It is often said that Latin America is made up of the American countries where Spanish or Portuguese is spoken.
Latin America (or Latin America ) is a concept that refers to a certain set of countries found on the American continent . The delimitation of this group may vary since there are different criteria for the formation of the group.
Generally, Latin America refers to American countries whose inhabitants speak Spanish or Portuguese . In this way, nations such as Jamaica or the Bahamas are left out of the group.
In certain areas, however, the idea of Latin America is usually associated with the group of American countries located south of the United States . For this reason, more precisely, we speak of Latin America and the Caribbean as a unit. Thus, nations such as Guyana , Suriname and Belize enter the group.
General data of Latin America
In addition to all these characteristics we would also have to highlight other interesting facts about Latin America:
• The life expectancy of its inhabitants ranges between 70 and 80 years of age.
• The most important cities it has, from a population point of view, are Mexico City, Buenos Aires, Bogotá, Río de Janeiro, San Pablo, Santiago, Caracas, Lima or Guadalajara.
• Taking into account the historical events that Latin America has had to face, such as colonialism , we would have to emphasize that its population can be classified into four large groups in terms of ethnicities: mestizos, African Americans, indigenous people and Creoles.
• In addition to Spanish, French or Portuguese, the inhabitants of Latin America also speak another series of languages or languages such as Guaraní, Quechua , Mayan or Aymara.
• From a religious point of view, the doctrine that has the most followers in this part of the globe is Catholic Christianity. In this sense, it should be noted that precisely the current Pope Francis has been the first Supreme Pontiff who is originally from Latin America, specifically from Argentina.
• No less important is to refer to education in this area. In this regard, we could emphasize that the most advanced countries in the matter, which have the best and most qualified educational systems, are Mexico and Brazil. Chile and Colombia follow behind.
• Brazil, Chile and Argentina are, for their part, the most advanced Latin American countries in terms of health.
San Pablo is one of the most populated cities in Latin America.
Cultural, social and economic characteristics
In general, Latin American countries share cultural and social characteristics since they have been colonial territories of the same European nations ( Spain , Portugal and France ). In any case, in addition to language differences, multiple political, environmental and other variations can also be mentioned.
It can be said that Brazil is the main economy in Latin America , followed by Mexico and Argentina , in that order. In terms of population, Brazil leads the list and is followed by Mexico and Colombia . Mexico City , São Paulo , Buenos Aires , Rio de Janeiro and Lima are, on the other hand, the most populated cities in Latin America .
Due to all the characteristics mentioned, it is difficult to speak of Latin America as a unit. Even in culture it shows a rich diversity, since it combines, depending on the territory, elements of native cultures (Inca, Mayan, etc.) with European and African influences.