Objectives…You should be able to

• Accurately locate all the countries, capitals, bodies of water and key landforms of Europe

• Analyze the size of Europe – both its mass and population

• Analyze the impact of climate on the culture and society of Europe.

Map Test

• The Western Europe map test will take place on October 8th.

• You MUST know the countries (but NOT the capitals)–You MUST know the bodies of water

The Continent of Europe

• 2nd smallest continent in area• 3rd largest continent in population– Over 700 million people live here

• Consists of 48 countries– Kosovo was the latest one to become a

nation• Feb. 2008

• Conventionally known as "Europa“– Europa was the daughter of Phoenix in

Greek mythology. – Some say it is possibly from "Ereb", a

Phoenician word for sunset.

Asia 44,579,000

Africa 30,065,000

North America 24,256,000

South America 17,819,000

Antarctica 13,209,000

Europe 9,938,000

Oceania (including Australia)   7,687,000

Location of Europe• Eurasia, the world’s largest landmass.– Eurasia is composed of two continents: Europe and

Asia– Russia and Turkey are located on both continents.

• One-fourth of Russia is in Europe.• One –twentieth of Turkey is Europe (Thrace vs. Anatolia)

• The Ural Mountains divide Europe and Asia.• Europe is one big peninsula attached to Asia– A peninsula is land that has water on three sides– Many peninsulas & bays have allowed Europe to

become a shipping industry powerhouse

Eurasia

The Ural Mountains

What are you able to infer

from this image of Europe?

Population of Europe

• Population density-It is the average number of people living in a square mile or kilometer.–Most European countries have a

high population density –Russia has a low population density

Population of Europe

• Which country in Western Europe do you think is the most densely populated? – The Netherlands with 1,254 people per square

mile. – Belgium, just below the Netherlands, is the

second most densely populated, with 887 people per square mile.

• How densely populated is the United States?– 84 people per square mileI need some volunteers!

POPULATION DENSITY

OF EUROPE 2012

Population Density of Russia (2002)

URA

L M

OU

NTA

INS

•Begins in the Gulf of Mexico•Responsible for the moderating climate of Western Europe•Keeps winters warmer than other places at the same latitude

Mountains

• Affect the rainfall in an area.• Areas west of mountains receive

heavy rainfall• Areas on the leeward side of a

mountain are in a rain shadow.–Rain shadow- area on the dry

sheltered side of a mountain, which receives little rainfall

Example of Climate

• United Kingdom is a great example.– Average

temperature of U.K. is 51˚F.• Mild climate from

North Atlantic Current

• The current allows England to have vineyards at the same latitude that Canada has polar bears.

Wait a minute! I’m close to the same latitude.

Languages of Europe

• Germanic Languages (200 million speakers)– German, English, Dutch, Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, Icelandic

• Romance Languages (200 million speakers)– Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, Romanian– Southern Europe

• Slavic Languages (80 million speakers)– Largest family of European languages (– Polish, Czech, Slovakian, Serbo-Croatian, Bulgarian, Slovenian,

Russian

• Roman Catholic countries use Latin alphabet; Eastern Orthodox countries use Cyrillic (Greek) alphabet

Language Map of Europe

Religions of Europe

The Regions of Europe

• Region – locations that share certain characteristics–Physical geography – landforms,

climate–Cultural characteristics – language,

religion, traditions and rituals

• Europe may be divided into 5 regions– The British Isles, Northern Europe, Southern

Europe, Western Europe, and Eastern Europe

Northern Europe

• Scandinavian: Norway, Sweden, and part of Finland

• Jutland: Denmark• Iceland: Nordic island

country

Scandinavian Peninsula

Iceland

Jutland

Jutland

The country of Denmark is on the peninsula of Jutland.

Fjords

• Steep, narrow, u-shaped valley that is carved out by a glacier; used for sea travel

• Found commonly along Norway’s coast.

• Fjords provide great harbors for fishing

Southern Europe

• Iberian Peninsula: Spain and Portugal• The Apennine Peninsula:

Italy• The Balkan Peninsula:

Greece–The former Yugoslavian Nations are located on the Balkan Peninsula, but culturally they align with Eastern Europe

Iberian

Apennine

Balkan

Western vs. Eastern Europe

• During the final stages of World War II the future of Europe was decided between the Allies in the 1945 Yalta Conference– British Prime Minister

Winston Churchill – U.S. President Franklin D.

Roosevelt– Premier of the Soviet

Union Joseph Stalin

Western vs. Eastern Europe

• Post-war Europe would be divided into two major spheres: – the West, influenced by the United

States, – the Eastern Bloc, influenced by the

Soviet Union.

• With the onset of the Cold War, Europe was divided by the Iron Curtain

Western Europe

• Consists of the following nine countries:– Austria– Belgium  – France– Germany– Liechtenstein– Luxembourg–  Monaco  – Netherlands  –  Switzerland

• High-income • Developed

countries,• Democratic political

systems, • Mixed economies

combining the free market with aspects of the welfare state

• Most are members of NATO and the EU.

MONACO

The BENELUX Countries

• Belgium• Netherlands• Luxembourg

Eastern Europe

• Includes the countries that broke from the USSR

• The common feature of these countries was their socio-economic system: – COMMUNISM

• Before 1989 Eastern Europe included: – USSR– German Democratic

Republic (East Germany)

– Poland – Czechoslovakia– Hungary – Romania– Bulgaria– Yugoslavia

Eastern Europe

Mediterranean Sea

North Sea

AtlanticOcean

Baltic Sea

Black Sea

Aegean Sea

Adriatic Sea

Bay of

Biscay

Strait of Gibraltar

DardanellesStrait

Arctic Ocean

English

Channel

Caspian

Sea

Norwegian Sea

Why are most of the capitals of Europe on major

rivers?

Capitals on the Rivers

Capitals on the Rivers

London on the Thames River

Paris on the bank of the Seine River

Prague on the Vltava Budapest on the Danube

Capitals on the Rivers

Capitals on the Rivers

Moscow on the Moscow River

Berlin on the Spree

Rome on the Tiber Vienna on the Danube

Answer: They are Europe’s

Lifeline!