South America is fourth largest of the world's continents. It is the southern portion of the landmass generally referred to as the Americas. The continent is compact and roughly triangular in shape, being broad in the north and tapering to Cape Horn, in the south.

   South America is bounded by the Caribbean Sea to north and the north-west, the Atlantic Ocean to the north-east, east, and south-east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. In the north-west it is joined to North America by the Isthmus of Panamá, which forms a land bridge narrowing to about 50 miles (80 kilometres) at one point. Drake Passage, south of Cape Horn, separates South America from Antarctica. South America has a total area of about 6,885,000 square miles (17,833,000 square kilometres), or roughly one-eighth of the land surface of the Earth.

   In the large eastern portion of South America larger, there are a number of stable shields forming highland regions, separated by large basins including the vast Amazon basin. On the other side, the western portion is occupied almost entirely by the Andes Mountains. The continent's average elevation is about 1,800 feet (590 m).

   The great range in elevation and the wide extension from north of the Equator (the four-fifths of its landmass is located within the tropics) to subantarctic latitudes produces an unrivaled diversity of climatic and ecological zones, which is probably the most prominent characteristic of South American geography.

Geographic Map

Area: 17.833.000 Km²
Population: 351.400.000
Density: 19,5 pop/Km²

Major City: São Paulo (17.880.000 pop.)
Highest Mountain: Cerro Aconcagua 6960 m
Longest River: Rio Amazon 6280 Km
Largest Lake: Titicaca 8.300 Km²
Largest Island: Marajo 47.573 Km²


Countries and Territories

Principal Mountains
Principal Islands
Principal Rivers
Principal Lakes

Major Cities
Order of Area, Population, Density
Demographic Statistics