An atlas is a collection of maps that are bound into a book form and also exist in multimedia formats. Atlases come in four types: general/world, historical, subject-specific, or road. Every world atlas would have (a) geographic features and (b) political boundaries along with a collection of maps of world regions, countries, and states as well as destination guidelines for tourists.
World atlas, Caribbean
Today the West Indies is better known as “Caribbean” and comprises island countries, dependencies and territories, and surrounding coastal areas.
The West Indies, which is a large group of islands, separate the Caribbean Sea from the Atlantic Ocean. It consist of the Antilles (named after the mythological Atlantic island of Antilia, or Antilla), divided into the larger Greater Antilles (Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola, and Puerto Rico) which bound the sea on the north and the Lesser Antilles on the south and east (including the Leeward Antilles), and the Bahamas. American Indians were the first inhabitants here, and in 1492, Christopher Columbus became the first European to venture into the area. After landing in the Bahamas, Columbus called these islands the Indies because he thought he had finally reached Asia (and the East Indies).
In the world atlas, Caribbean-Islands map shows the exact geographical positioning of more than 35 alluring islets. The Caribbean-Island map also indicates the geographical location of this captivating tourist destination. Some of the attractive vacation option for tourists on the Caribbean Island includes island tour and scuba diving.
World Atlas, map of Australia
In world atlas, map of Australia lies between latitudes 10° 41¢ South (Cape York, Queensland) and 43° 38¢ South (South East Cape, Tasmania) and between longitudes 113° 09¢ East (Steep Point, Western Australia) and 153° 38¢ East (Cape Byron, New South Wales). Australia is situated towards the southeast of Asia and is bound on the north by the Timor Sea, the Arafura Sea, and the Torres Strait; on the east by the Coral Sea and the Tasman Sea; on the south by the Bass Strait and the Indian Ocean; and on the west by the Indian Ocean.
The Commonwealth of Australia covers a total land area of 7,682,300 sq. km and have population around 19,500,000.
The neighbouring countries are Indonesia, East Timor, and Papua New Guinea to the north, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and New Caledonia to the north-east, and New Zealand to the south-east.
The first inhabitants of Australia were the Aborigines, who migrated there at least 40,000 years ago from Southeast Asia. Willem Janszoon, a Dutch navigator, was the first to sight the coast of Cape York Peninsula in 1606. In 1616, the territory became known as New Holland. In 1770, James Cook sailed along and mapped the east coast of Australia, which he named New South Wales and then Great Britain claimed possession of this vast island. The expedition's discoveries provided impetus for the establishment of a penal colony there.
Australia is the lowest, flattest and, apart from Antarctica, the driest of the continents. Australia consists of six states, two major mainland territories, and other minor territories. The states are as follows:
- New South Wales (NSW),
- Queensland (Qld.),
- South Australia (SA),
- Tasmania (Tas.),
- Victoria (Vic.),
- Western Australia (WA).
World atlas of East Asia
The world atlas of East Asia shows that this subregion comprises China, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Japan and Republic of Korea. Sometimes the nations of Mongolia and Vietnam are also included in East Asia. China is by far the largest country, with 932 million hectares, making up about 94% of the entire subregion. This region is one of the world's most crowded places. The population density of East Asia is 130 per sq. km, which is about three times the world average population density. China supports approximately 1/5th of the world's population whereas Japan is the 8th most populous country in the world.
World atlas, the United States
The USA is one of the world's largest democracies and is a federal republic of 50 states and is the world's fourth largest country. In world atlas, the United States shares land borders with Canada to the north and Mexico to the south, and is bounded by the Pacific Ocean in the west and the Atlantic Ocean in the east.
In world atlas, the United States, also called America, falls under the western hemisphere. The term America was coined in the early sixteenth century after Amerigo Vespucci, who was an Italian merchant, explorer and cartographer.
The United States of America occupies a territory of 9,522,0572 sq. km primarily in the mid-latitude region of the North American continental landmass and is bounded on the east by the Atlantic Ocean and on the west by the Pacific Ocean. The non-contiguous territory comprising the state of Alaska is located in the extreme northwestern part of the continent and is separated from the 48 contiguous states by Canada. The Hawaii islands in the mid-Pacific form the 50th state of the United States.
World atlas, Libya
In the world atlas, Libya or the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya is situtated at the geographic coordinates 25° 00¢ North latitude and 17° 00¢ East longitude. Situated on the coast of North Africa, Libya is the fourth largest country within the African continent, with an area of 1,759,540 sq. km (679,362 sq. miles), extending 1989 km (1236 miles) from southeast to northwest and 1502 km (933 miles) from northeast to southwest. A greater part of the country lies within the Sahara.
It is bounded on the North by the Mediterranean Sea, on the East by Egypt, on the Southeast by the Sudan, on the South by Chad and Niger, on the West by Algeria, and on the Northwest by Tunisia.
The province is divided into three traditional parts, namely Tripolitania, the Fezzan and Cyrenaica. The word ‘Libya’ comes from the Egyptian term ‘Libu’, which relates to one of the Berber tribes residing in the western region of the Nile.
French world atlas
In world atlas, French Republic or France is located at the geographical coordinates of latitude 46° 00¢ North of the equator and longitude 2° 00¢ East of Greenwich. The metropolitan territory of Frnace is located in Western Europe and extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean.
The name France originates from the Latin word ‘Franks (Francs)’, a Germanic tribe who conquered northern Europe after the fall of the Western Roman Empire.
France physical interactive maps help us to learn about the physical features and geography of the country.
World atlas showing major cities
A place where a large number of people live in close proximity to each other, however, city may also indicate a special administrative, legal, or historical status.
With the advent and spread of industrialization and with the global population rising at an exponential rate cities have grown significantly in size and number.
It is very difficult to club cities of the present-day world into one class or category. There are those cities that form the commercial and business hubs of a country or region while there are others which are much quieter and planned centers of government and administration, for example, Madrid in Spain and Santiago in Chile, often occupy a central position, so as to offer more or less equal access to all parts of the country.
There are cities that are renowned for their historical origins while there are others which represent the culture and identity of a people or region, for example, Mesopotamia (modern Iran), China, Egypt, etc.
Good communications and transport links are the two main reasons that makes Singapore a good trading city as it controls the Strait of Malacca, one of the main shipping routes between the ports of East Asia and those to the west.
There are also those cities that are simply havens for tourists while there are others which thrive solely on entertainment and showbiz, for example, Hollywood is a city in Los Angeles, California, known as a historical center of movie studios and movie stars.
A number of cities originated on sacred sites, for example, Mecca has developed largely because it was the birthplace of Mohammed, the founder of Islam.
World atlas showing major cities that are famous for one or the other things include Toronto, Seattle, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Houston, Boston, Philadelphia, New York, Havana, Panama City, Caracas, Santiago, La Paz, Sao Paolo, Brasilia, and Buenos Aires in the Americas; London, Edinburgh, Oxford, Cambridge, Marseille, Amsterdam, Lisbon, Madrid, Zurich, Geneva, Budapest, Vienna, Helsinki, Athens, Istanbul, and Moscow in Europe; Tripoli, Lagos, Mombassa, Cape Town, Johannesburg, and Port Louis in Africa; Dubai, Riyadh, Mecca, Kuwait City, Jerusalem, Karachi, Islamabad, Mumbai, Kolkata, New Delhi, Chennai, Kathmandu, Lhasa, Beijing, etc.
In NATO world atlas, including Romania and United States, we also find the other 17 members, which are Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Turkey, and the United Kingdom.
World Sites Atlas
World Sites Atlas features maps of world regions, countries, states, and cities, plus hotels, destination guides, facts, useful links, photos, and more. Some of the facilities and services that can be availed from World Sites Atlas are as follows:
- Acurate and colorful maps with information on countries, provinces, states, and cities.
- Attractive and inexpensive digital maps.
- Booking hotels, flights, rental cars, and cruises at special low rates.
- Detailed travel information for thousands of destinations.
