Claim: The United States meets the North Atlantic Ocean.

North America is a continent entirely within the Northern Hemisphere and almost all within the Western Hemisphere . It can also be considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas . It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean , to the east by the Atlantic Ocean , to the west and south by the Pacific Ocean , and to the southeast by South America and the Caribbean Sea .   North America covers an area of about 24,709,000 square kilometers -LRB- 9,540,000 square miles -RRB- , about 16.5 % of the earth 's land area and about 4.8 % of its total surface .  North America is the third largest continent by area , following Asia and Africa , and the fourth by population after Asia , Africa , and Europe .   In 2013 , its population was estimated at nearly 565 million people in 23 independent states , or about 7.5 % of the world 's population , if nearby islands -LRB- most notably the Caribbean -RRB- are included .   North America was reached by its first human populations during the last glacial period , via crossing the Bering land bridge approximately 40,000 to 17,000 years ago . The so-called Paleo-Indian period is taken to have lasted until about 10,000 years ago -LRB- the beginning of the Archaic or Meso-Indian period -RRB- . The Classic stage spans roughly the 6th to 13th centuries . The Pre-Columbian era ended with the transatlantic migrations and the arrival of European settlers during the Age of Discovery and the Early Modern period . Present-day cultural and ethnic patterns reflect different kind of interactions between European colonists , indigenous peoples , African slaves and their descendants . European influences are strongest in the northern parts of the continent while indigenous and African influences are relatively stronger in the south . Because of the history of colonialism , most North Americans speak English , Spanish or French and societies and states commonly reflect Western traditions .