A transcontinental country is a country belonging to more than one continent. The definitions used may vary according to which criteria are used (whether purely geographical or, on the other hand, political, economic or cultural criteria). An example is Russia, which has its historical core as well as most of its population (74%), economic activity and political institutions (such as its capital city) in Europe, yet geographically most of the territory (77%) is actually in Asia. By most definitions, Russia straddles Eurasia.
Definitions of the continents
Continents are called so because they are continuous bodies of land. Thus, an island is not strictly part of any continent, but many islands can be associated with one by geographical proximity (or also by historical convention, political ties or similar "human" criteria). For example, Sumatra, Singapore and Hainan are not literally "in" Asia; nevertheless they are closer to Asia than to any other continent, and also are most closely associated with Asia, so this article will consider them Asiatic islands, and Greece and Indonesia transcontinental countries (likewise for other continents and their adjacent islands). Alternate associations would be defensible in some cases.
Using this definition, the following countries could all be considered transcontinental by virtue of the fact that an integral part of their national territory consists of islands that are situated within the continental shelf of another continent or are otherwise geographically closer to a continent on the mainland of which they have no territory (mainland continent shown below in bold text):
Four countries also include both continental territory and islands in mid-Pacific Ocean; see Oceania, below. At least four countries also include both continental territory and Antarctic island territories recognized by international law; see Antarctica, below.
Australia (Australia, Oceania, Asia, and Antarctica)
Colombia (South America and North America)
Denmark (Europe and North America (if one includes Greenland))
France (Europe, North America, South America, Oceania, Africa, and Antarctica)
Greece (Europe and Asia)
Italy (Europe and Africa)
Netherlands (Europe, South America, and North America (if one includes the overseas Netherlands Antilles and Aruba))
Norway (Europe and Antarctica (if one includes Bouvet Island))
Portugal (Europe and Africa)
South Africa (Africa and Antarctica (if the Prince Edward Islands are counted as Antarctic islands))
Spain (Europe and Africa)
United Kingdom (if one includes the British overseas territories, the UK still covers ALL continents: the British Isles minus the Republic of Ireland and plus the Channel Islands and Gibraltar in Europe; Ascension Island, Saint Helena, Tristan da Cunha, and Gough Island in Africa; Bermuda, the Turks and Caicos Islands, the Cayman Islands, the British Virgin Islands, Anguilla, and Montserrat in North America; the Falkland Islands in South America; the Pitcairn Islands in Oceania; Akrotiri and Dhekelia and British Indian Ocean Territory in Asia; and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands in Antarctica.)
United States (North America, Oceania, and Asia)
Venezuela (South America and North America (if one includes Isla Aves))
Yemen (Asia and Africa) Islands
The nature and boundaries of Europe are as much sociopolitical questions as geographical. Many geologists and geographers agree that Europe and Asia share many common geographical features and they are sometimes referred to as the single continent Eurasia. Europe is nevertheless a distinct geographical entity, mostly a super-peninsula of the mainland of Asia.
The eastern boundary of Europe has been variously defined since antiquity. Herodotus regarded Europe as extending all the way to the Eastern Ocean, and being as long as (and much larger than) Africa and Asia together. The modern world is in consensus that Europe ends at the Aegean Sea, the Black Sea and the Ural Mountains, but the boundaries between these latter two features are uncertain; that leading from the Urals to the Black Sea, for example, has been drawn by different authorities as at the Don, the Kuma-Manych Depression, the Caucasus, the Russian frontier or the Rioni River.
Western sources (e.g. the National Geographic Society) usually state that the Europe-Asia boundary follows the watershed of the Ural Mountains from near Kara, Russia on the Kara Sea to the source of the Ural River, then follows that river to the Caspian Sea. The border then follows the watershed of the Caucasus Mountains from the Caspian Sea to the Black Sea.
By this definition, the Ural Mountains are on the border of Europe and Asia, likewise for the Greater Caucasus (although Mount Elbrus, which would be the highest point in Europe, is north of the watershed divide, and as such would be entirely in Europe by this definition). The Lesser Caucasus is located entirely in Asia. Russia and Kazakhstan have both European (western) and Asian (eastern) parts (and Russia even had a North American part, before Alaska was sold to the United States in 1867). The Turkish city Istanbul lies in both Europe and Asia, effectively making it a transcontinental city. Georgia and Azerbaijan both have most of their territory in Asia, although each has small parts of its northern territory in Europe.
Due to Kazakhstan's Central Asian culture and political orientation, it is very rarely regarded as a European country, despite its sizable territory in Europe. Many would argue, as has been the case with the like of Professor Torosyan, Dr. Lewis and M. Shearmen of the Charlton Institute, that Kazakhstan is in fact not a trancontinental country, but rather lies geographically as well as culturally within Asia. Three nations of the South Caucasus, however – Georgia, Azerbaijan and Armenia – have a stronger sociopolitical claim to be European. Of these three, only Georgia and Azerbaijan are generally regarded as having portions of territory in Europe, but Armenia may be regarded as European for cultural and historical reasons. All three, however, are typically excluded from lists of European states.
According to the standard Russian/Soviet definition, the boundary between Europe and Asia runs along the Mugodzhar Hills, then down the Emba River to the Caspian Sea. From the Caspian Sea it runs to the Black Sea along the Kuma-Manych Depression, marked by the rivers of the same name. This definition was in use by Russian geographers since mid-18th century; it was officially recommended for use in textbooks by the Geographical Society of USSR in 1958. It places all of the Caucasus, including countries of Georgia and Azerbaijan and North Caucasian republics of Chechnya and Dagestan, entirely in Asia.
Russia's Vaygach Island and Novaya Zemlya extend northward from the northern end of the Ural Mountains and are a continuation of the chain into the Arctic Ocean. They separate the European Barents Sea and the Asian Kara Sea, and may be considered part of Europe or Asia. The maps on this page show them with Europe, as they are used in the calculations. The Russian Arctic archipelago of Franz Josef Land farther north is also associated with Europe. All of these Arctic islands are part of the European Arkhangelsk Oblast.
Europe and Asia
Meso-Caucasus definition This definition defines the border between the Caspian and Black seas, as follows: The border goes between the Greater Caucasus and Lesser Caucasus, and is marked by Rioni and lower Kura rivers, although this border is ill-defined between the two rivers. This definition leaves a greater part of Georgia and Armenia in Europe.
Lesser Caucasus definition Though very rare, this definition defines the border between the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea as the watershed of the Lesser Caucasus. This definition places Armenia and Georgia almost entirely in Europe, and Turkey and Iran almost entirely in Asia; however, some isolated spots of these five countries can be placed on the other continent.
Political Russian division The division of Russia, considering the Russian Federal Subjects, is the following:
- On Europe's border, from north to south: Nenetsia Autonomous Okrug, Komi Republic, Perm Krai, Bashkortostan Republic and Orenburg Oblast;
On Asia's border, from north to south: Yamalia Autonomous Okrug, Khantia-Mansia Autonomous Okrug, Sverdlovsk Oblast and Chelyabinsk Oblast. Lesser accepted Europe and Asia divisions
Other nations have strong cultural ties with Europe, such as the northern African states of Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. However, the clear boundary of the Mediterranean Sea excludes these nations geographically. Some in Israel, Morocco and Tunisia have shown ambition to become a state of the European Union, but currently full membership is disallowed (Morocco applied to join, but was rejected on geographical grounds). Of course, many other countries outside Europe have cultural and historical ties to Europe as a consequence of colonization and migration.
Culturally European states
See also Geographic criteria for EU membership
Europe ends in the west at the Atlantic Ocean, although Iceland (in the Atlantic, between Europe and North America) is usually considered European, as is the Norwegian Svalbard archipelago in the Arctic Ocean. Greenland is geographically associated with North America but politically associated with Europe (as it is still part of Denmark, although EU law no longer applies there). Turkey, despite having only 3% of its land in Europe, has been a member of the Council of Europe since 1949 and an official candidate for membership of the European Union since 2005. Islands geographically associated with one continent sometimes have stronger political and cultural ties to another. For example, Cyprus, an island geographically a part of Asia, was admitted to the Council of Europe in 1961 and joined the EU in 2004. Cape Verde, an island group off the Atlantic coast of Africa, has also shown an interest in joining the EU. Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan, also geographically Asian states (although Azerbaijan and Georgia have a part of their land in Europe,) have all joined the Council of Europe.
Politically European states
The natural geographical boundaries of Africa are the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. The boundary between them has been drawn either up the Gulf of Suez or up the Gulf of Aqaba. On purely geological grounds, the boundary could be drawn along the fault-line into the Jordan River valley (which would make Israel, Lebanon and a small part of Syria part of Africa.)
The usual line today is at the Isthmus of Suez along the path of the Suez Canal. This makes the Sinai Peninsula geographically Asian, and Egypt a transcontinental country. Nevertheless Egypt is commonly referred to as an African state, because most of its population and territory are there. Geopolitically, Egypt is sometimes regarded as an Asian state, and it is usually considered part of the transcontinental geopolitical region of the Middle East.
In historical geography, several of the larger Mediterranean islands have often been more akin to Africa than to Europe or Asia. Ancient Egypt often ruled Cyprus, and sometimes Crete and Rhodes. The Roman Empire grouped Crete with Cyrenaica (in ancient Libya.) The Balearic Islands and half of Sicily were ruled from Carthage.
The Canary Islands and Madeira Islands are off the Atlantic coast of Morocco, and although they are geographically part of Africa, they are under the rule of Spain and Portugal, respectively, and geopolitically part of Europe. Under Moorish rule prior to Southwest European colonization, they were fully integrated into Africa.
Mayotte, situated in the Mozambique Channel between Africa and Madagascar (also geographically part of Africa) is under the rule of France, as are Réunion Island east of Madagascar and some scattered islands in the Indian Ocean also associated with Africa. The Seychelles, Mauritius, and Comoros are island nations also associated with Africa.
Africa
The boundaries between Europe and Africa are almost entirely clear-cut and undisputed, since the two continents occupy opposite sides of the Mediterranean Sea, of which the midway areas are mostly devoid of islands. Spain owns the exclaves of Ceuta and Melilla on the African mainland. Sicily forms an extension of Europe into the heart of the Mediterranean, with only Malta, Pantelleria, and the Pelagie Islands falling into question.
Malta is geographically associated with Africa but has geopolitically been considered part of Europe since its Christian reconquest. It is closer to the African mainland than the Italian mainland and has historically been associated with Africa much longer. The Maltese people speak a North African dialect of Arabic and are descended from the ancient Libyans, Egyptians, and Phoenicians, as well as the island's Islamic conquerors.
The Italian islands of Pantelleria and the Pelagie Islands are closer to Tunisia on the African continent than Sicily and thus part of Africa. The Portuguese Atlantic island possession of the Azores is slightly closer to Europe than Africa and is associated with Europe.
Africa and Europe
The boundaries between Africa and South America are clear-cut and undisputed, since the two continents occupy opposite sides of the Atlantic Ocean, of which the midway areas are devoid of islands. While the uninhabited Brazilian island possession of Saint Peter and Paul Rocks is associated with South America, the British island possessions of Ascension Island, Saint Helena, Tristan da Cunha, and Gough Island are associated with Africa.
Africa and South America
The border between North America and South America has been drawn variously, generally somewhere along the Isthmus of Panama.
One common demarcation follows the Darien Mountains watershed divide along the Colombia-Panama boundary where the isthmus meets the South American continent. Another reckons the continental divide at the Panama Canal, whereby Panama has territory on either side in both continents. Geopolitically (i.e., not strictly geophysical), Panama is usually included with the other North American countries in Central America. The border between North and South America has also been drawn (infrequently) between Costa Rica and Panama, or at one of several other lines across the Isthmus of Panama.
In other cultures, America is thought of as one continent or supercontinent encompassing the entire landmass between Alaska and Tierra del Fuego. In this way, North, Central and South America are thought of as regions of the greater landmass. America is often regarded as a single continent in Latin America, Spain, and Portugal, along with other countries. The Olympic Rings represent the Americas with a single ring.
This collection of lands and regions in the Western hemisphere is referred to as the Americas by the English-speaking world. From a sociopolitical and cultural perspective, the Americas are generally divided into Anglo-America (namely the U.S. and Canada, where English prevails) and Latin America (the rest of the Americas, where Romance languages generally predominate). Latin America – particularly Hispanic America – is generally considered a transcontinental region straddling two continents, much like the Middle East. Moreover, the Guyanas are sometimes grouped with the Caribbean region along with Belize and Bermuda (a British possession actually 1000 km east of the US mainland, also sometimes grouped with Anglo-America.) It is not uncommon for what is geopolitically considered North America to be limited to the US, Canada, and sometimes Bermuda.
The Galápagos Islands in the eastern Pacific Ocean are a possession of Ecuador and associated with South America. The uninhabited French possession of Clipperton Island 600 miles off the Mexican coast is associated with North America. France also continues to control French Guiana on the northern mainland of South America, as well as Saint-Pierre and Miquelon off the coast of Newfoundland and Martinique, Guadeloupe, Saint-Barthélemy, and Saint Martin in the North American Caribbean. The Netherlands and the United Kingdom are two other European nations that also continue to control islands in the Caribbean, and the Netherlands Antilles are considered split between North and South America.
Americas
The boundaries between Europe and North America are mostly clear-cut and undisputed, since the two continents occupy opposite sides of the North Atlantic Ocean, of which the midway areas are devoid of islands, except in the north, where the line comes down to Greenland and Iceland. Iceland and the Azores are protusions of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and are associated with and peopled from Europe. Greenland not only is usually considered geographically North American, most of the Greenlander ancestry is from the Inuit people indigenous to northern North America. The Norwegian Arctic islands of Jan Mayen and Svalbard archipelago are associated with Europe. Although Greenland is the closest land to them, they are much closer to Europe than to the North American mainland.
Europe and North America
The Bering Strait and Bering Sea separate the landmasses of Asia and North America, as well as forming the international boundaries between Russia and the United States, respectively. This national and continental boundary separates the Diomede Islands in the Bering Strait, with Big Diomede in Russia and Little Diomede in the US. The Aleutian Islands are an island chain extending westward from the Alaska Peninsula toward Russia's Komandorski Islands and Kamchatka Peninsula, as well as an integral part of the transcontinental American state of Alaska. Most of them are associated with North America, except for the westernmost Near Islands, which are beyond the North Aleutians Basin and on Asia's continental shelf, and allow the US to be considered a transcontinental country without Hawaii and other Oceanian island possessions. St. Lawrence Island in the northern Bering Sea belongs to Alaska and may be associated with either continent, as may the Rat Islands in the Aleutian chain.
Asia and North America
Indonesia is a multi-island, transcontinental state belonging both to Asia and to Oceania. The geological and zoological border follows the Wallace line. Alternatively it may be divided according to the Melanesia definition – accounting for human language, genetics, history and crafts – placing more territory in Asia (shown by the line labelled M on the map.)
Indonesia is today more commonly referred to as one of the Southeast Asian countries, and thus simply Asian. East Timor, an independent state that was formerly a territory of Indonesia, is sometimes considered part of Oceania, but is classified by the United Nations as part of the "South-Eastern Asia" block. It is expected to join the Association of Southeast Asian Nations [1] having been involved as a ASEAN Regional Forum member since independence, and participated in the Southeast Asian Games since 2003.
The Wallace line separates Bali, Borneo, and Mindanao on its Asian side from Lombok, Sulawesi, and the Talaud Islands on the Oceanian side, respectively. This boundary leaves all of The Philippines in Asia.
Asia and Oceania
To English-speaking people, Oceania is not considered to be a continent; however, Australia by itself is usually considered one. By such a definition, neither the annexation of Hawaii by the United States in 1898 nor its admission as the 50th American state in 1959 in and of itself made the U.S. a transcontinental nation, although it was transcontinental by virtue of its possession of the Asian islands of the Philippines and western Aleutian Islands.
If Oceania were considered a continent, rather than the part of the Earth furthest from any of them, the following countries might be considered transcontinental, as occupying land in both Oceanian islands and a continent:
Chile, with Easter Island and Sala y Gómez Island. The Province of Isla de Pascua consists of these Oceanian islands and, along with the outlying South American Juan Fernández Islands and Desventuradas Islands, is part of the transcontinental Valparaíso Region, which has 1% of its area in Oceania.
France, with French Polynesia, New Caledonia, and Wallis and Futuna.
Indonesia, with 21 provinces entirely in Asia and 12 provinces entirely in Oceania.
Japan, with Minami Torishima, which is administratively part of the transcontinental city of Tokyo, along with other outlying Japanese islands to the south and southeast of the city. The transcontinental Ogasawara Village consists of these islands. [2]
United Kingdom, with the Pitcairn Islands.
United States, with the Hawaiian Islands (containing 0.30% of the area and 0.43% of the population of the 50 states), Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, Midway Atoll, Wake Island, Johnston Atoll, Palmyra Atoll, Jarvis Island, and several unorganized territorial islands. Oceania
The Commonwealth of Australia consists not only of its namesake continent and the island state of Tasmania, but also external island possessions in the sub-Antarctic (see Antarctica below) and to the east and northwest of the continent. Of the tropical island territories, Norfolk Island, the Coral Sea Islands, and Lord Howe Island in the Pacific Ocean and the Ashmore and Cartier Islands in the Indian Ocean are in Oceania, while Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands (to the west of Sumatra) are associated with Asia. The majority of the ancestry of Australia's Asian island residents is Asian and the majority of them are Muslim or Buddhist. Macquarie Island is part of the transcontinental state of Tasmania and the transcontinental Local Government Area of Huon Valley, while Lord Howe Island is part of New South Wales and the other external islands are federal territories.
Australia
Antarctica and its outlying islands have no permanent population. All land south of 60°S latitude is terra nullius and the Antarctic Treaty System holds all claims to such land in abeyance. Although South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands are closer to Antarctica, the inhabited Falkland Islands are closer to South America and the continental boundary separates them from the South Georgia group.
The following are sub-Antarctic island territories north of 60° and associated with Antarctica:
If the Prince Edward Islands are considered associated with Antarctica, Cape Town is a transcontinental city and Western Cape is a transcontinental province, since they include the islands.
Australia: Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Macquarie Island
France: Crozet Islands, Île Amsterdam, Île Saint-Paul, Kerguelen Islands
New Zealand: Antipodes Islands, Auckland Islands, Campbell Islands (all disputed whether associated with Oceania or Antarctica)
Norway: Bouvet Island
South Africa: Prince Edward Islands (disputed whether associated with Africa or Antarctica)
United Kingdom: South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Antarctica
A transcontinental state is a country whose contiguous continental territory or, (in the case of an island state, its different islands) lie in two (or more) different continents, or which has nearby outlying islands associated with a continent other than where it is based. Non-contiguous parts of countries are not considered (i.e. distant integral parts, extraterritorial possessions, dependencies and the like – examples include Bermuda, French Guiana, Greenland, and Hawaii,) although they may still be considered portions of transcontinental countries. This list includes the countries meeting that definition and presents tables showing the calculated area and population of each country on each continent.
Methodology of calculation
See "Europe and Asia" section of this article for more details about the geographical border between Europe and Asia.
See also Geographic criteria for EU membership.
Map colours: Geographical Europe is coloured green. The Asian territory of states that lie both in Europe and Asia are coloured light pink. Dark-pink are coloured states that lie entirely on the Asian continent, but are considered European because of cultural and historical reasons. Azerbaijan's exclave of Nakhchivan is also coloured dark-pink because it is not a continuous extension of Azerbaijan's territory. Statistics
Countries are sorted according to percentage of European area. Sources: Turkey: Turkish Statistical Institute (land area) [3] Other countries: World Gazetteer, Statistics of administrative units, towns and cities [4] For methodologies of calculation see below.
Countries are sorted according to percentage of European population. Sources: Turkey: Turkish Statistical Institute [5] Other countries: World Gazetteer, Statistics of administrative units, towns and cities [6] For methodologies of calculation see below.
Azerbaijan - situated in both Western Asia and Eastern Europe.
Georgia - situated in both Western Asia and Eastern Europe.
Greece - situated in both Southeastern Europe and Western Asia. See top map.
Kazakhstan - situated in both Central Asia and Eastern Europe.
Russia - situated in both Northern Asia and Eastern Europe.
South Ossetia (if its de facto independence from Georgia since the cease-fire of July 14, 1992 is recognized) - situated in both Western Asia and Eastern Europe.
Turkey - situated in both Western Asia and Southeastern Europe. Countries in both Asia and Europe
Mainland Greece and most of its islands are associated with Europe, but the Dodecanese Prefecture of the transcontinental South Aegean Periphery and most of the transcontinental North Aegean Periphery are associated with Asia. The intercontinental boundary mostly follows prefecture and periphery boundaries, but the numbers (particularly the population) in each continent of the North Aegean Periphery's transcontinental Lesbos Prefecture can only be approximated. The Lesbos Prefecture consists of the Asian Lesbos Island and the European Lemnos and Agios Efstratios islands. North Aegean's other two prefectures are entirely in Asia.
Accuracy of area calculation: high-to-medium
Accuracy of population calculation: medium Greece
Russian regions' borders follow the Ural Mountains and Ural River closely enough. The deviations of the borders are such that if one mainly European region has a small part of its territory in Asia, then another mainly Asian region has a small part of its territory in Europe. Such cases are rare and nearly compensate one another, so for such a rough calculation we can claim high accuracy. There is also a very small area (less than 300 km²) of Russian territory south of the main Caucasus watershed in Asia. This is also a small deviation and it does not seriously affect the calculation accuracy.
Accuracy of area calculation: high (but better is possible)
Accuracy of population calculation: high (but better is possible) Russia
The northeastern Azerbaijan district borders run mostly along the main Caucasus watershed. Five districts are entirely within Europe, and the transcontinental Khizi district is almost equally divided on the two sides of the watershed, so area calculation is easily made.
Accuracy of area calculation: high (but better is possible)
Accuracy of population calculation: high-to-medium Azerbaijan
Georgia regions' borders don't follow the main Caucasus watershed (a newer map is needed that is showing South Ossetia correctly and not divided between other regions - mostly the former Tsinkvalli region.) Georgia's three transcontinental regions are Shida Kartli, Mtskheta-Mtianeti, and Kakheti. The Java district of Shida Kartli is transcontinental and the region's other four districts are entirely within Asia. The Kazbegi and Dusheti districts of Mtskheta-Mtianeti are transcontinental and the region's other three districts are entirely within Asia. The Akhmeta district of Kakheti is transcontinental and the region's other seven districts are entirely within Asia. The area is calculated by the rectangle method. The population is calculated using the inhabitants/km² of Azerbaijan's European territory (because it is in the same region and is somewhat accurate.)
Accuracy of area calculation: low
Accuracy of population calculation: low Georgia
Kazakhstan's provincial borders don't follow the Ural River. Two of the provinces are transcontinental, Atyrau Province and West Kazakhstan Province. The capital of the former, Atyrau, is split by the mouth of the Ural and is a transcontinental city. Almost all of it is in Asia with a small portion in Europe. Two of Atyrau Province's districts are entirely in Europe, three of its districts are entirely in Asia, and its Inderskiy and Makhambetskiy districts are transcontinental. Five of West Kazakhstan's districts and the city of Oral are entirely in Europe, five of its districts are entirely in Asia, and its Akzhaikskiy district is transcontinental.
Accuracy of area calculation: low
Accuracy of population calculation: low Kazakhstan
Three of Turkey's provinces are entirely in Europe while Çanakkale and Istanbul are transcontinental provinces. Three of Çanakkale's districts are entirely in Europe and its other nine districts are entirely in Asia. 19 of Istanbul's districts are entirely in Europe and its other 12 districts are entirely in Asia. The accuracy of both land area and population percentages is the highest possible.
Turkey
See Geography of Africa and Asia pages for more details about the geographical border between Africa and Asia.
Statistics
Countries are sorted according to percentage of African area. Source: World Gazetteer, Statistics of administrative units, towns and cities [7] For methodologies of calculation see below.
Countries are sorted according to percentage of African population. Sources: World Gazetteer, Statistics of administrative units, towns and cities [8] Yemen: Also the MOPD-EU Socotra Development Masterplan [9] For methodologies of calculation see below.
The border between the two continents is considered to go along the Isthmus of Suez and the Suez Canal. This border lies in Egypt, so it is considered both North African and Southwest Asian. The border continues through the Gulf of Suez, Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. International arbitration of the Hanish islands crisis in 1998 split control of the Hanish Islands in the Red Sea between Yemen and Eritrea along this border. Countries in both Asia and Africa
Three of Egypt's governorates lie entirely in Asia and two are transcontinental. Ismailia Governorate is nearly equally divided by the Suez Canal and Suez Governorate, which is coterminous with the transcontinental city of Suez, has a small portion east of the Suez Canal.
Accuracy of area calculation: high (but better is possible)
Accuracy of population calculation: high-to-medium Egypt
Although mainland Yemen is in the southern Arabian Peninsula and thus part of Asia, and its Hanish Islands and Perim in the Red Sea are associated with Asia, Yemen controls the archipelago of Socotra, which lies east of the horn of Somalia and is much closer to Africa than Asia. Socotra and the mainland city of Aden constitute the transcontinental 'Adan Governorate, so the Socotra archipelago constitutes a portion of a political subdivision that can only be approximated.
Accuracy of area calculation: high (better is possible)
Accuracy of population calculation: medium Yemen
See Wallace Line and the Oceania and Asia pages for more details about the grouping of the islands between Oceania and Asia.
A traditional geographical definition to determine which island should be included with Oceania and which with Asia is to use the Wallace line, although it is less favoured contemporarily and within Asia itself, where the zoogeographical boundary is less known.
Although Australia controls the inhabited Asian Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, they are too far from the Australian continent to include in the charts below and consider the nation a transcontinental state.
Statistics
Countries are sorted according to percentage of Oceanian area. Source: World Gazetteer, Statistics of administrative units, towns and cities [11] For methodologies of calculation see below.
Countries are sorted according to percentage of Oceanian population. Source: World Gazetteer, Statistics of administrative units, towns and cities [12] For methodologies of calculation see below.
According to this definition some of the eastern Indonesian islands should be considered Oceanian. So Indonesia is both in Southeast Asia and in Oceania. However, it is common practice on maps to consider all of Indonesia, including Western New Guinea, as 'Asia'. Indonesia is highly sensitive to ideas of separatism in its eastern borders, and would not want to be considered a country divided by two continents with distinct social characteristics. It is also common practice to consider all of Indonesia outside of New Guinea as being Asian.
According to this definition the whole of the state East Timor lies only in Oceania. Culturally it is also much closer to the Pacific people than to Asians (although much of the Malay Archipelago may show similar characteristics due to it being a transitional area between mainland Asia and the Pacific islands). East Timor is considered as a part of Asia primarily due to its past occupation by Indonesia, which is regarded mostly a Southeast Asian state. It is, however, an observer in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and is classified as Asian by the United Nations [10]. Countries in both Asia and Oceania
Geographically and culturally, East Timor is entirely within Oceania, so the accuracy of both area and population percentages is the highest possible.
East Timor
Sulawesi, the Maluku Islands, West Nusa Tenggara, East Nusa Tenggara, the Sangir Islands, the Talaud Islands, and Western New Guinea lie entirely in Oceania, while Indonesia's other islands and island groups lie entirely in Asia, and none of its provinces crosses the Wallace Line, so the accuracy of both the area and population percentages is the highest possible.
Indonesia
See North America and South America pages for more details about the geographical border between the two Americas.
North American Caribbean islands belonging to South American countries:
South American Caribbean islands:
Statistics
Extraterritorial part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Countries are sorted according to percentage of South American population. Source: World Gazetteer, Statistics of administrative units, towns and cities [15] For methodologies of calculation see below.
Most geographic authorities delineate the land border dividing the Americas somewhere along the Isthmus of Panama. One common demarcation follows the Darien watershed along the Colombia-Panama boundary. Another common dividing line (and used herein) is the Panama Canal transecting the isthmus; thus, Panama is reckoned to have territory in both continents. Panama City, Panama's capital, sits on the Pacific (southern) coast near the Panama Canal in the eastern (South American) portion of the country. Panama lies almost entirely on the Caribbean Plate, with a small portion on the South American Plate. Geopolitically, all of Panama is often considered a part of North America alone and among the countries of North America.
The sea islands division is more complicated. All Caribbean islands are often labeled as North American. The Dutch dependency Aruba, some parts of the Netherlands Antilles (Bonaire and Curaçao islands), and the state of Trinidad and Tobago lie on the continental shelf of South America, and are considered South American. Venezuela's Isla Aves and the Colombian islands of San Andrés and Providencia are geographically North American. Venezuela is not included in the charts below since Isla Aves only covers a small fraction of a km² and is uninhabited. Isla Aves is one of the Federal dependencies of Venezuela under the administration of the transcontinental city of Caracas. Countries in both North America and South America
Geographically entirely in South America, so the accuracy of both area and population percentages is the highest possible.
Aruba
Geographically entirely in South America, so the accuracy of both area and population percentages is the highest possible.
Trinidad and Tobago
Mainland Colombia is in northwestern South America, but the nation also controls the San Andrés and Providencia archipelago, 400 miles WNW of Columbia's Caribbean coast, near the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua. This archipelago is coterminous with the department of the same name, but the population can only be approximated.
Accuracy of area calculation: high-to-medium
Accuracy of population calculation: medium Colombia
Bonaire and Curaçao lie entirely in South America, while Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten lie entirely in North America, so the accuracy of both area and population percentages is the highest possible.
Netherlands Antilles
Three of the provinces lie entirely in South America. Panamá Province and Colón Province are both transcontinental, with Colón nearly equally divided between both Americas and Panamá unequally divided, with nearly a 1:4 ratio in South America's favor. The Pearl Islands and Taboga Island in the Gulf of Panama are part of Panamá Province and are associated with South America and North America, respectively. A map of the locations of the districts of these two provinces and their area and population numbers are needed.
Accuracy of area calculation: medium
Accuracy of population calculation: low Panama
See "Africa and Europe" section of this article for more details about the geographical border between Africa and Europe.
Countries are sorted according to percentage of European area. Source: World Gazetteer, Statistics of administrative units, towns and cities [16] For methodologies of calculation see below. Countries are sorted according to percentage of European population. Source: World Gazetteer, Statistics of administrative units, towns and cities [17] For methodologies of calculation see below.
Countries in both Africa and Europe
Although mainland Italy, Sardinia, Sicily, the Aegadian Islands, Ustica, and the Aeolian Islands are associated with Europe, the closest land to Pantelleria and the Pelagie Islands is Tunisia on the African mainland. They belong to the transcontinental Sicilian provinces of Trapani and Agrigento, respectively, and they are coterminous with the comuni of Pantelleria and Lampedusa e Linosa, respectively. They represent portions of political subdivisions that can only be approximated.
Accuracy of area calculation: high (better is possible)
Accuracy of population calculation: medium Italy
The Portuguese mainland is in Europe, while the Azores archipelago (also associated with Europe) and the archipelago of Madeira (geographically part of Africa) in the Atlantic Ocean constitute the Autonomous regions of Portugal.
Accuracy of area calculation: high
Accuracy of population calculation: high Portugal
Although its mainland is in Europe, Spain has holdings (the Canary Islands in the Atlantic and its Plazas de soberanía including Ceuta and Melilla on the African mainland) that are geographically part of Africa. They are considered Autonomous communities of Spain.
Accuracy of area calculation: high
Accuracy of population calculation: high Spain
Geographically entirely in Africa, so the accuracy of both area and population percentages is the highest possible.
List of transcontinental empires and countries in history
Colonialism
Imperialism
Thalassocracy
List of countries by continent
Examples
Elmira's formation
Lefthit