Los Países Hispanoparlantes

Spanish-speaking countries

How many are there?• There are 22 different countries that

speak Spanish.• They are in North America, Central

America, South America, Europe, and Africa.

• Write in the country, capital, nationality, and tidbits on your note sheet.

Counting Continents• By the United States’ definition,

there are 7 continents.• By the rest of the world’s definition

there are 5 or 6 continents.– The Americas are one continent and

Antarctica doesn’t count.– That’s why there are 5 Olympic rings

representing the 5 continents.

#1 The United States• el país:

– Los Estados Unidos de América– EE.UU.

• la capital: – Washington, D.C.

• nacionalidad: – American

• The darker the blue, the more Spanish speakers live there.

• We are the second-largest Spanish-speaking country behind Mexico with 45 million Spanish speakers!

• We do not have an official language.

Spanish-speakers by county

#2 Mexico• el país:

– México• la capital:

– México, D.F.• nacionalidad:

– Mexican• Also made up of states, so it

is the United States of Mexico.• México, D.F. is the largest city

in the western hemisphere. It was built over a lake, so some of the buildings in downtown sink a little every year.

• D.F. stands for Distrito Federal

Mexico City’s original layout

#3 Guatemala• el país:

– Guatemala• la capital:

– Ciudad de Guatemala• nacionalidad:

– Guatemalan• Has lots of ancient ruins

from Aztecs and Mayas.• Many of the names

come from the native Aztec and Mayan languages.

Mayan ruins in Guatemala

#4 Honduras• el país:

– Honduras• la capital:

– Tegucigalpa• nacionalidad:

– Honduran• Was the first country to

be called a “Banana Republic” because it gets most of its income from exporting bananas.

• Also has lots of Mayan ruins.

Banana market in Honduras

#5 El Salvador• el país:

– El Salvador• la capital:

– San Salvador• nacionalidad:

– Salvadoran• Is tiny but has lots of

volcanoes.• Once went to war

with Honduras over a soccer game.

Salvadorian Volcanoes

#6 Nicaragua• el país:

– Nicaragua• la capital:

– Managua• nacionalidad:

– Nicarugauan• Contains Lake

Nicaragua, which has fresh-water sharks!

• National sport is baseball.

Freshwater sharks!

#7 Costa Rica• el país:

– Costa Rica• la capital:

– San José• nacionalidad:

– Costa Rican• Does not have an army! It

is a relatively safe country that tries to stay out of international politics.

• Is a popular eco-tourist destination for cloud forests, volcanoes, and sea turtles.

Ziplining in a cloud forest

#8 Panamá• el país:

– Panamá• la capital:

– Ciudad de Panamá• nacionalidad:

– Panaman • Gets 1/3 of income from

the canal! • Canal is the only way to

cross a boat from the Atlantic to Pacific without going all the way around South America.

Panama Canal

#9 Cuba• el país:

– Cuba• la capital:

– La Habana• nacionalidad:

– Cuban• Is an island only 90 miles

from Florida, but Americans are not allowed to visit.

• Is under the communist rule of the Castro family, and the U.S. has an embargo… no trade, no travel.

American cars in Cuba

#10 La República Dominicana

• el país: – La República

Dominicana• la capital:

– Santo Domingo• nacionalidad:

– dominicano• Shares an island with

Haiti.• Is the birthplace of

Latin dancing like the merengue.

Salsa dancing in the Dominican

#11 Puerto Rico• el país:

– Puerto Rico• la capital:

– San Juán• nacionalidad:

– Puerto Rican • Is a tiny island that is

actually part of the United States.

• Is not yet a state, so they don’t pay taxes… but they also don’t get government representation.

You can visit without a passport!

#12 Venezuela• el país:

– Venezuela• La capital:

– Caracas• nacionalidad:

– Venezualan • Has lots of shoreline on

the north end of South America… and there’s lots of oil there!

• Famous for Angel Falls, the tallest waterfall in the world.

Angel Falls

#13 Colombia• el país:

– Colombia• la capital:

– Bogotá• nacionalidad:

– colombiano• Gets most of its money

from exporting oil and coffee.

• Also has a significant drug trade, so it is one of the least safe countries for travel.

Coffee on the hillside in Colombia

#14 Ecuador• el país:

– Ecuador• la capital:

– Quito• nacionalidad:

– Ecuadoran • Gets its name because it

is right on the equator.• Owns the Galapagos

Islands, which are a national park and international tourist destination.

Famous animals on the Galapagos

#15 Perú• el país:

– Perú• la capital:

– Lima• nacionalidad:

– Peruvian• Is mostly mountainous –

the Andes mountains – which is home to the potato and the tomato.

• Is famous for Machu Picchu, an ancient Incan mountain ruin.

Machu Picchu

#16 Bolivia• el país:

– Bolivia• la capital:

– La Paz• nacionalidad:

– boliviano• Is mostly mountains

and has Lake Titicaca, the highest lake in the world.

• Has the world’s largest salt deposit!

Bolivian salt flats

#17 Chile• el país:

– Chile• la capital:

– Santiago• nacionalidad:

– Chilean • Is made up of districts

numbered from 1 (in the north) to 11 (in the south).

• On the north end it has the Atacama Desert, the driest desert in the world.

A sculpture in the Atacama Desert

#18 Argentina• El país:

– Argentina• La capital:

– Buenos Aires• Nacionalidad:

– Argentine• Famous for cowboys,

beef, grapes, and wine.• Many families immigrated

from Italy and Germany, so there is a lot of blonde hair and blue eyes.

Argentine tango

#19 Uruguay• el país:

– Uruguay• la capital:

– Montevideo• nacionalidad:

– Uruguayan • 88% of population are

European immigrants from Spain and Italy!

• It’s a super healthy country – it has the highest birthrates and longest life expectancy in South America!

Diego Forlán, soccer legend

#20 Paraguay• el país:

– Paraguay• la capital:

– Asunción• nacionalidad:

– Paraguayan • Known for the Guaraní,

the native group there.• Has the largest

hydroelectric plant in the world.

Massive hydroelectric plant

#21 España• El país:

– España• La capital:

– Madrid• Nacionalidad:

– Spanish• Is the country that sent

explorers to the new world, which is why so many Latin American countries speak Spanish.

• Has beautiful old cities and also deserts. Has lots of Arabic influence because it’s so close to Africa.

Beautiful European cities

#22 Guinea Ecuatorial• el país:

– Guinea Ecuatorial• la capital:

– Malabo• nacionalidad:

– Guinean • Is the only Spanish-

speaking country in Africa.

• Populated by Spanish Jews who were exiled back in the 15th century.

Gorillas in Guinea