Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually defined as consisting of seven countries: Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama, and also, in specialized contexts, including Mexico. Within Central America is the Mesoamerican biodiversity hotspot, which extends from southern Mexico to southeastern Panama. Due to the presence of several active geologic faults and the Central America Volcanic Arc, seismic activity in the region, such as volcanic eruptions and earthquakes, is high, which has caused death, injury, and property damage.
Central America includes portions of two recognized cultural areas: the Isthmo-Colombian cultural area, which encompasses modern Panama, Costa Rica, and the eastern portions of Nicaragua and Honduras, along with regions to the east; and the Mesoamerican cultural area, encompassing Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, and the western portions of Honduras and Nicaragua, along with the southern part of Mexico. Before Christopher Columbus's voyages to the Americas, hundreds of indigenous groups lived in these areas. From 1502 onward, Spain began its colonization. From 1609 to 1821, most Central American territories (except for what became Belize and Panama and including the modern Mexican state of Chiapas) were governed by the viceroyalty of New Spain from Mexico City as the Captaincy General of Guatemala. On 24 August 1821, Spanish Viceroy Juan de O'Donojú signed the Treaty of Córdoba, which established New Spain's independence and autonomy from mainland Spain. On 15 September, the Act of Independence of Central America was enacted to announce Central America's separation from the Spanish Empire. Some of New Spain's provinces in the Central American region were invaded and annexed to the First Mexican Empire, but in 1823 they seceded from Mexico to form the Federal Republic of Central America.
In 1838, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua became the first of Central America's states to become independent countries, followed by El Salvador in 1841, Panama in 1903, and Belize in 1981. Despite the dissolution of the Federal Republic of Central America, the five remaining countries, save for Panama and Belize, all preserved and maintained a Central American identity.
The Spanish-speaking countries officially include both North America and South America as a single continent, América, which is split into four subregions: Central America, the Caribbean, North America (Mexico and Northern America), and South America.
"Central America" means different things, depending on the context:
The United Nations geoscheme for the Americas defines Central America as all states of mainland North America south of the United States, including Mexico, but historically and politically Mexico is considered North American.
Middle America is usually thought to comprise Mexico in the north and the seven states of Central America in the south, as well as the Caribbean in the east. Colombia and Venezuela of Caribbean South America are sometimes included in this subregion. The Caribbean is occasionally excluded from this subregion while The Guianas are infrequently included. According to one source, the term "Central America" was used as a synonym for "Middle America" at least as recently as 1962.
In Ibero-America (Portuguese- and Spanish-speaking American countries), the Americas are considered a single continent (América), and Central America is considered a subregion of the continent comprising the seven countries south of Mexico and north of Colombia.
For the people in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua, formerly parts of the Federal Republic of Central America, there is a distinction between the Spanish language terms "América Central" and "Centroamérica". Both can be translated into English as "Central America", but "América Central" generally refers to the geographical area of the seven countries between Mexico and Colombia while "Centroamérica" refers to the former members of the Federation, emphasizing the shared culture and history of the region.
In Portuguese as a rule and occasionally in Spanish and other languages, the entirety of the Antilles is often included in the definition of Central America. Indeed, the Dominican Republic is a full member of the Central American Integration System.
Central America was formed more than 3 million years ago, as part of the Isthmus of Panama, when its portion of land connected each side of water.
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 Mayans, who had built numerous cities throughout the region, and the Aztecs, who had created a vast empire. The pre-Columbian cultures of 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 culturally different and grouped in the Isthmo-Colombian Area.
Following the Spanish expedition of Christopher Columbus's voyages to the Americas, the Spanish sent many expeditions to the region, and they began their conquest of Maya territory in 1523. Soon after the conquest of the Aztec Empire, Spanish conquistador Pedro de Alvarado commenced the conquest of northern Central America for the Spanish Empire. Beginning with his arrival in Soconusco in 1523, Alvarado's forces systematically conquered and subjugated most of the major Maya kingdoms, including the K'iche', Tz'utujil, Pipil, and the Kaqchikel. By 1528, the conquest of Guatemala was nearly complete, with only the Petén Basin remaining outside the Spanish sphere of influence. The last independent Maya kingdoms – the Kowoj and the Itza people – were finally defeated in 1697, as part of the Spanish conquest of Petén.
In 1538, Spain established the Real Audiencia of Panama, which had jurisdiction over all land from the Strait of Magellan to the Gulf of Fonseca. This entity was dissolved in 1543, and most of the territory within Central America then fell under the jurisdiction of the Audiencia Real de Guatemala. This area included the current territories of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and the Mexican state of Chiapas, but excluded the lands that would become Belize and Panama. The president of the Audiencia, which had its seat in Antigua Guatemala, was the governor of the entire area. In 1609 the area became a captaincy general and the governor was also granted the title of captain general. The Captaincy General of Guatemala encompassed most of Central America, with the exception of present-day Belize and Panama.
Between the 16th and 19th centuries, many enslaved Africans were transported to Central America and used for agriculture, mining, and domestic labor. The exact date of the enslaved African arrival to Central America is difficult to determine. There are many records that establish Spanish requests to travel with enslaved Africans to Guatemala from 1530-1532. Many of the enslaved Africans that arrived in Central American ports were transported through land or boats. Due to the nature of their captures it is unclear as to exactly where they came from, but assumed to be from West Central Africa as most ships departed from there. After their departure most enslaved Africans arrived either in Guatemala or Honduras.
Santiago de Guatemala was established in 1541 and became one of the most important trading posts due to its position between the Valley of Panchoy. Santiago's position was a great way to raise Spanish economic and political positions serving as the seat of the Audiencia de Guatemala and outranking other Spanish settlements. Enslaved Africans started arriving through Santiago in 1543, but smaller shipments had previously been made to Honduras through the port of Trujillo.