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Latin America
Chapters 9-11
Landforms
• The Andes Mountains
– Part of a chain of mountain ranges that include
the Rocky and Sierra Madre mountains of US and
Mexico.
– Many active volcanoes in region
– Creates a barrier for travel inland
• Highlands
– Area in Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French
Guiana, and Brazil
Plains
• Contains rich soil for farming and grass for grazing livestock
• Llanos of Colombia and Venezuela
– Grassy, treeless areas used for livestock
– Similar to the great plains of the US
• Amazon River basin
–
–
–
–
Found in Brazil
Known as the Cerrado savannas
Flat with moderate rainfall
Still underdeveloped
• Pampas of Argentina and Uruguay
– Great area for maintaining cattle and wheat.
Rivers
• Latin America does not have an extensive
network of rivers
– Most areas border water however
• The Orinoco River
– Found mostly in Venezuela
• Amazon River
– Flows about 4,000 miles
– Carries the most water to the ocean than any other
river in the world.
• Parana River
– Origins in the Brazilian highlands
Islands
• The Caribbean Islands consist of three major groups:
– The Bahamas, Greater Antilles, Lesser Antilles
• The Bahamas
– Hundreds of islands spanning from Florida to Cuba.
– Christopher Columbus landed here in search of new lands
• The Greater Antilles- bigger islands
– Include Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola, and Puerto Rico
• The Lesser Antilles- smaller islands
– Divided into Windward and Leeward islands
• Windward islands face winds
• Leeward islands have a more sheltered position
Resources
• Minerals- abundant supply of gold, silver, iron,
copper, tin, lead, and bauxite (aluminum ore)
– Mined in South America and shipped throughout the
world
• Example: Jamaica used to be plantation economy, selling
bananas and sugar until they mined bauxite and has raised
their GDP.
• Energy Resources
– Plentiful oil, coal, natural gas, and uranium
– Trinidad and Tobago has vast reserves of natural gas
• Progressing the nation rapidly
Climate
• Climate Zones– Tropical Wet
• Rainforests that contain over 2,500 types of trees and the
world’s largest snakes, jaguars, and piranhas
– Tropical Wet and Dry
• Support savanna- large grasslands dotted with trees
• Hot climates with seasonal rains
– Semiarid
• Dry with some rain
– Deserts
• Northern Mexico and much of the Peru coast
• The Atacama desert is located in Chile
Agriculture
• Native peoples burned large quantities of forest
for planting and diverted streams to irrigate these
areas.
– The process is called Slash-and-Burn
– Method is still used today and is one reason the
rainforests are shrinking rapidly.
• Terraced Farming
– Growing crops on hillsides or mountain slopes
– Cut steps into the hills
– Reduces soil erosion
Urbanization
• People are moving from rural to urban areas
throughout Latin America.
• In Argentina, Uruguay, and Venezuela, 90% of the
population live in cities.
• Why do people move to cities?
– Better lives- more jobs, better pay
– More food and clothing available
• Push and Pull factors
– Push factors= why people leave the rural areas
• Poor medical care, poor education, low-paying jobs
– Pull factors= why people move to the city
Tourism
• Growing industry in Latin America
• Tourism Advantages:
– Tourists spend money, bring job to area
– Reveal the culture in a positive light
• Tourism Disadvantages:
– Resorts take up vital lands
– Great strain on small communities
– Tourist spots cost lots of money to the local
government
Mexico
• Native groups, Aztecs and the Mayans lived
there until Spanish Conquest, 1519, colonized
the area.
• Aztecs and Mayans were very advanced
cultures before Spanish conquest.
– Mixed population of Native and Spanish blood is
called mestizo.
Mexican Economy
• Two main struggles in economy:
– The gap between the rich and poor is very large
– Mexico is attempting to modernize industry
• Mexicans are moving to cities for better economic
opportunities
• Oil and Manufacturing
– Mexico has a large oil reserve industry
– Have helped to finance development
– Maquiladoras are factories that assemble imported materials
into finished products
• NAFTA
– North American Free Trade Agreement
– Allows trade between Canada, US, and Mexico
Mexican Challenges
• Safety
– Illegal drug cartels compete for control of the billion dollar
industry
– Drug cartels has hurt tourism and driven away foreign
investment
• Emigration
– Mexicans leave their country in search of work
– Money made in US is sent back to Mexico and helps
stimulate local economies
• Work and School
– Mexico has high unemployment due to poor education
and training for jobs
Central America and the Caribbean
• Central America is an Isthmus, a land bridge
between North and South America.
• Area is known as a crossroads of ideas,
cultures, and old world civilizations (Mayans,
Aztecs, etc)
• The Mayans built many temples and cities in
each Central American countries.
– Each state was ruled by a god-king
Central America and the Caribbean
• Spain may have ruled Central America but the
land was claimed by many European powers
• After Columbus settled the region, European
slave traders brought African slaves to work
on plantations
– European countries wanted the profits from the
sugar trade
– Each island had to fight for their independence
• Most came by slave revolt
Central America and the Caribbean
• Culture:
– Central America: mainly Catholic due to European
settlers’ influence
• Speak Spanish
• Spanish altered way of life from bringing new crops to
cutting down trees for animals to graze
– The Caribbean: very mixed ancestry
• Includes European and African ancestry
• Catholic and Protestants
– Santeria: African practices with Catholic elements
– Voodoo and Rastafari also practiced
Central America and the Caribbean
• Economy
– Most people are poor
• Still due to colonialism (sugar plantations)
– Farming sugar, bananas, citrus fruit is main
exports
• Most make their living from farming these
– Panama Canal allows trade from either
hemisphere pass to the other fairly quickly
– Education and jobs for the population are concern
South America
• Divided into two main regions: Spanish-Speaking and
Portuguese-Speaking South America.
– French Guiana part of France
– Suriname speaks Dutch
• The Inca People
– May have crossed from Siberia, to Alaska, and into South
America.
– Built very sophisticated society.
– By the time the Spanish arrive, the Incan empire extended
2,500 miles
– The Spanish came and brought new diseases and weapons
South America Spanish Side
• Like the American and French revolutions,
South American countries sought freedom
from Spain in the 1800s.
– Two leaders for independence were Simon Bolivar
(Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador and Bolivia) and
Jose de San Martin (Argentina, Chile, and Peru)
• Two characteristics of these governments:
– Oligarchy- ruled by a few people
– Military rule
South America Spanish Side
• Economy
– Most countries economy based upon agriculture
and mining oil and minerals.
– The gap between the rich and the poor reflects
poverty and the failures to develop the lives of the
majority of the population.
– Economic Advantages: wide variety of products
• Due to unique combo of landforms, resources, climate,
and vegetation
Brazil
• Spain and Portugal reached an agreement about
South American lands in the 1494 Treaty of
Tordesillas
• Before Portuguese settle Brazil, area was home to
100s of tribes and groups estimated to be over 1
million
– Portuguese tried to find silver and gold
– Settled for clearing out forests and raising sugar
plantations
• Popular settlement due to sugar boom
Brazil
• Settlements and cities are found mainly on the coast
and away from the interior rainforests
– Slaves were brought over to work on large plantations
– As a result many Brazilians are a mix of European, African,
and native ancestry
• Culture
– Becoming a hot-bed for European immigrants
– Speak Portuguese and are mainly practicing Catholics
– Celebrate Carnival, which is a colorful festival to the music
of Samba
– Slums are called favelas- which are violent drug-ridden
areas
Brazil
• Economy
– Natural resources have helped make Brazil an
industrial power
– Power plants along Amazon and other rivers help
power the country
– Still a wide gap in between rich and poor
– People are moving to cities but urbanization has
been slow
– People are also moving inland and away from the
cities of the coast
Latin America Issues
• Rainforests
– Important for cleansing the earth’s atmosphere,
regulate climate, and provide shelter to thousands
of animals
– Poor farmers need the land for growing crops
• Deforestation- cutting down and clearing out trees
– The world needs the timber for population growth
• Countries need the money
– How do you advance society, but keep the earth
healthy?
Latin America Issues
• Democratic Governments
– Oligarchy is not democracy, ruled by a few
– Junta- Military control of the government
– Caudillos- Military dictators or political bosses
• Can be elected by the people (wealthy elite)
– Governments are reforming to make a
constitutional governments
• Also trying to increase women’s roles in politics