Latin America Study Guide
1. Briefly describe each level of vertical zonation in the Andes Mountains:
Tierra Caliente— “hot land” lowest elevation; 0-2500’ above sea level; warm
temperatures with abundant rainfall; tropical fruits/crops, sugar cane, rubber, rice
Tierra Templada— “temperate land” 2500-6500’ above sea level; most densely
populated; mild temperatures with ample rainfall; crops include coffee, cacao, manioc,
citrus
Tierra Fria— “cold land” 6500-10,000’ above sea level; cold temperatures and winter
frosts; coniferous forests, hearty crops like barley, wheat & potatoes; sheep and llama
grazing; no trees above the timberline
2. Which parts of Latin America are most affected by earthquakes and volcanoes?
Those that sit along the Pacific Rim and Tierra del Fuego “the land of fire”
3. What types of ethnic groups are found in Latin America?
Europeans, Native Latin Americans (Amerindians), Mestizos, and Africans
4. Which European countries colonized Latin America?
Predominantly Spain and Portugal, but also France, Great Britain, and the
Netherlands
5. What is slash and burn agriculture? Where is it occurring in Latin America?
Slash and burn agriculture is the clear-cutting and burning of vegetation in the
rainforest to put nutrients into the infertile soil to make crop growth possible for
subsistence farming families. It is occurring in the Amazon Rainforest.
6. Where is the world’s largest tropical rainforest?
The Amazon Rainforest is the world’s largest rainforest and it is found in northern
South America in the country of Brazil.
7. Where is the driest area in Latin America?
The Atacama Desert along the northwestern coast of Chile
8. What language is spoken in Brazil? Why?
Portuguese; It was colonized by Portugal
9. What causes the greatest loss of trees in the Amazon rainforest?
There are many causes of deforestation in the rainforest. Slash and burn agriculture
causes the greatest loss of trees, but logging and mining are also causing the
destruction.
10. What are the Llanos and Pampas regions and where can they be found?
The Llanos are tropical grasslands in Colombia and Venezuela & the Pampas are
humid grasslands found in Argentina known for the cattle-ranching.
11. What type of agricultural activity is the most popular in the Pampas region? How are
gauchos involved?
The pampas are known for wheat production and cattle-ranching. Gauchos are the
“cowboys” or cattle-ranchers.
12. Why are seasons in the southern hemisphere reversed from those in the northern
hemisphere?
The tilt and revolution of the earth cause the changing of and reversing of the
seasons.
13. What is a megacity? Which countries in Latin America have megacities?
A megacity has a population of more than 10 million people. Rio de Janeiro and Sao
Paulo, Brazil are both megacities. Mexico City, Mexico is a megacity. Buenos Aires,
Argentina is a megacity.
14. Why do squatter settlements appear around megacities in Latin America?
Rapid urbanization occurs as rural subsistence farmers migrate to the cities looking
for jobs and better lives. Unfortunately, there are usually no jobs available. Since
80% of the land and wealth is controlled by a small minority of the people, these
rural migrants often find themselves living on a piece of unoccupied, unclaimed land
in squalid sub-standard housing settlements called shantytowns or squatter
settlements.
15. Which country in Latin America is a major producer of copper?
Chile
16. Which two countries in Latin America are major producers of iron ore?
Brazil & Venezuela
17. Which three countries in Latin America produce significant amounts of oil? Which one
belongs to OPEC?
Mexico, Venezuela (OPEC), & Ecuador (OPEC)
18. Why is Latin America called Latin America?
Most countries in Latin America speak either Spanish or Portuguese; both are Latinbased languages.
19. Where are the areas of high population density in Latin America?
The majority of the population in Latin America lives along the coast line. Huge
concentrations of populations can also be found in the major cities and in megacities
like Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, Brazil and Buenos Aires, Argentina. Most of these
cities are also coastal cities. An exception would be Mexico City, Mexico, 90% of
Mexico’s population lives along the Central Mexican Plateau.
20. Why is Brazil’s capital no longer at Rio de Janeiro?
The city of Brasilia was a planned capital city. The move was to encourage migration
from the overpopulated city of Rio de Janeiro to the new inland capital city of
Brasilia.
21. Which type of Christianity is the most popular religion in Latin America?
Roman Catholicism – carried over from the colonial era
22. Which ancient civilization built Machu Picchu and where can it be found?
The Incas built Machu Picchu. The ancient fortress is found in the Andes Mountains
of Peru.
23. Which ancient civilization built Tikal and where can it be found?
The Mayans built Tikal – the “New York” of the Mayan Empire. The ruins of their
capital city of Tikal can be found in present day Guatemala.
24. Which ancient civilization built Tenochtitlan and where can it be found?
The Aztec built their capital city of Tenochtitlan on an island in Lake Texcoco. There
are only a few relics remaining because present day Mexico City is built over top of
the once thriving ancient empire.
25. Why is Mexico City the most polluted city in Latin America?
The main reason for the heavy smog and pollution in Mexico City is automobile
exhaust. However, recent industrialization efforts have only added to the pollution
crisis.
26. Name three archipelagoes in Latin America.
The West Indies (that includes the Greater Antilles and the Lesser Antilles),
the Lesser Antilles (that includes the Bahamas), the Galapagos Islands, the Falkland
Islands, Tierra del Fuego
27. Where are the Andes and Sierra Madre Mountains?
The Andes Mountains run along the western coast of South America from Colombia
to southern Chile.
The Sierra Madres are a parallel mountain chain that flanks the eastern (Oriental)
and western (Occidental) coast of Mexico.
--Label the following on the map of Latin America by using the letters beside them.
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
G.
H.
I.
Gulf of Mexico
Caribbean Sea
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Atacama Desert
Tikal
Machu Picchu
Pampas
Cuba
J. Amazon Basin
K. Andes Mountains