Portal:Latin America

Intro

Latin America (Spanish: América Latina or Latinoamérica; Portuguese: América Latina; French: Amérique latine) is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish and Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geography, and as such it includes countries in both North and South America. Most countries south of the United States tend to be included: Mexico and the countries of Central America, South America and the Caribbean. Commonly, it refers to Hispanic America, plus Brazil. Related terms are the narrower Hispanic America, which exclusively refers to Spanish-speaking nations, and the broader Ibero-America, which includes all Iberic countries in the Americas. English and Dutch-speaking countries and territories, although in the same geographical region, are excluded (Suriname, Guyana, the Falkland Islands, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Belize, etc.).

The term Latin America was first introduced in 1856 at a Paris conference titled, literally, Initiative of the Americas: Idea for a Federal Congress of the Republics (Iniciativa de la América. Idea de un Congreso Federal de las Repúblicas). Chilean politician Francisco Bilbao coined the term to unify countries with shared cultural and linguistic heritage. It gained further prominence during the 1860s under the rule of Napoleon III, whose government sought to justify France's intervention in the Second Mexican Empire. (Full article...)

Recognized content -

Entries here consist of Good and Featured articles, which meet a core set of high editorial standards.

Photograph c. 1876

Dom Pedro II (Pedro de Alcântara João Carlos Leopoldo Salvador Bibiano Francisco Xavier de Paula Leocádio Miguel Gabriel Rafael Gonzaga; 2 December 1825 – 5 December 1891), known as "the Magnanimous" (Portuguese: O Magnânimo), was the second and final emperor of the Empire of Brazil. He reigned from 1831 until his deposition in the military coup of 1889, presiding over the longest and most stable reign in Brazilian history.

Born in Rio de Janeiro, Pedro II was the seventh child of Emperor Pedro I and Empress Maria Leopoldina. His father's abdication and departure for Europe in 1831 left the five-year-old prince as emperor, ushering in a regency period marked by political instability and shaping a childhood dominated by rigorous education and preparation for rule. These formative years profoundly influenced his character, instilling a strong sense of duty, intellectual curiosity, and devotion to public service, alongside a growing personal ambivalence toward monarchy. (Full article...)

List of recognized articles

Topics

More did you know -

... that the Mexican–American War caused Mexico to lose more than half its pre-war territory?

WikiProjects

WikiProject South America
WikiProject Latin America (semi-active)

Selected article -

Sign reading "Education is not for sale" during a Chilean student protest in June 2011

The 2011–2013 Chilean protests – known as the Chilean Winter (in particular reference to the massive protests of August 2011) or the Chilean Education Conflict (as labelled in Chilean media) – were a series of student-led protests across Chile, demanding a new framework for education in the country, including more direct state participation in secondary education and an end to the existence of profit in higher education. Currently in Chile, only 45% of high school students study in traditional public schools and most universities are also private. No new public universities have been built since the end of the Chilean transition to democracy in 1990, even though the number of university students has increased.

Beyond the specific demands regarding education, there was a feeling that the protests reflected a "deep discontent" among some parts of society with Chile's high level of inequality. Protests included massive non-violent marches, but also a considerable amount of violence on the part of a side of protestors as well as riot police. (Full article...)

List of selected articles

Did you know (auto-generated)

... that Antonio Oteiza was a missionary in Latin America but from 1961 focused on creating religious art, which he felt had more impact than sermons?
... that Diana Vicezar created recycled housing for street dogs, a recruitment platform for international students, and a podcast about Latin American students in Ireland?
... that Tural, the setting of the expansion pack Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail, is inspired by Latin America and Southeast Asia?
... that UK prime minister Rishi Sunak complained when a joint declaration was made at a summit between the EU and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States that used the term Islas Malvinas?

General images

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

Image 1Exhumation of corpses in the aftermath of the Guatemalan genocide (from History of Latin America)
Image 2Pope Paul VI and Salvadoran cleric Oscar Romero (now St Oscar Romero) (from History of Latin America)
Image 3Intermediate level international-style Latin dancing at the 2006 MIT ballroom dance competition. A judge stands in the foreground. (from Culture of Latin America)
Image 4Comandanta Ramona of the Zapatista Army of National Liberation, Mexico (from History of Latin America)
Image 5A 17th-century map of the Americas (from History of Latin America)
Image 6Fidel Castro and his men in the Sierra Maestra, 2 December 1956 (from History of Latin America)
Image 7Che Guevara Cuban revolutionary poster (from History of Latin America)
Image 8Countries in Latin America by date of independence (from History of Latin America)
Image 9The name Augusto Sandino, Nicaraguan nationalist hero for his struggle against the United States, was taken by leftist guerrillas as the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN). (from History of Latin America)
Image 10Left-leaning leaders of Bolivia, Brazil and Chile at the Union of South American Nations summit in 2008 (from History of Latin America)
Image 11Map of Countries in Latin America with Socialist regimes during the Cold War c. 1985 (from History of Latin America)
Image 12Holy week, Ouro Preto-MG, 2010. Chrome. Photo: Guy Veloso. (from Culture of Latin America)
Image 131903 political cartoon: President Roosevelt intimidating Colombia to acquire the Panama Canal Zone. (from History of Latin America)
Image 14Monument to Cuauhtémoc, Mexico City (from Culture of Latin America)
Image 15Mexican Stock Exchange (from Culture of Latin America)
Image 16Agrarian reform poster, Guatemala 1952 (from History of Latin America)
Image 17In blue countries under right-wing governments and in red countries under left-wing and centre-left governments as of 2023 (from History of Latin America)
Image 18Instituto Arnoldo Gabaldón, declared August 30, 1984, as a National Historic Landmark (from Culture of Latin America)
Image 19The Basilica of the National Shrine of Our Lady of Aparecida is the second largest in the world, after only of the Basilica of Saint Peter in Vatican City. (from Culture of Latin America)
Image 20Roll-on/roll-offships, such as this one pictured here at Miraflores locks, are among the largest ships to pass through the Panama Canal. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. (from History of Latin America)
Image 21Plaquita, a Dominican street version of cricket. The Dominican Republic was first introduced to cricket through mid-18th century British contact, but switched to baseball after the 1916 American occupation. (from Culture of Latin America)
Image 22Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet and U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger (from History of Latin America)
Image 23Fiambre, Guatemalan traditional dish, eaten on November 1, the Day of the Dead (from Culture of Latin America)
Image 24Calls for justice in the wake of the Guatemalan genocide (from History of Latin America)
Image 25The Guadalajara International Film Festival is considered the most prestigious film festival in Latin America. (from Culture of Latin America)
Image 26Ethnic distribution by country. (from Culture of Latin America)
Image 27Villa de Leyva, a historical and cultural landmark of Colombia (from Culture of Latin America)
Image 28The joropo, as depicted in a 1912 drawing by Eloy Palacios (from Culture of Latin America)

Selected panorama

The Tatacoa Desert, the second largest arid zone in Colombia after the Guajira Peninsula, is one of the most attractive scenery Colombia and occupies 330 square kilometers of land in ocher and gray brushstrokes of green cactus..

Selected picture

Alpamayo

Credit: Brad Mering

Alpamayo, one of the most conspicuous peaks in the Cordillera Blanca mountain range of the Peruvian Andes. It is a steep, almost perfect pyramid of ice, one of a number of peaks that compose the northernmost massif of the Cordillera Blanca..