History of the Americas: Difference between revisions

[[File:Americas satellite map.jpg|thumb|280px|A true-color image of the [[Americas]]. Much of the information in the image comes from a single remote-sensing device—[[NASA]]'s Moderate Resolution Imaging [[Spectroradiometer]], or MODIS, flying over 700 km above the Earth on board the [[Terra (satellite)|Terra satellite]] in 2001.]]

The '''history of the Americas''' begins with people migrating to these areas from Asia during the height of an [[ice age]]. These groups are generally believed to have been isolated from the people of the "[[Old World]]" until the coming of Europeans in the 10th century from Iceland led by [[Leif Erikson|Leif Erikson,]], and in 1492 with the [[voyages of Christopher Columbus]].

Sedentary societies developed primarily in two regions: [[Mesoamerica]] and the [[Andean civilizations]]. Mesoamerican cultures include [[Zapotec civilization|Zapotec]], [[Toltec]], [[Olmecs|Olmec]], [[Maya civilization|Maya]], [[Aztecs|Aztec]], [[Mixtec]], [[Totonac]], [[Teotihuacan]], [[Huastec people]], [[Purépecha people|Purépecha]], [[Izapa]] and [[Mazatec people|Mazatec]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mesoamerican civilization {{!}} History, Olmec, & Maya {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Mesoamerican-civilization |access-date=2023-07-02 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref> Andean cultures include [[Inca]], [[Caral-Supe civilization|Caral-Supe]], [[Wariʼ|Wari]], [[Tiwanaku]], [[Chimor]], [[Moche culture|Moche]], [[Muisca]], [[Chavín culture|Chavin]], [[Paracas culture|Paracas]], and [[Nazca]].

After the [[voyages of Christopher Columbus]] in 1492, [[Spanish Empire|Spanish]] and later [[Portuguese Empire|Portuguese]], [[British Empire|English]], [[French Colonialcolonial Empireempire|French]] and [[Dutch Empirecolonial empire|Dutch]] colonial expeditions arrived in the New World, [[European colonization of the Americas|conquering and settling]] the discovered lands, which led to a transformation of the cultural and physical landscape in the Americas. Spain colonized most of the Americas from present-day [[Southwestern United States]], [[Florida]] and the [[Caribbean]] to the southern tip of South America. Portugal settled in what is mostly present-day [[Brazil]] while England established colonies on the [[Thirteen Colonies|Eastern coast of the United States]], as well as the [[Northwestern United States|North Pacific coast]] and in most of [[Canada]]. France settled in [[Quebec]] and other parts of Eastern [[Canada]] and claimed an area in what is today the central United States. The Netherlands settled New Netherland (administrative centre New Amsterdam – now New York), some Caribbean islands and parts of Northern South America.

{{further|History of CanadaNorth America|History of the United States|History of MexicoCaribbean|History of Central America|History of South America}}

{{details|SettlementPeopling of the Americas|Genetic history of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas}}

Archaeologists contend that the Paleo-Indian migration out of Beringia ([[Geography of Alaska|eastern Alaska]]), ranges from 40,000 to around 16,500 years ago.<ref>{{cite web|title=Introduction |work=Government of Canada |publisher=Parks Canada |url=http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/docs/r/pfa-fap/sec1.aspx |year=2009 |access-date=2010-01-09 |quote=Canada's oldest known home is a cave in Yukon occupied not 12,000 years ago like the U.S. sites, but at least 20,000 years ago |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110424103401/http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/docs/r/pfa-fap/sec1.aspx |archive-date=2011-04-24 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Pleistocene Archaeology of the Old Crow Flats |publisher=Vuntut National Park of Canada |url=http://yukon.taiga.net/vuntutrda/archaeol/info.htm |year=2008 |access-date=2010-01-10 |quote=However, despite the lack of this conclusive and widespread evidence, there are suggestions of human occupation in the northern Yukon about 24,000 years ago, and hints of the presence of humans in the Old Crow Basin as far back as about 40,000 years ago. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081022085345/http://yukon.taiga.net/vuntutrda/archaeol/info.htm |archive-date=2008-10-22 }}</ref><ref name="kind">{{cite web |url=http://www.bradshawfoundation.com/journey/|title=Journey of mankind|work=Brad Shaw Foundation|access-date=2009-11-17}}</ref> This time range is a hot source of debate. The few agreements achieved to date are the origin from [[Central Asia]], with widespread habitation of the Americas during the end of the [[Last Glacial Period|last glacial period]], or more specifically what is known as the [[Late Glacial Maximum#North America|late glacial maximum]], around 16,000 – 13,000 years before present.<ref name="kind"/><ref>{{cite journal |title=A single and early migration for the peopling of the Americas supported by mitochondrial DNA sequence data |pmc=20009 |year=1997 |volume=94 |issue=5 |pmid=9050871 |last1=Bonatto |first1=SL |last2=Salzano |first2=FM |pages=1866–71 |journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America |doi=10.1073/pnas.94.5.1866|bibcode=1997PNAS...94.1866B |doi-access=free }}</ref>

The [[American Journal of Human Genetics]] released an article in 2007 stating "Here we show, by using 86 complete [[Mitochondrion|mitochondrial]] [[Genome|genomes]], that all Indigenous American [[Haplogroup|haplogroups]], including [[Haplogroup X (mtDNA)]], were part of a single founding population."<ref name="dnaa">{{cite webbook |url=http://www.ucpress.edu/books/pages/10794.php |title= First Americans|workisbn=Southern Methodist University-David J. Meltzer, B.A., M.A., Ph. D9780520267992|access-date=2009-11-17|last1= Meltzer|first1= David J.|date= 26 November 2023|publisher= University of California Press}}</ref> Amerindian groups in the Bering Strait region exhibit perhaps the strongest DNA or mitochondrial DNA relations to [[Indigenous peoples of Siberia|Siberian peoples]]. The genetic diversity of Amerindian indigenous groups increase with distance from the assumed entry point into the Americas.<ref name="mmm">{{cite web |url=http://www.physorg.com/news169474130.html |title=The peopling of the Americas: Genetic ancestry influences health|work=Scientific American|access-date=2009-11-22}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=First Americans Endured 20,000-Year Layover - Jennifer Viegas, Discovery News |url=http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2008/02/13/beringia-native-american-02.html |access-date=2009-11-18 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120313061401/http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2008/02/13/beringia-native-american-02.html |archive-date=2012-03-13 }}</ref> Certain genetic diversity patterns from West to East suggest, particularly in South America, that migration proceeded first down the west coast, and then proceeded eastward.<ref name=PLoSb>{{cite journal |title=Genetic Variation and Population Structure in Native Americans|journal=PLOS Genetics |volume=3 |issue=11 |page=3(11)|year=2007|doi=10.1371/journal.pgen.0030185 |last1=Wang|first1=Sijia|last2=Lewis |first2=Cecil M. |last3=Jakobsson |first3=Mattias |last4=Ramachandran |first4=Sohini |last5=Ray |first5=Nicolas |last6=Bedoya |first6=Gabriel |last7=Rojas |first7=Winston |last8=Parra |first8=Maria V. |last9=Molina |first9=Julio A. |last10=Gallo |first10=Carla |last11=Mazzotti |first11=Guido |last12=Poletti |first12=Giovanni |last13=Hill |first13=Kim |last14=Hurtado |first14=Ana M. |last15=Labuda |first15=Damian |last16=Klitz |first16=William |last17=Barrantes |first17=Ramiro |last18=Bortolini |first18=Maria Cátira |last19=Salzano |first19=Francisco M. |last20=Petzl-Erler |first20=Maria Luiza |last21=Tsuneto |first21=Luiza T. |last22=Llop |first22=Elena |last23=Rothhammer |first23=Francisco |last24=Excoffier |first24=Laurent |last25=Feldman |first25=Marcus W. |last26=Rosenberg |first26=Noah A. |last27=Ruiz-Linares |first27=Andrés |pmc=2082466 |pmid=18039031 |doi-access=free }}</ref> Geneticists have variously estimated that peoples of Asia and the Americas were part of the same population from 42,000 to 21,000 years ago.<ref name=Fagundes>{{cite journal |doi= 10.1016/j.ajhg.2007.11.013 |last1= Fagundes |first1=Nelson J.R. |author2= Ricardo Kanitz |author3=Roberta Eckert |author4=Ana C.S. Valls |author5=Mauricio R. Bogo |author6=Francisco M. Salzano |author7=David Glenn Smith |author8=Wilson A. Silva |author9=Marco A. Zago |author10=Andrea K. Ribeiro-dos-Santos |author11=Sidney E.B. Santos |author12=Maria Luiza Petzl-Erler |author13=Sandro L. Bonatto |title= Mitochondrial Population Genomics Supports a Single Pre-Clovis Origin with a Coastal Route for the Peopling of the Americas |url= http://www.familytreedna.com/pdf/Fagundes-et-al.pdf |journal= American Journal of Human Genetics |volume= 82 |issue= 3 |year= 2008 |pages= 583–592 |access-date= 2009-11-19 |pmid= 18313026 |pmc= 2427228 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090325120035/http://www.familytreedna.com/pdf/Fagundes-et-al.pdf |archive-date= 2009-03-25 |url-status= dead }}</ref>

On October 3, 2014, the [[Oregon]] cave where the oldest [[DNA]] evidence of [[human]] habitation in [[North America]] was found was added to the [[National Register of Historic Places]]. The DNA, [[Radiocarbon dating|radiocarbon dated]] to 14,300 years ago, was found in fossilized human [[Coprolite|coprolites]] uncovered in the [[Paisley Caves|Paisley Five Mile Point Caves]] in south central Oregon.<ref name="Phys-20141003">{{cite news |author=Staff |title=Cave containing earliest human DNA dubbed historic |url=http://phys.org/news/2014-10-cave-earliest-human-dna-dubbed.html |date=3 October 2014 |work=[[Phys.org]] |access-date=5 October 2014 }}</ref>

The [[Lithic stage]] or ''[[Paleo-Indians|Paleo-Indian period]]'', is the earliest classification term referring to the first stage of human habitation in the Americas, covering the [[Late Pleistocene]] epoch. The time period derives its name from the appearance of "[[Lithic flake]]d" stone tools. [[Stone tool]]s, particularly [[projectile point]]s and [[Scraper (archaeology)|scrapers]], are the primary evidence of the earliest well known human activity in the [[Americas]]. [[Lithic reduction]] stone tools are used by [[Archaeology|archaeologists]] and [[anthropologist]]s to classify cultural periods.

{{see also|Pre-Columbian era|HistoryLithic ofperiod Mesoamericain (Paleo-Indian)Mesoamerica}}

While earlier research pointed to edible domestic plants such as [[Squash (plant)Cucurbita|squash]], [[Bean|beans]], [[Pouteria lucuma|lucuma]], [[guava]], [[Inga feuilleei|pacay]], and [[Sweet potato|camote]] at Caral, publications by Haas and colleagues have added [[avocado]], [[Canna (plant)|achira]], and [[maize]] (Zea Mays) to the list of foods consumed in the region. In 2013, Haas and colleagues reported that maize was a primary component of the diet throughout the period of 3000 to 1800 BC.<ref name=HaasPNAS2013>{{cite journal | last1= Haas | first1= Jonathan | author2= Winifred Creamer | author3= Luis Huamán Mesía | author4= David Goldstein | author5= Karl Reinhard | author6= Cindy Vergel Rodríguez | year = 2013 | title = Evidence for maize (Zea mays) in the Late Archaic (3000–1800 B.C.) in the Norte Chico region of Peru |journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America | volume = 110 | issue = 13 |pages = 4945–4949 | doi= 10.1073/pnas.1219425110 |quote=New data drawn from coprolites, pollen records, and stone tool residues, combined with 126 radiocarbon dates, demonstrate that maize was widely grown, intensively processed, and constituted a primary component of the diet throughout the period from 3000 to 1800 B.C. | pmid=23440194 | pmc=3612639| bibcode= 2013PNAS..110.4945H | doi-access= free }}</ref> [[Cotton]] was another widespread crop in Norte Chico, essential to the production of fishing nets and textiles. Jonathan Haas noted a mutual dependency, whereby "The prehistoric residents of the Norte Chico needed the fish resources for their protein and the fishermen needed the cotton to make the nets to catch the fish."

{{see also|Indigenous peoples of the Americas|List of pre-Columbian cultures}}{{RefImprove|date=March 2023}}
[[File:Ameicas 1000 BCE crop.png|thumb|240px|right|Simple map of subsistence methods in the Americas at 1000 BCE.:

After the decline of the Norte Chico civilization, numerous complex civilizations and centralized polities developed in the Western Hemisphere: The [[Chavín culture|Chavin]], [[Nazca culture|Nazca]], [[Moche (culture)|Moche]], [[HuariWari culture|Huari]], [[Quitu culture|Quitus]], [[Cañari]]s, [[Chimor|Chimu]], [[Pachacamac]], [[Tiwanaku|Tiahuanaco]], [[Aymara people|Aymara]] and [[Inca Empire|Inca]] in the [[Andes]]; the [[Muisca people|Muisca]], [[Tairona]], [[Mosquito Coast|Miskito]], [[Huetar people|Huetar]], and [[Kingdom of Talamanca|Talamanca]] in the [[Intermediate Area]]; the [[Taíno|Taínos]] in the Caribbean; and the [[OlmecOlmecs]]s, [[Maya civilization|Maya]], [[Toltec]]s, [[Mixtec]]s, [[Zapotec civilization|Zapotecs]], [[AztecAztecs]]s, [[Purépecha people|Purepecha]] and [[Kingdom of Nicoya|Nicoya]] in Mesoamerica.

The [[Olmecs|Olmec]] civilization was the first Mesoamerican civilization, beginning around 1600–1400 BC and ending around 400 BC. Mesoamerica is considered one of the [[Cradle of civilization|six sites]] around the globe in which civilization developed independently and indigenously. This civilization is considered the mother culture of the Mesoamerican civilizations. The Mesoamerican calendar, numeral system, writing, and much of the Mesoamerican pantheon seem to have begun with the Olmec.

Cities of the Aztecs, Mayas, and Incas were as large and organized as the largest in the Old World, with an estimated population of 200,000 to 350,000 in [[Tenochtitlan]], the capital of the [[Aztec Empire]]. The market established in the city was said to have been the largest ever seen by the [[conquistador]]s when they arrived. The capital of the Cahokians, [[Cahokia]], located near modern [[East St. Louis, Illinois]], may have reached a population of over 20,000. At its peak, between the 12th and 13th centuries, Cahokia may have been the most populous city in North America. [[Monks Mound|Monk's Mound]], the major ceremonial center of Cahokia, remains the largest earthen construction of the prehistoric New World.

These civilizations developed agriculture as well, breeding [[maize]] (corn) from having ears 2–5&nbsp;cm in length to perhaps 10–15&nbsp;cm in length. [[Potato]]es, [[tomato]]es, [[bean]]s ([[green]]s), [[pumpkin]]s, [[avocado]]s, and [[chocolate]] are now the most popular of the pre-Columbian agricultural products. The civilizations did not develop extensive livestock as there were few suitable species, although [[alpaca]]s and [[llama]]s were domesticated for use as beasts of burden and sources of wool and meat in the [[Andes]]. By the 15th century, maize was being farmed in the [[Mississippi River]] Valley after introduction from [[Mexico]]. The course of further agricultural development was greatly altered by the arrival of [[European ethnicEthnic groups in Europe|Europeans]].

Leadership was restricted to a group of 50 [[sachem]] [[Tribal chief|chief]]s, each representing one [[clan]] within a tribe; the [[Oneida people|Oneida]] and [[Mohawk people]] had nine seats each; the [[Onondaga people|Onondagas]] held fourteen; the [[Cayuga nationpeople|Cayuga]] had ten seats; and the [[Seneca nationpeople|Seneca]] had eight. Representation was not based on population numbers, as the Seneca tribe greatly outnumbered the others. When a sachem chief died, his successor was chosen by the senior woman of his tribe in consultation with other female members of the clan; property and hereditary leadership were passed [[matrilineality|matrilineally]]. Decisions were not made through voting but through consensus decision making, with each sachem chief holding theoretical [[Veto|veto power]]. The Onondaga were the "[[firekeeper]]s", responsible for raising topics to be discussed. They occupied one side of a three-sided fire (the Mohawk and Seneca sat on one side of the fire, the Oneida and Cayuga sat on the third side.)<ref name="Tooker"/>

<gallery widths="200px" heights="200px">

Chaco Canyon Chetro Ketl great kiva plaza NPS.jpg|The Great Kiva of [[Chetro Ketl]] at the [[Chaco Culture National Historical Park]], [[UNESCO World Heritage Site]].

mesaverde cliffpalace 20030914.752.jpg|Cliff Palace, [[Mesa Verde National Park]], a [[UNESCO World Heritage Site]].

NMtrip-05-047.jpg|[[Taos Pueblo]], a [[UNESCO World Heritage Site]], is an Ancient Pueblo belonging to a Native American tribe of [[Puebloans|Pueblo people]], marking the cultural development in the region during the [[Pre-Columbian era]].

The [[Puebloans|Pueblo people]] of what is now occupied by the [[Southwestern United States]] and northern [[Mexico]], living conditions were that of large stone apartment like [[adobe]] structures. They live in Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, Colorado, and possibly surrounding areas.

[[File:ChanBahlumCatherwood.jpg|thumb|right|200pxupright=.7|[[Kʼinich Kan Bahlam II|K'inich Kan B'alam II]], the Classic period ruler of [[Palenque]], as depicted on a [[Stele|stela]].]]

Chichimeca was the name that the [[AztecAztecs|Mexica]] (Aztecs) generically applied to a wide range of semi-[[nomad]]ic peoples who inhabited the north of modern-day [[Mexico]], and carried the same sense as the European term "[[barbarian]]". The name was adopted with a pejorative tone by the Spaniards when referring especially to the semi-nomadic [[hunter-gatherer]] peoples of northern Mexico.

The [[Olmecs|Olmec]] civilization emerged around 1200 BCE in [[Mesoamerica]] and ended around 400 BCE. Olmec art and concepts influenced surrounding cultures after their downfall. This civilization was thought to be the first in America to develop a writing system. After the Olmecs abandoned their cities for unknown reasons, the Maya, Zapotec and Teotihuacan arose.

The [[Purépecha people|Purepecha]] civilization emerged around 1000 CE in [[Mesoamerica]]. They flourished from 1100 CE to 1530 CE. They continue to live on in the state of [[Michoacán]]. Fierce warriors, they were never conquered and in their glory years, successfully sealed off huge areas from Aztec domination.

The [[Aztecs|Aztec]] having started to build their empire around 14th century found their civilization abruptly ended by the Spanish conquistadors. They lived in Mesoamerica, and surrounding lands. Their capital city Tenochtitlan was one of the largest cities of all time.

TheOne of the oldest known civilization of the Americas was established in the [[NorteCaral-Supe Chico (Peruvian region)civilization|Norte Chico]] region of modern Peru. Complex society emerged in the group of coastal valleys, between 3000 and 1800 BCE. The [[Quipu]], a distinctive recording device among Andean civilizations, apparently dates from the era of Norte Chico's prominence.{{cn|date=July 2024}}

The [[Chavín culture|Chavín]] established a trade network and developed agriculture by as early as (or late compared to the Old World) 900 BCE according to some estimates and archaeological finds. Artifacts were found at a site called Chavín in modern [[Peru]] at an elevation of 3,177 meters. Chavín civilization spanned from 900 BCE to 300 BCE.{{cn|date=July 2024}}

;{{main|Inca Empire}}

Holding their capital at the great city of [[Cusco]], the [[History of the Incas|Inca civilization]] dominated the Andes region from 1438 to 1533.

Known as ''Tawantinsuyu'', or "the land of the four regions", in [[QuechuaQuechuan languages|Quechua]], the Inca culture was highly distinct and developed. Cities were built with precise, unmatched stonework, constructed over many levels of mountain terrain. [[Terrace (earthworks)|Terrace farming]] was a useful form of agriculture. There is evidence of excellent metalwork and even successful [[Trepanning|trepanation]] of the skull in Inca civilization.

[[File:"America" (Engraving) Nova reperta (Speculum diuersarum imaginum speculatiuarum 1638).tif|thumb|[[Amerigo Vespucci]] awakens "America" in a [[Stradanus]]'s engraving (circa 1638).]]

[[File:Non-Native-American-Nations-Territorial-Claims-over-NAFTA-countries-1750-2008.gif|thumb|200px|Non-Native American nations' claims over North America, 1750–1999.]]

[[File:Political Evolution of Central America and the Caribbean 1700 and on.gif|thumb|200px|Political evolution of Central America and the Caribbean since 1700.]]

Around 1000, the [[Vikings]] established [[Norse colonization of North America|a short-lived settlement]] in [[Newfoundland (island)|Newfoundland]], now known as [[L'Anse aux Meadows]]. [[Pre-Columbian trans-oceanictransoceanic contact theories|Speculations]] exist about other Old World discoveries of the New World, but none of these are generally or completely accepted by most scholars.

Spain sponsored a major exploration led by Italian explorer [[Christopher Columbus]] in 1492; it quickly led to extensive [[European colonization of the Americas]]. The Europeans brought Old World diseases which are thought to have caused catastrophic epidemics and a huge [[Population history of indigenousthe Indigenous peoples of the Americas|decrease of the native population]]. Columbus came at a time in which many technical developments in sailing techniques and communication made it possible to report his voyages easily and to spread word of them throughout Europe. It was also a time of growing religious, imperial and economic rivalries that led to a competition for the establishment of colonies.

*[[New Spain|Viceroyalty of New Spain]] (1535–1821)

The formation of sovereign states in the New World began with the [[United States Declaration of Independence]] of 1776. The [[American Revolutionary War]] lasted through the period of the [[Siege of Yorktown]]—its last major campaign—in the early autumn of 1781, with peace being achieved [[Treaty of Paris (1783)|in 1783]]. In 1804, after the French of [[Napoleon|Napoleon Bonaparte]] were defeated during the [[Haitian Revolution]] under the black leadership of [[Jean-Jacques Dessalines]] declare the colony of [[Saint-Domingue]] independence of the [[Haitian Declaration of Independence]] as he renamed the country ''Ayiti'' meaning (Land of Mountains), [[Haiti]] became the world's [[Afro-Haitians|first black-led republic]] in the New World, the first [[Caribbean]] state as well as the first [[Latin America|Latin American]] country and the second oldest independent nation in the [[Western Hemisphere]] after the [[United States]] to win independence from [[Kingdom of Great Britain|Britain]] in 1783.

The Spanish colonies won their independence in the first quarter of the 19th century, in the [[Spanish American wars of independence]]. [[Simón Bolívar]] and [[José de San Martín]], among others, led their independence struggle. Although Bolivar attempted to keep the Spanish-speaking parts of Latin America politically allied, they rapidly became independent of one another as well, and several further wars were fought, such as the [[Paraguayan War]] and the [[War of the Pacific]]. (See [[Latin American integration]].) In the Portuguese colony [[Pedro I of Brazil|Dom Pedro I]] (also Pedro IV of Portugal), son of the Portuguese [[monarch|king]] [[John VI of Portugal|Dom João VI]], proclaimed the country's independence in 1822 and became Brazil's first [[Emperor]]. This was peacefully accepted by the crown in Portugal, upon compensation.

{{further|Slavery in thecolonial Spanish New World coloniesAmerica|Slavery in the British and French Caribbean|Slavery in Brazil |Slavery in Canada|Slavery in the United States}}

{{further|Canada in the World Wars and Interwar Years|Mexican Revolution|History of the United States (1918–19451917–1945)}}

As a part of the [[British Empire]], Canada immediately entered World War I when it broke out in 1914. Canada bore the brunt of several major battles during the early stages of the war, including the use of [[PoisonChemical gasweapons in World War I|poison gas]] attacks at [[Second Battle of Ypres|Ypres]]. Losses became grave, and the government eventually brought in [[conscription]], despite the fact this was against the wishes of the majority of [[French Canadians]]. In the ensuing [[Conscription Crisis of 1917]], riots broke out on the streets of [[Montreal]]. In neighboring Newfoundland, the new dominion suffered a devastating loss on July 1, 1916, the [[First day on the Somme]].

The United States stayed out of the conflict [[American entry into World War I|until 1917]], when it joined the Entente powers. The United States was then able to play a crucial role at the [[Paris Peace Conference, 1919(1919–1920)|Paris Peace Conference of 1919]] that shaped [[Interwar period|interwar]] Europe. Mexico was not part of the war, as the country was embroiled in the Mexican Revolution at the time.

The 1920s brought an age of great prosperity in the United States, and to a lesser degree Canada. But the [[Wall Street Crash of 1929]] combined with [[dustDust bowlBowl|drought]] ushered in a period of economic hardship in the United States and [[Great Depression in Canada|Canada]]. From 1936 to 1949, there was a popular uprising against the anti-Catholic Mexican government of the time, set off specifically by the anti-clerical provisions of the [[Constitution of Mexico|Mexican Constitution of 1917]].

The [[civil rights movement]] in the U.S. ended [[Jim Crow laws|Jim Crow]] and empowered black voters in the 1960s, which allowed black citizens to move into high government offices for the first time since Reconstruction. However, the dominant [[New Deal coalition]] collapsed in the mid 1960s in disputes over race and the [[Vietnam War]], and the conservative movement began its rise to power, as [[Modern liberalism in the United States|the once dominant liberalism weakened and collapsed]]. Canada during this era was dominated by the leadership of [[Pierre Trudeau|Pierre Elliot Trudeau]]. In 1982, at the end of his tenure, Canada enshrined a new constitution.

{{further|History of the United States (1980–1991)|History of Canada (1982–19921982–present)}}

Canada's [[Brian Mulroney]] not only ran on a similar platform but also favored closer trade ties with the United States. This led to the [[Canada–United States Free Trade Agreement|Canada-United States Free Trade Agreement]] in January 1989. Mexican presidents [[Miguel de la Madrid]], in the early 1980s and [[Carlos Salinas de Gortari]] in the late 1980s, started implementing liberal economic strategies that were seen as a good move. However, Mexico experienced a strong economic recession in 1982 and the Mexican peso suffered a devaluation. In the United States president [[Ronald Reagan]] attempted to move the United States back towards a hard anti-communist line in foreign affairs, in what his supporters saw as an attempt to assert moral leadership (compared to the Soviet Union) in the world community. Domestically, Reagan attempted to bring in a package of [[privatization]] and [[regulation]] to stimulate the economy.

{{further|History of the United States (1991–present1991–2008)|History of Canadathe United States (1992–present2008–present)}}

The end of the Cold War and the beginning of the era of sustained economic expansion coincided during the 1990s. On January 1, 1994, Canada, Mexico and the United States signed the [[North American Free Trade Agreement]], creating the world's largest free trade area. In 2000, [[Vicente Fox]] became the first non-[[PartidoInstitutional RevolucionarioRevolutionary InstitucionalParty|PRI]] candidate to win the Mexican presidency in over 70 years. The optimism of the 1990s was shattered by the [[September 11 attacks|9/11]] attacks of 2001 on the United States, which prompted military intervention in [[Afghanistan]], which also involved Canada. Canada did not support the United States' later move to [[Iraq War|invade Iraq]], however.

In the U.S. the [[Reagan era|Reagan Era]] of conservative national policies, deregulation and tax cuts took control with the election of [[Ronald Reagan]] in 1980. By 2010, political scientists were debating whether the election of [[Barack Obama]] in 2008 represented an end of the Reagan Era, or was only a reaction against the bubble economy of the 2000s (decade), which burst in 2008 and became the [[Great Recession|Late-2000s recession]] with prolonged unemployment.

In 1907, a [[Central American Integration System|Central American Court of Justice]] was created. On December 13, 1960, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua established the [[Central American Integration System|Central American Common Market]] ("CACM"). Costa Rica, because of its relative economic prosperity and political stability, 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. A [[Central American Parliament]] has operated, as a purely advisory body, since 1991. Costa Rica has repeatedly declined invitations to join the regional parliament, which seats deputies from the four other former members of the Union, as well as from [[Panama]] and the [[Dominican Republic]].

{{see alsoMain|History of South America}}

In the 1960s and 1970s, the governments of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Uruguay were overthrown or displaced by U.S.-aligned military dictatorships. These dictatorships detained tens of thousands of [[political prisoner]]s, many of whom were tortured and/or killed (on inter-state collaboration, see [[Operation Condor]]). Economically, they began a transition to [[Neoliberalism|neoliberal]] economic policies. They placed their own actions within the United States [[Cold War]] doctrine of "National Security" against internal subversion. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Peru suffered from an [[Internal conflict in Peru|internal conflict]] (see [[Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement]] and [[Shining Path]]). Revolutionary movements and right-wing military dictatorships have been common, but starting in the 1980s a wave of democratization came through the continent, and democratic rule is widespread now. Allegations of corruption remain common, and several nations have seen crises which have forced the resignation of their presidents, although normal civilian succession has continued.

! [[List of countries by area|Area]]<br />(km²²)<ref name="factbook2008">Land areas and population estimates are taken from ''The 2008 World Factbook'' which currently uses July 2007 data, unless otherwise noted.</ref> (sq&nbsp;mi)

! [[List of countries by population|Population]]<br />(July 20092021 est.)<{{UN Population|ref name="factbook2008" />}}

! [[List of countries by population density|Population density]]<br />per km²² (per sq&nbsp;mi)

| align="right" | 4045,482276,000780

| align="right" | 912,863079,000472

| style="text-align:left;" | [[Sucre]]; [[La Paz]]<ref>[[La Paz]] is the administrative capital of [[Bolivia]];<br /></ref>

| align="right" | 191214,241326,714223

| align="right" | 1619,928493,873184

| style="text-align:left;" | [[Santiago, Chile|Santiago]]

| align="right" | 4551,928516,970562

| align="right" | 1417,573797,101737

| style="text-align:left;" | {{sort|French Guiana|{{flagFlagicon image|Flag of French Guiana.svg}}}} [[French Guiana]] (France)

| align="right" | 772804,298567

| align="right" | 2933,132715,013471

| align="rightaright" | {{sort|0003093|&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;{{convert|3093|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}}}}

| style="text-align:left;" | [[GrytvikenKing Edward Point]]

| align="right" | 472612,000985

| align="right" | 2628,814199,843867

| align="right" | {{nts|385434,742429,554423}}

| align="right" | 21.5/km²² ({{formatnum:{{#expr: 21.5 * 2.589988110336 round 1}} }}/sq&nbsp;mi)

[[Category:World history|Americas the]]