Western Asia, West Asia, Southwestern Asia
Asia or Southwest Asia
Asia is the westernmost subregion of Asia. The concept is in limited use, as it significantly overlaps with the Middle East
Middle East (or the Near East), the main difference usually being the exclusion of the majority of Egypt (which would be counted as part of North Africa) and the inclusion of the Caucasus. The term is sometimes used for the purposes of grouping countries in statistics. The total population of Western Asia
Asia is an estimated 300 million as of 2015. In an unrelated context, the term is also used in ancient history and archaeology to divide the Fertile Crescent
Fertile Crescent into the "Asiatic" or "Western Asian" cultures as opposed to ancient Egypt. As a geographic concept, Western Asia
Asia includes the Levant, Mesopotamia, Anatolia, Iran, the Armenian Highlands, the South Caucasus, the Arabian peninsula as well as the Sinai Peninsula, making Egypt
Egypt a transcontinental country. Although the term "Western Asia" is mostly used as a convenient division of contemporary sovereign states into a manageable number of world regions for statistical purposes, it is sometimes used instead of the more geopolitical term "Middle East", for example by the Government
Government of Canada.[1] The term is used pragmatically and has no "correct" or generally agreed-upon definition. The National Geographic Style Manual as well as Maddison's The World Economy: Historical Statistics
Statistics (2003) by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) only includes Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Palestinian territories (called West Bank
West Bank and Gaza in the latter), Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey, UAE, and Yemen
Yemen as West Asian countries.[2][3] In contrast to this definition, the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) in its 2015 yearbook also includes Armenia
Armenia and Azerbaijan, and excludes Israel
Israel (as Other) and Turkey
Turkey (as Europe).[4] Unlike the UNIDO, the United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD) excludes Iran
Iran from Western Asia
Asia and include Turkey, Georgia, and Cyprus
Cyprus in the region.[5] In the United Nation's geopolitical Eastern European Group, Armenia
Armenia and Georgia are included in Eastern Europe, whereas Cyprus
Cyprus and East Thracian Turkey
Turkey are in Southern Europe. These three nations are listed in the European category of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). National members of West Asian sports governing bodies are limited to Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Syria, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.[6][7][8] The Olympic Council of Asia's multi-sport event West Asian Games are contested by athletes representing these thirteen countries. Among the region's sports organisations are the West Asia
Asia Basketball Association, West Asian Billiards and Snooker Federation, West Asian Football Federation, and the West Asian Tennis Federation.

Contents

1 History 2 Geography

2.1 Geology

2.1.1 Plate tectonics 2.1.2 Water
Water resources

2.2 Climate 2.3 Topography

3 Demographics 4 Economy 5 Statistical data 6 Sports 7 Map of Western Asia 8 See also 9 References 10 External links

History[edit] See also: History of the Middle East, Ancient Near East, History of the Ottoman Empire, Treaty of Gulistan, Treaty of Turkmenchay, and Partitioning of the Ottoman Empire "Western Asia" was in use as a geographical term in the early 19th century, even before "Near East" became current as a geopolitical concept.[9] In the context of the history of classical antiquity, "Western Asia" could mean the part of Asia
Asia known in classical antiquity, as opposed to the reaches of "interior Asia", i.e. Scythia, and "Eastern Asia" the easternmost reaches of geographical knowledge in classical authors, i.e. Transoxania
Transoxania and India.[10][11][12] In the 20th century, "Western Asia" was used to denote a rough geographical era in the fields of archaeology and ancient history, especially as a shorthand for "the Fertile Crescent
Fertile Crescent excluding Ancient Egypt" for the purposes of comparing the early civilizations of Egypt
Egypt and the former.[13] Use of the term in the context of contemporary geopolitics or world economy appears to date from at least the mid-1960s.[14] Geography[edit] See also: Geography of Asia Western Asia
Asia is located directly south of Eastern Europe. The region is surrounded by seven major seas; the Aegean Sea, the Black Sea, the Caspian Sea, the Persian Gulf, the Arabian Sea, the Red Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea. To the north, the region is delimited from Europe
Europe by the Caucasus Mountains, to the southwest, it is delimited from Africa
Africa by the Isthmus of Suez, while to the east, the region adjoins Central Asia and South Asia. The Dasht-e Kavir
Dasht-e Kavir and Dasht-e Lut
Dasht-e Lut deserts in eastern Iran
Iran naturally delimit the region somewhat from Asia
Asia itself. Geology[edit] Plate tectonics[edit] Three major tectonic plates converge on Western Asia, including the African, Eurasian, and Arabian plates. The boundaries between the tectonic plates make up the Azores-Gibraltar Ridge, extending across North Africa, the Red Sea, and into Iran.[15] The Arabian Plate
Arabian Plate is moving northward into the Anatolian plate (Turkey) at the East Anatolian Fault,[16] and the boundary between the Aegean and Anatolian plate in eastern Turkey
Turkey is also seismically active.[15] Water
Water resources[edit] Several major aquifers provide water to large portions of Western Asia. In Saudi Arabia, two large aquifers of Palaeozoic
Palaeozoic and Triassic origins are located beneath the Jabal Tuwayq
Jabal Tuwayq mountains and areas west to the Red Sea.[17] Cretaceous
Cretaceous and Eocene-origin aquifers are located beneath large portions of central and eastern Saudi Arabia, including Wasia and Biyadh which contain amounts of both fresh water and saline water.[17] Flood or furrow irrigation, as well as sprinkler methods, are extensively used for irrigation, covering nearly 90,000 km² across Western Asia
Asia for agriculture.[18] Also, the Tigris
Tigris and Euphrates
Euphrates rivers contribute very well. Climate[edit]

A Lebanese cedar forest in winter.

Köppen climate classification
Köppen climate classification map of West Asia.

See also: Climate of Asia Western Asia
Asia is primarily arid and semi-arid, and can be subject to drought, but it also contains vast expanses of forest and fertile valleys. The region consists of grasslands, rangelands, deserts, and mountains. Water
Water shortages are a problem in many parts of West Asia, with rapidly growing populations increasing demands for water, while salinization and pollution threaten water supplies.[19] Major rivers, including the Tigris
Tigris and Euphrates, provide sources for irrigation water to support agriculture. There are two wind phenomena in Western Asia: the sharqi and the shamal. The sharqi (or sharki) is a wind that comes from the south and southeast. It is seasonal, lasting from April to early June, and comes again between late September and November. The winds are dry and dusty, with occasional gusts up to 80 kilometers per hour (50 miles per hour) and often kick up violent sand and dust storms that can carry sand a few thousand meters high, and can close down airports for short periods of time. These winds can last for a full day at the beginning and end of the season, and for several days during the middle of the season. The shamal is a summer northwesterly wind blowing over Iraq
Iraq and the Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf states (including Saudi Arabia and Kuwait), often strong during the day, but decreasing at night. This weather effect occurs anywhere from once to several times a year.[20] Topography[edit] Western Asia
Asia contains large areas of mountainous terrain. The Anatolian Plateau
Anatolian Plateau is sandwiched between the Pontus Mountains
Mountains and Taurus Mountains
Mountains in Turkey. Mount Ararat
Mount Ararat in Turkey
Turkey rises to 5,137 meters. The Zagros Mountains
Mountains are located in Iran, in areas along its border with Iraq. The Central Plateau of Iran
Iran is divided into two drainage basins. The northern basin is Dasht-e Kavir
Dasht-e Kavir (Great Salt Desert), and Dasht-e-Lut
Dasht-e-Lut is the southern basin. In Yemen, elevations exceed 3,700 meters in many areas, and highland areas extend north along the Red Sea
Red Sea coast and north into Lebanon. A fault-zone also exists along the Red Sea, with continental rifting creating trough-like topography with areas located well-below sea level.[21] The Dead Sea, located on the border between the West Bank, Israel, and Jordan, is situated at 418 m (1371 ft) below sea level, making it the lowest point on the surface of the Earth.[22] Rub' al Khali, one of the world's largest sand deserts, spans the southern third of the Arabian Peninsula
Arabian Peninsula in Saudi Arabia, parts of Oman, the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates and Yemen. Jebel al Akhdar is a small range of mountains located in northeastern Oman, bordering the Gulf of Oman. Demographics[edit] The population of Western Asia
Asia was estimated at 272 million as of 2008, projected to reach 370 million by 2030 by Maddison (2007; the estimate excludes the Caucasus
Caucasus and Cyprus). This corresponds to an annual growth rate of 1.4% (or a doubling time of 50 years), well above the world average of 0.9% (doubling time 75 years). The population of Western Asia
Asia is estimated at about 4% of world population, up from about 39 million at the beginning of the 20th century, or about 2% of world population at the time.[23] The most populous countries in the region are Turkey
Turkey and Iran
Iran and, each with around 79 million people, followed by Iraq
Iraq and Saudi Arabia with around 33 million people each. Numerically, Western Asia
Asia is predominantly Arab, Persian, Turkish, and the dominating languages are correspondingly Arabic, Persian and Turkish, each with of the order of 70 million speakers, followed by smaller communities of Kurdish, Azerbaijani, Hebrew, Armenian and Eastern Aramaic. The dominance of Arabic
Arabic and Turkish is the result of the medieval Arab and Turkic invasions beginning with the Islamic conquests of the 7th century AD, which displaced the formerly dominant Aramaic
Aramaic and Hebrew
Hebrew in the Levant, and Greek in Anatolia, although Hebrew
Hebrew is once again the dominant language in Israel, and Aramaic (spoken largely by Assyrians) and Greek both remain present in their respective territories as minority languages. Other significant native minorities include Assyrians, Druze, Jews, Mandeans, Maronites, Shabaks, Syriac Arameans, Lurs
Lurs and Yezidis. Economy[edit] See also: Economy
Economy of Western Asia The economy of Western Asia
Asia is diverse and the region experiences high economic growth. Turkey
Turkey has the largest economy in the region, followed by Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia and Iran. Petroleum
Petroleum is the major industry in the regional economy, as more than half of the world's oil reserves and around 40 percent of the world's natural gas reserves are located in the region. Statistical data[edit]

Country, with flag Area (km²) Population[24] (2016) Density (per km²) Capital Nominal GDP[25] (2012) Per capita[26] (2012) Currency Government Official languages

Anatolia:

 Turkey1 783,562 79,512,426 94.1 Ankara $788.042 billion $10,523 Turkish lira Parliamentary republic Turkish

Arabian Peninsula:

 Bahrain 665 1,425,171 1,646.1 Manama $30.355 billion $26,368 Bahraini dinar Constitutional monarchy Arabic

 Kuwait 17,820 4,052,584 167.5 Kuwait
Kuwait City $184.540 billion $48,761 Kuwaiti dinar Constitutional monarchy Arabic

 Oman 212,460 4,424,762 9.2 Muscat $78.290 billion $25,356 Omani rial Absolute monarchy Arabic

 Qatar 11,437 2,569,804 123.2 Doha $192.402 billion $104,756 Qatari riyal Absolute monarchy Arabic

 Saudi Arabia 2,149,690 32,275,687 12 Riyadh $733.956 billion $25,139 Saudi riyal Absolute monarchy Arabic

 United Arab Emirates 82,880 9,269,612 97 Abu Dhabi $383.799 billion $43,774 UAE dirham Federal Constitutional monarchy Arabic

 Yemen 527,970 27,584,213 44.7 Sana'a
Sana'a (Houthi-led government) Aden
Aden (Seat of government) $35.05 billion $1,354 Yemeni rial Provisional Presidential republic Arabic

South Caucasus:

 Abkhazia5 8,660 242,862 28 Sukhumi $500 million N/A Georgian lari Semi-presidential republic Abkhaz Russian

 Armenia 29,800 2,924,816 108.4 Yerevan $9.950 billion $3,033 Armenian dram Semi-presidential republic Armenian

 Artsakh5 11,458 150,932 N/A Stepanakert $1.6 billion $2,581 Artsakh dram Armenian dram Presidential republic Armenian

 Azerbaijan 86,600 9,725,376 105.8 Baku $68.700 billion $7,439 Azerbaijani manat Presidential republic Azerbaijani

 Georgia 69,700 3,925,405 68.1 Tbilisi $15.847 billion $3,523 Georgian lari Semi-presidential republic Georgian

 South Ossetia5 3,900 53,532 13 Tskhinvali $500 million N/A Georgian lari Semi-presidential republic Ossetian Russian

Fertile Crescent:

 Iraq 438,317 37,202,572 73.5 Baghdad $216.044 billion $6,410 Iraqi dinar Parliamentary republic Arabic, Kurdish

 Israel 20,770 8,191,828 365.3 Jerusalem $257.62 billion $33,451 Israeli new shekel Parliamentary republic Hebrew, Arabic

 Jordan 92,300 9,455,802 68.4 Amman $30.98 billion $4,843 Jordanian dinar Constitutional monarchy Arabic

 Lebanon 10,452 6,006,668 404 Beirut $42.519 billion $10,425 Lebanese pound Parliamentary republic Arabic

 Palestinian National Authority 6,220 4,790,705 667 Ramallah3 $6.6 billion $1,600 Egyptian pound, Jordanian dinar, Israeli new shekel Semi-presidential republic Arabic

 Syria 185,180 18,430,453 118.3 Damascus n/a n/a Syrian pound Presidential republic Arabic

Iranian Plateau:

 Iran 1,648,195 80,277,428 45 Tehran $548.590 billion $7,207 Iranian rial Islamic republic Persian

Mediterranean Sea:

 Cyprus 9,250 1,170,125 117 Nicosia $22.995 billion $26,377 Euro Presidential republic Greek, Turkish

 Northern Cyprus5 3,355 313,626 93 North Nicosia $4.032 billion $15,109 Turkish lira Semi-presidential republic Turkish

Sinai Peninsula:

  Egypt
Egypt 2 60,000 850,000 82 Cairo $262.26 billion $3,179 Egyptian pound Presidential republic Arabic

Notes: 1 The figures for Turkey
Turkey includes East Thrace, which is not a part of Anatolia. 2 The area and population figures for Egypt
Egypt only include the Sinai Peninsula. 3 Ramallah
Ramallah is the actual location of the government, whereas the proclaimed capital of Palestine is Jerusalem, which is disputed. 4 Jerusalem
Jerusalem is the proclaimed capital of Israel
Israel and the actual location of the Knesset, Israeli Supreme Court, etc. Due to its disputed status, most embassies are in Tel Aviv. 5 Unrecognised state

Sports[edit]

The West Asian Tennis Federation
West Asian Tennis Federation regulates the championships and leagues in the region. The West Asian Billiards & Snooker Federation
Federation regulates the championships related to billiards and snooker, amongst which an annual tournament. The West Asian Games have been held in 1997, 2002 and 2005. The West Asian Football Federation
West Asian Football Federation was founded in 2001 and is one of the regional federations of the Asian Football Federation. They organize the WAFF Championship. The West Asia
Asia Basketball Association organizes the WABA Championship since 1999.

Map of Western Asia[edit]

Arm. Azerbaijan Bah. Cyprus Egypt Georgia Iran Iraq Isr. Jordan Kuwait Leb. (Az.) Oman Pal. Pal. Qatar Saudi Arabia Syria Turkey UAE Yemen Aegean Sea Arabian Sea Aral Sea Black Sea Caspian Sea Gulf of Aden Gulf of Oman Mediterranean Sea Persian Gulf Red Sea Sea of Azov

AFRICA ASIA EUROPE

See also[edit]

Geography portal Asia
Asia portal

Cinema of West Asia List of World Heritage Sites in Western Asia West Asian Games West Asian Basketball League West Asia
Asia Basketball Association West Asian Billiards & Snooker Federation West Asian Tennis Federation West Asian Football Federation

References[edit]

^ "Ethnic Origin (247), Single and Multiple Ethnic Origin Responses (3) and Sex (3) for the Population
Population of Canada, Provinces, Territories, Census Metropolitan Areas and Census Agglomerations, 2006 Census". Statistics
Statistics Canada. 2006. Archived from the original on March 8, 2009.  ^ Miller, David. "West Asia
Asia Map". National Geographic Style Manual. National Geographic Society.  ^ Maddison, Angus (2004). The World Economy: Historical Statistics (Print)format= requires url= (help). Development Centre Studies. Paris, France: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) (published 2003). ISBN 92-64-10412-7. LCCN 2004371607. OCLC 53465560.  ^ United Nations Industrial Development Organisation
United Nations Industrial Development Organisation Vienna (UNIDO) (2005). International Yearbook of Industrial Statistics
Statistics 2015. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishing. p. 14.  ^ "Standard Country
Country or Area Codes for Statistical Use". Millenniumindicators.un.org. Retrieved 2012-08-25. The UNSD notes that the "assignment of countries or areas to specific groupings is merely for statistical convenience and does not imply any assumption regarding political or other affiliation of countries or territories."  ^ "WABSF Member Countries".  ^ "The West Asian Games". Topend Sports.  ^ "WAFF Member Associations". The-Waff.com.  ^ e.g. James Rennell, A treatise on the comparative geography of western Asia, 1831. ^ James Rennell, The Geographical System of Herodotus Examined and Explained, 1800, p. 210. ^ Hugh Murray, Historical Account of Discoveries and Travels in Asia (1820). ^ Samuel Whelpley, A compend of history, from the earliest times, 1808, p. 9. ^ e.g. Petrus Van Der Meer, The Chronology of Ancient Western Asia
Asia and Egypt, 1955. Karl W. Butzer, Physical Conditions in Eastern Europe, Western Asia
Asia and Egypt
Egypt Before the Period of Agricultural and Urban Settlement, 1965. ^ The Tobacco Industry of Western Asia, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Foreign Agricultural Service, 1964. ^ a b Beaumont (1988), p. 22 ^ Muehlberger, Bill. "The Arabian Plate". NASA, Johnson Space Center. Archived from the original on 2007-07-06.  ^ a b Beaumont (1988), p. 86 ^ "Food and Agriculture
Agriculture Organization (FAO)".  ^ "Chapter 7: Middle East
Middle East and Arid Asia". IPCC Special
Special Report on The Regional Impacts of Climate Change: An Assessment of Vulnerability. United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). 2001.  ^ Taru Bahl; M H Syed, eds. (2003). Encyclopaedia of the Muslim World. New Delhi: Anmol Publications. p. 20. ISBN 978-81-261-1419-1. Retrieved 1 February 2009.  ^ Sweeney, Jerry J.; William R. Walter (December 1, 1998). " Region
Region #4 — Red Sea
Red Sea Continental Rift Zone" (PDF). Preliminary Definition of Geophysical Regions for the Middle East
Middle East and North Africa. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. p. 8.  ^ "ASTER Image Gallery: The Dead Sea". NASA.  ^ Data for "15 West Asian countries", from Maddison (2003, 2007).Angus Maddison, 2003, The World Economy: Historical Statistics, Vol. 2, OECD, Paris, ISBN 92-64-10412-7. Statistical Appendix (2007, ggdc.net) "The historical data were originally developed in three books: Monitoring the World Economy
Economy 1820-1992, OECD, Paris 1995; The World Economy: A Millennial Perspective, OECD Development Centre, Paris 2001; The World Economy: Historical Statistics, OECD Development Centre, Paris 2003. All these contain detailed source notes." Estimates for 2008 by country (in millions): Turkey
Turkey (71.9), Iran (70.2), Iraq
Iraq (28.2), Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia (28.1), Yemen
Yemen (23.0), Syria
Syria (19.7), Israel
Israel (6.5), Jordan
Jordan (6.2), Palestine (4.1), Lebanon
Lebanon (4.0), Oman (3.3), United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates (2.7), Kuwait
Kuwait (2.6), Qatar
Qatar (0.9), Bahrain (0.7). ^ "World Population
Population Prospects: The 2017 Revision". ESA.UN.org (custom data acquired via website). United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population
Population Division. Retrieved 10 September 2017.  ^ "GDP". IMF. Retrieved 2014-04-16.  ^ "GDP per capita". IMF. Retrieved 2014-04-16. 

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Tallgrass prairie

South

South Central Deep South Upland South

Four Corners East Coast West Coast Gulf Coast Third Coast Coastal states Eastern United States

Appalachia

Trans-Mississippi Great North Woods Great Plains Interior Plains Great Lakes Great Basin

Great Basin
Great Basin Desert

Acadia Ozarks Ark-La-Tex Waxhaws Siouxland Twin Tiers Driftless Area Palouse Piedmont Atlantic coastal plain Outer Lands Black Dirt Region Blackstone Valley Piney Woods Rocky Mountains Mojave Desert The Dakotas The Carolinas Shawnee Hills San Fernando Valley Tornado Alley North Coast Lost Coast Emerald Triangle San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay Area

San Francisco Bay North Bay ( San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay Area) East Bay ( San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay Area) Silicon Valley

Interior Alaska- Yukon
Yukon lowland taiga Gulf of Mexico Lower Colorado River Valley Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta Yukon–Kuskokwim Delta Colville Delta Arkansas Delta Mobile–Tensaw River Delta Mississippi Delta Mississippi River Delta Columbia River Estuary Great Basin High Desert Monterey Peninsula Upper Peninsula of Michigan Lower Peninsula of Michigan Virginia Peninsula Keweenaw Peninsula Middle Peninsula Delmarva Peninsula Alaska Peninsula Kenai Peninsula Niagara Peninsula Beringia Belt regions

Bible Belt Black Belt Corn Belt Cotton Belt Frost Belt Rice Belt Rust Belt Sun Belt Snow Belt

Latin

Northern Mexico Baja California Peninsula Gulf of California

Colorado River Delta

Gulf of Mexico Soconusco Tierra Caliente La Mixteca La Huasteca Bajío Valley of Mexico Mezquital Valley Sierra Madre de Oaxaca Yucatán Peninsula Basin and Range Province Western Caribbean Zone Isthmus of Panama Gulf of Panama

Pearl Islands

Azuero Peninsula Mosquito Coast West Indies Antilles

Greater Antilles Lesser Antilles

Leeward Leeward Antilles Windward

Lucayan Archipelago Southern Caribbean

Aridoamerica Mesoamerica Oasisamerica Northern Middle Anglo Latin

French Hispanic

American Cordillera Ring of Fire LAC

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Regions of Oceania

Australasia

Gulf of Carpentaria New Guinea

Bonis Peninsula Papuan Peninsula Huon Peninsula Huon Gulf Bird's Head Peninsula Gazelle Peninsula

New Zealand

South Island North Island

Coromandel Peninsula

Zealandia New Caledonia Solomon Islands (archipelago) Vanuatu

Kula Gulf

Australia Capital Country Eastern Australia Lake Eyre basin Murray–Darling basin Northern Australia Nullarbor Plain Outback Southern Australia

Maralinga

Sunraysia Great Victoria Desert Gulf of Carpentaria Gulf St Vincent Lefevre Peninsula Fleurieu Peninsula Yorke Peninsula Eyre Peninsula Mornington Peninsula Bellarine Peninsula Mount Henry Peninsula

Melanesia

Islands Region

Bismarck Archipelago Solomon Islands Archipelago

Fiji New Caledonia Papua New Guinea Vanuatu

Micronesia

Caroline Islands

Federated States of Micronesia Palau

Guam Kiribati Marshall Islands Nauru Northern Mariana Islands Wake Island

Polynesia

Easter Island Hawaiian Islands Cook Islands French Polynesia

Austral Islands Gambier Islands Marquesas Islands Society Islands Tuamotu

Kermadec Islands Mangareva Islands Samoa Tokelau Tonga Tuvalu

Ring of Fire

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Regions of South America

East

Amazon basin Atlantic Forest Caatinga Cerrado

North

Caribbean South America West Indies Los Llanos The Guianas Amazon basin

Amazon rainforest

Gulf of Paria Paria Peninsula Paraguaná Peninsula Orinoco Delta

South

Tierra del Fuego Patagonia Pampas Pantanal Gran Chaco Chiquitano dry forests Valdes Peninsula

West

Andes

Tropical Andes Wet Andes Dry Andes Pariacaca mountain range

Altiplano Atacama Desert

Latin Hispanic American Cordillera Ring of Fire LAC

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Polar regions

Antarctic

Antarctic
Antarctic Peninsula East Antarctica West Antarctica Eklund Islands Ecozone Extreme points Islands

Arctic

Arctic
Arctic Alaska British Arctic
Arctic Territories Canadian Arctic
Arctic Archipelago Finnmark Greenland Northern Canada Northwest Territories Nunavik Nunavut Russian Arctic Sakha Sápmi Yukon North American Arctic

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Earth's oceans and seas

Arctic
Arctic Ocean

Amundsen Gulf Barents Sea Beaufort Sea Chukchi Sea East Siberian Sea Greenland
Greenland Sea Gulf of Boothia Kara Sea Laptev Sea Lincoln Sea Prince Gustav Adolf Sea Pechora Sea Queen Victoria Sea Wandel Sea White Sea

Atlantic Ocean

Adriatic Sea Aegean Sea Alboran Sea Archipelago Sea Argentine Sea Baffin Bay Balearic Sea Baltic Sea Bay of Biscay Bay of Bothnia Bay of Campeche Bay of Fundy Black Sea Bothnian Sea Caribbean Sea Celtic Sea English Channel Foxe Basin Greenland
Greenland Sea Gulf of Bothnia Gulf of Finland Gulf of Lion Gulf of Guinea Gulf of Maine Gulf of Mexico Gulf of Saint Lawrence Gulf of Sidra Gulf of Venezuela Hudson Bay Ionian Sea Irish Sea Irminger Sea James Bay Labrador Sea Levantine Sea Libyan Sea Ligurian Sea Marmara Sea Mediterranean Sea Myrtoan Sea North Sea Norwegian Sea Sargasso Sea Sea of Åland Sea of Azov Sea of Crete Sea of the Hebrides Thracian Sea Tyrrhenian Sea Wadden Sea

Indian Ocean

Andaman Sea Arabian Sea Bali Sea Bay of Bengal Flores Sea Great Australian Bight Gulf of Aden Gulf of Aqaba Gulf of Khambhat Gulf of Kutch Gulf of Oman Gulf of Suez Java Sea Laccadive Sea Mozambique Channel Persian Gulf Red Sea Timor
Timor Sea

Pacific Ocean

Arafura Sea Banda Sea Bering Sea Bismarck Sea Bohai Sea Bohol Sea Camotes Sea Celebes Sea Ceram Sea Chilean Sea Coral Sea East China Sea Gulf of Alaska Gulf of Anadyr Gulf of California Gulf of Carpentaria Gulf of Fonseca Gulf of Panama Gulf of Thailand Gulf of Tonkin Halmahera Sea Koro Sea Mar de Grau Molucca Sea Moro Gulf Philippine Sea Salish Sea Savu Sea Sea of Japan Sea of Okhotsk Seto Inland Sea Shantar Sea Sibuyan Sea Solomon Sea South China Sea Sulu Sea Tasman Sea Visayan Sea Yellow Sea

Southern Ocean

Amundsen Sea Bellingshausen Sea Cooperation Sea Cosmonauts Sea Davis Sea D'Urville Sea King Haakon VII Sea Lazarev Sea Mawson Sea Riiser-Larsen Sea Ross Sea Scotia Sea Somov Sea Weddell Sea

Landlocked seas

Aral Sea Caspian Sea Dead Sea Salton Sea

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