This document provides an overview of Latin America's geography. It discusses the region's area and population distribution. It also describes the diverse physical geography, including different climate zones, elevation levels and land use patterns. Various countries and subregions are highlighted, including their economies, cultures and histories. Natural resources, agriculture, trade relationships and geopolitical issues are also summarized.
2. 10.1 Area and Population
Extent of Latin America
From Mexico south to Argentina and Chile,
together with the islands of the Caribbean Sea
Comprised of 38 countries
Spans more than 85° of latitude and 82° of longitude
Subregions
Middle America
South America
Population of 596 million people (2011)
Distributed mainly across “rimland” and “highland”
Region is 76% urban
9. 10.2 Physical Geography & Human Adaptations
Climates and Vegetation
Elevation and Land Use
Natural Hazards in Latin America
10. 10.2.1 Climates and Vegetation
Extraordinary climatic and biotic diversity, both
within the region and even within some countries
Tropical Rain Forest
Tropical Savanna
Humid Subtropical
Prairie
Mediterranean
Desert
Steppe
13. 10.2.2 Elevation and Land Use
Altitudinal Zonation
Terra caliente (Hot Country)
Tierra templada (Cool Country)
Tierra fría (Cold Country)
Tierra helada (Frost Country)
Zonation results from the fact that air temperature
decreases with elevation at a normal rate of
approximately 3.6°F per 1,000 feet
19. 10.2.3 Natural Hazards in Latin America
Adjoins a large section of the Pacific Ring of Fire
Violent history of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions
Largest earthquake ever recorded on earth was the 9.5
quake in 1960 off the coast of Southern Chile
It fronts two seasonal hurricane regions
Atlantic Ocean
Pacific Ocean
This region is the source of the El Nino climatic pattern
Winds off the Pacific coast of Peru switch direction and
blow from west to east, suppressing the upwelling of
water and raising the surface temperature of the water
Responsible for global climate disruptions resulting in
unusually high/low precipitation/temperatures for various
places
21. 10.3 Cultural & Historical Geographies
Unfortunate that this region came to be known as
Latin America, as there were no “Latins” among its
inhabitants before the end of the 15th century
When the first Europeans arrived in 1492, the
region was home to an estimated 50-100 million
Native Americans
Emergence of Early Culture Hearths
Andes region of South America
Southern Mexico and adjacent Central America
26. 10.3.2 Languages in Latin America
Indigenous Language Families
(Mexico and Central America)
Hokan-Siouan
Aztec-Tanoan
Oto-Manguean
Totonac
Penutian
Mayan
(South America)
Quechu-Aymaran
European Languages
Spanish is most prevalent European language in region
Portuguese in Brazil
Some French, Dutch, and English in Caribbean
28. 10.3.3 The European Conquest
The arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1492 marked the
beginning of profound changes in almost every aspect of life
in what would become Latin America, including:
Death (Both deliberate and unintended)
European settlement patterns and development of ports
Development of agricultural districts
Increased volume of trade products shipped overseas
European-introduced horses, cattle, sheep, donkeys,
wheat, sugarcane, coffee, and bananas
Labor provided by the arrival of slave ships
Discovery of gold and silver by Europeans led to opening
or reopening of mines
Introduction of Catholicism
32. 10.3.4 Ethnicity in Latin America
Majority of Latin Americans are of mixed heritage
In addition to the Native Americans, there are four
leading racial types:
Europeans
Blacks
Mestizos (Mixture of Spanish & Native American)
Mulattoes (Mixed African & European ancestry)
Only Argentina, Uruguay & Costa Rica have
significant white European ethnic groups
33. Many Faces of Latin America
European Black
Mestizo Mulatto
34. 10.4 Economic Geography
Latin America is generally a region of LDCs
People do not enjoy a high standard of living
One-third of population lives in poverty
Large gap between the “Haves” and “Have-Nots”
Glitter of Metropolises vs. Shantytowns (Favelas / Barrios)
Benefited from global boom in commodities
Abundance of raw materials
Poverty and unemployment have diminished in recent years
Heavy borrowing from international banking community
Recent push to move away from commercial agriculture and
raw materials toward manufactured exports
36. 10.4.1 Commercial Agriculture
In many countries, more than half of all export
revenue is still derived from farm products
Overreliance on a narrow range of exports makes
these countries economically vulnerable to
changes in market conditions
“Banana Republics”
37. 10.4.2 Types of Farms
Farms are classified by size and system of production
Latifundia
Large estates with strong commercial orientation
Also called haciendas and plantations
Minifundia
Smaller holdings with a strong subsistence component
Generally, people who lack the money to purchase
large and fertile properties
Usually marginal plots, often on sharecropping basis
40. 10.4.3 Minerals and Mining
Latin America is a large-scale producer of a small
number of key minerals
Few nations gain large revenues from exporting minerals
Chile (largest copper producer in the world)
Venezuela and Brazil (iron ore)
Venezuela was a founding member of OPEC in 1960
Some of profit from mineral production has funded
significant infrastructure, including roads, power stations,
water systems, schools, and hospitals
41. 10.4.4 Free Trade Agreements
Many countries have formed or joined free-trade agreements,
trying to reduce their dependence on raw materials and boost
their exports of value-added manufactured products
Free-Trade Agreements (FTAs)
NAFTA (Mexico, United States, and Canada)
Mercosur (Southern Cone Common Market)
Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay
Andean Community
Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia
DR-CAFTA
Central American Common Market
CARICOM (Caribbean Community)
Plans for Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA)
U.S. 1-on-1 trade agreements with Chile (2004) & Peru (2007)
43. 10.4.5 Sending Money Home
Immigrant Workers
Remittances
Earned savings sent home by people working abroad,
especially in the United States
In 2011, Latin Americans working in the U.S.
sent home $61 billion
Mexico has $24 billion infused yearly from Mexican
laborers in the United States
Multi-Latina Companies
Some experienced workers return to their home
countries to establish companies that invest in the U.S.
Aiding the revival of certain down-trodden sectors of
U.S. economy, including cement and steel mills
44. 10.4.6 Tourism in Latin America
Tourism has become a major regional economic asset,
generating critical foreign exchange
Only oil exports are more valuable
Tourism revenues reflect distance-decay relationship
Highest tourism receipts flow to Mexico, the nearest
neighbor to the wealthy countries
Tourism revenues fall off for more distant destinations
45. 10.5 Geopolitical Issues
The U.S. has staked its geostrategic claim to the region
Monroe Doctrine (1823)
Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine (1904)
Cuban Missile Crisis (1962)
Bay of Pigs Invasion
Trading with the Enemies Act
Plan Patriot
Washington Consensus
Modern U.S. Interests in Latin America
Promoting trade
Fighting drug trafficking
Guaranteeing secure access to oil
46. 10.5.1 The Panama Canal
Built between 1904 and 1914 by American contractors
Intended to serve U.S. commercial and strategic interests
For many decades, the canal zone was a U.S. territory
Authority of the canal was handed over to Panama in 1999
One of the world’s most critical chokepoints
50-mile shortcut between Atlantic and Pacific Oceans
Saves about 20 days and 7,800 miles on a voyage
between New York City and San Francisco
14,000 ships per year traveling along 80 shipping routes
5% of the world’s cargo volume (16% of the U.S.’)
48. 10.6.1 Middle America: Mexico
Largest, most complex, and most influential country in Middle America
Most populated country where Spanish is the main language
Mexico City is world’s second largest city in population with 27 million
One of most urbanized countries in Middle America (78%)
Ranks as world’s third most important megadiversity country
Trade with the United States
Mexico is 3rd largest provider of imports to U.S. (after China & Canada)
U.S. exports more goods to Mexico than any other country but Canada
Maquiladoras are factories built by American firms just inside of Mexico
Oil is Mexico’s most important export, and 90% of it goes to the U.S.,
making it the second largest oil supplier to the U.S. (after Canada)
49. 10.6.2 Central America: Panama Canal
The narrow Isthmus of Panama separates Pacific
and Atlantic oceans by only 50 miles
Best location for transcontinental shipment routes
In 1855, the Panama Canal Railway became the
1st transcontinental railway and is still in use
In 1878, a French firm was granted permission
to build a canal near the railroad line
This venture went bankrupt in 1889
In 1903, Panama broke away from Colombia
The U.S. struck a deal with the new
government to build the canal, and it was
completed in 1914. It cost $380 million and
many lives were lost to disease Profile and Plan of
Thanks to growing trade, expanding ports, the Panama Canal
and residential / commercial development,
Panama’s economy has boomed in recent
years
50. 10.6.3 South America: Venezuela
Venezuela’s Petroleum Politics
Blessed with large oil resources in the
coastal area around Lake Maracaibo
Oil makes up about 95% of
Venezuela’s exports by value
Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez
spearheaded regional quest for
liberation from Spain
He also rewrote Venezuelan constitution, put friends on the supreme
court, controlled media, and jailed political foes
Called his political philosophy “21st-century socialism”
Chávez used Venezuela’s oil wealth to advance his political agenda
across the Western Hemisphere
Built alliances with Latin America’s leftist leaders and courted
center and right governments of the region to move his way
Goal to build a coalition to counter U.S.-led free-trade efforts
51. 10.6.4 South America: Colombia
Colombia has had an outstanding
reversal of fortune in recent years
They have abundant resources, which
are under less threat from opposition
forces than they were a few years ago:
Large hydropower capacity
Coalfields in Andes, the Caribbean
coast, and the interior lowlands
Oil in Magdalena Valley and interior
Natural gas near Lake Maracaibo
Iron ore and reserves of nickel
However, illegal cocaine and marijuana
may have been its largest exports
In 2002, Alvaro Uribe was elected president
He has pleased both his citizens and the U.S. Congress by
cracking down on rebellion and violence fueled by the drug trade
52. 10.6.5 South America: Brazil
Brazil is the largest Latin American country both in terms of area
(3.3 million square miles) and population (197 million as of 2011)
An increasingly important role in hemispheric and world affairs
Candidate for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council
Explosive urbanism has made São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro two of
the world’s largest cities
Rise of manufacturing and diversification of export agriculture
Economy is the 10th largest in the world, and is projected to
become the 4th largest by 2050
Brazil is one of the world’s major bread baskets and is the world
leader in ethanol production
Strong relationship with China, sharing many exports and imports
Large natural gas and oil reserves have been found offshore and in
the remote central Amazon region
Could rival those in Saudi Arabia, but are far offshore and very deep,
making drilling difficult / potentially damaging to environment
Latin America’s most unequal distribution of national wealth
53. 10.6.6 South America: The Amazon
The Amazon Basin
Amazon River handles more volume than any other river in world
Basin covers some 2.7 million square miles
Home to world’s largest remaining expanse of tropical rain forest and
some of world’s most remote populations of indigenous peoples
Its rain forest contains many species of plants and animals
Helps mitigate global warming due to excess greenhouse gas emissions
Trans-Amazon Highway:
Brazil began construction in 1970s on the main line of an interoceanic
highway connecting Atlantic and Peruvian coasts
Regional Initiative for the Infrastructure Integration of South America
Ecological concerns about deforestation resulting from building this road
Hardwoods from forest are harvested and sold (40% shipped abroad)
Human interference has removed 20%, or 1.6 million square miles, of
the tropical rain forest cover of the Amazon Basin since the 1960s
Continued development of the rain forest threatens not only the
environment, but also indigenous tribes and their cultures
54. The Amazon Basin
A view from the MIDDLE of the Amazon
River, more than 2,000 miles upstream from
its mouth, near Iquitos , Peru. Although so
far upstream, this stretch of the river is
navigable by oceangoing vessels.
Deforestation and Road
Development in the
Brazilian Amazon