1. Spanish Speaking Countries of the World
Spanish Enrichment
Ms. Kunkel
Hunter Hylton

2. Cuba Population: 11.4 million Primary Language: Spanish
Primary Religion: Roman Catholic
Government Type: Communism
Imports: petroleum, food, machinery and equipment, chemicals
Exports: sugar, nickel, tobacco, fish, medical products, citrus, coffee
Geographical Features: mostly flat to rolling plains, with rugged hills and mountains in the southeast, largest country in Caribbean and westernmost island of the Greater Antilles

3. Dominican Republic Population:11.8 million Primary Language: Spanish
Primary Religion: Roman Catholic
Government Type: Democratic Republic
Imports: foodstuffs, petroleum, cotton and fabrics, chemicals and pharmaceuticals
Exports: ferronickel, sugar, gold, silver, coffee, cocoa, tobacco, meats, consumer goods
Geographical Features: rugged highlands and mountains with fertile valleys interspersed, shares island of Hispaniola with Haiti

4. Puerto Rico Population: 3.98 million
Primary Languages: Spanish, English
Primary Religion: Roman Catholic
Government Type: Commonwealth
Imports: chemicals, machinery and equipment, clothing, food, fish, petroleum products
Exports: chemicals, electronics, apparel, canned tuna, rum, beverage concentrates, medical equipment
Geographical Features: mostly mountains with coastal plain belt in north; mountains precipitous to sea on west coast; sandy beaches along most coastal areas, important location along the Mona Passage - a key shipping lane to the Panama Canal; San Juan is one of the biggest and best natural harbors in the Caribbean; many small rivers and high central mountains ensure land is well watered; south coast relatively dry; fertile coastal plain belt in north

5. Mexico Population: 112.47 million
Primary Language: Spanish and other indigenous languages
Primary Religions: Roman Catholic, Protestant
Government Type: Federal Republic
Imports: metalworking machines, steel mill products, agricultural machinery, electrical equipment, car parts for assembly, repair parts for motor vehicles, aircraft, and aircraft parts
Exports: manufactured goods, oil and oil products, silver, fruits, vegetables, coffee, cotton
Geographical Features: high, rugged mountains; low coastal plains; high plateaus; desert, strategic location on southern border of US; corn (maize), one of the world's major grain crops, is thought to have originated in Mexico

6. Guatemala Population: 13.55 million
Primary Languages: Spanish, Amerindan languages (23 officially recognized Amerindian languages, including Quiche, Cakchiquel, Kekchi, Mam, Garifuna, and Xinca)
Primary Religion: Roman Catholic, Protestant, indigenous Mayan beliefs
Government Type: Constitutional Democratic Republic
Imports: fuels, machinery and transport equipment, construction materials, grain, fertilizers, electricity
Exports: coffee, sugar, petroleum, apparel, bananas, fruits and vegetables, cardamom
Geographical Features: mostly mountains with narrow coastal plains and rolling limestone plateau, no natural harbors on west coast

7. El Salvador Population: 6.05 million Primary Languages: Spanish, Nahua
Primary Religion: Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormon
Government Type: Republic
Imports: raw materials, consumer goods, capital goods, fuels, foodstuffs, petroleum, electricity
Exports: offshore assembly exports, coffee, sugar, textiles and apparel, gold, ethanol, chemicals, electricity, iron and steel manufactures
Geographical Features: mostly mountains with narrow coastal belt and central plateau, smallest Central American country and only one without a coastline on Caribbean Sea

8. Honduras Population: 7.99 million
Primary Languages: Spanish, Amerindian dialects
Primary Religion: Roman Catholic, Protestant
Government Type: Democratic Constitutional Republic
Imports: machinery and transport equipment, industrial raw materials, chemical products, fuels, foodstuffs
Exports: apparel, coffee, shrimp, wire harnessing, cigars, bananas, gold, palm oil, fruit, lobster, lumber
Geographical Features: mostly mountains in interior, narrow coastal plains, has only a short Pacific coast but a long Caribbean shoreline, including the virtually uninhabited eastern Mosquito Coast

9. Nicaragua Population: 5.99 million Primary Language: Spanish
Primary Religion: Roman Catholic, Evangelical, Moravian, Jehovah's Witness
Government Type: Republic
Imports: consumer goods, machinery and equipment, raw materials, petroleum products
Exports: coffee, beef, shrimp and lobster, tobacco, sugar, gold, peanuts; textiles and apparel
Geographical Features: extensive Atlantic coastal plains rising to central interior mountains; narrow Pacific coastal plain interrupted by volcanoes, largest country in Central America; contains the largest freshwater body in Central America, Lago de Nicaragua

10. Costa Rica Population: 4.52 million Primary Language: Spanish
Primary Religion: Roman Catholic, Evangelical, Jehovah's Witnesses, other Protestant
Government Type: Democratic Republic
Imports: raw materials, consumer goods, capital equipment, petroleum, construction materials
Exports: bananas, pineapples, coffee, melons, ornamental plants, sugar; beef; seafood; electronic components, medical equipment
Geographical Features: coastal plains separated by rugged mountains including over 100 volcanic cones, of which several are major volcanoes, four volcanoes, two of them active, rise near the capital of San Jose in the center of the country; one of the volcanoes, Irazu, erupted destructively in

11. Panama Population: 3.41 million Primary Language: Spanish
Primary Religions: Roman Catholic, Protestant
Government Type: Constitutional Democracy
Imports: bananas, sugar, shrimp, coffee, clothing
Exports: capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods, chemicals
Geographical Features: interior mostly steep, rugged mountains and dissected, upland plains; coastal areas largely plains and rolling hills, strategic location on eastern end of isthmus forming land bridge connecting North and South America; controls Panama Canal that links North Atlantic Ocean via Caribbean Sea with North Pacific Ocean

12. Venezuela Population: 27.22 million Primary Language: Spanish
Primary Religion: Roman Catholic
Government Type: Federal Republic
Imports: raw materials, machinery and equipment, transport equipment, construction
materials
Exports: petroleum, bauxite and aluminum, steel, chemicals, agricultural products, basic manufactures
Geographical Features: Andes Mountains and Maracaibo Lowlands in northwest; central plains (llanos); Guiana Highlands in southeast, on major sea and air routes linking North and South America; Angel Falls in the Guiana Highlands is the world's highest waterfall

13. Colombia Population: 44.20 million Primary Language: Spanish
Primary Religion: Roman Catholic
Government Type: Republic; Executive Branch dominates government structure
Imports: industrial equipment, transportation equipment, consumer goods, chemicals, paper products, fuels, electricity
Exports: petroleum, coffee, coal, nickel, emeralds, apparel, bananas, cut flowers
Geographical Features: flat coastal lowlands, central highlands, high Andes Mountains, eastern lowland plains, only South American country with coastlines on both the North Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea

14. Ecuador Population: 14.79 million Primary Language: Spanish
Primary Religions: Roman Catholic
Government Type: Republic
Imports: industrial materials, fuels and lubricants, nondurable consumer goods
Exports: petroleum, bananas, cut flowers, shrimp, cacao, coffee, hemp, wood, fish
Geographical Features: coastal plain (costa), inter-Andean central highlands (sierra), and flat to rolling eastern jungle (oriente), Cotopaxi in Andes is highest active volcano in world

15. Peru Population: 29.90 million
Primary Language: Spanish, Quechua, Aymara
Primary Religions: Roman Catholic, Evangelical
Government Type: Constitutional Republic
Imports: petroleum and petroleum products, plastics, machinery, vehicles, iron and steel, wheat, paper
Exports: copper, gold, zinc, crude petroleum and petroleum products, coffee, potatoes, asparagus, textiles, fishmeal
Geographical Features: western coastal plain (costa), high and rugged Andes in center (sierra), eastern lowland jungle of Amazon Basin (selva), shares control of Lago Titicaca, world's highest navigable lake, with Bolivia; a remote slope of Nevado Mismi, a 5,316 m peak, is the ultimate source of the Amazon River

16. Chile Population: 16.74 million Primary Language: Spanish
Primary Religions: Roman Catholic, Evangelical, Jehovah's Witness
Government Type: Republic
Imports: petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, electrical and telecommunications equipment, industrial machinery, vehicles, natural gas
Exports: copper, fruit, fish products, paper and pulp, chemicals, wine
Geographical Features: low coastal mountains; fertile central valley; rugged Andes in east, strategic location relative to sea lanes between Atlantic and Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel, Drake Passage); Atacama Desert is one of world's driest regions

17. Argentina Population: 41.34 million Primary Language: Spanish
Primary Religions: Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish
Government Type: Republic
Imports: machinery, motor vehicles, petroleum and natural gas, organic chemicals, plastics
Exports: soybeans and derivatives, petroleum and gas, vehicles, corn, wheat
Geographical Features: rich plains of the Pampas in northern half, flat to rolling plateau of Patagonia in south, rugged Andes along western border, second-largest country in South America (after Brazil); strategic location relative to sea lanes between the South Atlantic and the South Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel, Drake Passage); diverse geophysical landscapes range from tropical climates in the north to tundra in the far south; Cerro Aconcagua is the Western Hemisphere's tallest mountain, while Laguna del Carbon is the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere

18. Uruguay Population: 3.51 million
Primary Language: Spanish, Portunol, Brazilero
Primary Religion: Roman Catholic, Non-Catholic Christians, Nondenominational, Jewish, Atheist or Agnostic
Government Type: Constitutional Republic
Imports: crude petroleum and petroleum products, machinery, chemicals, road vehicles, paper, plastics
Exports: meat, rice, leather products, wool, fish, dairy products
Geographical Features: mostly rolling plains and low hills; fertile coastal lowland, second-smallest South American country (after Suriname); most of the low-lying landscape (three-quarters of the country) is grassland, ideal for cattle and sheep raising

19. Paraguay Population: 6.37 million Primary Language: Spanish, Guarani
Primary Religion: Roman Catholic, Protestant
Government Type: Constitutional Republic
Imports: road vehicles, consumer goods, tobacco, petroleum products, electrical machinery, tractors, chemicals, vehicle parts
Exports: soybeans, feed, cotton, meat, edible oils, electricity, wood, leather
Geographical Features: grassy plains and wooded hills east of Rio Paraguay; Gran Chaco region west of Rio Paraguay mostly low, marshy plain near the river, and dry forest and thorny scrub elsewhere, landlocked; lies between Argentina, Bolivia, and Brazil; population concentrated in southern part of country

20. Bolivia Population: 9.94 million
Primary Language: Spanish, Quechua, Aymara
Primary Religion: Roman Cath0lic, Protestant
Government Type: Republic, but the new constitution defines Bolivia as a "Social Unitarian State"
Imports: petroleum products, plastics, paper, aircraft and aircraft parts, prepared foods, automobiles, insecticides, soybeans
Exports: natural gas, soybeans and soy products, crude petroleum, zinc ore, tin
Geographical Features: rugged Andes Mountains with a highland plateau (Altiplano), hills, lowland plains of the Amazon Basin, landlocked; shares control of Lago Titicaca, world's highest navigable lake (elevation 3,805 m), with Peru

21. Sources:
CIA World Factbook:
Yahoo! Images:
Google Images: