Cape (geography)

Lore & Background

Capes can be formed by glaciers, volcanoes, and changes in sea level, with erosion playing a large role in each method. Coastal erosion by waves and currents can create capes by wearing away softer rock and leaving harder formations. Movements of the Earth's crust can uplift land to form capes, as seen with the Cape of Good Hope, which was formed by tectonic forces. Volcanic eruptions can deposit lava that solidifies into new landforms, such as Cape Verde. Glaciers can carve out capes by eroding the landscape during advance and retreat, as with Cape Cod in the United States, formed during the last Ice Age.

Reader's Guide

Capes have been crucial to maritime navigation since antiquity. The Greeks and Romans considered some capes sacred and erected temples to the sea god nearby. Greek peripli, such as the Periplus of Pseudo-Scylax, describe capes along sailing routes; for example, three capes—Cape Peloro, Cape Pachynus, and Cape Lilybaeum—define Sicily's triangular shape, leading to its ancient name Trinacria (Three Capes). Homer's works reference capes like Cape Malea, which posed peril for Menelaus, Agamemnon, and Odysseus. In later eras, the three great capes—Africa's Cape of Good Hope, Australia's Cape Leeuwin, and South America's Cape Horn—defined the traditional clipper route between Europe and the Far East, Australia and New Zealand, and remain important in ocean yacht racing. Capes continue to serve as bearing aids and waypoints, as seen with Cape Gelidonya on the coast of Turkey and Cape Sidero on Crete.

Did You Know?

• Cape Cod in the United States was formed by glacial activity during the last Ice Age.
• The Cape of Good Hope was formed by tectonic forces.
• Cape Verde is an example of a volcanic cape.
• Sicily was referred to as Trinacria (Three Capes) in antiquity due to its three defining capes.