Continents are, perhaps, the most common way of dividing the globe. Continents are divided based on consensus rather than rules, and the world is broken up into seven continents: Africa, the Americas, Antarctica, Asia, Australia -- sometimes called Oceanian-- Europe, and Antarctica. There are, however, different ways of dividing continents, some of which include six, five or even four major landmasses.
The globe can also be divided by cardinal points: north, south, east and west. These points can refer either to actual geographic positions--the North Pole is in the north, the South Pole is in the south--or geo-political locations. Geo-politically, the "Western world" includes, in general, the advanced industrial democracies of Europe, North America and Oceania; the "East" or "global South" tends to include Africa, Asia and former Soviet states, and even South America.
Although in decreasing use, the globe has been divided into "worlds." The so-called "first world" referred to generally prosperous, capitalist and democratic countries such as the United States, Great Britain, France, Canada, Australia, and Japan. The "second world" referred to Soviet or "communist" states such as Russia, China and several Eastern European states. The "third world" referred to the poorest countries of the world, found in Africa, Asia and South America.
The globe can also be divided into ecosystems and landforms. Major ecosystems include forests, deserts, grasslands and tundra. Major landforms include mountain ranges and bodies of water such as lakes and oceans. The globe contains four major oceans: the Pacific, Atlantic, Indian and Arctic oceans, as well as a number of major lakes--such as Russia's Lake Baikal or Canada's Lake Superior--and seas such as the Baltic Sea or the Sea of Japan. Landforms and ecosytems vary throughout the world, but a given type of system or form may appear in several countries.