Discovering…
SOUTH AMERICA
German cartographer Martin
Waldseemüller named the new
continent after the Italian explorer,
Amerigo Vespucci’s first name.

is a continent located in the Western
Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern
Hemisphere.It can also be considered as
a subcontinent of the America.
 It
is the fourth largest continent in size and the fifth
largest in population. It is located primarily in the
southern hemisphere. It is bordered by the Atlantic
Ocean to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the
West. The geography of South America is
dominated by the Andes Mountain Range and the
Amazon River (second longest river in theworld).
SOUTH AMERICA due to its large size, the climate varies with each
region, determined by their own geographical location, ocean currents
and winds. It is predominantly wet and hot. Each region having its own
characteristic weather conditions.
South America Climate differs from one region to another. The
Amazon river basin has the typical hot wet climate suitable for the
growth of rain forests. The temperatures in the Amazon basin 70 to 90
degrees F. The Andes Mountains, on the other hand, remain cold
throughout the year. The temperatures of the mountains is always very
low.
The desert regions of Chile is the driest part of South America. The westerly winds carrying
moisture shed their moisture on the western parts of the Andes, thus the eastern portions
of the mountains receive very little rainfall. The cold Peru Current is responsible for the
dry coastal parts of Peru as well as northern Chile. The cold current is unable to hold
much moisture.
The highest temperatures of South America have been recorded in Gran Chaco in Argentina,
with temperaturesgoing up to 110 degrees F. The wettest place is Quibdo in Columbia. It receives an
annual rainfall of 350 inches(890 centimeters).
A unique feature of South America Climate is the El Nino.
Every two to seven years the cold dry Peru Current weakens and
warm waters from the south rush along the coast in a southward
direction. The El Nion affects the Climate of South America and
causes heavy rainfall in the dry parts of South America.
Major Cities
 Buenos Aires ( Argentina)
 Oranjestad (Aruba)
 La Paz or Sucre (Bolivia)
 Brazil (Brasilia)
 Santiago (Chile)
 Bogota (Columbia)
 Quito ( Ecuador)
 Cayene (French Guina)
 Georgetown (Guyana)
 Asuncion (Paraguay)
 Lima ( Peru )
 Paramibo
( Suriname )
 Montevideo ( Uruguay )
 Caracas ( Venezuela )
Portuguese and Spanish are the most spoken
languages in South America. Spanish is the
official language of most countries, along
with other native languages in some
countries.
 Portuguese is spoken in Brazil
 Dutch is the official language of Suriname
 English is the official language of Guyana
and is also spoken in the Falkland Islands
 French is the official language of French
Guiana and the second language in Amapa
(Brazil)
NATION
CAPITAL
AREA
POPULATION
GDP
ARGENTINA
Buenos Aires
2,766,890 sq km 42,192,494
$716,500,000,000
BOLIVIA
La paz
1,098,580 sq km 10,290,003
$50,940,000,000
BRAZIL
Brasilia
8,514,877 sq km 199,321,413
$2,294,000,000,000
CHILE
Santiago
756,950 sq km
17,067,369
$299,500,000,000
COLUMBIA
Bogota
1,138,910 sq km
45,239,079
$471,900,000,000
ECUADOR
Quito
283,560 sq km
15,223,680
$127,400,000,000
FRENCH
GUIANA
Cayenne
91,351
199,509
$1,551,000,000
GUYANA
Georgetown
214,999 sq km
741,908
$5,851,000,000
PARAGUAY
Asuncion
406,750 sq km
6,541,591
$40,640,000,000
PERU
Lima
1,285,220 sq km 29,549,517
SURINAME
Paramibo
163,270 sq km
560,157
$6,326,000,000
URUGUAY
Montevideo
176,220 sq km
3,316,328
$50,910,000,000
VENEZUELA
Caracas
912,050 sq km
28,047,938
$374,100,000,000
$302,000,000,000

South America has a rapidly developing economy. With
many industries and a flourishing trade and import-export market, it
is fast becoming an economy with considerable size.

South American countries had a slow pace of economic
development in the past. In recent times, however, South America has
as a whole undergone rapid economic development. Aided by
greater economic independence since the times of the second World
War, South America has been largely successful in developing
its economy rapidly.

The biggest
individual economies in South
America are those of Brazil, Argentina,
Colombia and Chile.
Currently undergoing massive growth
are the economies of Argentina,
Venezuela and Peru.
Major industries in South America are
agriculture, which encompasses a vital
part of the economy, and other
important industries like fishing, natural
resources, handicrafts etc.Trade is also an
important part of the economy.
The manufacturing industries, agriculture, and trade primarily
support the economy of South America. Some of the major
agricultural products include sugarcane, corn, wheat, soybean,
and coffee. South America's mineral resources also contribute
substantially to the economy. Some major mineral resources
found in South America are petroleum, gold, iron ore, silver,
and copper.
Politics in today's world enjoys a certain
democratic political rule but it is gained by the continuance struggle against
the decades of dictatorship and the country has passed through a lot of
political crisis. Poverty and inequality were the outcome of the left influence
as it was highly corrupt and inefficient at that time. Though the Politics in
South America has grown economically from the past 20 years but still
today the conditions not in much proper shape as it was in the 1950s.
South American Politics is governed by numbers of political
leaders who looks after all the aspects in the political arena.
Ten years can hardly make difference in the South American
Politics but this region has gained an economic growth for
two years and it's a great achievement in the history of
American Politics.
South America culture is the combination
of almost the half of the culture of this
world. This continent has its own culture
that was fostered by the native people
who were the original part and inhabitant
of this great continent.
 This culture had its own tradition and
heritages. Later the mainstream culture
was influenced by the other cultures.
Among these other cultures there were
the European culture, the African culture
and recently the modern culture that has
contribution mostly from the North
America and also from other parts of the
world.

South American nations have a rich variety of
music. Some of the most famous genres
include samba from Brazil, tango from
Argentina & Uruguay, and cumbia from
Colombia.
CHILI
The Inca estate of Machu Picchu, Peru is one of the
New Seven Wonders of the World
The Andes are the world's longest continental mountain range.

ANDES
This toothy-edged, massive mountain system extends from the tip
of South America all the way to Panama. It's the source of most
major rivers on the continent and is 4,500 miles (7,240 km) in length. It's
home to some of the planet's largest volcanoes, and in the far south along
the coast of Chile, large ice sheets are commonplace.
The Andes and its many ranges include dozens of peaks that reach over
20,000 ft., with the highest point being Aconcagua in Argentina, at 22,384
ft. (6,960m).
The prehistoric Cueva de las Manos,
or Cave of the Hands, in Argentina
Plaza of San Francisco in the Historic Center of
Quito in Quito, Ecuador South America is one of the
largest, least-altered and best-preserved historic
centers in the Americas

The Amazon River is the second longest river (it is just shorter than the Nile River in Egypt) in
the world and it has the largest watershed or drainage basin as well as the most tributaries of
any river in the world. For reference, a watershed is defined as the area of land that releases its
water into a river. This entire area is often referred to as the Amazon Basin. The Amazon River
begins with streams in the Andes Mountains in Peru and flows into the Atlantic Ocean about
4,000 miles (6,437 km) away.
Iguazu Falls
The impressive Iguazu Falls are located between the border of Argentina and Brazil
Tourism has increasingly become a significant source of income for many South American
countries. Historical relics, architectural and natural wonders, a diverse range of foods and
culture, vibrant and colorful cities, and stunning landscapes attract millions of tourists every
year to South America. Some of the most visited places in the region
are Recife, Olinda, Machu Picchu, the Amazon Rainforest, Rio de
Janeiro, Salvador, Fortaleza, Maceió, Bogota, Lima, Florianópolis, Isla Margarita, Natal, Buenos
Aires, São Paulo,Angel Falls, Nazca Lines, Cuzco, Lake
Titicaca, Medellín, Patagonia, Cartagena and the Galápagos Islands