What are the main regions of Continental North America?
How many countries are in North America?
Contintental North America is made up of 23 independent countries and 10 non-sovereign territories.
Independent countries are nations that govern themselves and are recognized as separate states by the world. They make their own laws, run their own governments, and control their own affairs.
Non-sovereign territories are regions or islands that do not govern themselves on the international stage as they are controlled by other countries. They rely on those countries for certain matters like defense and international relations, but they often have their own local governments.
List the region and countries of North America
Northern America has 3 independent countries and 3 territories (north to south)
Central America has 7 countries (north to south)
The Caribbean has 10 countries and 7 territories (north to south)
How to remember the countries of North America
Can you name all the countries in North America? Memorizing the countries may seem like a daunting task, but with the right strategies and trusty maps, you can conquer this geographical challenge. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll delve into effective techniques and tips to help you master the map of North America effortlessly. Start with the full region, then break into smaller regions, then each again into individual country components.
Step 1: Download maps of North America
Here is a map showing the whole of North America. You can download by holding your finger on the map then follow the option to Save
Map showing the countries of North America and adjacent oceans and water bodies.
Step 2: Break down into smaller regions.
People generally read top to bottom or left to right, so we’ll follow that natural flow of thinking and define 3 regions.
Why do we do this? It’s much easier to remember the 3 regions than 23 sovereign states of North America.
Region 1 – Canada-US-Mexico
We’ll group the 3 largest countries of North America: Canada, US and Mexico
Region 2 – Central America
Covers Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama.
Region 3 – The Caribbean
Offshore nations in the North Atlantic Ocean, from the Gulf of Mexico to South America.
When reviewing, its good practice to continuously refer back and forth to the map for the 3 regions.
It’s rote learning, combined with spatial recognition.
Step 3: Look at each subregion and learn via an acronym, mnemonic or picture a familiar shape.
Region 1 – Canada-US-Mexico
Remember the north to south order with an acronym.
CUSMA is a trade agreement between the 3 nations. With that recognized, we can then break down further into countries.
Region 2 – Central America
Remember as mnemonic from north to south:
Baby – Godzilla – Eats – Hotdogs – Not – Cocoa – Puffs
Belize – Guatamala – El Salvador – Honduras – Nicaragua – Costa Rica – Panama
Region 3 – The Caribbean
Lets start picturing as the group of islands south of the Gulf of Mexico.
The Caribbean includes a lot of countries. To memorize we will break this down into smaller chunks.
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To commit these names to memory its important to be consistent and persistent. Consistent with a specific technique for each region, and then consistently reminding yourself by repeating the exercise. If you want to delve further about a subregion then repeat the process.