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Continents are generally identified by convention rather than any strict criteria. A continent could be a single landmass or a part of a very large landmass, as in the case of Asia or Europe. Due to this, the number of continents varies; up to seven or as few as four geographical regions are commonly regarded as continents.
For the modern definitions, see continent. The four continents, plus Australia, added later. Europeans in the 16th century divided the world into four continents: Africa, America, Asia, and Europe. [ 1 ] Each of the four continents was seen to represent its quadrant of the world—Africa in the south, America in the west, Asia in the east, and ...
This is a list of continents and continental subregions by population. World population by continent, 2021. Asia. Africa. Europe. North America. South America. Oceania. Antarctica.
The continental boundaries are considered to be within the very narrow land connections joining the continents. The remaining boundaries concern the association of islands and archipelagos with specific continents, notably: the delineation between Africa, Asia, and Europe in the Mediterranean Sea; the delineation between Asia and Europe in the ...
Asia (/ ˈeɪʒə / ⓘ AY-zhə, UK also / ˈeɪʃə / AY-shə) is the largest continent [ note 1 ][ 10 ][ 11 ] in the world by both land area and population. [ 11 ] It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometers, [ note 2 ] about 30% of Earth 's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area.
Chronology of continents. A continent is a large geographical region defined by the continental shelves and the cultures on the continent. [1] In the modern day, there are seven continents. However, there have been more continents throughout history. Vaalbara was the first supercontinent. [2] Europe is the newest continent. [3]
Continents affect the climate of the planet drastically, with supercontinents having a larger, more prevalent influence. Continents modify global wind patterns, control ocean current paths, and have a higher albedo than the oceans. [1] Winds are redirected by mountains, and albedo differences cause shifts in onshore winds.
Earth is rounded into an ellipsoid with a circumference of about 40,000 km. It is the densest planet in the Solar System. Of the four rocky planets, it is the largest and most massive. Earth is about eight light-minutes away from the Sun and orbits it, taking a year (about 365.25 days) to complete one revolution.