Oceania runs the other.
• Iceland lies on the border between North America and Eurasia.
• The countries on the Arabian plate are counted to Asia, although these continental plate geologically part of Africa.

During the last ice age through Beringia America ( North and South America) and Eurasia (Europe and Asia) were connected to each other, and also Africa with other continents Sinai Peninsula. At that time, therefore, there was a continuous land mass, and terrestrial species as man could travel through five continents dry ground: Africa, Europe, Asia and North and South America.

Other terms

• Double continent designated contiguous land masses of two continents.
• Country hemisphere refers to the hemisphere of the earth, which has the largest share of the mainland.
• Subcontinents plattentektonisch describe different parts of a continent.

Furthermore, there are the concepts of super continent, and supercontinent supercontinent.