Major Mountains of the World

Major Mountains of the World is an important topic in World Geography, focusing on the highest and most significant mountain ranges across different continents. These mountains influence climate, river systems, biodiversity, and human settlements. Understanding their distribution, formation, and geographical significance is essential for studying physical geography and environmental patterns globally.

Major Mountains of the World

North America

Mountain Range/Peak	Country	Features
Brooks Range	USA (Alaska)	Northernmost mountain range of Alaska Highest Peak: Mount Isto
Alaska Range	USA (Alaska)	Highest Peak: Denali (Mount McKinley) – 6,190 m The highest peak in North America
Kuskokwim Mountains	USA (Alaska)
Mackenzie Mountains	Canada (Yukon and Northwest Territories)
Torngat Mountains	Canada (Labrador)	Ancient Precambrian mountains Steep fjorded terrain Part of the Canadian Shield Highest Peak: Mount Caubvick
Norte Dame Mountains	Canada (Quebec)	Extension of the Appalachian mountain system in eastern Canada.
Mount Gunnbjorn	Greenland (Denmark)	The highest peak of Greenland
CoastRange / Coast Mountains	Canada (British Columbia) and Southeastern Alaska (USA)	Glaciated mountains along the Pacific Coast Formed by subduction Includes Mount Waddington
Cascade Range	USA (Washington, Oregon, N. California)	Volcanic chain forming part of the Pacific Ring of Fire Known for active volcanoes Major Peaks: Mount Rainier, Mount St. Helens, Mount Hood, Mount Adams
Blue Mountains	USA (Oregon)	Uplifted block mountains, Part of the Columbia Plateau boundary
Sierra Nevada Mountains	USA (California, Nevada)	Steep fault-block range with glaciated peaks and large lakes. Highest Peak: Mount Whitney — Highest in the continental USA.
Rocky Mountains	Canada & USA	Highest Peak: Mount Elbert (USA)
Absaroka Mountains	USA (Montana, Wyoming)	Volcanic origin Near Yellowstone National Park.
Wasatch Mountains	USA (Utah)	Fault-block mountains Western edge of the Rockies
Chuska Mountains	USA (Arizona – New Mexico)	Volcanic highlands on the southwest Colorado Plateau
Sacramento Mountains	USA (New Mexico)	Forested limestone mountains Part of southern Rockies
Sierra Madre Occidental	Mexico	Highest Peak: Cerro Mohinora
Sierra Madre Oriental	Mexico	Fold mountains parallel to Gulf of Mexico
Sierra Madre del Sur	Mexico
Sierra Maestra	Cuba	Highest Peak: Pico Turquino
Cordillera Central	Dominican Republic
Cordillera Isabella/Isabelia	Nicaragua-Honduras
Maya Mountains	Belize and eastern Guatemala
Appalachian Mountains	USA, Canada (extends to Newfoundland)	Ancient fold mountains (~480 million years old) Highly eroded and rich in coal. Subranges: Blue Ridge Mountains: Mount Mitchell- the highest in the Appalachians. Allegheny Mountains: Western Appalachians Ouachita Mountains: Arkansas-Oklahoma Norte Dame Mts: (Canada extension)

South America

Mountain Range/Peak	Country	Features
Cordillera de Mérida	Venezuela	Northern extension of Andes Highest peak of Venezuela- Pico Bolívar
Mount Roraima	Venezuela–Guyana–Brazil
Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta	Northern Colombia	Highest peak of Colombia- Pico Cristóbal Colón
Cordillera Oriental	Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia	Eastern branch of the Andes
Cordillera Occidental	Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile	Western branch of the Andes
Chimborazo	Ecuador
Mt. Cotopaxi	Ecuador
Mt. Huascaran	Peru
Cordillera de los Andes	Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina	Longest continental mountain range in the world (~7,000 km) Forms the western edge of South America Contains Atacama Desert in Chile and Altiplano Plateau in Bolivia
Wilhelmina Mountains	Suriname	Part of ancient Precambrian rocks Source of major rivers like Coppename Juliana Top- Highest point in Suriname
Serra Tumucumaque	Brazil, Suriname / French Guiana border
Serra De Mar	Brazil	Parallel to Atlantic coast
Serra da Mantiqueira	Brazil	Part of Brazilian Highlands
Goiás Mountains (Serra de Goiás)	Brazil
Sierra de Mareajó	Brazil
Nevado Ojos del Salado	Chile–Argentina border	Highest volcano on earth Highest peak in Chile
Paine Mountains (Cordillera del Paine)	Chile (Southern Patagonia)
Mt. Aconcagua	Argentina	Highest peak of South America

Europe

Mountain Range / Peak	Country	Features
Mt. Hekla	Iceland
Scandinavian Mountains (Scandes)	Norway, Sweden	Runs along the western Scandinavian Peninsula Formed by the ancient Caledonian orogeny Known for fjords and glaciated landscapes Highest peak: Galdhøpiggen
Kjolen Mountain Range (part of Scandes)	On the border of Norway and Sweden
Galdhøpiggen	Norway (Scandinavian Mountains)	The highest peak in Northern Europe
Scottish Highlands	United Kingdom (Scotland)	Old crystalline rocks Glaciated valleys and lakes Highest peak: Ben Nevis
Grampian Mountains	Scotland (UK)
Pennines	United Kingdom (England)	“Backbone of England” Extends north-south through central England Composed of Carboniferous limestone and gritstone
Cambrian Mountains	Wales (UK)
Cantabrian Mountains	Northern Spain	Extends ~300 km parallel to Bay of Biscay Rich in coal and iron ore
Central Cordilleras	Spain
Pyrenees	Spain, France	Natural border between Spain and France Older than Alps Highest peak: Aneto
Aneto Peak	Spain (Pyrenees)	The highest peak in Pyrenees
Sierra Nevada (Spain)	Southern Spain (Andalusia)	Continental Spain’s highest point: Mulhacen
Sierra Morena	Southern Spain
Betican Cordilleras	Spain (Andalusia region)
Massif Central	France (Central)	Separated from the Alps by the Rhône Valley
Vosges Mountains	France (Eastern, Alsace)	Parallel to Black Forest (Germany) Separated by the Rhine River Highest peak: Grand Ballon
Jura Mountains	France, Switzerland	Fold mountains formed during Alpine orogeny Limestone composition Known for karst topography
Alps	France, Switzerland, Italy, Austria, Germany, Slovenia, Liechtenstein, Monaco	Young fold mountains (Alpine orogeny) Highest peak: Mont Blanc
Mont Blanc	France–Italy Border (Alps)	Highest in the Alps & Western Europe
Monte Rosa (Dufourspitze)	Switzerland–Italy (Pennine Alps)	Highest in Switzerland
Dom	Switzerland (Pennine Alps)	The highest peak entirely within Switzerland
Black Forest (Schwarzwald)	Germany	Source of rivers: Danube and Neckar
Harz Mountains	Central Germany	Ancient block mountains Highest Peak: Brocken
Bohemian Massif	Czech Republic	Large dissected plateau-massif encircled by Ore and Sudetes mountains
Sudetes	Poland, The Czech Republic, and Germany	Old fold mountains (Variscon orogeny) Highest peak: Śnieżka
Apennines	Italy	Highest peak: Corno Grande
Corno Grande	Italy (Apennines)	The highest peak in the Apennine Range
Dolomites	Northern Italy	Part of the Southern Limestone Alps UNESCO World Heritage Site
Mount Etna	Italy (Sicily)	Active volcano One of the world’s most active
Mt. Vesuvius	Italy (near Naples)
Dinaric Alps	Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania	Parallel to the Adriatic coast Karst topography (caves, sinkholes) Highest peak: Maja Jezercë
Maja Jezercë	Albania (Dinaric Alps)	Highest in the Dinaric Alps
Pindus Mountains	Greece, Albania	“Spine of Greece” Extension of Dinaric Alps
Mt. Olympus	Greece
Balkan Mountains	Bulgaria, Serbia	Eastern Balkan Peninsula Extending to the Black Sea Highest peak: Botev Peak
Botev Peak	Bulgaria (Balkan Mountains)	Central Balkan National Park
Rhodope Mountains	Bulgaria & Greece
Tatra Mountains	Part of Carpathian mountains (Slovakia–Poland)
Carpathian Mountains	Romania, Slovakia, Ukraine, Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic	Arc-shaped; ~1,500 km long Europe’s third-longest range Highest peak: Gerlach Ovský štít
Gerlach Ovský štít	Slovakia (Carpathians)	The highest peak in the Carpathians
Ural Mountains	Russia, Kazakhstan	Natural boundary between Europe & Asia (Paleozoic) Highest peak: Mount Narodnaya
Mount Narodnaya	Russia (Ural Mountains)	The highest point in the Urals
Caucasus Mountains	Russia, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan	Between Black Sea & Caspian Sea The boundary between Europe & Asia Mount Elbrus – Europe’s highest peak
Mount Elbrus	Russia (Caucasus Mountains)	The highest peak in Europe Dormant volcano

Africa

Mountain Range / Peak	Country	Features
Atlas Mountains	Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia	Divided into High, Middle, Anti, and Saharan Atlas Separates the Mediterranean Sea from the Sahara Desert
High Atlas	Morocco	Mt. Toubkal -the highest peak in North Africa
Middle Atlas	Morocco
Anti Atlas	Morocco
Saharan Atlas	Algeria
Ahaggar (Hoggar) Mountains	Southern Algeria	Mount Tahat
Tibesti Mountains	Northern Chad, Southern Libya	Emi Koussi The highest in the Sahara Desert
Emi Koussi	Chad
Air Mountain Plateau	Niger
Fouta Djallon Mountain Plateau	Guinea	Source of Niger & Senegal rivers
Loma Mountains	Sierra Leone	Mount Bintumani- the highest in Sierra Leone
Cameroon Mountains	Cameroon	Mount Cameroon– active volcano
Adamawa Mountains	Nigeria, Cameroon
Ethiopian Highlands	Ethiopia	Known as “Roof of Africa “Peak-Ras Dashen
East African Mountains	Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda
Mount Kenya	Kenya	2nd highest in Africa Mount Kirinyaga is the local (Kikuyu) name of Mount Kenya
Mount Elgon	Kenya / Uganda
Mount Kilimanjaro	Tanzania	Highest peak in Africa
Mitumba Mountains	Democratic Republic of Congo
Muchinga Mountains	Zambia
Matobo Hills / Mountains	Zimbabwe	UNESCO Heritage Site Prehistoric rock art
Drakensberg Mountains	South Africa, Lesotho	Peak- Thabana Ntlenyana
Swartberge Mountains	South Africa
Nuweveldberge Mountains	South Africa
Auas Mountains	Namibia	Auheib Peak

Asia

Mountain Range/Peak	Country	Fetaures
Pontine Mountains	Turkey	Part of the Northern Anatolian mountain system near the Black Sea.
Taurus Mountains	Southern Turkey	Separates the coastal region from the Anatolia plateau.
Zagros Mountains	Iran, Iraq	The longest mountain range in Iran
Elburz (Alborz) Mountains	Northern Iran	Mount Damavand– the highest peak in Iran and it is a volcanic peak.
Hindu Kush Range	Afghanistan, Pakistan	The ancient trade route, the Khyber Pass, connects with the Karakoram
Karakoram Range	Pakistan, India, China	K2 (Godwin-Austen) – 2nd highest peak in the world; part of Pamir Knot
Pamir Mountains (Pamir Knot)	Tajikistan, Afghanistan, China, Pakistan	Known as “Roof of the World,” the junction of major Asian mountain systems – the Himalaya, Karakoram, Tien Shan, and Hindu Kush.
Tien Shan Mountains	Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, China
Kunlun Mountains	Western China
Altun Shan	Western China
Arakan Yoma	Myanmar (Burma)	Forms border between Myanmar and Bangladesh
Yablonovy Range	Russia (Siberia)
Stanovoy Range	Russia (Siberia)
Verkhoyansk Range	Russia (northeastern Siberia)
Chersky Range	Russia (north east)
Kolyma Range	Russia
Koryak Range	Russia (Kamchatka Peninsula)	Volcanic region; part of the Pacific Ring of Fire.
Stanovoy Highlands/Range	Russia
Altai Mountains	Russia, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, China	The origin of major rivers like the Ob and Irtysh.
Sayan Mountains	Russia, Mongolia	Divide Siberia from Mongolia
Yenisei Range	Russia (Central Siberia)	Running along the right bank of Yenisei River
Tien Shan Mountains	Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, China
Nan Shan Mountains	China
Khingan Range	North Eastern China
Changbai Mountain	China-North Korea border	Mount Paektu – sacred mountain
Qinling Mountains	Central China	Divides North and South China
Taihang Mountains	Northern China
Annamite Range	Laos, Vietnam
Tien Shan Range	Central Asia
Zagros Mountains	Iran, Iraq
Kun Lun Range	Western China	Forms the northern edge of Tibetan Plateau Also known as “Backbone of Asia”
Sulaiman Range	Pakistan	Continuation of the Hindu Kush Forms the western boundary of the Indus Plain
Kirthar Range	Pakistan	Forms a natural boundary between Balochistan and Sindh
Shan Hills	Myanmar
Mount Damavand	Iran	The highest volcanic peak in Asia
Mount Paektu	China/North Korea	Volcanic mountain with a crater lake
Mount Fuji	Japan	Active stratovolcano, cultural symbol of Japan
Hijaz/Hejaz Mountains	Saudi Arabia (Western Arabia, along the Red Sea coast)
Chagai Hills	Pakistan (Balochistan)
Makran Range	Pakistan (Balochistan Coast)
Siahan Range	Pakistan (South Balochistan)
Central Brahui Range	Pakistan (Central Balochistan)
Salt Range	Pakistan (Punjab Province)	Part of the Potwar Plateau. Separates the Potwar Plateau from the Punjab Plain.

Australia

Mountain Range/Peak	Country	Features
Hamersley Range	Western Australia	Contains Mount Meharry, the highest peak in Western Australia.
Darling Range	Southwestern Australia
Stirling Range	Southwestern Australia	Bluff Knoll- the highest peak in the south-west.
MacDonnell Range	Central Australia
Musgrave Range	South Australia	Mount Woodroffe- the highest peak in South Australia.
Warburton Range	Central Australia
Great Dividing Range	Eastern Australia (Queensland to Victoria)
New England Range	Eastern Australia
Grey Range	Southwestern Queensland
Gregory Range	Northern Queensland
Mount Kosciuszko	New South Wales	The highest mountain in mainland Australia (2,228 m). Part of the Great Dividing Range.
Mount Meharry	Hamersley Range, Western Australia
Mount Woodroffe	Musgrave Range, South Australia
Mount Zeil	MacDonnell Ranges
Mount Ossa	Tasmania
Southern Alps	New Zealand	Mount Cook / Aoraki- New Zealand’s highest peak (3,724 m)

Antarctica

Mountain Ranges	Location	Features
Transantarctic Mountains	Extend across the continent, dividing East and West Antarctica	One of the longest mountain ranges in the world (Approx. 3,500 km).
Ellsworth Mountains	West Antarctica	Mount Vinson (4,892 m)-the highest peak in Antarctica
Queen Maud Mountains	Part of the Transantarctic Range	Mount Kirkpatrick
Prince Charles Mountains	East Antarctica
Pensacola Mountains	East Antarctica	Near the Weddell Sea
Admiralty Mountains	East Antarctica
Queen Alexandra Range	Transantarctic Mountains
Gamburtsev Mountains	Buried beneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet

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