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Americas Area Directors: David & Jo Brown The Americas area consists of Mexico, all the countries in Central America and South America, and all the island countries in the Caribbean. A total of 41 countries comprise this area, which has a total population of over 557, 000,000. Spanish is the dominant language spoken in the Americas, however multiple other languages are spoken as well including Portuguese, French, Quechua, Aymara, Guarani, Italian, English, German, Dutch, Creole, Hindi, Arabic, Mayan, Garifuna, and many others. The area is extremely diverse in geography, natural resources, economies, available medical resources, and religion. South America is a sub-continent of the Americas, crossed by the equator, and situated entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east by the Atlantic Ocean. Almost all of mainland South America sits atop the South American Plate, which is one reason for the high incidence of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions on the west coast. South America is home to the world's highest waterfall (in Venezuela), the largest river and rainforest (in the Amazon), the longest mountain range (the Andes), the driest desert (the Atacama), and the highest capital city (La Paz, Bolivia). The largest country in South America, in both area and population, is Brazil, followed by Argentina - thus Portuguese is the most spoken language in South America. Central America, is a geologically active region, with volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occurring from time to time. Central America lies between the Pacific Ocean on the west, the Caribbean Sea on the northeast, and the Gulf of Mexico on the north. Because of its location, Central America is highly vulnerable to tropical weather systems. Flooding and wind damage due to these storms is very common. The Caribbean Sea is one of the largest salt water seas in the world. The island countries of the Caribbean were generally unknown to Europeans prior to the early expeditions of Christopher Columbus. Following his discovery, the area was quickly colonized by several European civilizations, thus the reason for much of the cultural and language diversity in the Caribbean. Due to its geography and proximity to major ocean currents, the Caribbean Sea is a focal area for many hurricanes and tropical storms within the Western Hemisphere.
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