North America

North America (pronunciation: /nɔːrθ əˈmɛrɪkə/) is a continent entirely within the Northern Hemisphere and almost all within the Western Hemisphere. It can also be described as the northern subcontinent of the Americas. It 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.

Etymology

The name North America maintains the Latin orientation of naming directions, where north is up and south is down. "America" comes from the Latin version of the name of the explorer Amerigo Vespucci.

Related Terms

Continent: One of the world's main continuous expanses of land (Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, South America).
Northern Hemisphere: The half of Earth that is north of the Equator.
Western Hemisphere: The half of Earth which lies west of the prime meridian and east of the antimeridian.
Arctic Ocean: The smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceans.
Atlantic Ocean: The second-largest of the world's oceans.
South America: A continent in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere.
Caribbean Sea: A sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere.
Pacific Ocean: The largest and deepest of Earth's oceanic divisions.
Amerigo Vespucci: An Italian explorer, financier, navigator, and cartographer who was born in the Republic of Florence.