Chapter 7 Lesson 3 Mexico and Central America

NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement)

allows open trade with US, Mexico, and Canada.

maquiladora

a foreign-owned factory where workers assemble parts

mural

a large painting on a wall

circumstance

conditions

dependence

too much reliance

initiate

to begin

free-trade zone

an area where trade barriers between countries are relaxed or lowered

Spanish

the chief language in all countries except Belize

English

Official language of Belize and is spoken in many cities

Lake Chapala

Largest natural lake in Mexico

1/3

the amount that factories account for in Mexico's total output

Roman Catholicism

The majority religion in Central America

cash crops

What Central American countries used to depend on economically

subsistance farming

A type of farming in which farmers grow only enough food for their families to eat

Panama Canal

a ship canal 40 miles long across the Isthmus of Panama built by the United States (1904-1914) that shortened the travel time between the East and West Coast

Hurricane Mitch (1998)

Category 5

180mph winds sustained

Honduras was hit hard: 7,000 deaths

out of ~19,000 deaths region wide

North Mexico

Cotton and Wheat

Southeast Mexico

Coffee, Sugarcane, and Fruit

Central Plateau of Mexico

Wheat, Corn, Fruits, and Vegetables