North America

North America is Earth’s third-largest continent. It covers about 24,710,000 km² (9.54 million square miles), roughly 16.5% of the world’s land area, and is home to around 600 million people across 23 sovereign countries plus a number of dependent territories.

Where is North America?

North America stretches from the Arctic Circle in northern Canada down to the narrow Isthmus of Panama, where it joins South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east, the Pacific Ocean to the west, and the Arctic Ocean to the north. The Caribbean Sea separates the mainland from the dozens of island nations of the Caribbean.

North American geography

North America’s spine is the Rocky Mountains, which run for around 4,800 km from British Columbia in Canada down through the western United States into Mexico. The Appalachian Mountains form the older, lower range along the east coast. In between lie the vast Great Plains. The continent’s highest peak is Denali in Alaska (6,190 m). The longest river system is the Mississippi, Missouri (6,275 km). The five Great Lakes, Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, together hold approx. 21% of the planet’s fresh surface water. Natural wonders include Niagara Falls, the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, and Yosemite.

Regions of North America

• Northern America, Canada, the United States, and the small island nation of Greenland (autonomous within Denmark).
• Central America, Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama.
• The Caribbean, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, the Bahamas, Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, Saint Lucia, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, and Grenada.

Climate and wildlife

North America covers every climate type. The Arctic north has tundra and polar bears; the boreal forests host moose and lynx; the temperate centre supports prairies and the famous bison; the deserts of the south-west are home to coyotes, roadrunners, and rattlesnakes; the Caribbean has coral reefs and tropical rainforests with parrots and iguanas. The continent’s coastlines are home to whales, sea otters, manatees, and dolphins.

People, languages, and religions

The main languages are English (mainly the United States, Canada, and most of the Caribbean), Spanish (Mexico and Central America), and French (Quebec in Canada and Haiti). Hundreds of Indigenous languages are also spoken. Christianity is the largest religion.

Famous landmarks

From the Statue of Liberty in New York to the CN Tower in Toronto, Chichén Itzá in Mexico, Mount Rushmore in South Dakota, the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, the Empire State Building, the Hollywood sign, the Panama Canal, and the colourful colonial towns of Cuba, North America’s landmarks are world-famous.

Explore North American countries

Pick any of the 23 sovereign countries below for its complete fact file.