The Earths oceans are geographically divided into distinct named regions. Historically, there were four named oceans: the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, and Arctic. However, most countries, including the United States, now recognize the Southern (Antarctic) as the fifth ocean. The five oceans from smallest to largest are the Arctic, Southern, Indian, Atlantic, and Pacific. The distinct names used to identify the five different areas of the ocean are the Pacific (the largest), Atlantic, Indian, Antarctic/Southern, and Arctic (the smallest) . Therefore, the five oceans of the world are the Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, Southern, and Arctic.