A circle of latitude is an imaginary circle around the Earth made up of all the points that have the same particular value for their latitude. These are based on the rotation of the Earth in relationship to the Sun.
The five major circles of latitude are:
- the Antarctic Circle
- the Arctic Circle
- the Equator
- the Tropic of Cancer
- the Tropic of Capricorn
A circle of latitude is often referred to as a "parallel".