Stylized
map of the Western Hemisphere
Lesson 2 Text: The Geographic Setting
I. What is "Latin America", and
where does it begin and end?
This is a seemingly simple question, but there is no simple or clear-cut
answer. The term "Latin" suggests those nations whose basic language
is derived from Roman Latin, and in the Americas this would include Spanish,
Portuguese and French. But to speak of "Latin" America leaves
out two basic population groups: the Indigenous (Indian) one, and the African
one. Perhaps a more meaningful (but awkward) term would be "Latin-Indo-African
America", but that term would then include areas of the United States
and Canada.
Figure 2-1: Western Hemisphere
We should realize also that the term "Latin
America" was not invented by the Latin Americans. It came into popular
use starting in France in the 1860's during the time the French were intervening
in Mexico, and wanted to stress the common heritage. French intellectuals
used the term later because many Latin American nations looked to France
for cultural and political models. "Latin Americans" sometime
resent the term because it tends to lump them all together into one single
category. Although they acknowledge their cultural commonalties, they understandably
also like to stress their individual identities, and often they prefer to
call themselves Mexicans, Argentines, Brazilians, etc.
Figure 2-2: Stylized map
We also run into problems attempting to define where Latin America begins
and ends. If we take a strictly state-oriented approach (more on this below),
we could say that Latin America begins at the US-Mexico border and ends
at the tip of South America. Let's take another look at that starting point.
While politically it may be valid, culturally there is a border area between
Mexico and the US which is neither Hispanic nor Anglo alone. A similar phenomenon
occurs in southern Florida, to such a degree that a hot current political
issue is whether or not English should be declared the official language
so as to protect it from further incursions by Spanish. From a cultural
perspective we could say that Latin America begins on the west coast of
North America somewhere between Los Angeles and San Francisco, and on the
east coast a few miles north of Miami.
Figure 2-3: Culture-areas of the Western Hemisphere
Defining the southern boundary of Latin America
gets us into a political problem. At first glance the answer seems obvious:
the tip of South America, or perhaps the large triangular-shaped island
of Tierra del Fuego, or even the Island of Cape Horn, which is the last
island directly linked to South America. But if we take a look at a map
centered on the South Pole, we can see that there is a long and narrow peninsula
which seems to reach out from Antarctica to South America. There is geological
continuity (the Antarandes mountains) between the two which is interrupted
by only 600 miles of ocean (the Drake Passage). And two South American nations,
Argentina and Chile, claim that their national sovereignty extends as far
south as one can go: the South Pole. Several other South American nations,
while not claiming sovereignty in Antarctica, have a presence there and
feel that the one-quarter segment of Antarctica which faces them should
be considered "South American Antarctica". To add to the political
sensitivity, Great Britain also has an Antarctic claim (linked to their
possession of the Falklands and other South Atlantic Islands) which to a
large degree overlaps the claims of Argentina and Chile.
If we choose to use the simple state-centered
approach to the question of "what is Latin America", we can define
"Latin America and the Caribbean" as everything south of the US.
The "Latin American" portion includes all those countries with
Hispanic, Portuguese or French roots, while "Caribbean" takes
in all the other countries in the Caribbean basin (and two in northern South
America - Suriname and Guyana) which are not "Latin" American.
We could also link the notion of "Latin America and the Caribbean"
to the regional organization, the Organization of American States (the OAS).
When the OAS was founded (as the Pan American Union) in the late 19th Century,
it consisted of 20 "Latin American" nations (18 Hispanic, plus
Brazil and Haiti) and the United States. These 20 Latin American nations
are in a sense the "core" of Latin America, and the 13 other nations
which joined the OAS in the period from 1967 to the 1980's represent the
"Caribbean" nations. (Canada, something of an anomaly, joined
the OAS very late, in 1990). We can also do this graphically: the inner
core of Hispanic-American nations; add Brazil and Haiti and you have "Latin
America"; add the Caribbean nations, the US and Canada and you have
"Pan America"= the OAS. Put another way, the "core"
of the 20 "Latin American" nations in the early OAS now represent
98% of the population and 99% of the area that lies south of the US.
Figure 2-4: The OAS and the nations of the Hemisphere
II. Physical Geography
Physical geography refers to the land masses, their characteristics,
their location, size and shape, as well to as the principal features such
as mountains, plains and rivers.
Notice how South America is much farther
east than North America, and how close it comes to Africa. This location
also means that much of South America is really closer to Europe than to
the U.S. Notice also that the Equator cuts Latin America roughly in half;
this equatorial proximity means that most of the region is either tropical
or sub-tropical.
Figure 2-5: Old and New Worlds
This map is another way of showing the significance of the Equator (and
the tropics) for Latin America and the Caribbean. You can also see that
most of South America lies east of Florida, and why Miami's location has
led to it sometimes being called "the capital of Latin America and
the Caribbean".
Figure 2-6: Flipped on the Equator
In North America the widest part of the continent
is found in the comfortable temperate area, while in South America the widest
part is in the tropical and inhospitable Amazon Basin. This has very important
implications for human habitation, crops, and the economic activities that
are possible or most feasible in each area.
The region is large: over 20 million square
kilometers (about 8 million square miles). That's about two and a half times
the area of Europe, and the distance from the Mexico-US border to the tip
of South America is about 7,000 miles. But even though Latin America has
about 20% of the world's land surface (not counting "Latin American
Antarctica"), it holds less than 10% of the world's population. This
might seem to suggest that Latin America is underpopulated, but what this
statistic really reflects is that much of the area is not very favorable
for human habitation.
The "backbone" of both North and South America is formed by
a long mountain range extending from Alaska (the Rockies) through Mexico
(Sierra Madre), South America (the Andes) and across the Drake Passage to
Antarctica (the Antarandes). The Spanish word for a mountain chain is "cordillera",
a word which has the same Latin root as "cord", so we can envision
this mountain chain as a gigantic rope strung out from Alaska to Antarctica.
On the east coast we have older and lower mountains. In between the two
sets of mountains we find the great basins of North America (the Plains)
and South America (Amazon and Pampas).
Rivers form some of the most important elements
of physical geography, and they can be very significant as transportation
routes. Major rivers in the United States (Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio,
Hudson) serve this function, but unfortunately most of the rivers in Mexico
and Central America are relatively short and unnavigable. South America,
however, contains some of the longest and most voluminous rivers in the
world, starting with the Amazon, which drains a surface area that is almost
half of South America. There is also the Orinoco of Venezuela, and the Paraná-Plata
system, which drains out into the South Atlantic between Argentina and Uruguay.
Although it might not seem so at first glance, both North and South
America are roughly triangular in shape, and approximately the same size.
This allows us to draw a very rough (but useful) four-line map of the Western
Hemisphere, which is the origin of the stylized map which is the logo for
this course. We can also include a 1/4 chunk of Antarctica because, as noted
above, many South Americans believe there is a geological and geopolitical
continuity to that area.
Figure 2-7: The two triangles
III. Basic Subregions
There are three very different subregions within Latin America:
1. Middle America (the Caribbean Basin).
2. South America.
3. The islands of the southern ocean and "South American Antarctica".
Middle America.
The first of these areas is called "Middle
America" because it comes between North and South America. Included
in the area are Mexico, Central America, and the islands of the Caribbean.
This is truly a "watery nation", linked together by the commonality
of the Caribbean Sea, with a history of being an international crossroads,
and lying in close proximity to the US (which is also partially a Caribbean
country). The classification is not perfect since El Salvador does not have
a Caribbean coast, and Mexico, like the US, is only partially Caribbean.
Middle America can also be subdivided into "rimland" and "mainland".
The classification is useful because it deals with culture and history,
and not simply national boundaries. In this map the area in black (and the
waters around it), is the "rimland', which is primarily Euro-African
in culture and history. The Indigenous element here was destroyed shortly
after the arrival of the Europeans, and the African element originated with
slaves brought over to work the sugar plantations. The shaded area is the
"mainland" of Middle America, which is primarily Euro-Indian and
Mestizo (mixture of Spanish and Indian) in culture and history. Two great
civilizations (Maya and Aztec) originated here, and in many areas the Spanish
culture is a relatively thin veneer over a population base that is still
predominantly Indigenous.
Figure 2-8: The Mainland and Rimland of Middle America
We can also speak of "two crescents" of nation-states in Middle
America: an insular crescent stretching from Florida to Venezuela, and a
land bridge crescent from Mexico through Central America to the South American
mainland. These two crescents include all or part of 26 of the 35 different
nations of the western hemisphere, as well as eleven dependent territories.
The nations include a superpower, four middle powers (Mexico, Venezuela,
Colombia and Cuba) and a number of mini-states.
Figure 2-9: The crescents
In general the topography (landforms) of
Mexico and Central America can be described as: a narrow and dry Pacific
coastal strip dropping off sharply into the ocean; broader Caribbean coastal
plains which tend to be hot, humid and lush with vegetation. In between
run the mountain ranges and the high basins which hold most of the population.
These are quite broad in Mexico (for example, the basin in which Mexico
City sits), and much narrower in Central America.
South America
South America's topography shows the same narrow Pacific coasts and
the mountain range (the Andes), but there is a much broader plain in the
center, with older and lower mountains on the eastern shore. The new mountains
(Andes) are still unstable, and there are frequent earthquakes and volcanic
eruptions.
Figure 2-10: A horizontal cut across South America at the
Equator
Several South American nations are of course
also Caribbean because of their extensive coasts on the Sea. These would
include Colombia (which tends to look inward, turning its back on the Caribbean),
Venezuela, and the Guianas (two independent nations, Guyana and Suriname,
and the colony of French Guiana). Brazil occupies almost half of the South
American continent, with extensive shores on the Atlantic, and the nations
of Uruguay and Paraguay are "buffer states" between Brazil and
Argentina. The remaining South American nations are the Andean ones dominated
by the great mountain chain: Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, and back to
our starting point of Colombia.
There is much diversity in South America. The Orinoco and Amazon River
basins are hot, steamy tropical areas dominated by rivers and the thick
vegetation of the rain forest and jungle. Although humans have penetrated
the basins and cleared large areas (causing great ecological concern in
the process), these regions are generally not suitable or comfortable for
human habitation. In considerable contrast are the deserts of the Pacific
coasts of southern Peru and northern Chile, some of which have never had
recorded rainfall in all their history.
The Andean nations have the advantage of
"vertical climates", which means that when you have high mountain
ranges in the tropics and sub-tropics, the temperatures (and thus climate,
vegetation, crops and human activity) are determined by the altitude. At
sea level the climates are hot and tropical; in the peaks of the Andes there
is permanent snow, even on the Equator. In between there is every possible
variant. And since these are the tropics, there is little seasonal variation
and no real difference between "winter" and "summer".
Where the mountains branch out to create pockets that are valleys or high
mountain basins, there can be very favorable conditions for human habitation.
Uruguay (the only Latin American nation outside of the tropics), and
Argentina provide the climatic conditions most suitable for human activity.
The grassy plains of Uruguay and the Pampas of Argentina contain some of
the most fertile and productive soils on earth for grains and cattle.
The Far, Far South
The last region we will consider is the far South Atlantic and the islands
which connect South America to Antarctica (Falklands/Malvinas, South Georgia,
South Sandwich, South Sandwich). These may seem to be unimportant islands,
but in 1982 Argentina and Great Britain fought a short but bitter war over
them.
And beyond the islands lies Antarctica. In the United States we tend
to think of Antarctica as a isolated continent but, as we mentioned earlier,
many South Americans feel there is a geographic and geopolitical link between
Antarctica and South America. And two countries (Argentina and Chile) claim
that their country extends all the way to the South Pole. The Argentine
and Chilean argument can be better understood from this map, which shows
how close Antarctica comes to South America (about 600 miles).
Figure 2-11: The far, far South
IV. Conclusions
This concludes the overview of the major features of the physical geography
of Latin America and the Caribbean. It is a large and diverse area which
stretches from subtropical Mexico and tropical Central and South America,
to subtropical and temperate South America and finally to the extreme cold
of the Antarctic region. To compound the diversity, there are high mountains
which provide further variations of temperature, climate, vegetation and
possibilities for human habitation and economic activity.
One way to summarize this diversity is to list the principal natural
regions of the area (see map and corresponding slides on the next page):
Figure 2-12: The 15 natural regions of Latin America
As we move from the physical geography to
study the humans who lived and live in this area, a useful metaphor suggested
by a geographer is that of a tapestry. The tapestry suggests the complex
mixture of nations and peoples that lies to the south of the US. We can
think of the loom that is the physical environment of the Western Hemisphere,
and the various threads as representing the major currents of humanity that
came to these lands (the original Indigenous current, the European, and
the African).
V. The first description of the Americas,
by Columbus.
(Extract from Christopher Columbus' letter to the Catholic Monarchs
Isabel and Ferdinand, written on the return leg of his first voyage, off
the Canary Islands, on 15 February 1493.)
...This island and all the others are very fertile to a limitless degree,
and this island is extremely so. In it there are many harbors on the coast
of the sea, beyond comparison with others which I know in Christendom, and
many rivers, good and large, which is marvelous. Its lands are high, and
there are in it very many sierras and very lofty mountains, beyond comparison
with the island of Tenerife. All are most beautiful, of a thousand shapes,
and all are accessible and filled with trees of a thousand kinds and tall,
and they seem to touch the sky. And I am told that they never lose their
foliage, as I can understand, for I saw them as green and as lovely as they
are in Spain in May, and some of them were flowering, some bearing fruit,
and some in another stage, according to their nature. And the nightingale
was singing, and other birds of a thousand kinds, in the month of November
when I was there. There are six or eight kinds of palm, which are a wonder
to behold on account of their beautiful variety, but so are the other trees
and fruits and plants. In it are marvelous pine groves, and there are very
large tracts of cultivable lands, and there is honey, and there are birds
of many kinds and fruits in great diversity. In the interior are mines of
metals, and the population is without number. Española is a marvel.
The sierras and mountains, the plains and arable lands and pastures,
are so lovely and rich for planting and sowing, for breeding cattle of every
kind, for building towns and villages. The harbors of the sea here are such
as cannot be believed to exist unless they have been seen, and so with the
rivers, many and great, and good waters, the majority of which contain gold.
In the trees and fruits and plants, there is a great difference from those
of Juana . In this island, there are many spices and great mines of gold
and other minerals.
Figure 2-13: Christopher Columbus
Figure 2-14: A new perspective on Latin America