Thoughts on Myth of Continents
There is a mistake on most maps these days that is one of the most controversial topics regarding geography. Naming Europe as a distinct continent is that mistake. According to the American Heritage Dictionary a continent is a “large distinct landmass”. First and foremost, if Europe is going to be considered a continent, then we must use consistency when referring to geography. There are regions of our planet that are very similar to Europe but they are not referred to as continents. So then why is Europe considered a continent? Originally, it was used to purge Islam, Judaism, Communism as well as other ideas that the people in Europe did want to be associated with. The idea stuck and Europe was considered the land of the white man, Africa of the black man and Asia the yellow man. Europe was not originally divided because of geographical features but simply because of ideologies. However when we look back at the definition of a Continent, a “large distinct landmass”, which is something that Europe does not even consider itself. Europe is considered by most historians, journals and older maps as a subcontinent of the massive single continent Eurasia. Europe can be considered a peninsula on what is the most western part of Eurasia. If historians are going to stick to what a continent truly is than it is only logical to think of Europe and Asia as one continent. If you wanted divide Continents based on ideologies and cultures then you certainly make Europe a different content in its entirety. But then you must also make the Middle East a separate continent. So however one wants to define exactly what a continent is whether historians want to use ideologies or geography Europe cannot be named a continent. Consistency should be used in geography considering it is so important to the worldview of every society that resides on our planet. Europe does not deserve the stature that it currently holds. It is only logical...