This is a list of the top three to five major lakes per region, with links to more detailed region lists of lakes. A "major" lake is defined as that which is the largest by area, depth, volume, or cultural and/or environmental significance.
Africa
Great Lakes of Africa
Lake Albert (Mobuto-Sese-Seko) Lake Chad Lake Edward Lake Fianga Lake Kariba Lake Kivu Lake Tana Lake Mweru Lake Nasser (Lake Nubia in Sudan) Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) Lake Tanganyika Lake Turkana (Lake Rudolf or Rudolph) Lake Victoria shared between Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
Lists by country
Algeria
Angola
Benin
Botswana
Makadikadi Basin
Lake Ngami
Burkina Faso
Cameroon
Lake Awing
Lake Bambili
Lake Bamendjing
Lake Bankim
Lake Barombi
Lake Edip
Lake Kendall
Lake Lagdo
Lake Mbakaou
Lake Monoun
Muanenguba Lakes (Twin Lakes) Lake Nyos Lake Oku Lake Wum
Cape Verde
Central African Republic
Chad
Comoros
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Republic of the Congo
Djibouti
Lake Assal
Egypt
Equatorial Guinea
Eritrea
Eswatini
Ethiopia
Gabon
The Gambia
Ghana
Lake Volta
Lake Bosomtwe
Guinea
Guinea-Bissau
Ivory Coast
Kenya
Lesotho
Liberia
Libya
Madagascar
Lake Alaotra
Lake Bedo
Lake Itasy
Lake Ihotry
Lake Kinkony
Lake Tritriva
Lake Tsimanampetsotsa
Lakes Manambolomaty
Malawi
Lake Chilwa
Lake Malawi
Mali
Mauritania
Lac de Mâl
Mauritius
Morocco
Mozambique
Cabora Bassa Lake
Namibia
Niger
Nigeria
Kainji Lake
Oguta Lake
Asejire Lake
Rwanda
São Tomé and Príncipe
Senegal
Seychelles
Sierra Leone
Somalia
South Africa
South Sudan
Sudan
Roseires Reservoir
Lake No
Lake Nubia (southern reaches of Lake Nasser)
Tanzania
Togo
Tunisia
Uganda
Zambia
Zimbabwe
Antarctica
There are hundreds of lakes deep below the ice of Antarctica.
Basalt Lake
Lake Brownworth
Don Juan Pond
Parochlus Lake
Penny Lake
Lake Pewe
Lake Vanda
Lake Vida
Lake Vostok
Lake Whillans
Asia
International lakes of Asia
Pangong Tso
Lake Baikal – Lake Baikal is located in Siberia in southeastern Russia, just north of Mongolia. Considered the oldest surviving freshwater lake on the planet, it is also the deepest body of water in Asia at , and the largest freshwater lake by volume, containing 20% of the planet's fresh water. An elongated lake, it has a maximum width of with an approximate length of , and is fed by more than 300 rivers and streams. Caspian Sea – Situated between Asia and Europe and fed by the Volga and Ural Rivers in the north, the Caspian Sea is nevertheless somewhat salty in its central and south portions. The surface area measures , with a maximum depth of .
Aral Sea – Also in far-western Asia, just east of the Caspian Sea, the Aral Sea straddles the boundary between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. The Aral Sea is shrinking due to evaporation and diversion for irrigation (among other factors) and what remains (only 10% of its former size) is now almost totally polluted by fertilizer runoff, Soviet weapon testing residue and industrial projects, leading to it being called "one of the planet's worst environmental disasters". North Aral Sea South Aral Sea
Dead Sea – Located on the border of Israel and Jordan.