South America
From HFA-PEDIA
Contents |
Introduction
South America is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east by the Atlantic Ocean; North America and the Caribbean Sea lie to the northwest.
South America has an area of 17,840,000 kilometers squared (6,890,000 sq mi), or almost 3.5% of the Earth's surface. As of 2005, its population was estimated at more than 371,090,000. South America ranks fourth in area (after Asia, Africa, and North America) and fifth in population (after Asia, Africa, Europe, and North America).
South America occupies the major southern portion of the Americas continent. It is south and east of the Colombia-Panama border, with almost all of the South American mainland situated on the South American Plate.
South America is home to the world's largest river (by volume), the Amazon River; the longest mountain range, the Andes (whose highest mountain is Aconcagua at 6,962 m (22,841 ft)); the second-driest desert after the McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica, the Atacama Desert; the largest rainforest, the Amazon Rainforest; the highest capital city, La Paz, Bolivia; the highest commercially navigable lake in the world, Lake Titicaca; and, excluding research stations in Antarctica, the world's southernmost permanently inhabited community, Puerto Toro, Chile.
South America's major mineral resources are gold, silver, copper, iron ore, tin, and oil. The many resources of South America have brought high income to its countries especially in times of war or of rapid economic growth by industrialized countries elsewhere. However, the concentration in producing one major export commodity often has hindered the development of diversified economies. The inevitable fluctuation in the price of commodities in the international markets has led historically to major highs and lows in the economies of South American countries, often also causing extreme political instability. This is leading to efforts to diversify their production to drive them away from staying as economies dedicated to one major export.
The region's Amazon rainforests possess high biodiversity, containing a major proportion of the Earth's species.
The largest country in South America, in both area and population, is Brazil, followed by Argentina. For the purposes here, South America is considered to include the Andean (Andean Community) and the Southern Cone subregions (although according to some, this can be further disaggregated as the Andean Community, the Guianas, the Southern Cone, and Brazil).
| Country | GDP (nominal) 2006 | GDP (PPP) 2005 | GDP (PPP) per capita 2005 | HDI 2007 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Argentina | 214,058 | 419,600 | 11,076 | Up 0.869 |
| Bolivia | 11,163 | 34,200 | 3,623 | Up 0.695 |
| Brazil | 1,312,962 | 1,585,100 | 8,606 | Up 0.800 |
| Chile | 145,841 | 261,800 | 12,277 | Up 0.869 |
| Colombia | 135,836 | 264,000 | 6,314 | Up 0.791 |
| Ecuador | 40,800 | 86,400 | 6,541 | Up 0.772 |
| French Guiana (France) | 3,524 | N/A | 17,336 (nominal, 2006) | N/A |
| Guyana | 896 | 2,393 | 3,186 | Up 0.750 |
| Paraguay | 9,110 | 23,000 | 3,905 | Down 0.755 |
| Peru | 107,000 | 217,500 | 7,574 | Up 0.773 |
| Suriname | 1,597 | 2,591 | 5,770 | Up 0.774 |
| Uruguay | 19,308 | 30,700 | 9,277 | Up 0.852 |
| Venezuela | 181,862 | 262,800 | 7,888 | Down 0.792 |
Languages
Portuguese and Spanish are the most spoken languages in South America, a geographic region which is part of the bigger cultural region of Latin America. Portuguese is the official language of Brazil, which holds nearly 50% of the South American population. Spanish is the official language of most countries of the continent. Dutch is the official language of Suriname; English is the official language of Guyana, although there are at least twelve other languages spoken in the country such as Hindi, Arabic, and various indigenous dialects. French is the official language of French Guiana.
Indigenous languages of South America include Quechua in Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia; Guaraní in Paraguay and, to a much less extent, in Bolivia; Aymara in Bolivia, Peru, and less often in Chile; and Mapudungun is spoken in certain pockets of southern Chile and, more rarely, Argentina. At least three South American indigenous languages (Quechua in Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia - Aymara also in Bolivia - and Guarani in Paraguay) are recognized along with Spanish as national languages.
