The Spanish Speaking World

Spanish ClassSpencer High School

2014-2015

Spanish Speaking Countries

Spanish Speaking Countries

Spanish Speaking Countries

List of Countries España Ceuta y Melilla Mexico Estados Unidos Guatemala El Salvador Honduras Nicaragua Costa Rica Panamá Cuba La República

Dominicana

Puerto Rico

Venezuela Colombia Ecuador Perú Bolivia Chile Argentina Paraguay Uruguay Guinea Ecuatorial Las Islas Filipinas

Countries InformationSpain

• Official Name: Kingdom of Spain (El Reino de España)• Capital: Madrid (3.3 million). • Population: 47,150,819 people• Currency: Euros (EUR)• Languages: Spanish (official) 74%, Catalan-Valencian 17%, Galician

7%, Basque 2%• España is the birthplace of Spanish.

Countries InformationMexico

• Official Name: United Mexican States• Capital: Mexico City (22 million, estimate for metro area). • Other major cities--Guadalajara, Monterrey, Puebla, Ciudad Juarez,

Tijuana, Acapulco, Merida, Leon, Veracruz.• Population: 118,395,054 people• Currency: Peso (MXN)• Ethnic groups: Indian-Spanish (mestizo) 60%, Indian 30%, Caucasian

9%, other 1%.• Mexico is the most populous Spanish-speaking country in the world

and the second most-populous country in Latin America after Portuguese-speaking Brazil.

Countries InformationGuatemala

• Official Name: Republic of Guatemala• Cities: Capital--Guatemala City (metro area pop. 2.5 million). Other

major cities--Quetzaltenango, Escuintla.• Population: 15,806,675 people• Currency: Quetzal (GTQ)• Ethnic groups: Mestizo (mixed Spanish-Indian), indigenous.• More than half of Guatemalans are descendants of indigenous

Mayan peoples. Westernized Mayans and mestizos (mixed European and indigenous ancestry) are known as Ladinos.

Countries InformationHonduras

• Official Name: Republic of Honduras• Capital: Tegucigalpa (1,150,000). • Other cities are San Pedro Sula (800,000-900,000).• Population: 8,249,574 population• Currency: Lempira (HNL)• Ethnic groups: 90% mestizo (mixed Amer-Indian and European);

others of European, Arab, African, or Asian ancestry; and indigenous Indians.

• While Spanish is the predominant language, some English is spoken along the northern coast and is prevalent on the Caribbean Bay Islands.

Countries InformationEl Salvador

• Official Name: Republic of El Salvador• Capital: San Salvador (pop. 1.6 million). • Other cities: Santa Ana, San Miguel, Soyapango, and Apopa.• Population: 7.2 Million people• Currency: United State Dollars (USD)• Ethnic groups: Mestizo 90%, indigenous 1%, Caucasian 9%.• About 1% is indigenous; very few Indians have retained their customs

and traditions.

Countries InformationCosta Rica

• Official Name: Republic of Costa Rica• Capital: San Jose (greater metropolitan area pop. 2.1 million)• The Capita includes several cities: (Alajuela, Cartago, and Heredia). • Population: 4,586,353 people• Currency: Costa Rican Colón (CRC)• Ethnic groups: European and some mestizo 94%, African origin 3%,

Chinese 1%, Amerindian 1%, other 1%.• Unlike many of their Central American neighbors, present-day Costa

Ricans are largely of European rather than mestizo descent; Spain was the primary country of origin.

Countries InformationNicaragua

• Official Name: Republic of Nicaragua• Capital: Managua (pop. 1.7 million). • Other major cities: Bluefields, Chinandega, Granada, Jinotega, Leon,

Masaya, Matagalpa, and Rivas.• Population: 6,071,045 people• Currency: Córdoba (NIO)• Ethnic groups: Mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 69%, white

17%, black 9%, and Amerindian 5%.• Only the indigenous of the eastern half of the country remain

ethnically distinct and retain their tribal customs and languages

Countries InformationPanamá

• Official Name: Republic of Panama• Capital: Panama City (1.7 million, metropolitan area). • Population: 3,608,431 people• Currency: Balboa (PAB) and United State Dollar (USD)• Ethnic groups: Mestizo (mixed African, Amerindian, and European

ancestry) 70%, Amerindian and mixed (West Indian) 14%, Caucasian 10%, Amerindian 6%.

• Origins:36.5% African, 37.6% indigenous, and 25.9% Caucasian.• Panama is famous for the Panama Canal.• English is a common second language spoken by the West Indians

and by many businesspeople and professionals.

Countries InformationCuba

• Official Name: Republic of Cuba• Capital: Havana (pop. 2 million). • Other major cities: Santiago de Cuba, Camaguey, Santa Clara,

Holguin, Guantanamo, Matanzas, Cienfuegos, Pinar del Rio.• Population: 11,167,325 people• Currency: Peso (CUP) and Convertible Peso (CUC)• Ethnic groups: 65% white, 25% mixed, 10% black (official 2002 Cuba

census).• Cuba is the largest island in the Caribbean.• The Republic of Cuba is one of the world's remaining socialist states

with Communist governments.

Countries InformationDominican Republic

• Official Name: Dominican Republic (República Dominicana)• Capital: Santo Domingo (pop. 2.25 million). • Other city: Santiago de los Caballeros (908,230)• Population: 9,445,281 people• Currency: Peso (DOP)• Ethnic groups: Mixed 73%, European 16%, African origin 11%.• The only country that has the bible in their flag.• Dominican Republic is the birth place of the “Merengue” a very

popular Latin music style.

Countries InformationPuerto Rico

• Official Name: Puerto Rico• Puerto Rico is a United State Commonwealth.• Capital: San Juan.• Population: 3,667,084 people• Currency: United States Dollar (USD)• Ethnic groups: White (mostly Spanish origin) 75.8%, Black 12.4%,

Asian 0.2%, Amerindian 0.5%, SOR 7.8%, other 3.3% (2010)• Famous for the smallest frog in the world called Coquí.

Spanish Speaking Countries

Countries InformationColombia

• Official Name: Republic of Colombia.• Capital: Bogota (pop. 8.26 million; 2011). • Other cities: Medellin, Cali, Barranquilla, and Cartagena.• Population: 47,425,437• Currency: Peso (COP)• Ethnic and cultural diversity in Colombia reflects the indigenous,

European (mainly Spanish), and African heritages of its inhabitants.• Today, only about 3% of the people identify themselves as

indigenous. • Colombia is well known for its emeralds.• Colombia has six main natural regions: Andes mountains, Pacific

coast, Caribbean coast, plains, amazon rainforest, and Islands (Pacific and Atlantic)

Countries InformationVenezuela

• Official Name: Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela• Capital: Caracas (metro. area pop. 3.2 million). • Other cities: Maracaibo, Valencia, Barquisimeto, Maracay, Merida,

Ciudad Bolivar.• Population: 28,946,101 • Currency: Bolivar Fuerte (VEF)• Venezuela is located in the Amazon Basin and is the home of the Boa

constrictor and deadly piranhas.• Venezuela has the highest waterfall in the world: Angels Fall• Venezuela also has one of the worlds biggest plateau: Tepuis

Countries InformationEcuador

• Official Name: Republic of Ecuador.• Capital: Quito (pop. 2 million). • Other cities: Guayaquil (2.28 million).• Population: 15,223,680• Currency: US Dollar (USD)• Ecuador's population is ethnically mixed. • A large majority of the population is mestizo (mixed Amerindian-

Caucasian), followed by smaller percentages of indigenous, • Afro-Ecuadorian, and European descendent are called “criollos”.• Due to an economic crisis in the late 1990s, more than 600,000

Ecuadorians emigrated to the U.S. and Europe from 2000 to 2001.

Countries InformationPerú

• Official Name: Republic of Peru.• Capital: Lima (capital), • Other cities: Arequipa, Cuzco, Trujillo, Ayacucho, Machu Picchu• Population: 30,814,175 • Currency: Nuevo sol (PEN)• Peru is the fifth most populous country in Latin America (after Brazil,

Mexico, Colombia, and Argentina). • The earliest evidences of human presence in Peruvian territory have

been dated to approximately 9,000 BC• Machu Picchu was built as an estate for the Inca emperor Pachacuti

(1438–1472). Often mistakenly referred to as the "Lost City of the Incas", it is perhaps the most familiar icon of Inca civilization.

Countries InformationChile

• Official Name: Republic of Chile.• Capital: Santiago (metropolitan area est. 6.25 million). • Other cities: Viña del Mar, Valparaiso.• Population: 17,772,871• Currency: Peso (CLP)• The northern Chilean desert contains great mineral wealth,

principally copper, but also gold, potash, and lithium salts. • Chile is a multiethnic society and a majority of the population can

claim some European ancestry, mainly Spanish, but also German, Italian, Irish, French, British, Swiss, and Croatian, in various combinations.

Countries InformationArgentina

• Official Name: Argentine Republic.• Capital: Buenos Aires [Autonomous City of Buenos Aires] (3 Millions

habitants), • Other cities: Cordoba, La Plata and Mar del Plata.• Population: 42,669,500• Currency: Peso (ARS)• Argentines are a fusion of diverse national and ethnic groups, with

descendants of Italian and Spanish immigrants predominant. • Waves of immigrants from many European countries arrived in the

late 19th and early 20th centuries, many Germans hide in Chile and Argentina.

• Argentina is the house of “El Gaucho”, the South America equivalent of North America Texas Cowboy.

Countries InformationBolivia

• Official Name: Plurinational State of Bolivia.• Capital: La Paz (administrative--pop. 840,209) • Other cities: Santa Cruz (1,651,436), Cochabamba (618,384), El Alto

(960,767).• Population: 10,556,102• Currency: Boliviano (BOB)• Bolivia is one of the least developed countries in South America.

Almost two-thirds of its people, many of whom are subsistence farmers, live in poverty.

• Bolivia has a high level of biodiversity, considered one of the greatest in the world. It has many ecoregions with ecological sub-units like: Altiplano, tropical rainforests (including Amazon rainforest), dry valley and tropical savanna.

Countries InformationParaguay

• Official Name: Republic of Paraguay.• Capital: Asuncion (pop. 518,945). • Other cities: Ciudad del Este, Concepcion, Encarnacion, Pedro Juan

Caballero, Coronel Oviedo.• Population: 6,800,284 • Currency: Guaraní (PYG)• Ethnically, culturally, and socially, Paraguay has one of the most

homogeneous populations in South America. • About 95% of the people are of mixed Spanish and Guarani Indian

descent. • Guarani and Spanish are official languages. About 90% of all

Paraguayans speak Spanish.

Countries InformationUruguay

• Official Name: Oriental Republic of Uruguay.• Capital: Montevideo• Other cities: Salto, Ciudad de la Costa, Paysandú.• Population: 3,324,460• Currency: Uruguayan peso (UYU)• Uruguayans share a Spanish linguistic and cultural background, even

though about 1/4 of the population is of Italian origin.• Uruguay is distinguished by its high literacy rate, large urban middle

class, and relatively even income distribution. • Uruguay is the second smallest sovereign nation in South America. • The landscape features mostly rolling plains and low hill ranges with a

fertile coastal lowland.

Countries InformationPhilippines

• Official Name: Republic of the Philippines.• Capital: Manila (pop. 11.55 million in metropolitan area) • Other cities: Davao City, Cebu City.• Population: 92,337,852• Currency: Peso (Filipino: Piso) (₱) (PHP)• After the mainland Asians, Americans and Spaniards constitute the

next largest minorities in the country.• More than 90% of the people are Christian as a result of the nearly

400 years of Spanish and American rule.• The Philippines is an archipelago of 7,107 islands. • Most of the mountainous islands are covered in tropical rainforest

and volcanic in origin.

Countries InformationEquatorial Guinea

• Official Name: Republic of Equatorial Guinea.• Capital: Malabo. • Other cities: Bata• Population: 622,000 • Currency: Central African CFA franc (XAF)• Spanish and French are both official languages, though use of Spanish

predominates. • The Roman Catholic Church has greatly influenced both religion and

education.• The majority of the Equatoguinean people are of Bantu origin. The

largest tribe, the Fang, is indigenous to the mainland.