<P> A continent is one of several very large landmasses of the world . Generally identified by convention rather than any strict criteria, up to seven regions are commonly regarded as continents . Ordered from largest in size to smallest, they are: Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia . </P> <P> Geologically the continents largely correspond to areas of continental crust that are found on the continental plates . However some areas of continental crust are regions covered with water not usually included in the list of continents . The area referred to as Zealandia is one such area (see submerged continents below). </P>

What are the names of the earth's seven continents from largest to smallest