North America

Lore & Background

The name 'America' was applied by German cartographers Martin Waldseemüller and Matthias Ringmann after the Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci, who first suggested the Americas were a landmass unknown to Europeans. Waldseemüller's 1507 world map placed 'America' on present-day South America, while the northern part was called Parias. Later mapmakers extended the name to North America; Gerardus Mercator used 'America' for the entire Western Hemisphere in 1538 and called North America 'America or New India' in 1569. The Spanish Empire referred to its territories as 'Las Indias.'

Human presence in North America dates back at least 20,000 years, though earlier dates are possible. The Paleo-Indian period followed the Last Glacial Period and lasted until about 10,000 years ago, succeeded by the Archaic period and then the classic stage from approximately the 6th to 13th centuries. Norse exploration began in the late 10th century, with settlements in Greenland and at least one in Newfoundland. After 1492, Christopher Columbus's voyages initiated a transatlantic exchange, bringing European settlers, enslaved Africans, and later immigrants from Europe and Asia, shaping present-day cultural and ethnic patterns. North America is divided into subregions: Northern America (Canada, Greenland, the continental United States, Bermuda, Saint Pierre and Miquelon) and Middle America (Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean). The United Nations recognizes three subregions: Northern America, Central America (including Mexico), and the Caribbean. In human geography, 'North America' often refers only to Northern America. The continent is also split linguistically into Anglo-America and Latin America, with Francophone areas in Quebec and Saint Pierre and Miquelon.

Reader's Guide

North America's significance lies in its size, population, and historical role as a destination for migration and colonization. It is the third-largest continent by area and fourth-largest by population, hosting diverse indigenous cultures that existed for millennia before European contact. The arrival of Norse explorers in the late 10th century and later Christopher Columbus's voyages beginning in 1492 triggered profound demographic and cultural changes, including the transatlantic exchange of peoples, goods, and diseases. European colonization led to the dominance of English, Spanish, and French languages and Western cultural traditions, while significant indigenous populations have maintained pre-colonial languages and customs. The continent's modern economic importance is reflected in trade agreements such as NAFTA and CAFTA, and its political geography includes 23 independent states and territories. The naming of the continent after Amerigo Vespucci, and the subsequent cartographic evolution of the term 'America,' illustrates how European exploration shaped global understanding of the New World. North America's legacy includes both the achievements of its diverse societies and the ongoing impacts of colonization on indigenous peoples.

Did You Know?

• North America is the third-largest continent by size after Asia and Africa, and the fourth-largest by population after Asia, Africa, and Europe.
• The name 'America' was first applied to present-day South America on a 1507 world map by German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller.
• Norse exploration and colonization of North America began in the late 10th century, with settlements in Greenland and at least one in Newfoundland.
• The Spanish Empire called its territories in North and South America 'Las Indias,' overseen by the Council of the Indies.
• The oldest petroglyphs in North America date from 15,000 to 10,000 years before present.