Why is Latin America Known as Latin America? Unit: Latin America

Where is Latin America? Mexico, The Caribbean, Central America, and South America make up Latin America Latin America is located in the Western Hemisphere and in the Southern and Northern Hemispheres

Language of Latin America The most commonly spoken language in Latin America is Spanish Throughout Latin America, there are different dialects of Spanish English is also a major language in Latin America

Religion of Latin America The major religion in Latin America is Christianity

Colonization of Mexico Hernando Cortes landed on the Mexican coast in 1519, this became known as the Spanish Conquest Gold and silver contributed to the success of the Spanish empire The Spanish brought their language and their religion

Colonial Central America Central America is a cultural hearth – a place from which important ideas spread After the Spanish conquered Mexico, they conquered Central America and ruled until the 19th century Although Central America was ruled by Spain, the Caribbean was settled and claimed by many European powers The Spanish, French, British, Dutch, and Danish all claimed islands in the Caribbean

Colonization of South America The Incas built their civilization in the Andes Mountain region in South America The Spanish conquered the Incas with the hopes of claiming the gold and silver The Spanish forced the natives to work and also forced their language and religion on the natives Spanish rule lasted for almost 300 years

Colonization of Brazil The Portuguese colonized Brazil beginning in 1500 The Portuguese conquered Brazil in the hope of finding gold or silver When they did not find gold or silver, they cleared the forests and created sugar plantations The Portuguese put the natives to work and also brought in slaves from Africa to help work the sugar plantations

Independence In 1821, Mexico achieved independence from Spain Because Spain controlled Mexico, Mexico controlled Central America. So, when Mexico became independent, Central America declared its independence in 1823 Many nations in South America gained their independence in the 1800s, but hundreds of years of colonialism did have effects such as strong militaries, underdeveloped economies, and social class divisions Brazil remained a colony of Portugal until 1822