The political map of the Americas and the USA

The Americas are a part of the world made up of two mainlands in the Western Hemisphere – North and South America – and nearby islands; their total area is about 42 million km². The mainlands are joined by the narrow Isthmus of Panama, through which the Panama Canal has been cut. The modern political map has 35 independent states. They differ sharply in size: Canada, the USA, Brazil and Argentina are among the world’s ten largest states, while several Caribbean island states are under 1,000 km². Only Bolivia and Paraguay have no access to the sea. Mexico and most Central American states lie on two oceans, the Atlantic and Pacific, while the USA and Canada border three (Atlantic, Pacific, Arctic). Most states are republics and about nine are constitutional monarchies (Commonwealth realms: Canada, Belize and Caribbean island states); Barbados became a republic in 2021. The federal states are the USA, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Venezuela, and Saint Kitts and Nevis. America divides into two political-geographical regions: North America (the USA and Canada) and Latin America (all states south of the USA – Mexico, Central and South America, and the Caribbean islands). “Latin America” is named so because Spanish, Portuguese and French – languages derived from Latin – are spoken there. In North America, Canada and the USA are developed states and both are G7 members; most Latin American states are developing countries, including large economies such as Brazil, Mexico and Argentina. European states colonised the region; the USA became independent in 1776, most Latin American states in the early 19th century, and some Caribbean islands only in the 20th century.