South America

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The Countries of South America

The long, tapering continent of South America, roughly triangular in shape, is fourth in size among the continents of the world. At its widest, it measures about 3,200 miles (5,150 kilometers) from east to west. It extends some 4,600 miles (7,400 kilometers) from north to south. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean on the east, the Pacific Ocean on the west, by the Caribbean Sea on the north, and by the icy Antarctic waters on the south.

South America is home to 12 countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, and Venezuela of which Brazil is by far the largest, and of three territories: Falkland Islands, French Guiana, and the South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands.

The continent has some of the most outstanding geographical features. The Andes, which parallel the western side of the continent, form the longest mountain chain in the world. The Amazon River is the world's largest in volume of water flow, and its enormous drainage basin is covered by the world's most extensive area of rain forests.

Even though South America covers about 12 percent of the world's land surface, it contains less than 6 percent of its people because most areas are not suitable for extensive human settlement. South America's population was estimated as 350 million in 2001 and the most populous country of the continent is Brazil (175 million).

South America's racial heritage stems from three basic sources: Caucasian, African, and Indian. The Indians, who arrived perhaps 11,000 to 14,000 years ago, were at first hunters and gatherers.

Spanish and Portuguese are the continent's dominant languages. Portuguese is the official language of Brazil, and Spanish is the language of most of the other countries. Numerous Indian languages are also spoken.

Roman Catholicism was brought to South America by the Spanish and Portuguese and remains the religion of the great majority of the people.

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