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My turn to SPAM
Currently : chillin'
lol
~Alex007152~
ok now im bored
~Alex007152~
from wikipedia:
North America is a continent in the Earth's northern hemisphere and almost fully in the western hemisphere, bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, and on the south and west by the North Pacific Ocean. It covers an area of about 24,500,000 km² (9,460,000 sq mi), or about 4.8% of the planet's surface. As of July 2002, its population was estimated at more than 514,600,000. It is the third largest continent in area, after Asia and Africa, and is fourth in population after Asia, Africa, and Europe.
Contents
[hide]
* 1 Etymology
* 2 Geography
* 3 Physical features
* 4 Territories and regions
* 5 Usage
o 5.1 Table of territories and regions
* 6 Sources
* 7 See also
* 8 External links
[edit]
Etymology
A number of theories exist regarding the naming of North and South America. The most widely recognized is that they are named after Amerigo Vespucci, who was the first European to suggest that the Americas were not the East Indies, but a New World, previously undiscovered by Europeans. The second and less generally accepted is that the continents are named after an English merchant named Richard Amerike from Bristol, who is believed to have financed John Cabot's voyage of discovery from England to Newfoundland in 1497. A third theory that has been advanced is that America was named for a Spanish sailor bearing the ancient Visigothic name of 'Amairick'.
[edit]
Geography
North America occupies the northern portion of the landmass generally referred to as the New World, the Western Hemisphere, the Americas, or simply America. North America's only land connection is to South America at the narrow Isthmus of Panama. (For geopolitical reasons, all of Panama including the segment east of the Panama Canal in the isthmus is often considered a part of North America alone.) According to some authorities, North America begins not at the Isthmus of Panama but at the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, with the intervening region called Central America (or Middle America if the Caribbean is included) and resting on the Caribbean Plate.
The continental coastline is long and irregular. With the exception of the Gulf of Mexico, Hudson Bay is by far the largest body of water indenting the continent; others include the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the Gulf of California (Sea of Cortez).
There are numerous islands off the continents coasts: principally, the Arctic Archipelago, the Greater and Lesser Antilles, the Alexander Archipelago, and the Aleutian Islands. Greenland, although a part of North America geographically and on the same tectonic plate (the North American Plate), is not considered to be part of the continent politically.
[edit]
Physical features
Sedimentary, volcanic, plutonic, metamorphic rock types of North America.
Enlarge
Sedimentary, volcanic, plutonic, metamorphic rock types of North America.
The vast majority of North America is on the North American Plate. Parts of California and western Mexico form the partial edge of the Pacific Plate, with the two plates meeting along the San Andreas fault.
The continent can be divided into four great regions (each of which contains many sub-regions): the Great Plains stretching from the Gulf of Mexico to the Canadian Arctic; the geologically young, mountainous west, including the Rocky Mountains, the Great Basin, California and Alaska; the raised but relatively flat plateau of the Canadian Shield in the northeast; and the varied eastern region, which includes the Appalachian Mountains, the coastal plain along the Atlantic seaboard, and the Florida peninsula. Mexico, with its long plateaus and cordilleras, falls largely in the western region, although the eastern coastal plain does extend south along the Gulf.
The western mountains are split in the middle, into the main range of the Rockies and the coast ranges in California, Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia with the Great Basin a lower area containing smaller ranges and low-lying deserts in between. The highest peak is Denali in Alaska.
The United States Geographical Survey states that the geographic center of North America is 6 miles west of Balta, Pierce County, North Dakota at approximately 48⁰ 10′ North, 100⁰ 10′ West, approximately 25km from Rugby, North Dakota. The USGS further states that No marked or monumented point has been established by any government agency as the geographic center of either the 50 States, the conterminous United States, or the North American continent. Nonetheless, there is a 4.5 metre (15 foot) field stone obelisk in Rugby claiming to mark the center.
North America bedrock and terrain.
North American cratons and basement rocks.
Tectonic elements of North America
North American craton.
[edit]
Territories and regions
Political highlights of North America
Enlarge
Political highlights of North America
On the main continent landmass, there are three large and relatively populous countries:
* 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, Anticosti Island, and Cape Breton Island on the east, and the Canadian Arctic islands (including Ellesmere Island, Baffin Island, and Victoria Island) in 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 commonly known as Central America, are the countries of:
* 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:
* 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:
* Anguilla (British overseas territory)
* Aruba 2 (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
* Cayman Islands (British overseas territory)
* Guadeloupe (French région d'outre-mer)
* Martinique (French région d'outre-mer)
* Montserrat (British overseas territory)
* 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 overseas territory)
* British Virgin Islands (British overseas territory)
* U.S. Virgin Islands (territory of the USA)
Lying in the Atlantic Ocean but considered part of the continent are the dependencies:
* Bermuda, a British overseas territory found about 1,072 km (670 mi.) southeast of New York City
* Greenland, the largest island in the world and a self-governing part of Denmark, which is located in the far north of the continent to the east of Nunavut.
* Saint Pierre and Miquelon, a French collectivité d'outre-mer off the south coast of Newfoundland, is the last of France's once vast possessions in America north of the Caribbean.
1 These states and dependencies have territory in one or both of North and South America, but are generally included in North America geopolitically.
2 These dependencies lie close to the South American mainland, but are considered North American because of cultural and historical reasons.
See here for details.
[edit]
Usage
Geopolitically, Northern America is sometimes used to refer to Canada and the U.S. together (plus Greenland and Bermuda), while Central America is mainland North America south of the United States. In the United States, the term Middle America is sometimes used to refer to Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean collectively.
From a linguistic and sociopolitical perspective, the United States, Canada, and the other English-speaking nations of America (Belize, Guyana, and the anglophone Caribbean) are sometimes grouped under the term Anglo-America and included in the Anglosphere. The remaining nations of North and South America (i.e., including much of the West Indies) where Romance languages prevail are referred to as Latin America; this usage has entered into common parlance.
Usage of the term "North America" often depends on context and may mean different things to different people. The term is often taken to mean the United States and Canada only by many people of those two countries, excluding Mexico and the other countries of Central America. In this respect, the term includes other countries only if the context makes it clear that they are to be included. For example, the NAFTA trading bloc also includes Mexico. In addition, 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. Similarly, Canadians and Americans may often speak of a collective North American culture to describe only the continent's anglophone communities.
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, particularly as a member of NAFTA and a part of the North American tectonic plate, 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 Mexico was not substantially involved.
[edit]
Table of territories and regions
Name of territory,
with flag Area
(km²) Population
(1 July 2002 est.) Population density
(per km²) Capital
Caribbean[1]:
Anguilla Anguilla (UK) 102 13,254 129.9 The Valley
Antigua and Barbuda Antigua and Barbuda 443 68,722 155.1 St. John's
Aruba Aruba (Netherlands)[2] 193 71,566 370.8 Oranjestad
Bahamas Bahamas 13,940 301,790 21.6 Nassau
Barbados Barbados 431 279,254 647.9 Bridgetown
British Virgin Islands British Virgin Islands (UK) 153 22,643 148.0 Road Town
Cayman Islands Cayman Islands (UK) 262 44,270 169.0 George Town
Cuba Cuba 110,860 11,346,670 102.4 Havana
Dominica Dominica 754 69,029 91.6 Roseau
Dominican Republic Dominican Republic 48,730 8,950,034 183.7 Santo Domingo
Grenada Grenada 344 89,502 260.2 St. George's
Guadeloupe Guadeloupe (France) 1,780 448,713 252.1 Basse-Terre
Haiti Haiti 27,750 8,121,622 292.7 Port-au-Prince
Jamaica Jamaica 10,991 2,731,832 248.6 Kingston
Martinique Martinique (France) 1,100 432,900 393.5 Fort-de-France
Montserrat Montserrat (UK) 102 9,341 91.6 Plymouth; Brades[3]
United States Navassa Island (USA) 5
Netherlands Antilles Netherlands Antilles (Netherlands)[4] 960 219,958 229.1 Willemstad
Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (USA) 9,104 3,916,632 430.2 San Juan
Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Kitts and Nevis 261 38,958 149.3 Basseterre
Saint Lucia Saint Lucia 616 166,312 270.0 Castries
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 389 117,534 302.1 Kingstown
Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago[5] 5,128 1,088,644 212.3 Port of Spain
Turks and Caicos Islands Turks and Caicos Islands (UK) 430 20,556 47.8 Cockburn Town
U.S. Virgin Islands U.S. Virgin Islands (USA) 352 108,708 308.8 Charlotte Amalie
Central America:
Belize Belize 22,966 279,457 12.2 Belmopan
Costa Rica Costa Rica 51,100 4,016,173 78.6 San José
El Salvador El Salvador 21,040 6,704,932 318.7 San Salvador
Guatemala Guatemala 108,890 14,655,189 134.6 Guatemala City
Honduras Honduras 112,090 6,975,204 62.2 Tegucigalpa
Mexico Mexico 1,972,550 106,202,903 53.8 Mexico City
Nicaragua Nicaragua 129,494 5,465,100 42.2 Managua
Panama Panama[6] 78,200 3,039,150 38.9 Panama City
Northern America:
Bermuda Bermuda (UK) 53 65,365 1,233.3 Hamilton
Canada Canada 9,984,670 32,805,041 3.3 Ottawa
Greenland Greenland (Denmark) 2,166,086 56,375 0.026 Nuuk
Saint-Pierre and Miquelon Saint-Pierre and Miquelon (France) 242 7,012 29.0 Saint-Pierre
United States United States[7] 9,629,091 295,734,134 30.7 Washington
Total 24,506,524 514,684,479 21.0
Notes:
1. ^ Continental regions as per UN categorisations/map.
2. ^ , 4.6. Depending on definitions, Aruba, Netherlands Antilles, Panama, and Trinidad and Tobago have territory in one or both of North and South America.
3. ^ Due to ongoing activity of the Soufriere Hills volcano beginning 1995, much of Plymouth, Montserrat's de jure capital, was destroyed and government offices relocated to Brades.
7. ^ Includes the US state of Hawaii, which is distant from the North American landmass in the Pacific Ocean and is, thus, commonly included with the other territories of Oceania.
[edit]
Sources
* "North America". The Columbia Gazetteer of the World Online. 2005. New York: Columbia University Press.
[edit]
See also
Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
North America
* Americas (terminology)
* Discoverer of the Americas
* Economy of North America
* European colonization of the Americas
* History of North America
* Birds of North America
[edit]
External links
* http://www.america-norte.com/america-norte-mapa.htm
* http://www.earth-puzzle.com clickable map with links to related Wikipedia articles
Continents and regions of the world
Africa
Antarctica
Asia
Australia
Europe
North America
South America Geological supercontinents:
Gondwana Laurasia Pangaea Rodinia
Africa-Eurasia
Americas
Eurasia
Oceania
Regions of the World
Africa: Central Africa | East Africa | Great Lakes | Guinea | Horn of Africa | North Africa | Maghreb | Northwest Africa | Sahel | Southern Africa | Sub-Saharan Africa | Sudan | West Africa
Americas: Andean states | Caribbean | Central America | Great Lakes | Great Plains | Guianas | Latin America | North America | Northern America | Pacific Northwest | Patagonia | South America | Southern Cone
Eurasia: Anatolia | Arabia | Asia | Balkans | Baltic region | Benelux | British Isles | Caucasus | Central Asia | Central Europe | East Asia | Eastern Europe | East Indies | Europe | Far East | Kurdistan | Levant | Mediterranean | Mesopotamia | Middle East | Near East | North Asia | Northern Europe | Scandinavia | South Asia | Southeast Asia | Southern Europe | Southwest Asia | Western Europe
Oceania: Australasia | Melanesia | Micronesia | Polynesia | Pacific Rim
Polar: Arctic | Antarctic
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_America";
Categories: Continents | North America
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~Alex007152~
Hey, I'm on page 100.
~Alex007152~
~Alex007152~
lol
~Alex007152~
lol
~Alex007152~
~Alex007152~
lol
~Alex007152~
Honestly, what the hell is the point in this threads? What purpose do they serve other than pointlessly using the MMORPG.com people's bandwidth?
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No Userbar here, sorry to disappoint.
i agree, they probably made it so people wont spam in other forums... but people usualy spam only when its not allowed... lol
~Alex007152~
.......................lol............................
~Alex007152~
dkksaj
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Killer 86%, Socializer 53%, Explorer 33%, Achiever 26%
;;;
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Killer 86%, Socializer 53%, Explorer 33%, Achiever 26%
wow u got the 1500th post!
~Alex007152~
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~Alex007152~
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~Alex007152~
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~Alex007152~
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~Alex007152~
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~Alex007152~
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~Alex007152~
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~Alex007152~