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Central American and northern Andean Indian
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Map showing the distribution of indigenous peoples and cultures in Central America, the Caribbean, and the northern Andean region around 1492. The map labels various groups across present-day countries, including the Antillean Arawak (Taino), Ciboney, Antillean Carib, Lenca, Mosquito, Chibcha, Muisca, and others, with boundaries and coastlines marked along the Caribbean Sea and northern South America. Map showing the distribution of indigenous peoples in Central America and the northern Andean region around 1982. The map labels various indigenous groups, such as the Mosquito, Sumo, Lenca, Kuna, Bribri, Boruca, Choco, Paez, Tairona, Arhuaco, Goajiro, Caquetio, and Jirajara, along the coasts and inland areas from Nicaragua and Panama to northern Colombia and Venezuela. Major bodies of water, including the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean, are also indicated. Map of Mesoamerica showing the geographic distribution of various Indigenous peoples, with regions labeled for groups such as the Maya, Nahua, Zapotec, Mixtec, Otomi, Mazahua, Huastec, Tarasco, and others across present-day Mexico and parts of Central America. Boundaries indicate the approximate areas inhabited by each group.

Central American and northern Andean Indian: References & Edit History

Additional Reading

Julian H. Steward (ed.), Handbook of South American Indians, 7 vol. (1946–59), on South American ethnography, archaeology, physical anthropology, and languages; and Julian H. Steward and Louis C. Faron, Native Peoples of South America (1959), a synthesis and updating of the previous work, togther provide a convenient summary and relate the peoples of the area to their neighbours. Two modern studies of the area are Linda Newson, The Cost of Conquest: Indian Decline in Honduras Under Spanish Rule (1986), and Indian Survival in Colonial Nicaragua (1987).

Dwight B. Heath The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

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  • Dwight B. Heath
  • The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
    Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.

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Article History

Type Description Contributor Date
Maps added showing the distribution of the Central American and northern Andean cultures, c. 1492 and c. 1982. Mar 12, 2010
Added new Web site: Cultural Survival - Mapping The Distribution of Indians in Central America. Nov 06, 2007
Article revised and updated. Oct 22, 2007
Article revised. Dec 01, 1999
Article added to new online database. Sep 18, 1998
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