List of countries spanning more than one continent
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This is a list of countries spanning more than one continent. The definitions of what continent(s) a particular country covers may vary according to which criteria are used (whether purely geographical or, on the other hand, political, economic or cultural criteria). An example is Russia, which has its historical core as well as most of its population (74%), economic activity and political institutions (such as its capital city) in Europe, yet geographically most of the territory (77%) is actually in Asia. By most definitions, Russia straddles Eurasia.
This list includes transcontinental states, which are countries whose contiguous continental territory or, (in the case of an island state, its different islands) lie in two (or more) different continents, or which has nearby outlying islands associated with a continent other than where it is based. Non-contiguous parts of countries are not considered (i.e. distant integral parts, extraterritorial possessions, dependencies and the like – examples include Bermuda, French Guiana, Greenland, and Hawaii,) although they may still be considered portions of transcontinental countries. This list includes the countries meeting that definition.
These classifications are dependent on the borders of the continents under various definitions.
Contents |
[edit] Countries in both Asia and Europe
- See "Europe and Asia" for more details about the geographical border between Europe and Asia.
- See also Geographic criteria for EU membership.
- Azerbaijan - situated in both Western Asia and Eastern Europe.
- Georgia - situated in both Western Asia and Eastern Europe.
- Greece - situated in both Southeastern Europe and Western Asia (see below and this map.)
- Kazakhstan - situated in both Central Asia and Eastern Europe.
- Russia - situated in both Northern Asia and Eastern Europe.
- South Ossetia (if its de facto independence from Georgia since the cease-fire of July 14, 1992 is recognized) - situated in both Western Asia and Eastern Europe.
- Turkey - situated in both Western Asia and Southeastern Europe.
[edit] Azerbaijan
The northeastern Azerbaijan district borders run mostly along the main Caucasus watershed. Five districts are entirely within Europe, and the transcontinental Khizi district is almost equally divided on the two sides of the watershed.
[edit] Georgia
Georgia's regional borders cross the main Caucasus watershed perpendicularly in the east-central region of the country, though some of its subdivisional lines follow it. Georgia's three transcontinental regions are Shida Kartli, Mtskheta-Mtianeti, and Kakheti.
The Java district of Shida Kartli is transcontinental (mostly in Europe) and the region's other four districts are entirely within Asia. The Kazbegi and Dusheti districts of Mtskheta-Mtianeti are transcontinental, with the Khevi subdivision of Kazbegi and the Khevsureti subdivision of Dusheti being entirely in Europe and the Mtiuleti subdivision of Kazbegi being transcontinental, and the region's other three districts are entirely within Asia. The Akhmeta district of Kakheti is transcontinental, with its Tusheti subdivision in Europe, and the region's other seven districts are entirely within Asia.
[edit] Greece
Mainland Greece and most of its islands are associated with Europe, but the Dodecanese Prefecture of the transcontinental South Aegean Periphery and most of the transcontinental North Aegean Periphery are along Asia's continental shelf and may thus be associated with Asia. The intercontinental boundary, if recognized as running between these eastern Greek islands and the remainder of the nation, mostly follows prefecture and periphery boundaries. The Lesbos Prefecture of the North Aegean Prefecture would consist of the Asian Lesbos Island and the European Lemnos and Agios Efstratios islands. North Aegean's other two prefectures would be entirely in Asia. The South Aegean Periphery would consists of the Dodecanese and the European Cyclades Prefecture. Many geographers and residents of Greece continue to consider all of its islands associated with Europe.
[edit] Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan's provincial borders don't follow the Ural River, although some of its western district borders do so. Two of the provinces are transcontinental, Atyrau Province and West Kazakhstan Province. The capital of the former, Atyrau, is split by the mouth of the Ural and is a transcontinental city. Almost all of it is in Asia with a small portion in Europe. Two of Atyrau Province's districts are entirely in Europe, three of its districts are entirely in Asia, and its Inderskiy and Makhambetskiy districts are transcontinental.[1] Five of West Kazakhstan's districts and the province's capital city of Oral are entirely in Europe, five of its districts are entirely in Asia, and its Akzhaikskiy district is transcontinental. [2]
[edit] Russia
Russian regions' borders follow the Ural Mountains and Ural River closely enough. There is a very small area (less than 300 km²) of Russian territory south of the main Caucasus watershed in Asia. Orenburg on the Ural River is a transcontinental city. More detail on the political divisions through which the intercontinental boundary runs can be found here.
[edit] Turkey
Three of Turkey's provinces are entirely in Europe while Çanakkale and Istanbul are transcontinental provinces. Three of Çanakkale's districts are entirely in Europe and its other nine districts are entirely in Asia. 19 of Istanbul's districts are entirely in Europe and its other 12 districts are entirely in Asia.
[edit] Countries in both Asia and Africa
- See Geography of Africa and Asia pages for more details about the geographical border between Africa and Asia.
- Egypt - situated in both Northeastern Africa and Southwestern Asia.
- Yemen - situated in both Southwestern Asia and Eastern Africa.
The border between the two continents is considered to go along the Isthmus of Suez and the Suez Canal in Egypt. The border continues through the Gulf of Suez, Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. International arbitration of the Hanish islands crisis in 1998 split control of the Hanish Islands in the Red Sea between Yemen and Eritrea along this border.
[edit] Egypt
Three of Egypt's governorates lie entirely in Asia and two are transcontinental. Ismailia Governorate is nearly equally divided by the Suez Canal and Suez Governorate, which is coterminous with the transcontinental city of Suez, has a small portion east of the Suez Canal.
[edit] Yemen
Although mainland Yemen is in the southern Arabian Peninsula and thus part of Asia, and its Hanish Islands and Perim in the Red Sea are associated with Asia, Yemen controls the archipelago of Socotra, which lies east of the horn of Somalia and is much closer to Africa than Asia. Socotra and the mainland city of Aden constitute the transcontinental 'Adan Governorate.
[edit] Countries in both Asia and Oceania
[edit] Australia
The former Australian Prime Minister John Howard said in November 2006 that Australia was a permanent part of Asia.[3] In reality, the Commonwealth of Australia consists of its namesake continent and island possessions associated with Oceania, Asia, and Antarctica. Its Indian Ocean island possessions of Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands are associated with Asia, although they are too distant from the Australian mainland to consider the nation a transcontinental state. The majority of the ancestry of Australia's Asian island residents is Asian and the majority of them are Muslim or Buddhist.
[edit] East Timor
East Timor is classified as Asian by the United Nations,[4] and a member of the ASEAN Regional Forum.[5] East Timor has applied for membership of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), at which it is an observer; it is also an observer at the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF).
Biogeographically, East Timor lies within Wallacea, an ecological transition zone between Asia and Australasia.[6] Culturally, sources are divided on whether East Timor is closer to Pacific peoples than to Asians.[citation needed]
The Portuguese sources, Lello Universal and Enciclopédia Luso-Brasileira, described Timor as being in Oceania. The social organization of its tribal population is extremely similar to societies in Oceania.[7] The languages spoken in the territory are mainly Austronesian, the same group that comprises the languages of New Guinea which is usually considered as part of Melanesia.[8]
[edit] Indonesia
Sulawesi, the Maluku Islands, West Nusa Tenggara, East Nusa Tenggara, the Sangir Islands, the Talaud Islands, and Western New Guinea are entirely within the Oceanian realm.[6] Indonesia's other islands and island groups lie entirely in Asia, and none of its provinces crosses the Wallace Line, which is commonly used to separate Asian and Oceanian islands.[6] 21 provinces lie entirely in Asia and 12 provinces entirely in Oceania. [1] However, it is common practice on maps to consider all of Indonesia including or except for Western New Guinea as consisting of Asian islands.
[edit] Japan
All of Japan consists of Asian islands except for the remote and uninhabited Minami Torishima, which is an Oceanian island and administratively part of the city of Tokyo and the subdivision of Ogasawara Village, along with other outlying Japanese islands to the south and southeast of the city. [2]
[edit] Countries in both North America and South America
- See North America and South America pages for more details about the geographical border between the two Americas.
- Colombia - situated in both northwestern South America and southern North America.
- Netherlands Antilles - situated in both northwestern South America and southeastern North America.
- Panama - situated in both southern North America and northwestern South America (if the below boundary between the two is used.)
- Venezuela - situated in both northwestern South America and southeastern North America.
- Most geographic authorities delineate the land border dividing the Americas somewhere along the Isthmus of Panama. The most common demarcation follows the Darien watershed along the Colombia-Panama boundary. A less common dividing line (but used herein) is the Panama Canal transecting the isthmus; by that definition, Panama would be reckoned to have territory in both continents. Panama City, Panama's capital, sits on the Pacific (southern) coast near the Panama Canal in the eastern (South American) portion of the country. Panama lies almost entirely on the Caribbean Plate, with a small portion on the South American Plate. Geopolitically and geographically, all of Panama is generally considered a part of North America alone and among the countries of North America.
- The sea islands division is more complicated. All Caribbean islands are often labeled as North American. The Dutch dependency Aruba, some parts of the Netherlands Antilles (Bonaire and Curaçao islands), and the state of Trinidad and Tobago lie on the continental shelf of South America, and are considered South American. Venezuela's Isla Aves and the Colombian islands of San Andrés and Providencia are geographically North American. Isla Aves is one of the Federal dependencies of Venezuela under the administration of the transcontinental city of Caracas.
North American Caribbean islands belonging to South American countries:
| Isla Aves [3] |
South American Caribbean islands:
[edit] Aruba
Lies on the continental shelf of South America, and is thus considered to lie entirely in South America, but all Caribbean islands are often labelled as North American, and the language and cultural links are not to South America.
[edit] Colombia
Mainland Colombia is in northwestern South America, but the nation also controls the San Andrés and Providencia archipelago, 400 miles WNW of Columbia's Caribbean coast, near the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua. This archipelago is coterminous with the department of the same name.
[edit] Netherlands Antilles
Bonaire and Curaçao lie entirely in South America because of the position of the continental shelf, while Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten lie entirely in North America. Similarly to Aruba, its historical connections are with the other Caribbean islands that are often labelled as North American, and the language and cultural links are not to South America but increasingly because of tourism and the financial industry to other English speaking Caribbean nations.
[edit] Panama
Most authorities and most Panamanians consider Panama to be North America's southernmost nation, entirely within both Central America and North America. An alternative view is that the man-made Panama Canal divides the continents. That would place Darién Province and four comarcas indígenas entirely in South America. Panamá Province and Colón Province would both be transcontinental, with Colón nearly equally divided between both Americas and Panamá Province unequally divided, with nearly a 1:4 ratio in South America's favour. A map of the locations of the districts of these two provinces and their area and population numbers is needed. The Pearl Islands and Taboga Island in the Gulf of Panama are part of Panamá Province and would be associated with South America and North America, respectively. Six other provinces and the comarca indígena of Ngöbe-Buglé would be entirely in North America.
[edit] Trinidad and Tobago
Lies on the continental shelf of South America, and is thus considered to lie entirely in South America, but all Caribbean islands are often labelled as North American, and the language and cultural links are not to South America but to the rest of the English speaking Caribbean nations.
[edit] Countries in both Africa and Europe
- See "Africa and Europe" for more details about the geographical border between Africa and Europe.
- Italy - situated in both Southern Europe and Northern Africa.
- Portugal - situated in both Southwestern Europe and Northwestern Africa.
- Spain - situated in both Southwestern Europe and Northwestern Africa.
[edit] Italy
Although mainland Italy, Sardinia, Sicily, the Aegadian Islands, Ustica, and the Aeolian Islands are associated with Europe, the closest land to Pantelleria and the Pelagie Islands is Tunisia on the African mainland. They belong to the transcontinental Sicilian provinces of Trapani and Agrigento, respectively, and they are coterminous with the comuni of Pantelleria and Lampedusa e Linosa, respectively.
[edit] Malta
Malta has been geopolitically European in modern times, but may be considered geographically associated with Africa. More detail may be found here.
[edit] Portugal
Continental Portugal is in Europe, while the Azores archipelago (also associated with Europe) and the archipelago of Madeira (geographically part of Africa) in the Atlantic Ocean constitute the Autonomous regions of Portugal. The latter autonomous region also includes Porto Santo Island, the Desertas Islands, and the Savage Islands, all of which are also African islands.
[edit] Spain
Although its mainland is in Europe, Spain has holdings (the Canary Islands in the Atlantic and its Plazas de soberanía including Ceuta and Melilla on the African mainland) that are geographically part of Africa. They are considered Autonomous communities of Spain. The African Mediterranean island of Isla de Alborán belongs to the transcontinental city of Almería and the transcontinental province of Almería.
[edit] Antarctic claims
A number of nations claim ownership over portions of the continent of Antarctica. Some, including Argentina and Chile, consider the Antarctic land they claim to be integral parts of their national territory. Some nations also have sub-Antarctic island possessions north of 60°S latitude and thus recognized by international law under the Antarctic Treaty System, which holds in abeyance land claims south of 60°S latitude.
[edit] Other examples
These are not considered transcontinental states, but may be considered transcontinental countries.
[edit] Chile
Chile is mostly on the South American mainland and includes the Oceanian islands of Easter Island and Sala y Gómez Island. They and the outlying South American Juan Fernández Islands and Desventuradas Islands are part of the Valparaíso Region.
[edit] Denmark
Denmark includes the North American island of Greenland and the Faroe Islands associated with Europe. In 1953, Greenland was made an equal part of the Danish Kingdom and home rule was granted in 1979.
[edit] France
The Republic of France includes overseas departments in Africa (Réunion), North America (Guadeloupe, Martinique), and South America (French Guiana). These entities have the same legal status as the departments of Metropolitan France. There are other island possessions associated with North America, Africa, Oceania, and Antarctica that are French overseas collectives or part of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands.
[edit] Netherlands
The Netherlands has the Caribbean island possessions of the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba. While Aruba has self-government, the Netherlands Antilles are divided into special municipalities by island group. While Aruba moves toward independence, the Netherlands Antilles move toward greater incorporation into the metropolian Netherlands.
[edit] United States
While the territory of the United States lies overwhelmingly in North America, it includes the state of Hawaii in Oceania, as well as other Oceanian island possessions and Alaskan islands on NE Asia's continental shelf.
These examples have integral parts associated with other continents. Norway, South Africa, and the United Kingdom may also be considered transcontinetal by virtue of distant island possessions associated with a continent other than where the country is based.
[edit] References
- ^ www.brif.kz
- ^ www.brif.kz
- ^ PM highlights strong Asia relationship. ABC Radio (accessed 2007-11-14)
- ^ [http://www.un.org/depts/dhl/maplib/worldregions.htm UN World Macro Regions and Components
- ^ smh.com.au
- ^ a b c Severin, Tim (1997). The Spice Island Voyage: In Search of Wallace. Great Britain: Abacus Travel. ISBN 0-349-11040-9.
- ^ Marcos, Artur. Timor Timorense - Com suas línguas, literatura, lusofonia. Colibri Editions, 1995. ISBN972-8288-11-5
- ^ http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=TL Languages of East Timor
[edit] See also
- Borders of the continents
- Colonialism
- Dependent territory
- Imperialism
- List of countries by continent
- List of transcontinental empires and countries in history
- Thalassocracy
[edit] External links
- Transcontinental states according to World Gazetteercy:Gwlad drawsgyfandirol
fr:Limites de l'Europe ko:두 대륙에 걸친 나라 it:Paese transcontinentale he:מדינה טרנס-יבשתית sw:Nchi ya kimabara nl:Transcontinentale staat no:Transkontinentalt land pt:Nação transcontinental simple:Transcontinental country tl:Bansang transkontinental
![[1]](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Indonesia_provinces_english.png){kind=link}
![[2]](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Ogasawara_islands.png){kind=link}
