Massif



A massif is a principal mountain mass, such as a compact portion of a mountain range, containing one or more summits (e.g. France's Massif Central). In mountaineering literature, a massif is frequently used to denote the main mass of an individual mountain.

As a purely scientific term in geology, however, a "massif" is separately and more specifically defined as a section of a planet's crust that is demarcated by faults or flexures. In the movement of the crust, a massif tends to retain its internal structure while being displaced as a whole. A massif is a smaller structural unit than a tectonic plate and is considered the fourth-largest driving force in geomorphology.

The word "massif" originates from French (in which the word also means "massive"), where it is used to refer to a large mountain mass or compact group of connected mountains forming an independent portion of a range. The Face on Mars is an example of an extraterrestrial massif. Massifs may also form underwater, as with the Atlantis Massif.

Africa

 * Adrar des Ifoghas – Mali
 * Aïr Massif – Niger
 * Ambohiby Massif – Madagascar
 * Benna Massif – Guinea
 * Bongo Massif – Central African Republic
 * Ennedi Plateau – Chad
 * Kilimanjaro Massif – Kenya–Tanzania
 * Oban Massif – Nigeria
 * Marojejy Massif – Madagascar
 * Mulanje Massif – Malawi
 * Virunga Massif – Uganda–Rwanda–DR Congo
 * Waterberg Biosphere – South Africa

Algeria

 * Collo Massif
 * Edough Massif
 * Khachna Massif

Antarctica

 * Borg Massif
 * Craddock Massif
 * Cumpston Massif
 * Vinson Massif
 * Otway Massif

Asia

 * Annapurna – Nepal
 * Bromo-Tengger-Semeru – Indonesia
 * Chu Pong Massif – Vietnam
 * Dhaulagiri – Nepal
 * Gasherbrum – China-Pakistan
 * Kangchenjunga – Nepal–India
 * Knuckles Massif – Sri Lanka
 * Kondyor Massif – Russia
 * Kugitangtau Ridge – Turkmenistan
 * Kumgangsan – North Korea
 * Logar ultrabasite massif – Afghanistan
 * Mount Ararat – Turkey
 * Mount Everest massif (including Lhotse) – Nepal–Tibet (China)
 * Mount Kinabalu – Malaysia
 * Mount Tomuraushi – Japan
 * Nanga Parbat – Pakistan

India

 * Bundelkhand
 * Nun Kun
 * Panchchuli
 * Shillong

Iran

 * Dena
 * Hazaran
 * Kheru-Naru (Chekel)
 * Kholeno
 * Mount Damavand
 * Sabalan
 * Takht-e Suleyman Massif
 * Zard-Kuh

Kazakhstan

 * Degelen
 * Kokshetau Massif
 * Mount Ku
 * Myrzhyk
 * Semizbughy

Europe



 * Aarmassif – Switzerland
 * Ardennes Massif – France–Belgium–Luxembourg
 * Åreskutan – Sweden
 * Arlberg – Austria
 * Bohemian Massif – Czech Republic
 * Ceahlău Massif – Romania
 * Gotthard Massif – Switzerland
 * Hesperian Massif – Iberian Peninsula
 * Jungfrau Massif – Switzerland
 * Mangerton Mountain – Ireland
 * Montgris – Spain
 * Montserrat – Spain
 * Mont Blanc massif – Italy–France–Switzerland
 * Rhenish Massif – Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg and France
 * Rila – Rhodope Massif – Bulgaria–Greece
 * Troodos – Cyprus
 * Untersberg – Germany–Austria
 * Vitosha Massif – Bulgaria

France

 * Alpilles
 * Aravis Range
 * Armorican Massif
 * Bauges Massif
 * Beaufortain Massif
 * Belledonne massif
 * Bornes Massif
 * Calanques Massif
 * Cerces Massif
 * Chablais Massif
 * Chartreuse Massif
 * Dévoluy Mountains
 * Massif des Écrins
 * Jura Mountains
 * Lauzière massif
 * Luberon
 * Massif Central
 * Massif de l'Esterel
 * Massif du Mercantour-Argentera
 * Monte Cinto massif
 * Taillefer Massif
 * Queyras Massif
 * Vanoise Massif
 * Vercors Plateau
 * Vosges Mountains

Italy

 * Gran Sasso d'Italia
 * Grappa Massif
 * Massiccio del Matese
 * Massiccio del Pollino
 * Monte Ermada
 * Sila Massif
 * Speikboden (South Tyrol)

United Kingdom

 * Ben Nevis massif
 * Cornubian Massif
 * Long Mynd
 * Snowdon Massif
 * Ben Klibreck
 * Cairngorms massifs

Canada

 * Laurentian Massif
 * Le Massif de Charlevoix
 * Mount Logan
 * Mount Cayley
 * Level Mountain
 * Mount Edziza
 * Mount Meager massif
 * Mount Septimus

United States

 * Adirondack Massif
 * Denali
 * Grandfather Mountain
 * Mount Juneau
 * Mount Katahdin
 * Mount Le Conte
 * Mount Shuksan
 * Mount Timpanogos
 * Shenandoah
 * French Broad
 * Teton Range

Oceania

 * Big Ben – Heard Island
 * Ahipara Gumfields – New Zealand

Caribbean

 * Massif de la Hotte – Haiti
 * Valle Nuevo Massif – Dominican Republic

South America

 * Brasilia Massif – Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay.
 * Neblina Massif – Venezuela–Brazil
 * Colombian Massif – Colombia
 * North Patagonian Massif – Argentina
 * Deseado Massif – Argentina

Submerged

 * Atlantis Massif – part of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge in the North Atlantic Ocean
 * Tamu Massif — the largest volcano on Earth