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Region

Central America

Americas

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)
522,129 2
Seven-country isthmus definition.
Population
53,200,000 2
2026 estimate.
Classification
Region Type
Cultural Region 1
Region Type
Cultural Region 1
FAQs

Is Mexico part of Central America?

Usually not: Mexico is in North America geographically, though the United Nations statistical grouping places it with Central America.

Usually not. In the common geographic sense, Central America is the isthmus made up of Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama, and Mexico lies to the north of it as part of North America. The confusion comes from the United Nations M49 geoscheme, which lists Mexico in its Central America group alongside those seven countries. That scheme states that its groupings are made for statistical convenience and do not imply any assumption about political or other affiliation, so it is a reporting convention rather than a statement about where the isthmus begins.
Connections

Associated With

Belize, Countries
Costa Rica, Countries
El Salvador, Countries
Guatemala, Countries
Honduras, Countries
Nicaragua, Countries
North America, Continents
Source North America (Wikipedia)
Panama, Countries
Tijuana, Cities
Zapopan, Cities

Shaped By

Faulting, Physical Processes
Source Central America (Wikipedia)
Volcanism, Physical Processes
Source Central America (Wikipedia)
In the Other Atlases

Origin Of

Allspice

Also in Food and Drink Atlas: which originated in this subject.

Bell Pepper

Also in Food and Drink Atlas: which originated in this subject.

Source Wikipedia: Bell pepper
Cherimoya

Also in Food and Drink Atlas: which originated in this subject.

Gallo Pinto

Also in Food and Drink Atlas: which originated in this subject.

Source Gallo pinto (Wikipedia)tier 3
Guava

Also in Food and Drink Atlas: which originated in this subject.

Horchata

Also in Food and Drink Atlas: which originated in this subject.

Source Horchata (Wikipedia)tier 2
Jicama

Also in Food and Drink Atlas: which originated in this subject.

Source Cooks Info: JicamaEncyclopaedia entry text
Quote, Encyclopaedia entry text
Native to Central America.
Mamey Sapote

Also in Food and Drink Atlas: which originated in this subject.

Source CooksInfo: Mamey SapoteEncyclopaedia entry text
Quote, Encyclopaedia entry text
Native to Central America.
Papaya

Also in Food and Drink Atlas: which originated in this subject.

Source Papaya - Wikipedia
Runner Bean

Also in Food and Drink Atlas: which originated in this subject.

Source Cooks Info: Runner BeanEncyclopaedia entry text
Quote, Encyclopaedia entry text
Runner beans are native to Central America.
Sapodilla

Also in Food and Drink Atlas: which originated in this subject.

Mesoamerican Reef

Also in Nature Atlas: which originated in this subject.

Found There

Burrowing Nematode

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: found in this subject.

Classical Swine Fever

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: found in this subject.

Dysmicoccus brevipes

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: found in this subject.

Guava

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: found in this subject.

New World Screwworm

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: found in this subject.

Papaya

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: found in this subject.

Source Papaya, Wikipedia
Sweet Potato

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: found in this subject.

Source Sweet Potato (Wikipedia)
Tomato

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: found in this subject.

Source Tomato (Wikipedia)
Tomato Yellow Leaf Curl Virus

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: found in this subject.

Amazon Malaria Initiative

Also in Health and Wellness Atlas: found in this subject.

Chibchan

Also in Language Atlas: found in this subject.

Source Wikipedia: Chibchan LanguagesLead sentence 1tier 2
Quote, Lead sentence 1
The Chibchan languages (also known as Chibchano) are a language family indigenous to the Isthmo-Colombian Area, a geo-cultural region extending from Mosquitia in eastern Central America to northern Colombia, and encompassing parts of Costa Rica and Panama.
Kalinago language

Also in Language Atlas: found in this subject.

Lencan

Also in Language Atlas: found in this subject.

Source Wikipedia: Lencan LanguagesLead sentence 1tier 2
Quote, Lead sentence 1
The Lencan languages are a small language family native to Central America, whose speakers lived throughout El Salvador and Honduras during the Pre-Columbian era.
Misumalpan

Also in Language Atlas: found in this subject.

Ta-Arawakan languages

Also in Language Atlas: found in this subject.

Alopoglossidae

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Anaxyrus

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Anguidae

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Atelopus

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Source Atelopus (Wikipedia)Lead paragraph
Quote, Lead paragraph
Atelopus is a large genus of Bufonidae, commonly known as harlequin frogs or toads, from Central and South America, ranging as far north as Costa Rica and as far south as Bolivia.
Cebidae

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Characiformes

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Cricket

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Crown-of-thorns Starfish (Acanthaster planci)

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Geomyidae

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Herpailurus

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Iguanidae

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Katydid

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Microsciurus

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Source Microsciurus (Wikipedia)Lead paragraph
Quote, Lead paragraph
Microsciurus or dwarf squirrels is a genus of squirrels from the tropical regions of Central and South America.
Onychophora

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Pinus

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Ricinulei

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Rosette Lichen

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Sciurus

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Source Sciurus (Wikipedia)Lead paragraph
Quote, Lead paragraph
The genus Sciurus ( or ) contains most of the common, bushy-tailed squirrels in North America, Europe, temperate Asia, Central America and South America.
Strangler Fig

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Velvet Worm

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Wuchereria Bancrofti

Also in Nature Atlas: found in this subject.

Source Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology: Animal Diversity Web: Wuchereria bancroftiGeographic Range
Quote, Geographic Range
This nematode is found in Central Africa and the Nile delta, South and Central America, and the tropical regions of Asia including southern China and the Pacific.
Sources
1. Central America (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundation
  • 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.
  • Shaped By: Volcanism, Lead
    Due to the presence of several active geologic faults and the Central America Volcanic Arc, seismic activity in the region, such as volcanic eruptions and earthquakes, is high
  • Shaped By: Faulting, Lead
    Due to the presence of several active geologic faults and the Central America Volcanic Arc, seismic activity in the region, such as volcanic eruptions and earthquakes, is high
View the Source
2. Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.Central AmericaView the Source
Wikidata: Central America
Wikidata Q27611, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source
North America (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationAssociated With: North America, Opening section, subregions
Quote, 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).
View the Source
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