South America

South America

• 12% of world’s landmass

• 6% of world’s population

• Vast majority of people live within 500 miles of coast

• Vast interior is sparsely populated

• Northern area is all tropical – south of the Tropic of Capricorn the climate is more temperate, and very cool in the highlands

• South America is dominated by 2 landforms: Amazon and Andes

Amazon• World’s largest river by

far

• Nile is longer (by about 40 miles), but Amazon covers far more ground – as much as 60 miles wide at some points

• Discharges 50 billion gallons of water per second into Atlantic Ocean

Andes

• 50 peaks higher than 20,000 feet (highest is Aconcagua in Argentina)

• 4,500 miles long and gets to 400 miles wide

• Subject to violent earthquakes and volcanoes

Incas

• First people came to South America about 9000 BCE

• Incan empire – 1150 CE until Pizzaro arrived about 300 years later

• Known for intricate architecture of massive stone blocks

• Capital at Cuzco in modern-day Peru

Environments

• Llanos – grassland and open dry forests of Colombia and Venezuela

• Pampas - tall grassland in Argentina and Uruguay known for Argentine cowboys (gauchos)

Brazil• 5th largest country in the world – home

to more than half of South America’s people

• Sao Paolo – world’s 4th largest city

• History marked by military & corruption

• Largest South American economy, largest maldistribution of wealth in world (though improving)

• World Cup 2014, Olympics 2016

Brazil• Local oil provides 60% of Brazil’s energy

needs – other 40% from sugarcane ethanol.

• Rapidly industrializing – preparing for World Cup and Olympics

• 83% urbanized

• 1/3 of them in favelas – Brazilian urban shantytowns (poverty is similar to Haiti in favelas)

Colombia

• South America’s 2nd largest country (pop.)• Only S.A. country to have coastline on Caribbean and

Pacific• Focal point of international drug trade• Anti-government insurgency ongoing for decades

Argentina• Vast natural and human resources make it a

natural candidate for economic leadership, but military dictatorships and corruption have prevented that

• Still has S.A.’s highest per capita GDP• Argentina and Uruguay are S.A.’s only

predominantly white nations

Venezuela• Largest oil reserves in the

Western Hemisphere• U.S. gets 10% of its oil

here• Economy completely

dependent on oil prices• Huge wealth disparity

between Europeans and native & African descendants

• President Hugo Chavez was a divisive figure, strong socialist policies conflicting with U.S. ideology

Bolivia• La Paz is world’s

highest capital city

• 1 of only 2 landlocked countries in S.A. (Paraguay)

• History of coups and poverty – remains South America’s poorest country

The Guyanas

• Guyana – British and Dutch roots whose people are from India & Africa (British colonial influence)

• Suriname – also Dutch and English roots with inhabitants being from the East Indies – Dutch speaking

• French Guiana – still a department of France and famous for Devil’s Island penal colony