Орталық Америка: Тарих, география және ерекшеліктері

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Central America is commonly said to include Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama. This definition matches modern political borders. Central America begins geographically in Mexico, at the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, Mexico's narrowest point, and the former country of Yucatán (1841–1848) was part of Central America. At the other end, before its independence in 1903 Panama was part of South America, as it was a Department of Colombia. At times Belize, a British colony until 1981, where English instead of Spanish is spoken, and where the population is primarily of African origin, has been considered not part of (Spanish speaking) Central America. Long and narrow, Central America does not have an obvious geographical center. Until the middle of the 20th century there were no roads between the countries, which isolated them from each other, and railroads have never connected them. During colonial times Guatemala was the administrative and religious center; religiously it remains so. However, attempts to create a Central American Political Union, like the European Union, have failed. The countries that joined the EU already had extensive cross border traffic by train; even today (2021) there is by comparison very little, and none by train. The countries, furthermore, are more diverse than they appear at first glance. Some (Guatemala) have a large indigenous or Native American population, others (Costa Rica) do not. Some (El Salvador) are focused on their Pacific coast, while in others (Belize, Honduras) the Caribbean or Atlantic coast is more important. Panama and to a lesser extent Guatemala and Costa Rica have both coasts playing a significant role. Some countries have stable governments (Costa Rica), others do not (Nicaragua, El Salvador). Panama is heavily Americanized, uses the US dollar as its currency, has a large industry and source of revenue (the canal), and a sophistication which comes from the ships and people passing through the country and previously the U. S. military installations in the former Canal Zone.

In the pre Columbian era, the northern areas of Central America were inhabited by the indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica. Most notable among these were the Maya peoples, who had built numerous cities throughout the region, and the Aztecs, who had created a vast empire. The pre Columbian cultures of eastern El Salvador, eastern Honduras, Caribbean Nicaragua, most of Costa Rica and Panama were predominantly speakers of the Chibchan languages at the time of European contact and are considered by some In 1821 a congress of Central American Criollos in Guatemala City composed the Act of Independence of Central America to declare the region's independence from Spain, effective on 15 September of that year. That date is still marked as independence day by most Central American nations. The Spanish Captain General, Gabino Gaínza, sympathized with the rebels and it was decided that he should stay on as interim leader until a new government could be formed. Independence was short lived, for the conservative leaders in Guatemala welcomed annexation by the First Mexican Empire of Agustín de Iturbide on 5 January 1822. Central American liberals objected to this, but an army from Mexico under General Vicente Filísola occupied Guatemala City and quelled dissent. When Mexico became a republic the following year, it acknowledged Central America's right to determine its own destiny. On 1 July 1823, the congress of Central America declared the Absolute Declaration. The primary provision of this declaration was the absolute independence of Central America from Spain, Mexico, and any other foreign nation, including any in North America. With regards to Spain, the declaration stated that Spain had usurped the rights of the colonies in Central America for three centuries, and reiterated the earlier independence acts of 1821. On the issue of Mexico and annexation into a greater Spanish American state in North America, the declaration labeled Mexican involvement in Central American independence as forceful and unlawful. This served to de legitimize Mexican actions during the previous two years and separate Central America as a political entity. Further, a Republican system of government was established under a unitary system. Though Guatemala would attempt to unify the provinces of Central America with its adoption of federalism, regional divisions endured. The conflicts between powerful urban centers in each region, including Guatemala itself, would make it difficult to unify provinces internally, and it was all the harder to do so as a wider region. The conflict between republicans and monarchists also made political unity difficult in Central America. These qualities would exist for decades after the region's separation from Spain and Mexico and would help to create the modern boundaries of Central America.

In 1823, the Federal Republic of Central America was formed. It was intended to be a federal republic modeled after the United States of America. It was provisionally known as "The United Provinces of Central America," while the final name according to the Constitution of 1824 was "The Federal Republic of Central America." It is sometimes incorrectly referred to in English as "The United States of Central America." The Central American nation consisted of the states of Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. In the 1830s, an additional state was added, Los Altos, with its capital in Quetzaltenango, occupying parts of what is now the western highlands of Guatemala as well as part of Chiapas (now part of Mexico), but this state was reincorporated into Guatemala and Mexico respectively in 1840. Central American liberals had high hopes for the federal republic, which they believed would evolve into a modern, democratic nation, enriched by trade crossing through it between the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. These aspirations are reflected in the emblems of the federal republic: The flag shows a white band between two blue stripes, representing the land between two oceans. The coat of arms shows five mountains (one for each state) between two oceans, surmounted by a Phrygian cap, the emblem of the French Revolution. The Union dissolved in civil war between 1838 and 1840. Its disintegration began when Nicaragua separated from the federation on November 5, 1838. The United Provinces of Central America (or PUCA Provincias Unidas De Centro America in Spanish) is the name given to the different states of Central America in the time after Central America's independence and before becoming their own distinct nations (between 1823 and 1840). It was a political movement that strived to unify the regions of El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Guatemala (Panama and Belize at the time were under separate ownership) under a liberal federal government and believed that united they would be a stronger political unit. Unfortunately, due to many strong political disagreements within the different states, the UPCA eventually disbanded and the regions became separate nations with devastating political and economic civil wars that are still felt today. The kingdom of Guatemala, as Central America was more commonly known as during Spanish and Mexican rule, had been annexed into Mexico in 1822 under the rule of emperor Agustín de Iturbide. The annexation was not without controversy, however, and tensions simmered between the republicans and nationalists favoring complete independence on one side and monarchists, who often favored annexation into Mexico, on the other. These tensions took varying forms depending on the region in question. In El Salvador, the provincial council openly defied annexation into Mexico. Meanwhile, in other regions, inner tensions between cities such as Leon Granada in Nicaragua made any sense of unity fleeting at best. Shortly after the annexation, opposition against the monarch from Central American nationalists and republicans continued to grow. These groups pushed for independence from Mexico. Iturbide's unsuccessful leadership of Central America and the seeming collapse of the Mexican Empire caused his party to fail against the uprising rebels and on July 1, 1823, Central America gained its independence. After independence, officials from the different regions gathered in a junta to decide the future of El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Honduras, and Guatemala. They decided to unite into a federation of five autonomous states, thus creating the UPCA, a term coined by Brigadier General Vicente Filisola, who was stationed in Guatemala City. The UPCA's aims were to be a liberal government with political principles modeled after the United States, and also to remain united. They felt that the “provinces alone were too small and weak economically to survive as sovereign states” so they “avert[ed] fragmentation of the isthmus” and pushed for union. However, the UPCA soon noticed that there were many political ideals between the regions and conservative parties on the other end of the political spectrum actively showed their discontent under the new liberal regime. Despite this, the beginning of the federation went relatively smoothly and negotiations helped them reform borders, capital cities were moved to accommodate the citizens, and economies of coffee grew high. All the while, tensions between the liberals and conservatives and power struggles within the different economies increasingly grew. One of the most notable key figures of UPCA was Francisco Morazan, a liberal advocate who was chosen president of the UPCA. In the 1820s and through the 1830s Morazan took an active role in liberal movements throughout Central America, especially in Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Honduras against conservative parties. These battles between parties increasingly divided the nation causing sour relationships and distance between them. Differences between liberals who wanted free trade, favored a republic and had anti clerical views contested those of the conservatives who wanted a monarchy, trade under close control and power to the church. These conflicts, along with cholera outbreaks, foreign intervention, and distress among those in poverty caused many insurgencies, resulting in various civil wars throughout Central America. Morazan was captured in Costa Rica by the conservative party and they assassinated him on September 15, 1842, which marked the official end of the UPCA. Upon notification of his death, greater turmoil and fights among the opposing liberal and conservative parties increased. It is said that the conservative liberal struggles that Morazan campaigned for are still in effect today. In addition, lacking a central authority proved to be unproductive and created more disputes and distrust within the different nations. In fact, foreigners who were looking to make economic and/or political negotiations were told that they had to go to each individual region for consultations and found it inconvenient.

In 1907, a Central American Court of Justice was created. On December 13, 1960, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua established the Central American Common Market (CACM). Costa Rica chose not to participate in the CACM. The goals for the CACM were to create greater political unification and success of import substitution industrialization policies. The project was an immediate economic success but was abandoned after the 1969 "Football War" between El Salvador and Honduras. By the 1930s the United Fruit Company owned 3.5 million acres of land in Central America and the Caribbean and was the single largest land owner in Guatemala. Such holdings gave it great power over the governments of small countries. That was one of the factors that led to the coining of the phrase Banana republic. A Central American Parliament has operated, as a purely advisory body, since 1991. The regional parliament seat deputies from the four former members of the Union (Nicaragua, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras), as well as from Panama and the Dominican Republic. Another initiative is known as Free Movement of people in the CA 4, which has opened the borders between Nicaragua and Guatemala removing the need to carry a passport to cross borders, just a national ID (cédula de identidad) is enough to cross borders. This initiative is the result of negotiations of the Central American Commission of Directors of Migration (OCAM) with the support of the International Organization for Migration (IOM). This initiative has been in effect since 2007.

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