Central American “Archipelago”

On the surface, the countries of Central America are connected, but in reality, the geographic isolation between them is severe. Although these countries are physically linked by land, historically their interactions have not been close, a fact dictated by Central America’s geography. The lowland plains of Central America are filled with tropical rainforests, making them difficult to develop or settle. Meanwhile, the relatively habitable high-altitude regions are crisscrossed by mountain ranges and numerous active volcanoes, with colonial settlements confined to isolated valleys. Furthermore, there are no major rivers connecting these valleys; turbulent rivers originate from the central mountain ranges and rush rapidly into the ocean. These geographical conditions determined that groups centered in different valleys governed themselves independently, giving rise to “Caudillo” strongmen of various sizes. Even during the Spanish colonial era, each region traded separately with Spain, lacking products to trade with one another. Rather than viewing Central America as a continuous continent, it is better to view it as an isolated “archipelago.”

Political Integration Doomed to Fail

Due to these immense differences, numerous historical attempts to politically unify Central America ultimately ended in failure. To this day, Central American countries are still attempting to achieve a certain degree of economic, cultural, and political integration, but progress is extremely slow. Geographic isolation is the innate condition; upon this foundation, climate differences led to different economic structures, which in turn led to different immigrant groups, ultimately resulting in huge disparities in political systems and interest structures. Uniting these highly localized political entities has always been an extremely difficult task.

The Birth of Independent Nations

Central America once belonged to the Captaincy General of Guatemala within New Spain. Their history as a series of independent nations roughly originates with the independence of Mexico in 1821. At that time, the Napoleonic Wars caused political chaos within Spain, eventually leading to the establishment of the First Mexican Empire. This directly influenced the local elite in Central America, causing them to consider breaking away from Spanish rule to establish an independent and autonomous state. Just two years later, in 1823, the Mexican Empire quickly dissolved, becoming the republican United Mexican States.

The local elites in Central America were unwilling to accept rule from Mexico City, thousands of miles away, and decided to form an independent political entity. This was the United Provinces of Central America (Provincias Unidas del Centro de América), later renamed the Federal Republic of Central America (República Federal de Centro América). Francisco Morazán played an extremely important role in the establishment of this federation, serving as the head of state for Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Costa Rica. In El Salvador and Honduras, there are still “Morazán Departments” named after him today. The initial capital of the United Provinces of Central America was located in Guatemala City (i.e., today’s Antigua), and later moved to San Salvador.

The Collapse of the Federation

Throughout the existence of the United Provinces of Central America, a fierce struggle between Liberals and Conservatives was constant. The Liberals, represented by Morazán, hoped to promote social reform, weaken the power of the Catholic Church and landowners, and implement a more democratic political system. The Conservatives, composed of large estate owners and the Catholic Church, were once loyal to Spain. Even after agreeing to independent statehood, they still wished to maintain the traditional class society.

Behind these two factions, the economic foundations across Central America were actually quite different. Guatemala and El Salvador had fertile land and large indigenous populations; Spanish rulers established a feudal order here based on large haciendas and cash crops, making the Conservative forces powerful. Honduras and Nicaragua had relatively poor soil and smaller populations but possessed better ports, leading to developed trade and the prevalence of Liberal ideas. Although Costa Rica was also suitable for agriculture, it lacked labor and attracted yeoman farmer immigrants from Europe, thus tending towards an enlightened social structure.

Just one year after the nation’s founding, in 1825, the Conservative Manuel José Arce was elected president with the support of the Archbishop of Guatemala, and immediately sent troops to invade the Liberal-reforming province of El Salvador. Morazán, relying on support from Liberals across Nicaragua and Honduras, defeated the President’s army in El Salvador and counterattacked Guatemala, ultimately gaining control of the country. Subsequently, the Conservatives launched multiple rebellions, plunging the country into a long civil war. In 1838, the provinces began to declare independence, and the federation dissolved. Over the next hundred years, there were multiple attempts to reorganize the federation, but all ended in failure.

The Seven Modern Central American Nations

The Northern Triangle: Co-governance by the Right Wing and Gangs

The core of the core of Central America comprises the three countries known as the “Northern Triangle”: 🇬🇹 Guatemala, 🇸🇻 El Salvador, and 🇭🇳 Honduras. These three countries are densely populated, have similar economic levels, and suffer from poor political governance. Compared to Nicaragua, which is poorer per capita, the Northern Triangle countries are more “democratic.” A minority elite in these countries controls vast amounts of capital and land, forming huge estates, while the majority of people exist as tenant farmers and urban poor, struggling at the subsistence line. Their governments are essentially controlled by pro-American right-wing forces friendly to foreign capital. Guatemala and Honduras, in particular, were once known as “Banana Republics.”

For a long time, the grassroots level of society in the Northern Triangle has been ruled by gangs. The famous Central American immigrant gangs, MS-13 and Barrio 18, although born in Los Angeles, USA, were exported back to their countries of origin, becoming transnational criminal organizations. These gangs are rooted in the bottom rungs of society and have large memberships; government elites can only accept bribes and choose to “cooperate for mutual benefit” with them. However, the relationship between gangs is often a life-or-death struggle. Due to gang infighting and shootouts, the Northern Triangle has consistently been one of the regions with the most serious violent crime in the world, with homicide rates 5 to 10 times that of the United States and over 100 times that of Japan.

However, in recent years, a political strongman named Nayib Bukele has emerged in El Salvador. The country is undergoing a high degree of centralization, using forceful means to eliminate most gangs, which has brought about a massive transformation in the social landscape. I felt this deeply during my visit.

🇳🇮 Nicaragua: Left-wing Authoritarianism

Nicaragua is an outlier among the seven countries. Because it is an authoritarian government led by the Sandinista National Liberation Front, its ideology leans towards socialism, which is unique among Central American countries. The founder of the Sandinista National Liberation Front, Augusto Nicolás Calderón Sandino, began opposing the US occupation forces and their puppet government rulers, the Somoza family, as early as 1927. The Sandinistas finally captured the capital in 1979, establishing a red regime. Obviously, its relationship with the United States is not good, and its relationship with the other three countries of the Central America-4 (CA-4) is lukewarm.

Due to its powerful government and military-police system, Nicaragua’s crime rate is extremely low, leaving almost no room for gangs to survive. However, because of long-term cold relations with the United States, its level of economic development is very backward; it is the most backward country in Central America, faring even worse than Cuba, which faces harsher sanctions.

🇨🇷 Costa Rica: The Little Europe of Central America

Compared to its northern neighbors, Costa Rica’s demographic structure and social development model are significantly different. The proportion of the population with European ancestry in this country is much higher than in other Central American countries, which is closely related to its historical immigration patterns.

Many immigrants to Costa Rica were yeoman farmers from Europe proper; upon arrival, they obtained small plots of land and became self-sufficient. This land tenure system prevented Costa Rica from forming the large hacienda economy prevalent in its northern neighbors, establishing instead a social structure dominated by a small-scale peasant economy. Since the colonial era, Costa Rica’s economic level has consistently been quite good, and today it belongs to the first tier along with Panama. Among Central American countries, Costa Rica’s tourism industry is the most developed, attracting a large number of visitors.

🇵🇦 Panama: The Canal and Offshore Finance

Further south lies Panama, which barely counts as Central America. Panama did not originally belong to Central America, nor did it participate in the United Provinces of Central America; instead, it was part of Gran Colombia. However, it later became a member of Central America, a development closely related to the construction of the Panama Canal. Under US intervention, the Department of Panama in Colombia declared independence in 1903 and immediately received US recognition, beginning the construction of the US-led Panama Canal. Thereafter, Panama remained a US protectorate and semi-colony until 1999, following the signing of the Panama Canal Treaties, when Panama finally regained sovereignty and became fully independent.

Today, the general public’s impression of Panama is basically tied to the Panama Canal, while the “Panama Papers” scandal in recent years has brought its other economic pillar—its role as an offshore tax haven—to global attention. These two factors—the canal economy and offshore financial services—constitute Panama’s economic foundation, making it particularly unique among Central American nations. Due to these industrial advantages, Panama’s level of economic development is the highest in Central America.

🇧🇿 Belize: The Imprint of the British Empire

Belize is the biggest anomaly in Central America. Among the seven Central American countries, Belize has the smallest population, with only about 400,000 people. Belize’s territory is located entirely along the Caribbean coast and was formerly a British colony known as British Honduras prior to independence; consequently, the common language is English. In all other countries in the region, the official language is Spanish.

As a former British colony, Belize’s demographic structure is also distinctly different. The local population was historically dominated by Caribbean Creoles, indigenous Mayans, and the mixed-race Garifuna people, though in recent years there has been a large influx of Mestizos from neighboring countries. Additionally, Belize has immigrant communities from other parts of the British Empire, including Indians, forming a sharp contrast with surrounding nations.

In the next post, I will start recounting my travel experiences from Chetumal to Belize: Central America Travelogue (Part 3): Chetumal.

Last modified on 2025-11-20