1. Central America

5. Region between North America and South America An isthmus- narrow strip of land that connects two larger bodies of land, and is surrounded by water

6. 1914- Opening of Panama Canal, allowed for passage of goods from Pacific to Atlantic

7. 7 countries occupy the strip: Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama

8. Combined, the area in Central America is only 1/4 th the area of Mexico

9. Terrain Mountains run the length of Central America

10. Climate There are the cold mountainous regions, the tropical rain forests, and the low lying savanna, grasslands

11. People of Central America Indians- groups of native people that have lived the longest in the area

12. Europeans- generally of Spanish descent, 90% of Costa Rica is European

13. African Descent- some are descendents of slaves, the others have come from the Caribbean Islands

14. Economy Agriculture makes up a large part of the Central American Economy

15. In Guatemala the coffee industry is huge! Coffee is the second most valuable traded commodity in the world (after petroleum)

16. Takes 4/5 years to mature Requires lots of hard work and patience

17. Coffee is environmentally friendly, growing other crops takes much more pesticides and destroys the land

18. Banana Republics When the US built RR’s through Central America, they planted banana trees along the tracks

19. The trees along the tracks made it easier to transport the fruit Called the countries of C.A Banana Republics

20. Sugarcane Huge in countries like El Salvador Hard work- generally grown on Plantations, run by the wealthy

21. Poor, skilled workers harvest the sugarcane

22. Political Conflict Armed conflicts have troubled Central America for much of its history

23. Problems Shortage of farmland Unequal distribution of land Limited access to technology

24. Many governments have mainly served the interest of the wealthy Opposition have formed guerrilla movements- fighting regular army

25. Che Guevara http://www.time.com/time/time100/heroes/ profile/guevara01.html http://www.time.com/time/time100/heroes/ profile/guevara01.html

26. Caribbean Islands Beautiful region of forest covered mountains, warm temperatures, and clear, blue water

27. Consists of three island groups: Greater Antilles, Lesser Antilles, and the Bahamas

28. The mountainous islands are volcanic islands, while the islands with the flatter terrain are coral islands Coral islands- created by the remains of colonies of tiny, soft bodied sea animals

29. All of the Bahamas are coral islands As the coral dies, the limestone skeletons form coral reefs, where the sand and sediment begin to accumulate

30. The climate is affected more by sea and wind than by elevation Windward side- torrential rains Leeward side- rainfall may only be 30 inches a year

31. Very little evidence of original inhabitants in the Caribbean Once Europeans arrived in 1492, the majority of natives disappeared

32. 90% of the population live in independent islands The other 10% live on islands controlled by other countries- ie the US Virgin Islands

33. Economy Bananas, sugar, coconuts, cocoa, rice and cotton are produced in this region Work in industries relating to farming

34. Tourism- because of natural beauty, many people visit