In How Many Countries? you saw that the world has 193 UN member states. Now we visit them region by region, starting close to home. (Younger learners met Canada and Mexico in Our Neighbors: Canada and Mexico.) North America runs from the Arctic down to Panama, where it meets South America.
Key idea
North America has three large countries, Canada, the United States and Mexico, and the seven small countries of Central America: Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama.
Why it works
Central America is the narrow strip of land, an isthmus, that links North America to South America. It is part of the continent of North America, not a separate continent. Geographers draw its northern edge at the southern border of Mexico, so Mexico counts as North America but not as Central America.
Worked example: Reading the isthmus from north to south
Which Central American country is farthest southeast?
- Start at Mexico's southern border: Guatemala and Belize.
- Next come Honduras and El Salvador, then Nicaragua and Costa Rica.
- The last one, touching Colombia in South America, is Panama.
Answer: Panama.
Worked example: One coast or two?
Which Central American country has no Caribbean coast?
- Most Central American countries touch both the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea.
- Belize touches only the Caribbean.
- El Salvador is the one with only a Pacific coast.
Answer: El Salvador.
Common mistake
Many people think Mexico is in Central America, or even in South America. Mexico is in North America. Central America begins at Mexico's southern border, with Guatemala and Belize. A quick check: Mexico borders the United States, and no Central American country does.