Azeroth

Throughout the Warcraft Universe sources the term Azeroth is used to describe several things:


 * The world of Azeroth - The name of the world in which the World of Warcraft takes place (save Outland).


 * The Kingdom of Azeroth - One of the Seven Kingdoms of humans, also called the Kingdom of Stormwind.


 * The continent of Azeroth - One of the three continents that comprise the Eastern Kingdoms.


 * Eastern Kingdoms - In some sources the term "Azeroth" is used interchangeable with Eastern Kingdoms.

Warcraft: Orcs & Humans
In Warcraft: Orcs & Humans the term Azeroth refers to the kingdom in most cases, and it can be implied that it is a world in only one quote. It can be assumed that, when the game was released, the kingdom and land of Azeroth were one and the same. At the time, the kingdom of Azeroth was the only part of the world known to the player, thus it is possible that the reference to the world and other undefined uses of the term were actually referring to the same thing but were given different uses in the later games.

Tides of Darkness
In Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness in most cases it is referred as a kingdom, but is also referred as a continent and as a world.

Beyond the Dark Portal
In Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal is refered as both, a kingdom, and a world.

Reign of Chaos
In Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos is referred as a kingdom, as a land (continent) and as a world. It is revealed that the world was called Azeroth by it's inhabitants.

The Frozen Throne
In Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne is referred as a world.

Warcraft: The Roleplaying Game
The term Azeroth is used to refer the world, the kingdom and the continent. It is also used as an alternate name of the Eastern Kingdoms.

World of Warcraft
In World of Warcraft's manual the term Azeroth is used to refer the world, but also used to refer one of the three continents that comprise the Eastern Kingdoms:


 * Throughout this manual and in the game itself, you will find the name Azeroth used in two different contexts. Azeroth is both the name of the world of Warcraft, and the name of one of the three continents that comprise the Eastern Kingdoms, the landmass opposite of Kalimdor on the world map. The other two continents of the Eastern Kingdoms are Loch Modan in the center and Lordaeron in the north. Sometimes you will see reference to Azeroth the world, and other times you will see reference to Azeroth the continent.

Although it's stated that there are two terms, there appears to be another use of the term Azeroth: an alternate name of the Eastern Kingdoms. This use is also used in Lands of Conflict and in an in-game quest.

Because the original World of Warcraft took place on the world of Azeroth, but only on the continents of Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor, some players colloquially refer to that combined area (the original World of Warcraft content), as "Azeroth" or "Classic Azeroth" as distinct from "Northrend" which refers to Wrath-specific geography and content. This use of the word is incorrect however, and isn't supported by any lore source of Blizzard; it is used only in the FAQ of World of Warcraft: Cataclysm.

A related incorrect usage by Blizzard is for the meta-achievement, which requires completing the related achievement for Outland (which is not part of Azeroth).

World of Warcraft: The Roleplaying Game
It is used to refer the world, a continent and a country/kingdom. It appears that Azeroth is also used interchangeable with the Eastern Kingdoms.

Origins of the name

 * The name of a world in the science fiction book Fires of Azeroth by C.J. Cherryh. Interestingly, some of the themes in this book and the trilogy it ends (namely of world-crossing "Gates") sound similar to those in Warcraft, and this book first was published in 1979, well before the first Warcraft game.
 * Word from the Publisher
 * There was a star Gate in Azeroth marked by alien fires that Morgaine must seal. But Morgaine and Vanye have brought devastation to the peaceful land. For the hordes of Shiuan were on their heels, determined to conquer a new land for themselves and to avenge their lost planet.
 * In the Bible, there are several places with names that sound similar to Azeroth, most notably.