Portal:Central America

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The Central America Portal

Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Central America is usually defined as consisting of seven countries: Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama. Within Central America is the Mesoamerican biodiversity hotspot, which extends from northern Guatemala to central Panama. Due to the presence of several active geologic faults and the Central America Volcanic Arc, there is a high amount of seismic activity in the region, such as volcanic eruptions and earthquakes, which has resulted in death, injury, and property damage.

In the pre-Columbian era, Central America was inhabited by the Indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica to the north and west and the Isthmo-Colombian peoples to the south and east. Following the Spanish expedition of Christopher Columbus' voyages to the Americas, Spain began to colonize the Americas. From 1609 to 1821, the majority of Central American territories (except for what would become Belize and Panama, and including the modern Mexican state of Chiapas) were governed by the viceroyalty of New Spain from Mexico City as the Captaincy General of Guatemala. On 24 August 1821, Spanish Viceroy Juan de O'Donojú signed the Treaty of Córdoba, which established New Spain's independence from Spain. On 15 September 1821, the Act of Independence of Central America was enacted to announce Central America's separation from the Spanish Empire and provide for the establishment of a new Central American state. Some of New Spain's provinces in the Central American region (i.e. what would become Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Costa Rica) were annexed to the First Mexican Empire; however in 1823 they seceded from Mexico to form the Federal Republic of Central America until 1838. (Full article...)

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Panama (/ˈpænəmɑː/ ^ⓘ PAN-ə-mah, /pænəˈmɑː/ pan-ə-MAH; Spanish: Panamá IPA: [panaˈma] ^ⓘ), officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast (Colombia–Panama border), the Caribbean Sea to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the south. Its capital and largest city is Panama City, whose metropolitan area is home to nearly half the country's over 4 million inhabitants.0

Before the arrival of Spanish colonists in the 16th century, Panama was inhabited by a number of different indigenous tribes. It broke away from Spain in 1821 and joined the Republic of Gran Colombia, a union of Nueva Granada, Ecuador, and Venezuela. After Gran Colombia dissolved in 1831, Panama and Nueva Granada eventually became the Republic of Colombia. With the backing of the United States, Panama seceded from Colombia in 1903, allowing the construction of the Panama Canal to be completed by the United States Army Corps of Engineers between 1904 and 1914. The 1977 Torrijos–Carter Treaties agreed to transfer the canal from the United States to Panama on December 31, 1999. The surrounding territory was first returned in 1979. (Full article...)

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Belize Costa Rica El Salvador Guatemala Honduras Nicaragua Mesoamerica Potbelly sculpture El Salvador national football team Mayan languages Maya stelae Hurricane Gert Maya civilization Maya peoples Central American squirrel monkey Final Offensive of 1981 (El Salvador) Mantled howler Convict cichlid Spanish American wars of independence Honduran white bat

Did you know...

... that Alfredo Frohlich formed an award-winning collection of Panamanian postal history that included items from as early as 1777?
... that Marita Camacho Quirós, who was First Lady of Costa Rica (1962–1966), is the oldest former first lady in the world and a supercentenarian?
... that peasant leader Medardo Mairena was the sixth aspiring presidential candidate in the 2021 Nicaraguan general election to be arrested?
... that Panama cross-banded tree frog males synchronize their mating calls to confuse predators that locate them by sound?
... that in August 2021 Sheika Scott became the youngest player to score in the Costa Rican Women's Premier Division, at just 14 years old?
... that Victor Hugo Tinoco was a deputy in the National Assembly of Nicaragua, first for the Sandinista National Liberation Front, then for the opposition Sandinista Renovation Movement?
... that to animate conquistadors in Jungle Cruise, frogs were recorded in a Costa Rican forest?
... that the Corozal was the most powerful dredger ever built when she was launched in 1911 to work on the Panama Canal?

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General images

The following are images from various Central America-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Examples of the diversity of maize (from Mesoamerica)
Image 2Countries and capitals of Central America (from Ethnic groups in Central America)
Image 3The xoloitzcuintle is one of the naguales of the god Quetzalcoatl. In this form, it helps the dead cross the Chicnahuapan, a river that separates the world of the living from the dead. (from Mesoamerica)
Image 4"Head Variant" or "Patron Gods" glyphs for Maya days (from Mesoamerica)
Image 5Celebration of the Chinese year in Costa Rica (from Ethnic groups in Central America)
Image 6A small ceremonial ballcourt at Tikal. (from Mesoamerica)
Image 7Illustration that recreates the structures of the archaeological site of Yarumela or El Chircal in Honduras, this place reflects the Olmec influence that existed in Central America in the pre-classic period. (from Mesoamerica)
Image 8Ritual human sacrifice portrayed in Codex Laud (from Mesoamerica)
Image 9El Mirador flourished from 600 BCE to 100 CE, and may have had a population of over 100,000. (from Mesoamerica)
Image 10Tikal is one of the largest archaeological sites, urban centers, and tourist attractions of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. It is located in the archaeological region of the Petén Basin in what is now northern Guatemala. (from Mesoamerica)
Image 11José Matías Delgado y de León listed as the intellectual leader of the independence movement; Delgado was defined as influential, skillful, and intelligent, he started the revolutionary movements against the Spanish crown. (from History of Central America)
Image 12José Matías Delgado At the time of signing the Central American act of independence, in a representation of the meeting of September 15, 1821 of the Chilean painter Luis Vergara Ahumada. (from History of Central America)
Image 13Nery Brenes Costa Rican Athlete (from Ethnic groups in Central America)
Image 14Mesoamerica and its cultural areas^{[according to whom?]} (from Mesoamerica)
Image 15One of the earliest examples of the Mesoamerican writing systems, the Epi-Olmec script on the La Mojarra Stela 1 dated to around 150 CE. Mesoamerica is one of the five places in the world where writing has developed independently. (from Mesoamerica)
Image 16Art with ideological and political meaning: depiction of an Aztec tzompantli (skull-rack) from the Ramirez Codex (from Mesoamerica)
Image 17The Avenue of the Dead in Teotihuacan, an example of a Mesoamerican settlement planned according to concepts of directionality (from Mesoamerica)
Image 18Indigenous Salvadoran women dancing in the traditional "Procession of Palms" a custom celebrated in the town of Panchimalco in El Salvador. (from Ethnic groups in Central America)
Image 19Pyramid of the Moon viewed from atop of the Pyramid of the Sun. (from Mesoamerica)
Image 20Tazumal (from Mesoamerica)
Image 21Joya de Cerén (from Mesoamerica)
Image 22Xochicalco, Temple of the Feathered Serpent, 650–900 CE (from Mesoamerica)
Image 23Rigoberta Menchú K'iche'-Guatemalan (from Ethnic groups in Central America)
Image 24Mesoamerica and Central America in the 16th century before Spanish arrival ^{[according to whom?]} (from Mesoamerica)
Image 25Cihuatán (from Mesoamerica)
Image 26K'inich Kan B'alam II, the Classic period ruler of Palenque, as depicted on a stele (from Mesoamerica)
Image 27Ballgame marker from the classic Lowland Maya site of Chinkultic, Mexico depicting a ballplayer in full gear (from Mesoamerica)
Image 28San Andres (from Mesoamerica)
Image 29Berta Caceres, Lencan environmental activist. -Honduran (from Ethnic groups in Central America)
Image 30Landscape of the Mesoamerican highlands (from Mesoamerica)
Image 31Detail of the Nunnery Quadrangle at Uxmal, 10th century (from Mesoamerica)
Image 32Holy Spirit Grotto (from Mesoamerica)
Image 33Flag of Central America (from History of Central America)
Image 34Zapotec mask of the Bat God. (from Mesoamerica)
Image 35The Aztec Empire in 1512 (from Mesoamerica)
Image 3620th century political map of Central America (from History of Central America)
Image 37The emblem glyph of Tikal (Mutal) (from Mesoamerica)
Image 38Anthropomorphic figure from the Proto-Lencan culture found at Los Naranjos, Honduras. An example of Mesomerican art during the preclassic Period. (from Mesoamerica)
Image 39Yojoa Lake in Honduras. (from Mesoamerica)
Image 40Salvadoran School Children from Metapan (from Ethnic groups in Central America)
Image 41Casa Blanca (from Mesoamerica)
Image 42Harry Shum, Jr Asian-Costa Rican – Glee Actor/Dancer (from Ethnic groups in Central America)
Image 43Young Costa Ricans in San José. (from Ethnic groups in Central America)
Image 44Olmec Colossal Head No. 3 1200–900 BCE (from Mesoamerica)
Image 45Central America until 1860, showing the Kingdom of Mosquitia. (from History of Central America)

In the news

6 April 2024 – 2024 raid on the Mexican embassy in Ecuador: Nicaragua suspends diplomatic relations with Ecuador following the raid on the Mexican embassy in Quito, Ecuador. (Al Arabiya)
24 March 2024 – Salvadoran gang crackdown: Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele announces the beginning of a blockade of four municipalities in northern El Salvador, mobilizing 5,000 soldiers and 1,000 police officers to arrest suspected gang members. (El Mundo)
23 March 2024 – Red Sea crisis: A Houthi missile hits Panamanian-flagged, Chinese-owned and operated oil tanker Huang Pu. It suffers minimal damage and a fire on board is quickly extinguished. No casualties are reported, and the vessel resumes its course. (X) (Newsweek) (Marine Log)

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v t e Central American volcanoes
Guatemala	Acatenango Agua Almolonga Atitlán Chicabal Cuilapa-Barbarena Fuego Jumay Moyuta Pacaya Santa María/Santiaguito San Pedro Santo Tomás Siete Orejas Tacaná Tajumulco Tecuamburro Tolimán
El Salvador	Chinameca Chingo Conchagua Izalco Santa Ana San Miguel San Salvador San Vicente Usulután
Nicaragua	Apoyeque Cerro Negro Concepción Cosigüina Maderas Masaya Mombacho Momotombo San Cristóbal Telica
Costa Rica	Arenal Irazú Miravalles Platanar Poás Rincón de la Vieja Tenorio Turrialba
Panama	Barú La Yeguada El Valle
Note: volcanoes are ordered from north-west to south-east.

v t e Central American and Caribbean Games
Central American and Caribbean Games	1926 Mexico City 1930 Havana 1935 San Salvador 1938 Panama City 1946 Barranquilla 1950 Guatemala City 1954 Mexico City 1959 Caracas 1962 Kingston 1966 San Juan 1970 Panama City 1974 Santo Domingo 1978 Medellín 1982 Havana 1986 Santiago 1990 Mexico City 1993 Ponce 1998 Maracaibo 2002 San Salvador 2006 Cartagena 2010 Mayagüez 2014 Veracruz 2018 Baranquilla 2023 San Salvador 2026 Santo Domingo 2030 TBD
Central American and Caribbean Beach Games	2022 Santa Marta 2025 Puntarenas
Central American and Caribbean Junior Games	2024

v t e Cuisine of Latin America and the Caribbean
Caribbean	Antigua and Barbuda Aruba Bahamas Barbados Cuba Curaçao Dominica Dominican Republic Grenada Haiti Jamaica Puerto Rico Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Sint Maarten Trinidad and Tobago
Central America	Belize Costa Rica El Salvador Guatemala Honduras Nicaragua Panama
Middle America	Mexico
South America	Argentina Bolivia Brazil Chile Colombia Ecuador French Guiana Guyana Paraguay Peru Suriname Uruguay Venezuela
Dependencies not included. Semi-autonomous territories are in italics.

v t e Culture of Latin America and the Caribbean
Caribbean	Antigua and Barbuda Aruba Bahamas Barbados Cuba Curaçao Dominica Dominican Republic Grenada Haiti Jamaica Puerto Rico Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Sint Maarten Trinidad and Tobago
Central America	Belize Costa Rica El Salvador Guatemala Honduras Nicaragua Panama
Middle America	Mexico
South America	Argentina Bolivia Brazil Chile Colombia Ecuador French Guiana Guyana Paraguay Peru Suriname Uruguay Venezuela
Dependencies not included. Semi-autonomous territories are in italics.