America
America, the lands of the Western Hemisphere, including the continents of North America and South America and nearby islands. To the east lies the Atlantic Ocean, and to the west the Pacific. In the north, North America spreads out into many islands that extend into the Arctic. In the south, South America narrows to a tip pointing toward the Antarctic.
Each continent is shaped roughly like a triangle. Together they cover a greater distance from north to south than any other landmass—about 9,600 miles (15,400 km). Their total area is about 16,200,000 square miles (42,000,000 km2), more than one-fourth of the earth's land surface. The two continents meet at the Panama-Colombia border, where the narrow Isthmus of Panama joins South America.
In popular terms, Central Americarefers to the part of North America that lies south of Mexico, while Latin Americatakes in Mexico and all countries of Central America, South America, and the West Indies that speak Latin, or Romance, languages (Spanish, French, or Portuguese).
Scientists believe the first inhabitants of America crossed the Bering Strait from Siberia to Alaska, probably 12,000 to 14,000 years ago. Although the Norsemen had settlements in North America about 1000 a.d., permanent European settlement did not occur until after Christopher Columbus' voyage of 1492.
America was named after the Italian navigator Amerigo Vespucci. “America” first appeared on a map made in 1507 by a German, Martin Waldseemüller. “America” is often used to refer to the United States of America alone.