非洲 (Fēizhōu) is the Chinese name for the continent of Africa. The character 非 (Fēi) originally meant 'not' or 'un-', but in this context it serves purely as a phonetic component, contributing to the pronunciation rather than the meaning. The character 洲 (zhōu) means 'continent' or 'large landmass surrounded by water', and appears in names of all continents in Chinese (e.g., 亚洲 Yàzhōu 'Asia', 欧洲 Ōuzhōu 'Europe'). Together, 非洲 functions as a proper noun referring specifically to the African continent — its geography, cultures, wildlife, and people.

This word is used in geographical, historical, scientific, and cultural contexts — for example, when discussing climate, biodiversity, international relations, or travel. It’s commonly paired with words like 大陆 (dàlù, 'continent'), 国家 (guójiā, 'country'), or 动物 (dòngwù, 'animal') to form compound terms. Unlike some other place names, 非洲 is always written without spaces or hyphens and never pluralized in Chinese.