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Facts about Belize

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The most common language however is Belizean Creole or Kriol.

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Belize boasts a rich mix of ethnicities including Creole, Maya, Mestizo, East Indian, Chinese, and Garifuna.

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Religious freedom is guaranteed and churches dot the streets of Belize almost as much as places of business; Catholics frequently visit the country for special gospel revivals.

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Cockscomb is also renowned for its bird populations and boasts up to 300 recorded species including the national bird of Belize, the keel billed toucan.

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The government of Guatemala long claimed that Belize was rightfully Guatemalan territory, supposedly inheriting rights to the land from the Spanish Crown.

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Belize is located between the Hondo and Sarstoon rivers, with the Belize River flowing down the center of the country.

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Fear of invasion by Guatemala long delayed the independence of Belize.

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Another possibility is that the name is from the Maya word belix, meaning "muddy water," applied to the Belize River.

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Sugar, the chief crop, accounts for nearly half of the exports of Belize.

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Belize is a member of Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Sistema de Integracion Centro Americana (SICA) and considers itself to be both Caribbean and Central American.

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Due to racial harmony and the religious tolerance of its various Christian peoples, all of these different elements have mixed and blended successfully, and Belize has gained a widespread reputation for its friendliness.

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Belize is a full participating member of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM).

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The first mestizos to settle in Belize were Mexicans fleeing from the Caste War of the Yucatan Peninsula in 1847–1848.

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On February 8, 2008, Dean Barrow was sworn in as Belize's first black prime minister.

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In 1931, an unnamed hurricane destroyed over two-thirds of the buildings in Belize City and killed more than 1,000 people.

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From September 3 through September 10 a series of battles was fought around the islands and reefs off the Belizean coast, after which the Spanish forces withdrew.

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Belize is the only country in Central America without a Pacific coastline and also the only one with English as its official language.

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Finally they are taught the techniques for making and presenting sushi, and can work alongside the master chef.

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Colonization, slavery, and immigration have played major roles in affecting the ethnic composition of the population and as a result, Belize is a country of various cultures, languages, and ethnic groups.

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Most Belizeans are of multiracial and multiethnic descent.

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The north of Belize consists mostly of flat, swampy coastal plains, in places heavily forested.

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Until the early 1980s, Belizean Creole constituted 70 percent of the population, but today they are only about 25 percent of the population.

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The most recent hurricane to devastate Belize was Hurricane Greta, which caused more than US$25 million in damages along the southern coast in 1978.

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Bell, a British commissioner of the Ceylon Civil Service, who was shipwrecked on the Maldives in 1879, was the first westerner to investigate ancient Buddhist ruins there.

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Many would settle in Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Belize.

image: www.laht.com
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By the 1770s, a second tropical exotic timber, mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla), replaced logwood as the main export from Belize.

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The rest of the population of Belize is Chinese, East Indian, and North American.

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Belize's national animal is the tapir, which has protected status and can attain a weight of as much as 600 pounds.

image: l7.alamy.com
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Belize has a tropical climate with pronounced wet and dry seasons, although there are significant variations in weather patterns by region.

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The bicameral Belizean parliament is the National Assembly, which consists of a house of representatives and a senate.

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The small, essentially private enterprise economy of Belize is based primarily on agriculture with tourism (especially scuba diving) and construction assuming greater importance.

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Emigration is relatively high—approximately 105,000 Belizeans currently live abroad (mostly in the United States).

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Hurricanes, tornadoes, and typhoons are examples of this type of wind.

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British Honduras became a self-governing colony in January 1964 and was renamed Belize in June 1973; it was Britain's last colony on the American mainland.

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Hurricane season plays a large role in bringing rainfall to the Caribbean.

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Other wildlife in Belize include deer, jaguar, puma, and many other species of reptiles, insects, and birds.

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Legislative power is vested in both the government and the Parliament of Greenland (known as Landsting).

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The economy of Belize remained based on the extraction of mahogany until the early 1900s when the cultivation of export crops such as citrus, sugar cane, and bananas came to dominate the economy.

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Belize, formerly known as British Honduras, is a small nation on the eastern coast of Central America, on the Caribbean Sea, bordered by Mexico to the northwest and Guatemala to the west and south.

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Belize was a British colony for more than a century, known as British Honduras, until 1973.

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km) of territory and only 291,800 people (Belize CSO, 2005 mid year est.

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Politics in Belize take place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic monarchy, whereby the prime minister is the head of government, and of a pluriform multi-party system.

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The name is derived from the Belize River which Belize City, the former capital and largest city, is also named after.

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The devastation of Belize City for the second time in thirty years prompted the relocation of the capital some eighty kilometers inland to the planned city of Belmopan.

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The Mayan civilization spread over Belize between 1500 B.C.E.

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Consequently, divers flock to Belize to enjoy its underwater attractions.

image: i1.wp.com
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In 2001, UNESCO declared the Garifuna language, dance, and music a "Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity" in Belize, Honduras, and Nicaragua.

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Some communities in southern Belize speak Garifuna and the Kekchi, Mopan, and Yucatan Maya languages.

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Food, music, and socialization in Belize are as diverse as the people with whom they are associated.

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Despite the many languages (around 8 different languages in all) the 2000 census also estimated that around 70 percent of all Belizeans were bilingual or even trilingual.

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Throughout Belize's history, Guatemala has claimed ownership of all or part of the territory.

Belize's jungle is home to wild cats, including jaguars and ocelots. 13. Apart from its historic archeological sites, Belize is known for its scuba diving sites. The Blue Hole, one of the world's most popular sinkhole, is one famous dive site here.Dec 6, 2017

At only 8,867 square miles Belize is about the same size as the U.S. state of Massachusetts or Wales in the U.K. But few countries on earth can boast so much diversity in such a small area.

Belizeans are people originating in Belize whether they live there or in the Belizean diaspora. Belize is a multiethnic country with residents of African, Amerindian, European and Asian descent or any combination of those groups.

A Hispanic Belizean or Belizean Mestizo is a Belizean of Hispanic and mestizo origin. Currently, they comprise around 52.9% of Belize's population. Most Hispanic Belizeans are self-identified mestizos. Most mestizos speak Spanish, Kriol, and English fluently.

Population of Belize (2018 and historical)YearPopulationDensity (P/Km²)2018382,444172017374,681162016366,954162015359,2881612 more rows

In Belize (formerly British Honduras), English remains the official language, but the most diverse language in Belize is Kriol (Belizean Creole). Other languages spoken include Garifuna, Mandarin, Spanish and Maya.

The traditional and world-famous Belize Rice and Beans with potato salad is a staple in the Belizean diet. Rice and beans with a choice of beef, chicken, pork, lobster, shrimp or game meat (the gibnut is FABULOUS) is one of the most important items on the local diet, approaching something like the national dish.

“The term Third World arose during the Cold War to define countries that remained non-aligned with either capitalism and NATO (which along with its allies represented the First World), or communism and the Soviet Union (which along with its allies represented the Second World).Sep 7, 2011

Belize country profile. Formerly known as British Honduras, Belize was the UK's last colony on the American mainland and still maintains strong ties with Britain. It did not attain independence until 1981, when it became a Commonwealth realm with the British monarch as its head of state.Aug 2, 2012

Most Belizeans are of multiracial descent. About 34% of the population is of mixed Maya and European descent (Mestizo), 35% are Kriols, about 10.6% are Maya, and about 6.1% are Afro-Amerindian (Garifuna). The remaining population includes European, East Indian, Chinese, Middle Eastern, and North American groups.

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