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Geographically Europe is a part of the larger landmass known as Eurasia. The continent begins at the Ural Mountains in Russia, which define Europe's eastern boundary with Asia. The southeast boundary with Asia isn't universally defined. Most commonly the Ural or, alternatively, the Emba River can serve as possible boundaries. The boundary continues with the Caspian Sea, and then the crest of the Caucasus Mountains or, alternatively, the Kura River in the Caucasus, and on to the Black Sea; the Bosporus, the Sea of Marmara, and the Dardanelles conclude the Asian boundary. However, some geographers consider Azerbaijan's and Armenia's southern border with Iran and Turkey's southern and eastern border with Syria, Iraq and Iran as the boundary between Asia and Europe because of political and cultural reasons. The Mediterranean Sea to the south separates Europe from Africa. The western boundary is the Atlantic Ocean, but Iceland, much farther away than the nearest points of Africa, is also often included in Europe. There is ongoing debate on where the geographical centre of Europe is. For detailed description of the boundary between Asia and Europe see here.
The idea of a European "continent" is not universally held. Some non-European geographical texts refer to a Eurasian Continent, or to a European "sub-continent", given that "Europe" is not surrounded by sea and is, in any case, much more a cultural than a geographically definable area.
In terms of shape, Europe is a collection of connected peninsulas. The two largest of these are "mainland" Europe and Scandinavia to the north, divided from each other by the Baltic Sea. Three smaller peninsulas—Iberia, Italy and the Balkans—emerge from the southern margin of the mainland into the Mediterranean Sea, which separates Europe from Africa. Eastward, mainland Europe widens much like the mouth of a funnel, until the boundary with Asia is reached at the Ural Mountains.
Land relief in Europe shows great variation within relatively small areas. The southern regions are mountainous, while moving north the terrain descends from the high Alps, Pyrenees and Carpathians, through hilly uplands, into broad, low northern plains, which are vast in the east. An arc of uplands also exists along the northwestern seaboard, beginning in the western British Isles and continuing along the mountainous, fjord-cut spine of Norway.
This description is simplified. Sub-regions such as Iberia and Italy contain their own complex features, as does mainland Europe itself, where the relief contains many plateaus, river valleys and basins that complicate the general trend. Iceland and the British Isles are special cases. The former is a land unto itself in the northern ocean which is counted as part of Europe, while the latter are upland areas that were once joined to the mainland until rising sea levels cut them off.
The few generalizations that can be made about the relief of Europe make it less than surprising that the continent's many separate regions provided homes for many separate nations throughout history.
Geology
Main article: Geology of Europe
The Geology of Europe is hugely varied and complex, and gives rise to the wide variety of landscapes found across the continent, from the Scottish Highlands to the rolling plains of Hungary.
Rivers
Main article: List of rivers of Europe
Important rivers of Europe with approximate length:
- Volga 3,690 km
- Danube 2,860 km
- Ural 2,428 km
- Dnieper 2,290 km
- Don 1,950 km
- Pechora 1,809 km
- Kama 1,805 km
- Oka 1,500 km
- Belaya 1,430 km
- Dniester 1,352 km
- Rhine 1,320 km
- Elbe 1,165 km
- Vistula 1,047 km
- Loire 1,012 km
- Sava, 933 km
Lakes and inland seas
Main article: List of lakes of Europe We could not list them all here.
Major islands
Iceland, Faroe Islands, Great Britain, Ireland, Isle of Man, Rockall, the rest of the British Isles, Gibraltar, Azores, Madeira, Balearic Islands, Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily, Malta, Ionian Islands, Crete, Aegean Islands, Åland Islands, Gotland, Saaremaa, Hiiumaa, Jan Mayen, and Svalbard.
Plains and lowlands
Mountain ranges
Main article: List of mountain ranges of Europe
Some of Europe's major mountain ranges are:
- Ural Mountains, which separate Europe and Asia
- Caucasus Mountains, which also separate Europe and Asia, and is the namesake of the Caucasian race, not to be confused with Caucasian peoples
- Carpathian Mountains, a major mountain range in Central and Southern Europe
- Alps, the famous mountains known for their spectacular slopes are said to be a home of Bigfoot, along with the Himalayas and the Rocky Mountains
- Apennines, which run through Italy
- Pyrenees, the natural border between France and Spain
- Pennines, which run through central England
- Scandinavian Mountains, a mountain range which runs through the Scandinavian Peninsula
- Kjolen Mountains, on Northern Norway and Russia
Geography by country
See also
