America

América (in English, the Americas or simply America; in Portuguese, America; French Amérique; Dutch Amerika; Nahuatl Cēm Ānahauac /in Nahuatl, Ixachitlan^{[citation needed]}) is the second largest continent in the Earth, after Asia. It occupies much of the western hemisphere of the planet. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Diego Ramírez Islands in the south, at the confluence of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, which in turn delimit the continent to the east and west, respectively.

With an area of more than 43,316,000 km², it is the second largest land mass on the globe (first being the non-island part of Euraphrasia), covering 8% of the planet's total surface area and 28.4% of the emerged land, and also concentrating about 12.5% of the human population. The largest urban agglomerations in the Americas are Mexico City, New York, São Paulo, Los Angeles, Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires, Lima and Bogotá.

Due to its large size and geographic features, in some cultures, the Americas are traditionally divided into North America, Central America, and South America. Some geographers consider Central America to be a subregion within North America. Based on their cultural characteristics, Anglo-Saxon America and Latin America are distinguished.

America was populated from East Asia and evolved for thousands of years without having contact with other continents, establishing diverse cultures throughout its entire territory and generating its own Neolithic revolutions. After the arrival of the Spanish in 1492, the continent established a significant social and ecological exchange with Eurafrasia.

Toponymy

Map of Juan de la Cosa (1500), was the first Mapmundi that contains a representation of the new continent.

Universalis Cosmographia, by Martin Waldseemüller (1507), was the first Mapmundi to call that continent "America". The map mapping the Pacific Ocean and the Central American isthmus before the "discovery" attributed to Balboa in 1513. The map is known as the American Birth Certificate and is located at the Treasures Gallery of the United States Library of Congress.

Its name comes from the Florentine navigator and cosmographer Américo Vespucci (1454-1512), to refer to the coasts of present-day South America, considered as a New World unknown by the ancients. Vespucci, a Florentine-born navigator who made some voyages in the service of Spain, was probably the first European to suggest that these lands were actually a new continent and not part of Asia as Christopher Columbus thought. Over time, this place name was applied to the rest of the continent.

The first time the name "America" was used in Europe to designate the lands reached by Columbus was in a treatise entitled Cosmographiae Introductio, written by Mathias Ringmann and others to accompany the Universalis Cosmographia wall planisphere, drawn by the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller in Saint-Dié-des-Vosges (north-eastern France), on said map the name "America" appeared over South America, still separated from North America through a narrow interoceanic passage. The continent appeared surrounded by the sea and perfectly differentiated from Asia, with Castilian flags and legends indicating that those lands had been discovered per mandatum regis Castelle. The text corrected the Ptolemaic conceptions incorporating the discoveries of the Spanish and Portuguese, and titled the new continent America in honor of Américo Vespucci to whom both the treaty and the map attributed the discovery. Following the line of the other continents with female names, the explorer's name was Latinized and feminized, resulting in America. Thanks to the development of the printing press, the names of Waldseemüller quickly spread to scientific circles in Europe.

Map of America by cartographer Jodocus Hondius, carried out c. 1640

To refer to the islands and the entire continental mass of the western hemisphere, the Flemish-born geographer Gerardus Mercator used the same word America for the first time in his cartographic works with a world map published in 1538. On the other hand, the Spanish Monarchy legally named its American possessions as Castilian Kingdoms of the Indies. The British Crown called them the West Indies.

Etymology of Américo

As for the name Américo, in Italian Amerigo, is a variant of the Germanic name Emmerich, of uncertain etymology. Its second lexeme ric, «power», is common to other nouns and raises no doubts: The first element can be ermen «whole», in this case it would be a form of Ermenrico, "the powerful" or, amal "work", a variant of Amalric, "powerful in his work" or, even heim, "home", "homeland" ", in which case it is another form of the name Enrique, "the head of the household" (or "of the country").

Other hypotheses

Other origins for the name America have been proposed, but they lack evidence and are improbable from a historical or philological point of view.

The two most widespread hypotheses are that the name comes from a Bristol merchant, Richard Ap Meryk, or Amerike, that is to say "the son of Meurig", who would have financed Juan Caboto's trip to Newfoundland in 1497 or from a region called Amerrique, originally Amerristiquiqque "place of wind" in the Mayan language of the region, located in the interior of present-day Nicaragua, which possessed large gold resources that would have been discovered both Columbus and Americo Vespucio, and that even the latter would have changed his name in honor of said area since said name does not appear in any record before the year 1500.

The belief that Richard Amerike was one of the main financiers of Caboto's voyage has been widespread since the late XX century However, there is no evidence in this regard. On the contrary, the current investigation does not have a single piece of information that relates it to the trip or the Caboto ship.

As for the name Amerrisque, it seems to be later than the Waldseemüller map, with no record of it until the 19th century.

Indigenous name

The Native Americans lacked a name for the continent, modernly ancient native names have been claimed as autochthonous denominations, among them the aforementioned Amerrisque in the Quiché language Abya Yala, used by the Kuna ethnic group and Cem Ānáhuac by the Aztecs.

In other languages

Since the 18th century in English-speaking literature and press, it began to be used to designate the Thirteen British colonies in America and, from 1776, to the United States of America. In English it is common to distinguish between America, the aforementioned American nation, and Americas (plural) the continent as a whole. This incorrect use has spread since the XX century to other languages and even publications in Spanish.

ASALE, in its «Pan-Hispanic Dictionary of Doubts», recommends avoiding the use of "americano" as a synonym for "American".

History

Map of the first human migrations based on the Theory of African Emigration.Homo sapiens Neandertales First hominids

Until the last decades, the theory of late peopling predominated, which maintains that human beings arrived in America from Siberia some 12-14 thousand years ago, entering through the Beringian Bridge during the Wurmian glaciations. However, more recently, scientists from different areas have questioned the previous theory with increasing evidence, giving shape to a new theory of early peopling that supports not only a much earlier peopling (probably between 20,000 and 50,000 years BC), but the use of other alternative routes to Beringia to enter from Siberia, Mongolia and even other places of origin.

In America there were two Neolithic revolutions independent of those that occurred in Africa and Asia; one in Mesoamerica around 8000 B.C. C., and another in the Andean region of South America in 3500 BC. C. Between 4000 and 3000 B.C. C. the great Indo-American linguistic groups were formed.

Maya Ballot Game in Copán, Republic of Honduras.

In America, important civilizations developed, such as Caral (the oldest civilization in the Americas, which developed in central Peru), the Anasazi, the Pueblo Indians, Quimbaya, Nazca, Chimú, Chavín, Paracas, Moche, Huari, Lima, Zapotec, Mixtec, Totonac, Toltec, Olmec and Chibcha, and the advanced civilizations corresponding to the empires of Teotihuacán, Tiahuanaco, Maya, Aztec and Inca, among many others.

Poblado vikingo de L'Anse aux Meadows (Terranova, Canada), discovered in 1960 and declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

There are records of the arrival and settlement of the Viking culture in L'Anse aux Meadows, in present-day Newfoundland around the year 1000. It was the first to come from present-day European territory, although there are theories that support an earlier presence. Erik the Red would have established the first colonies in Greenland in the year 985.

Christopher Columbus takes possession of Guanahani Island.

Since the arrival of Christopher Columbus, the introduction of new diseases such as smallpox produced a demographic catastrophe that some researchers estimate up to the death of 93% of the population. In this context, some European empires conquered and they colonized a part of the continent occupied by already established cultures and civilizations. Spain defeated the great Aztec and Inca civilizations and established its empire along the entire Pacific coast and the Río de la Plata basin, while Portugal would colonize the coastal strip of what is now Brazil. France established some colonies in the Atlantic coastal strip from present-day Canada to northern Brazil. The United Kingdom established itself on the eastern coast of North America and in some sectors of the Caribbean coast. The Netherlands and Denmark established colonies on small islands in the Caribbean, and Russia eventually conquered the Alaskan area. The Jesuits organized a network of mission-cities in the Alto Paraná region, inhabited exclusively by Guarani priests and indigenous people with exclusive use of the Guaraní language, with great autonomy, which were considered as a State within the Spanish Empire.

Spanish and Portuguese empires in 1790.

It should also be noted that the European conquest was rejected in various parts of the continent. Various indigenous peoples successfully resisted European invasions over vast territories, and maintained dominance over them until the end of the XIX century. The Araucanía, Patagonia, the Pampean plain, Mato Grosso, the Amazon region and the great prairies of the North American West, remained under the domination of nations such as the Mapuche, Uros, Het, Ranquel, Wichí, Qom, Amazon, Algonquin, Hopi, Comanche, Inuit, etc.

Diseases introduced by Europeans, such as smallpox, caused massive mortality of the native populations and a demographic collapse that according to some researchers exceeded 90% of the total population.

Rupest paintings of the Cave of the Hands, Santa Cruz, Argentina. These cave paintings, dated in 7350 BC, are among the oldest artistic expressions in America.

Republics of peoples of African origin who managed to escape the slavery to which they had been reduced by the Portuguese, such as the Quilombo de los Palmares or the Quilombo de Macaco, also settled in South America.

United States Declaration of Independence. He opened his way to the end of colonialism.

After three centuries of colonial rule, the American peoples began to declare their independence, claiming their right to organize themselves as national states, confronting the European powers militarily, thus opening the world process of decolonization. The first to do so were the British Thirteen Colonies through the American Revolution that gave rise to the United States of America, in 1776, organizing a new type of society based on novel political concepts such as independence, constitution, federalism and human rights.

In 1804, Haitian African slaves revolted against French colonists, declaring Haiti's independence and creating the first modern state with African-American rulers.

Starting in 1809, the peoples under the rule of Spain carried out a Spanish-American War of Independence, of continental scope, which led, after complex processes, to the emergence of several nations: Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Panama, Chile, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela. In 1844 and 1898 the process would be completed with the independence of the Dominican Republic and Cuba, respectively.

In 1816, a huge independent South American state was formed, called Gran Colombia, which included the territories of present-day Panama, Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador and parts of Brazil, Costa Rica, Guyana, Honduras, Nicaragua and Peru. The Republic dissolved in 1830.

In 1822, Brazil was organized as an independent monarchy, the Empire of Brazil, upon the dissolution of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarve, until 1889 when the monarchy was abolished to establish a republic. For their part, the United States and Great Britain negotiated in 1867 an independence process with restrictions for Canada, which was consolidated during the XX.

In the second half of the XX century, due to the pressure of the decolonization process promoted by the United Nations, several Caribbean peoples gained their independence from Great Britain: Belize, Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Grenada, Jamaica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saint Lucia, Trinidad and Tobago. Simultaneously, Suriname from the Netherlands and Guyana from the United Kingdom gained independence. Today, there are still several towns and territories under British, French, Dutch and Danish colonial rule.

After their emancipation, the countries of the Americas have developed unevenly. During the 19th century, the United States established itself as a global power and replaced Europe as the dominant power in the region.

The XX century saw the gap in the development of North America with respect to the rest of the continent increase. Thus, while the United States became a world superpower since the middle of the century, Latin America and the Caribbean became the region with the greatest social inequality in the world, including countries such as Haiti or Bolivia, which register development indices that are between lowest on the planet.

Among the most important political events in the contemporary history of the Americas are the Mexican Revolution (1910-1917), the Cold War (1945-1991) that directly opposed the United States and the Soviet Union and led to a succession of dictatorships in Latin America, and the Cuban Revolution (1959). In the 1960s and 1970s, the emergence of rock and roll, as a result of the fusion of African-American cultures and their worldwide spread, and of radical youth movements, led to a profound cultural change. Starting in the 1980s, the concentration of companies and universities and the technological innovations produced in Silicon Valley in California, turned the region into the axis of the Information Society.

Since the late XIX century, the countries of the Americas sought to form a system of Pan-American unity resulting in the creation of the Organization of American States (OAS) in 1948. On the other hand, since the end of the XX century, the countries of the Americas have intensified efforts to integrate subregionally in various instances such as UNASUR, Mercosur (Southern Common Market), the Andean Community of Nations (CAN), the Central American Integration System (SICA), the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America-Treaty People's Trade Association (ALBA), CARICOM (Caribbean Community) and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

Physical geography

Physical map of America (click to see in detail)

The American continent is the second largest land mass on the planet, after Eurasia. It has an approximate extension of 42,978,000 km². It extends from north to south from Cape Columbia (87° N, Canada) in the Arctic Ocean to the Diego Ramírez Islands (57° S, Chile), located in the Drake Passage that separates the American continent from Antarctica. Its easternmost point corresponds to Punta de Seixas in Brazil (34° W) while the westernmost corresponds to the Comendador Bering Islands in the Aleutian Islands (178° E), next to the Bering Strait that separates Alaska from the Asian continent..

It is made up of three subcontinents: North America, Central America, and South America, and an island arc known as the Antilles. According to the theories of continental drift and plate tectonics, what would be North America and South America would have remained separate for millions of years. After the division of Gondwana and Laurasia, both subcontinents would have traveled to their current positions, being united by Central America, a land bridge that emerged between them due to the action of tectonic plates, which was first an island arc and later became continuous land. The thinnest point of this union is the Isthmus of Panama, formed three million years ago. Another island arc, the Antilles, constitute a second connection between the subcontinents.

• Subdivisions and geographical areas
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  North America:
  Canadian Arctic
  Gran Cuenca
  Great Plains
  Great Lakes
  Sierra Madre Occidental
  Sierra Madre Oriental
  Sierra Madre del Sur
  Mesoamerica

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  The Antilles:
  The Bahamas
  Large Antilles
  Small Antilles

• 

  Central America:
  Caribbean Plate
  Cordillera Central
  United States

• 

  South America:
  South American Deserts
  South American Caribbean
  Biogeographic choco
  Plains of the Orinoco
  Plain of the Amazon
  Andes
  Altiplano
  Great Chaco
  Guayanas
  Pampa
  Southern Cone
  Patagonia
  Cuyo
  Cuenca del Plata
  Brasilia
  Yungas
  Diagonal arid of South America
  South Atlantic Islands

Relief

The Angel Fall, located in the Canaima National Park in Venezuela, is the highest waterfall in the world.

The Yellowstone National Park, located in the west of the United States, was the first national park created in the world in 1872.

In the American territory, the plates of the earth's crust (North American, Caribbean and South American) in their displacement from the center of the Atlantic to the west, form the mountain range of the western edge of America, product of the subduction process of the Pacific plate. It is basically made up of a series of high mountain ranges on the western coast (mainly the Rocky Mountains, the Sierra Madre Occidental and the Andes, all part of the Ring of Fire) product of the collision of the continental plates with the oceanic and plains in the eastern areas. where the two largest river basins in the world are located: the Mississippi River in North America and the Amazon River in South America.

The coast, although it is largely regular, has dismembered sections mainly at its ends, giving rise to the islands of the Canadian Arctic and Greenland in the north, and Chile and Tierra del Fuego in the southern zone. Other important island groups correspond to the Aleutian Islands in the extreme northwest, the Antilles in the Caribbean Sea, the Galapagos Islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, and the Malvinas Islands in the South Atlantic.

Apart from the Brazilian massif and the Guyana shield, the mountainous massif, separated from a strip of mountainous relief such as the Andes, the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountainous complex is considered the largest mountainous massif in the world located near a coastal coastline, which rises abruptly from the shores of the Caribbean Sea to reach a height of 5,775 meters in its snow-capped peaks, located just 42 kilometers from it.

Hydrography

Aerial view of Niagara Falls, which connects the Lakes Ontario and Eire.

Lake Titicaca is the marine lake at the highest altitude in the world.

Lake Cocibolca in Nicaragua is the largest in Central America and the second largest in Latin America.

Most of the rivers in the Americas flow from the western mountainous systems and are distributed on the slopes of the Arctic Glacial, Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The longest rivers flow on the Atlantic slope, forming important basins that favor the inhabitants of those areas in all ways.

Lake Osdalia in the Peninsula of Vadalcadar

In North America, rivers of the three existing slopes can be identified: the Mackenzie River that flows into the Arctic slope, the Yukon, Colorado and Columbia rivers are the longest rivers on the Pacific Ocean slope, while on the of the Atlantic, the North Bravo River, the Mississippi-Missouri system and the Saint Lawrence River stand out. Of all of them, the Mississippi stands out for being the longest and with the largest basin in this area of the continent, being the main river in the United States. In the lakes, those of the Great Lakes region stand out, where Lakes Superior, Huron, Michigan, Ontario and Eire are located. All the previous lakes share a lacustrine system of glacial origin, whose waters accumulate mainly due to winter melting. These lakes are connected by rivers, canals and locks, flowing into the Atlantic through the St. Lawrence River.

In Central America, the rivers are short and correspond mainly to the Atlantic slope. These rivers fulfill several functions, even serving as borders; such is the case of the Segovia or Coco rivers (between Honduras and Nicaragua), the Lempa river (Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras) and the San Juan river (between Costa Rica and Nicaragua). In this area, the lakes are also smaller, highlighting Lakes Nicaragua, Managua and Gatún, the latter, built by man, located in the Panama Canal, which provides the necessary water for ships to bridge differences. of level.

Already in South America, the Pacific slope reappears, even though the rivers of the Atlantic slope are longer and more important. The Orinoco rivers, the Paraná-Río de la Plata system and the Amazon stand out in the southern part of the continent. The Amazon River is the largest and longest river in the world, and forms the largest hydrographic basin on the planet. The most important lakes in South America include Lake Maracaibo, Titicaca, Poopó and Buenos Aires/General Carrera.

The Iguazú Falls are the largest waterfall system in the world. 80% of the falls, including the Garganta del Diablo, are in Argentine territory. The remaining 20% belongs to Brazil.

The Guaraní aquifer is the groundwater reserve with the largest surface area on the entire planet, located in large territorial portions of Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay.

Longest rivers in America

Rio	Length (km)	Countries crossed
Amazon	6968	Peru Peru, BrazilBrazil, ColombiaColombia
Mississippi	6019	United States
Paraná	4880	Argentina, BrazilBrazil, Paraguay Paraguay
Mackenzie	4240	CanadaCanada
Purus	3590	Peru Peru, BrazilBrazil
Wood	3239	BoliviaBolivia, BrazilBrazil
San Francisco	3201	BrazilBrazil
Yukon	3185	CanadaCanada, United States
North or Great Bravo	3034	Mexico Mexico, United States
Paraguay	2860	Argentina, BoliviaBolivia, BrazilBrazil, Paraguay Paraguay
Saskatchewan	2576	CanadaCanada
Colorado	2334	United States of America Mexico Mexico
Orinoco	2150	Venezuela Venezuela, ColombiaColombia
Mamoré	2002	BoliviaBolivia
Columbia	1953	CanadaCanada, United States
Ucayali	1900	Peru Peru
Xingú River	1870	BrazilBrazil
Putumayo	1820	ColombiaColombia, EcuadorEcuador, Peru Peru, BrazilBrazil
Uruguay	1780	Argentina, BrazilBrazil, Uruguay Uruguay
Marañón	1730	Peru Peru
Pilcomayo	1690	Argentina, BoliviaBolivia, Paraguay Paraguay
Magdalena	1543	ColombiaColombia
Bermejo	1456	Argentina, BoliviaBolivia
Cauca	1350	ColombiaColombia
Usumacinta	1203	GuatemalaGuatemala, Mexico Mexico

Flora and fauna

The flora and fauna of America is very varied and diverse due to its large territorial extension and diverse ecosystems, climates, and biodiversity. Thus, the continent with the greatest biodiversity on the planet.

North America

As for the flora of North America, a space in which the United States, Canada and Mexico are located, we can find pine, mahogany, cedar, conifer, cactus, agave, in short, more than 17,000 species of vascular plants and more than 1,800 species of flowering plants.

As far as the fauna of North America is concerned, this continent has a great diversity, there are more than 400 species of mammals, almost 1000 species of birds, more than 500 species of reptiles and amphibians and about 100,000 species of insects. It is worth noting the bears, eagles, turkeys, seals, American bison, wolves, snakes, among others.

Continental Central America

In Central America, the flora is represented by representations of species from North America and South America, as well as endemic and exclusive species of the territory, with more than 44,000 species of plants, its main species represented in the flora are Annona macroprophyllata, Gliricidia sepium, Mammea americana, Manilkara zapota, Pithecellobium dulce, Myrciaria floribunda, pines, mahogany, avocado, guava, tamarind, palms, Guineos, cherry, pineapple, Couma macrocarpa, Lepanthes guatemalensis and Tithonia rotundifolia.

The fauna of Central America has large numbers of mammals that are most common in Guatemala (230 species), Panama (229 species), Nicaragua (225 species), Costa Rica (211 species), El Salvador (210 species) and Honduras (207 species). Mainly there are deer, jaguars, pumas, hummingbirds, torogozes, quetzals (the symbol bird of Guatemala), vultures, tapirs and macaws. The most common animals in Central America are Quetzal (Pharomachrus mocinno), Green Frog (Agalychnis callidryas), Nine-banded Armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus), American crocodile (Crocodylus acutus), black howler monkey (Alouatta palliata), jaguar, Tapirus, anteater, harpy eagle ( Harpia harpyja), the puma and the tapir.

The Caribbean or the Antilles

In the Caribbean Sea where the Island of Hispaniola (Dominican Republic and Haiti), Cuba, The Bahamas, Dominica, Grenada, Trinidad and Tobago, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Saint Martin and other islands are located. As for the flora of the Caribbean, there are more than 13,000 different species of trees and plants, of which 6,500 are endemic to the area, the best known being Olea europaea, the Olea europaea, the i>Chrysophyllum cainito, the guayacán, the ceiba, the mahogany (National Tree of the Dominican Republic). Originally Cuba was full of thick vegetation, which has been degraded to develop agriculture. However, there are many programs for the care and maintenance of these forests, which are home to great diversity. The precious woods of Cuba are highly valued.

The fauna of the Caribbean or the Antilles is made up of 450 species of fish, 600 species of birds, 500 species of reptiles, 170 species of amphibians and 90 species of mammals. The best known are the barracuda, the grouper, the moray eel, the cortacubas, the mangrove canary and the green heron, the Puerto Rican amazon, the yacutinga and the sabanera dove, the green iguana and the blue iguana, the Mona's iguana, the rhinoceros iguana, hawksbill, golden coquí, dolphin, manatee, almiquí (endemic to the Antilles) and various species of bats, and the humpback whale as a migratory species. Other species, such as the Caribbean monk seal, have become extinct in recent centuries due to the direct action of man.

South America

In the area of South America, the Andes and the Coast, the Sierra de Perijá and the Guayana massif are located within the Orinoco river basin, the Amazon and Gran Chaco. This area of the continent is extremely rich in flora, it has dry, tropical, temperate, arid and humid forests. The best-known species in South America are the alerce, the cordillera cypress, the guaitecas cypress, the huililahuán, the lleuque, Saxegothaea, and the araucaria, Nothofagus, among them the coigüe, the lenga and the ñire, Picea, cypress, pine, ceiba, yagrumo, guamo, mahogany, vines, species of bromeliads and other epiphytes. In short, there are more than 44,000 different plant species.

There are also, in the Andean areas of the subcontinental north (Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela), páramo areas that are home to native plant species that are unique in the world (such as the frailejón —also known as espeletia—), bromeliads, cryptogams, shrubs such as sietecueros, ferns and others, which favor the formation of bodies of water, such as lakes and lagoons, which serve as rich sources of water and feed basins and rivers as important as the Orinoco and the Amazon.

South America is home to species such as penguins, red fox, hornero, flamingo, southern flank whale, jaguar, puma, toucan, Otaria flavescens, Andean condor, capybaras, anteaters, peccaries, giant otter, rattlesnakes, cuaima-piña, as well as iguanas, morrocoy, bottlenose dolphins, large reptiles such as the green anaconda, the Orinoco crocodile, the spectacled caiman, other mammals such as the manatee, Amazonian manatee, spectacled bear, ocelot, vinegar fox, foxes, tapirs, sloths, opossums, armadillos and deer.

Climate

Due to the considerable extension from north to south, east to west, America has almost all of the existing climates. Between the coasts of Mexico, the west of Nicaragua and the south of Brazil, the warm climate develops in the coastal plains and mountain slopes. The rainy intertropical climate and the jungle are characteristic of a large part of Central America, the Amazonian plain and the Caribbean islands, while a savannah zone develops on the Atlantic coast of Colombia, Venezuela and Guyana.

In the subtropical zones near latitude 30° there are arid zones, with desert characteristics such as the Sonoran desert (southern United States and northern Mexico) and the Atacama desert (in northern Chile), while in Patagonia develops a cold desert climate.

The temperate climate extends into the mid-latitudes and high mountains, mainly on the Atlantic slope. The temperate climate with rains throughout the year extends along the coastal strips of Canada, Alaska and southern Chile, producing areas of mixed forest, while the temperate climate with summer rains is the most widespread climate on the continent, mainly in the southeastern United States, central Mexico, and southeastern Brazil. The Mediterranean climate is found in California and the Chilean Central Valley, generating a style of vegetation known as chaparral.

Lastly, cold climates extend along the ends of the continent in the vicinity of the poles, especially in North America. Tundra is found throughout much of Alaska and Canada, and in the southern tip of South America; due to height effect in the Andean Puna and a large part of the mountainous areas. Finally, the polar climate is found in Greenland and the cold climate due to altitude in the mountainous areas of the Rockies and the Andes.

• 

  Laguna Miramar in the Lacandona Forest in Chiapas, Mexico

• 

  Amazon Rainforest Example of humid tropical climate

• 

  Chiligatoro Lagoon in Intibucá example of a temperate climate

• 

  The heritage city of Valparaíso, located in a Mediterranean climate

• 

  The Janos Biosphere Reserve in Mexico is an example of semi-arid climate

• 

  Winter at the Yellowstone National Park in the United States

Human Geography

Based on its cultural and economic characteristics, the continent can be divided into Latin America and Anglo-Saxon America. In turn, Latin America can be divided into Spanish America, Brazil, and French-speaking America.

Anglo-Saxon America, located to the north, is made up of two large countries: the United States and Canada. In them, the English language is mainly spoken and Protestant religions are mainly professed, with the exception of some French-speaking regions and Catholic religion in Canada. Both have a high percentage of urban population. In the economic aspect, they are countries with large values of total and per capita gross domestic product, an early industrialized economy and very high human development indices (within the 10 highest in the world). This area can include Greenland, related to Denmark, also a Germanic language that shares some of the characteristics mentioned.

Latin America, located to the south, with countries where Spanish and Portuguese are mainly spoken and the Catholic religion is mainly professed. It has higher percentages of rural population than the US and Canada. In their economies, the primary or extractive sector (agriculture, livestock, etc.) has a greater weight. Most of the countries are barely industrialized or only recently industrialized, except in the cases of Mexico, Brazil and Argentina, with a thriving and developing industry than in the rest of the countries in the area, lower GDP per capita values and lower development index human (some countries, with very low rates)

The location of the small countries and dependencies of non-Latin language and tradition in the Caribbean and the tropical zone is a matter under discussion. Due to their linguistic and cultural characteristics, countries such as the Bahamas, Belize, Guyana, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and other countries of the Lesser Antilles can be included in Anglo-Saxon America. However, there is the possibility of incorporating the Caribbean into the concept of Latin America due to their common historical relationships, due to similar forms of cultural development. This would include the English and Dutch Caribbean. These countries and dependencies share the economic reality of the rest of Latin America. From this last criterion, there would be a clear limit between the two Americas that would be the border between the US and Mexico and the Strait of Florida that separates the US from Cuba.

Demographics

It is the third most populated continent after Asia and Africa, it is also one of the least densely populated, due to its large area. Three quarters of the population lives in cities.

Characteristics of the population

The population in America varies according to living conditions. Most of the inhabitants of Latin America are young people between the ages of 15 and 24, and life expectancy varies between 70 and 80 years of age.^{[citation required]} Furthermore, more than half of the population in most countries is rural. Cuba, Chile, Costa Rica, Argentina, Uruguay and Puerto Rico are the Latin American countries with a relatively aged demographic structure, since the population of 60 years or older is close to, equal to or greater than 13%. In countries like Bolivia, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua, Paraguay and the Dominican Republic, there is a larger youth population, predominantly young people between 15 and 25 years of age. While in Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, Ecuador, Panama, Mexico, Peru and Venezuela, a simple majority of their inhabitants are also young, although in recent decades there has been a progressive aging of the population related to the decrease in the birth rate and the increase in life expectancy. The same occurs in the overseas departments of Guadeloupe, French Guiana and Martinique (belonging to France) and in non-Latin countries such as the Bahamas, Belize, Guyana, Jamaica, Suriname, the Lesser Antilles, Trinidad and Tobago, including European dependencies such as the Antilles. Netherlands, Aruba, Bermuda etc. In the United States and Canada, most of its inhabitants are adults, exceeding the youth population, resembling the process that occurred in Europe, although in Canada the situation is more pronounced.

Gender diversity

In America there is a positive balance between men and women, with the rate of women being 3 or 5% more than men in most countries. Regarding sexual orientation, America presents a panorama of opinions and points of view that in some countries differ from others; For example, in many of the countries of the Antilles, and some non-Latin countries such as Belize, Suriname and Guyana, policies are in place where homosexuals are sentenced to prison, the only exception is Puerto Rico, which is among the most liberal and favorable countries. In this sense, also in some overseas dependencies and in the Dominican Republic, homosexuality is legal, however, the latter does not have laws that protect them. In the case of Latin America, in all countries sexual diversity is legal, although on the one hand, in Peru, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Bolivia, El Salvador, Paraguay and Honduras there are still homophobic attitudes and it is still considered a issue taboo mainly in the latter, while on the other hand in Uruguay, Argentina, Brazil, Costa Rica, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Panama, Ecuador and Venezuela there is greater acceptance of homosexuality, mainly in the former; at the continental level Canada and the northern region of the United States (where the states are more liberal) have the greatest diversity of sexual orientation and acceptance of it. Currently, equal marriage is legal in Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Uruguay, Puerto Rico, the United States, Ecuador, Colombia and Costa Rica, and also in some states of Mexico.

Ethnography

The American population is made up of approximately one billion inhabitants, descendants of three large ethnic groups, as well as the miscegenation between them: Amerindians and Eskimos (who constituted the autochthonous inhabitants of America); Europeans (mainly of Spanish, Portuguese, British, French, Italian, German, Dutch, Danish, Slavic and Irish origin, among others, which add up to approximately 573 million people, equivalent to a little more than 50% of the American population) and assuming, in turn, the largest American ethnic group; and sub-Saharan Africans descended from slaves. There are also descendants of other, more recent immigrants, especially Asians, both from the Middle and the Far East.

Although it is true, to a greater or lesser extent all the countries of the continent have European ancestry, this is the majority in countries such as Canada, the United States, Uruguay, Argentina, Costa Rica and Brazil. In some of these countries, whose inhabitants phenotypically have predominantly European features, have been observed under genetic tests to have small percentages of Amerindian and African blood. Racial problems in America have been decreasing throughout history, especially legally, since slavery has been totally abolished in all countries. However, there is racism towards minorities of Amerindian, African or Asian origin in several countries with predominantly white populations.

On the other hand, the countries where the majority population is of mixed or mestizo descent (between Europeans and indigenous people and to a lesser extent African) would be Paraguay, El Salvador, Honduras, Panama, Nicaragua, Ecuador, Mexico, Chile and Colombia; In the case of Mexico and Honduras, the Hispanicized indigenous population or those of predominantly indigenous descent are usually taken as mestizo. In Venezuela the mestizo population is almost half of that country, in other countries such as Belize, the Dominican Republic, Peru, Guatemala and Bolivia the mestizos reach two fifths of the population of those countries.

The countries where the percentage of Amerindians have a significant influence on the population are from highest to lowest Bolivia, Peru, Guatemala, Ecuador and Mexico. In nations such as Uruguay, Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Haiti there are almost no native indigenous groups currently: the indigenous contribution was absorbed by the ethnic majority of each country at the time of losing their mother tongue. For its part, the African contribution is present with greater force in Haiti, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Belize, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador and the United States. Meanwhile, in countries such as Chile, El Salvador, Mexico, Guatemala, Paraguay and Argentina, the African contribution was absorbed by the ethnic majority of each country, however they retain important minorities.

Countries such as the United States, Canada, Peru, and Brazil have sizeable population communities of Asian descent (mainly Chinese and Filipinos),^{[citation needed]} as well as cities such as San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Seattle, Vancouver, Toronto, Lima and San Pablo have entire neighborhoods where this community is ethnically consolidated. Finally, countries like the United States, Brazil, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Colombia, Chile, Venezuela, and Argentina have important communities of Arab origin, mainly those that come from Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, and Sephardic communities.^{[quote required]}

Languages

Top spoken and most important languages in America

The total number of languages in the Americas is well over five hundred, including idioms, dialects, and patois. The main languages are those corresponding to those established by the European colonizers, followed by the languages of the main indigenous American cultures.

• Spanish is spoken by more than 400 million people, focusing mainly on Mexico, Central America and South America. There are also important Spanish-speaking communities in the United States, Canada and a little in Brazil and some Caribbean islands. (See geographical distribution of the Spanish language).
• English is spoken as a mother tongue by more than 350 million people. It is the most spoken language in the United States, Canada, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, and other former British colonies or units in the Lesser Antilles and the South Atlantic. It is official in Belize (speaked by only 3 % of the population, as 50% of the population is Spanish-speaking) and Puerto Rico where it is present as second official language. On the Caribbean coast of Central America it is common to find dialects of English origin, mainly Creole, which are known as patois some examples are the Costa Rican mekatelyu, the Nicaraguan kriol and the Belizean.
• Portuguese in America is the official language only of Brazil, with more than 200 million speakers. There are important colonies of Brazilian and Portuguese immigrants in the United States, Canada and Venezuela, although very minority.
• French is spoken in America by more than 20 million Frenchmen (less numerous than in Europe or Africa but distributed in the three Americas). In North America, there is talk in Canada where it is an official language, spoken mainly in the provinces of Quebec (where it is majority) and in New Brunswick; in the San Pedro and Miguelon Islands where it is also an official language (French territorial collectivity); and in part of the United States (Council and Louisiana). In the region of Central America and the Caribbean: it is official in Haiti and in several islands of the Lesser Antilles as in the French departments of Guadalupe and Martinique, and in the islands of San Martín and San Bartolomé (French territorial collectivities), and is also spoken in Dominica and Saint Lucia. In South America, he is an official in the French department of French Guiana.
• Quechua is the most spoken indigenous language, with more than 12 million people. It is also the most "international" of American native languages, as it is spoken in half a dozen countries. It is official in Bolivia and Peru in the areas where this language predominates. It is also spoken by a considerable minority in Ecuador (where it is also official at the territorial level, along with the shuar), southern Colombia, all northern Argentina and northern Chile.
• Along with Quechua, Aymara is also official in Bolivia, while in Peru it is only where it prevails. In addition, Aymara is the first language of 18% of Bolivia's population, and it is the main Amerindian language of southern Peru and northern Chile. There are also speakers of this language in northern Argentina.
• Creole is a Creole language based primarily on French, which is spoken in Haiti. In the United States, the Dominican Republic, Bahamas and Turks and Caicos there are a considerable number of Haitian immigrants who speak it.
• Guaraní is spoken by more than seven million people, mainly in Paraguay, where it is an official language.
• Several native languages are spoken in the Mesoamerica area, such as the Nahuatl (speaked by 1.5 million people in Mexico), the Quiché (speaked by 1.8 million people in Guatemala and Mexico), the Mayan languages (all spoken by five million people in Mexico and Central America), the Zapoteco (speaked in Oaxaca by about 800 thousand people, especially the Isthmus of Tehuantepec)
• Dutch is spoken in Suriname and is an official language in the islands of Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, San Martín (Netherlands), San Eustaquio and Saba.
• In the territory of Greenland the Greenland is official.

Some other languages have a significant demographic weight without being official, among them:^{[citation required]}

• Mapudungun is the native language spoken by about 440 thousand Mapuches in Chile and Argentina.
• The wayú or guajiro is an indigenous language spoken by more than 400 thousand people in Colombia and Venezuela.
• Papiamento is a Creole language spoken in the islands of Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao.
• Various languages, such as German and Italian, are still spoken by immigrants who arrived in America at the end of the centuryXIX and throughout the centuryXX.. German is spoken predominantly in the Southern Region of Brazil, South Chile and in some regions of Argentina, Costa Rica Peru, Paraguay, Mexico and Venezuela, among others. The German bass is spoken in Paraguay, Costa Rica, Mexico, Argentina, Canada, Belize and Bolivia. Italian is spoken in the United States, Canada, Costa Rica, Argentina, Brazil, Peru, Chile, Uruguay, Venezuela, Mexico and Ecuador.
• The funnet is spoken mainly in Mexico and Brazil.
• Portuñol is a pidgin spoken in the border areas of the Spanish-speaking countries with Brazil. The mixture of Spanish and Portuguese languages gives rise to the variant called Portuñol.
• The Japanese is spoken, to a greater extent, in the United States, in Brazil and Peru, which are the countries that host the largest number of Japanese immigrants, although they also speak in the countries with small Japanese colonies.
• Chinese is spoken mainly in Peru, the United States, Canada, Panama, Costa Rica and Venezuela (which are the most immigrant countries) and, to a lesser extent, in other countries of the continent, such as Colombia, Chile, Mexico and Argentina.
• Welsh is spoken in the Patagonian province of Chubut.
• The Croatian is spoken in Chile by the large community of immigrants living in the regions of Antofagasta and Magellan.
• The Esperanto auxiliary language is spoken by some 300 thousand people in countries across the continent, with notable concentrations in Brazil, Argentina, Peru, Chile, Costa Rica, Mexico, Uruguay, Paraguay, Venezuela, Colombia, the United States, Canada and Cuba.^{[chuckles]required]}

In America, the languages most studied as a second language are: English, in Spanish-speaking and French-speaking countries; and, Spanish and French, in English-speaking countries.

Religion

Historically, before the arrival of European colonization, the entire population was polytheistic, with important rituals of Mayan, Quechua, Aztec, Olmec, etc. origin. With the arrival of the Europeans, Christianity was introduced to America, while pre-Columbian paganism gradually disappeared, there are still small practicing minorities in countries like Mexico, Peru, Bolivia and Guatemala. However, as the Europeans brought African slaves, other pagan rituals were incorporated such as Santeria, Voodoo, etc., which have a strong presence in countries such as the United States, Brazil, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Colombia and Panama. Since the last decades of the XIX century, most countries have no official religion.

Today, Christianity is the majority religion in all the countries of the American continent, but with different manifestations. The main religion within Christianity and the entire religious context of America is Catholicism. Historically, Catholic countries have been Latin America and the Caribbean, while Anglo-Saxon America was Protestant. However, Canada, despite being a country that calls itself "Anglo-Saxon", the Catholic religion is the majority in percentage terms. From highest to lowest, the countries where Catholicism is professed by more than 60% of the population would be Paraguay, Ecuador, Mexico and Peru (with more than 80%), Bolivia, Venezuela, Puerto Rico, Argentina, Colombia and Panama (with more than 70%) Dominican Republic, Brazil and Costa Rica (with more than 60%), the countries where between 50-59% of their population is Catholic would be from highest to lowest Nicaragua, Chile, El Salvador, Honduras, and Haiti, although the countries where it is the largest belief but less than 50% would be Guatemala, Cuba, Uruguay, Belize, and Canada. In the case of the United States, the Catholic population represents a quarter of the population of that country.

The second largest Christian group is Protestantism, and it is the majority religion in the United States, Jamaica and Guyana. In the United States, the southwestern states belong to the Baptist Church, while New England to the Anglican Church, the states of North Dakota and South Dakota to the Methodist Church, and the northwest has a presence of neo-Pentecostal Churches. Canada was in previous decades a Protestant country for the first half of the 20th century, although Catholicism once again took hold in the decade 1960, returning to being a Catholic country as it was in the 19th century. However, Protestantism in that country represents almost 30%. In the case of Latin America, the Protestant population is a minority, although it is growing and gaining strength in those countries. For example, Guatemala has 40% Protestants, followed by Honduras with 35%, Belize 33.2%, El Salvador 30% (countries with more than 30% Protestants) while countries that exceed 20% would be Nicaragua 26.5%, Puerto Rico 24%, Haiti 23%, Brazil 22.2% and Colombia 21%, otherwise the least Protestant countries are Argentina with 9%, Paraguay 8%, Mexico 7.4%, Ecuador 6% and Cuba 5 %.

In countries like Brazil, Haiti, Colombia, Cuba, and Panama, voodoo and Santeria rituals are often mixed with Catholicism, as well as in Mexico, Ecuador, Guatemala, Peru, and Bolivia, indigenous rituals are mixed with Catholicism, calling each one a religious syncretism. It is worth mentioning that secularization has advanced in society, mainly in the most developed countries of the region or with high democracy. The countries where the population that declares itself atheist or agnostic is elevated by more than 40% are Cuba 45% and Uruguay 40.5%, in Canada around 30.7% declare themselves without religion, while in Chile they are almost fourth part of that country. Another country where there is a notable increase in the number of atheists or non-believers is the United States with 18% followed closely by Argentina where a national survey (CONICET) says that 15% have no religion, being the second largest group after the catholics. In contrast, the countries where almost the entire population (above 95%) is religious are Paraguay 98%, Puerto Rico 97%, Haiti 96%, Bolivia 96%, Ecuador 95.5% and Peru 94.9%. Due to immigration from the Middle East and East Asia, there are minorities of practitioners of Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Confucianism, the Baha'i Faith, among other religions.

Political geography

America is politically divided into 35 independent countries and 23 dependencies of European countries (Denmark, United Kingdom, France and the Netherlands) and the United States. In addition, there are 4 integrated territories in France and therefore are part of the European Union. The American states were born at the end of the 18th century (United States) and beginning of the XIX (Ibero-America and Haiti) as a result of the war process of decolonization of powers such as the United Kingdom, France, Spain and Portugal. Finally, the Caribbean territory achieved independence between the end of the XIX century (Cuba and Dominican Republic) and the XX (rest of Caribbean islands).

International and regional organizations

Euler diagram with intergovernmental relations in South America (in Portuguese)

The American states are members of the UN, with almost all the American states (except some Caribbean states) being founding members of said organization. In the economic sphere, the American states are members of the International Monetary Fund, except for Cuba, and of the World Trade Organization, although the Bahamas has observer country status. Ecuador (1973-1992, readmitted in 2007) and Venezuela (1960) are part of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)

In terms of justice and security, all American countries are members of INTERPOL. In the case of international Justice, three countries (United States, Nicaragua and Cuba) have not signed or ratified the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. While there are three (Dominican Republic, Bahamas and Jamaica) the signatories that have not yet ratified it. In the rest of the countries, it accepts the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court to judge cases of crimes against humanity.

In the case of the Non-Aligned Movement (1961), there are 26 American nations that are part of this organization in favor of neutrality.

As transcontinental organizations between America and Europe we find the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (1975) to promote democracy, human rights, arms control and security. Also the military organization NATO (1949), in both cases the American member countries are Canada and the United States. There are other transcontinental organizations such as the OECD in 1961 (American, European and Asian countries) to which countries such as the United States and Canada (1961), Mexico (1994) and recently Chile (2010) or the Forum for Economic Cooperation adhered. Asia-Pacific (1989) that brings together the United States, Canada, Mexico, Peru and Chile for America. Likewise, in this transcontinental area, the Colombo Plan (1950) stands out to promote the economic and social development of 27 countries (United States).

During the Cold War (1986) the South Atlantic Peace and Cooperation Zone was created, under the auspices of the United Nations, with the aim of maintaining security and peace in the South Atlantic, thus on the initiative of Brazil They joined 3 South Americans (Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay) and 21 more African states.

In 1975, African, Caribbean and Pacific States (ACP) were created to, through various agreements (the most recent Cotonou Agreement in 2000), fight against poverty together with the European Union, which works through of the European Development Fund. All the states of the Caribbean Community plus the Dominican Republic and Cuba are part of this organization. The European Union works by signing economic agreements with CARIFORUM, excepting Cuba.

At the regional level, the American states were grouped together in the Organization of American States (1948) with the aim of being a political forum for decision-making, multilateral dialogue and the integration of America. Cuba was expelled from the organization in 1962, after the triumph of the Cuban Revolution, in 2009 it was readmitted.

In the economic aspect, there are two important regional financial institutions. On the one hand, the Inter-American Development Bank (1950) and on the other hand, the Caribbean Development Bank (1969).

America is characterized by multiple regional organizations that seek economic, social and political integration; The problem is that many of these organizations end up overlapping in the activities they carry out and the objectives they pursue:

The CELAC (2010) stands out, which promotes the integration and development of the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, being an international interlocutor in their relations with the European Union in the CELAC-EU Summits. The continent also has the Latin American Integration Association (South America plus Mexico and Cuba) founded in 1980 with the aim of creating a common market. The Latin American and Caribbean Economic System (1975) to coordinate a common economic policy vis-à-vis other international organizations. In 1964 the Latin American Parliament was created to represent all the democratic political tendencies of the continent, it is made up of all the states except the Caribbean states (except Cuba and the Dominican Republic, which are part), the United States, Canada and Guyana.

There are also two organizations that are opposed both in the guiding economic principles and we can also talk about the political principles. On the one hand is the Pacific Alliance (2011) formed by Mexico, Chile, Peru and Colombia that seek the validity of the rule of law, democracy, constitutional order and the free market. In contrast is the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America-Peoples' Trade Treaty (ALBA-TCP), which is an international organization founded in 2004, and made up of Latin American and Caribbean countries. which emphasizes the fight against poverty and social exclusion based on left-wing doctrines. Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua, Bolivia, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Ecuador, Grenada, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Suriname, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines are part of this organization.

In America we can talk about several regional groups according to the geographical area. In North America, the North American Free Trade Agreement (1994) is among the three most important states in the area: Canada, the United States and Mexico. In Central America there is an important development of integration with the Organization of Central American States (1951) that was expanded to the Central American Common Market (1960) and the Central American Integration System (1993), including the Dominican Republic, with mechanisms such as the Central American Parliament (1986).

The Caribbean area is centralized by the Caribbean Community (1973) which encompasses 15 Caribbean nations whose objective is to promote the creation of a single market and cooperation with other neighboring states. There is also an Association of Caribbean States (1994) to which the 31 riparian states belong with the aim of promoting economic integration, the natural conservation of the Caribbean and the development of its members. Finally, there is the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (1981) integrating several Antillean countries that share the Eastern Caribbean Dollar. In South America, Unasur (2011) stands out mainly, which aims to achieve an integration similar to that achieved in Europe in South America, and which encompasses all the South American states. There is also Mercosur (1991) with the aim of creating a common tariff and a free trade area among its members: Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, Argentina and Venezuela (suspended in 2016). Likewise, there is the Andean Community (1969) that encompasses countries with Andean cultural ties (Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia) and that seeks to coordinate economic and social policies.

Finally, we can talk about organizations that share cultural affinities such as the Organization of Ibero-American States (1949) that encompasses the Ibero-American countries plus Spain and Portugal. The relationship of this Ibero-American Community of Nations is defined by the Ibero-American Summits that have been held annually since 1991, although they have been biannual since 2014. Or sustainable development such as the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization (1995)

Sovereign States

Flag	Shield	Name/Official Name	Established	Surface (km2)	Population	density	Capital	Official language(s)
		Antigua and Barbuda	1981	442	95 581	211,7	Saint John's	English
		Argentina Argentina	1816	2 780 400	45 030 748	15.7	Buenos Aires	Spanish
		Bahamas Commonwealth of the Bahamas	1973	13 880	328 316	23.5	Nasai	English
		Barbados	1966	430	292 495	667,8	Bridgetown	English
		Belize	1981	22 966	356 858	15.4	Belmopán	English
		Bolivia Plurinational State of Bolivia	1825	1 098 581	11 969 649	9.9	Sucre	Spanish Aimara Quechua
		Brazil Federal Republic of Brazil	1822	8 514 877	211 823 665	24.1	Brasilia	Portuguese
		Canada	1867	9 984 670	37 411 590	3.5	Ottawa	English French
		Chile Republic of Chile	1818	756 102	18 650 114	23.3	Santiago	Spanish
		Colombia Republic of Colombia	1810	1 141 748	50 220 856	41.3	Bogotá	Spanish
		Costa Rica Republic of Costa Rica	1838	51 100	6 172 543	95.3	San José	Spanish
		Cuba Republic of Cuba	1902	110 860	11 179 995	100.8	Havana	Spanish
		Dominica Commonwealth of Dominica	1978	751	74 757	98.2	Roseau	English
		Ecuador Republic of Ecuador	1830	256 370	17 080 778	56.7	Quito	Spanish Quechua
		El Salvador Republic of El Salvador	1841	21 041	6 356 670	292,6	San Salvador	Spanish
		United States United States of America	1776	9 371 174	329 995 528	34,5	Washington D.C.	English
		Grenada	1974	344	111 229	323,3	Saint George	English
		Guatemala Republic of Guatemala	1840	108 889	15 289 958	139.4	Guatemala City	Spanish
		Guyana Cooperative Republic of Guyana	1966	214 969	1 035 909	3,42	Georgetown	English
		Haiti Republic of Haiti	1804	27 750	11 485 800	377,8	Port-au-Prince	Haitian French
		Honduras Republic of Honduras	1838	112 492	8 893 259	79.0	Tegucigalpa	Spanish
		Jamaica	1962	10 991	3 070 340	270.2	Kingston	English Jamaiquino
		Mexico United Mexican States	1821	1 964 375	128 166 749	62.7	Mexico City	Spanish languages of Mexico
		Nicaragua Republic of Nicaragua	1838	130 370	7 366 798	45.7	Managua	Spanish
		Panama Republic of Panama	1903	75 420	5 005 246	49.1	Panama City	Spanish
		Paraguay Republic of Paraguay	1811	406 752	7 162 812	16.8	Assumption	Spanish Guaraní
		Peru Republic of Peru	1821	1 285 216	33 050 325	23.9	Lima	Spanish Aimara Quechua
		Dominican Republic	1844	48 670	10 606 865	217,9	Santo Domingo	Spanish
		San Cristóbal y Nieves Federation of San Cristobal and Nieves	1983	261	53 329	200.4	Basseterre	English
		Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	1979	389	106 350	263,11	Kingstown	English
		Saint Lucia	1979	616	167 464	226,9	Castries	English
		Suriname Republic of Suriname	1975	163 820	595 824	3.57	Paramaribo	Dutch
		Trinidad and Tobago Republic of Trinidad and Tobago	1962	5128	1 320 479	238	Port of Spain	English
		Uruguay Eastern Republic of Uruguay	1828	176 215	3 286 314	19,0	Montevideo	Spanish
		Venezuela Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela	1811	916 445	28 500 302	33.7	Caracas	Spanish
		Total	39 801 695	1 003 830 249	24.4

Area and population data consulted in The World Factbook Archived on 10 May 2013 at Wayback Machine..

Dependencies

The territories exposed here depend on another nation in areas such as defense, foreign relations or trade. The dependent territories of countries of the European Union are classified as overseas countries and territories, which are not part of the Union, but have a status of associates to the Member States since the Treaty of Lisbon.

Flag	Shield	Name/Official Name	Status	State	Surface (km2)	Population	Density	Capital	Official language(s)
		Anguilla Overseas Territory	2002	United Kingdom	91	16 752	184	The Valley	English
		Aruba Constituent nation	1986	Netherlands	180	113 648	631.3	Oranjestad	Dutch Papiamento
		Bermuda Overseas Territory	2002	United Kingdom	54	70 537	1306.2	Hamilton	English
		Bonaire Special municipality	2010	Netherlands	288	18 905	65.6	Kralendijk	Dutch Papiamento
		Clipperton Island	1931	France	6	0	0	-	-
		Curacao Constituent country	2010	Netherlands	444	154 843	348.7	Willemstad	Dutch Papiamento
		Greenland Autonomous region	2009	Denmark	2 166 086	61 100	0.02	Nuuk	Greenland
		Cayman Islands Overseas Territory	2002	United Kingdom	264	57 268	216,9	George Town	English
		South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands Overseas Territory	2002	United Kingdom	3903	40	0.01	King Edward Point	English
		Falkland Islands Overseas Territory	2002	United Kingdom	12 173	2931	0.24	Argentine Port/Stanley	English
		Turks and Caicos Islands Overseas Territory	2002	United Kingdom	948	51 430	54.2	Cockburn Town	English
		British Virgin Islands Overseas Territory	2002	United Kingdom	151	34 232	226,7	Road Town	English
		Virgin Islands (EUA) Non-incorporated territory	1917	United States	346	102 951	297,5	Carlota Amalia	English
		Montserrat Overseas Territory	2002	United Kingdom	102.	5267	51.6	Brades	English
		Navaza Island Non-incorporated territory	1857	United States	5.4	0	0	-	-
		Puerto Rico Commonwealth	1952	United States	8870	3 578 056	403,3	San Juan	Spanish English
		Saba Island Special municipality	2010	Netherlands	13	1424	109.5	The Bottom	Dutch
		San Bartolomé Overseas collectivity	2007	France	25	9131	365.2	Gustavia	French
		San Eustaquio Special municipality	2010	Netherlands	21	3300	154.1	Oranjestad	Dutch
		San Pedro and Miquelón Overseas collectivity	2003	France	242	6069	25,0	San Pedro	French
		San Martín Constituent country	2010	Netherlands	34	35 035	1030.4	Philipsburg	Dutch
			Total	288 105	5 435 501	2.3

Area and population data consulted The World factbook (breakable link available on the Internet Archive; see history, first version and last). updated 1 June 2016.

American territories integrated into non-American states

The territories assigned to this group belong to the Outermost Region of the European Union as an indivisible part of a state of the European Union.

Flag	Name/Official Name	Status	State	Surface (km2)	Population	Inhabitants per square kilometer	Capital	Official language(s)
France
	Guadalupe Overseas Department	1946	France	1706	403 314	236,4	Basse-terre	French
	French Guiana Overseas Department	1946	France	91 000	259 109	2.8	Cayenne	French
	Martinique Overseas Department	1946	France	1100	413 417	375.8	Fort-de-France	French
	San Martín Overseas collectivity	2007	France	53	35 742	674,3	Marigot	French

Area and population data consulted The World factbook (breakable link available on the Internet Archive; see history, first version and last). updated 1 June 2016.

Economy

In exports and imports, in 2020, the United States was the second largest exporter in the world (US$1.64 trillion) and the largest importer (US$2.56 trillion). Mexico was the tenth largest exporter and importer. Canada was the 12th largest exporter and importer. Brazil was the 24th largest exporter and the 28th largest importer. Chile was the 45th largest exporter and the 47th largest importer. Argentina was the 46th largest exporter and the 52nd largest importer. Colombia was the 54th largest exporter and the 51st largest importer; among others.

The continent's agriculture is very strong and varied. Countries like the United States, Brazil, Canada, Mexico and Argentina are among the largest agricultural producers on the planet. In 2019, the continent dominated world production of soybeans (almost 90% of the world total, with Brazil, the United States, Argentina, Paraguay, Canada and Bolivia among the 10 largest on the planet), sugarcane (close to 55% of the world total, with Brazil, Mexico, Colombia and Guatemala among the 10 largest on the planet), coffee (close to 55% of the world total, with Brazil, Colombia, Honduras, Peru and Guatemala among the 10 largest on the planet) and corn (close to 48% of the world total, with the United States, Brazil, Argentina and Mexico among the 10 largest on the planet). The continent also produces almost 40% of orange (with Brazil, the US and Mexico among the 10 largest producers), close to 37% of pineapple (with Costa Rica, Brazil, Mexico and Colombia among the 10 largest producers), about 35% lemon (with Mexico, Argentina, and Brazil among the top 10 producers) and about 30% cotton (with the US, Brazil, Mexico, and Argentina among the top 10 producers), among various other products.

In livestock, America also has gigantic productions. In 2018, the continent produced about 45% of the world's beef (with the US, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico and Canada among the world's top 10 producers); about 36% of the world's chicken meat (with the US, Brazil and Mexico among the world's top 10 producers), and about 28% of the world's cow's milk (with the US and Brazil among the 10 largest producers in the world), among other products.

In industrial terms, the World Bank lists the top producing countries each year, based on the total value of production. According to the 2019 list, the United States has the second most valuable industry in the world (US$2.3 trillion), Mexico has the 12th most valuable industry in the world (US$217.8 billion), Brazil has the 13th 1st most valuable industry in the world (US$173.6 billion), Canada has the 15th most valuable industry in the world (US$151.7 billion), Venezuela the 30th largest (US$58.2 billion, but depends on oil to get this amount), Argentina was the 31st largest ($57.7 billion), Colombia the 46th largest ($35.4 billion), Peru the 50th largest ($28.7 billion) and Chile the 51st largest ($28.3 billion), among others.

In oil production, the continent had 8 of the 30 largest world producers in 2020: United States (1st), Canada (4th), Brazil (8th), Mexico (14th), Colombia (20th), °), Venezuela (26th), Ecuador (27th) and Argentina (28th).

In natural gas production, the continent had 8 of the 32 largest world producers in 2015: the United States (1st), Canada (5th), Argentina (18th), Trinidad and Tobago (20th),.º), Mexico (21st), Venezuela (28th), Bolivia (31st) and Brazil (32nd).

In coal production, the continent had 5 of the 30 largest world producers in 2018: United States (3rd), Colombia (12th), Canada (13th), Mexico (24th) and Brazil (27th).

In vehicle production, the continent had 5 of the 30 largest global producers in 2019: the United States (2nd), Mexico (7th), Brazil (9th), Canada (12th) and Argentina (28th). °).

In steel production, the continent had 5 of the 31 largest global producers in 2019: United States (4th), Brazil (9th), Mexico (15th), Canada (18th) and Argentina (31st).

In mining, the continent has large gold productions (mainly in the United States, Canada, Peru, Mexico, Brazil and Argentina); silver (mainly in Mexico, Peru, Chile, Bolivia, Argentina and the USA) copper (mainly in Chile, Peru, the US, Mexico and Brazil); platinum (Canada and the US) iron ore (Brazil, Canada, the US, Peru and Chile); zinc (Peru, USA, Mexico, Bolivia, Canada and Brazil); molybdenum (Chile, USA, Peru, Mexico and Canada); lithium (Chile, Argentina, Brazil and Canada); lead (Peru, USA, Mexico and Bolivia); bauxite (Brazil, Jamaica, Canada and the USA) tin (Peru, Bolivia and Brazil); manganese (Brazil and Mexico); antimony (Bolivia, Mexico, Guatemala, Canada and Ecuador); nickel (Canada, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Cuba and the USA) niobium (Brazil and Canada); rhenium (Chile and the USA) iodine (Chile), among others.

Economic position by country

Post	Country	Development	Global post	Transition ♪
1	United States	High	1	0
2	Brazil	High	8	-2
3	Canada	High	10	+1
4	Mexico	High	11	+3
5	Chile	High	15	+7
6	Argentina	High	23	-5
7	Colombia	High	29	+1
8	Panama	High	33	+9
9	Peru	High-average	36	+4
10	Uruguay	High-average	38	0
11	Dominican Republic	High-average	41	+2
12	Puerto Rico	High-average	44	-4
13	Costa Rica	High-average	47	+2
14	Venezuela	Medium-high	51	-14
15	Ecuador	Medium-high	55	-3
16	Guatemala	Medium-high	63	+4
17	Barbados	Medium-high	66	+2
18	Bolivia	Medium-high	68	+3
19	Paraguay	Medium-high	71	+4
20	El Salvador	Medium-high	69	+5
21	Trinidad and Tobago	Medium-high	72	0
22	Belize	Medium-high	73	+6
23	Honduras	Media	80	+2
24	Nicaragua	Media	87	+7
25	Grenada	Media	90	+8
26	Guyana	Media	92	+1
27	Cuba	Medium-low	107	0
28	Dominica	Medium-low	118	+3
29	Suriname	Medium-low	128	-2
30	Haiti	Low	184	+3

Ranking made by the World Bank.

* between 2011 and 2016.

Countries per GDP (PPA)2021

Countries per capita GDP (PPA)April 2021

Rank Country Millions of USD 1 United States 22.675.271 2 BrazilBrazil 3.328.459 3 Mexico Mexico 2.613.797 4 CanadaCanada 1,978,816 5 Argentina 1.015,008 6 ColombiaColombia 780,262 7 ChileChile 491,535 8 Peru Peru 439.262 9 Dominican RepublicDominican Republic 208,957 10 EcuadorEcuador 201,194 11 GuatemalaGuatemala 158.570 12 Venezuela Venezuela(2020) 144.737 13 Panama Panama 131.807 14 CubaCuba(2017) 128,500 15 Costa RicaCosta Rica 107.095 16 BoliviaBolivia 105,063 17 Paraguay 98.929 18 Uruguay Uruguay 83.170 19 El SalvadorEl Salvador 57.952 20 HondurasHonduras 57.649 21 NicaraguaNicaragua 36,964 22 Trinidad and TobagoTrinidad and Tobago 36,413 23 HaitiHaiti 34.189 24 Jamaica 28,209 25 GuyanaGuyana 18,357 26 BahamasBahamas 13,254 27 SurinameSuriname 8,992 28 BarbadosBarbados 4,136 29 BelizeBelize 2,626 30 Saint LuciaSaint Lucia 2.539 31 Antigua and BarbudaAntigua and Barbuda 1,804 32 GrenadaGrenada 1.747 33 Saint Vincent and the GrenadinesSaint Vincent and the Grenadines 1.418 34 San Cristóbal y NievesSan Cristóbal y Nieves 1,196 35 DominicaDominica 841

Rank Country USD 1 United States 68,309 2 CanadaCanada 51,713 3 BahamasBahamas 34,046 4 Panama Panama 30.388 5 Trinidad and TobagoTrinidad and Tobago 25,883 6 ChileChile 24.948 7 Uruguay Uruguay 23,474 8 GuyanaGuyana 23,258 9 Argentina 22,141 10 San Cristóbal y NievesSan Cristóbal y Nieves 20.730 11 Costa RicaCosta Rica 20.667 12 Mexico Mexico 20.266 13 Dominican RepublicDominican Republic 19,800 14 Antigua and BarbudaAntigua and Barbuda 18.126 15 BrazilBrazil 15,643 16 ColombiaColombia 15,184 17 GrenadaGrenada 14,779(2017) 18 SurinameSuriname 14,703 19 BarbadosBarbados 14,329 20 Saint LuciaSaint Lucia 13,942 21 Paraguay 13,454 22 Peru Peru 12,985 23 Saint Vincent and the GrenadinesSaint Vincent and the Grenadines 12.811 24 EcuadorEcuador 11,331 25 DominicaDominica 11,231 26 Jamaica 10,294 27 El SalvadorEl Salvador 8,891 28 BoliviaBolivia 8,832 29 GuatemalaGuatemala 8.648 30 BelizeBelize 6,133 31 HondurasHonduras 5,700 32 NicaraguaNicaragua 5.648 33 HaitiHaiti 2,962 34 Venezuela Venezuela ♪ 35 CubaCuba ♪

Coins

United States dollar bill (used in the United States and other countries of America)

Ticket of 100 Brazilian reals (used in Brazil)

Country	Currency
AnguillaAnguilla, Antigua and BarbudaAntigua and Barbuda, DominicaDominica, GrenadaGranada, MontserratMontserrat, San Cristóbal y NievesSan Cristobal and Nieves, Saint Vincent and the GrenadinesSaint Vincent and the Grenadines and Saint LuciaSaint Lucia	Eastern Caribbean dollar (EC$; XCD)
Argentina	Argentine peso ($; ARS)
ArubaAruba	Green Florin (AWG)
BahamasBahamas	Bahamian dollar (B$; BSD)
BarbadosBarbados	Barbecue dollar (Bds$; BBD)
BelizeBelize	Belizean dollar (Bz$; BZD)
BermudaBermuda	Bermudian dollar (BD$, BM$; BMD)
BoliviaBolivia	Boliviano (Bs.; BOB)
BrazilBrazil	Real (R$; BRL)
CanadaCanada	Canadian dollar (C$; CAD)
ChileChile	Chilean peso ($; CLP)
ColombiaColombia	Colombian peso ($, COL$; COP)
Costa RicaCosta Rica	Colon (USD; CRC)
CubaCuba	Cuban peso (CUP), Cuban peso convertible (CUC)
CuracaoCuracao San Martín	Dutch Antilles Florin
Dominican RepublicDominican Republic	Dominican peso ($, RD$; DOP)
Netherlands EcuadorEcuador, El SalvadorEl Salvador, United States of America Turks and Caicos Islands, British Virgin Islands, United States Virgin Islands, and Puerto RicoPuerto Rico	United States dollar ($; USD)
GreenlandGreenland	Danish krona (DKK)
Guadalupe, French GuianaFrench Guiana, Martinique, San Bartolomé, San Martín y San Pedro and Miquelón	Euro (€; EUR)
GuatemalaGuatemala	Quetzal (GTQ)
GuyanaGuyana	Guyanese dollar (GYD)
HaitiHaiti	Gourde (HTG)
HondurasHonduras	Lempira (HNL)
Cayman Islands	Cayman Islands dollar
South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands, and Falkland IslandsFalkland Islands	Libra malvinense (£, FL£; FKP)
Jamaica	Jamaican dollar ($, J$, JA$; JMD)
Mexico Mexico	Mexican peso ($; MXN)
NicaraguaNicaragua	Cordoba (C$; NIO)
Panama Panama	Balboa (official) (B/.; PAB); United States dollar (legal) ($; USD)
Paraguay Paraguay	Guaraní (PYG)
Peru Peru	Sun (S/; PEN)
SurinameSuriname	Surinamese dollar (SRD)
Trinidad and TobagoTrinidad and Tobago	Trinitense dollar ($, TT$; TTD)
Uruguay Uruguay	Uruguayan peso ($; UYU)
Venezuela Venezuela	Bolivar (Bs.S; VES)

Foreign population by country

Country	immigrants (cant.)	(%)	Original countries
Argentina	1 954 100	4.74 %	Paraguay Paraguay, ItalyItaly, SpainSpain, BoliviaBolivia, Peru Peru
Venezuela Venezuela	1 505 787	5.45 %	ColombiaColombia, SpainSpain, Portugal, ItalyItaly, Peru Peru
Mexico Mexico	1 224 169	0.99 %	United States of America SpainSpain, GuatemalaGuatemala, Argentina, France
ChileChile	1 119 267	6.1%	Peru Peru, ColombiaColombia, BoliviaBolivia, Venezuela Venezuela, HaitiHaiti
BrazilBrazil	938 833	0.46 %	Portugal, JapanJapan, ItalyItaly, SpainSpain, GermanyGermany
Dominican RepublicDominican Republic	524 632	5.06 %	HaitiHaiti, United States of America SpainSpain, Puerto RicoPuerto Rico, ItalyItaly
Costa RicaCosta Rica	387 243	9.05 %	NicaraguaNicaragua, ColombiaColombia, United States of America ChinaChina, NetherlandsNetherlands BelgiumBelgium
Puerto RicoPuerto Rico	350 105	10 %	Dominican RepublicDominican Republic, CubaCuba, France, SpainSpain, United States
Panama Panama	224 000	6.7 %	United States of America ColombiaColombia, ChinaChina, Jamaica, SpainSpain
Uruguay Uruguay	194 000	2.67 %	SpainSpain, Argentina, BrazilBrazil, ItalyItaly, JapanJapan
EcuadorEcuador	131 944	0.88 %	ColombiaColombia, Peru Peru, Venezuela Venezuela, BrazilBrazil, Argentina
ColombiaColombia	120 347	0.25 %	Venezuela Venezuela, United States of America EcuadorEcuador, SpainSpain, Peru Peru
GuatemalaGuatemala	103 100	0.65 %	El SalvadorEl Salvador, Mexico Mexico, United States of America GermanyGermany, South KoreaSouth Korea
Paraguay Paraguay	101 174	1.35 %	BrazilBrazil, Argentina, BoliviaBolivia, United States of America ChileChile
Peru Peru	99 610	0.21 %	United States of America ChinaChina, BoliviaBolivia, Argentina, SpainSpain
BoliviaBolivia	87 338	1.06 %	Argentina, BrazilBrazil, Mexico Mexico, Peru Peru, ChileChile
CubaCuba	59 410	0.53 %	SpainSpain, Mexico Mexico, United States of America Venezuela Venezuela, Russia Russia
El SalvadorEl Salvador	51 010	0.77 %	HondurasHonduras, GuatemalaGuatemala, Mexico Mexico, NicaraguaNicaragua, SpainSpain
NicaraguaNicaragua	40 911	0.69 %	Venezuela Venezuela, United States of America El SalvadorEl Salvador, Costa RicaCosta Rica, SpainSpain
HondurasHonduras	32 815	0.4 %	El SalvadorEl Salvador, NicaraguaNicaragua, United States of America ColombiaColombia, ItalyItaly
BelizeBelize	15 727	4.71 %	GuatemalaGuatemala, United States of America United KingdomUnited Kingdom, CanadaCanada, BahamasBahamas
HaitiHaiti	9866	4.71 %	Dominican RepublicDominican Republic, Jamaica, CanadaCanada, France, CubaCuba

Countries by Human Development Index (HDI)

Human Development Very High
Post	Country	IDH	Global post
1	CanadaCanada	0.929	16
2	United States	0.926	17
3	ChileChile	0.851	43
4	Argentina	0.845	46
5	Uruguay Uruguay	0.817	55
6	Panama Panama	0.815	57
7	BahamasBahamas	0.814	58
7	BarbadosBarbados	0.814	58
9	Costa RicaCosta Rica	0.810	62
Human Development
Post	Country	IDH	Global post
10	Trinidad and TobagoTrinidad and Tobago	0.796	67
11	CubaCuba	0,783	70
12	GrenadaGrenada	0.779	74
12	Mexico Mexico	0.779	74
12	San Cristóbal y NievesSan Cristóbal y Nieves	0.779	74
15	Antigua and BarbudaAntigua and Barbuda	0.778	78
16	Peru Peru	0.777	79
17	ColombiaColombia	0.767	83
18	BrazilBrazil	0.765	84
20	EcuadorEcuador	0.759	86
20	Saint LuciaSaint Lucia	0.759	86
21	Dominican RepublicDominican Republic	0.756	88
22	DominicaDominica	0.742	94
24	Saint Vincent and the GrenadinesSaint Vincent and the Grenadines	0.738	97
24	SurinameSuriname	0.738	97
25	Jamaica	0.734	101
26	Paraguay Paraguay	0.728	103
27	BoliviaBolivia	0.718	107
28	BelizeBelize	0.716	110
29	Venezuela Venezuela	0.711	113
Middle Human Development
Post	Country	IDH	Global post
30	GuyanaGuyana	0,682	122
31	El SalvadorEl Salvador	0.673	124
32	GuatemalaGuatemala	0.663	127
33	NicaraguaNicaragua	0.660	128
34	HondurasHonduras	0.634	132
Low Human Development
35	HaitiHaiti	0.510	170