Hey guys! Today we will be discussing about the different continents on Earth, and the various subcontinents available. Let's dive right in!
Generally, in the English-speaking world, there are 7 continents on Earth, which are (in ascending order of population) :
1) Antarctica (~0%)
2) Oceania (0.500%)
3) South America (5.580%)
4) North America (7.640%)
5) Europe (9.750%)
6) Africa (16.050%)
7) Asia (60.470%)
Source: United Nations World Population Prospects, 2015
In order to gain a clearer understanding of our Earth, we will further dissect the Earth into various subcontinents. These subcontinents usually have similarities in cultures, with a few exceptions.
But before that, let's view some maps for us to properly understand how our world is actually like.
1. Here is a population density map. Notice how less dense is Malaysia when compared to places like Java, India, Eastern China or even the Netherlands?
2. Here is a map which shows the size of countries when mapped according to the number of languages spoken in the particular country. Notice how huge the countries appear, especially in Africa ad Oceania? These are places with less dense populations and a lot of languages. The countries in RED are the top 10 countries with the most languages. (Note: This map is in Swedish)
I'm sure it comes to a suprise where Indonesia or Papua New Guinea has way more languages when compared to China or India! Fascinating, right?
The language barriers in Africa and Oceania has posed as an obstacle for unity and development in those areas.
3. Here is a map of the climates on Earth. Although not the most detailed map, it is enough for you to understand the different lifestyles that the people live through. The "Polar", "Arid", and "Mountains" areas are normally very very less habited, while "Temperate", "Tropical", and "Mediteranean" have more people. However, being close to population centres in India, the country of Nepal is quite populated. Fun fact! The country of Bangladesh has more people than Russia due to its strategic location at the mouth of the Ganges River. You can learn more about the "Bangladesh Miracle" here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JPTwE0qIuNA
With those maps being explained, here are the subcontinents of our Earth.1) Antarctica- Antarctica is a continent mainly used for scientific research. There are not much going on except for the 1000-5000 Antarctic researchers doing research on the continent. Fun fact: Antarctica is home to the largest desert on Earth- the Antarctic Polar Desert. (Desert= a place with little or no vegetation)
However, from a philatelic perspective, different countries do make territorial claims to Antarctica, and some of them do issue stamps. For example, the British Antarctic Territory do sell stamps, coins and other memorabilia that is used to fund activities in Antarctica.
2) Oceania- Oceania is an interesting continent because not only it is made out of many, many islands spanning from the east to the west, it also has different climates and different levels of economic development.
Oceania is seperated from Asia through the Wallace Line, an imaginary border that distinguishes the flora and fauna species from Asia and Oceania. This effectively makes Indonesia a country located on two continents. However, for the purpouse of this post, the Oceania part of Indonesia will be grouped together with Papua New Guinea.
Oceania is located approximately south of Japan and Hawaii, and east of the Philippines. It is divided into 4 parts, which are:
a) Australasia is a region that does not have defined borders. However, it is generally believed to contain Papua New Guinea, Australia and New Zealand. New Zealand is both Australasian and Polynesian due to its European and Polynesian influence.
b) Melanesia is a region that starts from the Bismarck Archipelago in Papua New Guinea all the way south to New Caledonia (French Overseas Territory) and Fiji, passing by Solomon Islands and Vanuatu
c) Micronesia has its culture being derived from the Philippines. It starts from Guam (USA) , Northern Mariana Islands (USA) and Palau, passing through Micronesia (country), with Nauru to its south and Kiribati to its east.
d) Polynesia is the latest place on Earth to be discovered by any humans with the exception of small, remote islands. Their culture, originated from Melanesia, is spread first towards the countries of Tuvalu, Samoa, Tonga, Niue and Tokelau (NZ). Then, after 800 years, humans only start discovering the rest of Polynesia, first starting from the Cook Islands (USA), French Polynesia (France), Hawaii (USA), and finally, New Zealand at 1200 AD.
3) South America- South America is a continent that does not have any well-defined divisions, however, there are multiple distinctions that we can observe.
a) Languages
The 2 main languages used in South America are Spanish and Portugese. English, Dutch, and French are also used in Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana (Fr). Due to the early independence of most countries (between 1808 and 1826), the usage of colonial languages are widespread.
b) Geographical Features
Most of South America's population lives by the coast, which means that transportation between east and west is rather difficult during the days before aviation.
4) North America- North America is divided from South America by the Darién Gap between Panama and Colombia.
North America is divided into Northern America, Central America, and the Caribbean.
5) Europe- This is the continent that it starts to get complicated. Drink a cup of water and try to focus, lol.
There are multiple defintions about the border between Europe and Asia/ Africa. However, it is generally accepted that the border shall pass through the Ural Mountains in Russia, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Black Sea, the Straits of Marmara @ Istanbul and the Mediterrenean Sea.
First of all, here is a map about the languages and dialects of Europe. With the exception of a few countries, most countries in Europe are nation states. (nation= a place that shares a common language, culture etc.)
Here is an intepretation of the division of Europe based on the CIA World Factbook (map).
Here are the subcontinents arranged by wealth:
1) Northern Europe is made out of Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Denmark. These are the "best" countries on earth with the best Human Development Index (HDI), best education, and probably the happiest place on earth.
2) Western Europe is the most well-known part of Europe with the United Kingdom, Ireland, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, and Monaco. Monaco is a tiny state that is famous for being a playground for the rich.
3) Southwestern Europe is made out of Portugal, Spain, and Andorra. Portugal and Spain are quite good at navigation during the early navigation era.
4) Central Europe contains the countries of Germany, Poland, Czechia, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Austria, Liechtenstein and Switzerland. Germany is the industrial capital of Europe.
5) Southern Europe is made out of Italy, Vatican City, San Marino, Cyprus and Greece. Italy is rich at the north and poor at the south while Greece has the highest unemployment among all EU states. The island nation of Cyprus (dark green colour) meanwhile is considered as European due to Greek culture being practiced there. The island is divided into 2 parts, one Turkish and one Greek.
6) Southeastern Europe is a region that is scarred by the aftermath of the Yugoslav Wars. In the past, (between 1991 and 2001), Yugoslavia broke up into 6 countries, which are Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Hezergovina (B&H), Serbia, Montenegro and Kosovo. Kosovo proclaimed independence itself in 2008, beaking away from Serbia. Malaysia recognizes Kosovo as an independent country. There are also Romania, Albania and Bulgaria. Bulgaria is famous for its rose oils and yougurts.
7) Eastern Europe is a region that is used to be in the Soviet Union. It is made out of 3 Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania), Russia, Belarus, Ukraine and Moldova. There is also a Russian federal subject of Kaliningrad that used to be part of Prussia. There is a soviet-ish nation (with limited recognition) called Pridnestrovie which is seperated from Moldova after the fall of the Soviet Union.
6) Africa- Not many people in Malaysia knows a lot about this continent due to its very small influence on us. Being the second largest continent with 54 countries, Africa actually has a lot to offer.
But before that, there are 2 maps that we have to focus when it comes to Africa.
a) The first is the religions in Africa. Religion plays a huge roles in the lives of most Africans. The 3 main religions in Africa are: Islam, Christianity and Traditional African Religions.
b) The second is the climates of Africa. Most of Africa's population is clustered around the rivers (river basins) and those areas coloured in BLUE in the Koppen Climate Classification map.
To cut short, we will focus entirely on Africa in another post. For now, we have to understand that Africa is divided into six regions according to the African Union, with one of them being the African diaspora . The five other regions are Northern Africa, Western Africa, Central Africa, Eastern Africa, and Southern Africa. Do take note that countries within the same region may be way different from one another, as most of these borders are quite arbitrary. (arbitrary= based on random choice, not using any proper reasoning or system)
7) Asia- Asia comprises 9% of Earth's total surface area and contains three-fifths of the total human population. It is so huge that each region may not be clear at all about the cultures of other Asian countries!
There are 6 regions in Asia: Northern Asia, Eastern Asia, Central Asia, Southern Asia, Western Asia, and Southeast Asia.
Because this post is just a general analysis of the world map, there are a few maps that we can see that shows the differences between Asian countries.
a) Religion- There are a lot of religions in Asia. Other than Traditional Religions, most of the world's religions can be found in Asia.
b)
Human Development Index (HDI)- This map is an indicator to show the level of development in a particular country. The higher score, the more developed it is. Malaysia is midway at 0.810 and places like Hong Kong tops the list at 0.949. On the other side of the coin, countries in South Asia and some of the Middle Eastern (Western Asian) has the lowest HDI due to decades of war or political instability.
Hope that you learnt a lot from today's post! If you have any questions or you have found any errors, please comment below! Thank you so much.
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