Central America is a region defined primarily by its geographical
configuration as a canal-friendly isthmus, and its three-century
history as the Spanish Kingdom of Guatemala. Having gained
independence in 1821, the Kingdom broke up into the nations of
Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica after
two turbulent decades as a federated republic. Political
instability and violence, poverty and inequality, ethnic strife,
military rule, and a historic economic dependence on the export of
coffee and bananas marked the region's history. Owing to its
isthmian geography and political strife, Central America became a
frequent target of US government intervention. Intense US
political, economic, and military action both preceded and
accompanied the revolutionary civil wars of the 1970s and 1980s.
With British Honduras's independence from Great Britain in 1981 as
Belize, and the acquisition by Panama of full sovereignty over its
territory in 1999, Central America increasingly defined itself as a
region of seven countries. The Oxford Handbook of Central American
History analyzes major themes in the historiography of this
seven-nation region of Latin America. Individual chapters interpret
the histories of each of the seven countries. Most concentrate on
themes that cut across national boundaries, beginning with the
history of the region's diverse natural environment, and continuing
with the Indigenous peoples, the Spanish conquest and colonial
rule, and the independence process. Nine chapters focus on
region-wide problems that emerged with great salience after
independence, including the economy, US relations, the armed
forces, the Cold War, religion, and literature, among others.
Together, the book's twenty-five chapters illuminate Central
America's coherence as a region of Latin America while emphasizing
its diversity within and across national boundaries.
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