Why do people consider South America a continent?

Question

Hey why do people consider South America a continent when its not true, its like considering the middle east a a continent, and we all know is part of Asia, if you got a better argument go ahead answer, but to me south america is not a continent, so there are 6 continent to me

America,Europe,Asia,Oceania and Antartica

Answer 1

Well, because it is.

There are seven recognized continents.  Together, these form two large landmasses (Afro-Eurasia and the Americas) and two small landmasses (Australia and Antarctica).  Technically we should have only four continents, but the sum of human culture has decided on seven of them.  According to the theory of plate tectonics, continents move around, and some merge and other split apart, to the number of continents is not constant over very long periods of time.

Comparatively, here are the sizes of continents:

(1) Asia—44,579,000 square kilometers

(2) Africa—30,065,000 square kilometers

(3) North America—24,474,000 square kilometers

(4) South America—17,819,000 square kilometers

(5) Antarctica—13,209,000 square kilometers

(6) Europe—9,938,000 square kilometers

(7) Australia—7,687,000 square kilometers

Clearly South America is larger in area than Europe and Antarctica (which you mention as being a continent) and "Oceania" (which I think you mean for Australia).

Islands aren't continents, by the way, so it would be improper to say Oceania is a continent.  It is a region, instead.

Answer 2

Well, for the same reason that North America is considered a continent.

I'm sure it's at least partly to do with a distinct set of shared cultures, languages and ethnicities.

Really, Asia and Europe are one big land mass, but are drastically different in all the aforementioned differences.

Answer 3

There are 6 continents. America is one continent as it is connected north and south into one landmass, unless you think that digging a ditch called the panama canal separated it into two continents. People try to change this but the tectonic plates are not moving very fast. Please add Africa to your list of continents

Answer 4

... It is a continent, that's why. You can't consider it to be or not because it is one.

Continents:

North America

South America

Europe

Asia

Africa

Oceana

Antartica

Answer 5

I think you are blurring the lines between continents and tectonic plates.

India sits on a separate place, but is still considered a part of Asia.

Should Australia and all the pacific islands be considered one continent?

Oceania is not a continent.  Its a bunch of separate islands.  It sits on one tectonic plate, though

Eurasia is in some ways one continent... in some ways two.  It is two separate (actually three separate) plates.

I would also like to point out that citing an example of Europe and Asia hardly constitutes a proof for the Americas.

Answer 6

Why? Because it is a continent. North America and South America are two separate continents, on separate continental plates.

By your argument, Africa isn't a continent as well.

By the way, you write that there are "6 continent to me" but only list five.

Answer 7

You don't get to define what is and is not a continent, so your argument is spurious.  That being said, not everyone everywhere in the world follows the same convention in defining continents.

Here in North America we call North America and South America two different continents.  They are joined only by a very small land mass.  The boundary is between Panama and Colombia.

Europe and Asia form a single land mass and the boundary between them is very long.  Probably the only reason most people consider them to be different continents is because of the very different cultures.

Also, not everyone will agree that Oceania is a continent.  Many will argue that Australia is a continent and that there are a bunch of islands in the Pacific Ocean that are not part of any continent; hence no continent called Oceania.

Finally, Africa is a continent.  You didn't mention it.