Central America & the Caribbean Ch. #11

I. Natural Environments

A. Landforms

West Indies:13 Independent countries & 12 territories Greater Antilles (BIG islands)

Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico

The Bahamas (700 islands)Lesser Antilles (small islands)

20 island countries & territoriesVolcanic (eastern part of Caribbean Plate)

Netherlands Antilles (part of Lesser Antilles) Aruba, Curacao, Bonaire

Central America?7 countries south of Mexico Isthmus of Panama

Rugged terrain due to…Tectonic activity

Volcanic activity = FERTILE SOILS for ag.

Cocos Plate is diving

below Caribbean Plate =

volcanoes*rugged terrain had an isolating effect &

prevented unification following independence from Spain

B. Natural Resources & Hazards

Natural Resources?Warm climate, fertile soils, fish

Environmental Hazards (3) Earthquakes, volcanoes,

hurricanes

II. Central America

A. Colonization & Independence Colonized by what Euro. country? Impact on Indigenous pops.? Spanish settlement?

Culture traits? Belize (British Honduras) (1981)

Independence (1820s) Foreign investment

US & UK = built RRs to extract coffee & bananas = $$$$$$$$ United Fruit Company (Chiquita) – American firm = controlled banana business in Central Amer. Banana republics—unstable, non-democratic country dependent on limited agriculture & ruled

by a corrupt, wealthy organization Supported by U.S. to maintain peace (prevent spread of Communism) & American business

interests

Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua = POLITICAL INSTABILITY! Wealthy landowners controlled most wealth & made most political decisions in their favor

Aristocracy = govt. ruled by an elite class Civil Wars broke out betw. aristocrats & poor--ended in 1990s w/democracies

Costa Rica Less ethnic diversity (85% = white)

Few natives when Spanish arrived--Euros did not develop large estates due to lack of labor, ALSO, no valuable minerals!

Many small farms (coffee) & middle class developed = DEMOCRACY!No wealthy, corrupt aristocracy

Became democratic & economically productiveTradition of democracy & education = foreign investment by foreign computer firms (highest literacy

rate in Cent. Amer. = 95%)• “Silicon Valley of Latin America”• Microsoft, GE, Abbot Labs, Continental Airways & Intel have invested here (produce

microprocessors) Ecotourism: guided travel thru natural areas

• Nature Preserves = 25% of land

Cent. Amer’s. highest standard of living

PanamaA territory of Colombia until 1903Panama Canal

1881-1888: French attempted to construct canalFAILED b/c of Panama’s poor geology & mosquito diseases

1899: U.S. bought remaining lease from French ($40 mill)BUT, Colombia wanted a new lease----Pres. Roosevelt disagreed

• 1903: U.S. helped Panama gain their independence

WHY WAS U.S. SO INTERESTED IN PANAMA?!1904-1914: U.S. completed the canal

US had control of canal until 1999 (Panama makes billions in toll fees How canals work Expansion of the canal Time Lapse Video Trip through the canal video

Expansion of the Panama Canal

Construction = 2006-2015Cost = $5.25 bill.Annual tolls = >$2 bill. (14% of Panama’s GDP)

B. People, Languages, & Religion

The legacy of Euro. colonialism is present Wealth = still in the hands of a few Religion = ?Spanish is the official language except in BelizeMost Central Amers. = Mestizos Some Central Amers. = Mulattoes

People w/mixed Euro & African ancestry

Guatemalan population?Largest Amerindian pop. (Mayan)

C. Economic Development

Cash crops = coffee, bananas, sugar, CACAO Cacao = type of tree from which we get cocoa beans

which are used to make chocolate

III. The Caribbean

Merengue

calypso

Climate?

A. Colonization & Independence

Christopher Columbus (1492) los indios? The West Indies

Gold?Plantation agriculture

Bananas, citrus, sugarcane, coffee Cuba, Dominican Republic, & Puerto Rico = SPAINHaiti = FRENCHJamaica = BRITISHNetherlands Antilles (Aruba, Curacao, Bonaire = DUTCH Caribbean populations descend from Euros & AfricansLanguage/culture depends on who the island

Cuba

1898: Spanish-American WarCuba, Puerto Rico, Philippines = U.S. territories

1902: Cuban independenceHavana = “the Las Vegas of the Caribbean”

Money was NOT shared w/Cuban people1959: Fidel Castro (dictator) overthrew corrupt leadership

Castro = allied w/USSR (received $4-$6 bill/yr in aid)1961: Bay of Pigs Invasion1962: Cuban Missile Crisis U.S. Trade Embargo? 1991: USSR collapse = Cuban economic downturn

Sugar plantations have led to food shortages?

The Island of Hispaniola

HaitiFrench colony (1804)Poorest country in Western

HemispherePoor infrastructure &

political instability = no foreign investment

Large wealth gap80% live in poverty36% = urbanLiteracy rate = 52%Most work in ag.

Dominican RepublicSpanish (1844)Tourism, cash crops,

manufacturingLarge wealth gap

10% of pop = 40% GDP

64% = urban Many great baseball

playersPedro Martinez, Manny

Ramirez, David Ortiz

Puerto Rico

Spanish colony1898 = became U.S. territory1952: became a commonwealth of the U.S.

a self-governing territory associated w/another country Puerto Ricans = U.S. citizens

Do not pay U.S. taxesCannot vote in presidential elections

• Can vote in presidential primaries Has attracted Amer. industrial investment

Free access to U.S. market & low corporate taxesManufacturing has overtaken ag.Most industrialized economy of the Caribbean!

Jamaica

British colony until 1962Tourism, remittances, agriculture & bauxite

Mineral used in aluminum

Bob Marley (reggae music)Sang about poverty of Jamaica

Language/culture depends on who ___________ the country.

Nearly all of the Caribbean islands today still show effects of ____________ &

_____________.