South America is a
continent crossed by the
equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere.
South America is situated between the
Pacific Ocean and the
Atlantic Ocean. It became attached to
North America only recently (on geological timescales), with
the formation of the
Isthmus of Panama[?]. The
Andes mountains run down the western edge of the continent;
the land east of the Andes includes large amounts of tropical
rain forest. Most of South America east of the Andes is
drained by the
Amazon River.
It was first inhabited by humans crossing the
Bering Land Bridge, now the
Bering
strait, though there are suggestions of migration from the
southern
Pacific Ocean.
From the
16th century to the early
19th century, most of the continent of South America was
divided into colonies, ruled mostly by
Spain and
Portugal. Now it consists of several republics, with
French Guiana and the
Falklands and neighbouring islands the only non-independent
territories.
The region of South America also includes various
islands most of which are controlled by the countries on the
continent. The
Caribbean territories are grouped with
North America.
The territories of South America are:
