Jerry Vogel, age 15, of Shreveport, La., for his question:
WHY IS LATIN AMERICA CALLED BY THAT NAME?
Latin America consists of Mexico and all of the countries and other territories that are located south of it. The area continues down to the southern tip of South America.
Almost all of the people who live in Latin America share a common culture and tradition. Their language, religion, arts and customs were greatly influenced by the Spanish, Portuguese and French, and are based on those of ancient Rome (Latium).
Because of the Latium tradition and culture, the people are called Latins and the entire area is called Latin America.
The part of the world we call Latin America was most likely first populated more than 20,000 years before Columbus arrived in the Western Hemisphere by the people we now call American Indians. These people probably crossed from Asia on a land bridge during the earth's glacial period or traveled in boats across the Bering Strait.
Today, most Latin American people are of European decent, although a large number have mixed white, Indian and black ancestry. When the Europeans arrived in the 1500s, well organized civilizations had already been established by the Aztecs in Mexico, the Mayans in Central America and the Incas in South America.
Latin America isn't like the United States and Canada, where most of the people share in their region's wealth. In Latin America, most of the political power and money is held by a few wealthy families who own farmlands and factories. Most of the population is poor and uneducated.
Latin America has a population that increases about three percent each year. This growth is higher than that of any other region of the world. Each year, it becomes more difficult to provide food, education, housing and jobs to the people.
While the people in Latin America have religious freedom today, more than 90 percent of them are Catholics. The Roman Catholic Church dominated education for more than 300 years and continues to hold much political power.
Spanish is the official language in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Columbia, Costa Rica, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, E1 Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela.
Portuguese is the official language in Brazil, while English is in the Bahamas, Barbados, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago. French is the official language in Haiti, while in Surinam it is Dutch.