Mexico Review for test

Where in the World

Climate: MexicoMexico has a range of climate zones that include deserts, steppes, savannas, and tropical rain forests. Desert Steppe Savanna Semi-tropical Humid subtropical Tropical Rainforest

Physical Map Mount Orizaba

Rio Grande/Rio Bravo

History “Cortez arrived in Mexico in 1519 with about 600 conquistadores (conquerors). Cortez completed his conquest of the Aztec and the other American Indian peoples of south Mexico, which they named New Spain. Mexico won its independence from Spain in The revolt began in 1810 by a Catholic priest named Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla.

Natural Resources Solar Energy Minerals (silver, copper, gold, lead, and zinc) (Silver is the most valuable of Mexico’s mining industry) Wind power Petroleum (Most important) Water (scarce)

NAFTA The North American Free Trade Agreement or NAFTA is an agreement signed by the governments of Canada, Mexico, and the United States, creating a trilateral trade bloc in North America.CanadaMexico United Statestrade bloc The US had a trade agreement with Canada When the US wanted to seek a trade agreement with Mexico, Canada wanted to be included.

Mexico Vocabulary Sinkholes – steep-sided depression created when the roof of a cave collapses.

Mexico Vocabulary Chinampas – Name the Aztecs gave to raised fields on which they grew crops.

Mexico Vocabulary Conquistadores – Spanish conquerors during the era of colonization in the Americas Epidemic – Widespread outbreak, often referring to a disease

Mexico Vocabulary Empire – A system in which a central power controls a number of territories

Mexico Vocabulary Mestizos – People of mixed European and American Indian ancestry Mulattoes – People of mixed European and African ancestry

Mexico Vocabulary Missions – Spanish church outposts established during the colonial era, particularly in the Americas. Ejidos – lands owned and worked by groups of Mexican Indians

Mexico Vocabulary Haciendas – huge farmlands granted by the Spanish monarch to favored people in Spain’s colonies. Inflation – The rise in prices that occurs when currency loses its buying power.

Mexico Vocabulary Cash Crops – Crops produced primarily to sell rather than for the farmer to eat. Smog – a mixture of smoke, chemicals, and fog (Mexico City is one of the most polluted cities in the world.)

Mexico Vocabulary Maquiladoras – Foreign owned factories located along Mexico’s northern border with the United States Maquiladoras are popular because the wages are lower in Mexico than in the foreign companies’ homeland. The northern border is the most prosperous and modern regions in Mexico, while southern Mexico is the poorest region.

Mexico Vocabulary Slash-and-burn Agriculture – a type of agriculture in which forests are cut and burned to clear land for planting.

Mexico City A city of contrasts: – Contains both old Spanish cathedrals and modern skyscrapers – Contains both very poor slums and luxurious high- rise condominiums – Contains both beautiful natural scenery and blinding smog.