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, geologically speaking, with the formation of the Isthmus of Panama. The Andes, likewise a comparatively young and seismically restless mountain range, run down the western edge of the continent; the land to the east of the Andes is largely tropical rain forest, the vast Amazon River basin.
It is thought to have been first inhabited by humans crossing the Bering Land Bridge, now the Beringstrait, though there are also suggestions of migration from the southern Pacific Ocean.
From the 1530s, the indigenous inhabitants of South America were subjugated by European invaders, first from Spain, later from Portugal, who divided it into colonies. In the course of the 19th century, these colonies won their independence. Nowadays, South America consists of the following twelve countries
The region of South America also includes various islands, most of which belong to countries on the continent.
The Caribbean territories are grouped with North America.
The largest country by far, in both area and population, is Brazil.
Unlike the figures in the country articles, the figures in this table are based on areas including inland water bodies (lakes, reservoirs, rivers) and may therefore be lower here.
