The tapering isthmus joining North and South America, comprising Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama, separating the Pacific Ocean from the Caribbean Sea. Its volcanic spine and land-bridge position between two continents and two oceans have made it a corridor for both human migration and biological exchange since the Isthmus of Panama closed a few million years ago.
Facts
Area (sq km)Seven-country isthmus definition. Population2026 estimate. Connections
Associated With
Source North America (Wikipedia)
In the Other Atlases
Sources
1. Central America (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationIntroductionQuote, Introduction
Central America includes portions of two recognized cultural areas: the Isthmo-Colombian cultural area, which encompasses modern Panama, Costa Rica, and the eastern portions of Nicaragua and Honduras, along with regions to the east; and the Mesoamerican cultural area, encompassing Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, and the western portions of Honduras and Nicaragua, along with the southern part of Mexico.
2. Encyclopaedia Britannica
North America (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationAssociated With: North America, Opening section, subregionsQuote, Associated With: North America, Opening section, subregions
The continent includes the subregions of Northern America (comprising Canada, Greenland, and the continental United States as well as the insular territories of Bermuda and Saint Pierre and Miquelon) and Middle America (comprising Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean).
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