North America

North America is a continent in the northern hemisphere, bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the south by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west by the North Pacific Ocean. It covers an area of 9,355,000 square miles (24,230,000 square kilometers). In 2001 its population was estimated at 454,225,000. It is the third largest continent in area, after Asia and Africa, and is fourth in population after Asia, Africa, and Europe.

Regional and political divisions

On the main continent landmass, there are three large and relatively populous countries:

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• Canada - many large islands off the shore of North America belong to Canada, including Vancouver Island and the Queen Charlotte Islands on the west, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Cape Breton Island on the east, and Ellesmere Island, Baffin Island, and Victoria Island to the north)
• Mexico - the Revillagigedo archipelago and numerous smaller islands off its coast belong to Mexico
• The United States - the 48 contiguous states and Alaska are part of North America, while the state of Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean is not; the Aleutian Islands south of Alaska also belong to the U.S.

At the southern end of the continent, in a relatively small area known as Central America, are the countries of:

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• Belize
• Costa Rica
• El Salvador
• Guatemala
• Honduras
• Nicaragua
• Panama ¹

At the southeastern end of the continent lies a chain of islands territories called the Antilles, the Caribbean or the West Indies, which include the countries:

Related Topics:
Antilles - Caribbean - West Indies

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• Antigua and Barbuda
• Bahamas
• Barbados
• Cuba
• Dominica
• Dominican Republic
• Grenada
• Haiti
• Jamaica
• Saint Kitts and Nevis
• Saint Lucia
• Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
• Trinidad and Tobago ¹

And the dependencies:

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• Anguilla (British dependency)
• Aruba ² (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
• Cayman Islands (British dependency)
• Guadeloupe (overseas department of France)
• Martinique (overseas department of France)
• Montserrat (British dependency)
• Navassa Island (U.S. territory)
• Netherlands Antilles ¹ (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
• Puerto Rico (U.S. commonwealth)
• Turks and Caicos Islands (British dependency)
• British Virgin Islands (British dependency)
• U.S. Virgin Islands (territory of the USA)

Lying in the Atlantic Ocean but considered part of the continent are the dependencies:

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• Bermuda, a British dependency found about 1,072 km (670 mi.) southeast of New York City
• Greenland, the largest island in the world and a self-governing dependency of Denmark, which is located in the far north of the continent to the east of Nunavut.
• Saint Pierre and Miquelon, off the southcoast of Newfoundland, is the last of France's once vast possessions in America north of the Caribbean.

1 These states and dependencies have territory both in North and South America.

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2 These dependencies lie in South America, but are considered North American because of cultural and historical reasons.

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See here for details.

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The United States, Canada, and the other English-speaking nations of the Americas (Belize, Guyana, and the Anglophone Caribbean) are sometimes grouped under the term Anglo-America, while the remaining nations of North and South America are grouped under the term Latin America.

Related Topics:
Americas - Anglo-America - Latin America

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Alternatively, Northern America is used to refer to Canada and the U.S. together, while Central America is mainland North America less Northern America. The West Indies generally include all islands in the Caribbean Sea. In this respect, Latin America generally includes Central America and South America and, sometimes, the West Indies.

Related Topics:
Central America - West Indies - Caribbean Sea - Latin America

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The term "North America" may mean different things to different people. The term in common usage is often taken to mean "The United States and Canada, only" by some people of the United States and Canada, excluding Mexico and the countries of Central America, unless the context makes it clear that they are to be included (such as with specific reference to Mexico, when talking about NAFTA). For example, guides to wild flora and fauna published by the National Audubon Society for "North America" frequently include only species found in Canada and the U.S.

Related Topics:
NAFTA - National Audubon Society

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This may be attributed to the fact that culturally and economically, the U.S. and Canada are more alike to each other than they are to the rest of North America. Mexicans, however, are acutely aware that Mexico is a part of North America and object to this usage. Central Americans, however, are generally content to be called Central Americans – largely because of their shared history, which includes several attempts at supranational integration in the region and in which their much larger northern neighbor was never involved.

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