EuropeIts major landforms, water forms, population, climate

and natural resources

European Map

Intro.• Europe is one of the world's

seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by

the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural

River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting the Black

and Aegean Seas. Europe is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic

Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and the Black Sea and connected

waterways to the southeast.

Landforms of Europe

• Alps:• Located in south-central Europe, they extend for almost 700

miles from the coastline of southern France into Switzerland, northern Italy and Austria, then southeast through Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina as the. They end in Albania on the rugged coastline of the Adriatic Sea.

• Apennines:• The source of almost all rivers in Italy including the Arno,

Tiber, and Volturno, the Apennines Mountains 830 miles in length, form the backbone of the country, and run the entire length of the Italian Peninsula, ending on the island of Sicily. 

• Atlantic Highlands:• Formed million of years ago during the Caledonian mountain-

building periods as western lands were (forced) or pushed against the Scandinavian Shield. Significant mountain ranges here include the Kjolen in Norway and Sweden, and the Pennines that stretch through the central United Kingdom.

• Balkan Mountains• These mountains extend from Yugoslavia across Bulgaria.

Additional ranges run through Albania, Greece and Macedonia. Its most famous mountain is Mt. Olympus, the highest and most awe-inspiring peak in all of Greece. In ancient times it was the mythical home of Zeus, and was declared the first national park in Greece in 1939. It stands at 9,568 ft. (2,918 m).

• Carpathian Mountains• This mountain system located in eastern Europe is the source

of the Dniester, Tisza and Vistula Rivers. They form the natural border between Slovakia and southern Poland, and then extend southward through Ukraine and into Romania. 

• Great Hungarian Plain Located in southeastern Europe, and surrounded by mountains, the land features several small forests and large patches of grassland. It averages only 100 meters above sea level and often suffers from dry conditions, thus relying on winter snow run-off from the Alps and Carpathian Mountains. 

• Kjolen Mountains This jagged mountain system runs along the border of eastern Norway and western Sweden. The highest point is Mt. Kebnekaise, standing at 6,965 ft. (2,123 m). 

• Massif Central This mountainous plateau of southeastern France is the source of the Allier, Creuse and Loire. It's about 32,189 sq. miles (85, 001 sq. km) in size, and the highest point is Puy de Sancy at 6,186 ft. (1,885 m). 

• Mesata The central plateau, or Mesata, covers nearly half of the entire country of Spain. This high plateau averages about 2,300 ft. (700 m) in the north, and 2,000 ft. (600 m) in the south. 

It's surrounded by a series of mountain ranges including the Cantabrian, Sierra De Gata and Sierra Guadarrama in the north and central, and the Sierra Morena and Sierra Nevada in the south. 

Waterforms of Europe

• Europe is the world's sixth largest continent. Together with its adjacent islands, it occupies an area of about 4,000,000 square miles (10,360,000 square kilometres), roughly 8% of the world's land area. Geographically, Europe can be seen as a peninsula of the single great continent called Eurasia (Europe and Asia combined). However, because Europe has such a distinctive history and culture, it is considered a separate continent.

• The boundaries of the European continent that are water forms are the Ural River in the east; the Caspian Sea in the southeast; and the Black Sea and the Bosporus and Dardenelle Straits in the south. The Mediterranean Sea and the Strait of Gibraltar separate Europe from the African continent, while the Atlantic Ocean borders it in the west and the Arctic Ocean borders it in the north. Numerous islands around the continental landmass are considered to be a part of Europe. More than 40 independent counties lie within the boundaries of the European continent.

• Europe's longest river is the Volga, which runs for almost 2,300 miles in central and western Russia before emptying into the Caspian Sea. Europe's second longest river, the Danube, runs through the heart of the continent. About 1,770 miles long. A third prominent river is the Rhine, which winds through west-central Europe for 820 miles before emptying into the North Sea. Other chief European rivers include the Elbe in central Europe; the Dnieper and Don in Russia; the Garonne, Loire, and Rhône in France; the Tagus in Spain; and the Oder and Vistula in Poland.

• The Caspian Sea, with an area of 143,550 square miles, is the largest inland body of water in the world. The largest lake within the boundaries of Europe proper is Russia's Lake Ladoga, which covers approximately 7,000 square miles. Other large European lakes include Geneva and Zurich in Switzerland; Constance on the border of Switzerland, Germany, and Austria; Balaton in Hungary; Como, Garda, and Maggiore in Italy; and Vättern and Vänern in Sweden.

Population of Europe

• Figures for the population of Europe vary according to which definition of European boundaries is used. The population within the standard physical geographical boundaries was 731 million in 2005 according to the United Nations. In 2010 the population is 711 million, using the definition which has been used for centuries, that Europe's boundaries are on the continental divides of the Caucasus and Ural mountains and the Bosporous, including the populated parts of countries of Russia, and a portion of Turkey, with tiny parts of Georgia and Azerbaijan. Population growth is comparatively slow, and median age comparatively high in relation to the world's other continents.

• Some current and past issues in European demography have included religious emigration, race relations, economic immigration, a declining birth rate and an ageing population. In some countries, such as Poland, access to abortion is currently limited and entirely illegal in the Mediterranean nation of Malta. In the past, such restrictions and also restrictions on artificial birth control were commonplace throughout Europe.

Name of regiona[›]andterritory, with flag

Area(km2)

Population(1 July 2010 est.)

Population density(per km2) Capital

Åland (withinFinland) 1,551 26,008 16.8 Mariehamn

Albania 28,748 2,994,667 125.2 Tirana

Andorra 468 82,403 146.2 Andorra la Vella

Armenia 29,743 3,262,000 108.4 Yerevan

Austria 83,858 8,414,638 97.4 Vienna

Azerbaijan 86,600 9,165,000 (nearly all in Asia) 105.8 Baku

Belarus 207,600 9,503,807 49.8 Minsk

Belgium 30,510 11,007,020 336.8 Brussels

Bosnia and Herzegovina 51,129 4,048,500 77.5 Sarajevo

Bulgaria 110,910 7,621,337 68.7 Sofia

Croatia 56,542 4,637,460 77.7 Zagreb

Cypruse[›] 9,251 863,457 85.0 Nicosia

Czech Republic 78,866 10,535,811 130.1 Prague

Denmark 43,094 5,568,854 124.6 Copenhagen

Estonia 45,226 1,315,681 31.3 Tallinn

Faroe Islands(Denmark) 1,399 46,011 32.9 Tórshavn

Finland 336,593 5,357,537 15.3 Helsinki

Franceh[›] 551,695 63,460,000 115.0 Paris

Georgiam[›] 69,700 4,461,473 (mostly in Asia) 64.0 Tbilisi

Germany 357,021 81,757,600 233.2 Berlin

Gibraltar (UK) 5.9 27,714 4,697.3 Gibraltar

Greece 131,940 11,645,343 80.7 Athens

Greenland(Denmark) 2,166,086 56,452 0.027 Nuuk

Guernseyd[›] 78 66,587 828.0 St. Peter Port

Hungary 93,030 9,979,000 108.3 Budapest

Iceland 103,000 304,261 2.7 Reykjavík

Ireland 70,280 4,434,925 60.3 Dublin

Isle of Mand[›] 572 80,873 129.1 Douglas

Italy 301,230 60,418,711 191.6 Rome

Jerseyd[›] 116 89,775 773.9 Saint Helier

Kosovop[›] 10,908 1,733,872 159.0 Pristina

Latvia 64,589 2,366,515 36.6 Riga

Liechtenstein 160 35,322 205.3 Vaduz

Lithuania 65,200 3,401,138 55.2 Vilnius

Luxembourg 2,586 472,569 173.5 Luxembourg

Republic of Macedonia 25,333 2,054,800 81.1 Skopje

Malta 316 408,009 1,257.9 Valletta

Moldovab[›] 33,843 3,834,547 131.0 Chişinău

Monaco 1.95 32,087 16,403.6 Monaco

Montenegro 13,812 672,180 44.6 Podgorica

Netherlands 41,526 16,696,700 393.0 Amsterdam

Norway 324,220 4,930,116 14.0 Oslo

Poland 312,685 38,192,000 123.5 Warsaw

Portugalf[›] 91,568 10,607,995 110.1 Lisbon

Romania 238,391 19,042,936 80.0 Bucharest

Russiac[›] 17,075,400 142,905,208 (110,000,000 in Europe[6] 8.3 Moscow

San Marino 61 31,730 454.6 San Marino

Serbiag[›] 88,361 7,345,000 94.8 Belgrade

Slovakia 48,845 5,422,366 111.0 Bratislava

Slovenia 20,273 2,012,917 95.3 Ljubljana

Spain 504,851 47,150,800 89.3 Madrid

Svalbard and JanMayen Islands (Norway) 62,049 2,868 0.046 Longyearbyen

Sweden 449,964 9,360,113 19.7 Stockholm

Switzerland 41,290 7,785,000 176.8 Bern

Turkey 744,820 73,722,988 (10,920,000 in Europe) 98.9 Ankara

Ukraine 603,628 45,939,820 76.0 Kiev

United Kingdom 244,820 62,041,708 244.2 London

Vatican City 0.44 900 2,045.5 Vatican City

Total 10,180,000o[›] 711,064,145o[›] 69.85

Climate of Europe

• 1. Hot Dry Summers, Warm Wet Winters• This type of climate is also call the Mediterranean

type of climate. This is because most of the countries which have this climate lie close to the Mediterranean Sea. Temperature in the summer is quite high; Mean temperature of the hottest month at Rome is 76 F (24C) at Athens 80 F ( 27C). The sky is cloudless and the days are beautifully sunny. In winter when most of the Europe is experiencing a harsh winter with bitter cold , these lands enjoy quite warm temperatures . Rome for instance has a temperature of 45 F ( 7 C ) in January , Athens 48 F ( 9 C ) and Palermo in Sicily Island of 51 F (11 C) . Compare these figures with those of Berlin 30 F ( -1.1 C ) and Moscow 14 F ( -10 C ) in the same months. No wonder that the areas belonging to this climatic zone are one of the most popular tourist resorts in the world.

• 2. Mild Winters , Cool Summers• This type of Climate is also called the British type

of Climate. It is found in North Western Europe that includes the British Isles, the greater part of France excluding Southern France, Belgium, the Nederland and South western Norway. This region has rain all the year round. The summers are cool; typical temperatures are around 60 F ( 16 C) and the winters are mild . The temperatures of the winter months are usually above 32 F ( 0 C) . Take London for example. It has a temperature of 59 F ( 15 C ) in midsummer and 36 F ( 2 C) in midwinter. Paris has 65 F ( 18 C ) and 37 F (3 C) respectively in summer and winter .

• 3. Cold Winters , Warm Summers• This type of climate is found in the heart of

Europe in countries like Germany, Poland, Austria, Switzerland etc. The winters are cold with at least one month below 32 F ( O C) and summers are quite warm. For instance at both Berlin and Vienna , the hottest month is above 66 F ( 19 C ) and coldest below 32 F ( O C). The days are warmer in summer and cooler in winter than the British Type because these areas are located at a greater distance from the Atlantic ocean than the cool winter type and its moderating influence does not reach them.

• 4. Very cold winters and Hot summers• The areas which fall under this category include

the countries of Eastern and Eas-Central Europe which includes Southern and Central Russia, Ukraine, Hungary, Romania , Bulgaria etc. These areas are located very far away from sea and have a typical continental climate of hot summers and very cold winters. Similarly in Summer Moscow and Kiev both have at least one month touching 68 F ( 20 C ) while Bucharest and Belgrade have two months exceeding 70 F ( 21 C). This region also has a summer rain maxima but the rain fall is les than that of Central Europe.

• 5. Very cold most of the year with a very short summer.

• The North of Russia, Norway except the south western part, Northern Sweden and Finland etc fall under this category. The winter is very severe and long while the summer is short and warm. These areas are covered with snow for most months of the year and during a very brief summer beautiful flowers grow in abundance. This area is the coldest of all the areas described above hence very thinly populated. The extreme winter is due to two reasons; its high latitudinal position and remoteness from sea.

Natural Resources of Europe

• The natural resources of northern Europe are largely in metals such as bauxite (to make aluminum), copper and iron ore. Some northern European countries such as Denmark have some reserves of petroleum and natural gas. Germany has large coal reserves, as well as nickel and lignite (or brown coal, similar to peat). Scandinavia is relatively rich in oil and natural gas, and is a major fishing center.

• Southern Europe--such as Italy--has substantial reserves of coal, mercury and zinc. Croatia has limited amounts of petroleum and some bauxite. Bosnia has reserves of bauxite, coal and iron ore. Greece has some iron ore, bauxite, some oil, lead and zinc. Southern Europe has a well-developed fishing industry.

• Spain and France share strong coal and zinc reserves, as well as copper and lead. France has an edge in bauxite and uranium. Great Britain has some offshore reserves of oil and natural gas, as well as substantial coal reserves and some gold. Iceland is one of the main fisheries of western Europe, as well as a leader in hydro-power and geothermal power production. Portugal boasts of some gold, as well as zinc, copper and uranium.

• Ukraine and Russia both depend heavily on their large natural gas and oil reserves. The Baltic states are more or less poor in natural resources, though Latvia has begun to take advantage of its hydro-power potential.

• Poland is blessed with substantial coal reserves, as well as natural gas, iron ore and copper reserves, as well as some limited supplies of silver (and has historically been a target of larger powers for this reason).

• Serbia has some oil and natural gas, as well as copper and zinc. She also has some limited supplies of gold and silver.

• Bulgaria produces bauxite and copper. Kosovo, however, is likely the most blessed of all eastern European states, since it is sitting on what some say are trillions of dollars worth of gold, silver, natural gas, bauxite nickel and zinc.

• Europe has substantial resources in metals. Russia and Ukraine are the main suppliers of oil, which has given them a strategic edge in international negotiating. Outside of Russia, oil is relatively scarce in Europe (except off the coast of Scotland and Norway).

• Timber, peat and potash are also important to the European economy, as are its well-developed fishing industry. Zinc and copper are the primary resources shared by almost all European countries. Iceland is a leader in alternative energies. Since the Baltic states are so resource poor, they depend on other powers such as Sweden for trade.

La FinA POWERPOINT PRESENTATION BY:

Thea Angelica Nava, Lorenz Karlo Alfuente, Anne Nicole Bunda, Lee Kherson Erebaren, Erika Kristine Demalata