A continent occupying the western fifth of the Eurasian landmass, bounded by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic to the west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the south, with its eastern edge conventionally drawn along the Ural Mountains. Its coastline is unusually long relative to its area, deeply indented by peninsulas and inland seas, which has shaped a dense pattern of port cities along nearly every stretch of its perimeter. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
Facts
Area (sq km)Wikipedia infobox marks this figure circa (c. 10,186,000 km2). Population2021 estimate, Wikipedia infobox (3rd most populous continent). Lowest PointCaspian Sea shore, Russia 2 Country CountRanges from roughly 44 to 50 sovereign states depending on treatment of transcontinental states (Russia, Turkey, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Georgia) and states with limited recognition; 44 counts fully sovereign, widely recognised states with their primary territory in Europe. Tectonic Plate Context Disputed
Highest PointMount Elbrus (conventional answer, in the Caucasus) or Mont Blanc (if the Caucasus is excluded from Europe) 4 Elbrus (5,642 m) is the standard answer under the conventional Europe/Asia boundary running through the Caucasus watershed; Mont Blanc (4,807 m), the highest peak of the Alps, is cited instead whenever the Caucasus itself is treated as outside Europe. Both are real, sourced answers to the same question, not an error in either source. Highest Elevation (m)5,642 m for Elbrus under the conventional Caucasus-inclusive boundary; 4,807 m for Mont Blanc when the Caucasus is excluded from Europe. See the highest-point fact's own StatusNote. Europe
Connections
Associated With
This source names Europe directly: "Asia is conventionally divided from Europe along the Ural Mountains and the Caucasus, a boundary drawn by convention rather than by any single physical barrier."
Source Encyclopaedia Britannica
This source names Europe directly: "routes linking China, Persia, and Europe."
Source Encyclopaedia Britannica
Source Regions of Europe (Wikipedia)
Source Regions of Europe (Wikipedia)
Source Regions of Europe (Wikipedia)
Source Regions of Europe (Wikipedia)
Source Europe (Wikipedia)
Source Europe (Wikipedia)
Source Europe (Wikipedia)
This source names Europe directly: "the meeting point of Asia, Africa and Europe."
Source Encyclopaedia Britannica
Source Regions of Europe (Wikipedia)
Open Questions
Source Europe (Wikipedia)
Sources
1. Europe (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundationinfobox, political divisions summary
Sovereign (44-50)
Introduction, continent overview
Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere.
Lead paragraph, first sentence
Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere.
Lead paragraph, area sentence
Europe covers approximately 10,186,000 square kilometres (3,933,000 sq mi)
Infobox, Population (2021 estimate)
745,173,774 (2021; 3rd)
Associated With: The Arctic Ocean, Opening section, bordering waters
It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east.
Associated With: The Atlantic Ocean, Opening section, bordering waters
It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east.
Associated With: The Mediterranean Sea, Opening section, bordering waters
It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east.
View the Source 2. Extreme Points of Europe (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationLowest point entryQuote, Lowest point entry
Caspian Sea shore, Russia (28 metres; 92 feet below sea level)
3. Asia (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationDefinition section, plate description (Europe clause)Quote, Definition section, plate description (Europe clause)
Almost all of Europe and a major part of Asia sit atop the Eurasian Plate, adjoined on the south by the Arabian and Indian Plate and with the easternmost part of Siberia (east of the Chersky Range) on the North American Plate.
4. Mount Elbrus (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundationopening paragraph, summit status
Mount Elbrus is the highest mountain in Russia and Europe. It is a dormant stratovolcano rising 5,642 m (18,510 ft) above sea level.
Home To: Mount Elbrus, Lead section
Mount Elbrus is the highest mountain in Russia and Europe.
View the Source Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.britannica.com/place/Europe, main article body (opening characterization paragraph, "anomaly among the continents")
Among the continents, Europe is an anomaly. Larger only than Australia, it is a small appendage of Eurasia. Yet the peninsular and insular western extremity of the continent, thrusting toward the North Atlantic Ocean, provides-thanks to its latitude and its physical geography-a relatively genial human habitat, and the long processes of human history came to mark off the region as the home of a distinctive civilization. In spite of its internal diversity, Europe has thus functioned, from the time it first emerged in the human consciousness, as a world apart, concentrating-to borrow a phrase from Christopher Marlowe, “infinite riches in a little room.”
- Home To: The Mediterranean Sea
- Home To: Rome
- Home To: Istanbul
- Home To: Florence
- Home To: Vienna
- Home To: Milan
- Home To: Eastern Europe, Eastern Europe
- Home To: Spain
- Home To: Russia
- Home To: United Kingdom
- Home To: Italy
- Home To: North Sea
- Home To: Greece
View the Source National Geographic Atlas of the World
National Geographic Society, 2019World continents area table
The World Factbook
Mont Blanc (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundationopening paragraph, alternative highest-point answer
the highest mountain in Europe outside the Caucasus Mountains
Home To: Mont Blanc, Lead section
Mont Blanc is a mountain in the Alps, rising 4,807.3 m above sea level, located right at the Franco-Italian border. It is the highest mountain in the Alps and in Western Europe, and the tenth-most prominent mountain in the world.
View the Source National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
National Oceanic and Atmospheric AdministrationHome To: The Atlantic OceanView the Source Wadden Sea Quality Status Report
Common Wadden Sea Secretariat, Trilateral Wadden Sea Cooperation (Denmark, Germany, Netherlands)Home To: Wadden SeaView the Source Wikipedia: Lausanne
Wikipedia: Zurich
Regions of Europe (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationAssociated With: Northern Europe, Subregions section
Some typical geographical subregions of Europe include: Central and Eastern Europe, Northern Europe, Southern Europe, and Western Europe.
Associated With: Southern Europe, Subregions section
Some typical geographical subregions of Europe include: Central and Eastern Europe, Northern Europe, Southern Europe, and Western Europe.
Associated With: Western Europe, Subregions section
Some typical geographical subregions of Europe include: Central and Eastern Europe, Northern Europe, Southern Europe, and Western Europe.
Associated With: Central Europe, Subregions section
Some typical geographical subregions of Europe include: Central and Eastern Europe, Northern Europe, Southern Europe, and Western Europe.
Associated With: Eastern Europe, Subregions section
Some typical geographical subregions of Europe include: Central and Eastern Europe, Northern Europe, Southern Europe, and Western Europe.
View the Source Paris (Wikipedia)
River Thames (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationHome To: River Thames, Lead section, opening description of the river's course
is a river that flows through southern England including London
Home To: River Thames, Infobox, Country field
England
View the Source Lake Geneva (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationHome To: Lake Geneva, Lead section, opening sentence
is a deep lake on the north side of the Alps, shared between Switzerland and France
Home To: Lake Geneva, Infobox, Location field
Switzerland, France
View the Source Matterhorn (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationHome To: Matterhorn, Lead sectionQuote, Home To: Matterhorn, Lead section
The Matterhorn is a mountain of the Alps, straddling the main watershed and border between Switzerland and Italy. It is a large, near-symmetric pyramidal peak in the extended Monte Rosa area of the Pennine Alps, whose summit is 4,478 metres (14,692 ft) above sea level, making it one of the highest summits in the Alps and Europe. Sometimes referred to as the "Mountain of Mountains", the Matterhorn has become an indelible emblem of Switzerland and of the Alps as a whole. It has also been described as the most beautiful mountain in the world and has been claimed to be the most photographed mountain in the world.
Cliffs of Moher (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationHome To: Cliffs of Moher, Lead sectionQuote, Home To: Cliffs of Moher, Lead section
sea cliffs located at the southwestern edge of the Burren region in County Clare, Ireland.
Giant's Causeway (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationHome To: Giant's Causeway, Lead sectionQuote, Home To: Giant's Causeway, Lead section
It is located in County Antrim on the north coast of Northern Ireland.
Meteora (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationHome To: Meteora, Lead sectionQuote, Home To: Meteora, Lead section
Meteora is a rock formation in the regional unit of Trikala, in Thessaly, in northwestern Greece.
Rhine (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationHome To: Rhine River, Lead sectionQuote, Home To: Rhine River, Lead section
The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps.
Volga (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationHome To: Volga River, Lead sectionQuote, Home To: Volga River, Lead section
Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Caspian Sea.
Elbe (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationHome To: Elbe River, Lead sectionQuote, Home To: Elbe River, Lead section
It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Republic), then Germany before flowing into the North Sea
Adriatic Sea (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationHome To: Adriatic Sea, Lead sectionQuote, Home To: Adriatic Sea, Lead section
The countries with coasts on the Adriatic are Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Italy, Montenegro, and Slovenia.
Black Sea (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationHome To: Black Sea, Lead sectionQuote, Home To: Black Sea, Lead section
The Black Sea is a marginal sea located between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia.
Baltic Sea (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationHome To: Baltic Sea, Lead sectionQuote, Home To: Baltic Sea, Lead section
enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden.
Samara, Russia (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationHome To: Samara, Russia, Lead section, first paragraphQuote, Home To: Samara, Russia, Lead section, first paragraph
is the largest city and the administrative centre of Samara Oblast in Russia
Open Questions (1 open question)
Where does Europe end and Asia begin?
Europe and Asia form one continuous landmass, Eurasia, with no continuous physical barrier separating them. The conventional line runs along the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Greater Caucasus, the Black Sea and the Turkish straits, but this is a human convention rather than a physical fact, and the modern division reflects East-West cultural, linguistic and ethnic differences that vary on a spectrum rather than falling at a sharp line.
What would resolve this Nothing in physical geography can resolve this, since the boundary is conventional by construction; what would change the answer is a shift in which convention geographers, national governments and international bodies choose to follow, which has already moved more than once historically.
Europe (Wikipedia)
Dissenting Readings (2 dissenting readings)
In Category: Continents
The same Eurasia argument carried on Asia own in-category edge applies here in reverse: Europe is the western peninsula of one continuous Eurasian landmass, not a landmass bounded by ocean on every side the way Africa, Australia or the Americas are. Six-continent models taught across Russia, much of Eastern Europe and Japan combine Europe and Asia into a single continent for exactly this reason.
A dissenting reading, from Geography curricula of Russia, Eastern Europe, Japan and other six-continent-model traditionsEncyclopaedia Britannica, Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
Highest Point
Mount Elbrus (5,642 m) is the standard answer only under the convention that draws the Europe/Asia boundary along the Caucasus watershed, which places Elbrus on the European side. Sources that instead treat the whole Caucasus range as outside Europe, or draw the boundary further north, name Mont Blanc, on the France-Italy border in the Alps, as Europe's highest point instead; this entity's own cited source gives Mont Blanc as 4,810 m, close to but not identical with the 4,807 m this entity's primary fact carries, the two figures reflecting different survey vintages of the same peak rather than a disagreement about which peak is meant. Both Elbrus and Mont Blanc are real, sourced answers under different, genuinely used conventions, not an error in either source; this entity's own primary fact records Elbrus as the modal answer, matching the more common convention.
A dissenting reading, from a reviewerExtreme Points of Europe (Wikipedia), Wikimedia Foundation
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is the boundary between Europe and Asia?
By convention, along the Ural Mountains and the Caucasus, not by any single physical divide.
There is no single physical barrier separating the two. By long-standing convention, the line runs along the Ural Mountains and the Ural River, then across the Caspian Sea and the Caucasus region, to the Black Sea. The boundary is a cartographic and cultural convention rather than a geological one, since Europe and Asia sit on the same landmass, Eurasia.
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