This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Ortolan88 (talk | contribs) at 16:02, 26 February 2003 (put the right spanish names in, fix markup, state that it is not "speakers", but reference works that say there is only one continent). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Revision as of 16:02, 26 February 2003 by Ortolan88 (talk | contribs) (put the right spanish names in, fix markup, state that it is not "speakers", but reference works that say there is only one continent)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)The Americas (sometimes refered to as America) is the area including the two continents located between the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean, namely North America and South America. The term also usually includes the islands in and around the Caribbean Sea. The isthmus of Central America is usually considered geographically part of North America. The Americas are often also described collectively as the Western Hemisphere or the New World.
Most Spanish language references consider there to be no separation between North America and South America but only one continent America. However, many Spanish speakers consider America del norte and America del sur to be separate continents. The use of America to refer to the New World as a whole is also sometimes used in English, such as in the common phrase "Columbus discovered America".
See naming of America for a discussion of how the Americas were named.