Geography & the Peopling on Earth Geographic Orientation Antarctica- No native pop. Australia Oldest surviving ethnic group- Aborigines Very isolated for most of its history 1,000?s of islands in Pacific (Oceania)= Part of Australia Africa Birthplace of humanity Northern 1/3= Sahara Desert Asia Largest Most populated Most diverse mix of Climates Languages Cultures Subregions= Middle East Central Asia South Asia (Indian Subcontinent) Southeast Asia East Asia (Core= China, Korea, Japan) Europe Small continent Large population Resource-rich Mild & temperate climate Physically joined to Asia (Eurasia) The Arctic Ocean Smallest ocean Ice most of the year Difficult to navigate Location of the Northwest passage sought by European explorers Passage is unusable due to ice-bound conditions