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The name Africa was originally used by the ancient Romans to refer to the northern part of the continent that corresponds to modern-day Tunisia. There are many theories regarding its origin. Africa terra means "land of the Afri" (plural, or "Afer" singular), referring to the Afri tribe, who dwelt in Northern Africa around the area of Carthage.
In geology, a continent is defined by continental crust, which is a platform of metamorphic and igneous rock, largely of granitic composition. Continental crust is less dense and much thicker than oceanic crust, which causes it to "float" higher than oceanic crust on the dense underlying mantle.
N. [edit] nadir. narrows. Also narrow. A land or water passage that is confined or restricted by its narrow breadth, often a strait or a water gap. nation. A stable community of people formed on the basis of a common geographic territory, language, economy, ethnicity, or psychological make-up as manifested in a common culture.
1. The meridian of longitude that is directly opposite or antipodal to a given meridian, i.e. the imaginary line that is exactly 180 degrees of longitude distant from the given meridian. Together, a meridian and its antimeridian form a great circle that passes through the geographic poles. 2.
In geology, a supercontinent is the assembly of most or all of Earth 's continental blocks or cratons to form a single large landmass. [1][2][3] However, some geologists use a different definition, "a grouping of formerly dispersed continents", which leaves room for interpretation and is easier to apply to Precambrian times. [4]
The name "Pangaea" is derived from Ancient Greek pan (πᾶν, "all, entire, whole") and Gaia or Gaea (Γαῖα, " Mother Earth, land"). [4][9] The first to suggest that the continents were once joined and later separated may have been Abraham Ortelius in 1596. [10] The concept that the continents once formed a contiguous land mass was ...
Americas (terminology) The Americas, also known as America, [1] are lands of the Western Hemisphere, composed of numerous entities and regions variably defined by geography, politics, and culture. The Americas are recognized in the English-speaking world to include two separate continents: North America and South America. In parts of Europe and ...
The Western Hemisphere is the half of the planet Earth that lies west of the Prime Meridian —which crosses Greenwich, London, England —and east of the 180th meridian. [1][2] The other half is called the Eastern Hemisphere. Geo-politically, the term Western Hemisphere is often used as a metonym for the Americas or the "New World", even ...