Continent in the Northern Hemisphere
A map of North America's physical, political, and population characteristics as of 2024
North America is a🍎 continent[b] in the Northern and Western Hemispheres.[c] North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the🍎 east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Caribbean Sea, and to the west and🍎 south by the Pacific Ocean. Greater North America includes the Bahamas, Bermuda, Canada, the Caribbean, Central America, Île Clipperton, Kalaallit🍎 Nunaat (Greenland), México, Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, the Turks and Caicos Islands, and the United States of America.
Continental North America covers an area🍎 of about 24,709,000 square kilometers (9,540,000 square miles), representing approximately 16.5% of the Earth's land area and 4.8% of its🍎 total surface area. It is the third-largest continent by size after Asia and Africa, and the fourth-largest continent by population🍎 after Asia, Africa, and Europe. As of 2013 , North America's population was estimated at nearly 579 million people in🍎 23 independent states, or about 7.5% of the world's population. In human geography and in the English-speaking world outside the🍎 United States, particularly in Canada, the terms "North America" and "North American" are typically defined as including just Canada and🍎 the United States.[7][8][9][10][11]
It is unknown how and when first human populations reached North America. At present, people were known to🍎 live in the Americas at least 20,000 years ago[12] but various evidence points to possibly earlier dates.[13][14] The Paleo-Indian period🍎 in North America followed the Last Glacial Period, and lasted until about 10,000 years ago when the Archaic period began.🍎 The classic stage followed the Archaic period, and lasted from approximately the 6th to 13th centuries. Beginning in 1000 AD,🍎 the Norse were the first Europeans to begin exploring and ultimately colonizing areas of North America.
In 1492, the exploratory voyages🍎 of Christopher Columbus led to a transatlantic exchange, including migrations of European settlers during the Age of Discovery and the🍎 early modern period. Present-day cultural and ethnic patterns reflect interactions between European colonists, indigenous peoples, African slaves, immigrants from Europe,🍎 Asia, and descendants of these respective groups.
Europe's colonization in North America led to most North Americans speaking European languages, such🍎 as English, Spanish, and French, and the cultures of the region commonly reflect Western traditions. However, relatively small parts of🍎 North America in Canada, the United States, Mexico, and Central America have indigenous populations that continue adhering to their respective🍎 pre-European colonial cultural and linguistic traditions.
Name
A 1621 map of North America
The Americas were named after the Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci🍎 by German cartographers Martin Waldseemüller and Matthias Ringmann.[15] Vespucci explored South America between 1497 and 1502, and was the first🍎 European to suggest that the Americas represented a landmass not then known to Europeans. In 1507, Waldseemüller published a world🍎 map, and placed the word "America" on the continent of present-day South America.[16] The continent north of present-day Mexico was🍎 then referred to as Parias.[17] On a 1553 world map published by Petrus Apianus,[18] North America was called "Baccalearum", meaning🍎 "realm of the Cod fish", in reference to the abundance of cod fish on the East Coast.[19]
Waldseemüller used the Latin🍎 version of Vespucci's name, Americus Vespucius, in its feminine form of "America", following the examples of "Europa", "Asia", and "Africa".🍎 Map makers later extended the name America to North America.
In 1538, Gerardus Mercator used the term America on his world🍎 map of the entire Western Hemisphere.[20] On his subsequent 1569 map, Mercator called North America "America or New India" (America🍎 sive India Nova).[21]
The Spanish Empire called its territories in North and South America "Las Indias", and the name given to🍎 the state body that oversaw the region was called the Council of the Indies.
Definitions
A 2005 NASA satellite image of North🍎 America
The United Nations and its statistics division recognize North America as including three regions: Northern America, Central America, and the🍎 Caribbean.[22] "Northern America" is a distinct term from "North America", excluding Central America, which itself may or may not include🍎 Mexico. In the limited context of regional trade agreements, the term is used to reference three nations, Canada, the United🍎 States, and Mexico.
France, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Romania, Greece, and the countries of Latin America use a six-continent model, with the🍎 Americas viewed as a single continent and North America designating a subcontinent comprising Canada, the United States, Mexico, and Saint🍎 Pierre and Miquelon (politically part of France), and often including Greenland and Bermuda.[23][24][25][26][27]
North America has historically been known by other🍎 names, including Spanish North America, New Spain, and América Septentrional, the first official name given to Mexico.[28]
Regions
North America includes several🍎 regions and subregions, each of which have their own respective cultural, economic, and geographic regions. Economic regions include several regions🍎 formalized in 20th and 21st century trade agreements, including NAFTA between Canada, Mexico, and the United States, and CAFTA between🍎 Central America, the Dominican Republic, and the United States.
North America is divided linguistically and culturally into two primary regions, Anglo-America🍎 and Latin America. Anglo-America includes most of North America, Belize, and Caribbean islands with English-speaking populations, though subnational entities, including🍎 Louisiana and Quebec, have large Francophone populations; in Quebec, French is the official language.[29].
The southern portion of North America includes🍎 Central America and non-English speaking Caribbean nations.[30][31] The north of the continent maintains recognized regions as well. In contrast to🍎 the common definition of North America, which encompasses the whole North American continent, the term "North America" is sometimes used🍎 more narrowly to refer only to four nations, Canada, Greenland, Mexico, and the U.S.[32][33][34][35][36] The US Census Bureau includes Saint🍎 Pierre and Miquelon, but excludes Mexico from its definition.[37]
The term Northern America refers to the northernmost countries and territories of🍎 North America: the U.S., Bermuda, Canada, Greenland, and St. Pierre and Miquelon.[38][39] Although the term does not refer to a🍎 unified region,[40] Middle America includes Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean.[41]
North America's largest countries by land area are Canada and🍎 the U.S., both of which have well-defined and recognized subregions. In Canada, these include (from east to west) Atlantic Canada,🍎 Central Canada, Canadian Prairies, the British Columbia Coast, and Northern Canada. In the U.S., they include New England, the Mid-Atlantic,🍎 South Atlantic states, East North Central states, West North Central states, East South Central states, West South Central states, Mountain🍎 states, and Pacific states. The Great Lakes region and the Pacific Northwest include areas in both Canada and the U.S.
Countries,🍎 dependencies, and other territories
Natural characteristics
Geography
North America's landforms and land cover depicted in a 2024 map
Nuuk, the capital of Greenland
North America🍎 occupies the northern portion of the landmass generally referred to as the New World, the Western Hemisphere, the Americas, or🍎 simply America, which, in many countries, is considered a single continent[50][51][52] with North America a subcontinent.[53][54][55] North America is the🍎 third-largest continent by area after Asia and Africa.[56][57]
North America's only land connection to South America is in present-day Panama at🍎 the Darien Gap on the Colombia-Panama border, placing almost all of Panama within North America.[58][59][60] Alternatively, some geologists physiographically locate🍎 its southern limit at the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, Mexico, with Central America extending southeastward to South America from this point.[61]🍎 The Caribbean islands, or West Indies, are considered part of North America.[54] The continental coastline is long and irregular. The🍎 Gulf of Mexico is the largest body of water indenting the continent, followed by Hudson Bay. Others include the Gulf🍎 of Saint Lawrence and the Gulf of California.
Before the Central American isthmus formed, the region had been underwater. The islands🍎 of the West Indies delineate a submerged former land bridge, which had connected North and South America via what are🍎 now Florida and Venezuela.
There are several islands off the continent's coasts; principally, the Arctic Archipelago, the Bahamas, Turks & Caicos,🍎 the Greater and Lesser Antilles, the Aleutian Islands (some of which are in the Eastern Hemisphere proper), the Alexander Archipelago,🍎 the many thousand islands of the British Columbia Coast, and Newfoundland. Greenland, a self-governing Danish island, and the world's largest,🍎 is on the same tectonic plate (the North American Plate) and is part of North America geographically. In a geologic🍎 sense, Bermuda is not part of the Americas, but an oceanic island that was formed on the fissure of the🍎 Mid-Atlantic Ridge over 100 million years ago (mya). The nearest landmass to it is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. However, Bermuda🍎 is often thought of as part of North America, especially given its historical, political and cultural ties to Virginia and🍎 other parts of the continent.
The vast majority of North America is on the North American Plate. Parts of western Mexico,🍎 including Baja California, and of California, including the cities of San Diego, Los Angeles, and Santa Cruz, lie on the🍎 eastern edge of the Pacific Plate, with the two plates meeting along the San Andreas fault. The southernmost portion of🍎 the continent and much of the West Indies lie on the Caribbean Plate, whereas the Juan de Fuca and Cocos🍎 plates border the North American Plate on its western frontier.
The continent can be divided into four great regions (each of🍎 which contains many subregions): the Great Plains stretching from the Gulf of Mexico to the Canadian Arctic; the geologically young,🍎 mountainous west, including the Rocky Mountains, the Great Basin, California and Alaska; the raised but relatively flat plateau of the🍎 Canadian Shield in the northeast; and the varied eastern region, which includes the Appalachian Mountains, the coastal plain along the🍎 Atlantic seaboard, and the Florida peninsula. Mexico, with its long plateaus and cordilleras, falls largely in the western region, although🍎 the eastern coastal plain does extend south along the Gulf.
The western mountains are split in the middle into the main🍎 range of the Rockies and the coast ranges in California, Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia, with the Great Basin—a lower🍎 area containing smaller ranges and low-lying deserts—in between. The highest peak is Denali in Alaska.
The U.S. Geographical Survey (USGS) states🍎 that the geographic center of North America is "6 miles [10 km] west of Balta, Pierce County, North Dakota" at🍎 about , about 24 kilometers (15 mi) from Rugby, North Dakota. The USGS further states that "No marked or monumented🍎 point has been established by any government agency as the geographic center of either the 50 states, the conterminous United🍎 States, or the North American continent."[62] Nonetheless, there is a 4.6-meter (15 ft) field stone obelisk in Rugby claiming to🍎 mark the center. The North American continental pole of inaccessibility is located 1,650 km (1,030 mi) from the nearest coastline,🍎 between Allen and Kyle, South Dakota at .[63]
Geology
Geologic history
The principal water divisions in Canada, the United States, and Mexico
Laurentia is🍎 an ancient craton which forms the geologic core of North America; it formed between 1.5 and 1.0 billion years ago🍎 during the Proterozoic eon.[64] The Canadian Shield is the largest exposure of this craton. From the Late Paleozoic to Early🍎 Mesozoic eras, North America was joined with the other modern-day continents as part of the supercontinent Pangaea, with Eurasia to🍎 its east. One of the results of the formation of Pangaea was the Appalachian Mountains, which formed some 480 mya,🍎 making it among the oldest mountain ranges in the world. When Pangaea began to rift around 200 mya, North America🍎 became part of Laurasia, before it separated from Eurasia as its own continent during the mid-Cretaceous period.[65] The Rockies and🍎 other western mountain ranges began forming around this time from a period of mountain building called the Laramide orogeny, between🍎 80 and 55 mya. The formation of the Isthmus of Panama that connected the continent to South America arguably occurred🍎 approximately 12 to 15 mya,[66] and the Great Lakes (as well as many other northern freshwater lakes and rivers) were🍎 carved by receding glaciers about 10,000 years ago.
North America is the source of much of what humanity knows about geologic🍎 time periods.[67] The geographic area that would later become the United States has been the source of more varieties of🍎 dinosaurs than any other modern country.[67] According to paleontologist Peter Dodson, this is primarily due to stratigraphy, climate and geography,🍎 human resources, and history.[67] Much of the Mesozoic Era is represented by exposed outcrops in the many arid regions of🍎 the continent.[67] The most significant Late Jurassic dinosaur-bearing fossil deposit in North America is the Morrison Formation of the western🍎 U.S.[68]
Canada
A geologic map of North America published by the U.S. Geographical Survey
Canada is geographically one of the oldest regions in🍎 the world, with more than half of the region consisting of Precambrian rocks that have been above sea level since🍎 the beginning of the Palaeozoic era.[69] Canada's mineral resources are diverse and extensive.[69] Across the Canadian Shield and in the🍎 north there are large iron, nickel, zinc, copper, gold, lead, molybdenum, and uranium reserves. Large diamond concentrations have been recently🍎 developed in the Arctic,[70] making Canada one of the world's largest producers. Throughout the Shield, there are many mining towns🍎 extracting these minerals. The largest, and best known, is Sudbury, Ontario. Sudbury is an exception to the normal process of🍎 forming minerals in the Shield since there is significant evidence that the Sudbury Basin is an ancient meteorite impact crater.🍎 The nearby, but less known Temagami Magnetic Anomaly has striking similarities to the Sudbury Basin. Its magnetic anomalies are very🍎 similar to the Sudbury Basin, and so it could be a second metal-rich impact crater.[71] The Shield is also covered🍎 by vast boreal forests that support an important logging industry.
United States
The lower 48 U.S. states can be divided into roughly🍎 five physiographic provinces:
The geology of Alaska is typical of that of the cordillera, while the major islands of Hawaii consist🍎 of Neogene volcanics erupted over a hot spot.
A 2003 image of North America's bedrock and terrain A 2024 map of🍎 North America's cratons and basement rocks
Central America
Central America is geologically active with volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occurring from time to🍎 time. In 1976 Guatemala was hit by a major earthquake, killing 23,000 people; Managua, the capital of Nicaragua, was devastated🍎 by earthquakes in 1931 and 1972, the last one killing about 5,000 people; three earthquakes devastated El Salvador, one in🍎 1986 and two in 2001; one earthquake devastated northern and central Costa Rica in 2009, killing at least 34 people;🍎 in Honduras a powerful earthquake killed seven people in 2009.
Volcanic eruptions are common in the region. In 1968 the Arenal🍎 Volcano, in Costa Rica, erupted and killed 87 people. Fertile soils from weathered volcanic lavas have made it possible to🍎 sustain dense populations in agriculturally productive highland areas.
Central America has many mountain ranges; the longest are the Sierra Madre de🍎 Chiapas, the Cordillera Isabelia, and the Cordillera de Talamanca. Between the mountain ranges lie fertile valleys that are suitable for🍎 the people; in fact, most of the population of Honduras, Costa Rica, and Guatemala live in valleys. Valleys are also🍎 suitable for the production of coffee, beans, and other crops.
Climate
A Köppen climate classification map of North America
North America is a🍎 very large continent that extends from north of the Arctic Circle to south of the Tropic of Cancer. Greenland, along🍎 with the Canadian Shield, is tundra with average temperatures ranging from 10 to 20 °C (50 to 68 °F), but🍎 central Greenland is composed of a very large ice sheet. This tundra radiates throughout Canada, but its border ends near🍎 the Rocky Mountains (but still contains Alaska) and at the end of the Canadian Shield, near the Great Lakes. Climate🍎 west of the Cascade Range is described as being temperate weather with average precipitation 20 inches (510 millimeters).[72] Climate in🍎 coastal California is described to be Mediterranean, with average temperatures in cities like San Francisco ranging from 57 to 70🍎 °F (14 to 21 °C) over the course of the year.[73]
Stretching from the East Coast to eastern North Dakota, and🍎 stretching down to Kansas, is the humid continental climate featuring intense seasons, with a large amount of annual precipitation, with🍎 places like New York City averaging 50 in (1,300 mm).[74] Starting at the southern border of the humid continental climate🍎 and stretching to the Gulf of Mexico (whilst encompassing the eastern half of Texas) is the humid subtropical climate. This🍎 area has the wettest cities in the contiguous U.S., with annual precipitation reaching 67 in (1,700 mm) in Mobile, Alabama.[75]🍎 Stretching from the borders of the humid continental and subtropical climates, and going west to the Sierra Nevada, south to🍎 the southern tip of Durango, north to the border with tundra climate, the steppe/desert climates are the driest in the🍎 United States.[76] Highland climates cut from north to south of the continent, where subtropical or temperate climates occur just below🍎 the tropics, as in central Mexico and Guatemala. Tropical climates appear in the island regions and in the subcontinent's bottleneck,🍎 found in countries and states bathed by the Caribbean Sea or to the south of the Gulf of Mexico and🍎 the Pacific Ocean.[77] Precipitation patterns vary across the region, and as such rainforest, monsoon, and savanna types can be found,🍎 with rains and high temperatures throughout the year.
Ecology
Notable North American fauna include the bison, black bear, jaguar, cougar, prairie dog,🍎 turkey, pronghorn, raccoon, coyote, and monarch butterfly. Notable plants that were domesticated in North America include tobacco, maize, squash, tomato,🍎 sunflower, blueberry, avocado, cotton, chile pepper, and vanilla.
History
Pre-Columbian era
A map of subsistence methods in the Americas, including North America, as🍎 of 1000 BCE Hunter-gatherers Simple farming societies Complex agricultural societies, including tribal Complex agricultural societies, including tribal chiefdoms and civilizations
The🍎 indigenous peoples of the Americas have many creation myths by which they assert that they have been present on the🍎 land since its creation,[78] but there is no evidence that humans evolved there.[79] The specifics of the initial settlement of🍎 the Americas by ancient Asians are subject to ongoing research and discussion.[80] The traditional theory has been that hunters entered🍎 the Bering Land Bridge between eastern Siberia and present-day Alaska from 27,000 to 14,000 years ago.[81][82][j] A growing viewpoint is🍎 that the first American inhabitants sailed from Beringia some 13,000 years ago,[84] with widespread habitation of the Americas during the🍎 end of the Last Glacial Period, in what is known as the Late Glacial Maximum, around 12,500 years ago.[85] The🍎 oldest petroglyphs in North America date from 15,000 to 10,000 years before present.[86][k] Genetic research and anthropology indicate additional waves🍎 of migration from Asia via the Bering Strait during the Early-Middle Holocene.[88][89][90]
Prior to the arrival of European explorers and colonists🍎 in North America, the natives of North America were divided into many different polities, ranging from small bands of a🍎 few families to large empires. They lived in several culture areas, which roughly correspond to geographic and biological zones that🍎 defined the representative cultures and lifestyles of the indigenous people who lived there, including the bison hunters of the Great🍎 Plains and the farmers of Mesoamerica. Native groups also are classified by their language families, which included Athapascan and Uto-Aztecan🍎 languages. Indigenous peoples with similar languages did not always share the same material culture, however, and were not necessarily always🍎 allies. Anthropologists speculate that the Inuit of the high Arctic arrived in North America much later than other native groups,🍎 evidenced by the disappearance of Dorset culture artifacts from the archaeological record and their replacement by the Thule people.
During the🍎 thousands of years of native habitation on the continent, cultures changed and shifted. One of the oldest yet discovered is🍎 the Clovis culture (c. 9550–9050 BCE) in modern New Mexico.[87] Later groups include the Mississippian culture and related Mound building🍎 cultures, found in the Mississippi River valley and the Pueblo culture of what is now the Four Corners. The more🍎 southern cultural groups of North America were responsible for the domestication of many common crops now used around the world,🍎 such as tomatoes, squash, and maize. As a result of the development of agriculture in the south, many other cultural🍎 advances were made there. The Mayans developed a writing system, built huge pyramids and temples, had a complex calendar, and🍎 developed the concept of zero around 400 CE.[91]
The first recorded European references to North America are in Norse sagas where🍎 it is referred to as Vinland.[92] The earliest verifiable instance of pre-Columbian trans-oceanic contact by any European culture with the🍎 North America mainland has been dated to around 1000 CE.[93] The site, situated at the northernmost extent of the island🍎 named Newfoundland, has provided unmistakable evidence of Norse settlement.[94] Norse explorer Leif Erikson (c. 970–1020 CE) is thought to have🍎 visited the area.[l] Erikson was the first European to make landfall on the continent (excluding Greenland).[96][97]
The Mayan culture was still🍎 present in southern Mexico and Guatemala when the Spanish conquistadors arrived, but political dominance in the area had shifted to🍎 the Aztec Empire, whose capital city Tenochtitlan was located further north in the Valley of Mexico. The Aztecs were conquered🍎 in 1521 by Hernán Cortés.[98]
A 1702 map of North America showing forts, towns, and (in solid colors) areas occupied by🍎 European colonial settlements
During the so-called Age of Discovery, Europeans explored overseas and staked claims to various parts of North America,🍎 much of which was already settled by indigenous peoples. Upon Europeans' arrival in the "New World", indigenous peoples had a🍎 variety of reactions, including curiosity, trading, cooperation, resignation, and resistance. The indigenous population declined substantially following European arrival, primarily due🍎 to the introduction of Eurasian diseases, such as smallpox, to which the indigenous peoples lacked immunity, and because of violent🍎 conflicts with Europeans.[99] Indigenous culture changed significantly and their affiliation with political and cultural groups also changed. Several linguistic groups🍎 died out, and others changed quite quickly.
On the North America's southeastern coast, Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León, who had🍎 accompanied Columbus's second voyage, visited and named in 1513 La Florida.[100] As the colonial period unfolded, Spain, England, and France🍎 appropriated and claimed extensive territories in North America eastern and southern coastlines. Spain established permanent settlements on the Caribbean islands🍎 of Hispaniola and Cuba in the 1490s, building cities, putting the resident indigenous populations to work, raising crops for Spanish🍎 settlers and panning gold to enrich the Spaniards. Much of the indigenous population died due to disease and overwork, spurring🍎 the Spaniards on to claim new lands and peoples. An expedition under the command of Spanish settler, Hernán Cortés, sailed🍎 westward in 1519 to what turned out to be the mainland in Mexico. With local indigenous allies, the Spanish conquered🍎 the Aztec empire in central Mexico in 1521. Spain then established permanent cities in Mexico, Central America, and Spanish South🍎 America in the sixteenth century. Once Spaniards conquered the high civilization of the Aztecs and Incas, the Caribbean was a🍎 backwater of the Spanish empire.
Other European powers began to intrude on areas claimed by Spain, including the Caribbean islands. France🍎 took the western half of Hispaniola and developed Saint-Domingue as a cane sugar producing colony worked by black slave labor.🍎 Britain took Barbados and Jamaica, and the Dutch and Danes took islands previously claimed by Spain. Britain did not begin🍎 settling on the North American mainland until a hundred years after the first Spanish settlements, since it sought first to🍎 control nearby Ireland.
English settlements
The first permanent English settlement was in Jamestown, Virginia in 1607, followed by additional colonial establishments on🍎 the east coast from present-day Georgia in the south to Massachusetts in the north, forming the Thirteen Colonies of British🍎 America. The English did not establish settlements north or east of the St. Lawrence Valley in present-day Canada until after🍎 the conclusion of the American Revolutionary War. Britain's early settlements in present-day Canada included St. John's, Newfoundland in 1630 and🍎 Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1749. The first permanent French settlement was in Quebec City, Quebec in 1608
Seven Years' War
With the🍎 British victory in the Seven Years' War, France in 1763 ceded to Britain its claims of North American territories east🍎 of the Mississippi River. Spain, in turn, gained rights to the territories west of Mississippi, which then served as a🍎 border between Spain and Britain's territorial claims. French colonists settled Illinois Country after several generations of experience on North America,🍎 migrating over the Mississippi River to regions where Spain was not present and where they were able to leverage their🍎 earlier Louisiana French settlements around the Gulf of Mexico. These early French settlers partnered with midwest indigenous tribes, and their🍎 mixed ancestry descendants later followed a westward expansion all the way to the Pacific Ocean on the present-day U.S. West🍎 Coast.
American Revolution
In 1776, after various attempts to reconcile differences with the British, the Thirteen Colonies in British America sent delegates🍎 to the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia, who unanimously adopted the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, written primarily🍎 by Thomas Jefferson, a member of the Committee of Five charged by the Second Continental Congress with authoring it. In🍎 the Declaration, the thirteen colonies declared their independence from the British monarchy, then governed by King George III, and detailed🍎 the factors that contributed to their decision. With the signing and issuance of the Declaration of Independence, the thirteen colonies🍎 formalized and escalated the American Revolutionary War, which had begun the year before at the Battles of Lexington and Concord🍎 on April 19, 1775. Gathered in Philadelphia following the war's outbreak, delegates from the thirteen colonies established the Continental Army🍎 from various patriot militias then engaged in resisting the British, and appointed George Washington as the Continental Army's military commander.
As🍎 the American Revolutionary War progressed, France and Spain, both then enemies of Britain, began to ultimately see the promise of🍎 a potential American victory in the war and began supporting Washington and the American Revolutionary cause. The British Army, in🍎 turn, was supported by Hessian military units from present-day Germany.
In 1783, after an eight-year attempt to defeat the American rebellion,🍎 King George III acknowledged Britain's defeat in the war, leading to the signing of the Treaty of Paris on September🍎 3, 1783, which solidified the sovereign establishment of the United States.
Westward expansion
By the late 18th century, Russia was established on🍎 the Pacific Northwest northern coastline, where it was engaged in maritime fur trade and was supported by various indigenous settlements🍎 in the region. As a result, the Spanish were showing more interest in controlling the trade on the Pacific coast🍎 and mapped most of its coastline. The first Spanish settlements were attempted in Alta California during that period. Numerous overland🍎 explorations associated with voyageurs, fur trade, and U.S. led expeditions, including the Lewis and Clark, Fremont and Wilkes expeditions, reached🍎 the Pacific.
In 1803, during the presidency of Thomas Jefferson, the third U.S. president, Napoleon Bonaparte sold France's remaining North American🍎 territorial claims, which included regions west of the Mississippi River, to the U.S., in the Louisiana Purchase. Spain and the🍎 U.S. settled their western boundary dispute in 1819 in the Adams–Onís Treaty. Mexico fought a lengthy war for independence from🍎 Spain, winning it for Mexico (which included Central America at the time) in 1821. The U.S. sought further westward expansion🍎 and fought the Mexican–American War, gaining a vast territory that first Spain and then Mexico claimed but which they did🍎 not effectively control. Much of the area was in fact dominated by indigenous peoples, which did not recognize the claims🍎 of Spain, France, or the U.S. Russia sold its North American claims, which included the present-day U.S. state of Alaska,🍎 to the U.S. in 1867.
Canada and Panama Canal
In 1867, colonial settlers north of the United States, unified as the dominion🍎 of Canada. The U.S. sought to dig a canal across the Isthmus of Panama in present-day Panama in Central America,🍎 then a part of present-day Colombia. The U.S. aided Panamanians in a war that resulted in its separation from Colombia.🍎 The U.S. subsequently carved out the Panama Canal Zone, and claimed sovereignty over it. After decades of work, the Panama🍎 Canal was completed, which connected the Atlantic and Pacific oceans in 1913 and greatly facilitated global shipping navigation.
Demographics
Non-native nations' control🍎 and claims over North America, c. 1750 to 2008
Canada and the United States are the wealthiest and most developed nations🍎 on the continent followed by Mexico, a newly industrialized country.[101] The countries of Central America and the Caribbean are at🍎 various levels of economic and human development. For example, small Caribbean island-nations, such as Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, and Antigua🍎 and Barbuda, have a higher GDP (PPP) per capita than Mexico due to their smaller populations. Panama and Costa Rica🍎 have a significantly higher Human Development Index and GDP than the rest of the Central American nations.[102] Additionally, despite Greenland's🍎 vast resources in oil and minerals, much of them remain untapped, and the island is economically dependent on fishing, tourism,🍎 and subsidies from Denmark. Nevertheless, the island is highly developed.[103]
Demographically, North America is ethnically diverse. Its three main groups are🍎 Whites, Mestizos and Blacks.[104] There is a significant minority of Indigenous Americans and Asians among other less numerous groups.[104]
Languages
Native languages🍎 of the United States, Canada, Greenland, and Northern Mexico
The dominant languages in North America are English, Spanish, and French. Danish🍎 is prevalent in Greenland alongside Greenlandic, and Dutch is spoken side by side local languages in the Dutch Caribbean. The🍎 term Anglo-America is used to refer to the anglophone countries of the Americas: namely Canada (where English and French are🍎 co-official) and the U.S., but also sometimes Belize and parts of the tropics, especially the Commonwealth Caribbean. Latin America refers🍎 to the other areas of the Americas (generally south of the U.S.) where the Romance languages, derived from Latin, of🍎 Spanish and Portuguese, (but French-speaking countries are not usually included) predominate: the other republics of Central America (but not always🍎 Belize), part of the Caribbean (not the Dutch-, English-, or French-speaking areas), Mexico, and most of South America (except Guyana,🍎 Suriname, French Guiana [France], and the Falkland Islands [UK]).
The French language has historically played a significant role in North America🍎 and now retains a distinctive presence in some regions. Canada is officially bilingual. French is the official language of the🍎 Province of Quebec, where 95% of the people speak it as either their first or second language, and it is🍎 co-official with English in the Province of New Brunswick. Other French-speaking locales include the Province of Ontario (the official language🍎 is English, but there are an estimated 600,000 Franco-Ontarians), the Province of Manitoba (co-official as de jure with English), the🍎 French West Indies and Saint-Pierre et Miquelon, as well as the U.S. state of Louisiana, where French is also an🍎 official language. Haiti is included with this group based on historical association but Haitians speak both Creole and French. Similarly,🍎 French and French Antillean Creole is spoken in Saint Lucia and the Commonwealth of Dominica alongside English.
A significant number of🍎 Indigenous languages are spoken in North America, with 372,000 people in the U.S. speaking an indigenous language at home,[105] about🍎 225,000 in Canada[106] and roughly 6 million in Mexico.[107] In the U.S. and Canada, there are approximately 150 surviving indigenous🍎 languages of the 300 spoken prior to European contact.[108]
Religions
The percentage of people who identify with a religion in North America,🍎 according to 2010–2012 data
Christianity is the largest religion in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. According to a 2012 Pew🍎 Research Center survey, 77% of the population considered themselves Christians.[109] Christianity also is the predominant religion in the 23 dependent🍎 territories in North America.[110] The U.S. has the largest Christian population in the world, with nearly 247 million Christians (70%),🍎 although other countries have higher percentages of Christians among their populations.[111] Mexico has the world's second largest number of Catholics,🍎 surpassed only by Brazil.[112]
According to the same study, the religiously unaffiliated (including agnostics and atheists) make up about 17% of🍎 the population of Canada and the U.S.[113] Those with no religious affiliation make up about 24% of Canada's total population.[114]
Canada,🍎 the U.S. and Mexico host communities of Jews (6 million or about 1.8%),[115] Buddhists (3.8 million or 1.1%)[116] and Muslims🍎 (3.4 million or 1.0%).[117] The largest number of Jews can be found in the U.S. (5.4 million),[118] Canada (375,000)[119] and🍎 Mexico (67,476).[120] The U.S. hosts the largest Muslim population in North America with 2.7 million or 0.9%,[121][122] while Canada hosts🍎 about one million Muslims or 3.2% of the population.[123] In Mexico there were 3,700 Muslims in 2010.[124] In 2012, U-T🍎 San Diego estimated U.S. practitioners of Buddhism at 1.2 million people, of whom 40% are living in Southern California.[125]
The predominant🍎 religion in Mexico and Central America is Christianity (96%).[126] Beginning with the Spanish colonization of Mexico in the 16th century,🍎 Roman Catholicism was the only religion permitted by Spanish crown and Catholic church. A vast campaign of religious conversion, the🍎 so-called "spiritual conquest", was launched to bring the indigenous peoples into the Christian fold. The Inquisition was established to assure🍎 orthodox belief and practice. The Catholic Church remained an important institution, so that even after political independence, Roman Catholicism remained🍎 the dominant religion. Since the 1960s, there has been an increase in other Christian groups, particularly Protestantism, as well as🍎 other religious organizations, and individuals identifying themselves as having no religion. Christianity is also the predominant religion in the Caribbean🍎 (85%).[126] Other religious groups in the region are Hinduism, Islam, Rastafari (in Jamaica), and Afro-American religions such as Santería and🍎 Vodou.
Populace
Life expectancy in North America in 2024
North America is the fourth most populous continent after Asia, Africa, and Europe.[127] Its🍎 most populous country is the U.S. with 329.7 million persons. The second largest country is Mexico with a population of🍎 112.3 million.[128] Canada is the third most populous country with 37.0 million.[129] The majority of Caribbean island-nations have national populations🍎 under a million, though Cuba, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Puerto Rico (a territory of the U.S.), Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago🍎 each have populations higher than a million.[130][131][132][133][134] Greenland has a small population of 55,984 for its massive size (2,166,000 km2🍎 or 836,300 mi2), and therefore, it has the world's lowest population density at 0.026 pop./km2 (0.067 pop./mi2).[135]
While the U.S., Canada,🍎 and Mexico maintain the largest populations, large city populations are not restricted to those nations. There are also large cities🍎 in the Caribbean. The largest cities in North America, by far, are Mexico City and New York City. These cities🍎 are the only cities on the continent to exceed eight million, and two of three in the Americas. Next in🍎 size are Los Angeles, Toronto,[136] Chicago, Havana, Santo Domingo, and Montreal. Cities in the Sun Belt regions of the U.S.,🍎 such as those in Southern California and Houston, Phoenix, Miami, Atlanta, and Las Vegas, are experiencing rapid growth. These causes🍎 included warm temperatures, retirement of Baby Boomers, large industry, and the influx of immigrants. Cities near the U.S. border, particularly🍎 in Mexico, are also experiencing large amounts of growth. Most notable is Tijuana, a city bordering San Diego that receives🍎 immigrants from all over Latin America and parts of Europe and Asia. Yet as cities grow in these warmer regions🍎 of North America, they are increasingly forced to deal with the major issue of water shortages.[137]
Eight of the top ten🍎 metropolitan areas are located in the U.S. These metropolitan areas all have a population of above 5.5 million and include🍎 the New York City metropolitan area, Los Angeles metropolitan area, Chicago metropolitan area, and the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex.[138] Whilst the🍎 majority of the largest metropolitan areas are within the U.S., Mexico is host to the largest metropolitan area by population🍎 in North America: Greater Mexico City.[139] Canada also breaks into the top ten largest metropolitan areas with the Toronto metropolitan🍎 area having six million people.[140] The proximity of cities to each other on the Canada–United States border and the Mexico–U.S.🍎 border has led to the rise of international metropolitan areas. These urban agglomerations are observed at their largest and most🍎 productive in Detroit–Windsor and San Diego–Tijuana and experience large commercial, economic, and cultural activity. The metropolitan areas are responsible for🍎 millions of dollars of trade dependent on international freight. In Detroit-Windsor the Border Transportation Partnership study in 2004 concluded US$13🍎 billion was dependent on the Detroit–Windsor international border crossing while in San Diego-Tijuana freight at the Otay Mesa Port of🍎 Entry was valued at US$20 billion.[141][142]
North America has also been witness to the growth of megapolitan areas. In the U.S.🍎 exists eleven megaregions that transcend international borders and comprise Canadian and Mexican metropolitan regions. These are the Arizona Sun Corridor,🍎 Cascadia, Florida, Front Range, Great Lakes Megalopolis, Gulf Coast, Northeast, Northern California, Piedmont Atlantic, Southern California, and the Texas Triangle.[143]🍎 Canada and Mexico are also the home of megaregions. These include the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor, Golden Horseshoe—both of which are🍎 considered part of the Great Lakes Megalopolis—and the Central Mexico megalopolis. Traditionally the largest megaregion has been considered the Boston-Washington,🍎 DC Corridor, or the Northeast, as the region is one massive contiguous area. Yet megaregion criterion have allowed the Great🍎 Lakes Megalopolis to maintain status as the most populated region, being home to 53,768,125 people in 2000.[144]
†2011 Census figures
Economy
The regions🍎 of the world respective wealth (in trillions USD) as of 2024
North America's GDP per capita was evaluated in October 2024🍎 by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to beR$41,830, making it the richest continent in the world,[148] followed by Oceania.[149]
Canada, Mexico,🍎 and the U.S. have significant and multifaceted economic systems. The U.S. has the largest economy of all three countries and🍎 in the world.[149] In 2024, the U.S. had an estimated per capita gross domestic product (PPP) ofR$57,466 according to the🍎 World Bank, and is the most technologically developed economy of the three.[150] The U.S.'s services sector comprises 77% of the🍎 country's GDP (estimated in 2010), industry comprises 22% and agriculture comprises 1.2%.[149] The U.S. economy is also the fastest growing🍎 economy in North America and the Americas as a whole,[151][148] with the highest GDP per capita in the Americas as🍎 well.[148]
Canada shows significant growth in the sectors of services, mining and manufacturing.[152] Canada's per capita GDP (PPP) was estimated atR$44,656🍎 and it had the 11th largest GDP (nominal) in 2014.[152] Canada's services sector comprises 78% of the country's GDP (estimated🍎 in 2010), industry comprises 20% and agriculture comprises 2%.[152] Mexico has a per capita GDP (PPP) ofR$16,111 and as of🍎 2014 is the 15th largest GDP (nominal) in the world.[153] Being a newly industrialized country,[101] Mexico maintains both modern and🍎 outdated industrial and agricultural facilities and operations.[154] Its main sources of income are oil, industrial exports, manufactured goods, electronics, heavy🍎 industry, automobiles, construction, food, banking and financial services.[155]
The North American economy is well defined and structured in three main economic🍎 areas.[156] These areas are those under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the Caribbean Community and Common Market (CARICOM),🍎 and the Central American Common Market (CACM).[156] Of these trade blocs, the U.S. takes part in two. In addition to🍎 the larger trade blocs there is the Canada-Costa Rica Free Trade Agreement among numerous other free-trade relations, often between the🍎 larger, more developed countries and Central American and Caribbean countries.
NAFTA formed one of the four largest trade blocs in the🍎 world.[157] Its implementation in 1994 was designed for economic homogenization with hopes of eliminating barriers of trade and foreign investment🍎 between Canada, the U.S. and Mexico.[158] While Canada and the U.S. already conducted the largest bilateral trade relationship—and to present🍎 day still do—in the world and Canada–U.S. trade relations already allowed trade without national taxes and tariffs,[159] NAFTA allowed Mexico🍎 to experience a similar duty-free trade. The free-trade agreement allowed for the elimination of tariffs that had previously been in🍎 place on U.S.–Mexico trade. Trade volume has steadily increased annually and in 2010, surface trade between the three NAFTA nations🍎 reached an all-time historical increase of 24.3% or US$791 billion.[160] The NAFTA trade bloc GDP (PPP) is the world's largest🍎 with US$17.617 trillion.[161] This is in part attributed to the fact that the economy of the U.S. is the world's🍎 largest national economy; the country had a nominal GDP of approximatelyR$14.7 trillion in 2010.[162] The countries of NAFTA are also🍎 some of each other's largest trade partners. The U.S. is the largest trade partner of Canada and Mexico,[163] while Canada🍎 and Mexico are each other's third largest trade partners.[164][165] In 2024, the NAFTA was replaced by the U.S.–Mexico–Canada Agreement.
The Caribbean🍎 trade bloc (CARICOM) came into agreement in 1973 when it was signed by 15 Caribbean nations. As of 2000, CARICOM🍎 trade volume was US$96 billion. CARICOM also allowed for the creation of a common passport for associated nations. In the🍎 past decade the trade bloc focused largely on free-trade agreements and under the CARICOM Office of Trade Negotiations free-trade agreements🍎 have been signed into effect.
Integration of Central American economies occurred under the signing of the Central American Common Market agreement🍎 in 1961; this was the first attempt to engage the nations of this area into stronger financial cooperation. The 2006🍎 implementation of the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) left the future of the CACM unclear.[166] The Central American Free🍎 Trade Agreement was signed by five Central American countries, the Dominican Republic, and the U.S. The focal point of CAFTA🍎 is to create a free trade area similar to that of NAFTA. In addition to the U.S., Canada also has🍎 relations in Central American trade blocs.
These nations also take part in inter-continental trade blocs. Mexico takes a part in the🍎 G3 Free Trade Agreement with Colombia and Venezuela and has a trade agreement with the EU. The U.S. has proposed🍎 and maintained trade agreements under the Transatlantic Free Trade Area between itself and the European Union; the U.S.–Middle East Free🍎 Trade Area between numerous Middle Eastern nations and itself; and the Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership between Southeast Asian nations, Australia,🍎 and New Zealand.
Transport
A 2006 map of the North American Class I railroad network
The Pan-American Highway route in the Americas is🍎 the portion of a network of roads nearly 48,000 km (30,000 mi) in length which travels through the mainland nations.🍎 No definitive length of the Pan-American Highway exists because the U.S. and Canadian governments have never officially defined any specific🍎 routes as being part of the Pan-American Highway, and Mexico officially has many branches connecting to the U.S. border. However,🍎 the total length of the portion from Mexico to the northern extremity of the highway is roughly 26,000 km (16,000🍎 mi).
The first transcontinental railroad in the U.S. was built in the 1860s, linking the railroad network of the eastern U.S.🍎 with California on the Pacific coast. Finished on 10 May 1869 at the famous golden spike event at Promontory Summit,🍎 Utah, it created a nationwide mechanized transportation network that revolutionized the population and economy of the American West, catalyzing the🍎 transition from the wagon trains of previous decades to a modern transportation system.[167] Although an accomplishment, it achieved the status🍎 of first transcontinental railroad by connecting myriad eastern U.S. railroads to the Pacific and was not the largest single railroad🍎 system in the world. The Canadian Grand Trunk Railway had, by 1867, already accumulated more than 2,055 km (1,277 mi)🍎 of track by connecting Ontario with the Canadian Atlantic provinces west as far as Port Huron, Michigan, through Sarnia, Ontario.
Communications
A🍎 shared telephone system known as the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) is an integrated telephone numbering plan of 24 countries🍎 and territories: the U.S. and its territories, Canada, Bermuda, and 17 Caribbean nations.
Culture
Baseball is known as the national pastime of🍎 the United States, and is also played in Canada and many Latin American countries.
The cultures of North America are diverse.🍎 The U.S. and English Canada have many cultural similarities, while French Canada has a distinct culture from Anglophone Canada, which🍎 is protected by law. Since the U.S. was formed from portions previously part of the Spanish Empire and then independent🍎 Mexico, and there has been considerable and continuing immigration of Spanish speakers from south of the U.S.–Mexico border. In the🍎 southwest of the U.S. there are many Hispanic cultural traditions and considerable bilingualism. Mexico and Central America are part of🍎 Latin America and are culturally distinct from anglophone and francophone North America. However, they share with the United States the🍎 establishment of post-independence governments that are federated representative republics with written constitutions dating from their founding as nations. Canada is🍎 a federated parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy.
Canada's constitution dates to 1867, with confederation, in the British North America Act,🍎 but not until 1982 did Canada have the power to amend its own constitution. Canada's Francophone heritage has been enshrined🍎 in law since the British parliament passed the Quebec Act of 1774. In contrast to largely Protestant Anglo settlers in🍎 North America, French-speaking Canadians were Catholic and with the Quebec Act were guaranteed freedom to practice their religion, restored the🍎 right of the Catholic Church to impose tithes for its support, and established French civil law in most circumstances.
The distinctiveness🍎 of French language and culture has been codified in Canadian law, so that both English and French are designated official🍎 languages. The U.S. has no official language, but its national language is English.
The Canadian government took action to protect Canadian🍎 culture by limiting non-Canadian content in broadcasting, creating the Canadian Radio and Telecommunications Commission to monitor Canadian content. In Quebec,🍎 the provincial government established the Quebec Office of the French Language, often called the "language police" by Anglophones, which mandates🍎 the use of French terminology and signage in French.[168] Since 1968 the unicameral legislature has been called the Quebec National🍎 Assembly. Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day, 24 June, is the national holiday of Quebec and celebrated by francophone Canadians throughout Canada. In Quebec,🍎 the school system was divided into Catholic and Protestant, so-called confessional schools. Anglophone education in Quebec has been increasingly undermined.[169]
Latino🍎 culture is strong in the southwest of the U.S., as well as Florida, which draws Latin Americans from many countries🍎 in the hemisphere. Northern Mexico, particularly in the cities of Monterrey, Tijuana, Ciudad Juárez, and Mexicali, is strongly influenced by🍎 the culture and way of life of the U.S. Monterrey, a modern city with a significant industrial group, has been🍎 regarded as the most Americanized city in Mexico.[170] Northern Mexico, the Western U.S. and Alberta, Canada share a cowboy culture.
The🍎 Anglophone Caribbean states have witnessed and participated in the decline of the British Empire and its influence on the region,🍎 and its replacement by the economic influence of Northern America in the Anglophone Caribbean. This is partly due to the🍎 relatively small populations of the English-speaking Caribbean countries, and also because many of them now have more people living abroad🍎 than those remaining at home.[citation needed]
Greenland has experienced many immigration waves from Northern Canada, e.g. the Thule people. Therefore, Greenland🍎 shares some cultural ties with the indigenous peoples of Canada. Greenland is also considered Nordic and has strong Danish ties🍎 due to centuries of colonization by Denmark.[171]
Popular culture – sports
The U.S. and Canada have major sports teams that compete against🍎 each other, including baseball, basketball, hockey, and soccer/football. Canada, Mexico and the U.S. will host the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The🍎 following table shows the most prominent sports leagues in North America, in order of average revenue.[172][173] Canada has a separate🍎 Canadian Football League from the U.S. teams.
The Native American game of lacrosse is considered a national sport in Canada. Curling🍎 is an important winter sport in Canada, and the Winter Olympics includes it in the roster. The English sport of🍎 cricket is popular in parts of anglophone Canada and very popular in parts of the former British empire, but in🍎 Canada is considered a minor sport. Boxing is also a major sport in some countries, such as Mexico, Panama and🍎 Puerto Rico, and it is considered one of the main individual sports in the U.S.
See also
References
Citations
Further reading
