Middle America is a subregion in the Northern Hemisphere tropics of the Americas. It usually includes Mexico, the seven countries of Central America, and the 13 island countries and 18 territories of the Caribbean. Together with Northern America, they form the continent of North America.

Colombia and Venezuela of Caribbean South America are sometimes included in this subregion. The Caribbean is occasionally excluded from this subregion while The Guianas are infrequently included.CIA political map of Middle America. 1994. Perry–Castañeda Library Map Collection; University of Texas Library Online"Middle America." Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 11th ed. 2003. () New York: Merriam-Webster, Inc.

Geography

Physiographically, Middle America marks the territorial transition between Northern America and South America, connecting yet separating the two.Gonzalez, Joseph. 2004. "Middle America: Bridging Two Continents" (ch. 17). The Complete Idiot's Guide to Geography. () New York: Alpha Books; pp. 213–7 On the west, the Middle American mainland comprises the tapering, isthmian tract of the American landmass between the southern Rocky Mountains in the southern United States and the northern tip of the Andes in Colombia,"Middle America." Encyclopædia Britannica 2006. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. separating the Pacific Ocean on the west and the Atlantic Ocean (viz. the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea) on the east, while the Greater and Lesser Antilles form an island arc in the east. The region developed subaerially southward from North America as a complex volcanic arc-trench system during the Early Cretaceous period, eventually forming the land bridge during the Pliocene epoch when its southern end (at Panama) collided with South America through tectonic action.Coney, Peter J. 1982. "Plate tectonic constraints on the biogeography of Middle America and the Caribbean region." Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden: v. 69, pp. 432–443

Countries and territories Small island nations are excluded. Puerto Rico is in italics due to not being independent.

Country / TerritoryPopulationArea (km2)Density (people per km2)Capital127,575,5291,943,94565.6Mexico City17,581,472107,158164.1Guatemala City11,333,483109,883103.1Havana11,263,77027,557408.7Port-au-Prince10,738,95848,329222.2Santo Domingo9,746,117111,88887.1Tegucigalpa6,545,502119,99454.5Managua6,453,55320,720311.5San Salvador5,047,56151,04998.9San José4,246,43974,33357.1Panama City2,948,27910,831272.2Kingston3,205,6919,100352.2San Juan390,35322,80517.1Belmopan389,4829,99739.0NassauTotal217,193,9062,667,58981.4

Other uses Occasionally, the term Middle America is used synonymously with Central America (compare with Middle Africa and Central Africa). In English, the term is uncommonly used as a synonym of the term Mesoamerica (or Meso-America),'Glossary' Images of the Past, 4th ed. 2005. McGraw-Hill Higher Education. which generally refers to an ancient culture region situated in Middle America extending roughly from central Mexico to northern Costa Rica.Dow, James W. 1999. The Cultural Anthropology of Middle America . In addition, some residents of the region (e.g., Costa Ricans and Nicaraguans) may be referred to as Meso-Americans or Central Americans, but not, however, as Middle Americans, which refers to a particular constituency in the United States."American." The Oxford Companion to the English Language (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. 35.

See also

Americas (terminology) Aridoamerica Latin America and the Caribbean Middle America Trench Oasisamerica Southern Cone West Indies

Notes

References Citations

Sources

"Middle America", Dictionary.com. "North America". The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. 2001–6. New York: Columbia University Press. Oxford English Reference Dictionary, 2nd ed. (rev.) 2002. () Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.