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Costa Rica

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Central & South American
Countries; Countries

   SOS Children works in Costa Rica. For more information see SOS Children
   in Costa Rica
             República de Costa Rica
   Republic of Costa Rica

   Flag of Costa Rica Coat of arms of Costa Rica
   Flag               Coat of arms
   Motto: ¡Vivan siempre el trabajo y la paz!
   Anthem: Noble patria, tu hermosa bandera
   Location of Costa Rica
   Capital
   (and largest city) San José
                      9°56′N 84°5′W
   Official languages Spanish
   Government         Democratic Republic
    - President       Óscar Arias
      Independence    From Spain
    - Date            15 September 1821
                       Area
    - Total           51,100 km² ( 129th)
                      19,725 sq mi
    - Water (%)       0.7%
                    Population
    - 2005 estimate   4,327,000 ( 119th)
    - Density         85/km² ( 107th)
                      220/sq mi
       GDP ( PPP)     2005 estimate
    - Total           $45.14 billion ( 79th)
    - Per capita      $10,434 ( 63rd)
      HDI  (2006)     0.841 (high) ( 48th)
        Currency      Costa Rican colón ( CRC)
       Time zone      ( UTC-6)
      Internet TLD    .cr
      Calling code    +506

   Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica (Spanish: Costa Rica
   or República de Costa Rica, IPA: [re'puβlika ðe 'kosta 'rika]), is a
   country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama
   to the south-southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, and
   the Caribbean Sea to the east. Costa Rica was the first country in the
   world to constitutionally abolish its army.

History

   In Pre-Columbian times the Indigenous people, in what is now known as
   Costa Rica, were part of the Intermediate Area located between the
   Mesoamerican and Andean cultural regions. This has recently been
   updated to include the influence of the Isthmo-Colombian area in the
   South-Atlantic region of the country, defined by the presence of groups
   that spoke Chibchan languages. It is still unknown if any of these
   groups created the famous stone spheres of Costa Rica, between 200 BC
   and AD 1600. Costa Rica is also justly famous for its beautiful jade
   artifacts.
   Pre-Columbian ceramics from Nicoya, Costa Rica.
   Enlarge
   Pre-Columbian ceramics from Nicoya, Costa Rica.

   There is evidence of human habitation in Costa Rica as early as 10,000
   BC in the southern Turrialba Valley. Ceramic artifacts have been dated
   to 1500 BC, although they are not abundant and are widely scattered.
   After 400 BC, there was a dramatic increase in population, trade,
   agricultural sophistication, and social complexity. Three distinct
   cultural zones also emerge around 400 BC: Guanacaste-Nicoya in the
   drier northwest, the Central Highlands Region, and Diquis in the
   southwest. The culture of Guanacaste-Nicoya is related to that of the
   Greater Nicoya Region extending into modern Nicaragua while Diquis was
   closely tied to the Greater Chiriqui Region in what is now Panama.

   After 400 AD population centers divided into relatively small,
   rudimentary settlements accompanied by a gradual degradation of the
   quality of ceramics. Later artifacts point to a strong southern
   influence, as sculpture, house forms, and burial practices shift
   drastically to southern styles.

Conquest

   The country was visited by Christopher Columbus in 1502, during his
   fourth expedition. He arrived at Cariay, in front of the Quiribrí
   island (present day Isla Uvita). The subsequent conquest and
   colonization of the area was complicated by its distance and the fierce
   indigenous resistance, however it paled in comparison to the Spanish
   conquest of Mexico.

   During the 16th century, the area found itself with a quickly
   diminishing workforce. The indigenous population, slaves at the time,
   were falling ill to many of the diseases brought by the colonists, or
   dying in resistance battles. Also, the lack of abundant mineral
   resources and the fact that the richest soils were found deep in the
   heart of the country (the Central Valley), severely hindered the
   colonization effort. All these circumstances made Costa Rica, the
   southernmost province in the Captaincy General of Guatemala, the
   poorest and most irrelevant region. However, the colonists that braved
   the hard trip in the Central Valley had established a provincial
   capital Cartago.

Independence

   In 1821, the winds of independence had blown in from the north. The
   United States of America and Mexico had won their independence recently
   and in the capital of the Captaincy General of Guatemala, Guatemala
   City, protests broke out demanding independence. On September 15th,
   1821 they declared their independence from the Spanish Empire. At the
   time, several present-day Mexican states and most of the Central
   American countries belonged to the Captaincy, in order to send the news
   to all the states, a horse messenger was sent down through Central
   America.

   Because Costa Rica was the southernmost province, it finally received
   the news of its independence on October 13th, 1821. The fact that not a
   single gunshot was fired to obtain its independence marked Costa Rica
   as a peace-loving nation. Among the independence documents received
   from Guatemala there was a document prepared in Nicaragua. This
   document is called "Los Nublados del Dia" which, in Spanish, means the
   "Clouds of the Day". In this document the Nicaraguan government, which
   was far more developed at the time and therefore closer to colonial
   rule, insisted that the states should not jump into independence and
   should wait for the "clouds of the day" to disperse before the states
   should make a final decision. However, because this document only
   reached Costa Rica, it had little effect.

   After gaining independence, Costa Rica, along with the other provinces
   of the Captaincy, briefly joined the Mexican Empire of Agustín de
   Iturbide. But because of the distance to the Mexican capital and other
   underlying conflicts, the Central American states including Costa Rica
   became federal states of the United Provinces of Central America (see:
   History of Central America) from 1823 to 1839. In 1838 Costa Rica
   proclaimed itself a sovereign and independent nation, under the rule of
   Braulio Carrillo Colina.

   In 1856 the Costa Rican army, commanded by Juan Rafael Mora Porras
   joined forces with the other Central American nations to expel a
   filibuster invasion, commanded by William Walker. In the battles of
   Santa Rosa, Rivas and the San Juan campaign, the filibuster army was
   deterred from invading Costa Rica. In the Battle of Rivas, Juan
   Santamaría bravely set the place where the invaders had taken refuge on
   fire and thus became Costa Rica's National Hero.

20th century

   Costa Rica has avoided the violence that has plagued Central America;
   it is seen as an example of political stability in the region. Since
   the late 19th century, only two brief periods of violence have marred
   its democratic development.

   In 1949, José Figueres Ferrer abolished the army; making Costa Rica the
   first country ever to operate within the democratic system without the
   assistance of a military (an example that was later followed by other
   nations such as Panama after the American invasion of 1989 to oust
   General Manuel Noriega).

   Costa Rica (Spanish for "Rich Coast") was a largely agricultural
   country. However, during the last few decades, Costa Rica has achieved
   a relatively high standard of living. Electronics and Software
   Development are rapidly expanding industries, and along with tourism,
   serve as the major industries of the country thanks to its social
   stability and rich natural environment*.

Geography

   Map of Costa Rica.
   Enlarge
   Map of Costa Rica.

   Costa Rica is located on the Central American isthmus, 10° North of the
   equator and 84° West of the Prime Meridian. It borders both the
   Caribbean Sea (to the east) and the North Pacific Ocean (to the west),
   with a total of 1,290 kilometres (802  mi) of coastline (212 km /
   132 mi on the Caribbean coast and 1,016 km / 631 mi on the Pacific).

   Costa Rica also borders Nicaragua to the north (309 km / 192 mi of
   border) and Panama to the south-southeast (639 km / 397 mi of border).
   In total, Costa Rica comprises 51,100 square kilometers (19,730 sq. mi)
   plus 589.000 square kilometers of territorial waters.

   The highest point in the country is Cerro Chirripó, with 3,810 metres
   (12,500 ft), and is the fifth highest peak in Central America. The
   highest volcano in the country is the Irazú Volcano (3,431 m or
   11,257 ft). The largest lake in Costa Rica is Lake Arenal.

   Costa Rica also comprises several islands. Cocos Island stands out
   because of its distance from continental landmass (24 km² or
   9.25 sq mi, 500 km or 310 mi from Puntarenas coast), but Calero Island
   is the biggest island of the country (151.6 km² or 58.5 sq mi).

   Costa Rica protects over 25% of its national territory within national
   parks. It also possesses the greatest density of species in the world.
   *

Politics

   Costa Rica is a democratic republic with more than 115 years of
   democracy and a strong constitution. It is seen as one of the most
   stable countries in Latin America. Costa Rica has avoided the violence
   that has plagued Central America; it is seen as an example of political
   stability in the region, and is referred to as the "Switzerland of the
   Americas" . Executive responsibilities are vested in a president, who
   is the country's centre of power. There also are two vice presidents
   and a cabinet designated by the president. The president, vice
   presidents, and 57 Legislative Assembly assembly delegates are elected
   for 4-year terms. A constitutional amendment approved in 1969 limited
   presidents and delegates to one term, although delegates were allowed
   to run again for an Assembly seat after sitting out a term. In April
   2003 the constitutional ban on presidential re-election was reversed,
   allowing Óscar Arias (Nobel Peace Prize, 1987) to run for President for
   a second term. In 2006 Óscar Arias was re-elected in tight elections,
   running on a platform of promoting free trade.

   Governors appointed by the president head the country's seven
   provinces, but they exercise little power. There are no provincial
   legislatures. Autonomous state agencies enjoy considerable operational
   independence; they include the telecommunications and electrical power
   monopoly, the nationalized commercial banks, the state insurance
   monopoly, and the social security agency. Costa Rica has no military by
   constitution but maintains domestic Police and armed National Guard
   forces for internal security. See also: Military of Costa Rica

Famous Costa Ricans

     * Óscar Arias Sánchez, Nobel Peace Prize winner (1987) and President
       of the Republic (1986–1990, 2006-current).
     * José Figueres Ferrer, National caudillo and President of the
       Republic (1948–1949, 1953–1958, and 1970–1974).
     * Rafael Ángel Calderón Guardia, politician and social reformer.
       President of the Republic (1940–1944).
     * Franklin Chang-Díaz, Astronaut.
     * Clodomiro Picado Twight, Toxicologist.
     * Claudia Poll Olympic gold medalist.
     * Juan Santamaría The official National Hero.

Administrative divisions

   Provinces of Costa Rica.
   Enlarge
   Provinces of Costa Rica.

   Costa Rica is divided into 7 provinces:
    1. San José (Capital) (political, technological and economical centre
       of Costa Rica)
    2. Alajuela (central; north of capital San José, agriculture and
       industrial manufacturing)
    3. Cartago (former Costa Rican Provincial capital during colonial
       times)
    4. Heredia (central; north of capital, industrial manufacturing)
    5. Guanacaste (north-west, important touristic and agricultural area)
    6. Puntarenas (along most of the Pacific coast, with a large bulge in
       the south-west and a smaller one at the northern end at both sides
       of the Golfo de Nicoya, where the eponymous capital is located)
    7. Limón (Caribbean coast, agricultural and eco-tourism area)

   Downtown San José.
   Enlarge
   Downtown San José.
   A view of San José skyline.
   Enlarge
   A view of San José skyline.

Economy

   Historically, Costa Rica's economy has been based on agriculture,
   including the production of coffee, bananas, pineapples, and
   ornamentals, but in recent times ecotourism, electronics,
   pharmaceuticals, financial outsourcing and software development have
   become the prime industries. Costa Rica's location in the Central
   American isthmus provides easy access to American markets as it has the
   same time zone as the central part of the United States and direct
   ocean access to Europe and Asia.

   The economy has been expanding for Costa Rica in part because the
   Government had implemented a seven year plan of expansion in the high
   tech industry. The central government offers tax exemptions for those
   who are willing to invest in the country. High levels of education
   among its residents make the country an attractive investing location.
   Several global high tech corporations have already started developing
   in the area exporting goods including chip manufacturer Intel and
   pharmaceutical company Glaxo Smith Kline and consumer products company
   Procter & Gamble. Trade with South East Asia and Russia has boomed
   during 2004 and 2005, and the country is expected to obtain full
   Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum (APEC) membership by 2007 (the
   country became an observer in 2004).

   For the fiscal year 2005 the country showed a government deficit of
   2.1%, internal revenue increased an 18%, exports increased a 12.8% and
   the number of visiting tourists increased a 19%, reaching 1.5 million
   people. Revised economic figures released by the Central Bank indicate
   that economic growth stood at 5 %, nevertheless the country faced high
   inflation (14%) and a trade deficit of 5.2%. For 2006 the economy is
   expected to grow a 6.8%

   The unit of currency is the colón ( CRC), which trades around 500 to
   the U.S. dollar; currently about 600 to the euro. For 2007 a new
   currency exchange system will allow the value of the CRC colón to float
   between two bands as done previously by Chile. The idea is that by
   doing so the Central Bank will be able to better tackle inflation and
   discourage the use of US dollars.

Foreign affairs

   Costa Rica is an active member of the United Nations, the Organization
   of the American States and many international organizations related to
   human rights and democracy.

   Costa Rica's main foreign policy objective is to foster human rights
   and sustainable development as a way to secure stability and growth.

   Costa Rica is also a member of the International Criminal Court,
   without a Bilateral Immunity Agreement of protection for the
   US-military (as covered under Article 98)

Flora and fauna

   Anhinga drying its feathers.
   Enlarge
   Anhinga drying its feathers.

   Costa Rica is home to a rich variety of plants and animals. While the
   country has only about 0.1% of the world's land mass, it contains 5% of
   the world's biodiversity. Over 25% of Costa Rica is composed of
   protected forests and reserves.

   One national park that is internationally renowned among ecologists for
   its biodiversity (including big cats and tapirs) and where visitors can
   expect to see an abundance of wildlife is the Corcovado National Park.

   Tortuguero National Park (the name Tortuguero can be translated as
   turtle catcher or turtle hunter, it is also understood as full of
   turtles) is home to spider, howler and white-throated Capuchin monkeys,
   the three-toed sloth, 320 species of birds (including eight species of
   parrots), a variety of reptiles, but is mostly recognized for the
   annual nesting of the endangered green turtle and is considered the
   most important nesting site for this species. Giant leatherback,
   hawksbill, and loggerhead turtles also nest here.

   The Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve hosts 2,000 plant species including
   numerous orchids. Over 400 types of birds can be found here, as well as
   over 100 species of mammals. Costa Rica as a whole has over 800 species
   of birds. The entity entrusted to do genetic and biochemical
   prospection on Costa Rica's biological wealth is the INBIO (Instituto
   Nacional de Biodiversidad), and it is allowed to collect royalties on
   any biological discoveries of medical importance.

   Also see:
     * Wildlife of Costa Rica
     * List of birds of Costa Rica
     * Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad

Demographics

   Metal church in Grecia, Costa Rica.
   Enlarge
   Metal church in Grecia, Costa Rica.
   On the Río Savegre, just below San Gerardo de Dota in the Talamanca
   Mountains of Costa Rica.
   Enlarge
   On the Río Savegre, just below San Gerardo de Dota in the Talamanca
   Mountains of Costa Rica.
   Old cathedral in Cartago, Costa Rica.
   Enlarge
   Old cathedral in Cartago, Costa Rica.
   Inside of the Teatro Nacional of Costa Rica, the Costa Rican national
   theatre.
   Enlarge
   Inside of the Teatro Nacional of Costa Rica, the Costa Rican national
   theatre.
   The crater of Volcán Irazú, an active volcano near Cartago, Costa Rica.
   Enlarge
   The crater of Volcán Irazú, an active volcano near Cartago, Costa Rica.

   In 2005, Costa Rica had an estimated population of 4,016,173 persons.
   The majority of people in Costa Rica are descended from Spanish
   settlers and Amerindian peoples. In contrast to most neighboring
   Central American nations, the Spanish component is rather strong in
   Costa Ricans at approx. 80%, while the indigenous component oscilates
   at approx. 20% (similar to Chileans). Most Costa Ricans are either
   primarily Spanish or of mixed heritage (Mestizo). In addition, there
   are significant numbers of Costa Ricans of Italian, German, Jewish, and
   Polish descent. Together, Mestizos and European descendants make up a
   full 94% of the population. Just under 3% of the population is of black
   African descent who are called Afro-Costa Ricans and are of
   English-speaking descendants of 19th century black Jamaican immigrant
   workers. Another 1% is composed of ethnic Chinese.

   As of today, the indigenous population numbers around 1.7%, or around
   50000 individuals. In Guanacaste Province, a significant portion of the
   population descends from a mix of local Amerindians, Africans and
   Spaniards. There is also a expatriate community of American and
   Canadian retirees.

   Christianity is a major religion in Costa Rica. Some 92% of Costa
   Ricans are Christian . Like many other parts of Latin America,
   Protestant denominations have been enjoying rapid growth. However 3 in
   4 Costa Ricans still adhere to Roman Catholicism. Due to small but
   recent immigration from Asia, the Middle East, and other places, new
   religions have sprung up. The most popular being Buddhism (due to a
   growing Chinese community of 40,000), with even smaller numbers of
   Jewish, Muslim, and Hindu adherents.

Culture

   The locals refer to themselves as tico or tica (female). "Tico" comes
   from the locally popular usage of "tico" diminutive suffixes (e.g.,
   'momentico' instead of 'momentito'). The tico ideal is that of a very
   friendly, helpful, laid back, unhurried, educated and environmentally
   aware people. Visitors from the United States are often referred to as
   gringos, which is virtually always congenial in nature. The phrase
   "Pura Vida" (literally pure life) is a motto ubiquitous in Costa Rica.
   It encapsulates the pervading ideology of living in peace in a calm,
   unflustered manner, appreciating a life surrounded by nature and family
   and friends.

   Some folk might use maje or mae (, actually maje means "dumb") to refer
   to each other although this might be slightly insulting to older folk.

   Costa Rican traditions and culture tend to retain a strong degree of
   Spanish influence. Their spoken accent is rather different than its
   Central American counterparts.normally -ito or ita is added to many
   words to sound more polite and courteous. Costa Rica boasts a varied
   history. Costa Rica was the point where the Mesoamerican and South
   American native cultures met. The northwest of the country, Nicoya, was
   the southernmost point of Nahuatl cultural influence when the Spanish
   conquerors ( conquistadores) came in the 16th century. The centre and
   southern portions of the country had Chibcha influences. However, the
   indigenous people have influenced modern Costa Rican culture to a
   relatively small degree, as most of the Indians died from disease and
   mistreatment by the Spaniards. The Atlantic coast, meanwhile, was
   populated with African slaves in the 17th and 18th centuries, although
   most Caribbean Costa Ricans of African ascent descend from Jamaican
   workers brought in during the 19th century to work in the construction
   of railways connecting the urban populations of the Central Plateau to
   the port of Limon on the Caribbean coast. During the 19th century
   Chinese and Italian immigrants came to the country to work on the
   construction of the railroad system as well.

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   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
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