Geographic Locations
| Definition: |
All of the continents and every country situated within, the UNITED STATES and each of the constituent states arranged by region, CANADA and each of its provinces, AUSTRALIA and each of its states, the major bodies of water and major islands on both hemispheres, and selected major cities. Although the geographic locations are not printed in INDEX MEDICUS as main headings, in indexing they are significant in epidemiologic studies and historical articles and for locating administrative units in education and the delivery of health care. |
| Notes: |
not used for indexing or cataloging; Cat Z: do not confuse with GEOGRAPHY (Cat H); rules on Cat Z terms as coords: Manual section 36; DF: GEOGR LOCATIONS |
| Previously Indexed: |
specific geographic location (1966-1997) |
Geographic Locations Categories.
 |
Africa |
|
Americas - The general name for NORTH AMERICA; CENTRAL AMERICA; and SOUTH AMERICA unspecified or combined. |
|
Antarctic Regions - The continent lying around the South Pole and the southern waters of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans. It includes the Falkland Islands Dependencies. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p55) |
|
Arctic Regions - The Arctic Ocean and the lands in it and adjacent to it. It includes Point Barrow, Alaska, most of the Franklin District in Canada, two thirds of Greenland, Svalbard, Franz Josef Land, Lapland, Novaya Zemlya, and Northern Siberia. (Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p66) |
|
Asia - The largest of the continents. It was known to the Romans more specifically as what we know today as Asia Minor. The name comes from at least two possible sources: from the Assyrian asu (to rise) or from the Sanskrit usa (dawn), both with reference to its being the land of the rising sun, i.e., eastern as opposed to Europe, to the west. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p82 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, 1992, p34) |
|
Atlantic Islands - Widely scattered islands in the Atlantic Ocean as far north as the AZORES and as far south as the South Sandwich Islands, with the greatest concentration found in the CARIBBEAN REGION. They include Annobon Island, Ascension, Canary Islands, Falkland Islands, Fernando Po (also called Isla de Bioko and Bioko), Gough Island, Madeira, Sao Tome and Principe, Saint Helena, and Tristan da Cunha. |
|
Australia - The smallest continent and an independent country, comprising six states and two territories. Its capital is Canberra. |
|
Europe |
|
Historical Geographic Locations - Countries known in remote history (as BYZANTIUM) or former names of countries reflecting political changes in the 20th century (as GERMANY, EAST). |
|
Indian Ocean Islands - Numerous islands in the Indian Ocean situated east of Madagascar, north to the Arabian Sea and east to Sri Lanka. Included are COMOROS (republic), MADAGASCAR (republic), Maldives (republic), MAURITIUS (parliamentary democracy), Pemba (administered by Tanzania), REUNION (a department of France), and SEYCHELLES (republic). |
|
Oceania - The islands of the central and South Pacific, including Micronesia, Melanesia, Polynesia, and traditionally Australasia. (Random House Dictionary, 2d ed) |
|
Oceans and Seas |
Geographic Locations Definitions and Terms
MedicalGlossary.org is designed as a free, browsable resource for all. The medical terms and definitions are not intended to replace medical informaion provided by licensed healthcare professionals. Please see a doctor if you need medical assistance. Don't see the medical term you were researching? Send us an e-mail from our "about us" page. We will do our best to research and classify new medical terms in a timely manner. Our current list of medical terms is over 26,000. Data sources include the U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2004 Medical Subject Headings.
|
