Latin-Based Languages Spoken in these Countries Spanish Portuguese French English Spoken in Belize and Guyana; Dutch in Suriname
Major Cities of Latin America Mexico City Rio de Janiero São Paulo Buenos Aires Caracas Santiago Lima Major Cities of Latin America Mexico City Rio de Janiero São Paulo Buenos Aires Caracas Santiago Lima
Culture of Latin America Latin America is a mixture of indigenous, African, and Iberian cultures. Immigrants from Northern Europe and Asia also add to this mix. Iberian Peninsula
Mexico City Originally the capital of the Aztec Empire. Tenochtitlanwas built on an island in Lake Texcoco. These people called themselves the ‘Mexica’ The Spanish built Mexico City on the former Aztec capital and drained the lake
Mexico City The largest metropolis in the western hemisphere is the Federal District of Mexico with 8.8 million people New York has just over 8 Million people
8 th richest city in the world Richest city in Latin America Provides many industrial jobs and many service sector jobs
Aztec Cities There was a rectangular public plaza in the center of the city that was bordered with civic and religious buildings. Outside this central area were schools, dwellings, and markets
Aztec Temples Used for sacrifices and prayers to specific gods
Human blood was offered to the gods from the large pyramid temples Huitzilopochtli and Tlaloc were the main Aztec gods worshipped in Mexico City
African Culture in Latin America Most of the indigenous people of the Americas died from disease and would not work for the Europeans Europeans traded with African Kingdoms for slaves to work in the ‘New World’ Portugal and Brazil imported over 3 million africans from the 1500’s-1800’s
African influence in Brazil Afro-Brazilians are mainly Christian but many are followers of Candomblé, which is an animist religion derived from african traditions Feijoada is the national dish of Brazil which was created by the African population of Brazil.
African influence in Brazil Brazil’s music and dance has a heavy African influence. –Samba, bossa nova, and Capoeira are all styles that originated in Brazil’s african population
BRAZILIAN RAINFOREST Brazil houses 30 percent of the remaining tropical rain forest on Earth. 50,000 square miles of rain forest were lost to deforestation between 2000 and 2005
Deforestation The National Cancer Institute estimates that 70 percent of the anti- cancer plants identified so far are rain forest plants.
Deforestation of the rainforest The rain forest is nearly self-watering. Plants release water into the atmosphere through a process called transpiration. In the tropics, each canopy tree can release about 200 gallons Without the rainforest the area would suffer severe erosion and drought.
Rio de Janiero Rio de Janiero was founded on 1 January 1502 and named ‘river of January’ The economy is service and business based Second wealthiest city in Brazil
Home to shipbuilding, oil refineries and Petrobras, Brazil’s oil company that is partly owned by the Brazilian government In 2006 Petrobras discovered lots of oil off the coast of Brazil This has lead to an increase of oil business in Rio de Janiero
São Paulo Largest and most wealthy city in Brazil Made its wealth from the coffee plantations nearby Outgrew Rio de Janiero because of its quick industrialization and immigrant workers
Buenos Aires Capitol of Argentina and 2 nd largest city in South America Busiest port in South America Located on the Plata river which connects Uruguay, Paraguay and inland parts of southern Brazil to the Atlantic
Immigration in Buenos Aires Many immigrants from Spain and Italy Northern European countries like Germany, Netherlands, Britain, Scandinavia, and Czechoslovakia because of the mild climate In 1895, immigrants accounted for 52% of Buenos Aires’ population
FAVELAS Favelas are the slums in Brazil When slaves were emancipated in Brazil they moved outside the large cities As Brazil became industrialized poorer people moved to the cities and lived in the favelas too.
SLUMS run-down area of a city characterized by substandard housing and squalor and lacking in security
Urban poverty and the environment 420 million people worldwide do not have access to the simplest latrines. This leads to death and disease. Water and air pollution endangers the poor and leads to famine and illness
The affects of the wealthy An urban dweller in New York consumes approximately three times more water and generates eight times more garbage than does a resident of Bombay. The massive energy demand of wealthy cities contributes a major share of greenhouse gas emissions.
Sustainable Development Development that meets the needs of today without risking the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Results of unsustainable development
Sustainable Development To stop desertification in Patagonia, the government of Argentina began a sustainable cattle raising program In an effort to reduce emissions (air pollution) Mexico has began to use wind power Overgrazing in Patagonia Mexico’s Wind Power