EUROPE EUROPE IN THE WORLD: LOCATION AND BORDERS LOCATION There are 6 continents in the world (America, Asia, Africa, Antarctica, Europe and Oceania). Europe is one of the six continents. It is the only continent that lies entirely in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the world s second smallest continent after Oceania and it covers only 7% of the Earth s surface that is an area of 10 million square kilometers. It has a population of 740 million people, which is about the 11% of the world s population. The biggest country in Europe is Russia and the smallest is the Vatican City. Russia is also the most populated country. Each country has its own flag and currency, but 19 of them share a currency called the euro ( ). EUROPE S BORDERS Europe is part of the larger landmass called Eurasia and it occupies the northwestern part of this large landmass. Europe is a unique continent as is not surrounded by water from all directions, and has an overland border with the neighbouring Asia. The definition of correct border between two continents was a big question for geographers and politicians. Nowadays it is commonly delineated by the Ural Mountains in Russia, the Caspian Sea and Caucasus Mountains. Europe is surrounded by 2 oceans: the Arctic to the north and the Atlantic to the west. Europe is bordered: - North: Europe stretches to the Arctic Ocean. - South: Europe stretches to the Mediterranean Sea and Black Sea. - East: Europe is separated from Asia by the Ural Mountains, Caspian Sea and Black Sea. - West: Europe reaches the Atlantic Ocean. 1
COUNTRIES AND CAPITALS The European Union should not be confused with the continent of Europe. Not all countries of continental Europe are part of the European Union. Nowadays Europe includes 50 independent states. Five of these countries, Russia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey are transcontinental countries, partially located in both Europe and Asia. Armenia and Cyprus politically are considered European countries, though geographically they are located in the West Asia territory. Europe's largest country is Russia (37% of total continent area) and the smallest one is Vatican City, which occupies only a small area in the center of Rome. The most visited travel destination in this region is France with its capital Paris as the best place of interest, followed by Spain, Italy, United Kingdom and Germany. Europe has 4 different time zones: Greenwich Mean Time (GMT): United Kingdom, Ireland, Portugal, Faroe Islands and Canary Islands Central European Time (CET): central European Countries (Spain (mainland), Austria, Italy, Netherlands ) Eastern European Time (EET): Eastern European Countries (Finland, Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Turkey ) Moscow Standard Time (MST): European part of Russia. 2
PAÍS /COUNTRY CAPITAL PAIS/COUNTRY CAPITAL 1. Albania Tirana 26. Italia (Italy) Roma (Rome) 2. Alemania (Germany) Berlín (Berlin) 27. Kazajistán* Astaná 3. Andorra Andorra la Vieja (Andorra la Vella) 28. Letonia (Latvia) Riga 4. Armenia* Ereván 29. Liechtenstein Vaduz 5. Austria Viena (Vienna) 30. Lituania (Lithuania) Vilna (Vilnius) 6. Azerbaiyán* Bakú 31. Luxemburgo (Luxemburg) Luxemburgo (Luxemburg City) 7. Bélgica (Belgium) Bruselas (Brussels) 32. Macedonia Skopje 8. Bielorrusia (Belarus) Minsk 33. Malta La Valeta (Valletta) 9. Bosnia y Herzegovina Sarajevo 34. Moldavia (Moldova) Chisinau 10 Bulgaria Sofía 35. Mónaco (Monaco) Mónaco (Monaco) 11. Chipre* Nicosia 36. Montenegro Podgorica 12. Ciudad del Vaticano (Vatican City) Ciudad del Vaticano (Vatican City) 37. Noruega (Norway) Oslo 13. Croacia (Croatia) Zagreb 38. Países Bajos (Netherlands) Ámsterdam 14. Dinamarca (Denmark) Copenhague (Copenhagen) 39. Polonia (Poland) Varsovia (Warsaw) 15. Eslovaquia (Slovakia) Bratislava 40. Portugal Lisboa (Lisbon) 16. Eslovenia (Slovenia) Liubliana (Ljubljana) 41. Reino Unido (United Kingdom) Londres (London) 17. España (Spain) Madrid 42. República Checa (Czech Republic) Praga (Prague) 18. Estonia Tallín (Tallinn) 43. Rumanía (Romania) Bucarest (Bucharest) 19. Finlandia (Finland) Helsinki 44. Rusia* (Russia) Moscú (moscow) 20. Francia (France) París 45. San Marino San Marino 21. Georgia* Tiflis 46. Serbia Belgrado (Belgrade) 22. Grecia (Greece) Atenas (Athens) 47. Suecia (Sweden) Estocolmo (Stockholm) 23. Hungría (Hungary) Budapest 48. Suiza (Switzerland) Berna (Bern) 24. Irlanda (Ireland) Dublín (Dublin) 49. Turquía (Turkey) Ankara 25. Islandia (Iceland) Reikiavik (Reykjavik) 50. Ucrania (Ukraine) Kiev 51. **Kosovo Pristina *Countries with asterisk are Eurasian countries ** Kosovo is recognized as an independent country only by some European countries 3
The biggest country in Europe is Russia (3,972,400 km2); The smallest is Vatican City (0.44 km2) 4
RELIEF Europe is a continent with contrasting landscapes. It shows a great variation within relatively small areas. MOUNTAINS & PLAINS PLAINS North European Plain LOW MOUNTAINS (less than 2.500m) Scandinavian Mountains Ural Mountains Apennines HIGH MOUNTAINS The Pyrenees The Alps (Mont Blanc 4810m) The Carpathian The Balkans The Caucasus Mountains The Alps are the most important mountain range in Europe. They cover more than eight countries (Switzerland, Lichtenstein, Germany, France Italy and Monaco). The Urals form a natural border between Europe and Asia. They are Europe s longest mountain range (2400 km). The Pyrenees form a natural border between France and Spain. The Caucasus is a mountain range between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea. It includes Mount Elbrus, the highest mountain in Europe (5642m ) The Carpathian Mountains are the second-longest mountain range in Europe. The Apennines run down the middle of the Italian Peninsula. The North European Plain is a huge expanse of lowland or plain. It stretches over 400km across western and northern Europe 5
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COASTS Europe is a continent with a very irregular and jagged coast with many features. It is made up of: PENINSULAS GULFS & BAYS CAPES* FJORDS & RIAS Scandinavian (Sweden, Norway northern Finland) Biggest peninsula in Europe Jutland (Denmark) Iberian (Spain and Portugal) Italian (Italy. Shaped like a boot) Balkan ( Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Romania, Serbia.) Gulf of Bothnia (between Finland and Sweden) Gulf of Lion Gulf of Genoa Bay of Biscay (France and Spain) North Cape (Norway) Cape Finisterre and Cabo de Gata (Spain) Cape Matapan (Greece) Land s End (United Kingdom) Fjords are found in the coasts of Norway and Greenland The best-known rias are on the coast of Galicia in Spain. Peninsula: land surrounded by sea on all but one side. Bay: an area of sea which cuts into the land. Gulf: a large bay Cape: large areas of land which protrude into the sea. They are formed by glaciers and sometimes volcanoes. Fjords: narrow rivers with high sides which flow into the sea. They are made by Glaciers. Rias: river valleys flooded by rising sea levels. 7
ISLANDS NORTH CENTRE SOUTH Iceland British Isles Ireland Balearic Islands and Canary Islands (Belong to Spain) Azores and Madeira (belong to Portugal) Corsica (France) Sardinia (Italy) Sicily (Italy) Cyprus Malta Crete (Greece) * Greenland is Europe s largest island, is part of Denmark, although it s located on the North American continent. RIVERS AND LAKES RIVERS Most rivers in Europe are relatively long and have an average volume of flow. Therefore, many are navigable by boat and are used as travel routes for transporting people and goods European rivers are classified by watershed. This means they are classified according to the ocean they flow into. There are 7 watersheds in Europe. ARCTIC A large volume of flow and medium length. They freeze in winter. Pechora Dvina NORTH A large volume of flow and medium length. They freeze in winter. Thames Elbe Rhine 8
BALTIC A large volume of flow and medium length. They freeze in winter Oder Vistula ATLANTIC MEDITERRANEAN A high volume of water because they flow across zones with abundant rainfall. Seine Loire Duero, Tajo, Guadiana and Guadalquivir. Low and irregular volume of water. They are short. Ebro Po Rhone BLACK SEA Large volume of water and long. Danube Europe s second-longest river. It s source is in the Black Forest in Germany and it flows for 2850 km Dniester Dnieper Don CASPIAN Large volume of water and long. Volga: longest river in Europe. It s 3690Km long. It start in Moscow and flows into the Caspian Sea. Ural: It s often frozen in winter. 9
LAKES When water collects in a basin, or depression, it forms a lake. Lakes are usually fed by rivers which flow into them but they also receive rainfall. Lake Ladoga is the biggest in Europe Lake Constance, which is in Switzerland, Germany and Austria, is fed by the Rhine. Lakes can also be fed by glaciers. When glaciers move and melt, they carve out he land. Spain has a lot of glacial lakes, such as Laguna Negra and Lago de Sanabria. 10