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List of peninsulas

Adapted from Wikipedia · Discoverer experience

A satellite view of Spain and Portugal, showing the Iberian Peninsula as seen from space.

A peninsula is a special kind of landform. It is a piece of land that is surrounded mostly by water but still connected to the mainland. Think of it like an island, but instead of being completely surrounded by water, it is linked to larger land. The water around a peninsula is usually all connected, even if it doesn’t have one single name.

Peninsulas can come in many shapes and sizes. Sometimes they are called by other names, like a headland, cape, or a point. A cape is a big piece of land that sticks out into the water, while a point is smaller and not as big as a cape. There are also places called spits, which are long, narrow bits of land that stretch out into the water.

In English, we usually say "peninsulas" when talking about more than one. But sometimes people also use the word "peninsulae," though this is less common. Rivers can sometimes create peninsulas too, especially when they loop around in very tight curves, almost closing in on themselves.

Below is a list of some of the world’s peninsulas.

Africa

Macaronesia

North Africa

Somali Peninsula

The Horn of Africa also known as the Somali Peninsula

Main article: Horn of Africa

The Horn of Africa is a land that sticks out into the Guardafui Channel in Northeast Africa. It is the farthest point of the African continent to the east. It includes the countries of Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Somalia.

West Africa

Other peninsulas in Africa

Antarctica

Antarctica has several peninsulas, which are pieces of land mostly surrounded by water but still connected to the mainland. Some of these peninsulas include the Antarctic Peninsula, Edward VII Peninsula, Fletcher Peninsula, Fowler Peninsula, and Martin Peninsula.

Asia

Central Asia

Kazakhstan

Eastern Asia

China

Hong Kong

Hong Kong itself is a peninsula.

Korean Peninsula

Japan

See also: List of peninsulas of Japan

Hokkaido
Honshū
Kyūshū

Korea

Main article: Korea

The Kamchatka Peninsula in the Russian Far East

The whole landmass encompassing North and South Korea is a peninsula, surrounded by the East Sea to the east and south, and the Yellow Sea to the west and south, with the Korea Strait connecting them.

Macau

Taiwan

Northern Asia

South-eastern Asia

Indochina

South India (Peninsular India)

Indonesia

Malaysia

Philippines

Thailand

  • Sathing Phra Peninsula

Singapore

Vietnam

Map of the Anatolian Peninsula, the Asian part of Turkey

India

The Deccan Peninsula is a dominant geographical feature of the Indian subcontinent

Other peninsulas on the Indian Subcontinent include:

Western Asia

Arabia

Eastern Mediterranean

Turkey

Main article: Peninsulas of Turkey

Europe

Europe is sometimes seen as a large peninsula stretching out from Eurasia. It is one of the biggest peninsulas in the world and is also considered a full continent, mainly because of tradition rather than science. It includes many smaller peninsulas, with the four largest being the Scandinavian, Iberian, Balkan, and Apennine peninsulas.

The Balkans are a region where the natural borders do not exactly match the strict definition of a peninsula, so many modern geographers do not call it a peninsula. It would include Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, and the European part of Turkey.

France

Iberian Peninsula

Main article: Iberian Peninsula

The Iberian Peninsula includes most of Portugal and Spain, Andorra, Gibraltar (British Overseas Territory), and a small part of Southern France. It is a major geographical feature of the area.

Other peninsulas in this region include:

The assumed Balkan Peninsula, as defined by the Soča–Vipava–Krka–Sava–Danube border.

Ireland

Italy

The Apennine Peninsula is the main geographical feature of Italy.

Other peninsulas in Italy include:

Adriatic Sea

Ionian Sea

Ligurian Sea

Tyrrhenian Sea

Satellite view of the Iberian Peninsula

Malta

Russia

Scandinavia

Main articles: Scandinavia, Scandinavian Peninsula, Jutland, and Fennoscandia

Norway

Sweden

Denmark

Satellite view of the Apennine Peninsula

Finland

Estonia

Turkey

Main article: Peninsulas of Turkey

Ukraine

United Kingdom and the Crown Dependencies

England

Fennoscandia including the Scandinavian Peninsula and Kola Peninsula

Northern Ireland

Scotland

Wales

Channel Islands

Isle of Man

Other peninsulas in Europe

North America

Belize

Canada

British Columbia

New Brunswick

Newfoundland and Labrador

Northwest Territories

Nova Scotia

Nunavut

Baffin Island

Ontario

The Yucatán Peninsula

Quebec

Caribbean

Haiti

Dominican Republic

Puerto Rico

Cuba

Saint Lucia

  • Vigie Peninsula, St Lucia

Costa Rica

Greenland

Mexico

Panama

The Floridian Peninsula, shown by a NASA satellite image

United States

Alaska

California

Main article: Peninsulas of California

Florida

Florida is a well-known example of a large peninsula, with its land area divided between the larger Florida peninsula and the smaller Florida Panhandle on the north and west. It has several smaller peninsulas within it:

Maryland

Mid-Atlantic shoreline showing, from the upper right, the Cape May Peninsula of New Jersey, Delaware Bay, the Delmarva Peninsula, and Chesapeake Bay. Also visible are the peninsulas of Maryland and Virginia along the Chesapeake's shores.

Massachusetts

Michigan

Main articles: Upper Peninsula of Michigan and Lower Peninsula of Michigan

Michigan – the only bi-peninsular state – is very distinguishable for its mitten-shaped Lower Peninsula which includes:

The Upper Peninsula of Michigan contains:

New Jersey

New York

Oregon

Main article: Peninsulas of Oregon

Utah

  • Antelope Island, Utah, becomes a peninsula when waters are low, on the south shore of the Great Salt Lake
  • Promontory Peninsula, on the north eastern shore of the Great Salt Lake
  • Stansbury Peninsula becomes an island when waters are high, on the south shore of the Great Salt Lake

Vermont

  • Alburgh, Vermont, is on the Alburgh Tongue, a peninsula extending from Quebec, Canada into Lake Champlain

Virginia

Washington

Wisconsin

Other states

Oceania

Australia

Peninsulas in Australia include places like Beecroft Peninsula in New South Wales and Bellarine Peninsula in Victoria. Others are Cape York Peninsula in Queensland, Dampier Peninsula in Western Australia, and Eyre Peninsula in South Australia. Many more peninsulas can be found along the coastlines of Australia.

New Zealand

North Island

Peninsulas in New Zealand's North Island include Aupōuri Peninsula, Coromandel Peninsula, and Miramar Peninsula. Others are Mount Maunganui, Rangitoto Peninsula, and Tītahi Bay.

South Island

In the South Island, you can find Banks Peninsula, Kaikōura Peninsula, and Otago Peninsula. Other peninsulas include D'Urville Peninsula and Farewell Spit.

Outlying Islands

Outlying islands with peninsulas include the Auckland Islands with Musgrave Peninsula, Campbell Island / Motu Ihupuku with Penguin Point, and the Chatham Islands with Cape Pattison.

Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea has the Gazelle Peninsula in New Britain, the Huon Peninsula, and the Papuan Peninsula.

Hawaii

In Hawaii, there is Mokapu.

South America

Southern Cone

The Southern Cone, like Europe, is sometimes thought of as a huge peninsula. It includes most of Chile, Argentina, Uruguay and Southern Brazil, plus the southern tip of Paraguay. This makes it one of the biggest peninsulas on Earth. Sometimes, it is also called a subcontinent, like the Indian Peninsula.

Other peninsulas in South America

Argentina

Brazil

Chile

Colombia

Peru

Uruguay

Venezuela

Fictional peninsulas

Some famous stories include special land areas called peninsulas. In Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift, there is a place called Brobdingnag. The Xanth series by Piers Anthony features a land named Xanth. And in A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin, there is the Valyrian Peninsula.

Images

A satellite view of the Celtic Sea and the English Channel between France and the United Kingdom.
A beautiful coastal peninsula on the Island of Lošinj in Croatia.
A beautiful lakeside view of the Au peninsula in Lake Zürich, Switzerland.

Related articles

Cape (geography)
Peninsula
Mainland
Luzon
Lake Superior
Chesapeake Bay

This article is a child-friendly adaptation of the Wikipedia article on List of peninsulas, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

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