Geography & Travel
Planet Earth contains some extraordinarily diverse environments, some of which are easily habitable and some not so much. In different areas of Earth, one might find sweltering deserts, dense tropical rainforests, or bone-chilling tundras. Each biome and habitat comes with its own selection of flora and fauna, and it may include physical features such as canyons, volcanoes, rivers, or caves. Human beings have built homes in many different environments, settling the area and organizing it into units such as cities, states, regions, and countries, each with its own points of interest. Shifting trends in human migration have resulted in a human geography that is profoundly different from that of centuries ago.
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Featured content, March 13, 2025
7 (or 8) Summits: The World’s Highest Mountains by Continent
Climbing each continent’s highest mountain is a major mountaineering achievement. Read this list to learn more about the...
What Is Known (and Not Known) About the Bermuda Triangle
People have been trying to solve the “mystery” of the Bermuda Triangle for years. Here’s what we know (and don’t know) about...
Which Waters Do You Pass Through When You “Sail the Seven Seas”?
Here’s a hint: It depends on when you’re sailing them.
8 Hotly Disputed Borders of the World
Somaliland, the Korean peninsula, Western Sahara—all of these places are home to some of the most hotly disputed borders...
Asia
Asia, the world’s largest and most diverse continent. It occupies the eastern four-fifths of the giant Eurasian landmass....
geography
Geography, the study of the diverse environments, places, and spaces of Earth’s surface and their interactions. It seeks...
African Americans
African Americans, one of the largest of the many ethnic groups in the United States. African Americans are mainly of African...
South America
South America, fourth largest of the world’s continents. It is the southern portion of the landmass generally referred to...
Geography & Travel Quizzes
Name That U.S. National Park Quiz
Can you tell Yellowstone from Yosemite?
Wonders of the World Quiz
Covering the ancient, new, and natural—prove you are no one-hit wonder.
The Irish Quiz
Try your luck with these questions, spanning from Jonathan Swift to shillelaghs.
Guess the Countries of the World Quiz
Test your global positioning skills.
Where on Earth Is That? Vol. 2 Quiz
Try to get high marks identifying these landmarks.
Which Country Is Larger? Quiz
See how these countries measure up.
Which Is Taller? Quiz
Twenty questions of epic proportions.
Guess the License Plate Quiz
Test your street smarts by placing these plates.
Guess the Country by Its Neighbors Quiz
Figure out if your geography skills border on greatness
Guess the Rotated U.S. State Quiz
Practice your geographical skills with this twisted test.
Geography & Travel Videos
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Geography & Travel Subcategories
Cities & Towns
This general category includes a selection of more specific topics.
Articles
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Brussels
national capital, Belgium
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Ottawa
national capital, Canada
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city-region
urban development model
Countries of the World
Although there isn’t universal agreement on the question of what qualifies as a “country,” it is generally accepted that in order to be a country, a state must be a sovereign unit that has a permanent population, defined territorial boundaries, a government, and the ability to enter into agreements with other states. Even when these conditions are met, however, internationally recognized independence is not a given, and a territorial entity that declares itself to be an independent country is not always recognized as such by the rest of the world.
Articles
Historical Places
This general category includes a selection of more specific topics.
Articles
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history of Mesopotamia
historical region, Asia
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Wartburg
castle, Germany
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Empire of Japan
historic state
Highways & Trails
This general category includes a selection of more specific topics.
Articles
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Natchez Trace Parkway
highway, United States
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Oregon Trail
historical trail, United States
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Trans-Canada Highway
highway, Canada
Human Geography
Since 1945 human geography has contained five main divisions. The first four—economic, social, cultural, and political—reflect both the main areas of contemporary life and the social science disciplines with which geographers interact (i.e., economics, sociology, anthropology, and political science and international relations, respectively); the fifth is historical geography.
Articles
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Indigenous peoples of the Great Plains
North American peoples
- ancient Italic people
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Southwest Indian
people
Languages
Language, a system of conventional spoken, manual, or written symbols by means of which human beings, as members of a social group and participants in its culture, express themselves. The functions of language include communication, the expression of identity, play, imaginative expression, and emotional release.
Articles
Physical Geography of Land
Earth’s geographic history has been one marked by significant overall change, with ice ages, continental drift, and other major disruptions ultimately shaping Earth's land into the landscape of mountain ranges, deserts, islands, and volcanoes that we see today.
Articles
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Mount Aconcagua
mountain, Argentina
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Antarctica
continent
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South America
continent
Physical Geography of Water
Whether it's Lake Michigan, the Gulf of Panama, or the River Thames, bodies of water of all shapes and sizes can be found around the globe, and they play a critical role for human beings, who use such bodies of water as a source of drinking water, a means of transporting both goods and people themselves, or a place to engage in water sports, among a plethora of other possible uses. Additionally, many bodies of water provide striking scenes of natural beauty and house important marine ecosystems. Satiate your thirst for knowledge about Earth's oceans, lakes, seas, rivers, waterfalls, bays, and more.
Articles
Nature Reserves & National Parks
Nature reserves are areas set aside for the purpose of preserving and protecting plants and animals, particularly endangered species. National parks may effectively serve a similar purpose by shielding threatened species from hunters, but these parks can also be created for the purpose of public recreation, affording its visitors a chance to be immersed in a protected natural environment. Many national parks have been created in the last 100 years, including Yellowstone National Park, the oldest and probably the best-known national park in the United States.
Articles
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Great Smoky Mountains National Park
national park, North Carolina-Tennessee, United States
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Mesa Verde National Park
national park, Colorado, United States
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Yellowstone National Park
national park, United States
States & Other Subdivisions
Every nation has its own subdivisions to demarcate smaller political units within its territory. Counties, districts, oblasts, polis, nomos, unitary authorities, boroughs, and cities are all examples (among many others) of how land can be organized.
Articles
Tourist Attractions
This general category includes a selection of more specific topics.
Articles
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Windsor Castle
castle, England, United Kingdom
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Notre-Dame de Paris
cathedral, Paris, France
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Grand Canyon
canyon, Arizona, United States
Geographic Regions
This general category includes a selection of more specific topics.
Articles
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Central Asia
region, Asia
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Silicon Valley
region, California, United States
- Palestine
