Geography & Travel
Planet Earth contains some extraordinarily diverse environments, some of which are easily habitable and some not so much. In different areas of Earth, one might find sweltering deserts, dense tropical rainforests, or bone-chilling tundras. Each biome and habitat comes with its own selection of flora and fauna, and it may include physical features such as canyons, volcanoes, rivers, or caves. Human beings have built homes in many different environments, settling the area and organizing it into units such as cities, states, regions, and countries, each with its own points of interest. Shifting trends in human migration have resulted in a human geography that is profoundly different from that of centuries ago.
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Featured content, March 16, 2023
How Many Countries Are There in the World?
Find out how many countries there are.
Is Australia an Island?
What’s the difference between an island and a continent anyway?
Why New York Is Called "The Big Apple" and How 8 Other Famous Cities Got Their Nicknames
What’s so apple-y about New York, anyway?
8 Hotly Disputed Borders of the World
Somaliland, the Korean peninsula, Western Sahara—all of these places are home to some of the most hotly disputed borders...
language
Language, a system of conventional spoken, manual (signed), or written symbols by means of which human beings, as members...
canals and inland waterways
Canals and inland waterways, natural or artificial waterways used for navigation, crop irrigation, water supply, or drainage....
Plains Indian
Plains Indian, member of any of the Native American peoples inhabiting the Great Plains of the United States and Canada....
cave
Cave, natural opening in the earth large enough for human exploration. Such a cavity is formed in many types of rock and...
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Geography & Travel Subcategories
![Ukraine](https://webcf.waybackmachine.org/web/20230316115745im_/https://cdn.britannica.com/14/4814-050-12EFD9D1/Flag-Ukraine.jpg?w=400&h=225&c=crop)
Although there isn’t universal agreement on the question of what qualifies as a “country,” it is generally accepted that in order to be a country, a state must be a sovereign unit that has a permanent population, defined territorial boundaries, a government, and the ability to enter into agreements with other states. Even when these conditions are met, however, internationally recognized independence is not a given, and a territorial entity that declares itself to be an independent country is not always recognized as such by the rest of the world.
Articles
![Roman Forum](https://webcf.waybackmachine.org/web/20230316115745im_/https://cdn.britannica.com/45/196945-050-CCF8BD72/Temple-of-Saturn-Arch-Septimius-Severus-Forum.jpg?w=400&h=225&c=crop)
This general category includes a selection of more specific topics.
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history of Mesopotamia
historical region, Asia
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Wartburg
castle, Germany
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Empire of Japan
historic state
![Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument](https://webcf.waybackmachine.org/web/20230316115745im_/https://cdn.britannica.com/98/187398-050-6903974B/Fir-trees-Pacific-Crest-National-Scenic-Trail.jpg?w=400&h=225&c=crop)
This general category includes a selection of more specific topics.
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Natchez Trace Parkway
highway, United States
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Oregon Trail
historical trail, United States
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Trans-Canada Highway
highway, Canada
![Distribution of North American Plateau Indians](https://webcf.waybackmachine.org/web/20230316115745im_/https://cdn.britannica.com/38/5538-050-59170F0C/Indigenous-peoples-North-American-Plateau-Indians.jpg?w=400&h=225&c=crop)
Since 1945 human geography has contained five main divisions. The first four—economic, social, cultural, and political—reflect both the main areas of contemporary life and the social science disciplines with which geographers interact (i.e., economics, sociology, anthropology, and political science and international relations, respectively); the fifth is historical geography.
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Plains Indian
people
- ancient Italic people
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Southwest Indian
people
![Some of the pictorial signs used at the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles, Calif.](https://webcf.waybackmachine.org/web/20230316115745im_/https://cdn.britannica.com/28/5228-050-64348D17/Some-signs-1984-Summer-Olympic-Games-Los-1984.jpg?w=400&h=225&c=crop)
Language, a system of conventional spoken, manual, or written symbols by means of which human beings, as members of a social group and participants in its culture, express themselves. The functions of language include communication, the expression of identity, play, imaginative expression, and emotional release.
Articles
![Mount St. Helens volcano](https://webcf.waybackmachine.org/web/20230316115745im_/https://cdn.britannica.com/16/77416-120-6D5A3D41/volcano-Mount-St-Helens-south-eruption-May-18-1980.jpg?w=400&h=225&c=crop)
Earth’s geographic history has been one marked by significant overall change, with ice ages, continental drift, and other major disruptions ultimately shaping Earth's land into the landscape of mountain ranges, deserts, islands, and volcanoes that we see today.
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Antarctica
continent
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South America
continent
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Africa
continent
![Arctic Ocean](https://webcf.waybackmachine.org/web/20230316115745im_/https://cdn.britannica.com/53/5853-004-FF0BE165/North-Pole.jpg?w=400&h=225&c=crop)
Whether it's Lake Michigan, the Gulf of Panama, or the River Thames, bodies of water of all shapes and sizes can be found around the globe, and they play a critical role for human beings, who use such bodies of water as a source of drinking water, a means of transporting both goods and people themselves, or a place to engage in water sports, among a plethora of other possible uses. Additionally, many bodies of water provide striking scenes of natural beauty and house important marine ecosystems. Satiate your thirst for knowledge about Earth's oceans, lakes, seas, rivers, waterfalls, bays, and more.
Articles
![Hiker in Sequoia National Park in the Sierra Nevada, east-central California.](https://webcf.waybackmachine.org/web/20230316115745im_/https://cdn.britannica.com/40/100640-050-277EE821/Hiker-Sequoia-National-Park-Sierra-Nevada-California.jpg?w=400&h=225&c=crop)
Nature reserves are areas set aside for the purpose of preserving and protecting plants and animals, particularly endangered species. National parks may effectively serve a similar purpose by shielding threatened species from hunters, but these parks can also be created for the purpose of public recreation, affording its visitors a chance to be immersed in a protected natural environment. Many national parks have been created in the last 100 years, including Yellowstone National Park, the oldest and probably the best-known national park in the United States.
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Yosemite National Park
national park, California, United States
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Zion National Park
national park, Utah, United States
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Great Smoky Mountains National Park
national park, North Carolina-Tennessee, United States
![flag of Queensland](https://webcf.waybackmachine.org/web/20230316115745im_/https://cdn.britannica.com/74/3674-050-621AA771/Flag-Queensland.jpg?w=400&h=225&c=crop)
Every nation has its own subdivisions to demarcate smaller political units within its territory. Counties, districts, oblasts, polis, nomos, unitary authorities, boroughs, and cities are all examples (among many others) of how land can be organized.
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California
state, United States
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New York
state, United States
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New South Wales
state, Australia
![North Africa](https://webcf.waybackmachine.org/web/20230316115745im_/https://cdn.britannica.com/35/3035-004-8A9585C0/Northern-Africa-map-elevation.jpg?w=400&h=225&c=crop)
This general category includes a selection of more specific topics.
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North Africa
region, Africa
- Central Asia
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Silicon Valley
region, California, United States
![Big Ben](https://webcf.waybackmachine.org/web/20230316115745im_/https://cdn.britannica.com/49/136849-050-6A33C899/Big-Ben-London.jpg?w=400&h=225&c=crop)
This general category includes a selection of more specific topics.
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Sydney Opera House
building, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
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Mount Fuji
mountain, Japan
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CN Tower
building, Toronto, Ontario, Canada