Latin America

Latin America is the part of the Americas where the people speak Romance languages. This includes most of South America and Central America (also including the Spanish and French-speaking Caribbean islands).

Latin America

Area	20,111,457 square kilometers (7,765,077 square miles)[1]
Population	656,098,097 (2021 estimate)[2][3][a]
Population density	31 per square kilometer (80 per square mile)
Demonym	Latin American
Countries	20[b]
Dependencies	13
Languages	Mainly: Spanish, Portuguese, and French Others: English, Dutch, Papiamento
Time zones	UTC−2 to UTC−8
Largest cities	(Metro areas)[4][5] 1. São Paulo 2. Mexico City 3. Buenos Aires 4. Lima 5. Rio de Janeiro 6. Bogotá 7. Santiago 8. Belo Horizonte 9. Guadalajara 10. Monterrey
UN M49 code	419 – Latin America 019 – Americas 001 – World

The places in the Americas which speak French (French Guiana, Haiti, Quebec and the French-speaking Caribbean islands) are not always included as a part of Latin America, although French is also a Romance language.^[6]

Latin America has vibrant artistic and cultural traditions. Latin American literature, music, and arts are world famous.^[7]

In the United States, the term "Latino" refers to a person who has Latin American heritage. It is different from Hispanic which would only include countries where Spanish is the official language. For example, Hispanic would not include Brazil because its official language is Portuguese.

In Spanish, "latino" is a masculine term (for boys and men) whereas "latina" is a feminine term (for girls and women). In the English language, "latino" is not associated with gender so it is an all-inclusive term (male, female, and non-binary). In the 2010s, the term "Latinx" was created to be a gender-neutral term but very few Latinos actually use it.^[8]

Countries and territories that make up Latin America

Spanish-speaking

• Argentina
• Bolivia
• Chile
• Colombia
• Costa Rica
• Cuba
• Dominican Republic
• Ecuador
• El Salvador
• Guatemala
• Honduras
• Mexico
• Nicaragua
• Panama
• Paraguay
• Peru
• Puerto Rico^{[sn 1]}
• Uruguay
• Venezuela

Portuguese-speaking

• Brazil

French-speaking

• French Guiana^{[sn 2]}
• Guadeloupe^{[sn 3]}
• Martinique^{[sn 4]}
• Saint Barthélemy^{[sn 5]}
• Saint Martin^{[sn 6]}
• Saint Pierre and Miquelon^{[sn 7]}
• Quebec

Creole-speaking

• Haiti

Demographics

Historical populations

Year	Pop.	±%
1750	16,000,000	—
1800	24,000,000	+50.0%
1850	38,000,000	+58.3%
1900	74,000,000	+94.7%
1950	167,000,000	+125.7%
1999	511,000,000	+206.0%
2013	603,191,486	+18.0%
Source: "UN report 2004 data" (PDF)

Largest cities

The following is a list of the ten largest metropolitan areas in Latin America.^[4]

City	Country	2017 population	2014 GDP (PPP, $million, USD)	2014 GDP per capita, (USD)
Mexico City	Mexico	23,655,355	$403,561	$19,239
São Paulo	Brazil	23,467,354	$430,510	$20,650
Buenos Aires	Argentina	15,564,354	$315,885	$23,606
Rio de Janeiro	Brazil	14,440,345	$176,630	$14,176
Bogotá	Colombia	9,900,800	$199,150	$19,497
Lima	Peru	9,752,000	$176,447	$16,530
Santiago	Chile	7,164,400	$171,436	$23,290
Belo Horizonte	Brazil	6,145,800	$95,686	$17,635
Guadalajara	Mexico	4,687,700	$80,656	$17,206
Monterrey	Mexico	4,344,200	$122,896	$28,290

Ethnic groups

People in Latin America are part of several ethnic groups and races. The majority of Latin Americans are Mestizo and some others are White, Mulatto, Black, Zambo, and Asian.

• Native American or indigenous. The Native population in Latin America, came during the Lithic stage. There are more than sixty million of these people. They are the majority only in Bolivia, Peru, and Guatemala. In Ecuador they are a large minority of about 1/4 of the population. Mexico's Native American population is nearly 30%, and is also one of the largest American Indian population in the Americas in terms of absolute numbers. Most of the remaining countries have Native American minorities.
• European. In the 1500s, many Iberian colonists came to what is now Latin America. Today, most White Latin Americans are of Spanish and Portuguese origin. The Iberians brought their languages, religion, and cultures to Latin America.
• African. Millions of African slaves were brought to the Americas from the early 1500s onward. The majority were sent to the Caribbean and Brazil.
• Asian. People of Asian descent number several millions in Latin America. The majority of Asian Latin Americans are of Japanese and Chinese heritage, and they mostly live in Peru and Brazil. The largest community of Japanese ethnicity living outside of Japan, resides in Brazil. There is also a growing Chinese population in Panama, as well as Costa Rica (though, Chinese Costa Ricans are a large minority). In the Dominican Republic, there is a place where large numbers of Japanese people came; most Japanese Dominicans live in towns such as Bonao and Santo Domingo.
• Arab or Middle Eastern. Arabs in Latin America are also many, but they are mostly found among the Hispanic-Caribbean regions. In Cuba and Puerto Rico. In the Dominican Republic, the Arabs arrived sometime between the 19th and 20th century; (most are Moroccans and Lebanese).

Most of these ethnic groups can be found anywhere in Latin America; but since most Latin Americans are of mixed-race, many of these ethnic groups do not reach 100%.

Ethnic distribution, in 2011^[9] - Population estimates, as of 2010

Country	Population	American Indians	Whites	Mestizos	Mulattoes	Blacks	Zambos	Asians
Argentina	40,134,425	1.0%	85.0%	11.1%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	2.9%
Bolivia	10,907,778	55.0%	13.0%	30.0%	2.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
Brazil	192,272,890	0.4%	47.7%	46.8%	0%	7.6%	0.0%	1.1%
Chile	17,063,000	6.2%	60.7%	34.1%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
Colombia	45,393,050	2.0%	38%	48%	0.0%	10.6%	0.0%	0.0%
Costa Rica	4,253,897	2.4%	82.0%	10.3%	2.0%	1.0%	0.0%	2.3%
Cuba	11,236,444	0.0%	34.3%	0.0%	35.4%	30.3%	0.0%	1.0%
Dominican Republic	8,562,541	0.0%	16.4%	30.0%	37.7%	21.5%	2.0%	0.4%
Ecuador	13,625,000	38.0%	10.3%	41.0%	5.0%	6.6%	0.0%	0.1%
El Salvador	6,134,000	2.0%	11.0%	87.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
Guatemala	13,276,517	43.0%	16.0%	40.0%	0.2%	0.0%	0.0%	0.8%
Honduras	7,810,848	7.7%	5.0%	82.9%	1.7%	0.0%	2.0%	0.7%
Mexico	112,322,757	14.0%	15.0%	68.1%	0.5%	2.4%	0.0%	0.5%
Nicaragua	5,891,199	9.0%	17.0%	69.0%	5.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.2%
Panama	3,322,576	8.0%	14.0%	51.0%	13.0%	5.0%	3.0%	6.0%
Paraguay	6,349,000	1.5%	25.0%	69.5%	3.5%	0.0%	0.0%	0.5%
Peru	29,461,933	45.0%	15.2%	32.0%	4.5%	0.0%	0.0%	3.3%
Puerto Rico	3,967,179	2.0%	72.1%	13.0%	6.7%	6.0%	0.0%	0.2%
Uruguay	3,494,382	0.0%	88.0%	8.0%	2.0%	2.0%	0.0%	0.0%
Venezuela	26,814,843	1.6%	42.9%	43.3%	7.7%	2.3%	0.0%	2.2%
Total	561,183,291	9.2%	39.1%	33.3%	14.3%	3.2%	0.2%	0.7%

Note: Puerto Rico is a territory of the United States.

Language

Spanish and Portuguese are the most common languages in Latin America. Portuguese is the official language of Brazil, while Spanish is the official language of most other Latin America mainland countries, and of Cuba, Puerto Rico (along with English), and the Dominican Republic.

Many people speak Native American languages in Peru, Guatemala, Bolivia, Paraguay and Mexico. These languages are less common in other countries, but in some countries like Bolivia, they are considered official along with the main European language.

Other Indo-European languages spoken in Latin America include English (spoken in Guyana, in several Caribbean countries and territories, and by a very small minority in Puerto Rico), French (spoken in French Guiana, Haiti and in the French Caribbean territories), and Dutch (in Suriname). Although French is also spoken in the Canadian province of Quebec and the American state of Louisiana, these countries are not considered part of Latin America, because they are mostly English-speaking. Guyana, French Guiana (one of the overseas territories of France), and Suriname, which are found the northern part of South America and known together as the Guianas, are the only places in South America that do not speak Spanish or Portuguese.

Some African languages are also spoken in Latin America. The west African Yoruba language (known as Lucumi) is spoken in Cuba, where it is a ritual language used by the Santeria prayers.

In several nations, Creole languages are also spoken, especially in the Caribbean. Palenquero is the Spanish-based Creole language spoken in Colombia by some 3,000 people, it is Spanish with many African influences and some Portuguese influence. Other creoles in mainland Latin America have the same roots, blending Spanish with either African or Indigenous languages or both, as Cuban Spanish does. The island of Haiti also has a well-known creole language, called Haitian Creole.

Religions

Most Latin Americans are Christians. A 2014 survey found that 69% of Latin Americans are Roman Catholic, while 17% are Protestants. Most Protestants are from Brazil or Central America.

Economy

Poverty and inequality

Poverty continues to be one of the biggest challenges for Latin American countries. According to estimates, Latin America is the most unequal region of the world. According to a Country Studies Institute the poorest countries in the region (in 2011) were: Haiti, Nicaragua, Bolivia and Honduras. Undernourishment affects 72% of Haitians, 47% of Nicaraguans and Bolivians, and 32% of Hondurans.

Also, according to the Country Studies Institute, over 90% of Haitians, 75% of Bolivians, 70% of Nicaraguans, and 63% of Hondurans live in poverty.

Related pages

• Hispanic America
• Central America
• South America
• Latin American Literature

Notes

1. Includes the population estimates for South American and Central American countries, not including Belize, Guyana, the United States, and Spanish and French-speaking Caribbean countries and territories.
2. Not including Anglophone or Dutch-speaking countries, such as Belize, Guyana, Jamaica, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago; see Contemporary definitions section

1. Note: Puerto Rico is a territory of the United States.
2. Note: French Guiana is an overseas department of France.
3. Note: Guadeloupe is an overseas department of France.
4. Note: Martinique is an overseas department of France.
5. Note: Saint Barthélemy is an overseas collectivity of France.
6. Note: Saint Martin is an overseas collectivity of France.
7. Note: Saint Pierre and Miquelon is an overseas collectivity of France

References

1. "World Development Indicators: Rural environment and land use". World Development Indicators, The World Bank. World Bank. Retrieved September 12, 2013.
2. "World Population Prospects 2022". population.un.org. United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
3. "World Population Prospects 2022: Demographic indicators by region, subregion and country, annually for 1950-2100" (XSLX). population.un.org ("Total Population, as of 1 July (thousands)"). United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
4. "Global Metro Monitor 2014". Brookings Institution. 30 November 2001. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
5. Geography Department at Loughborough University, The World According to GaWC 2012 Archived 2014-03-20 at the Wayback Machine, Table 4
6. Colburn, Forrest D (2002). Latin America at the End of Politics. Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-0-691-09181-5.
7. "Latin American literature". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2021-07-31.
8. ""Latinx" is Unpopular with Actual Latin Americans, Poll Shows".
9. Lizcano Fernández, Francisco (May–August 2005). "Composición Étnica de las Tres Áreas Culturales del Continente Americano al Comienzo del Siglo XXI" (PDF). Convergencia (in Spanish). 38. Mexico: Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Sociales y Humanidades: 185–232, table on p. 218. ISSN 1405-1435. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-02-24. Retrieved 2012-09-06.

Other websites

• Latin America – Citizendium
• The Washington Post Interactive Map of Politics in Latin America
• Andean Community official webpage Archived 2008-05-09 at the Wayback Machine
• Council on Hemispheric Affairs
• Latin American Network Information Center Archived 2007-12-24 at the Wayback Machine
• Latin America Working Group
• Washington Office on Latin America
• Politics in Latin America
• Infolatam. Information and analysis of Latin America Archived 2008-09-08 at the Library of Congress Web Archives