Destionation Guide - About Belize
Belize is a country located on the northeast coast
of Central America. It has an area of 8,867 square
miles (22,965 square kilometers). After El Salvador,
it is the smallest political unit on the mainland
of the Americas. To the north and northwest, it
is bounded by Mexico, to the west and south by Guatemala,
and to the east by the Caribbean Sea.
Situated south of the Yucatán Peninsula,
Belize is a land of mountains, swamps, and tropical
jungle. The southern half of the country is dominated
by the rugged Maya Mountains, an igneous plateau
cut by erosion into hills and valleys that stretch
in a southwesterly to northeasterly direction.
The small population of Belize is culturally diverse.
Most of the people are the descendants of immigrants
from Europe, Africa, and India, as well as of
the indigenous Maya, and of the various mixtures
of these peoples. The multiplicity of languages,
religions, modes of dress, cuisine, styles of
music, and folklore reflects the cultural mix.
Belmopan is the capital of Belize. It is located
near the town of Roaring Creek, in the Belize
River valley, 50 miles (80 km) inland from Belize
City, the former capital on the Caribbean coast.
The new capital was conceived after Hurricane
Hattie and an associated tidal wave did extensive
damage to Belize City in 1961.
Almost half of Belize consists of forests. There
are at least 50 different forest tree species,
which include mahogany, Santa Maria, cedar, and
ironwood. In the north limestone soils support
deciduous forest, and sapodilla and mahogany predominate.
In the south the forest is taller and is evergreen.
The export of timber was for years the basis
of the Belizean economy, but by 1960 the combined
value of sugar and citrus exports exceeded that
of timber. Chicle, used in the manufacture of
chewing gum, is obtained from the sapodilla tree,
and mahogany, pine, cedar, and rosewood have increased
in economic importance.
Belize has a subtropical climate, with a well-marked
dry season from late February to May and a wet
season from June to November that is interrupted
from August to September by another dry season.
The mean temperature at Belize City is 74 F (23
C) in December and 84 F (27 C) in July.
San Ignacio is a town in west-central Belize
(formerly British Honduras). It lies along the
Belize River, near the Guatemalan border. With
Benque Viejo del Carmen, which is about 8 miles
(13 km) southwest, it traditionally dealt in chicle
and lumber, but these products have now largely
been replaced by cattle and corn (maize), beans,
and rice.
Many Belizeans are of racially mixed ancestry.
English-speaking people of largely African and
European ancestry, who are called Creoles, predominate
in the central coastal regions, while Maya Indians
and mestizos (of mixed Maya and European ancestry)
predominate in the more sparsely inhabited interior.
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