Geography Terms

Geographic Terms & World Geography Geography is the study of the Earth and its lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena.

A literal translation would be "to describe or write about the Earth". The first person to use the word "geography" was Eratosthenes (276-194 B.C.). Earth (or  the Earth) is the third planet third  planet from the Sun Sun,, and the fifth-largest of the eight

 planets in the Solar System. System. It is also the largest, most massive, and densest of the Solar  System's four terrestrial four terrestrial planets. planets. It is sometimes referred to as the World World,, the Blue Planet, or Terra. Home to millions of  species species,, including humans, Earth is the only place in the Universe where life is known to exist. The planet formed 4.54 billion years ago, and life appeared on its surface within a billion years. Since then, Earth's biosphere Earth's  biosphere has significantly altered the atmosp atmosphere here and other abiotic other  abiotic conditions on the planet, enabling the proliferation of  aerobic organisms as well as the formation of the ozone layer  which, together with Earth's magnetic field, field, blocks harmful harmful radiation, radiation, permitting permitting life life on land. The physical physical  properties of the Earth, as well as its geological history and orbit, allowed life to persist during this period. The world is expected to continue supporting life for another 1.5  billion years, after which the rising luminosity of the Sun will eliminate the biosphere letter  phi (φ) gives the location of a place on Latitude , usually denoted by the Greek letter  phi Earth (or other planetary body) north or south of the equator . Lines of Latitude are the imagi imagina nary ry horiz horizon onta tall line liness shown shown runni running ng east east-to -to-w -wes estt (or west west to east east)) on maps maps (particularl (particularlyy so in the Mercator projection) projection) that run either north or south of the equator. Technically, latitude is an angular measurement in degrees (marked with °) ranging from 0° at the equator (low (low latitude) latitude) to 90° at the poles (90° N or +90° for the North the  North Pole and 90° S or −90° for the South Pole). Pole). Longitude identified identified by the Greek letter  lambda (λ), is the geographic coordinate most

common commonly ly used in cartogra cartography phy and global global navigat navigation ion for east-wes east-westt measure measuremen ment. t. Constant longitude is represented by lines running from north to south. The line of  longitude (meridian (meridian)) that passes through the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, Greenwich, in England, establishes the meaning of zero degrees of longitude, or the prime the  prime meridian. meridian. Any other  longitude is identified by the east-west angle, referenced to the center of the Earth as vertex, between the intersections with the equator of the meridian through the location in question and the prime meridian. A location's position along a meridian is given by its latitude,, which is identified by the north-south angle between the local vertical and the latitude  plane of the equator. The Equator is the intersection of the Earth Earth''s surface with the plane the  plane perpendicular to the Earth's axis of rotation and containing the Earth's center of mass. mass. In simpler language, it is an imaginary line on the Earth Earth''s surface equidistant from the North the North Pole and South Pole

that divides the Earth into a  Northern Hemisphere and a Southern Hemisphere. Hemisphere. The equators of other  planets  planets and astronomical bodies are defined analogously. The Tropic of Cancer is the circle of latitude on the earth that marks the northernmost  path of the sun — the apparent "equator" — on the day of the northern summer solstice or the southern winter solstice. solstice. Also referred to as the Northern tropic , it is one of the two tropics (with the Tropic of  Capricorn)) that represent the extremes of the sun's path across the sky with the change of  Capricorn the seasons seasons.. Because of the tilt of the earth's axis of rotation relative to the plane of its orbit around the sun, the sun is directly overhead the Tropic of Cancer on the first day of summer in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the northernmost latitude at which the sun reaches 90 degrees above the horizon at its zenith, with the Northern Hemisphere tilted toward the sun to its maximum extent. The Tropic of Capricorn , or Southern tropic , is one of the five major circles major circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth Earth.. It lies 23° 23° 26′ 22″ south of the equator , and marks the most southerly latitude at which the sun can appear directly overhead at noon. This event occurs at the December solstice, solstice, when the southern hemisphere is tilted tilted towards the sun to its maximum extent. The Arctic Circle is one of the five major circles major  circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth Earth.. In 2010, it is the parallel of  latitude that runs approximatel approximatelyy 66° 66° 33′ 39″ (or 66.56083°) north of the Equator . The region north of this circle is known as the Arctic Arctic,, and the zone  just to the south is called the Northern the  Northern Temperate Zone. Zone. The equivalent polar equivalent polar circle in the Southern Hemisphere is called the Antarctic Circle. Circle. The Arctic Circle marks the southern extremity of the polar the  polar day (24-hour sunlit day, often referred to as the "midnight sun") and polar and  polar night (24-hour sunless night). North of the Arctic Circle, the sun is above the horizon for 24 continuous hours at least once per year  per  year  and below the horizon for 24 continuous hours at least once per year. On the Arctic Circle those events occur, in principle, exactly once per year, at the June and December  solstices,, respectively. solstices The Antarctic Circle is one of the five major  circles (or parallels) of latitude that mark  maps of the Earth Earth.. As of 2010, it lies at latitude 66° 66° 33′ 39″ (or 66.56083°) south of the equator . The area south of the Antarctic Circle is known as the Antarctic Antarctic,, and the zone immediately to the north is called the Southern Temperate Zone. Zone. The equivalent line of  latitude in the northern hemisphere is the Arctic Circle. Circle. Every place south of the Antarctic Circle experiences a period of  twenty-four hours' continuous daylight at least once per year, and a period of twenty-four of twenty-four hours' continuous night time at least once per year. That is to say, there is at least one whole day during which the sun does not set, and at least one whole day during which the sun does not rise.

On the Antarctic Circle these events occur, in principle, exactly once per year, at the Decemberr solsti Decembe solstice ce and the June solstice respectively. This happens because the Earth's axis is tilted, by approximately 23.5 degrees, relative to ecliptic (the plane of the Earth's orbit around the sun). At the June solstice the southern hemisphere is tilted away from the Sun to its maximum extent, and the region of permanent darkness reaches its northern limit; at the December solstice the southern hemisphere is tilted towards the Sun to its maximum extent, and the region of permanent sunlight reaches its northern limit. The Prime Meridian is the meridian (line of longitude of longitude)) at which the longitude is defined to be 0°. (zero degrees) The Prime Meridian and its opposite the 180th meridian (at 180° longitude), which the International Date Line generally follows, form a great circle that divides the Earth into the Eastern and Western Hemispheres Hemispheres.. Unlike the parallels of latitude of  latitude,, which are defined by the rotational axis of the Earth (the  poles being 90° and the equator  0°), the Prime Meridian is arbitrary. By international conve convent ntio ion, n, the the mode modern rn Prime Prime Meri Meridi dian an passes passes thro through ugh the the Royal Observa Observatory, tory, Greenwich (at 51°2 51°28′38″N 8′38″N 0°00′ 0°00′00″E 00″E), ), in southeast southeast London London,, United Kingdom, Kingdom, known as the International Meridian or Greenwich Meridian . The International Date Line (IDL) is an imaginary line on the surface of the Earth opposite the Prime Meridian where the date changes as one travels travels east or west across it. Roughly along 180° longitude longitude,, with diversions to pass around some territories and island groups, it mostly corresponds to the time zone boundary separating −12 and +12 hours Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) (Greenwich (Greenwich Mean Time – GMT). Crossing the IDL travelling east results in a day or 24 hours being subtracted (so the traveler repeats the date), and crossing west results in a day being added. The exact number of hours depends on the time zones. A bay is an area of water mostly surrounded or otherwise demarcated by land. Bays generally have calmer waters than the surrounding sea, due to the surrounding land  blocking some waves and often reducing winds winds.. It can also be an inlet in a lake or pond. A large bay may be called a gulf , a sea, a sound, or a bight. A narrow bay may also be called a fjord if its sides are relatively steep. A cove is a circular or oval or  oval coastal inlet with a narrow entrance; some coves may be referred to as bays. Most small bays are formed as soft rock or clay is eroded by waves. Any hard rock is eroded less quickly, leaving headlands headlands.. Any bay may contain fish and other sea creatures or be adjacent adjacent to other bays (for example, James Bay is adjacent to Hudson Bay). Bay). Large  bays, such as the Bay of Bengal and the Hudson Bay, Bay, have varied marine geology. There are various ways that bays can be created. For example, the water level of a sea can rise, flooding the shore and creating a bay.

When the coast is made of alternate bands of hard and soft rock,the soft rock gets eroded quickly to form a bay.the hard more resistant rock stands out as headlands. A gulf is a large bay large bay that is an arm of an ocean or sea. For example, the Gulf of Mexico is the tenth largest body of water in the world. An island is any piece of land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls are called islets . A key or  cay is another name for a small island or islet. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot eyot,, / aɪ.ət/. There are two main types of islands: continental continental islands and oceanic islands . There are also artificial islands. islands. A grouping of geographically and/or geologically related islands is called an archipelago archipelago.. ˈ

An archipelago is a chain or cluster of  islands that are formed tectonically . The word archipelago is directly derived from the Greek  arkhi- ("chief") and - pelagos ("sea"). In Italian, possibly following a tradition of antiquity , the Archipelago was the proper name for the Aegean Sea and, later, usage shifted to refer to the Aegean Islands (since the sea is remarkable for its large number of islands). It is now used to generally refer to any island group or, sometimes, to a sea containing a large number of scattered islands like the Aegean Sea. Types of archipelagos Archipelagos are usually found in the open sea; less commonly, a large land mass may neighbo neighbour ur them. them. For exampl example, e, Scotland has more than 700 islands surrounding its mainland. mainland. Archipelagos Archipelagos are often volcanic volcanic,, forming along island arcs generat generated ed by subduction zones or  hotspots hotspots,, but there are many other processes involved in their  construction, including erosion erosion,, deposition deposition,, and land elevation. elevation. The five largest modern countries that are mainly archipelagos are Japan Japan,, the Philippines Philippines,,  New Zealand, Zealand, the United Kingdom and Indonesia Indonesia.. The largest archipelago in the world,  by size, is Indonesia. The archipelago with the most islands is the Archip Archipelago elago Sea in Finland,, but these islands are generally small. Finland A peninsula (Latin "paenīnsula", "paene-": almost + "īnsula": island) is a piece of land of  land that is surrounded by water  water but but connected to mainland via an isthmus isthmus.. A peninsula can also be a headland headland,, cape cape,, island promontory island promontory,, bill, point, or spit or  spit.. Note that a point is generally considered a tapering piece of land projecting into a body of water  that is less prominent than a cape. A landlocked country is commonly defined as one enclosed or nearly enclosed by land. As of 2008, there are 44 landlocked countries in the world. Of the major landmasses, only  North America and Australia do not have a landlocked country inside their respective continents. Many countries also have constricted access to the sea. If a country's only coastline is on a sea that is almost landlocked, such as the Balt Baltic ic Sea Sea,, the Mediterranean Sea, Sea, and the

Black Sea, Sea, this may allow ocean access to be easily blocked. This may be of strategic importance, with one or two other countries controlling the entrance, and/or be relevant to tides and freshwater  content. Areas without a warm water port will be landlocked during the winter months. An island country can conversely be considered considered waterlocked as it is entirely entirely surrounded  by water. In such cases, one must cross water to reach land abroad. The word littoral is derived from the Latin noun litus, litoris, meaning "shore". The countries bordering sea are called littoral countries. Channel (geography), (geography), in physical geography, the physical confine of a river, slough or 

ocean strait consisting of a bed and banks  In Europe: •

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English Channel, Channel, the part of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Great Britain from northern France Channel Tunnel, Tunnel, or the Chunnel, a rail tunnel underneath the English Channel linking the U.K. and France Channel Islands, Islands, an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of   Normandy

A strait or  straits is a narrow, navigable channel of water  that connects two larger  navigable bodies of water. It most commonly refers to a channel of water that lies  between two land masses, masses, but it may also refer to a navigable channel through a body of  water that is otherwise not navigable, for example because it is too shallow, or because it contains an unnavigable reef  reef or  or archipelago archipelago.. Canals are man-made channels for water. There are two types of canal:

1. Aqueduct (or water conveyance) canals that are used for the conveyance and delivery of fresh water, for human consumption, agriculture agriculture,, etc. 2. Waterway canals that are navigable transportation canals used for carrying ships and boats loaded with goods and people, often connected to existing lakes lakes,, rivers rivers,, or  oceans oceans.. Included here are inter-ocean canals such as the Suez Canal and the Panama Canal. Canal. Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent continent,, located in the eastern and

northern hemispheres. hemispheres. It covers 8.6% of the earth earth''s total surface area (or 29.9% of its land area) and with approximately 4 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human  population..  population Asia is traditionally defined as part of the landmass of  Eurasia — with the western  portion of the latter occupied by Europe — located to the east of the Suez Canal, Canal, east of  the Ural Mounta Mountains ins and and sout southh of the the Caucasu Caucasuss Mounta Mountains ins (or the Kuma-Manych

Depression) and the Caspian and Black Seas It is bounded on the east by the Pacific Depression) Ocean,, on the south by the Indian Ocean and on the north by the Arctic Ocean. Ocean Ocean. Given its size and diversity, Asia — a toponym dating back to classical antiquity  — is more a cultural concept incorporating a number of  regions and peoples than a homogeneous  physical entity (see Subregions of Asia, Asian people). second-largest and second most-populous most-populous continent continent,, after Asia after  Asia.. At Africa is the world's second-largest about 30.2 million km² (11.7 million sq mi) mi) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of  the Earth Earth''s total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area. With a billion people (as of  2009, see table table)) in 61 territories, it accounts for about 14.72% of the World World''s human  population.. The continent is surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, both the  population Suez Canal and the Red Sea along the Sinai Peninsula to the northeast, the Indian Ocean to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Not counting the disputed territory of  Western Sahara, Sahara, there are 53 countries, including Madagascar  Madagascar and and various island groups, associated with the continent Earth''s southernmost continent continent,, underlying the South Pole. Pole. It is situated in Antarctica is Earth the Antarctic region of the southern hemisphere, hemisphere, almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle,, and is surrounded by the Southern Ocean. Circle Ocean. At 14.0 million km 2 (5.4 million sq mi), it is the fifth-largest continent in area after  Asia Asia,, Africa Africa,,  North America, America, and South America.. About 98% of Antarctica is covered by ice America ice,, which averages at least 1.6 kilometres (1.0 mi) in thickness. Antarctica, Antarctica, on average, average, is the coldest, driest, and windiest continent, continent, and has the highest average elevation of all the continents. Antarctica is considered a desert desert,, with annual  precipitati  precipitation on of only 200 mm (8 inches) along the coast and far less inland. inland. There are no  permanent human residents but anywhere from 1,000 to 5,000 people reside throughout the year at the research research stations stations scattered across the continent. continent. Only cold-adapted cold-adapted plants plants and animals survive there, including  penguins  penguins,, seals seals,, nematodes nematodes,, Tardigrades Tardigrades,, mites mites,, many types of algae of algae and other microorganisms, and tundra vegetation. the sm smal alle lest st of the the geogr geograph aphic ic continents continents,, thou though gh not not of geol geolog ogic ical al Australia is the continents. There is no universally accepted definition of the word "continent"; the lay definition is "One of the main continuous bodies of land on the earth's surface.". By that definition, the continent of Australia includes only the Austral Australian ian mainl mainland and,, and not nearby islands such as Tasmania or  New or  New Guinea. Guinea. From the perspective of  geology or   physical geography, geography, however, a "continent" may be understood to include the continental shelf  (the submerged adjacent area) and the islands on the shelf, which are taken to be structurally part of the continent. By that definition Tasmania, New Guinea and other  nearby islands such as (Aru (Aru Islands and Raja Ampat Islands) Islands) are part of the Australian continent, also known as Sahul, since they are part of the same geological landmass. These islands are separated by seas overlying the continental shelf — the Arafura Sea and Torres Strait between Australia and New Guinea, and Bass Strait between mainland Australia and Tasmania.

is, by conv conven enti tion on,, one one of the the worl world' d'ss seve sevenn continents continents.. Compri Comprisi sing ng the the Europe is, westernmost  peninsula of  Eurasia Eurasia,, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divid dividee of the Ural Mountains, Mountains, the Ural River , the Caspian Sea, Sea, the Caucasus Mountains (or the Kuma-Ma Kuma-Manych nych Depres Depression sion), ), and the Black Sea to the southeast. Europe is bordered by the Arctic Ocean and other bodies of water to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and the Black Sea and connected waterways to the southeast. Yet the borders for Europe—a concept dating back  to classical antiquity  —are somewhat arbitrary, as the term continent  can refer to a cultural and political distinction or a physiographic a physiographic one. Europ Europee is the the world world's 's second-smallest contin continent ent by surfac surfacee area area,, coveri covering ng about about 10,180,000 square kilometres (3,930,000 sq mi) or 2% of the Earth's surface and about 6.8% of its land area. Of Europe's Europe's approximatel approximatelyy 50 states, Russia is the largest by both area and population, while the Vatican City is the smallest. Europe is the third most  populous continent after Asia and Africa Africa,, with a population a  population of 731 million or about 11% of the world's population; population; however, however, according according to the United Nations (medium estimate), Europe's share may fall to about 7% by 2050. In 1900, Europe's share of the world's  population was 25%. Earth's 's northern North America is the northern continent of the Americas situated in the Earth hemisphere and in the western hemis hemisphere phere.. It is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean,, on the east by the  North Atlantic Ocean, Ocean Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, Sea, and on the west by the  North Pacific Ocean; Ocean; South America lies to the southeast. North America America covers an area of about 24,709,000 square kilometers (9,540,000 square miles), about 4.8% of the planet's surface or about 16.5% of its land area. As of July 2008, its  population was estimated at nearly 529 million people. It is the third-largest continent in area, following Asia and Africa Africa,, and the fourth in population after  Asia Asia,, Africa Africa,, and Europe.. Europe America,, situated entirely in the Western South America is the southern continent of  America Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the   Northern Hemisphere. Hemisphere. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east by the Atlan Atlantic tic Ocean Ocean;;   North Americ Americaa and and the the Caribb Caribbean ean Sea lie to the northwest. America was named in 1507 by cartographers Marti Martinn Waldse Waldseemüll emüller  er  and Matthias Ringmann after Amerigo after  Amerigo Vespucci, Vespucci, who was the first European to suggest that the newly discovered lands were not India India,, but a New a New World unknown to Europeans. South America has an area of 17,840,000 square kilometers (6,890,000 sq mi), or almost 3.5% of the Earth Earth's 's surface. As of 2005, its  population was estimated at more than 371,090,000. South America ranks fourth in area (after Asia (after  Asia,, Africa Africa,, and North and North America) America) and fifth in population (after Asia (after Asia,, Africa Africa,, Europe Europe,, and North and North America). America). The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth Earth''s oceanic divisions. Its name is derived from the Latin name Tepre Pacificum, "peaceful sea", bestowed upon it by the Portuguese

explorer  Ferdin Ferdinand and Magell Magellan an.. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east. At 169.2 169.2 millio millionn square square kilome kilometre tress (65.3 (65.3 millio millionn square square miles) miles) in area, area, this this largest largest division of the World Ocean – and, in turn, the hydrosphere – covers about 46% of the Earth's water surface and about 30% of its total surface. The equator  equator subdivides subdivides it into the North Pacific Ocean and South Pacific Ocean , with two exceptions: the Galápagos and Gilbert Islands, Islands, while straddling the equator, are deemed wholly within the South Pacific. The Mariana Trench in the western North Pacific is the deepest point in the Pacific and in the world, reaching a depth of 10,911 metres (35,800 ft). The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about 106.4 million square kilometres (41.1 million square miles), it covers approximately one-fifth of the Earth Earth''s surface and about one-quarter of its water surface area. The first part of its name refers to the Atlas of  Greek mythology, mythology, making the Atlantic the "Sea of Atlas". The oldest known mention of this name is contained in The Histories of  Herodotus around 450 BCE (I 202); see also: Atlas Mountains. Another name historically used was the ancient term Ethiopic Ocean, Ocean, derived from Ethiopia Ethiopia,, whose name was sometimes used as a synonym for all of Africa and thus for the ocean. Before Europeans discovered other oceans, the term "ocean" itself was to them synonymous with the waters beyond Western Europe that we now know as the Atlantic and which the Greeks had believed to  be a gigantic river encircling the world; see Oceanus Oceanus.. The Atlant Atlantic ic Ocean Ocean occupie occupiess an elongat elongated, ed, S-shaped S-shaped basin basin extend extending ing longit longitudi udinal nally ly  between the Americas to the west, and Eurasia and Africa to the east. As one component of the interconnected global ocean, ocean, it is connected in the north to the Arctic Ocean (which is sometimes considered a sea of the Atlantic), to the Pacific Ocean in the southwest, the Indian Ocean in the southeast, and the Souther Southernn Ocean in the south. (Other definitions describe the Atlantic as extending southward to Antarctica Antarctica..) The equator  subdivides it into the North Atlantic Ocean and South Atlantic Ocean . The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, divisions, covering covering about 20% of the water  on the Earth Earth's 's surface. It is bounded on the north by South Asia (including India India,, after which it is named); on the west by Africa Africa;; on the east by Indochina,, the Sunda Islands, Indochina Islands, and Australia Australia;; and on the south by the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, by Antarctica Antarctica). ). The Southern Ocean , also known as the Great Southern Ocean , the Antarctic Ocean and the South Polar Ocean , comprises the southernmost waters of the World Ocean, Ocean, generally taken to be south of  60°S latitude and encircling Antarctica Antarctica.. It is usually regarded as the fourth-largest of the five principal oceanic divisions. This ocean zone is where cold, northward flowing waters from the Antarctic mix with warmer sub-Antarctic waters.

The Arctic Ocean, located in the   Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Arctic north  polar  region, is the smallest, and shallowest of the world's five major  oceanic divisions The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) recognizes it as an ocean, although some oceanographers call it the  Arctic Mediterranean Sea or simply the   Arctic Sea, classifying it as one of the mediterranean seas of the Atlantic Ocean. Ocean. Alternatively, the Arctic Ocean can be seen as the northernmost lobe of the all-encompassing World Ocean. Ocean. The Arabian Sea is a region of the Indian Ocean bounded Ocean  bounded on the east by India India,, on the north by Pakistan and Iran Iran,, on the west by the Arabia Arabiann Peninsu Peninsula la,, on the south, approximately, by a line between Cape Guardafui, Guardafui, the north-east point of  Somalia Somalia,, Socotra,, and Kanyakumari (Cape Comorin) Socotra Comorin) in India India.. The Red Sea is a seawater  seawater inlet inlet of the Indian Ocean, Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia Asia.. The connection connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of  Aden.. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, Aden Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez (leading to the Suez Canal). Canal). The Red Sea is a Global 200 ecoregion. The water is not red, as the name may imply. The Black Sea is an inland sea bounded by Europe Europe,, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and Aegean Seas and various straits straits.. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, Marmara, and the strait of  the Dardanelles connects it to the Aegean Sea region of the Mediterranean. These waters separate eastern Europe and western Asia Asia.. The Black Sea also connects to the Sea of  Azov by the Strait of Kerch. Kerch. The Dead Sea also called the Salt Sea, is a salt lake in Jordan to the east and in the West Bank  and Israel to the west. Its surface and shores are 422 metres (1,385 ft) below sea level,, the lowest elevation on the Earth level Earth's 's surface on dry land. The Dead Sea is 378 m (1,240 ft) deep, the deepest hypersa hypersaline line lake in the world. It is also one of the world's saltiest bodies saltiest  bodies of water , with 33.7% salinity salinity.. Only Lake Assal (Djibouti), (Djibouti), Garabogazköl and some hypersaline lakes of the McMurdo Dry Valleys in Antarctica (such as Don Juan Pond and perhaps Lake Vanda) Vanda) have a higher salinity. It is 8.6 times more salty than the ocean. This salinity makes for a harsh environment where animals cannot flourish, hence its name. The Dead Sea is 67 kilometres kilometres (42 mi) long and 18 kilometres kilometres (11 mi) wide at its widest point. It lies in the Jordan Rift Valley, Valley, and its main tributary is the Jordan River . The Dead Sea has attracted visitors from around the Mediterranean basin for thousands of  years. Biblically Biblically,, it was a place of refuge for  King David. David. It was one of the world's first health resorts (for  Herod the Great), Great), and it has been the supplier of a wide variety of   products, from balms for Egyptian for  Egyptian mummification to  potash for  fertilizers fertilizers.. People also use the salt and the minerals from the Dead Sea to create cosmetics and herbal sachets sachets.. The Baltic Sea is a  brackish inland inland sea located in Northern in  Northern Europe, Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude longitude.. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, Peninsula, the mainland of Europe of  Europe,, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the

Øresund, the Great Belt and the Little Belt. Øresund, Belt. The Kattegat continues through Skagerrak  into the  North Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. Ocean. The Baltic Sea is connected by man-made waterways waterways to the White Sea via the Whit Whitee Sea Canal, Canal, and to the North Sea via the Kiel Canal.. The Baltic Sea might be considered to be bordered on its northern edge by the Canal Gulf of Bothnia, Bothnia, on its northeastern edge by the Gulf of Finland, Finland, and on its eastern edge   by the Gulf of Riga. Riga. However, these various gulfs can be considered to be simply offshoots of the Baltic Sea, and therefore parts of it. The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe Europe,, on the south by Africa Africa,, and on the east by the Levant. Levant. The sea is technically a part of the Atlantic Ocean, although it is usually identified as a completely separate  body of water. The name Mediterranean is derived from the Latin mediterraneus, meaning "inland" or  "in the middle of the earth" (from medius, "middle" and terra, "earth"). It covers an approximate area of 2.5 million km² (965,000 sq mi), mi), but its connection to the Atlantic (the Strait of Gibraltar ) is only 14 km (9 mi) wide. In oceanography oceanography,, it is sometimes called called the   Eurafrican Eurafrican Mediterranean Mediterranean Sea or the the   Europe European an Medit Mediterra erranea nean n Sea to distinguish it from mediterranean seas elsewhere. The Caspian is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea sea.. The sea has a surface area of 371,000 square kilometres (143,244 sq mi) mi) and a volume of 78,200 cubic kilometres (18,761 cu mi). It is in an endorheic basin (it has no outflows) and is bounded by northern Iran Iran,, southern Russia,, west Russia western ern Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan Turkmenistan,, and and east easter ernn Azerbaijan Azerbaijan.. I t h a s a maximum depth of about 1,025 metres (3,363 ft). The ancient inhabitants of its littoral perceived the Caspian as an ocean, probably because of its saltiness and seeming boundlessness. It has a salinity of approximately 1.2%, about a third the salinity of most seawater . Caspian is called Qazvin on ancient maps. In Iran, it is sometimes referred to as Daryâ-ye Mâzandarân). The Panama Canal is a 77 km (48 mi) ship canal that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific ocean and a key conduit for international maritime trade. Annual traffic has risen from about 1,000 ships in the canal's early days to 14,702 vessels in 2008, displacing a total 309.6 million Panama Canal/Universal Measurement System (PC/UMS) tons. One of the largest and most difficult engineering projects projects ever undertaken, undertaken, the canal had an enorm enormous ous impac impactt on shipping between the two oceans, replacing the long and treacherous route via the Drake Passage and Cape Horn at the southernmost tip of South of  South America.. A ship sailing from New America from  New York to York to San Francisco via the canal travels travels 9,500 km (6,000 miles), well under half the 22,500 km (14,000 miles) route around Cape Horn. Horn. The Suez man-ma made de sea-level waterwa waterwayy in Egypt Egypt,, conn connec ecti ting ng the the Suez Canal Canal is a manMediterranean Medit erranean Sea and and the the Re Redd Se Seaa. Opene Openedd in Nove Novemb mber er 1869, 1869, it allo allows ws water 

transportation between Europe and Asia without navigating around Africa Africa.. The northern northern terminus is Port Said and the southern terminus is Port Tawfik at the city of Suez of Suez.. The canal is 192 km (119 mi) long with Ismailia Ismailia,, on the west bank, 3 km (1.9 mi) north of the half-way point. It consists of the northern access channel of 19.5 km/12.1 mi, the canal itself of 162.25 km/100.82 mi and of the southern access channel of 8.5 km/5.3 mi. It is single-lane with passing places in  Ballah  Ballah By-Pass and in the Great Bitter Lake. Lake. It contains no locks; seawater flows freely through the canal into the Great Bitter Lake from   both both the the Medi Medite terra rrane nean an Sea in the the north north and and the the Red Red Sea Sea in the the south south,, repla replaci cing ng evaporation. The Kiel Canal until 1948 known as the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Kanal , is a 61 miles (98 kilometres) long canal in the German Bundesland Schleswig-Holstein that links the North the  North Sea at Brunsbüttel to the Baltic Sea at Kiel Kiel-Holtenau. -Holtenau. An average of 250 nautical miles (460 kilometers) is saved by using the Kiel Canal instead of going around the Jutland Peninsula. This not only saves time but also avoids potentially dangerous storm-prone seas. According to the canal's website, it is the most heavily used artificial seaway in the world; over 43,000 ships passed through in 2007, excluding small craft. The Sukkur barrage (Sindhi Sindhi:: ‫) سکر بند‬is a barrage a barrage across the Indus river near river near the city of  Sukkur , Pakistan Pakistan.. It was built during the British Raj from 1923 to 1932 as the Lloyd Barrage to help alleviate famines caused by lack of rain. The barrage enables water to flow through what was originally a 6166 mile long network of canals, feeding the largest irrigation system in the world, with more than 5 million acres (20,000 km²) of irrigated land. The retaining wall has sixty-six spans, each 60 feet wide; each span has a gate which weighs 50 tons. Guddu Barrage is a  barrage across river  Indus Indus,, near  Sukkur  in Pakistan Pakistan.. President

Iskander Mirza laid foundation-stone of the Guddu Barrage on February 2, 1957. The  barrage was completed in 1962. Inaugurated by Field Marshal AYUB KHAN. At the time of its construction it has maximum design discharge of 1.2 million cubic feet  per second (34,000 m³/s). It is a gate-controlled weir type barrage with a navigation lock. The barrage has 64 bays, each 60 feet (18 m) wide. The maximum flood level height of  Guddu barrage is 26 feet (8 m). It controls irrigation supplies to 2.9 million acres (12,000 km²) of agricultural lands in the Jacobabad Jacobabad,, Larkana and Sukkur  Sukkur districts districts of Sindh of Sindh and the   Naseerabad district of  Balochistan Balochistan.. The cost of the project was 474.8 million rupees. It feeds Ghotki Feeder, Begari Feeder, Desert and Pat Feeder canals. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is a federation of seven emirates situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Southwest Asia on the Persian Gulf , bordering Oman and Saudi Arabia. Arabia. The UAE consists of seven states, termed emirates emirates,, which are Abu Dhabi, Dhabi, Dubai Dubai,, Sharjah Sharjah,, Ajman Ajman,, Umm al-Quwain, al-Quwain, Ras al-Khaimah and Fujairah Fujairah..

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Irelan (commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK , or  Britain ) is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of  continental Europe. Europe. It is an islan islandd country country,, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland of  Ireland,, and many small islands. Northern islands.  Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK  with a land border , sharing it with the Republic of Ireland. Ireland. Apart from this land border, the UK is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, Ocean, the North the  North Sea, Sea, the English Channel and the Irish Sea. Sea. The largest island, Great Britain, is linked to France by the Channel Tunnel. Tunnel. The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy and unitary state consisting of four of four countries: countries: England England,, Northern Ireland, Ireland, Scotland and Wales Wales.. The United States of America (commonly referred to as the United States , the U.S., the USA, or  America ) is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district. district. The country is situated mostly in central North central  North America, America, where its fortyeight contiguous states and Washington, D.C., D.C., the capital district, district, lie between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, Oceans, bordered by Canada to the north and Mexico to the south. The state of Alaska of  Alaska is in the northwest of the continent, with Canada to the east and Russia to the west across the Bering Strait. Strait. The state of  Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific. The country also possesses several territories in the Caribbean and Pacific. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR ) was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. The name is a translation of the Russian abbreviated СССР, SSSR. The common short name is Soviet Union , from Sovetskiy Soyuz . A soviet is a council, the theoretical basis for the socialist society of the USSR. Emerging from the Russian Empire after the Russian Revolution of 1917 and the Russian Civil War  of 1918–1921, the USSR was a union of several Soviet republics, republics, but the synecdoche  Russia —after the  Russian SFSR, its largest and most populous constituent state  —co —cont ntin inued ued to be commo commonl nlyy used used thro through ughou outt the the count country ry's 's exis existe tence nce.. The The geographic boundaries of the USSR varied with time, but after the last major territorial annexations of the Baltic states, states, eastern Poland, Poland, Bessarabia Bessarabia,, and certain other territories during Wo Worl rldd Wa Warr II II,, from from 1945 until until dissol dissoluti ution, on, the boundar boundaries ies approxi approximat mately ely corresponded corresponded to those of late Imperial Russia, Russia, with the notable exclusions of Poland of  Poland and Finland.. Finland Initially established as a union of four Soviet Socialist Republics, the USSR grew to contain 15 constituent or "union republics" by 1956: Armenian SSR , Azerbaijan SSR , Byelorussian SSR , Estonian SSR , Georgian SSR , Kazakh SSR , Kirghiz SSR , Latvian SSR , Lith Lithuanian uanian SSR , Molda Moldavian vian SSR , Russ Russian ian SFS SFSR  R , Taj Tajik ik SSR , Tur Turkme kmenn SSR , Ukrainian SSR and SSR and Uzbek SSR . northernn Europe that includes includes Denmark ,  Norway  Norway,, and Scandinavia is a region in norther Sweden. Finland is often considered a Scandinavian country in common English usage, Sweden. and Iceland and the Faroe Islands are sometimes also included. The Maghreb also rendered Maghrib or, rarely, Moghreb, refers to a region of  North of  North Africa.. An Arabic word, it literally means "place of  sunset Africa sunset"" or "western "western". ". The term is

generally now used to refer collectively to the countries of  Morocco Morocco,, Algeria Algeria,, and Tunisia.. However, before the establishment of modern nation states in the region, it Tunisia signified the smaller area that lies between the high ranges of the Atlas Mountains in the south, and the Mediterranean Sea in the north. Sometimes, especially during periods of  Muslim rule, the term has included the areas now represented by the countries of Spain of  Spain,, Portugal,, Sicily and Malta Portugal Malta.. Partially isolated from the rest of the continent by the Atlas Mountains and the Sahara Sahara,, the Maghreb has long been closely tied in terms of  climate climate,, landforms landforms,,  population  population,, economy,, and history to the Mediterranean economy Mediterranean basin. Because sea transportation transportation dominated dominated  people's lives for so long, peoples joined by waters shared more than those joined by land. The region was united as a single political entity only during the first years of Arab rule (early 8th century), and again for several decades under the Berber Almohads Berber  Almohads (1159–  1229). The Arab states of  North of  North Africa established the Maghreb Union in 1989 to promote cooperation and economic integration. Its members are Morocco Morocco,, Algeria Algeria,, Tunisia Tunisia,, Libya and Mauritania Mauritania.. The Netherlands is a constituent country in Northwestern in Northwestern Europe of the Kingdom of the  Netherlands,, comprising the majority of its territory. It is a   parliamentary democratic  Netherlands constitutional monarchy. monarchy. The Netherlands borders the North the  North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east. The capital is Amsterdam and the seat of  government is The Hague. Hague. The Netherlands is often called Holland, a pars a  pars pro toto, toto, as North as North and South Holland are actually two of its twelve  provinces  provinces.. The word  Dutch is used to refer to the people, the language, and anything pertaining to the Netherlands. This lexical difference between the noun and the adjective is a peculiarity of the English language and does not exist in the Dutch langua language ge.. The adjective 'Dutch' is derived from the language that was spoken in the area, called 'Diets', which equals Middle Dutch. Dutch. In German German,, Deutsche is the feminine adjectival form for  Deutsch "German" The people of Germany are Deutsche. Western rn Asia located on the eastern Israel officially the State of Israel , is a country in Weste shore of the Mediterranean Sea. Sea. It borders Lebanon in the north, Syria in the northeast, Jordan in the east, and Egypt on the southwest, and contains geographically diverse features within its relatively small area. Also adjacent are the West Bank to Bank  to the east and Gaza Strip to the southwest. Israel is the world's world's only predominantly only  predominantly Jewish state with a  population of about 7.5 million people, of whom approximately 5.62 million are Jewish Jewish.. The largest ethnic minority group is the segment denominated as Arab citizens of Israel, Israel, while minority religious groups include Muslims Muslims,, Christians Christians,, Druze Druze,, Samaritans and others, most of which are found within the Arab segment.

Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, Ocean, it lies to the east of  Japan is an island country in East Asia. the Sea of Japan, Japan, China China,, North Korea, Korea, South Korea and Russia Russia,, stretching from the Sea of  Okhotsk in Okhotsk  in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south. The characters which make up Japan's name mean "sun-origin", which is why Japan is sometimes identified as the "Land "Land of the Rising Sun". Sun". Japan is an archipelago of 6,852 islands. The four largest islands are Honshū Honshū,, Hokkaidō Hokkaidō,, Kyūshū and Shikoku Shikoku,, together accounting for 97% of Japan's land area. Most of the islands islands are mountainous mountainous,, many volcanic volcanic;; for example, Japan’s highest peak, Mount Fuji, Fuji, is a volcano. Japan has the world's tenth-l tenth-largest argest popula population tion,, with about 128 million  people.  people. The Great Greater er Tokyo Area, Area, which includes the de facto capital city of Tokyo of  Tokyo and several surrounding prefectures surrounding  prefectures,, is the largest metropolitan area in the world, with over  30 million residents. Asia. The name Iran officially the Islamic Republic of Iran is a country in Western Asia.  Iran has been in use natively since antiquity and came into international use in 1935,  before which the country was widely known as Persia . historic state originating originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate Prussia was a historic of Branden Brandenburg burg.. For centu centuri ries es this this stat statee had had subst substan anti tial al infl influe uenc ncee on German and European history. The last capital of the state of Prussia was Berlin Berlin.. The The name name  Prussia derives derives from from the Old Prussia Prussians ns,, a Baltic people people relate relatedd to the Lithuanians and Latvians Latvians.. Yugoslavia , proclaimed in 1943 by the Yugoslav Partisans resistance movement in

World War II. II. It was renamed to the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia in 1946, when a communist government was established. In 1963, it was renamed again to the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY). This was the largest Yugoslav state, as Istria and Rijeka were added to the new Yugoslavia after the end of World War II. The constituent six Socialist Republics and two Socialist Autonomous Provinces that made up the country country,, were: were: SR Bosn Bosnia ia and Her Herzeg zegovi ovina na,, SR Cro Croati atiaa, SR Mac Macedo edonia nia,, SR  Montenegro,, SR Slovenia and SR Serbia (including the autonomous provinces of SAP Montenegro of  SAP Vojvodina and SAP Kosovo which were also equal members of the federation). Starting in 1991, the SFRY disintegrated in the Yugoslav Wars which followed the secession of  most of the country's constituent entities. The last country to bear the name Yugoslavia was the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) established on March 27, 1992. It was a federation on the territory of the two remaini remaining ng (non-sec (non-secessi essioni onist) st) republi republics cs of  Montenegro and Serbia (inclu (includin dingg the autonomous provinces of Vojvodina of Vojvodina and Kosovo Kosovo). ). On February 4, 2003, it was renamed to the the St Stat atee Uni Union on of Ser Serbi biaa and Mo Mont nten eneg egro ro,, and and offi offici cial ally ly abol abolis ishe hedd the the name name "Yugoslavia". On June 3 and June 5, 2006 respectively, Montenegro and Serbia declared independence, thereby ending the Yugoslav state. Kosovo declared independence in 2008. Its statehood is, however, still disputed.

(Mandarin pronunciation pronunciation:: Sinkiang ) is an autonom autonomous ous region (Xinjiang Xinjiang (Mandarin Uyghur Autonomous Region ) of the People's Republic of China and also claimed by the Republic of China. China. It is the largest Chinese administrative division and spans over 1.6 million sq. km. Xinjiang borders Russia Russia,, Mongolia Mongolia,, Kazakhstan Kazakhstan,, Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan,, Tajikistan Tajikistan,, Afghanistan,, Pakistan and India Afghanistan India,, has abundant oil reserves and is China's largest natural gas-producing region. It administers most of  Aksai Chin, Chin, a territory formally part of  Kashmir 's Ladakh region over which India claims sovereignty since 1962. "Xinjiang" literally means "New Frontier", a name given during the Qing Dynasty. Dynasty. It is home to a number of different ethnic groups and major ethnic groups include Uyghur , Han,, Kazakh Han Kazakh,, Hui Hui,, Kyrgyz and Mongol Mongol.. Older English-language reference works often refer to the area as Chinese Turkestan, Turkestan, Sinkiang and East Turkestan. Turkestan. Xinjiang is divided into the Dzungarian Basin in the north and the Tarim Basin in the south by a mountain range. The Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), also called Xizang Autonomous Region is a  province-level  province -level autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Within the People's Republic of China, China, Tibet is identified with the Autonomous Region, which includes about half of ethno-cultural of  ethno-cultural Tibet, Tibet, including including the traditional traditional provinces of  Ü-Tsang and Kham (western half). Its borders coincide roughly with the actual zone of  control of the government of Tibet before 1959. The Tibet Autonomous Region is the second-largest   pro provi vinc ncee-le leve vell di divi visi sion on of Ch Chin inaa by area (spanning over  2 470,000 sq mi/1,200,000 km ) after Xinjiang after Xinjiang.. territ itory ory in Nort Northe hern rn Paki Pakist stan an.. The The terri territo tory ry,, whic whichh does does not not Gilgit-Baltistan is a terr const constit itut utee a provi provinc ncee of Paki Pakist stan an,, was was form former erly ly known known as the the  Northern. It is the northernmost political entity within the Pakistani-controlled part of the former  princely former  princely state of Jammu and Kashmir . It borders Afghanistan to the north, China to the northeast, the Pakistani-administered state of Azad of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Kashmir (AJK) to the south, and the Indian-administered state of Jammu and Kashmir to Kashmir to the southeast. The territory became a single administrative unit in 1970 under the name "Northern Areas" and was formed by the amalgamation of the Gilgit Agency, Agency, the Baltistan District of the Ladakh Wazarat, and the states of Hunza of Hunza and Nagar  and Nagar . With its administrative center at the town of Gilgit of  Gilgit,, GilgitBaltistan covers an area of 72,971 km² (28,174 mi²) and has an estimated population approach approaching ing 1,000,0 1,000,000. 00. Pakista Pakistann conside considers rs the territ territory ory as separat separatee from from Kashmir  Kashmir  whereas India considers considers the territory territory as a part of the larger disputed larger disputed territory of Kashmir  of  Kashmir  that has been in dispute between India, Pakistan, and China since 1947. The FATA are bordered by: Afghanistan to the west with the border marked by the Durand Line, Line, the NWFP and the Punjab to the east, and Balochistan to the south. The seven Tribal Areas lie in a north-to-south strip that is adjacent to the west side of the six Frontier Regions , which also lie in a north-to-south strip. The areas within each of  those two regions are geographically arranged in a sequence from north to south.

The geographical geographical arrangement of the seven Tribal Areas in order from north to south is: Bajaur, Mohmand, Khyber, Orakzai, Kurram,  Kurram,   North Waziristan, Waziristan, South Waziristan. Waziristan. The geographical arrangement of the six Frontier Regions in order from north to south is: Peshawar, Kohat, Bannu, Lakki Marwat, Tank, Dera Ismael Khan. The Provincially Provincially Administered Administered Tribal Areas (PATA) are Pakistani administrative subdivisions designated in the Article 246(b) of the Constitution of Pakistan. Pakistan. No Act of  Provincial Assembly can be applied to PATA whereas the Governor of the respective  province has mandate parallel to the authority Presid President ent of Pakist Pakistan an has over Federally over  Federally Administered Tribal Areas. Areas. Provincially Administered Tribal Areas as defined in the Constitution include four former   princely states as well as tribal areas and tribal territories in districts districts:: •

 North-West Frontier Province Chitral District (former Chitral (former Chitral state) state) Dir District (Upper Dir and Dir and Lower Dir , former Dir former Dir state) state) Swat District (former Swat (former Swat state including Kalam) Tribal Area in Kohistan District Malakand District Tribal Area adjoining Mansehra District (Battagram Battagram,, Allai and Black Mountain of  Hazara,, Upper Tanawalormer) and former Amb Hazara former Amb state. state.

•

Balochistan Zhob District Loralai District (excluding the Duki Tehsil Tehsil)) Dalbandin Tehsil of Chagai of Chagai District Kohlu District (former Marri (former Marri Tribal Territory in Sibi District) District) Dera Bugti District (former Bugti (former Bugti Tribal Territory in Sibi District)

subcontinent. Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term  Kashmir  geographically denoted only to the valley   betwee betweenn the Great Himal Himalayas ayas and and the the Pir Pan Panjal jal mountain mountain range. Contemporaril Contemporarily, y,  Kashmir  denotes a larger area that includes the Indian Indian-administered -administered Jammu and Kashmir  (the Kashmir valley, Jammu and Ladakh Ladakh), ), the Pakistani Pakistani-administered -administered Northern  Northern Areas and the Azad Kashmir  provinces, and the Chinese Chinese-administered -administered regions of  Aksai Chin and Trans-Karakoram Tract. Tract. The United Nations, and other local entities, use the designation Jammu and Kashmir to geographically denote the said area. In the first half of the first millennium, the Kashmir region became an important center of  Buddhism and later of Hinduism of Hinduism;; later still, in the ninth century, Kashmir Shaivism arose. In 1349, Shah Mir became the first Muslim ruler of Kashmir and inaugurated the Salatini-Kashmir  or  Swati dynas dynasty ty.. For For the the next next five five cent centuri uries, es, Musl Muslim im monarchs ruled

Kashmir, including the Mughals Mughals,, who ruled from 1526 until 1751, then the Afghan Durrani Empire that ruled from 1747 until 1820. That year, the Sikhs under Ranjit under  Ranjit Singh, Singh, annexed Kashmir. In 1846, upon the purchase of the region from the British under the Treaty of Amritsar, the Dogras—under  Gulab Singh —became the new rulers. Dogra Rule, under the  paramountcy (or tutelage) of the British British Crown, lasted until 1947, when the for former mer pri prince ncely ly sta state te becam becamee a disput disputed ed terri territory tory,, now admini administe stered red by three three countries: India India,, Pakistan Pakistan,, and the People's Republic of China. China.  Associated Free State of  Puerto Rico officially the Commonwealth of Puerto literally  Associated  Puerto Rico), is a self-governing unincorporated territory of the United States located in

the northeastern Caribbe Caribbean an Sea Sea,, east of the Dominican Republic and west of the Virgin Islands.. Islands Oman is an Arab country in southwest Asia on the southeast coast of the Arabian

Peninsula. It borders the United Arab Emirates on the northwest, Saudi Arabia on the Peninsula. west and Yemen on the southwest. The coast is formed by the Arabian Sea on the south and east and the Gulf of Oman on the northeast. The country also contains Madha Madha,, an exclave enclosed by the United Arab Emirates,, and Musandam Emirates Musandam,, an exclave also separated by Emirati territory. Jordan.. A city of  Amman is the capital and largest city of the Hashemite Kingdom of  Jordan about 2 million inhabitants (2008 estimate), it is the country's political, cultural and commercial centre and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. Amman is the administrative seat of the homonymous governorate governorate.. North Vietnam, also called the Democrat Democratic ic Republic Republic of Vietnam Vietnam (DRV), was a

communist state that ruled the northern half of Vietnam of Vietnam from 1954 until 1976. South Vietnam refers to a state which governed southern Vietnam until 1975. It received

international recognition in 1950 as the “State “State of Vietnam” Vietnam” (1949-55) and later as the “Republic of Vietnam” (1955-75). Its capital was Saigon Saigon.. The terms “South Vietnam” and “  North Vietn Vietnam am”” became common usage in 1954 at the time of the Geneva Conference,, which partitioned Conference which  partitioned Vietnam into communist and non-communist zones at the 17th parallel. parallel. North Yemen is a term currently used to designate the Yemen Arab Republic (1962–  1990), its predecessor, the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen (1918–1962), (1918–1962), and their 

 predecessors  predecessors that exercised sovereignty over the territory that is now the north-western  part of the state of Yemen of Yemen in southern Arabia Arabia..   Neither state was ever self-designated "North Yemen" and the term only came into general use when the Federation of South Arabia gained independence as the People's Republic of South Yemen in 1967 making such a distinction necessary. Prior to 1967,  both states were known in short form simply as "Yemen." In 1970, South Yemen changed its name to the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen thus eliminating any

directional reference in either of the Yemens' official names but the existence of two Yemens preserved the North Yemen and South Yemen designations in popular parlance. Alternate forms were "Yemen (Sanaa)" for North Yemen and "Yemen (Aden)" for South Yemen after their respective capital cities. The merger of the two Yemens in 1990 ended the term's association with an independent state but "North Yemen" continues to be used to refer to the area of the former Yemen Arab Republic and its history and, anachronistically anachronistically,, to pre-1967 polities and events (e.g., the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen or the North the North Yemen Civil War ). ). The People' People'ss Democrat Democratic ic Republic Republic of Yemen Yemen — also referred to as Democratic present-day Yemen, South Yemen, or  Yemen (Aden) — was a socialist republic in the present-day southern and eastern Provinces of  Yemen Yemen.. It united with the Yemen Arab Republic, Republic, commonly known as  North Yemen, Yemen, on May 22, 1990 to form the current Republic of  Yemen.. Yemen North Korea, officially the Democratic People's People's Republic of Korea (DPRK ) is a state

in East Asia, Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang Pyongyang.. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer area between  North Korea and South Korea. Korea. The Amnok River and River  and the Tumen River form River  form the border   between North Korea and People People's 's Republ Republic ic of China China.. A section of the Tumen River in the extreme north-east is the border with Russia Russia.. The peninsula was governed by the Korean Empire until it was annexed by Japan following the Russo-Japanese War  of 1905. It was divided into Soviet and American occupied zones in 1945, following the end of  World War II. II. North Korea refused to  participate  participate in a United Nations –supervised election held in the south in 1948, which led to the creation of separate Korean governments for the two occupation zones. Both North and South Korea claimed sovereignty over the peninsula as a whole, which led to the Korean War of War of 1950. A 1953 armistice ended the fighting; however, the two countries are officially still at war with each other, as a peace treaty was never signed. Both states were accepted into the United Nations in 1991. On May 26, 2009, North Korea unilaterally withdrew from the armistice. South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK ) and often referred to as Korea, is

a country in East Asia, Asia, located on the southern half of the Korean Peninsula. Peninsula. It is neighbored by China to the west, Japan to the east, and  North Korea to the north. Its capital is Seoul Seoul,, the second largest metropolitan city in the world and a major global major global city. city. South Korea lies in a temperate climate region with a predominantly mountainous terrain. Its territory covers a total area of 100,032 square kilometers and has a population of over  48 million, making it the third most dens. Archaeological findings show that the Korean Peninsula was occupied as early as the Lower Paleolithic period. period. Korean history begins with the founding of Gojoseon of  Gojoseon in 2333 BC by Dan-gun Dan-gun.. Following the unification of the Three Kingdoms of Korea under Silla under  Silla 668 AD, Korea went through the Goryeo Dynasty and Joseon Dynasty as one nation until

the end of the Korean Empire in 1910, when Korea was annexed by Japan Japan.. After  liberation and occupation  by Soviet and U.S. forces at the end of World War II, the nation was divided into North and South Korea. The latter was established in 1948 as a democracy.. A war  democracy war between between the two Koreas ended in an uneasy cease-fire. After the war  and a period of military rule, the South Korean economy grew significantly and the country was transformed into a major economy and a full democracy. democracy. East Germany Germany, was the informal Western name for the Deutsche Demokratische Demokratische Republik  (German Democratic Republic — GDR), the socialist state established in 1949

in the Soviet zone of  occupi occupied ed German Germanyy and in the East Berlin portion of the Alliedoccupied capital city. The German Democratic Republic had an area of 107,771 sq. km. (41,610 mi.2), bordering Czechoslovakia at the south, West Germany at the south and west, the Baltic Sea at the north, and Poland in the east. At German reunification, reunification, on 3 October 1990, the länder  (states) of East Germany were integrated as new federal states to the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG). Moreover, Moreover, the German Democratic Democratic Republic Republic was disestablish disestablished ed after the Communist Communist Government, of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED), lost the General Election on 18 March 1990, and thus its parliamentary majority in the Volkskammer  (People’s (People’s Chamber); Chamber); subsequently, on 23 August 1990, the Volkskammer  re-established the five pre-war states  —  Brandenburg Brandenburg,, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Mecklenburg-Vorpommern,, Saxony Saxony,, Saxony-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt,, and Thuringia (disestablished in 1952) — for the reunification of East Germany to West Germany German:: Westdeutschland ) is the the comm common on Engl Englis ishh name name for for the the West Germany Germany (German German::   Bundesrepublik Deutschland ) in the period Federal Republic of Germany (German  between its formation in May 1949 to German reunification in October 1990, when the communist East Germany was dissolved and the five states on its territory joined the Federal Republic of Germany, ending the more than 40-year division of Germany and Berlin. From the 1990 reunification onwards, the enlarged Federal Republic of Germany with sixteen states has been exclusively known as Germany in common usage. The Federal Republic of Germany was organized from the initially 12 states formed in the three Western Zones or  Allied Zones of occupation held by the United States, States, the United Kingdom, Kingdom, and France France.. The city of  Bonn was its provisional capital city. The fourth Allied occupation zone or East Zone (Ostzone) was held by the Soviet Union. Union. The  parts east of the Oder-Neisse were de facto annexed by the Soviet Union and Communist Poland Poland,, the the remai remaini ning ng centr central al part part around around Berl Berlin in beca became me the the comm commun unis istt German Democratic Democra tic Republ Republic ic,, GDR with its de facto facto capital East Berli Berlinn. As a result, the remai remaini ning ng West Western ern Germ German anyy had had a terri territo tory ry about about half half the the size size of its its previ previous ous democratic-capitalist antecessor, the interwar Weimar interwar Weimar Republic. Republic. Asia. It comprises the East Timor, also known as Timor-Leste is a country in Southeast Asia. eastern half of the island of Timor  of  Timor , the nearby islands of Atauro of Atauro and Jaco Jaco,, and Oecusse Oecusse,, an exclave on the northwestern side of the island, within Indonesian West Timor . The small country of 15,410 km² (5,400 sq mi) is located about 640 km (400 mi) northwest of  Darwin, Australia. Australia.

East Timor was colonized by Portugal in the 16th century, and was known as Portuguese Timor until Timor  until Portugal's decolonization of the country. In late 1975, East Timor declared its independence, but later that year was invaded and occupied by Indonesia and was declared Indonesia's 27th province the following year. In 1999, following the United  Nations-spo  Nations -sponsor nsored ed act of self-d self-dete etermi rminat nation ion,, Indonesi Indonesiaa relinq relinquis uished hed control control of the territory and East Timor became the first new sovereign state of the 21st century on May 20, 2002. East Timor is one of only two predominantly Roman Catholic countries in Asia,, the other being the Philippines Asia Philippines.. East Timor is a lower-middle-income economy. It continues to suffer the aftereffects of a decades-long independence struggle against Indonesia Indonesia,, which damaged infrastructure and displaced thousands of civilians. It is placed 158th by Human Development Index (HDI) among the world's states, the second lowest in Asia. of  Timor and and part of the West Timor is the western and Indonesian portion of the island of Timor   province of East of East Nusa Tenggara, Tenggara, (Indonesian (Indonesian:: Nusa Tenggara Timur ). ). During the colonial period it was known as "Dutch Timor" and was a centre of Dutch loyalists during the Indonesian National Revolution (1945 - 1949). From 1949 to 1975 it was known as "Indonesian Timor". The name "West Timor" is an oxymoron in the Indonesian language, language, as it translates literally to "West East". On the other hand, East Timor  becomes a redundancy when translated into Indonesian: "East East". East Azerbaijan or  East Azarbaijan is one of the 30  provinces of  Iran Iran.. It is in the

northwest of the country, bordering Armenia and the Republic of Azerbaijan, Azerbaijan, and the  provinces of Ardabil of Ardabil,, West Azerbaijan, Azerbaijan, and Zanjan Zanjan.. Its capital is Tabriz Tabriz.. 30  provinces of Iran of Iran.. It is located in West Azerbaijan Azerbaijan or  West Azarbaijan is one of the 30 provinces   Nort Northh west west of the the count country ry border borderin ingg with with Turkey Turkey,, Iraq and  Nakhchivan  Nakhchivan,, and the  provinces of East of East Azerbaijan, Azerbaijan, Zanjan and Kurdistan Kurdistan.. The province of West Azerbaijan covers an area of 39,487 km², or 43,660 km² including Lake Urmia. Urmia. In 2006 the province had a population of 3,015,361. The capital city of the  province is Urmia Urmia.. The West Indies or The Caribbean is a region consisting of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (most of which enclose the sea), and the surrounding coasts. The region is located southeast southeast of the Gulf of Mexico and Northern and  Northern America, America, east of Central of  Central America, America, and to the north of South of South America. America. Situated largely on the Caribbean Plate, Plate, the region comprises more than 7,000 islands, islets,, reefs islets reefs,, and cays cays.. These islands, called the West Indies, generally form island arcs that delineate the eastern and northern edges of the Caribbean Sea. Sea. These islands are

called the West Indies because when Christopher Columbus landed here in 1492 he  believed that he had reached the Indies (in Asia Asia). ). The region consists of the Antilles Antilles,, divided into the larger Greater larger Greater Antilles which bound the sea on the north and the Lesser Antilles on the south and east (including the Leeward Antilles), Antilles ), and the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands, Islands, which are in fact in the Atlantic Ocean north of Cuba of Cuba,, not in the Caribbean Sea. The Dutch East Indies , or  Netherlands East Indies , was the Dutch colony that became modern Indonesia following World War II. II. It was formed from the nationalised colonies of the former  Dutch East India Company that came under the administration of the  Netherlands in 1800. During the nineteenth century, Dutch possessions in the archipelago and its hegemony were expanded, reaching their greatest extent in the early twentieth century. Following the World War II Japanese occupation,, Indone occupation Indonesi sian an natio nationa nali list stss decl declar ared ed Indonesi Indonesian an indepe independence ndence in 1945 1945.. Thereafter and as a consequence of the subsequent Indonesian National Revolution, Revolution, the  Netherlands formally recognised Indonesian sovereignty in December 1949.