Europe

GEOGRAPHY

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Europe
Before studying about the Europe, we will first understand the meaning of continents
and a few details about them in brief manner:

Continents of the world

 The term continent is used to distinguish between multiple huge land areas of Earth
into which all the land surface of the planet is distributed.

 The title indicates the 'mountain top' areas of the Earth not flooded by water, dry
land.

 The level of the enclosing water finally defines the shape and borders of continents.

 More water means less land and various outlines. Even more water, like that, filed
away as ice in the poles and glaciers, and you might exist on a water planet, no
continents.

 A continent is "a huge, constant area of land on Earth."

 All continents of the Earth collectively make up about one-third of the entire surface
of the planet.

 The fact is more than two-thirds of the Earth's surface is comprised of water.

 Arranged from largest in area to smallest, these seven areas are Asia, Africa, North
America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia.

 By convention, "continents are understood to be big, continuous, discrete pieces of

land, ideally divided by expanses of water."

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Map of the world showing continents and oceans.

The following table classifies the seven continents with their highest and lowest points
on land, assorted in decreasing highest counts:

Countries Countries
Continents Highest points belonging to Lowest points belonging to
Highest points Lowest points
Israel, Jordan
Asia Mount Everest China, Nepal Dead Sea
and Palestine
Laguna del
South America Aconcagua Argentina Argentina
carbon
North America Denali United States Death Valley United States
Mount
Africa Tanzania Lake Assal Djibouti
Kilimanjaro
Europe Mount Elbrus Russia Caspian Sea Russia
Deep lake, Vest
Antarctica Vinson Massif None None
fold Hills
Indonesia
Australia Puncak Jaya Lake Eyre Australia
(Papua)

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Continents by population from largest

to smallest
The below table shows the population-wise difference between the continents:

Continent Population Prospects by 2050 Population till May 2020

Asia 5,351,916,300 4,637,747,800

Africa 1,850,475,700 1,337,887,000
Europe 700,676,200 747,598,300
North America 662,334,900 591,693,100
South America 509,254,300 430,463,100
Australia 49,423,700 42,632,000
Antarctica No data available No fixed population

Continents by area from largest to

smallest
Similarly, the below table shows the area wise difference between the continents

Continents Area (Mi2) Area (Km2)

Asia 17,212,000 44,579,000

Africa 11,726,000 30,370,000

North America 9,540,000 24,709,000

South America 6,890,000 17,840,000

Antarctica 5,405,000 14,000,000

Europe 3,930,000 10,180,000

Australia 3,320,000 8,600,000

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Detailed Analysis of South America

There are mainly 44 countries in the Europe.

 Latitude: 35°N and 73°N

 Longitude: 25°W and 65°E

 Area: 10,180,000 sq. km (approx.) (7.1%)

 Population: 747,598,300

 Ocean and Seas:

 Atlantic Ocean

 Mediterranean Sea

 Caspian Sea

 Black Sea

 White Sea

 North Sea

 Norwegian Sea

 Baltic Sea

 Gulf of Bothnia

 Gulf of Finland

 Bay of Biscay

 Aegean Sea

 Adriatic Sea

 Straits:

 Strait of Gibraltar

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 Lakes:

 Lake Ladoga

 Lake Onega

 Lake Peipus

 Lake Vanern

 Lake Vattern

 Islands:

 British Isles

 Iceland

 Sardinia

 Sicily

 Crete

 Greenland is the world’s largest island belongs to Denmark.

 Important Gulf and Bays:

Gulf of Bothnia Sweden and Finland

English Channel Britain and France

Gulf of Lions South of France

Bay of Biscay France and Spain

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 Wheat is the most valuable crop in Europe.

 Ruhr in Germany is the biggest and richest coalfield in Europe.

 Other coal fields in Germany are Saar and Saxony.

 It is the second smallest continent in the world, after Australia.

 Europe is situated between the Ural in the East and the Atlantic Ocean in the
West, in the West of Asia and North of Africa.

 To the North of Europe extends the Arctic ocean, to the South extends
the Mediterranean Sea, the Black Sea and the Caucasus Mountain and to the
East Ural Mountains and the Caspian sea.

 Balkan states:

 It is a group of 9 countries namely Serbia and Montenegro, Slovenia, Croatia,

Bosnia, Herzegovina, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Greece, Romania Albania, and
Kosovo.

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 However, Montenegro became an independent state

in 2006 and Kosovo in 2008.

 Baltic states:

 It is a group of 3 countries namely Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia.

 Scandinavian Countries:

 Iceland, Norway, and Denmark are collectively called as Scandinavian

countries.
 The world’s most Northerly capital is Reykjavik.

Important Information’s about Europe

 Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark is recognized as the key to the Baltic.

 Finland is named as the land of forests and lakes.

 Both intensive and extensive cultivation is done in Europe with a great variety of
crops due to the existence of different kinds of soil and climate.

 On the steppes, wheat, sugar beet, and sunflowers are the major crops, whereas, in
the Mediterranean region, fruit cultivation is outstanding.

 Cattle, sheep, and pigs are elevated for meat, milk, and its outcomes.

 The continental shelf areas around Europe including Dogger Bank are abundant
in Fish.

 Europe is abundant in minerals such as iron ore, petroleum, coal, copper, etc.

 United Kingdom is the title given to the alliance of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

 Great Britain consists of England, Scotland, and Waves.

 UK is one of the most industrialized democracies of the world, though it lacks

the raw material. It is self-sufficient in petrol.

 France is the third-largest country in Europe.

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 Russia is the largest country in the world and the highest populated country in
Europe.

 Vatican City is in Rome, Italy.

 It is the smallest country in the world both in terms of area and population.

Physical Aspects of Europe

The following table shows the different data which is important from the examination
point of view:

 Vesuvius
 Apennines
 Vosges
 Alps
 Mt. Etna
 Dinaric Alps
 Carpathian
 Pindus
Mountains  Ural
 Caucasus
 Black Forest
 Mt. Stromboli
 Kjolen
 Pennine
 Cantabria Pyrenees
 Sierra Morena
 Sierra Nevada

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 Po
 Tiber
 Rhine
 Ebro
 Garonne
 Loire
 Seine
 Weser
 Elbe
Rivers
 Wista
 Onega
 Dvina
 Mezen
 Volga
 Don
 Dnieper
 Dniester and Danube
 Rhine
 Iberian
Peninsula  Balkan
 Kola

Divisions of Europe
Europe is divided into 7 Sub-divisions that are mentioned below:

 Scandinavian Countries

 The British Isles

 Western Europe

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4. Southern Europe

5. Central Europe

6. South-Eastern Europe

7. Eastern Europe

 We will study every Sub-division in detail with the map.

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Scandinavian Countries

Scandinavia Countries comprises of 5 countries in total are as follows:

 Iceland

 Norway

 Sweden

 Finland

 Denmark

 Scandinavia is a traditional and cultural-linguistic region, it includes

the three kingdoms of Norway, and Sweden, on the Scandinavian Peninsula,
and Denmark, the country located on the Jutland peninsula and its main islands of
Sea land and Funen north of Germany, west of Sweden, between the North Sea
and the Baltic Sea.

 The word Scandinavia assigned originally to Scandia (Skane), an area

formerly Danish, now Swedish.

 In a more general sense, the name Scandinavia is also used to suggest to

the Nordic countries including Finland and the island nation of Iceland as well.

 With an area of 928,057 km² Scandinavia is about three times the size of Italy, or
somewhat more than twice the size of the U.S. state of California.

Country Capital Currency Language

Iceland Reykjavík Icelandic krona Icelandic

Norwegian
Norway Oslo Norwegian krone Bokmal
Nynorsk
Sweden Stockholm Swedish krona Swedish
Finnish
Finland Helsinki Euro
Swedish

Denmark Copenhagen Danish krone Danish

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Map of the Scandavian Countries

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Balkan and Baltic States

Balkan States:
 The geographic terminology used for ten sovereign states: Albania, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania,
Serbia, and Slovenia.

 The area takes its name from the Balkan Mountains.

 It is a unique territory occupied by South Slavs who form the majority of the
population in Bulgaria, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Slovenia,
Macedonia, and Montenegro. Largely Nordic people.

 Region has a very different ethno linguistic region.

 The Bulgarians, Macedonians, and Slovenes express their Slavic languages, while
the Slavs of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro all
express dialects of Serbo-Croatian.

 This area provides habitats for numerous endemic species, including extraordinarily
abundant insects and reptiles that work as food for a variety of birds of prey and
rare vultures.

 This area in Europe was the first to encounter the arrival of farming cultures in
the Neolithic era.

 The atmosphere of the Balkan region is hot in summer.

 It is found in Southern Europe.

Baltik States:

 The geographic terminology used for three sovereign states: Latvia, Lithuania, and
Estonia.
 This area gets its name because the region is surrounding the Baltic Sea in
Northern Europe.
 It is a unique territory occupied by non-Slavic natives as well as ethnic
Slavs. Largely Slavic people.

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 Peoples express languages belonging to the Baltic branch of the Indo-European

linguistic family and are commonly known as Balts.

 Animals that reside in the region are elk, boar, roe deer, wolves, hares, and
badgers.

 The region provided the world's earliest known gold treasure and had complex
beliefs about the afterlife.

 The atmosphere of the Baltic region is very cold in winter.

 It is found in Northern Europe.

Map of the Balkan States

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Map of the Balkit States

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The British Isles

The British Isles comprises of 2 major regions in total are as follows:

The United Kingdom

 England

 Northern Ireland

 Scotland

 Wales

Ireland
 The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental
Europe consisting of Great Britain, Ireland, and some smaller
surrounding islands and islets.

 There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

 Between 1801 and 1922, Great Britain and Ireland together created
the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

 In 1922, Ireland left the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom, except for six
countries in the northeast of the island, which became known as Northern
Ireland.

 The island-group is built up of more than 6,000 islands, the two biggest
being Great Britain and Ireland.

 Great Britain, to the east, includes 83,698 square miles (216,777 km²), over
half of the total landmass of the group; Ireland, to the west,
includes 32,589 square miles (84,406 km²).

 The other larger islands are located to the north and west of the group, in
the Hebrides and the Shetland Islands.

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Western Europe

 Western Europe comprises of 5 countries in total are as follows:

1. France

2. Belgium

3. The Netherlands

4. Luxembourg

5. Monaco

 The three important physical land features of Western Europe are the Great
European Plain, the Central Uplands, and the Alpine mountain system.

 The Great European Plain stretches east of the Pyrenees Mountains, in

southern France and northern Spain to the Ural Mountains in Eastern Europe.

 It is here where a bulk of the Western European agriculture takes place.

 The Central Uplands is a hilly and rough plateau that traverses the central part
of Europe.

 This area could be drawn to look like the Appalachian Mountains of the United
States.

 The Alpine Region which goes through three of the principal peninsulas of Western
Europe, the Iberian, the Italian, and the Balkan.

 The Alps could be counted the Rocky Mountains of Europe, with peaks that
regularly rise over 10,000 feet, and any top 15,000 feet.

 The atmosphere of Western Europe is marine. Its rich moisture comes from
the Atlantic Ocean.

 Western Europe is very industrially matured; agriculture is the main form of land
use.

 The nations of Western Europe are the "hub" of European economics.

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Map of the Balkit States

Points to Remember

Country Capital Currency Language

France Paris Euro, CFP franc French

Dutch, French,
Belgium Brussels Euro
German
The Netherlands The Hague Euro Dutch
Luxembourgish,
Luxembourg Luxembourg city Euro
French, German
Monaco Monaco Euro French

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Southern Europe
Southern Europe comprises of 7 countries in total are as follows:

 Portugal
 Spain
 Andorra
 Italy
 Malta
 San Marino
 Vatican City
 The area of Southern Europe, also called Mediterranean Europe, extends along
the Mediterranean Sea on the southern edge of Europe.

 The area of Southern Europe, because of its closeness to the Mediterranean Sea,
enjoys a Mediterranean climate.

 The area is reasonably mild and wet in the winter and can be very hot and dry in
the summer.

 The principal resource in this area is hydroelectricity, but even the availability of this
resource can be limited.

 The mountainous terrain, especially in Italy around the Alps, grants ample land for
use of hydro-energy, but a shortage of water hinders the interdependence of the
region upon the use of hydroelectricity.

 Italy is the most populated country in the region, with about 59.3 million people,
according to the 2007 Population Data Sheet.

 Agriculture is the principal source of revenue in most of the nations of Southern

Europe.

 The area of Southern Europe has been very slow to develop economically.

 The areas around the major cities are usually extremely industrialized, but the
majority of settling land in all of these countries in still agricultural.

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Points to Remember
Country Capital Currency Language
Portugal Lisbon Euro Portuguese
Spain Madrid Euro Spanish
Andorra Andorra la Vella Euro Catalan
Italy Rome Euro Italian
Malta Valletta Euro Maltese, English
San Marino San Marino Euro Italian
Vatican City Vatican city Euro Italian, Latin

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Central Europe
Central Europe comprises of 8 countries in total are as follows:
 Germany
 Switzerland
 Liechtenstein
 Austria
 Poland
 The Czech Republic
 Slovakia
 Hungary
 Poland and the Czech Republic are principal producers of iron, steel, cars, ships,
and industrial machinery, while Poland is a principal exporter of coal and metals.
 The Rhine is one of Europe’s most powerful trade routes.
 Huge barges use the waterway to carry heavy freight such as timber, coal, and
grain.
 The river begins in the Swiss Alps and flows northwest for 820 miles (1,320 km)
through Germany and France.
 It drains into the North Sea at Rotterdam in the Netherlands, the world’s largest
port.

Map of the Central Europe

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Points to Remember
Country Capital Currency Language
Germany Berlin Euro German

Switzerland Schwyz Swiss franc German, Romansh,

Liechtenstein Vaduz Swiss franc German
Austria Vienna Euro German
Poland Warsaw Polish zloty Polish
The Czech Republic Prague Czech Koruna Czech
Slovakia Bratislava Euro Slovak
Hungary Budapest Hungarian forint Hungarian

South– Eastern Europe

South-Eastern Europe comprises of 11 countries in total are as follows:
 Slovenia
 Croatia
 Bosnia and Herzegovina
 Serbia
 Montenegro
 Albania
 Macedonia
 Romania
 Bulgaria
 Greece
 The European part of Turkey

 Bulgaria and Romania are separated by the Danube River, which creates a border
between them.

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 The fertile plain on each side of the river is used as farmland for grazing sheep,
goats, and cattle, and for producing crops like sunflowers, wheat, corn, potatoes,
and fruit.

 Hundreds of little Greek islands dot the Aegean and Ionian Seas.

 Every year, almost nine million tourists visit Greece for its warm blue waters,
beautiful landscape, ancient ruins, and sunny climate.

 The high demand for hotels, restaurants, and crafts makes tourism more beneficial
than the more conventional farming and fishing.

Map of the South-Eastern Europe

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Points to Remember
Country Capital Currency Language
Slovenia Ljubljana Euro Slovenian
Croatia Zagreb Croatian Kuna Croatian
Bosnia and Sarajevo Convertible Marka Bosnian, Croatian,
Herzegovina Serbian
Serbia Belgrade Serbian dinar Serbian
Montenegro Podgorica Euro Montenegrin
Albania Tirana Albanian lek Albanian
Macedonia Skopje Macedonian denar Macedonian, Albanian
Romania Bucharest Romanian leu Romanian
Bulgaria Sofia Bulgarian lev Bulgarian
Greece Athens Euro Greek
The European part of Ankara Turkish lira Turkish
Turkey (or Turkey)

Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe comprises of 11 countries in total are as follows:

 Estonia
 Latvia
 Lithuania
 Belarus
 Ukraine
 Moldova
 The European portion of Russia
 By convention the Trans-Caucasian countries of Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan.

 Eastern Europe is usually recognized to be bordered by the Baltic and Barents

seas on the north; the Adriatic, Black, and Caspian seas and the Caucasus
Mountains on the south; and the Ural Mountains on the east.

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 The western area of the area is mainly glaciated plains.

 The west-central section is overlooked by mountains and highlands connected with

the Alpine system, with river valleys and structural basins between the highlands.

 A huge, nearly flat, stable, geologic plateau includes the eastern section.

 The north-eastern area of the area is filled with lakes and glacial ridges.

 Major rivers in Eastern Europe are the Vistula, Danube, Volga, Dnepr, Don, Elbe,
Rhône, and Ural.

Map of the Eastern Europe

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Points to Remember
Country Capital Currency Language
Estonia Tallinn Euro Estonian
Latvia Riga Euro Latvian
Lithuania Vilnius Euro Lithuanian
Belarus Minsk Belarusian Roble Belarusian, Russian
Ukraine Kyiv Ukrainian hryvnia Ukrainian
Moldova Chisinau Moldovan leu Romanian
The European
portion of Russia (or Moscow Russian Roble Russian
Russia)

European Union
 The European Union (EU) is political and economic, consisting of 27 member
states that are subjected to the obligations and the privileges of the membership.

 Every member state is a section of the founding treaties of the union and is
governed to binding laws within the common legislative and judicial institutions.

 For the EU to choose policies that interest defence and foreign affairs, all member
states must agree collectively.

 The European Union was established on November 1, 1993, in Maastricht,

Netherlands.

 Before 1993, the EU was not as big as it is today.

 European countries started to support economically since 1951 when only states
such as Belgium, France, Luxembourg, Germany, The Netherlands, and Italy
associated.

 Gradually, more countries chose to join.

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 The last to enter is Croatia – in 2013.

 Earlier, there were 28 countries in the EU but after the announcement of the UK to
leave (Bre-exit), only 27 European countries left.
 The 27 European countries that are part of the EU:
1. Austria
2. Belgium
3. Bulgaria
4. Croatia
5. Cyprus Czech Republic
6. Denmark
7. Estonia
8. Finland
9. France
10. Germany
11. Greece
12. Hungary
13. Ireland
14. Italy
15. Latvia
16. Lithuania
17. Luxembourg
18. Malta
19. Netherlands
20. Poland
21. Portugal
22. Romania
23. Slovakia
24. Slovenia
25. Spain
26. Sweden

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