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Certainly you have found yourself looking at the world map and its continents, countries and capitals. The cartographic representation of our planet is also called the terrestrial planisphere. In this article, you will see the origin of the world map, the year of its creation and other curiosities related to all the territories described by it.

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This information is essential for understanding how geographic spaces are organized, whether for school work or for setting up a travel itinerary. Check out more details now.

The origin of the world map

There is no certain date for the origin of the world map. However, it is known that cartography, which is the science that studies maps, follows the evolution of man since prehistory. For even before it was recognized as such, there were already small sketches of territories to guide men in the regions of fishing and hunting.

In what year was the world map created?

According to Jerry Brotton, author of the book ‘A history of the world in twelve maps’, by Zahar publisher, the first examples of maps “date back to the Upper Paleolithic period, 30 thousand years before Christ ”.

However, the material that comes closest to the world map was found in Babylon, still in the 7th and 6th centuries BC It was made of an unusual material: clay, since paper would only be invented many centuries later, in the first hundred years later of Christ.

It was the navigators who provided information to make this first world map in clay. The idea was represented by a territory surrounded by salt water from the oceans.

After that, the Greeks who were close to Sumeria, in Mesopotamia, ended up developing other techniques to represent the planet and became a reference in making maps.

The origin of the nomenclature mapa mundi comes from the Latin “mappa”, which means tablecloth or scarf, according to Brotton. The term “carte” comes in the French language which means “document”. In this way, the terms mapa mundi were influenced by several languages such as English, Spanish and Polish, as well as Russian and Italian.

The world map itself, as we know it today, has some origins described by the literature. The first would be in 1507, when the German Martin Waldseemüller designed the world with two sides: the West and the East.

It was also he who spoke the term America for the first time, referring to the territory “discovered” by Europeans in the late Middle Ages and early Modern Age. The second hypothesis attributes to the Italian spy Alberto Cantino who would have made a world map in 1502.

How many and what are the continents of the world map?

The modern world map currently has five continents. They are: America, Europe, Africa, Asia, Oceania and Antarctica. But it was not always so. There is a theory called Pangea, which states that all continents were once one, or at least were very close to each other.

The idea came with Abraham Ortelius in 1596. He claimed that America and Africa were already glued and later “cut out” and to prove his theory he showed how the shape of both without fitting together like a “puzzle”.

But only in 1912, the German meteorologist Alfred Lothar Wegener disseminated this idea, mainly with the comparison of fossils of the same species found in both the African and American continents.

As a result, Pangeia’s theory gained strength, as these species would be unable to cross the entire ocean to exist on both continents. This was the proof that science was looking for to affirm that one day these lands were one.

Years later, South African geologist Alfred Wegener suggested that this ancient world first split into two: Gondwana and Laurasia and that they had split into five others due to the movements of the tectonic plates which, by the way, to this day they drag the continents.

World Map: Countries and Capitals

American continent

The American continent is known as the New World. It remained so during European expeditions to newly discovered lands as early as the late Middle Ages. Most of it was colonized by Spaniards, English and Portuguese.

Check Countryaah now for the list of countries and their respective capitals, knowing that this continent is divided into South, North and Central America. Some regions form Latin America, although the latter is not a territory, but the gathering of Latin peoples from different regions of the continent.

Canada, capital Ottawa
United States, capital Washington
Mexico, capital Mexico City
Antigua and Barbuda, capital Saint John’s
Bahamas, capital Nassau
Barbados, capital Bridgetown
Belize, capital Belmopan
Costa Rica, capital San José
Cuba, capital Havana
Dominica, capital Roseau
El Salvador, capital San Salvador
Granada, capital Saint George’s
Guatemala, capital of Guatemala City
Haiti, capital Port-au-Prince
Honduras, capital Tegucigalpa
Jamaica, capital Kingston
Nicaragua, capital Managua
Panama, capital Panama City
Dominican Republic, capital Santo Domingo
Saint Lucia, capital Castries
Saint Kitts and Nevis, capital Basseterre
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, capital Kingstown
Trinidad and Tobago, capital Port of Spain
Argentina, capital Buenos Aires
Bolivia, capital La Paz
Brazil, capital Brasília
Chile, capital Santiago
Colombia, capital Bogotá
Ecuador, capital Quito
Guyana, capital Georgetown
Paraguay, capital Asunción
Peru, capital Lima
Suriname, capital of Paramaribo
Uruguay, capital Montevideo
Venezuela, capital Caracas

Alphabetical List of all countries in America, including North America and South America:

European continent

This is known as the Old Continent, although African is much older. Europe’s cultural capital, Europe was the home of several navigators, responsible for the colonization of many countries in the rest of the world.

Europe is also divided by regions: Western Europe, Northern Europe, Central-Eastern Europe and Southern Europe. See the countries and their respective capitals from wholevehicles.

Albania, capital Tirana
Germany, capital Berlin
Andorra, capital Andorra la Vella
Austria, capital Vienna
Belgium, capital Brussels
Belarus, capital Minsk
Bosnia and Herzegovina, capital Sarajevo
Bulgaria, capital Sofia
Cyprus, capital Nicosia
Cosovo, capital Pristina
Croatia, capital Zagreb
Denmark, capital Copenhagen
Slovakia, capital Bratislava
Slovenia, capital of Ljubljana
Spain, capital Madrid
Estonia, capital Tallinn
Finland, capital Helsinki
France, capital Paris
Greece, capital Athens
Hungary, capital Budapest
Ireland, capital Dublin
Iceland, capital of Reykjavik
Italy, capital Rome
Latvia, capital Riga
Liechtenstein, capital Vaduz
Lithuania, capital Vilnius
Luxembourg, capital of Luxembourg
Macedonia, capital Skopje
Malta, capital Valletta
Moldova, capital Quixinau
Monaco, capital Monaco
Montenegro, capital Podgoritsa
Norway, capital Oslo
Netherlands, capital Amsterdam
Poland, capital Warsaw
Portugal, capital Lisbon
United Kingdom, capital London
Czech Republic, capital Prague
Romania, capital Bucharest
Russia, capital Moscow
San Marino, capital San Marino
Serbia, capital Belgrade
Sweden, capital Stockholm
Switzerland, capital Bern
Ukraine, capital Quieve
Vatican, Vatican capital

Alphabetical List of all countries in Europe:

African continent

The African continent is believed to be the oldest of all. More than 300 thousand years ago, the first homo sapiens appeared and remained there until they started to migrate to other regions of the world. Discover your countries and capitals.

South Africa, capitals: Pretoria, Bloemfontein and Cape Town
Angola, capital of Luanda
Algeria, capital Algiers
Benin, capital Porto-Novo
Botswana, capital Gaborone
Burkina Faso, capital Ouagadougou
Burundi, capital Bujumbura
Cape Verde, capital Praia
Cameroon, capital Yaoundé
Chad, capital N’Djamena
Comoros, capital Moroni
Congo, capital Brazzaville
Ivory Coast, capital Abidjan
Djibouti, capital Djibouti
Egypt, capital Cairo
Eritrea, capital Asmara
Ethiopia, capital Addis Ababa
Gabon, capital Libreville
Gambia, capital Banjul
Ghana, capital Accra
Guinea, capital Conakry
Equatorial Guinea, capital Malabo
Guinea-Bissau, capital Bissau
Mauritius, capital Port Louis
Lesotho, capital Maseru
Liberia, capital Monrovia
Libya, capital Tripoli
Madagascar, capital of Antananarivo
Malawi, capital Lilongwe
Mali, capital Bamako
Morocco, capital Rabat
Mauritania, capital Nouakchott
Mozambique, capital Maputo
Namibia, capital Windhoek
Niger, capital Niamey
Nigeria, capital Abuja
Kenya, capital Nairobi
DR Congo, capital Kinshasa
Central African Republic, capital Bangui
Rwanda, capital Kigali
São Tomé and Príncipe, capital São Tomé
Senegal, capital Dakar
Sierra Leone, capital Freetown
Seychelles, capital Victoria
Somalia, capital Mogadishu
Swaziland, capital Mbabane and Lobamba
Sudan, capital Khartoum
South Sudan, capital Juba
Tanzania, capital Dodoma
Togo, capital Lomé
Tunisia, capital Tunis
Uganda, capital Kampala
Zambia, capital Lusaka
Zimbabwe, capital Harare

Alphabetical List of all countries in Africa:

Asian continent

Japan, China and India are also guardians of the oldest traditions in the world. Studies show that this continent of the world also has a remote origin. Their countries and capitals are:

Afghanistan, capital Kabul
Saudi Arabia, capital Riyadh
Azerbaijan, capital Baku
Bangladesh, capital Dhaka
Bahrain, capital Manama
Brunei, capital Bandar Seri Begawan
Bhutan, capital Thimbu
Cambodia, capital Phnom Penh
Qatar, capital Doha
Kazakhstan, capital Astana
China, capital Beijing
North Korea, capital Pyongyang
South Korea, capital Seoul
United Arab Emirates, capital Abu Dhabi
Philippines, capital Manila
Yemen, capital Sana’a
India, capital New Delhi
Indonesia, capital Jakarta
Iran, capital Tehran
Iraq, capital Baghdad
Israel, capital Jerusalem
Japan, capital Tokyo
Jordan, capital Amman
Kuwait, capital of Kuwait City
Laos, capital Vientiane
Lebanon, capital Beirut
Malaysia, capital Kuala Lumpur
Maldives, capital Male
Myanmar, capital Nay Puy Taw
Mongolia, capital Ulan Bator
Nepal, capital Kathmandu
Oman, capital Muscat
Pakistan, capital Islamabad
Kyrgyzstan, capital Bishkek
Singapore, capital city of Singapore
Syria, capital Damascus
Sri Lanka, capital Colombo
Tajikistan, capital Duchambe
Thailand, capital Bangkok
Taiwan, capital Taipei
Timor-Leste, capital Dili
Turkmenistan, capital Achkhabad
Turkey, capital Ankara
Uzbekistan, capital Tashkent
Vietnam, capital Hanoi

Alphabetical List of all countries in Asia:

Continent of Oceania

Oceania is known as “Brand New World“. It is one of the most beautiful regions on the planet, with small countries and hundreds of islands. Countries and capitals are:

Australia, capital Canberra
Fiji Islands, capital Suva
Marshall Islands, capital Majuro
Solomon Islands, capital Honiara
Kiribati, capital Taraua
Micronesia, capital of Paliquir
Nauru, capital Yaren
New Zealand, capital Wellington
Palau, capital Melequeoque
Papua New Guinea, capital Port Moresby
Samoa, capital Apia
Tonga, capital Nucualofa
Tuvalu, capital Funafuti
Vanuatu, capital Porto-Villa

Alphabetical List of all countries in Oceania:

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