| A | B |
|---|
| cordillera | parallel chains or ranges of mountains |
| altiplano | “high plain” in Spanish, a region in Peru and Bolivia encircled by the Andes peaks |
| escarpment | steep cliff or slope between a higher and lower land surface |
| llano | fertile grassland in inland areas of Columbia and Venezuela |
| pampa | grassy, treeless plains of southern South America |
| tierra fria | Spanish term for “cold land”; the highest altitude zone of Latin American highlands climates |
| tierra templada | Spanish term for “termperate land”; the middle altitude zone of Latin American highlands climates. |
| tierra caliente | Spanish term for “hot land”; the lowest altitude zone of Latin American highlands climates. |
| mestizo | refers to people of Native American and European descent |
| megacity | a city with more than 10 million people |
| primate city | a city that dominates a country’s economy, culture, and government and in which population is concentrated; usually the capital |
| chinampas | floating farming islands made by the Aztec |
| conquistador | Spanish term for “conqueror,” referring to soldiers who conquered Native Americans in Latin America |
| viceroy | representative of the Spanish monarch appointed to enforce laws in colonial Latin America |
| caudillo | a Latin American political leader from the late 1800’s to the present day, often a military dictator |
| extended family | household made up of several generations of family members |
| deforestation | the loss of destruction of forests, mainly for logging or farming |
| campesino | farmworker; generally, people who live and work in rural areas |
| latifundia | in Latin America, large agricultural estates owned by families or corporations |
| minifundia | in Latin America, small farms that produce food chiefly for family use. |
| gross domestic product (GDP) | the value of goods and services created within a country in a year |
| service industry | business that provides a service instead of making goods |
| maquiladora | in Mexico, a manufacturing plant set up by a foreign firm |
| free trade zone | an area of a country in which trade restrictions do not apply |
| slash-and-burn farming | traditional farming method in which all trees and plants in an area are cut and burned to add nutrients to the soil |
| shantytown | a makeshift community on the edge of a city |
| archipelago | a group or chain of islands |
| subsistance farming | producing just enough food for a family or a village to survive |
| plantation agriculture | large scale farming common during colonial periods |
| out - migration | to move out of one community, region, or country to reside in another |
| gaucho | horseman/cowhand of the South American pampas |
| NAFTA | designed to improve trade relations between U.S., Canada & Mexico |
| hacienda | Spanish word for estate |
| ejido | communial land used for agriculture |
| monarch butterfly | most familiar North American species |
