Here's why:
* Major Plates: We have 7 major tectonic plates:
* African Plate
* Antarctic Plate
* Eurasian Plate
* Indo-Australian Plate
* North American Plate
* Pacific Plate
* South American Plate
* Minor Plates: These are smaller, but still significant. They are sometimes called "microplates" or "microcontinents". There are many of these! Some examples include:
* Arabian Plate
* Caribbean Plate
* Cocos Plate
* Nazca Plate
* Philippine Sea Plate
The problem is: There are many more smaller plates, even down to the scale of individual islands. The dividing line between "minor" and "really minor" is blurry!
Therefore, it's more accurate to say there are:
* 7 Major Plates
* Many, many minor plates of various sizes
This makes it difficult to give a single number for "minor" plates.
