Unit 5 Study Guide—KEY!
NAME:___________________________
1. How do citizens in Cuba participate in government? Citizens vote for members of the National
Assembly
2. What is the language spoken in Brazil? Portuguese
3. How does literacy rate affect the standard of living in a country? When people can read and
write, more jobs are available for them in their country.
4. Which type of government makes it easiest to create new laws? Autocracy
5. In which Latin American country do citizens have the least amount of freedom? Cuba
6. Which European country had the biggest impact on the languages spoken in Latin America?
Spain
7. What type of government power does Mexico have? federal
8. Which two Latin American countries have governments that are the most similar? Mexico and
Brazil
9. What is unique about the political parties in Cuba? There is only one legal political party.
10. What does it mean to be literate? Able to read and write
11. How can citizens in a democratic country influence the government? Vote
12. Which Latin American country has a communist dictatorship? Cuba
13. Which Latin American country shares the same rights as United States citizens? Brazil
14. What are the 3 main groups that blended together to create the people groups known as
mulattoes and mestizos? Europeans, Africans, Native Americans
15. Where do most people live in Mexico, Brazil, Venezuela, and Cuba? Urban areas
16. How was the mestizo race created? Intermarriage between Native Americans and Europeans
17. How was the mulatto race created? Intermarriage between Africans and Europeans
18. What factor is most likely to increase the population density of an area? Jobs
19. How does Brazil’s location help it to trade with other countries? Brazil has many seaports on its
Atlantic coastline
20. What does arable land mean? Farmable land
21. What is an oligarchy? A small group of people govern
22. Why would the Venezuelan government NOT want to stop oil production even though it causes
pollution? The government gets about half of its money from the oil business
23. How does geography contribute to Mexico City’s air pollution problem? It lies in a bowl-shaped
valley that traps air pollutants
24. What did the United States create in order to allow ships to travel from the Atlantic Ocean to
the Pacific Ocean more quickly and easily? Panama Canal
25. Why is this region of the world known as “Latin America”? The people in these countries speak
languages that come from the ancient Latin language
26. Why do some countries have higher literacy rates for boys than girls? Some cultures believe
that it’s not important for girls to learn to read and write.
27. Which type of ethnic background would increase the chances of a person having a better paying
job and more money? European
28. Be able to label all of the physical features and political features of Latin America (the same as on the map quiz)