How many continents are there?
Most English-speaking countries count seven continents: Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America and South America. Some count six.
Continents are large landmasses, but there is no single official rule for how to count them. The seven-continent model, taught in the United States, the United Kingdom, China and many other countries, treats Europe and Asia as separate even though they share one landmass.
In much of Latin America and parts of Europe, students learn six continents, with North and South America combined as one continent called America. Another six-continent model joins Europe and Asia into Eurasia. The Olympic rings represent five inhabited continents: Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe and Oceania.
Biggest and smallest
Asia is the largest continent by both area and population, covering about 30 percent of Earth's land. Australia is the smallest, which is why it is often called an island continent. Antarctica has no permanent residents, only scientists and support staff who live at research stations for part of the year.
Did You Know?
Geologists also talk about a mostly underwater continent called Zealandia, which includes New Zealand and New Caledonia. About 94 percent of it lies beneath the Pacific, so it is not included in the usual school lists.