Europe
|
Europe (pronunciation: / ˈ jʊər ə p / YEWR-əp or / ˈ j ɜr ə p / YUR-əp) is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. It is also known as the old continent. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting the Black and Aegean Seas. Europe is bordered by the Arctic Ocean and other bodies of water to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and the Black Sea and connected waterways to the southeast. Yet the borders of Europe—a concept dating back to classical antiquity—are somewhat arbitrary, as the primarily physiographic term "continent" can incorporate cultural and political elements. Europe is the world's second-smallest continent by surface area, covering about 10,180,000 square kilometres (3,930,000 sq mi) or 2% of the Earth's surface and about 6.8% of its land area. Of Europe's approximately 50 states, Russia is the largest by both area and population (although the country has territory in both Europe and Asia), while the Vatican City is the smallest. Europe is the third-most populous continent after Asia and Africa, with a population of 733 million or about 11% of the world's population. Europe, in particular Ancient Greece, is the birthplace of Western culture. It played a predominant role in global affairs from the 15th century onwards, especially after the beginning of colonialism. Between the 16th and 20th centuries, European nations controlled at various times the Americas, most of Africa, Oceania, and large portions of Asia. Both World Wars were largely focused upon Europe, greatly contributing to a decline in Western European dominance in world affairs by the mid-20th century as the United States and Soviet Union took prominence. During the Cold War, Europe was divided along the Iron Curtain between NATO in the west and the Warsaw Pact in the east. European integration led to the formation of the Council of Europe and the European Union in Western Europe, both of which have been expanding eastward since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. From Wikipedia under the
GNU Free Documentation License europeSee also Europe, and européFrom Wiktionary under the
GNU Free Documentation License Europe is one of the traditional seven political continents, and a peninsular sub-continent of the geographic continent Eurasia. This theme article needs cleanup. Please review , especially the , to determine how to edit this article to conform to a higher standard of article quality. This page has been listed as needing cleanup since 2007-02-20.ContentsSourcedFrom Wikiquote under the
GNU Free Documentation License |
Police Information (Officers, Police Officers, Officer ... Police of the Soviet-era Eastern Europe are (or ... Case of Interpol The Canadian Journal of Law and Society ... "Legal Suggestion" [ www.legalsuggestion.com/police/encyclopedia.htm Spousal Abandonment (Divorce, Spouse, Spousal Support ... Expounding of the Law The third non-indented ... of written and visual sources from all over Europe ... "Legal Suggestion" [ www.legalsuggestion.com/spousal_abandonment From Bing Site Search: "europe" Business: Transportation and Logistics: Rail ... See also: Regional: Europe: Transportation: Rail (11) This category in other languages: French (17) ATG Autotransportlogistic GmbH - Rail based vehicle and car ... Recreation: Outdoors: Wildlife: Butterflies: Europe See also: Regional: Europe: Recreation and Sports (19) Regional: Europe: Science and Environment (27) Alexanor's Ukrainian Butterflies - List of species with ... Recreation: Nudism: Organizations: Clubs: Europe Aquasol Naturist Swim Club - A group of naturists who meet every week at a swimming pool in Bristol, UK. Includes membership details.
|