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Other Cultures to learn about and have fun with:

	Mexico
	Peru
	Fiji
	Egypt
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	India

We live in a time of great change and an increasing need for a celebration of diversity.

It is our goal to
create a greater understanding of the wonderful diversity in our world in a fun and family-centered manner with our Earthy Family
"Connecting the World" Series

Facts and Figures of Mexico

Mexico is a fascinating country filled with vibrant culture, beautiful landscapes, and colorful history.  We will begin our exploration of Mexico by first discussing some of the basic facts and figures of the country.

Although Mexico is the United States’ southern neighbor, it is often misunderstood, stereotyped, or ignored by most North Americans. Mexico is considered part of North America and is bordered by Belize and Guatemala to the South, and the United States of America to the North. 

Mexico’s close proximity to the United States promoted ex-President Porfio Diaz to famously quip, “Pobre Mexico, tan lejos de Dios, tan cerca de Los Estados Unidos!”  (“Poor Mexico!  So far from God, so close to the United States!”)

The land mass of the country of Mexico consists of 1,972,550 square kilometers (over 761,605 square miles)making it the third largest nation in Latin America.  Brazil is the largest, followed by Argentina.  

The country is divided into 31 states, and a Federal District (El Distrito Federal).  The capital of Mexico is Mexico City (La Ciudad de Mexico) which is found within the Federal District.  Locals typically refer to Mexico City as simply “México” or “El D.F.” 

The states of Mexico are listed below in alphabetical order:

According a July 2005 estimate by the U.S. government, the total population of Mexico was around 106,202,903, with a large percentage of the population (about 8,548,639 people) living in the capital city.
 
The country is predominantly Roman Catholic, with about 90% of the country practicing this religion.  Protestant Christians are also present, and a wide diversity of indigenous religions is practiced.

While Spanish is the official language of Mexico, there are 62 living indigenous languages spoken throughout the country.  Mexico has the second largest number of living indigenous languages in the world next to India. These mostly Amerindian dialects include Mayan, Náhuatl, Zapoteco, Chol, and Mixteco.
Mexico’s National Flag (bandera in Spanish) was adopted in 1821.  It is divided into three stripes with the colors of the flag being green, white, and red. The National Coat of Arms is located on the white center stripe and portrays a royal eagle landing on a cactus.  This image resprents the founding of the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlán, which is also the site of modern Mexico’s capital city.
Given its largely temperate climate, it is no surprise that Mexico is a major exporter of agricultural products.  When other parts of the world are blanketed in snow, Mexico is busy growing tomatoes, citric fruits, cotton, sugar cane, and coffee. 

Mexico is also famous for its extractive industry, which has been strong since the time of the Spanish Conquest.  The Spanish founded a large number of silver mines in Mexico, some of which can be found in the cities of Taxco and Zacatecas.  Mexico is also one of the largest salt extractors in the world. Recently, Mexico discovered major petroleum deposits off its eastern coastline, making petroleum one of the country’s major exports. 

After the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was passed in 1992, Mexico’s manufacturing sector exploded, with foreign businesses setting up hundreds of factories (maquiladoras) throughout the country, especially in the states that border the United States of America.  These factories largely produce motor vehicles and motor vehicle parts, metals, plastics, rubber, textiles, electrical appliances, petrochemicals, shoes, and cement, among other products.  

The currency used in Mexico is the Peso or Nuevo Peso.  Mexicans use a dollar sign ($) similar to the dollar sign used in the U.S. and Canada to refer to their currency.  There are 100 centavos in one Mexican Peso.  Bills are used for denominations over ten pesos, and coins are used for ten pesos and below.  Peso coins are multi-colored with gold and silver rings.  The bills and coins portray scenes from Mexican history and pre-Hispanic symbols, such as the Aztec Calendar found on the ten peso coin. 

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Browse through our Mexican Information Pages for: