Chapter 7 Mexico

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Chapter 7 Mexico
Video
Section Notes
Impact of Emigration
Physical Geography History and Culture Mexico
Today
Maps
Mexico Political Mexico Physical Mexico
Climate Mexicos Culture Regions Mexico
Quick Facts
Chapter 7 Visual Summary
Images
Culture Early Cultures of Mexico Hidalgo Calls
for Independence Focus on Culture Day of the
Dead
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Physical Geography

• The Big Idea
• Mexico is a large country with different natural
  environments in its northern, central, and
  southern regions.
• Main Ideas
• Mexicos physical features include plateaus,
  mountains, and coastal lowlands.
• Mexicos climate and vegetation include deserts,
  tropical forests, and cool highlands.
• Key natural resources in Mexico include oil,
  silver, gold, and scenic landscapes.

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Main Idea 1Mexicos physical features include
plateaus, mountains, and coastal lowlands.

• Mexico shares a long border with the southern
  United States.
• The Río Bravo, called the Rio Grande in the U.S.,
  runs along part of this border.
• The Río Bravo is one of Mexicos few major rivers.

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Mexicos Physical Features

• Bordered by the Pacific Ocean in the West and the
  Gulf of Mexico in the east
• Stretching south from northern Mexico is a
  peninsula, or piece of land surrounded by water
  on three sides, called Baja California.
• The Yucatán Peninsula separates the Gulf of
  Mexico from the Caribbean Sea.

Bodies Of Water

• Much of interior is a region called the Mexican
  Plateau.
• Two mountain ranges, the Sierra Madre Oriental in
  the east and the Sierra Madre Occidental in the
  west, are part of the Sierra Madre, or mother
  range.
• The Valley of Mexico, where Mexico City is
  located, lies between these two ranges in the
  south.
• The mountains south of Mexico City include
  volcanoes. Volcanic eruptions and earthquakes are
  a threat to that region.

Plateaus And Mountains
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Coastal Lowlands

• The land slopes down to the coast from highlands
  in central Mexico.
• The Gulf coastal plain is wide and flat.
• This region has good soils and climate for
  farming.
• The Yucatán Peninsula is mostly flat.
• Erosion of limestone created caves and sinkholes
  that are often filled with water.

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Main Idea 2Mexicos climate and vegetation
include deserts, tropical forests, and cool
highlands.

• The great variety of climates produces different
  vegetation.

• Changes in elevation cause climates to vary
  within short distances.

• The Mexican Plateau can have cool temperatures.

• The southern coastal areas have warm temperatures
  and summer rainy seasons that support tropical
  forests that cover 25 percent of Mexico.

• The climate in the Yucatán Peninsula is hot and
  dry, supporting scrub forest.

• Most of northern Mexico is dry and made up of
  deserts and grasslands.

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Main Idea 3 Key natural resources in Mexico
include oil, silver, gold, and scenic landscapes.

• Mexico has rich natural resources.
• The southern and coastal plains and the Gulf of
  Mexico have oil.
• Mexicos mines yield gold, silver, copper, lead,
  and zinc.
• Mexico produces more silver than any other
  country in the world.

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History and Culture

• The Big Idea
• Native American cultures and Spanish colonization
  shaped Mexican history and culture.
• Main Ideas
• Early cultures of Mexico included the Olmec, the
  Maya, and the Aztec.
• Mexicos period as a Spanish colony and its
  struggles since independence have shaped its
  culture.
• Spanish and native cultures have influenced
  Mexicos customs and traditions today.

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Main Idea 1Early cultures of Mexico included
the Olmec, the Maya, and the Aztec.

• People came to Mexico many thousands of years
  ago.
• As early as 5,000 years ago, they were growing
  beans, peppers, squash, and domesticated corn.
• Farming allowed people to build the first
  settlements in America.

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Three Civilizations

• Olmec
• Lived in small villages by about 1500 BC
• Settled in the southern coast of the Gulf of
  Mexico
• Built temples and giant statues

• Maya
• Built big cities in Mexico and Central America
  between AD 250 and 900
• Built stone temples
• Developed a calendar
• Kept written records that do not reveal the
  reason for their collapse

• Aztec
• Moved in from the north
• Built a great capital on an island in 1325
• Established an empire, a land with different
  territories and peoples under one ruler
• Obtained new lands, taxes, and captives to
  sacrifice through war

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Main Idea 2 Mexicos period as a Spanish colony
and its struggles since independence have shaped
its culture.

• Despite great size and power, the Aztec empire
  did not last long after Hernán Cortés arrived
  with 600 Spanish soldiers.
• The Spanish had better weapons and horses.
• The Spanish brought new diseases, such as
  smallpox, which killed many Aztecs.
• Cortés conquered the empire by 1521.

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Colonial Times

• Culture
• After the conquest, the separate peoples and
  cultures mixed.
• Mestizos are people of mixed European and
  American Indian ancestry.
• Mulattoes are people of mixed European and
  African descent.
• Africans and American Indians also intermarried.

• Religion
• The Roman Catholic Church had great influence.
• The church ruled over large areas of northern
  Mexico.
• The church established missions, or church
  outposts.
• Priests learned native languages and converted
  the American Indians to Catholicism.

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Colonial Times Economy

• The Spaniards searched for gold and silver.
• The American Indians and the enslaved Africans
  labored in the mines.
• As a result, many died from overwork and disease.
• The Spanish monarch granted haciendas, or huge
  expanses of farm or ranch land, to some Spanish
  people who became wealthy.
• Peasants, usually Indians, lived and worked on
  haciendas.

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Independence and Later Struggles

• Independence
• Spain ruled Mexico for 300 years.
• Miguel Hidalgo, a Catholic priest, led the revolt
  against Spain.
• Hidalgo was killed in 1811, but Mexico won
  independence in 1821.

• Later Struggles
• Texas broke away from Mexico fifteen years after
  independence.
• During the resulting Mexican-American War, Mexico
  lost nearly half of its territory.
• In the mid-1800s, Benito Juárez helped Mexico
  survive a French invasion and reduced the
  privileges of the church and army.
• In the early 1900s, hacienda owners and foreign
  companies had much influence.
• The Mexican Revolution, 1910-1920, resulted in
  land reform.

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Main Idea 3Spanish and native cultures have
influenced Mexicos customs and traditions today.

• Most Mexicans speak Spanish.
• About 90 percent of Mexicans are Roman Catholic.

Spanish

• Many people speak an American Indian language
  that ties them to their ethnic group.
• These languages identify a person as Indian.

American Indian

• Mexicans have unique practices that result from
  the mixing of cultures.
• For example, Mexicans celebrate the Day of the
  Dead to remember dead ancestors.
• This holiday is held on All Souls Day, but
  reflects native customs and beliefs.

Spanish and American Indian
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Mexico Today

• The Big Idea
• Mexico has four culture regions that all play a
  part in the countrys government and economy.
• Main Ideas
• Government has traditionally played a large role
  in Mexicos economy.
• Mexico has four distinct culture regions.

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Main Idea 1Government has traditionally played
a large role in Mexicos economy.

• Mexico is a democracy, but the same party ruled
  for 71 years.
• A different political party came to power in 2000
  when Vicente Fox was elected president.
• Mexicos government controlled most economic
  activity for many years, but today that has
  changed.
• As a developing country, Mexico has challenges.
• Debt to foreign banks
• Unemployment
• Inflation, a rise in prices that occurs when
  currency loses buying power
• Mexicos economy has been growing since 1994 when
  the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)
  made trade with the U.S. and Canada easier.

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Mexicos Economy

• Agriculture
• Farms have long been a part of Mexican economy.
• Only 12 percent of the land can be farmed.
• Farmers practice slash-and-burn agriculture,
  burning forests to clear land for planting.
• Farmers grow cash crops, crops that farmers can
  sell for a profit.

• Industry
• Major industries include oil, mining, and
  manufacturing.
• Many foreign companies have built factories along
  the U.S. border because labor is cheaper.
• Some Mexican workers come to the U.S. to look for
  jobs.

• Tourism
• Tourists visit old colonial cities and Maya and
  Aztec monuments.
• Coastal cities are popular with tourists.

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Main Idea 2 Mexico has four distinct culture
regions.

• All Mexicans share cultural characteristics.
• Yet, four regions differ in culture, population,
  resources, and climate
• Greater Mexico City
• Central Mexico
• Northern Mexico
• Southern Mexico

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Mexicos Culture Regions

• Greater Mexico City
• Includes the capital and 50 smaller cities
• Has a population of more than 19 million
• Second largest city in world
• Huge, dense population causes problems.
• Smog, a mixture of smoke, chemicals, and fog,
  created by factories and cars
• Poverty

• Central Mexico
• North of Mexico City
• Many cities established for ranching or mining
  during the colonial period
• Colonial heritage church near main central
  square, or plaza
• Small family farms that grow vegetables, corn and
  wheat
• Mining centers
• New industries leading to rapid growth of cities

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Mexicos Culture Regions, continued

• Northern Mexico
• One of the countrys wealthiest and most modern
  regions
• Trade with U.S. helping growth of economy
• Has many maquiladoras, U.S. and foreign-owned
  factories
• Influenced by American television, music, and
  culture
• Residents crossing into the U.S. to shop, work,
  or live
• United States tries to prevent illegal crossing

• Southern Mexico
• Least populated and industrialized region
• Many Indian language speakers
• Subsistence farming and slash-and-burn
  agriculture
• Two major export crops sugarcane and coffee
• Increased oil production along the Gulf coast
• Yucatán Peninsula tourism to Maya ruins and
  beaches
• Tiny fishing towns transformed to booming tourist
  centers

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