There are seven continents in existence today and this is what is taught to every student in Geography. Asia, Europe, Africa, North America, South America, Australia, and Antarctica are the seven known continents in the existing world. In the past, there have been talks of sunken continents which include the fabled Atlantis but conclusive proof of its existence has been found to date.
However, recently Geologists have discovered a new continent that was hidden for the last 375 years. This newly discovered continent is known as Zealandia or Te Riu-a-Māui in the Māori language which is the tongue of the native tribes of New Zealand.
‘Zealandia’ Continent Took 375 Years To Be Uncovered
There have been debates for centuries about the existence of the continent. It was part of a continent known as a supercontinent called Gondwana. Gondwana included much of Western Antarctica and Eastern Australia, over 500 million years ago and Zealandia was also a part of this land mass before it detached or separated.
As per TOI, Zealandia is 1.89 million square miles in size and the first written documentation of it was in the chronicles of Dutch businessman and sailor Abel Tasman in 1642. He was in search of the elusive Great Southern Continent especially after it was mentioned by the local Māori. Tasman was initially met with displeasure by the local Māori but was able to win their trust later.
It was only in 2017 that geologists were able to discover the continent which was hidden for thousands of years. Scientists have still not been able to explain why the huge land mass got pulled away from the Gondwana land mass.
However, as per the geologists at the Zealand Crown Research Institute GNS Science, much of the land mass of Zealandia is under water and could be one of the reasons why it has taken so much time to be uncovered.
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