Geography (CULTURE)

Why are Mexico, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean called "Latin America"?

Because the major languages of the region are Latin-based languages.

Review

Cities are the most culturally diverse places. Most of the people trace their heritage back to Native Americans, Africans, and Europeans. Other groups include mestizos, mulattoes, and Asians. The cultural convergence of the different groups in the region blend together to create a new culture. Spanish is the official language in most places in the region. Other languages include Portuguese, English, Dutch, French, Hindi, Urdu, and traditional languages of the Native Americans. Roman Catholicism is the most widely practiced religion. Other religions include African folk religions, Protestant religions, Evangelicalism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Judaism. Wealth is unevenly distributed. In Central America: most of the people are poor; there is a small middle class; a few Europeans control most of the money and political power. Native Americans fear the loss of their cultural identity. In Brazil, reservations have been established for Native American communities.

Explain how cultural convergence is like a stew.

Cultural convergence is like a stew because it is the merging of different cultures together, and stew is the merging of different ingredients together.

In Central America, the richest people are _____.

European

Voodoo, Santaria, and Obi are all religions of the Caribbean, having their roots in Africa.

False

The ancestors of most of the people in Latin America were _____.

Native American, African and European

What is the most widely practiced religion in Latin America?

Roman Catholicism

What is the official language of most of the countries in South and Central America?

Spanish

What is cultural convergence?

a blending of cultures

cultural convergence

a merging of cultures

Where are the most culturally diverse areas in Latin America?

in the cities

In South America, the dominant culture in the region is seen as a hazard to the way of life of the Native Americans, weakening their _____.

language, religion, and traditions