Americas (terminology)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Americas, also known as America, are the lands of the western hemisphere, composed of numerous entities and regions variably defined by geography, politics, and culture.
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[edit] Geophysical regions
- North America – the continent and associated islands of the northern hemisphere and (chiefly) western hemisphere, lying northwest of South America and bounded by the Atlantic, Arctic, and Pacific Oceans
- Central America – the narrow southern portion of mainland North America connecting with South America, extending from the Isthmus of Tehuantepec to the Isthmus of Panama
- Caribbean – the region between southeastern North America and northern South America consisting of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (most of which enclose the sea), and the surrounding coasts. The islands – comprised of the Greater Antilles, Lesser Antilles, and the Bahamas – are also known as the West Indies
- South America – the continent and associated islands of the western hemisphere and chiefly in the southern hemisphere, lying between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and southeast of North America
[edit] Geopolitical divisions
- Northern America – the northern region of North America comprising Canada, the United States, Greenland, Saint-Pierre and Miquelon, and Bermuda
- Central America – the southernmost region of North America, comprised of Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama; the UN includes Mexico in this subregion, while the EU excludes Mexico and Belize
- Caribbean – as above
- South America – as above, excluding Panama
Overlapping units:
- North America – Northern America, Central America (including all of Panama), and the Caribbean
- also Middle America – the region including Central America and the Caribbean
- Note: Middle America can also refer to a portion of the United States.
[edit] Political divisions
- United States of America – a federal republic in North America founded in 1776 and comprising 50 states and one federal district (the District of Columbia), with several outlying territories of varying affiliation; commonly referred to as America
- Confederate States of America – a confederation in North America from 1861 to 1865, comprising eleven southern states that seceded from the United States of America: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. Their secession precipitated the American Civil War; upon its conclusion, the Confederate States were reunited with the United States.
- Federal Republic of Central America – formerly the United Provinces of Central America, a federal republic in Central America from 1823 to 1840 comprising the newly independent Spanish territories: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and (later) Los Altos. In 1838, the federation succumbed to civil war and dissolved.
- West Indies Federation – a federation of several Caribbean island colonies and territories of the United Kingdom (see also: British West Indies) from 1958 to 1962. This was followed by the West Indies Associated States, a smaller, looser polity, from 1967 to 1981.
[edit] Linguistic/cultural regions
- Anglo-America – the region of the Americas having significant historical, linguistic, and cultural links to England or the British Isles, e.g., where English (a Germanic language) is officially or primarily spoken; often just Canada and the United States
- Ibero-America – the region of the Americas having significant historical, linguistic, and cultural links to Spain or Portugal (both on the Iberian peninsula)
- Hispanic America - those parts of the Americas inhabited by Spanish-speaking populations
- Latin America – the region of the Americas where Romance languages derived from Latin, namely Spanish and Portuguese, are officially or primarily spoken
- Mesoamerica – a region of the Americas extending from central Mexico southeast to Nicaragua, especially in archaeology as a region where diverse pre-Columbian civilisations and native cultures flourished
[edit] Sources
- The Columbia Gazetteer of the World Online. 2005. New York: Columbia University Press (proprietary; limited access).
- Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 11th ed. 2003. (ISBN 0-87779-809-5) New York: Merriam-Webster, Inc.
- Oxford English Reference Dictionary, 2nd ed. (rev.) 2002. (ISBN 0-19-860652-4) Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
- Composition of macro geographical (continental) regions, geographical sub-regions, and selected economic and other groupings. United Nations Statistics Division, Country and Region Codes.
- What's the difference between North, Latin, Central, Middle, South, Spanish and Anglo America? Geography at about.com.
[edit] See also
- Americas
- use of the word American
- Columbia
- continent, supercontinent, subcontinent, microcontinent, and continental shelf
- region, subregion, and trade block
- geography
