Internet Culture Project By Mariangeles Ortiz El Salvador Internet Culture Project By Mariangeles Ortiz

History of El Salvador The Pipil Indians, descendants of the Aztecs, likely migrated to the region in the 11th century. In 1525, Pedro de Alvarado, a lieutenant of Cortés's, conquered El Salvador. El Salvador, with the other countries of Central America, declared its independence from Spain on Sept. 15, 1821, and was part of a federation of Central American states until that union dissolved in 1838. El Salvador experienced numerous revolutions and wars against other Central American republics. From 1931 to 1979 El Salvador was ruled by a series of military dictatorships.

History Continued In 1969, El Salvador invaded Honduras after Honduran landowners deported several thousand Salvadorans. The four-day war became known as the “football war” because it broke out during a soccer game between the two countries In the 1970s, discontent with societal inequalities, a poor economy, and the repressive measures of dictatorship led to civil war between the government, and leftist antigovernment guerrilla units. The U.S. intervened on the side of the military dictatorship, despite its scores of human rights violations. On Jan. 16, 1992, the government signed a peace treaty with the guerrilla forces, formally ending the 12-year civil war that had killed 75,000. In March 2012, the government in El Salvador reported a forty percent drop in crime. A gang truce was the reason cited for the drastic drop. For example, in the first two months of 2012, there was an average of 16 murders per day. That number dropped to less than five killings per day in late March 2012. By April 14, 2012, there were no killings per day for the first time in over three years. http://www.infoplease.com/country/el-salvador.html?pageno=3#ixzz2XA9x1MNJ

Location of El Slavador Capital: San Salvador Population:6.22 million https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/es.html

National Flag http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/sv-mil.html Flag changed after 1912 Currently two flags are used, one for State and Government purposes, the other for civil purposes. The blue stripes represent the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea; while the white stripe symbolizes peace. This version is the one used for State and Government purposes. The coat of arms has five flags around the triangle and green branches. Text around it says: REPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL. In the middle of the triangle above the cap is the date 15 DE SET DE 1821 (15th of September, 1821), the independence day. This is the flag used for civil purposes. It read Dios Union Libertad (God, Union and Liberty http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/sv-mil.html

Religion in El Salvador Agnostic-2.3 % Atheist-0.1% Christian- 96.51 % Roman Catholic- 57% Protestant-21.2 % Roman Catholic Agnostic/ Atheist Christianity http://www.thearda.com/internationalData/countries/Country_74_2.asp

Climate in El Salvador Tropical May to October: rainy season November to April: dry season Tropical on Coast http://www.lonelyplanet.com/el-salvador/weather

Language in El Salvador Spanish is the main and official language of El Salvador. The local Spanish vernacular is called Caliche. Nahuat is the indigenous language that has survived, though it is only used by small communities of elderly Salvadorans in western El Salvador. http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/elsalvador.html

Nahuat Alphabet

Education in El Salvador All public and private institutions of learning are under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Education. Since 1968 the school system has been composed of preschool, primary, and secondary educational categories, followed by university-level education. Primary education is free and compulsory. More than four-fifths of Salvadorans aged 10 and over are literate. There are 23 universities in El Salvador. of which some are secular and some have religious affiliations. The normative study period for a bachelor's degree is 4 - 5 years, following which masters and doctorate courses may be followed too. Among the institutions of higher education are the University of El Salvador ,the University Dr. José Matías Delgado, and the Central American University of José Simeón Cañas There are also schools for technology, fine arts, agriculture, social services, and nursing. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/181798/El-Salvador/276678

Education Facts Literacy rate in El-Salvador is 82%. Education is free up to high school. The typical school year runs from January through November. Education is compulsory from ages 7 through 12. Schools in rural areas are inadequate in number, size and qualified staff.

Customs/Etiquette Salvadoran women often pat each other on the right forearm or shoulder, rather than shake hands. Close friends may hug and kiss on the right cheek. Men shake hands with other men and with women, although they wait for the woman to extend her hand. While shaking hands, use the appropriate greeting for the time of day: "buenos dias"(good morning), "buenas tardes" (good afternoon), or "buenas noches" (good evening). In many ways El Salvador is a formal culture where only close friends and family use first names. Refer to people by the appropriate honorific title (Senor or Senora) and their surname until invited to move to a first name basis.

Cultural Norms Machismo survives in a culture where traditional gender roles remain. The man is the breadwinner and the wife looks after the home. From birth, children are raised to understand that they will have different roles and expectations in life. Attitudes have begun to change although machismo is still deeply rooted. More middle- and upper-class females now go to work, although they are still generally relegated to clerical or support positions. http://www.intercultures.ca/cil-cai/ci-ic-eng.asp?iso=sv