Old World

The Old World consists of those parts of the world known to classical antiquity and the European Middle Ages. It is used in the context of, and contrast with, the "New World" (i.e., the Americas and sometimes Oceania, though excluding Australasia).

The Old World comprises Africa, Asia, and Europe (collectively known as Afro-Eurasia), plus surrounding islands (or at least those parts known to classical geography before the 15th century). In its modern usage, it usually includes Australasia.

The concept of the three continents in the Old World goes back to classical antiquity. Their boundaries as defined by Ptolemy and other geographers of antiquity were drawn along the Nile and Don rivers. This definition remained influential throughout the Middle Ages (see T and O map) and the Early Modern period.

• Synoptic table of the principal old world prehistoric cultures