Continental Europe

Continental Europe, also called mainland Europe, is the connected mainland of Europe. It does not include the islands around it.

People can also call it the European continent, but that name can be confusing because it can also mean all of Europe. Some people simply call it "the Continent." For other meanings of that phrase, see Continent (disambiguation).

When Eurasia is treated as one continent, Europe is seen as both a continent and a subcontinent.

Readers who want to learn more can also visit these related pages: Pan-European corridors, Trans-European Transport Network, International E-road network, and United Nations Economic Commission for Europe.

Conceptual history

Long ago, the old Carolingian Empire was one of many older ideas about mainland Europe. In the 1950s, people used this idea on purpose as one of the foundations for planned European integration (see also multi-speed Europe). The most common definition of mainland Europe leaves out nearby continental islands. These include the Greek islands, Cyprus, Malta, Sicily, Sardinia, Corsica, the Balearic Islands, Great Britain, Ireland and the islands around them, Novaya Zemlya, and the Nordic archipelago. It also leaves out faraway oceanic islands, such as the Canary Islands, Madeira, the Azores, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, and Svalbard.

The Scandinavian Peninsula is sometimes left out too, even though it is part of "mainland Europe." This is because its de facto connections to the rest of the continent were, in the past, mostly across the Baltic Sea or North Sea. A land route would be much longer. It would go north around the peninsula where it meets Finland, and then south through northeast Europe.

Great Britain and Ireland

Great Britain is an island off the western coast of the continent of Europe. It is the largest island in Europe, both by area and by number of people. It is close to the mainland. At its narrowest point, the Strait of Dover is 34 kilometres (21 mi) wide.

In Great Britain and Ireland, which make up the countries of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, people often say "the Continent" to mean the mainland of Europe. A funny British newspaper headline supposedly once read, "Fog in Channel; Continent Cut Off". It has also been said that this was a regular weather forecast in Britain in the 1930s. People also often use the word "Europe" to mean any place on the continent.

The word "continental" also describes the customs or fashions of continental Europe, or of some parts of it. Examples include breakfast and long-distance driving, which was once often called Grand Touring before Britain had motorways. Differences like electrical plugs, left-hand traffic, and, in the United Kingdom, some imperial units still used alongside metric units have helped keep this idea alive. Metric units have long since replaced customary units in continental Europe.

In 1994, Britain was physically connected to continental Europe for the first time since it became an island 8000 years ago, when the undersea Channel Tunnel opened. The tunnel carries passengers between the island and northern France, with border controls kept on each side.

Scandinavia

The Scandinavian Peninsula is joined to continental Europe by land, but the land route runs along the 66th parallel north, in the north of the peninsula. In the past, the main links to the rest of the continent were by sea, across the Baltic Sea or the North Sea. This made Scandinavia feel like an "island," which is why it is often left out of continental Europe. The European Union also treats Scandinavia and Mainland Europe differently. In traditional Germanic studies, "continental" means the European continent without the Scandinavian Peninsula, Britain, Ireland, and Iceland. In Denmark, which is not on the peninsula, Jutland is called the national mainland and is counted as part of continental Europe.

People in Scandinavia have often seen their region as separate from continental Europe, a bit like Britain. In Swedish, "Kontinenten," and in Norwegian, "Kontinentet" ("the Continent"), are everyday words for continental Europe that leave out Sweden, Norway, and Finland. Denmark is included, even though the Danish Archipelago is technically not part of continental Europe. The Great Belt Bridge and the Øresund Bridge opened in 1998 and 2000. They made the first direct land link from the Scandinavian Peninsula to the Jutland Peninsula, the Danish mainland, and so to mainland Europe. This also reached the Danish islands Zealand and Funen. A New York Times headline said: "Copenhagen is linked to the Continent."

Mediterranean and Atlantic islands

People who live on islands may use the words The Continent to mean the mainland part of their country. For example, "continent" can refer to the continental part of France, which leaves out Corsica and overseas France. It can also refer to the mainland part of Greece, which leaves out the Aegean Islands, Crete, and the Ionian Islands. It can refer to the mainland part of Italy, which leaves out Sardinia, Sicily, and other islands. It can refer to the mainland part of Portugal, which leaves out the Azores and Madeira. It can also refer to the mainland part of Spain, which leaves out the Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands, the plazas de soberanía, and other areas.

The part of mainland France in Europe is also called l'Hexagone, which means "the Hexagon," because it looks a bit like that shape on a map. Mainland Italy is also called lo Stivale, which means "the Boot," because it looks a bit like a boot on a map. Mainland Spain is called peninsular Spain.