Continents of the World's Five Largest Lakes

The five largest lakes by surface area span four continents:

1. Caspian Sea (371,000 km²) — Europe/Asia border (Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkmenistan, Iran, Azerbaijan). Technically an endorheic saline lake.
2. Lake Superior (82,100 km²) — North America (USA/Canada border). Largest freshwater lake by area.
3. Lake Victoria (68,870 km²) — Africa (Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya). Largest tropical lake.
4. Aral Sea (~33,000 km², formerly 68,000 km²) — Asia (Kazakhstan/Uzbekistan). Catastrophically shrunk by irrigation diversion.
5. Lake Huron (59,600 km²) — North America (USA/Canada). Includes Georgian Bay & Manitoulin Island (world's largest lake island).

Note: By volume, Lake Baikal (Asia) ranks #1 freshwater; Tanganyika (Africa) #2. The Caspian holds 78,200 km³—more than all five Great Lakes combined.