Defining Latin America

• Latin america : Mexico, Central America, Caribbean, South America

• They are Latin because Latin countries colonizers (Spanish, Portuguese) are derived from Latin

• culture region: same languages & region

• Mexico: Farthest North of the Latin America and include mountains, plateaus, plains

Mexico

• 2 highest mountains peak

• Those are volcanoes and they activity and earthquakes frequently plague mexico

• Mexico city: 2nd most populated city, air pollution reaches dangerous levels, located in the surrounding of mountains, automobile exhaust and many pollutants happens. huge population

• Another problem of Mexico City

  • The city is the ground that was a drained lakebed.

  • vibration of earthquakes send through stronger and more damaging to Mexico City

Central America

• It forms a bridge between Mexico & South America

• To the east, there are island nations scattered throughout the Caribbean sea

• 80% are hilly or mountains, most of it is covered with forests

  • Rain forests cover much of the lowlands

  • Deciduous trees cloak many of the slopes in the higher regions

• More than 40 volcanoes lines 900 miles of the Pacific coast where 2 tectonic plates crash against each other

  • This is the most active group of volcanoes in whole America

• Earthquakes occur frequently

The Caribbean Islands

• Lie to the east of Central America

• some islands are the peaks of volcanic mountains rising from ocean floor

  • St. Kitts & Grenada etc.

• Some islands, began as coral reefs

  • Bahamas etc.

South America

• Equator runs through some of South America's country

• Isthmus of Panama links South and North America

• Andes mountain range, stretches over 5,000 miles along the west side of South America

• Aconcagua in Argentina is the most highest peak in the Western Hemisphere

• Pampas: the plains in southern South america

The Amazon at Risk

• Flows for nearly 4,000miles to the Atlantic Ocean

• Along with more than 1,000 tributaries

• Tributaries: rivers of streams that flow into a larger body of water

• drains water from ..

  -> Peru, Ecuador, Colobia, Boivia, Venezuela

• Deforestation: process of cuting and clearing away trees from a forest

• recently Amazon deforestation has provided timber and cleared land for cattle ranches

• 1. most plants release oxygen into the air and absorb carbon dioxide

• 2. animals who live in the rain forest need to move

Climate

• A large portion of Latin America lies in the Tropical Zone

  • latitudes 23` 27`north and 23`27` south

  • temperature: always lower at higher elevation

  • BUT

    • Tropical Zone, all elevation are warmer than they are elsewhere

  • Carbbean sea stay warm most of the year

El nino

• "the christ child"

• it appears yearly at Christmastime

• Warmer water and air

The Maya

• It doesn't

• developed in river valleys and thrived there

• Cities in South America built in the jungles

  • Ex) Aztecs of Mexico constructed their capital on a swampy island

• Where was it located? Southern and eastern Mexico, western Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Belize

• Existed as early as 1600 B.C. from 250 to A.D. 900

Maya Achievements

• Studied math and astronomy extensively

• The first civilizations in the world understood the mathematical concept of 0

• Made 260 day calendar of sacred days

• Made 360 dya calendar based on the sun

• Made language and used Hieroglyphs of glyphs

• Farming was important, they did slah and burn agriculture

-> cut down and burned trees, planting crops in their place, few years later people let trees to grow again, -> soil will be nutrients

• built up ridges of farming land on floodplains

• A.D. 900, they stopped to build temples and stone monuments

• cities were abandoned

• but 6 million maya people still live in many south amrican countries

The Aztec

• Mexico City place was Lake Texcoco

• City in lake = Tenochtitlán

• Tenochtitlán = Aztec capital

• 200,000 people lived there

• Aztec = warrior tribes

• Mexica = strongest tribe

• "Mexico" name from "Mexica"

• 1200s → Aztec got strong

• 1500s → Spanish took over

• All men = must fight

• War = power + religion

• Dying in war = honor for god Huitzilopochtli

• Island city = safe from attack

• Island = wet land = hard to farm

• Solution = chinampas (floating gardens)

• Built with plants + mud

• Grew corn, beans, squash, tomatoes, avocado, peppers, flowers

• Raised turkeys, ducks, geese, dogs for food

The Inca

• 1400s, Andes Mountains, Peru

• Inca people started empire

• Capital = Cuzco

• Empire big: Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia, north Chile, northwest Argentina

• Built stone terraces on mountains for farming

• Terraces stop soil erosion

• Built canals in desert to bring water

• Grew potatoes, maize, quinoa

• No writing, no wheel

• Built stone roads = big technology

• Roads still used today

• Used runners to send messages

• Runners worked in relay teams

• Messages = 150 miles per day

• Communication important = empire very large

Inca Stonework

• Inca famous for stone buildings

• Used huge stones, some = 200 tons

• Moved stones with wooden rollers

• Most famous = Machu Picchu

• Machu Picchu = 8,000 feet high in mountains

• Walls look like part of mountain

• Terraces + stairs go down steep slopes

The Spanish in Latin America

• Before 1500s = only Native Americans in Latin America

• 1500s = Spanish came

• Hernán Cortés took Aztec empire in 1521, called it New Spain

• Francisco Pizarro took Inca empire after defeating Atahualpa

• Spanish made Native Americans work (mining, labor)

• Forced them to become Christians

• Europeans brought diseases (like smallpox)

• Millions of Native Americans died — no immunity

• Smallpox killed more than weapons

• Trade started between Spain and Latin America = Columbian Exchange

• Latin America sent corn, peppers, tomatoes

• Spain sent textiles, animals, other goods

• Cultures mixed through trade and contact

The Founding of New Spain

Hernan Cortes - First leader of the spanish army who landed on Mexico, in 1519 with 500 soldiers

Montezuma II - Ruled Aztec emperor and 5-6 million people

• But many of Native American people wanted to be free

  • So they helped spanish but couldn't expect that spanish would become their rulers

A Clash of Cultures

Montezuma II welcomed Cortes with gifts, allowed Cortes to stay in a palace

-> within a week

Cortes took Montezuma II prisoner and took control Aztec

during the fighting Montezuma II was killed, spanish retook the city

they fight with..

Aztec: War clubs, spears, arrows

Spanish: Steel Sword, armor, guns, cannons + horses

New Spain

The fall of Tenochtitlan - 1521

• end of Aztec Empire

• Starts of Spanish rule in Mexico

spanish established Mexico City as their capital, and they named the name of the country as "New Spain"

• they ruled Mexico for the next 300 ys

Changes after spanish ruled

1. region

   • Christianity (Roman Catholic was powerful in spain)

   • Catholic priests set up

     • churches, school, hospitals

     -> many native american accepted Christianity

2. new animals

   • horses, cattle, sheep, pigs

3. trades

   • ironsmithing, shipbuilding

Change in Mexico

The Native American accept way of new life, but old ways were not lost entirely

• Ex.) Tortilla, Flat, Corn bread

• Many other aspects of the 2 cultures blended in the new Mexico culture

The ruling class

1. Peninsulares (Spanish; born in Spain)

2. Criollos (Spanish; born in Mexico)

3. Mestizo (Mixed; Native American and Spanish)

4. Mexico unwillingly (Africans brought by European slave ships)

Encomienda: Spanish men oversee the village of Native American, the villagers had to pay tribute in goods money or labor

-> Made Spain rich, the villagers lived in poverty and hardship

The War of Independence

• Early 1800s = Mexican leaders wanted freedom from Spain

• 1808 = France took over Spain → demand for independence grew

• Sept 16, 1810 = Father Hidalgo rang church bell in Dolores

• Gave speech = Grito de Dolores (“Cry of Dolores”)

• Called people to fight Spanish rule

• Native Americans + mestizos joined him

• Army had few weapons — used farm tools

• Government soldiers defeated them

• Hidalgo was captured and killed

• But revolution continued

• New leaders joined, including some criollos

• War lasted 11 years

• 1821 = Mexico won independence from Spain

• But peninsulares + criollos still had power

• Native Americans + mestizos got little benefit

War With the United States

• 1821 = Mexico very big, included today’s U.S. Southwest

• Spain had claimed land in 1500s–1600s

• Spanish/Mexican priests built missions there

• Land mostly desert = hard travel, hard communication

• Mexico fought Native tribes (Apache, Comanche)

• Few Mexicans lived in the area

• Mexico invited foreigners to settle

• Many settlers came from the U.S.

• By 1830s = U.S. settlers in Texas > Mexican settlers

• U.S. settlers still loyal to the U.S.

Texas Independence

• 1835 = Texas settlers rebelled against Mexico

• 1836 = Texas became independent, made Republic of Texas

• Most Texans wanted to join U.S.

• 1845 = U.S. accepted Texas

• Mexico and U.S. argued over Texas border

• 1846 = border fight became war

• U.S. took northern Mexico

• 1848 = Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended war

• U.S. got big land area

• 1853 = Gadsden Purchase gave U.S. even more land

• Border changed a little later, but no more war after that

A Struggle for Power

• 1917 = new constitution made after many struggles

• 1821 = Mexico got independence from Spain

• 1840s = lost war with U.S. (Texas, California, more land)

• Mexico also had power struggles inside the country

• Army leaders often took control of government

• Bandits attacked people in some areas

• Fights between Mexicans and Spanish landowners

• Few rich people, many poor people everywhere

Benito Juarez Brings Reform

• 1850s = many Mexicans wanted reform

• Leader = Benito Juárez (came from poverty)

• 1855 = became minister of justice

• Later = became chief justice

• 1858 = became president → reformers took power

• 1857 = new constitution written

• Gave bill of rights: free speech, legal equality

• Ended slavery and forced labor

• No freedom of religion in constitution

• Catholic Church lost official status

• Army power reduced in government

Response to Reform

• Reforms made church, army, rich landowners angry

• 1858–1860 = War of Reform (reformers vs. opponents)

• War left Mexico weak — many deaths, debt, no jobs

• Spain, Britain, France sent troops

• 1863 = French took Mexico City

• French made Maximilian emperor

• 1867 = Mexicans overthrew and executed Maximilian

• Juárez came back as president, stayed until 1872

• After Juárez = leaders didn’t care much about reform

• Poverty and poor education continued

• Rich families kept power

• Real reform started again in 1900s

The Mexican Revolution

• big gap between rich and poor

• few families own most farmland

• poor people have no land

• people want change

• revolution starts 1910

• many rebel armies fight

• Francisco Madero new president 1911

• fair elections and land for poor

The problem of land

• poor farmers want their own land

• haciendas = huge farms (up to 50,000 acres)

• rich ranch owners took land from villages

• 1883 law made it easy to take land

• millions of acres taken in 1880s–1890s

• Emiliano Zapata fights for farmers

• his motto: “Land and Liberty!”

• builds army in south of Mexico

• calls farmers to join him

A Continuing Revolution

• many armies fought each other 1910–1920

• Madero killed in 1913

• Zapata killed in 1919

• over 1 million people died

• new government made peace in 1920

• 1917 constitution promised fair land

• 1920–1940: big farms (haciendas) broken up

• land given to small farmers or ejidos

• ejido = village-owned farm

• farmers happy to have land again

• “Revolution” became a strong idea

• new party called itself party of the Revolution

• later called PRI (Institutional Revolutionary Party)

• PRI won all elections 1929–2000 peacefully

Mexico's Government Today

• Dec 1, 2000: Vicente Fox became president

• first non-PRI president in over 70 years

• Fox was from PAN (National Action Party)

• showed new political change in Mexico

• Mexico’s full name: Estados Unidos Mexicanos (United Mexican States)

• 31 states make up the country

• Mexico = democracy + republic

• citizens 18+ can vote

• 3 branches: executive, legislative, judicial (like U.S.)

• federal system: power shared national & state

• each state elects a governor & has a legislature

• national gov can remove governors

• towns rely on national money → less local power

• local gov handles things like sewers, safety