CHAPTER: - 7

(EUROPE)
Q1) What is meant by Eurasia?

A) The largest land mass of Asia and Europe is termed as Eurasia. Its total area is 54.5 million sq.km. (out
of which Europe has 7.88 million sq.km)constituting more than 1/3 of the land mass and Europe extends
less than 1/5 (20%) of it. There is no continuous natural boundary between Asia and Europe.

Q2) Write a note on Location and ranges of Europe.

A) The salient features of location and ranges of Europe are following:-

1) Europe has the longest coastline than other continents. Bordering this coastline has numerous Bays
gulf, inlets and straits as well as seas. No part of it is away from coastline more than 1600 Km. While the
central part of Asia is 3200 Km away from the coastline.

2) According to the latitudes nearly whole of Europe lies in North Temperate Zone except a small
Northern area which is in Arctic Circle.

.) The countries in the surrounding of Europe are following:-

1) 40o N latitude nearly passes in the center of North, Spain and Portugal and lower part of Italy.

2) South of the Black Sea and through of the Caspian Sea.

3) 0 o degree longitude passes through Green Witch near London.

4) 40 o East longitude passes nearly in the middle of East Russia.

Q3) Name the physical features of Europe.

A) The European continent may be divided into the following 5 major relief regions:-

1) North Western Mountains and Baltic Shield.

2) Vast plains of Northern European.

3) Mountain regions of Central Europe.

4) Young Folded Mountains.

5) Russian Platform of Eastern Europe.

Q4) Write a note on the physical features of Europe.

A) The European continent may be divided into the following 5 major relief regions:-

1) North Western Mountains and Baltic Shield:-

According to the geologist, the Baltic shield was a vast mountain

region. This mountain in the course of time was worn down by the forces of erosion into its present low
undulating surface.

a) The North and West of this shield lies in the great range of Fold Mountains stretching from the North
of Norway to the west of the Ireland.

b) About 350 million years ago, some great change took place on Earth, as a result sea beds to the North
and North West were raised and folded and then further movements caused part of this great chain of
mountains to sink and now the only Highlands of Norway, Scotland and Ireland remains.

c) These great mountain systems belong to the early geological age of Mountains formation. It has been
greatly worn down by the forces of erosion. The Western edges of Highlands in Norway and Scotland
has steep slopes. Irregular coasts have been formed in a shape of Gulf, Bays known as Fiords coasts.

d) The Battle shield is a part of old Archean rocks. This region has no importance for agriculture but
important for minerals such as iron-ore and copper and forest resources. The Sweden and Norway
Highlands and the Uplands of Sweden are barren areas.

e) This region was under ice sheets in the ancient period and due to their erosion, the tops are rounded
and uneven. Depressions have been formed due to scraping of soft rocks. So soils are thin, poor and not
cultivated.

Therefore this part of Europe is sparsely populated.

2) Vast plains of Northern Europe:-

The salient features of Vast plains of Northern Europe are following:-

a) The Great Northern Europeans plains lie towards the south of the Baltic Shields and the North-
Western Highlands of Europe.

b) It stretches from the Bay of Biscay and the English plains through northern France, Belgium, Holland,
Northern Germany and Poland, to the Great Russian Plains.

c) It is not level. It has low hills, broach valleys, low plateaus, and other irregular features.

d) The basic of Aquitaine in South West France and Paris basin in Northern France are fertile and
productive. But to the East of this fertile stretch in the part of Belgium, Holland, Denmark and Northern
Germany have sand gravel mixed soil and therefore this part of plain is unproductive.
e) To the south of these soils, there are stretches of soil which are fertile losses soils. They are found in
the Northern France, Belgium, Central Germany and Poland.

This area is also important for agriculture.

3) Mountain regions of Central Europe:-

The salient features of Mountain regions of Central Europe are following:-

a) More than 300 million years, after the ancient fold mountains of North Western Europe, another
mountain system came into being known as Hercynian system.

b) With the passage of time these Fold Mountains were worn down greatly to lower heights and broken
into separate blocks called Horst.

c) In the west these mountain regions are located in South West Ireland and South England; the Tiny
Mountains of Western France and the Mesta of Spain are also Block Mountain. The mountains of central
France are also of same category.

d) The mountains of Central Europe are generally not high. They are usually over 300 meter but
somewhere more than 400 meters.

e) Their slopes are also cultivated, but where the slopes are too steep, the land is cut into terraces or
Farming.

f) These Plateaus are also important for their mineral resources e.g. silver and lead in the Bohemian
Plateau.

g) Iron-ore is also available in these block mountains.

4) Young Folded Mountains:-

The salient features of Young Folded Mountains are following:-

a) This mountain system is located in the Southern part of Europe, stretching in a series of curves and
loops from West to East, with some branches running southwards, towards the Mediterranean Sea.

b) These mountains belong to the 3rd mountain formation period according to geological age. This
mountain system was formed only about 35 million years ago. As the Alps Mountains are the highest
mountains of this system, therefore the whole series of young fold mountains are named “The Fold
Alpine Mountain System”.

c) The Alpine Fold Mountains were formed in about the same period as the Himalayas, The Rockies and
the Andes.

d) The Alpine system of Fold Mountains consists of the Cantabrian Mountains (in the north of Spain), the
Pyrenex (between the Spain and France), the Alps and Jura (in the South Eastern France, Switzerland,
Italy and Australia), the Carpathians and the Balkan Mountains (in the Eastern Europe) and Apennine
Mountains (South Italy).

e) The Alps are the highest mountains of South Europe. They form parallel ranges separated by deep
valleys. The highest mountains are covered with snow.

f) The Mount Blanc is the highest peak of it with 4507 meters from sea level. Among these ranges 2
prominent flat plains are present:-

Rivers of Po Basin, Hungarian Plain are located.

5) Russian Platform of Eastern Europe:-

The salient features of Russian Platform of Eastern Europe are following:-

a) It is a plat form of old metamorphic rocks which extends nearly upon the whole Russia.

b) All this is the remnant of ice sheets or glaciers during the ice age.

c) This region is severe cold and under stormy winds, only coal is important in minerals.

.) Fact: - During the (Great Ice Age) period, a large part of this region was covered in ice, some part of
it is still frozen.

Q5) Write a note on Rivers of Europe.

A) Many rivers of Europe are important economically. Some of the important rivers are mentioned in
the following:-

1) In the East Europe, the Danube Rivers 2849 long rises in Black forest which lies in the north of Alps. As
the main river, along with its tributaries flow through several countries of Europe e.g. Germany,
Australia, Czech Rep, Slovakia, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria and Romania, therefore the Danube is the
most important river of Europe economically.

2) Rivers flowing into the Mediterranean Sea are the Rhine in the France, the Ebro in Spain, and the Po
in Italy.

3) These are several rivers flowing into the Atlantic. Among these the Tagus and the Douro of Spain, the
Garonne and Loire of France are important.

4) River flowing towards the North Sea likes Siene River on which Paris stands. The Rhine is the most
important water way of Germany, in its valley many industries are located and the Elba also most
important due to water way.

All these 3 rivers flow into the North Sea. The Volga (3690) is the longest river of Europe which does not
enter into Sea. It flows into the biggest salt lake of the world, the Caspian Sea.

Q6) Write a note on Climate of Europe.

A) The salient features of the Climate of Europe are following:-

1) Europe lies between Latitude 36 N and 71 N. It is mostly laid within the temperate zone. There are no
areas within the tropics, and therefore no areas have very hot summers.

2) Temperature deceases towards north, it has oceans/seas in the North, West and South sides. These
water bodies have great effect upon the climate of Europe.

3) Due to far distance of Eastern and Central part of Europe from the seas have continental effects upon
climate as a high range of temperature than Western areas comparatively.

4) Location of European mountains in East West also allows entering the winds from the oceans towards
the interior part of the continent, which affect the climate conditions of the interior parts.

a) Winter Season:-

The salient features of winter season are following:-

1) In the western and central Europe, the temperature decreases from West to East and in the Eastern
Europe temperature decreases from South to North.

2) In may be observed on the weather map that with the help of 0 c isotherms, the average temperature
of Western Europe remains above freezing point, therefore winters are so severe. It is due to Western
winds blown from the Atlantic Ocean, which moderates the weather.

3) The Atlantic drift (warm current) has also effect upon the climate of western part of the continent and
the Port remains open throughout the year for trade.

b) Summer Season:-

The salient features of Sumer Season are following:-

1) The July isotherms of the continent show that Southern parts are generally warmer than the Northern
parts. The eastern interior areas are also much warmer than the Western and coastal areas.

2) The interior parts of three Southern peninsulas of Europe are hottest areas in summer, where average
July temperature is more than 26.7c. On the other extreme, the temperature in Tundra region is around
10o C.

3) In summer Mediterranean countries are under the influence of North-Eastern trade winds and remain
dry and hot. The western margins bordering the Atlantic have the greatest annual rainfall.

4) In the mountainous areas of Scotland and Norway, the annual rainfall is from 1500mm to 2500mm
annually.
5) Part of the Alps and the Pyrenees also have heavy annual rainfall, but for the greater part of Western
Europe the annual rainfall is between 500mm to 1000mm, the rainfall occurs mostly in autumn and
winter.

There is light rainfall in Tundra areas, lesser then 250mm annually.

Q7) Write a note on the Population of Europe.

A) The total population of Europe is 75 Crore. The Western and Central Europe are densely populated.
Population is unevenly distributed in the continent. There are large areas, such as the high mountains,
cold temperate forests (coniferous forests) and the Tundra areas are generally unpopulated, while
industrial areas are densely populated.

The main factors determining the distribution of population are:-

1) Climate

2) Relief

3) Soil

4) Minerals wealth.

.) Different area of Europe:-

1) Areas where climate is not favorable and soil is not suitable for agriculture are very thinly populated,
such as Siberians and cool type desert areas.

2) Areas with fertile soil are well suited for agriculture and are therefore densely populated.

3) Whereas the high and rugged upland areas are thinly populated.

.) For instance:-

River Po basin (lamber-de-plain) in north Italy, losses soil plains on the northern margin of
the central uplands are well suited for agriculture and are well suited for agriculture and are therefore
densely populated.

A) Densely populated areas:-

The salient features of densely populated areas of Europe are following:-

1) The densely populated areas of Europe are usually found in or around coal fields. This is because coal
was the first main farms of fuel used in the industrial revolution.

2) So the population grew up along the great coal belt stretching from Britain to West Europe and
Central Europe.
3) As the population study of Europe shows that the mostly densely populated areas are:-

a) Holland and Belgium

b) Industrial areas of Britain

c) Industrial areas of France and Germany

d) The Rhine valley

e) North Italian plain and coastal areas of Italy, Spain and Portugal.

B) Less Populated areas:-

The features of Less population areas of Europe are following:-

1) Less population areas of Europe are Scandinavian highlands, the Alps, the Prynees, Spain plateau and
France plateau.

2) The Tundra region is nearly unpopulated as it remains under snow through the year.

TEXTBOOK QUESTION:-
Q1) Write a note on the Physical Features of Europe. And tell the salient
features of every region, briefly.
A) The European continent may be divided into the following 5 major relief regions:-

1) North Western Mountains and Baltic Shield:-

According to the geologist, the Baltic shield was a vast mountain

region. This mountain in the course of time was worn down by the forces of erosion into its present low
undulating surface.

a) The North and West of this shield lies in the great range of Fold Mountains stretching from the North
of Norway to the west of the Ireland.

b) About 350 million years ago, some great change took place on Earth, as a result sea beds to the North
and North West were raised and folded and then further movements caused part of this great chain of
mountains to sink and now the only Highlands of Norway, Scotland and Ireland remains.

c) These great mountain systems belong to the early geological age of Mountains formation. It has been
greatly worn down by the forces of erosion. The Western edges of Highlands in Norway and Scotland
has steep slopes. Irregular coasts have been formed in a shape of Gulf, Bays known as Fiords coasts.
d) The Battle shield is a part of old Archean rocks. This region has no importance for agriculture but
important for minerals such as iron-ore and copper and forest resources. The Sweden and Norway
Highlands and the Uplands of Sweden are barren areas.

e) This region was under ice sheets in the ancient period and due to their erosion, the tops are rounded
and uneven. Depressions have been formed due to scraping of soft rocks. So soils are thin, poor and not
cultivated.

Therefore this part of Europe is sparsely populated.

2) Vast plains of Northern Europe:-

The salient features of Vast plains of Northern Europe are following:-

a) The Great Northern Europeans plains lie towards the south of the Baltic Shields and the North-
Western Highlands of Europe.

b) It stretches from the Bay of Biscay and the English plains through northern France, Belgium, Holland,
Northern Germany and Poland, to the Great Russian Plains.

c) It is not level. It has low hills, broach valleys, low plateaus, and other irregular features.

d) The basic of Aquitaine in South West France and Paris basin in Northern France are fertile and
productive. But to the East of this fertile stretch in the part of Belgium, Holland, Denmark and Northern
Germany have sand gravel mixed soil and therefore this part of plain is unproductive.

e) To the south of these soils, there are stretches of soil which are fertile losses soils. They are found in
the Northern France, Belgium, Central Germany and Poland.

This area is also important for agriculture.

3) Mountain regions of Central Europe:-

The salient features of Mountain regions of Central Europe are following:-

a) More than 300 million years, after the ancient fold mountains of North Western Europe, another
mountain system came into being known as Hercynian system.

b) With the passage of time these Fold Mountains were worn down greatly to lower heights and broken
into separate blocks called Horst.

c) In the west these mountain regions are located in South West Ireland and South England; the Tiny
Mountains of Western France and the Mesta of Spain are also Block Mountain. The mountains of central
France are also of same category.

d) The mountains of Central Europe are generally not high. They are usually over 300 meter but
somewhere more than 400 meters.
e) Their slopes are also cultivated, but where the slopes are too steep, the land is cut into terraces or
Farming.

f) These Plateaus are also important for their mineral resources e.g. silver and lead in the Bohemian
Plateau.

g) Iron-ore is also available in these block mountains.

4) Young Folded Mountains:-

The salient features of Young Folded Mountains are following:-

a) This mountain system is located in the Southern part of Europe, stretching in a series of curves and
loops from West to East, with some branches running southwards, towards the Mediterranean Sea.

b) These mountains belong to the 3rd mountain formation period according to geological age. This
mountain system was formed only about 35 million years ago. As the Alps Mountains are the highest
mountains of this system, therefore the whole series of young fold mountains are named “The Fold
Alpine Mountain System”.

c) The Alpine Fold Mountains were formed in about the same period as the Himalayas, The Rockies and
the Andes.

d) The Alpine system of Fold Mountains consists of the Cantabrian Mountains (in the north of Spain), the
Pyrenex (between the Spain and France), the Alps and Jura (in the South Eastern France, Switzerland,
Italy and Australia), the Carpathians and the Balkan Mountains (in the Eastern Europe) and Apennine
Mountains (South Italy).

e) The Alps are the highest mountains of South Europe. They form parallel ranges separated by deep
valleys. The highest mountains are covered with snow.

f) The Mount Blanc is the highest peak of it with 4507 meters from sea level. Among these ranges 2
prominent flat plains are present:-

Rivers of Po Basin, Hungarian Plain are located.

5) Russian Platform of Eastern Europe:-

The salient features of Russian Platform of Eastern Europe are following:-

a) It is a plat form of old metamorphic rocks which extends nearly upon the whole Russia.

b) All this is the remnant of ice sheets or glaciers during the ice age.

c) This region is severe cold and under stormy winds, only coal is important in minerals.
Q2) Write a note on the River of Europe.
A) Many rivers of Europe are important economically. Some of the important rivers are mentioned in
the following:-

1) In the East Europe, the Danube Rivers 2849 long rises in Black forest which lies in the north of Alps. As
the main river, along with its tributaries flow through several countries of Europe e.g. Germany,
Australia, Czech Rep, Slovakia, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria and Romania, therefore the Danube is the
most important river of Europe economically.

2) Rivers flowing into the Mediterranean Sea are the Rhine in the France, the Ebro in Spain, and the Po
in Italy.

3) These are several rivers flowing into the Atlantic. Among these the Tagus and the Douro of Spain, the
Garonne and Loire of France are important.

4) River flowing towards the North Sea likes Siene River on which Paris stands. The Rhine is the most
important water way of Germany, in its valley many industries are located and the Elba also most
important due to water way.

All these 3 rivers flow into the North Sea. The Volga (3690) is the longest river of Europe which does not
enter into Sea. It flows into the biggest salt lake of the world, the Caspian Sea.

Q3)
A)

Q4) Write a note on the impact of the Climate of Europe on Agriculture.

A) 1) Areas where climate is not favorable and soil is not suitable for agriculture are very thinly
populated, such as Siberians and cool type desert areas.

2) Areas with fertile soil are well suited for agriculture and are therefore densely populated.

Q5) Write a note on following:-

A) The topics are described in the following:-

1) Winters in Europe:-

The salient features of winter season are following:-

1) In the western and central Europe, the temperature decreases from West to East and in the Eastern
Europe temperature decreases from South to North.
2) In may be observed on the weather map that with the help of 0 c isotherms, the average temperature
of Western Europe remains above freezing point, therefore winters are so severe. It is due to Western
winds blown from the Atlantic Ocean, which moderates the weather.

3) The Atlantic drift (warm current) has also effect upon the climate of western part of the continent and
the Port remains open throughout the year for trade.

2) Summer Season:-

The salient features of Sumer Season are following:-

1) The July isotherms of the continent show that Southern parts are generally warmer than the Northern
parts. The eastern interior areas are also much warmer than the Western and coastal areas.

2) The interior parts of three Southern peninsulas of Europe are hottest areas in summer, where average
July temperature is more than 26.7c. On the other extreme, the temperature in Tundra region is around
10o C.

3) In summer Mediterranean countries are under the influence of North-Eastern trade winds and remain
dry and hot. The western margins bordering the Atlantic have the greatest annual rainfall.

4) In the mountainous areas of Scotland and Norway, the annual rainfall is from 1500mm to 2500mm
annually.

5) Part of the Alps and the Pyrenees also have heavy annual rainfall, but for the greater part of Western
Europe the annual rainfall is between 500mm to 1000mm, the rainfall occurs mostly in autumn and
winter.

There is light rainfall in Tundra areas, lesser then 250mm annually.

Q6) Tell about the region which is most abundant in Mineral resources.
A) The regions which are most abundant in Mineral resources are following:-

1) North Western Mountains and Baltic Shield:-

The Battle shield is a part of old Archean rocks. This region has no
importance for agriculture but important for minerals such as iron-ore and copper and forest resources.

2) Mountain regions of Central Europe:-

These Plateaus are also important for their mineral resources e.g. silver and lead
in the Bohemian Plateau. Iron-ore is also available in these block mountains.
Q7) Write a note on the population and its distribution, in Europe. And
also tell about the reason of less population.
A) The total population of Europe is 75 Crore. The Western and Central Europe are densely populated.
Population is unevenly distributed in the continent. There are large areas, such as the high mountains,
cold temperate forests (coniferous forests) and the Tundra areas are generally unpopulated, while
industrial areas are densely populated.

The main factors determining the distribution of population are:-

1) Climate

2) Relief

3) Soil

4) Minerals wealth.

.) For instance:-

River Po basin (lamber-de-plain) in north Italy, losses soil plains on the northern margin of
the central uplands are well suited for agriculture and are well suited for agriculture and are therefore
densely populated.

A) Densely populated areas:-

The salient features of densely populated areas of Europe are following:-

1) The densely populated areas of Europe are usually found in or around coal fields. This is because coal
was the first main farms of fuel used in the industrial revolution.

2) So the population grew up along the great coal belt stretching from Britain to West Europe and
Central Europe.

3) As the population study of Europe shows that the mostly densely populated areas are:-

a) Holland and Belgium

b) Industrial areas of Britain

c) Industrial areas of France and Germany

d) The Rhine valley

e) North Italian plain and coastal areas of Italy, Spain and Portugal.

B) Less Populated areas:-

The features of Less population areas of Europe are following:-

1) Less population areas of Europe are Scandinavian highlands, the Alps, the Prynees, Spain plateau and
France plateau.

2) The Tundra region is nearly unpopulated as it remains under snow through the year.

.)Reason with the dense and less population in different regions of Europe:-

1) Areas where climate is not favorable and soil is not suitable for agriculture are very thinly populated,
such as Siberians and cool type desert areas.

2) Areas with fertile soil are well suited for agriculture and are therefore densely populated.

3) Whereas the high and rugged mountains areas are thinly populated.