Social Studies- Lesson 2: Central America and the Caribbean

ecotourism

tourism that focuses on the environment and seeks to minimize environmental impact

isthmus

A strip of land with water on both sides that connects two larger bodies of land

Santirera

A popular region that combines Catholic and West African beliefs

Carnival

A religious festival in late winter primarily observed by Roman Catholics.

Panama Canal

A human-made trade route between the Atlantic and the Pacific

Encomienda

A legal system to control American Indians in the Spanish Colonies. For example, under this, Spanish officials could tax American Indians or force them to work.

erosion

A physical environmental process in which water, ice, or wind remove rocks and soil from the Earth's surface.

Maya civilazation

An american people that began settling in what is know known as Guatemala around 1000 B.C.

Sugar, slaves rum, tobacco, and molasses fromed the triangular trade, a system of trrade connecting the Carribean, Europe, and Africa. This system of trade made the Europeans who ruled the colonies very wealthy. It made the Carribean, Europe, and Africa more culutraly diverse countrys. It also made the rulers very wealthy, which might be a good thing for them, but also helped them become very powerful, not helping the poor people.

Discuss triangular trade and its long-term effects on this part of the world.

The panama is a human-made trade route between the Atlantic and the Pacific, and it facilitates a lot of trade. One thing the Panama Canal helps with is faster trade, because it is a direct pathway from the United States to south america. This helps faciltiy better, and more trade by saving ships from having to travel around South America . The panama canal also facilitates cheaoer trade because it is a faster route so they do not need as much gasoline. The panama canal also facilitates safer trade, without the waves and other ships. Overall, the Panama Canal was challenging to build, but it was defenitly worth it, causing so mus=ch more trade.

In what ways does the Panama Canal facilitate trade?

Costa Rica, being a democracy, and Cuba, whith no right to vote.

Name one country in the Carribean who has one of the regions most stable democracy and one of the countries who has not removed their dictators, meaning no right to vote.

Mestizos

People of Spanish and indigenous background,who are the largest ethnic group in Central America

Arawak and the Carib

The Carribean islands were home to two main groups of people who grew a variety of plants for food, gathered fruits, adn harvested shellfish from the sea, now known as what?

Deforestation

The clearing of large numbers of trees.

Volcan de Fuego

The most active volcano in Guatrmala

Chrisopher Columbus

The sailer who sailed across the Atlantic Ocean from Europe, arriving in the Bahamas in 1419

Well, when the Spanish colonies controled American Indians with encomidienda, the Spanish officaials could tax american indians or force them to work. In return, Spaniards were forced to teach them Christianity. But encomienda soon turned into a system of slavery without religious teaching. I think the Bartolome, a spanish priest, wrote that becuase the soaniards foucused more on having the american indians doing work instead of having them learn chrisitanity.

WHy did Bartolome de las Casas, in 1542, right this? (Spaniards) had as little concern for their souls as for their bodies, all the millions that have persihed having gone to their deathls with no knoledge of God.

1. THey brought disease, and passsed it to the american natives 2. They killed or enslaved millions of american indians 3. They mined many natural resorces 4. They did encomienda, but didnt teach the natives christianity 5. Took a lot of land

What bad all happened when the Spanish came?

Caused by a combination of factors, including war, crop failures, and enviornmental problems.

What do historians believe the reason for the Maya cizilaztion declining is?

I think this tourist is recognizing how the Kuna Yala is encouraging ecotourism, because instead of harming natural resorces or changing native culutres, which some people worry about with ecotourism

What do you think this tourist means? " (The Kuna Yala recognize) the importance of their natural surroundings and the need to protect their culutre...(they know) how to manage the growth of tourism.

A lack of healcare and education, leading to widespread anger and violance.

What has the lack of social serivices in poorer countires in the Carribean led to?

Tourism is one of the most important land uses in Central AMerica and the Carribean, and it is the fastest growing part of the Carribean economy. The Bahamas and Jamaica have two of the regon's largest tourist-based econimies. Tourists spend money while they shop and see sighs. They go scuba-diving on coral reefs and hiking in rain forests. Cruise ships and resorts employ many local workers. However, these jobs usually pay local workers very little. Forgien companies and investors make most of the profit earned from tourism. Tourists can also cause enviornmnetal problems. Some people question whether tourism is the best way to use land. The presence of many tourists increaces the population density, which can make life more difficult for local people. Water shortages are commen, particularly in busy tourist areas like Jamaica or during the dry season of popular tourist regions in Costa Rica.

What makes tourism particularly popular in Central America and the Caribbean? Does it help or hurt the region?

Well, there are many natural disasters occuring in the Carribean, and there are plenty of scienfic resons of why they occur. One natural disaster that occurs is hurricanes. Since the Carribean is near a massive body of water, many hurricanes happen, causing a lot of damge. Thankfully, the Carribean are prepared for hurricanes, but sometimes it is not enough. Flooding also occurs in the carribean, mostly because of all the hurricanes. The hurricanes bring a lot of water on shore, and sometimes it brings too much water, causing serius flooding. Becuase of this, residents in the Carribean mught have elevated houses, automobiles, and more to help protect them from the dangers of floods. Earthquakes might even happen, though they are not very commen, because of erosion, causing rocks to separate and make an area tremble. The Carribean also has a lot of volcanos, butnmost of them are dormant. Overall, the Carribean faces many natural disasters, but with a lot of techonolgy and praparing, they try to be as ready as they can.

What natural disasters occur in this region? Why do they occur here?

IN the Carribean, many ciuntries are democracies with parliamentry systems

What type of governmnet system does the Carribean have?

Toussanit L'Ouverture

Who was the enslaved man that in the late 1700's led the rebellion from the people of Saint-Domingue against their frecnch rulers

Fidel Castro

Who was the person that led a communist revolution in Cuba, taking power in 1959?

free trade

a system in which goods and services are traded between countries without government restrictions such as tariffs

dictatorships

governments controlled by a single leader

colony

group of people living in a new territory with ties to a distant state

haciendas

huge farms and ranches

hurricanes

intense storms that form over the tropical Atlantic Ocean

independence

right to rule oneself

dispora

spread of people from one place to many others

tourism

the buisness of providing food, places to stay, and other servieces to visitors from other places

cultural diffusion

the spread of cultural traits

biodiversity

the variety of life in the world or in a particular habitat or ecosystem.