'''Антарктида''' ([[юнонӣ{{lang-gr| νταρκτικός}]]. ἀνταρκτικός - муқобили [[Арктика]]) қитъаи ҷанубтарини замин мебошад ва мавқеи ҷуғрофии [[Қутби Ҷануб]] тақрибан дар маркази Антарктида воқеъ аст. Соҳилҳои Антарктидаро аз чор тараф [[Уқёнуси Ҷанубӣ]] иҳота кардааст. Ба ҳисоби миёна Антарктида байни қитъаҳои замин аз ҳама хунуктарин, аз ҳама хушктарин, аз ҳама сербодтарин ва аз ҳама баладтарин ба ҳисоб меравад.<ref>{{cite web | title=National Geophysical Data Center | publisher=National Satellite, Data, and Information Service| url=http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/mgg/image/2minrelief.html | accessdate=9 June | accessyear=2006}}</ref> Масоҳати Антарктида 14425 миллион км² буда, аз рӯи масоҳат байни қитъаҳои хурд баъд аз [[Аврупо]] ва [[Океания]] ҷои сеюмро ишғол менамояд ва 98% он бо [[ях]] пӯшонида шудааст. Because there is little [[Precipitation (meteorology)|precipitation]], except at the coasts, the interior of the continent is technically the largest [[desert]] in the world. There are no permanent human residents and Antarctica has never had an indigenous population. Only cold-adapted plants and animals survive there, including [[penguin]]s, [[fur seals]], [[moss]]es, [[lichen]]s, and many types of [[algae]]. The name "Antarctica" comes from the [[Greek language|Greek]] ''ανταρκτικός'' (''antarktikos''), meaning "opposite the [[Arctic]]." <ref>{{cite web | author=[[Henry Liddell|Liddell, Henry George]] and [[Robert Scott|Scott, Robert]] | work=[[A Greek-English Lexicon]] | publisher=Clarendon Press | title={{polytonic|ἀνταρκτικός}} | year=1940 | url=http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0057:entry=%239514 | accessdate=12 February | accessyear=2006}}</ref>
Although myths and speculation about a ''[[Terra Australis]]'' ("Southern Land") date back to antiquity, the first confirmed sighting of the continent is commonly accepted to have occurred in 1820 by the [[Russia]]n expedition of [[Mikhail Petrovich Lazarev|Mikhail Lazarev]] and [[Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen]]. However, the continent remained largely neglected for the rest of the 19th century because of its hostile environment, lack of resources, and isolated location.
