Africa contains the greatest number of sovereign countries, with 54 widely recognized UN member states.
The continent occupies about one-fifth of Earth's land surface and extends across the equator, the tropics and the subtropics. Its countries include the world's largest country entirely within the tropics, Algeria, and the island nations of Madagascar, Mauritius, Seychelles and Comoros.
Africa's political map reflects ancient kingdoms, European colonial boundaries, independence movements and later diplomatic recognition. The African Union has 55 member states because it includes the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, whose status is disputed and which is not a UN member state.
Counts can vary depending on whether territories and partially recognized states are included. The common quiz answer is Africa because it has 54 internationally recognized sovereign states that are UN members.