Europe as a Region 1

6.3 Geography. The student uses geographic tools to answer geographic questions. The student is expected to: (A) pose and answer geographic questions, including: Where is it located? Why is it there? What is significant about its location? How is its location related to the location of other people, places, and environments?; (B) pose and answer questions about geographic distributions and patterns for various world regions and countries shown on maps, graphs, charts, models, and databases; P (D) create thematic maps, graphs, charts, models, and databases depicting aspects such as population, disease, and economic activities of various world regions and countries. 6.4 Geography. The student understands the factors that influence the locations and characteristics of locations of various contemporary societies on maps and globes and uses latitude and longitude to determine absolute locations. The student is expected to: (A) locate various contemporary societies on maps and globes using latitude and longitude to determine absolute location; (B) identify and explain the geographic factors responsible for patterns of population in places and regions; (C) explain ways in which human migration influences the character of places and regions; (D) identify and locate major physical and human geographic features such as landforms, water bodies, and urban centers of various places and regions; (E) draw sketch maps that illustrate various places and regions 6.7 Geography. The student understands the impact of interactions between people and the physical environment on the development and conditions of places and regions. The student is expected to: (A) identify and analyze ways people have adapted to the physical environment in various places and regions; (B) identify and analyze ways people have modified the physical environment such as mining, irrigation, and transportation infrastructure. Get Started Brainstorm with a partner: List ideas and information that you know about how Europeans influenced the Americas. What can you identify today as influences that were brought by Europeans? Activity #1 Have students scan the article first to identify the topics. Then have them work with a partner and read the article on the region of Europe. After reading, ask the students to discuss and complete the “Dialogue with the Reading” activity. Activity #2 Students are to analyze the information on the maps included. Student should use the embedded questions next to each map as a guide for discussing the data on the map and for writing a response to each one. Activity #3 Students should work with a partner and analyze the information about a major city, Istanbul. After considering the maps, students can refer to all the maps in this lesson and answer the geographic questions about location and draw conclusions about possible economic activities.

Europe as a Region 2

Activity #1 Scan the article first to identify the topics. Then read the article on the region of Europe. After reading, complete the “Dialogue with the Reading” activity.

(Article from: World Book) THE REGION OF EUROPE

The land Europe is a huge peninsula that extends westward from northwestern Asia. No body of water

separates Europe and Asia completely, and so many geographers consider them to be one continent called Eurasia. Europe's status as a continent sprung from the belief in ancient and medieval times that Europe was separated from Asia by mostly water. Cultural differences between Europeans and Asians reinforced the belief that Europe was a true continent.

Europe covers 4,033,000 square miles (10,445,000 square kilometers), or about one-fifteenth of the world's land area. It is smaller than every other continent except Australia.

The Atlantic Ocean forms the western boundary of Europe. The Ural Mountains, the Ural River, and the Caspian Sea form the eastern boundary of the continent. Europe extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Mediterranean Sea, the Black Sea, and the Caucasus Mountains in the south. Iceland, Great Britain, Ireland, and thousands of other smaller islands near Europe's coastline are usually included as part of the continent.

Land regions. Europe has four major land regions: (1) the Northwest Mountains, (2) the Central Uplands, (3) the Alpine Mountain System, and (4) the Great European Plain.

The Northwest Mountains region includes northwestern France, Ireland, the northern United Kingdom, Norway, Sweden, northern Finland, and the northwest corner of Russia. This region includes some of the oldest rock formations on Earth. The mountains have worn down over the years, so even the highest peak, Galdhopiggen in Norway, rises only 8,100 feet (2,469 meters). The thin soil of the mountain slopes combined with cold climates makes for poor farming in the region. Consequently, most of the Northwest Mountains is sparsely populated.

The Central Uplands region includes low mountains and high plateaus that extend across central Europe. Elevations vary from about 1,000 to 6,000 feet (300 to 1,800 meters). Major features of the uplands include the Meseta, or central plateau, of Portugal and Spain; the Massif Central, or central highlands, in France; and the plateaus and low mountains of central Germany and most of the Czech Republic. Some of the Central Uplands have forests, but most of the land is rocky with poor soils for farming. River valleys provide the best farmland. Parts of the Central Uplands-especially in Germany and the Czech Republic-have rich deposits of minerals. The most densely populated areas of this region lie in parts of Germany and the Czech Republic.

The Alpine Mountain System consists of several mountain chains that run across southern Europe from Spain to the Caspian Sea. The Sierra Morena and Cantabrian Mountains lie in Spain, while the Pyrenees form a natural border between Spain and France. The world-famous Alps cover part of southeastern France and northern Italy, most of Switzerland, and part of southern Germany, Austria, and northern Slovenia. The Apennines run the length of Italy. Farther east, the Dinaric Alps stretch from Croatia to northern Greece, where they continue as the Pindus Mountains. The Carpathians curve from northern Slovakia through southern Poland, far western Ukraine, and Romania. The Balkan Mountains lie in northern Bulgaria, and the Rhodope Mountains run from southern Bulgaria to northern Greece. The Caucasus Mountains lie at the eastern end of the region between the Black Sea and Caspian Sea.

The Alpine Mountain System includes the highest mountains in Europe. The highest peak, Mount Elbrus in the Caucasus Mountains, rises 18,510 feet (5,642 meters). Other high peaks include Mont Blanc in the French Alps and the Matterhorn in the Swiss Alps. Heavy forests cover many of the higher slopes in the region. Meadows above the timber line yield pastures for livestock. The lower mountain slopes and valleys provide the best farmland. Many parts of this

Europe as a Region 3

region are popular vacation destinations. The Great European Plain extends from southern France to the Ural Mountains in Russia

and includes southeastern England. At its narrowest point, in Belgium, it is only about 50 miles (80 kilometers) wide. The plain widens through Germany and Poland. At its greatest width, in Russia, it extends from the Arctic Ocean to the Caucasus Mountains, a distance of more than 1,500 miles (2,410 kilometers).

This region consists chiefly of flat and rolling land with some hills. Glaciers shaped the northerly and easterly sections, leaving an uneven ground surface marked by lakes and marshes, such as the Pripyat Marshes in southwestern Belarus and northwestern Ukraine. The region has an average elevation of about 600 feet (180 meters) above sea level in Russia, and less than 500 feet (150 meters) elsewhere.

The Great European Plain has some of the world's most fertile farmland. It also supports densely populated areas, especially in the western regions. But most of the Russian part is sparsely populated.

Coastline and islands. Europe has a highly irregular coastline. The coastline penetrates deeply inland in many places, leaving a series of large and small peninsulas. The major peninsulas are the Scandinavian Peninsula (Norway and Sweden), Jutland (Denmark), the Iberian Peninsula (Portugal and Spain), the Italian Peninsula, and the Balkan Peninsula (Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Greece, Macedonia, Montenegro, and parts of Croatia, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, and Turkey).

The irregularity of Europe's coastline makes it unusually long, about 37,877 miles (60,957 kilometers). Along the coastline are numerous seas, bays, gulfs, and natural harbors. Most of Europe-except for the heart of European Russia-lies within about 300 miles (480 kilometers) of a seacoast.

Thousands of islands lie off the coast of Europe. The largest and most important of these is Great Britain, which lies north and west of the European mainland. Other major islands in this area include Ireland, Iceland, and the Channel, Faroe, Orkney, and Shetland islands. Major islands south of the mainland include, from west to east, the Balearic Islands, Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily, and Crete.

Rivers. Europe's many rivers serve as major industrial transportation routes. They also supply water to irrigate farmland and provide power to generate electric power.

Europe's longest river, the Volga, flows 2,194 miles (3,531 kilometers) through Russia to the Caspian Sea. Canals link the Volga with the Arctic Ocean, the Baltic Sea, and the Don River. The Don flows into the Sea of Azov, which is connected to the Black Sea. The Danube, 1,770 miles (2,850 kilometers) long, is Europe's second longest river. It winds from southern Germany through Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Serbia, Bulgaria, and Romania to the Black Sea. The Rhine River flows for 820 miles (1,320 kilometers) from the Swiss Alps through western Germany and the Netherlands to the North Sea. It ranks among the world's busiest waterways.

Other important European rivers include the Dnieper in Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine; the Northern Dvina in Russia; the Western Dvina in Russia and Latvia; the Oder and Vistula in Poland; the Elbe in the Czech Republic and Germany; the Po in Italy; the Rhone and Seine in France; the Ebro in Spain; the Tagus in Spain and Portugal; and the Thames in England.

Lakes. The world's largest lake, the saltwater Caspian Sea, straddles the boundary of Europe and Asia. Although called a sea, the Caspian is really a lake because land completely surrounds it. The Caspian covers 143,250 square miles (371,000 square kilometers). With its northern shore 92 feet (28 meters) below sea level, it ranks as Europe's lowest point.

The area of freshwater lakes totals only about 53,000 square miles (137,000 square kilometers). The largest, LAKE LADOGA in northwestern Russia, covers 6,835 square miles (17,703 square kilometers). Finland, which has about 60,000 lakes, is known as the land of thousands of lakes.

Europe as a Region 4

Climate Europe has a variety of climates, as illustrated by the large map in this section. The small

maps provide information about temperatures and precipitation. Europe generally has milder climates than parts of Asia and North America at the same

latitude. For example, Berlin, Germany; Calgary, Canada; and Irkutsk, in the Asian part of Russia, lie at about the same latitude. But January temperatures in Berlin average about 19 °F (11 °C) higher than those in Calgary and about 40 °F (22 °C) higher than those in Irkutsk.

Europe's mild climates result from winds that blow across the continent from the Atlantic Ocean. These winds are warmed and given moisture by the Gulf Stream, a powerful ocean current that carries warm water from the Gulf of Mexico to Europe's western coast. The most spectacular effect of the Gulf Stream occurs along the Norwegian coast. Though much of Norway's coast lies in the Arctic region, almost all of Norway's coast remains free of ice and snow through the winter.

In general, western Europe has shorter, warmer winters and longer, cooler summers than eastern Europe. The farther away an area is from a coast, the greater the variations in temperature and moisture are from summer to winter. This phenomenon is known as continentality.

Europe's climates also vary from north to south. Southern Europe generally has shorter, milder winters and longer, hotter summers than northern Europe. Moreover, an area of high air pressure in the Atlantic called the Azores High prevents winds from bringing moisture into much of southern Europe during the summer. This phenomenon frequently causes drought in the region. Most of Europe receives from 20 to 60 inches (50 to 150 centimeters) of precipitation each year. More than 80 inches (200 centimeters) usually occurs in areas just west of mountains. Such regions include parts of western England and western Norway. Less than 20 inches (50 centimeters) of precipitation usually falls in three general areas: (1) east of high mountains, (2) far inland from the Atlantic Ocean, and (3) along the Arctic coast. Such regions include central and southeastern Spain, northern Scandinavia, northern and southeastern parts of European Russia, and western Kazakhstan. World Book

Dialogue with the Reading 1. Sketch a map that contains details of the land contained in the article.

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2. Compare and contrast the physical geography of Europe with North America.

3. How do physical features and physical forces affect the climates of Europe?

Europe as a Region 6

Activity #2 Analyze the information on the maps and answer the geographic questions that follow.

1. Describe the physical features that are shown or drawn on this map. 2. Explain why a physical feature would make travel and transportation from Italy to Germany difficult.

3. Identify the physical features that are in the areas that have the most population.

Europe as a Region 7

4. What climate zones are similar to the climates of North America?

Europe as a Region 8

5. How does land use in Europe compare with land use in the United States?

6. Which deposits located on this map are energy resources?

Europe as a Region 9

7. What cities shown on the map are located in the most densely populated sections?

8. What mineral deposits (shown on the map on the previous page above) are closest to London, Paris, and Bucharest?

Europe as a Region 10

Activity #3 Analyze the information on the maps and answer the geographic questions.

1. What are the physical features or characteristics show on this map? 2. What characteristics or features on this map could be explained as “human geographic features?”

3. Describe the details shown on this map about Istanbul.

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Use the maps to answer the following geographic questions about Istanbul.

1. Where is it located?

2. Why is it there?

3. What is significant about its location?

     

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4. How is its location related to the location of other people, places, and environments?

Meet with a partner and compare your answers to the questions. Together with your partner, write an explanation to the following: How might the geography of Istanbul influence economic activities? (Share written responses with two other pairs of partners.)