Regions of Europe
Europe, the westernmost portion of Eurasia—is often divided into regions and subregions based on geographical, cultural or historical criteria. Many European structures currently exist. Some are cultural, economic, or political; examples include the Council of Europe, the European Broadcasting Union with the Eurovision Song Contest, and the European Olympic Committees with the European Games. Russia dominates the continent by both area and population; spanning roughly 40% of its total landmass, with over 15% of its total population. Several countries are often included as belonging to a "wider Europe", including Cyprus; Greenland; the Caucasus countries of Armenia , Azerbaijan, and Georgia; the two mainly Asian countries of Kazakhstan and Turkey; as well as the overseas territories and regions of the European Union. Subregions. Groupings by compass directions are the hardest to define in Europe, since there are a few calculations of the midpoint of Europe (among other issues), and the pure geographical criteria of "east" and "west" are often confused with the political meaning these words acquired during the Cold War Era. The modern geographical subregions of Europe include: Note: There is no universally agreed definition for continental subregions. Depending on the source, some of the subregions, such  as Central Europe or South-eastern Europe, can be listed as first-tier subregions. Some transregional countries, such as Romania or the United Kingdom, can be included in multiple subregions. The modern geopolitical subregions of Europe include: Two Europes Three Europes Historical divisions. Europe can be divided along many differing historical lines, normally corresponding to those parts that were inside or outside a particular cultural phenomenon, empire or political division. The areas varied at different times, and so it is arguable as to which were part of some common historical entity (e.g., were Germany or Britain part of Roman Europe  as they were only partly and relatively briefly part of the Empire—or were the countries of the former communist Yugoslavia part of the Eastern Bloc, since it was not in the Warsaw Pact).