Europe

Europe’s name is likely derived from the Greek mythological character Europa, a Phoenician princess kidnapped by Zeus. Other theories exist, but most agree the Greek origin is correct.

Europe is the earth’s second-smallest continent after Australia. Except for its eastern border with Russia, Europe is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, the Mediterranean Sea in the south, and the Black and Caspian Seas in the southeast.

In the early 2020s, over 742 million people lived in Europe, making it the third most populous continent after Asia and Africa respectively. Western civilization began in Europe, but evidence of human habitation dates to the emergence of Neanderthal man 150,000 years ago. Roughly 110,000 years later, Neanderthal man was displaced by Homo sapiens.

By most definitions, there are forty-four countries in Europe. The European part of Russia is the largest at over 1.1 million square miles, and Ukraine is the second-largest at 233,030 square miles. The smallest is Vatican City, occupying a mere 0.17 square mile of area. Europe’s only physical continental boundary is with Asia, while Africa is just across the Mediterranean Sea.

Compared with most other continents, the European standard of living is high. While people in places like Laos in Asia and Kenya in Africa barely subsist on a per capita gross national product (GDP) of $2,000, the countries of Europe average twenty times that amount.

The Alps mountain chain, multiple river systems, and pockets of extraordinary biosystems contain a host of unique plant and animal species. Europe has a higher population density than other continents, which poses a serious threat to natural habitats.

Geography and Climate

Europe is the western section of the Eurasian supercontinent, but defining its border with Asia has long been debated. Most scholars agree the divide is along the Ural River and Mountains; the Greater Caucasus; the western shores of the Caspian, Black, and Aegean Seas; and the Dardanelles. When discussing Europe, most scholars include that region of western Russia.

The continent is well drained by such major rivers as the Volga, Rhine, Seine, Dnieper, Po, Don, and Elbe. The continent’s largest lakes include Ladoga in Russia, Saimaa and Suur-Saimaa in Finland, Kremenchuk and Kakhovka in Ukraine, and Vattern in Sweden.

Multiple peninsulas characterize much of Europe’s geography. France, Italy, Greece, Spain, and Scandinavia are all peninsulas, while Europe itself is a peninsula of the Eurasian supercontinent. Geographers describe four physical regions of the continent, each with its own unique physical characteristics, flora, and fauna. These are the Western Uplands, the Central Uplands, the North European Plain, and the Alpine Mountains.

Warmed by wind patterns and ocean currents, most of Europe has a temperate climate, but there is still much variation. For example, the mountains, Eastern Europe, and Scandinavia experience severe winters, while the Mediterranean region basks in a climate much different than the rest of the continent.

Predominantly urban, Europe still maintains a vast biodiversity of both flora and fauna. However, climate change, pollution, the influx of invasive species, and the fragmentation of biosystems all threaten the future of its native species.

Economy

Europe’s economy is considered the second-largest in the world in terms of gross domestic product (GDP; purchasing power parity), falling behind only Asia. The wealthiest nations are on the western side of the continent, a consequence of the Cold War. Some of the disparity is stark. For example, Luxembourg had the highest GDP per capita, at $131,380 in 2024, while Ukraine's GDP per capita was the lowest at $5,660.

Forestry is a major economic activity in Europe, and the region is the world’s leading supplier of such wood-related products as cork. Although declining, fishing is still a major industry, while aquaculture is a growing component of Europe’s economies.

Mining, another important industry in Europe, produces large supplies of iron ore, uranium, sulfur, and potash, among other mineral resources. Although most of the continent is a marginal producer of oil, some of the world’s largest deposits are found in Russia. Russia is among the world’s leading exporters of natural gas.

Other major European industries include automobile manufacturing, biotechnologies, and chemicals. Europe’s food industry is massive; it imports the most and exports the second-most food products in the world. Wheat, rye, potatoes, and oats are among the leading agricultural commodities in Europe.

Formed in 1993, the European Union (EU) is a political and economic cooperative entity. Comprised of twenty-seven member nations, the EU is formed into a number of transnational bodies. It has its own parliament, central bank, and courts of justice. It also produces the commonly accepted currency of Europe, the euro, which is the second most popular currency in the world after the dollar. Non–EU member states orchestrated their own trade agreement, the Central European Free Trade Agreement (CEFTA) in 1992. Notably, the United Kingdom, a founding member of the EU, left the entity in 2020.

Demographics

More than 742 million people live in Europe, or one-ninth of the global population. Even though it has high numbers of migrants, Europe’s population has declined slightly in the early 2020s. Low birth rates, a heavy influx of migrant workers, an aging population, and changing family structures are some of the most salient demographic changes occurring in Europe. For example, older adults benefiting from Europe’s excellent health care who rely on tax-based entitlements to pay for it may face reductions in benefits as fewer children are born to fill the taxable work base. Economic uncertainty and emigration to other countries for better opportunities also contribute to the declining population.

Three language groups—Romance (Latin), Slavic, and Germanic—are spoken by the vast majority of Europeans, although there are others, such as Greek, Celtic, and Baltic. Christianity may have been born in the Middle East, but it was nurtured to maturity in Europe. That it is the most populous religion speaks to the range of European influence in the world.

People of Indo-European origin forms the largest ethnic population of Europe. Others include Turkic, Finno-Ugric, and Northern Caucasian. Each of these groups is further divided, based primarily on regions within Europe.

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