By Sean Kotz
Updated Mar 24, 2022
Continents are the world’s largest landmasses, typically separated by oceans. Their boundaries can be identified by shape, by the surrounding seas, and by geographic coordinates on a globe or map. Latitude lines run east‑west and intersect the equator, while longitude lines run north‑south, meeting at the prime meridian that passes through Greenwich, England. Understanding these reference lines helps place each continent in its proper context.
Africa lies almost entirely in the Eastern Hemisphere and is almost wholly encircled by water. To the north, the Mediterranean Sea separates it from Europe; the Atlantic Ocean borders the west; and the Indian Ocean borders the east. The Red Sea forms part of its eastern boundary, while the island of Madagascar—geologically linked to the African plate—remains a member of the continent. Egypt occupies the extreme northeast, and its Sinai Peninsula is regarded as part of Asia.
Antarctica sits at the planet’s southernmost point, covering the entire lower hemisphere. The continent is roughly 98 % ice, so maps typically depict it in white. It is surrounded by the Southern Ocean, a convergence zone for the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans. No sovereign nations exist there, but scientific research stations from many countries operate year‑round.
Asia is the largest continent, stretching from the Arabian Peninsula and Turkey in the southwest to the far eastern coasts of China and Japan. Its southern boundary is the Indian Ocean, while the Arctic Ocean lies to the north. The continent includes the island of Sri Lanka and a vast archipelago of Southeast Asia—Sumatra, Java, and the Indonesian islands—forming a complex maritime landscape. Russia’s eastern half, stretching from the Pacific to the Ural Mountains, occupies a significant portion of northern Asia.
Australia is both a continent and a sovereign nation, located southeast of Asia. It includes the island of Tasmania and, geologically, the broader Australian Plate, which also supports New Zealand and New Guinea. The surrounding seas—the Timor Sea, Gulf of Carpentaria, and Torres Strait to the north; the Pacific Ocean to the east; and the Indian Ocean to the west and south—define its maritime borders. The term “Oceania” encompasses this region and its many islands.
Europe’s boundaries are less rigidly defined, but the continent is generally bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and the Ural Mountains and Ural River to the east. The Iberian Peninsula juts into the Mediterranean, while the Mediterranean Sea also separates Spain from North Africa via the Strait of Gibraltar. Major islands—England, Ireland, Iceland, Sicily, Sardinia, and Crete—are integral parts of Europe.
North America comprises Canada, the United States, Mexico, and the Central American nations south of Mexico. It is flanked by the Atlantic Ocean to the east, the Pacific Ocean to the west, and the Arctic Ocean to the north. Greenland, a large island in the Arctic, is geologically part of North America, as are many Caribbean islands such as Cuba, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic. Panama, the southernmost country, hosts the Panama Canal, linking the Atlantic and Pacific and serving as the gateway to South America.
South America’s distinctive “boot” shape is dominated by Brazil in the north, tapering toward a narrow southern corridor containing Argentina and Chile. The continent is bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, with the Southern Ocean and Antarctica lying just below. The archipelagos of the Falklands and Galápagos belong to South America. Notable natural features include the world’s largest river by volume, the Amazon, and the Andes mountain range along its western edge.
