# POLL: How Many Continents? Oceans? What Are They? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 17, 2005, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448 "2005-02-17T00:15:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![calm\_kiwi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9fc348/32.png) [@calm\_kiwi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/calm_kiwi)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 10:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/21 "2005-02-17T10:11:15Z")
1. 38 2. NZ 3a. 4 3b. Europe, Asia, S America, N America, Africa, Antartica and Oceania/Australasia 4a. 4 4b. Arctic, Indian, Pacific and Atlantic. “Australasia” must be a NZ construct as no one else has mentioned it, but that was where we were taught that New Zealand was (well when I was at school anyway). We just didn’t like to be continentless I guess. Question; Does all of the middle East belong to Asia, continent wise? ---
**Author:** ![calm\_kiwi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9fc348/32.png) [@calm\_kiwi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/calm_kiwi)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 10:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/22 "2005-02-17T10:12:56Z")
3a. SEVEN, 7! I can count! ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 10:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/23 "2005-02-17T10:23:43Z")
Egypt, Algeria, Libya, Morocco, and Tunisia are African and Turkey considers itself European, so no. ---
**Author:** ![calm\_kiwi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9fc348/32.png) [@calm\_kiwi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/calm_kiwi)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/24 "2005-02-17T10:53:01Z")
Well I was talking about countries like Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran, Qatar, Dubai etc. Most of the ones you mentioned are geographicaly in Africa no matter where they are culturaly and it looks like Turkey may eventually be accepted into the EU so that may say something. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/25 "2005-02-17T14:13:34Z")
1. 22 2. NE United States 3a. Seven 3b. Asia, N. America, S. America, Asia, Europe, Australia, Antarctica 4a. 4 4b. Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, Arctic 1. I was taught in Junior High that some consider Europe and Asia to be one continent, Eurasia. I have also seen maps that refer to the greater Australia area (including New Zealand, and other islands around it) to be a continent called Oceania. I assume this is because places like New Zealand were “continent-less,” although yes, theywere part of the Australian continent, most people consider the continent and country of Australia to be the same, when in fact, there are a few more places in the continent, so I guess someone renamed it. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/26 "2005-02-17T18:15:01Z")
> [@calm kiwi](#): > > “Australasia” must be a NZ construct as no one else has mentioned it …apart from me!!! ---
**Author:** ![Q.N.Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/3da27b/32.png) [@Q.N.Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.N.Jones)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/27 "2005-02-17T18:52:47Z")
1. 27 2. U.S. 3. Seven (or siz) 4. Europe, Asia (or Eurasia), Africa, Australia, N. America, S. America, Antarctica 5. Four 6. Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, Arctic. * * * My mom’s answers are different. Hers are: 1. 60 2. U.S. 3. Seven 4. see above 5. Five 6. Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, Arctic, Antarctic That’s what she was taught in grammar school in the 1940s and 1950s. ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/28 "2005-02-17T19:31:02Z")
41, U.S.A. Continents: 6 – Eurasia, N. America, S. America, Africa, Australia, Antarctica Oceans: 3 – Atlantic, Pacific, Indian That thing between Eurasia and Canada isn’t an ocean, it’s a sea with delusions of grandeur. And don’t even get me started on Oceania. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/29 "2005-02-17T19:36:53Z")
> [@Nametag](#): > > That thing between Eurasia and Canada isn’t an ocean, it’s a sea with delusions of grandeur. Look at a globe, rather than a typical map, and re-argue that point. ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2005, 8:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/30 "2005-02-21T08:50:46Z")
> [@GorillaMan](#): > > Look at a globe, rather than a typical map, and re-argue that point. I did that before posting; it lacks the grandeur of even the Indian Ocean, much less the Atlantic or Pacific, it’s practically landlocked, and most of it is really quite shallow. Maybe when the polar ice caps melt, I’ll look at it differently. ---
**Author:** ![calm\_kiwi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9fc348/32.png) [@calm\_kiwi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/calm_kiwi)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2005, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/31 "2005-02-21T12:44:49Z")
> [@Nametag](#): > > And don’t even get me started on Oceania. I won’t get you started but I would like to know which continent New Zealand is in. Baring in mind that continent is as much a political reality as it is a geographical one. ---
**Author:** ![Monstre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e274bd/32.png) [@Monstre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monstre)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2005, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/32 "2005-02-21T15:22:50Z")
1. 34 2. U.S. 3. 7 3a. N. America, S. America, Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, Antarctica **Q.N. Jones** , I learned it in grade school the same way your mom did. 4. 5 oceans 4a. Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, Arctic, Antarctic 1. Although later I head of the classification of just 4 oceans instead, where the “Antarctic” was not included as an ocean, later on in life. In grade school I was taught those 5. And I always heard Australia referred to both as a continent and an island. ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/33 "2005-02-22T00:52:35Z")
> [@calm kiwi](#): > > I won’t get you started but I would like to know which continent New Zealand is in. Baring in mind that continent is as much a political reality as it is a geographical one. It’s Australian, as is New Guinea. [Cite](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Tectonic_plates.png). ---
**Author:** ![kellner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c2a13f/32.png) [@kellner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kellner)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/34 "2005-02-22T01:05:55Z")
1. 24 2. Germany 3a. 6 3b. Africa, America, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe 4a. 3-4 4b. Atlantic, Indian and Pacific _Ocean_ plus a separate “Northern Polar Sea” ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/35 "2005-02-22T01:11:39Z")
**kellner** , is the Americas as one continent how it was taught in your school? ---
**Author:** ![pasunejen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/58956e/32.png) [@pasunejen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pasunejen)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/36 "2005-02-22T01:18:01Z")
1. 21 2. U.S. 3a. 7 3b. North America, South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia, Antarctica 4a. 4 4b. Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, Arctic ---
**Author:** ![ITR\_champion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c67d28/32.png) [@ITR\_champion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ITR_champion)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/37 "2005-02-22T01:36:12Z")
22, United States, 7 continents (Asia, Europe, Africa, North America, South America, Australia, Antartica), 4 oceans (Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, Arctic). Any further questions? ---
**Author:** ![kellner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c2a13f/32.png) [@kellner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kellner)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/38 "2005-02-22T01:37:10Z")
> [@Aesiron](#): > > **kellner** , is the Americas as one continent how it was taught in your school? IIRC it was mentioned that the classification was debatable, but I don’t remember the specifics. I don’t even know if there was an authoritative answer. When we had geography as a subject in school for the first time, that wasn’t a questioned that anyone would have asked seriously in a test or so. However that is the “traditional” version here. For example, we see nothing wrong with the olympic flag (as long as Antarctica doesn’t participate.) ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 8:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/39 "2005-02-24T08:02:08Z")
> [@calm kiwi](#): > > I won’t get you started but I would like to know which continent New Zealand is in. Baring in mind that continent is as much a political reality as it is a geographical one. New Zealand’s a frickin’ _island group_, and therefore is not on a continent, by definition. Tectonic plates are not continents, the Greater East Asia Co-Propserit Sphere is not a continent, and ploitifcal unions are not continents. This is why Europe is not a continent. ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448/40 "2005-02-24T08:03:14Z")
_Political_, dammit. Frickin cursor keeps moving around… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-many-continents-oceans-what-are-they/290448.md?page=3)