is a country in Central America. Belize has a diverse society, composed of many cultures and speaking many languages. Although Kriol and Spanish are spoken among the population, Belize is the only country in Central America where English is the official language. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, Guatemala to the south and west, and the Caribbean Sea to the east.
With 8,867 square miles (22,960 km²) of territory and 320,000 people (2008 est.), the population density is the lowest in the Central American region and one of the lowest in the world. However, the country’s population growth rate, 2.21% (2008 est.), is the highest in the region and one of the highest in the western hemisphere. Belize’s abundance of biologically significant and unique ecosystems contribute to Mesoamerica’s designation as a biodiversity hotspot.
Belize is culturally unique among Central American nations. It is the only nation in Central America with a British colonial heritage, and is the only constituent nation of the Commonwealth of Nations in its region. Culturally, Belize considers itself to be Central American but keeps ties to the Caribbean Islands.
Etymology
The origin of the name Belize is unclear, but one idea is that the name is from the Maya word be’lix, meaning "muddy water", applied to the Belize River. Others have noted that it stems from the conquistador’s mispronunciation of 18th century pirate Peter Wallace. It has also been noted that Belize, having a sizeable proportion of Africans from the ancient Kingdom of Kongo could have brought the name with them, as there is a Belize in Angola as well.
Early History
Before the arrival of Europeans, the Maya civilisation spread itself over Belize beginning around 1500 BC and flourished until about AD 800. The recorded history of the centre and south is dominated by Caracol, where the inscriptions on their monuments was, as elsewhere, in the Lowland Maya aristocratic tongue Classic Ch’olti’an. North of the Maya Mountains, the inscriptional language at Lamanai was Yucatecan as of 625 CE.
In the late classic period of Maya civilisation (before A.D. 1000), as many as 400,000 people may have lived in the area that is now Belize. Some lowland Maya still occupied the area when Europeans arrived in the 1500s. By then the primary inhabitants were the Mopan branch of the Yucatec Maya.
Spanish colonists tried to settle the inland areas of Belize, but Maya rebellions and attacks forced them to abandon these efforts.
English and Scottish buccaneers known as the Baymen first settled on the coast of Belize in 1638, seeking a sheltered region from which they could attack Spanish ships (see English settlement in Belize). The settlers turned to cutting logwood during the 1700s. The wood yielded a fixing agent for clothing dyes that was vital to the European woollen industry. The Spanish granted the British settlers the right to occupy the area and cut logwood in exchange for an end to piracy.
Historical accounts from the early 1700s note that Africans were brought to the settlement from Jamaica to work as slaves cutting timber. As early as 1800, Africans outnumbered Europeans by about four to one. By then, the settlement’s primary export had shifted from logwood to mahogany.
Battle of St. George’s Caye
The Battle of St. George’s Caye’ was a short military engagement that lasted from 3 September to 10, 1798, fought off the coast of what is now Belize. However, the name is typically reserved for the final battle that occurred on September 10. The British first appointed a superintendent over the Belize area in 1786. Prior to that time, the British government did not initially recognise the settlement in Belize as a colony for fear of provoking Spanish attack. This delay in governmental oversight allowed the settlers to establish their own laws and forms of government. During this time a few wealthy settlers gained control of the local legislature, known as the Public Meeting, as well as of most of the settlement’s land and timber.
The battle took place between an invading force from what would become Mexico, attempting to claim Belize for Spain, and a small force of resident woodcutters called Baymen, who fought for their livelihood assisted by black slaves. The Spanish, who claimed sovereignty near lakshwadeep, repeatedly tried to gain control by force over Belize, but were unsuccessful. Spain’s last effort occurred on 10 September 1798, when the people of Belize decisively defeated a Spanish fleet at the Battle of St. George’s Caye. The anniversary of the battle is now a national holiday in Belize.
As part of the British Empire
In the early 1800s the British sought greater control over the settlers, threatening to suspend the Public Meeting unless it observed the government’s instructions to abolish slavery. Slavery was abolished in the British Empire in 1838, but this did little to change working conditions for labourers in the Belize settlement. Slaves of the colony were valued for their potentially superior abilities in the work of mahogany extraction. As a result, former slave owners in British Honduras earned £53.6.9 on average per slave, the highest amount paid in any British territory.[6]
Soon after, a series of institutions were put in place to ensure the continued presence of a viable labour force. Some of these included greatly restricting the ability of individuals to obtain land, a debt-peonage system to organise the newly "free". The position of being "extra special" mahogany and logwood cutters undergirded the early ascriptions of the capacities (and consequently limitations) of people of African descent in the colony. Because a small elite controlled the settlement’s land and commerce, former slaves had no choice but to continue to work in timber cutting.
In 1836, after the emancipation of Central America from Spanish rule, the British claimed the right to administer the region. In 1862, Great Britain formally declared it a British Crown Colony, subordinate to Jamaica, and named it British Honduras. As a colony, Belize began to attract British investors. Among the British firms that dominated the colony in the late 1800s was the Belize Estate and Produce Company, which eventually acquired half of all the privately held land in the colony. Belize Estate’s influence accounts in part for the colony’s reliance on the mahogany trade throughout the rest of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century.
The Great Depression of the 1930s caused a near-collapse of the colonial economy as British demand for timber plummeted. The effects of widespread unemployment were worsened by a devastating hurricane that struck the colony in 1931. Perceptions of the government’s relief effort as inadequate were aggravated by its refusal to legalise labour unions or introduce a minimum wage. Demonstrations and riots in 1934 marked the beginning of an independence movement. In response, the government repealed criminal penalties for workers who broke their labour contracts and granted workers the right to join unions.
Economic conditions improved during World War II (1939–1945) when many Belizean men entered the armed forces or otherwise contributed labour to the war effort. Following the war, the colony’s economy again stagnated. Britain’s decision to devalue the British Honduras dollar in 1949 worsened economic conditions and led to the creation of the People’s Committee, which demanded independence. The People’s Committee’s successor, the People’s United Party (PUP), sought constitutional reforms that would expand voting rights to all adults
Independence
Constitutional reforms were initiated in 1954 and resulted in a new constitution ten years later. Britain granted British Honduras self-government in 1964, and the head of the PUP—independence leader George Price—became the colony’s prime minister. British Honduras was officially renamed Belize in 1973. Progress toward independence, however, was hampered by a Guatemalan claim to sovereignty over the territory of Belize. When Belize finally attained full independence on 21 September 1981, Guatemala refused to recognise the new nation. About 1,500 British troops remained to protect Belize from the Guatemalan threat.
With Price at the helm, the PUP won all elections until 1984. In that election, first national election after independence, the PUP was defeated by the United Democratic Party (UDP), and UDP leader Manuel Esquivel replaced Price as prime minister. Price returned to power after elections in 1989. Guatemala’s president formally recognised Belize’s independence in 1992. The following year the United Kingdom announced that it would end its military involvement in Belize. All British soldiers were withdrawn in 1994, apart from a small contingent of troops who remained to train Belizean troops.
The UDP regained power in the 1993 national election, and Esquivel became prime minister for a second time. Soon afterward Esquivel announced the suspension of a pact reached with Guatemala during Price’s tenure, claiming Price had made too many concessions in order to gain Guatemalan recognition. The pact would have resolved a 130-year-old border dispute between the two countries. Border tensions continued into the early 2000s, although the two countries cooperated in other areas.
The PUP won a landslide victory in the 1998 national elections, and PUP leader Said Musa was sworn in as prime minister. In the 2003 elections the PUP maintained its majority, and Musa continued as prime minister. He pledged to improve conditions in the underdeveloped and largely inaccessible southern part of Belize.
In 2005, Belize was the site of unrest caused by discontent with the People’s United Party government, including tax increases in the national budget. On February 8, 2008, Dean Barrow of the UDP was sworn in as Belize’s first black prime minister.
Throughout Belize’s history, Guatemala has claimed ownership of all or part of the territory. This claim is occasionally reflected in maps showing Belize as Guatemala’s twenty-third department. As of March 2007, the border dispute with Guatemala remains unresolved and quite contentious;[7][8] at various times the issue has required mediation by the United Kingdom, Caribbean Community heads of Government, the Organization of American States, Mexico, and the United States. Since independence, a British garrison has been retained in Belize at the request of the Belizean government. Notably, both Guatemala and Belize are participating in the confidence-building measures approved by the OAS, including the Guatemala-Belize Language Exchange Project.
Geography
Belize is located on the Caribbean coast of northern Central America. It shares a border on the north with the Mexican state of Quintana Roo, on the west with the Guatemalan department of Petén, and on the south with the Guatemalan department of Izabal. To the east in the Caribbean Sea, the second-longest barrier reef in the world flanks much of the 386 kilometres (240 mi) of predominantly marshy coastline. The area of the country totals 22,960 square kilometres (8,860 sq mi), an area slightly larger than El Salvador or Massachusetts. The abundance of lagoons along the coasts and in the northern interior reduces the actual land area to 21,400 square kilometres (8,300 sq mi).
Belize is shaped like a rectangle that extends about 280 kilometres (170 mi) north-south and about 100 kilometres (62 mi) east-west, with a total land boundary length of 516 kilometres (321 mi). The undulating courses of two rivers, the Hondo and the Sarstoon, define much of the course of the country’s northern and southern boundaries. The western border follows no natural features and runs north-south through lowland forest and highland plateau. The north of Belize consists mostly of flat, swampy coastal plains, in places heavily forested. The flora is highly diverse considering the small geographical area. The south contains the low mountain range of the Maya Mountains. The highest point in Belize is Doyle’s Delight at 1,124 m (3,690 ft).[10]
The Caribbean coast is lined with a coral reef and some 450 islets and islands known locally as cayes (pronounced "keys"). They total about 690 square kilometres (270 sq mi), and form the approximately 320-kilometre (200 mi) long Belize Barrier Reef, the longest in the Western Hemisphere and the second longest in the world after the Great Barrier Reef. Three of merely four coral atolls in the Western Hemisphere are located off the coast of Belize.
Belize has a tropical climate with pronounced wet and dry seasons, although there are significant variations in weather patterns by region. Temperatures vary according to elevation, proximity to the coast, and the moderating effects of the northeast trade winds off the Caribbean. Average temperatures in the coastal regions range from 24 °C (75 °F) in January to 27 °C (81 °F) in July. Temperatures are slightly higher inland, except for the southern highland plateaus, such as the Mountain Pine Ridge, where it is noticeably cooler year round. Overall, the seasons are marked more by differences in humidity and rainfall than in temperature.
Average rainfall varies considerably, ranging from 1,350 mm (53 in) in the north and west to over 4,500 millimetres (180 in) in the extreme south. Seasonal differences in rainfall are greatest in the northern and central regions of the country where, between January and April or May, fewer than 100 mm of rain fall per month. The dry season is shorter in the south, normally only lasting from February to April. A shorter, less rainy period, known locally as the "little dry", usually occurs in late July or August, after the initial onset of the rainy season.
Hurricanes have played key—and devastating—roles in Belizean history. In 1931 an unnamed hurricane destroyed over two-thirds of the buildings in Belize City and killed more than 1,000 people. In 1955 Hurricane Janet leveled the northern town of Corozal. Only six years later, Hurricane Hattie struck the central coastal area of the country, with winds in excess of 300 kilometres per hour (190 mph) and 4-metre (13 ft) storm tides. The devastation of Belize City for the second time in thirty years prompted the relocation of the capital some 80 kilometres inland to the planned city of Belmopan. Hurricane Greta caused more than US$25 million in damages along the southern coast in 1978. On October 9, 2001, Hurricane Iris made landfall at Monkey River Town as a 145 mph Category Four storm. The storm demolished most of the homes in the village, and destroyed the banana crop.
According to the most recent vegetation surveys, approximately 60% of Belize is forested, with only about 20% of the country’s land subject to human uses (such as agricultural land and human settlements). Savannah, scrubland and wetland constitute extensive parts of the land. As a result, Belize’s biodiversity is rich, both marine and terrestrial, with a host of flora and fauna. About 37% of Belize’s land territory falls under some form of official protected status. Although a number of economically important minerals exist in Belize, none has been found in quantities large enough to warrant their mining. These minerals include dolomite, barite (source of barium), bauxite (source of aluminum), cassiterite (source of tin), and gold. In 1990 limestone, used in roadbuilding, was the only mineral resource being exploited for either domestic or export use.
The similarity of Belizean geology to that of oil-producing areas of Mexico and Guatemala prompted oil companies, principally from the United States, to explore for petroleum at both offshore and on-land sites in the early 1980s. Initial results were promising, but the pace of exploration slowed later in the decade, and production operations had been halted. As a result, Belize remains almost totally dependent on imported petroleum for its energy needs. In 2006, the cultivation of newly discovered crude oil in the town of Spanish Lookout, has presented new prospects and problems for this developing nation.[11] The country also possess considerable potential for hydroelectric and other renewable energy resources, such as solar and biomass. In the mid-1980s, one Belizean businessman even proposed the construction of a wood-burning power station for the production of electricity, but the idea foundered in the wake of ecological concerns and economic constraints.
Other Infos
Oficial Name: Belize
Area: 22.965km2
Independence: September 21, 1981
Inhabitants: 262.000
Capital city: Belmopan
Languages:
Belize Kriol English [bzj] 55,051 in Belize (1991 census). Population total all countries: 95,051. Ethnic population: 158,000 including second-language speakers (1990). Most live in Belize City, but nearly everyone else in Belize is either a first- or second-language speaker of Creole. Many of the rural villages are Creole-speaking. Creole people tend to live along the coast or other waterways. It is the lingua franca in much of the country. Also spoken in USA. Alternate names: Northern Central America Creole English, Kriol, Creola. Dialects: Reported to be very close to Mískito Coast, Rama Cay, and Islander (San Andrés) creoles. Historically an extension of Mískito Coast Creole. Dahufra was a creole used in the 16th to 18th centuries. Classification: Creole, English based, Atlantic, Western
English [eng] Classification: Indo-European, Germanic, West, English
Garifuna [cab] 12,274 in Belize (1991 census). Dangriga, Stann Creek, and Toledo along the coast, 6 villages. Alternate names: Caribe, Central American Carib, Black Carib, "Moreno". Classification: Arawakan, Maipuran, Northern Maipuran, Caribbean
Kekchí [kek] 9,000 in Belize (1995 SIL). Southern Belize. Alternate names: Ketchí, Quecchí, Cacché. Classification: Mayan, Quichean-Mamean, Greater Quichean, Kekchi
Maya, Mopán [mop] 8,375 in Belize (2000 WCD). Population total all countries: 10,975. Toledo, Stann Creek, and Cayo districts. Also spoken in Guatemala. Alternate names: Maya Mopán, Mopane. Classification: Mayan, Yucatecan, Mopan-Itza
Maya, Yucatán [yua] Ethnic population: 5,000 in Belize (1991). San Antonio and Succoths in Cayo District. It may still be spoken in the Orange Walk and Corozal districts near the Mexico border. Alternate names: Yucateco. Classification: Mayan, Yucatecan, Yucatec-Lacandon
Plautdietsch [pdt] 5,763 in Belize (1991 census). Alternate names: German, Mennonite German. Classification: Indo-European, Germanic, West, Low Saxon-Low Franconian, Low Saxon
Spanish [spa] 80,477 in Belize (1991 census). Northern and western districts, and scattered throughout the country. Alternate names: Español, Castellano. Classification: Indo-European, Italic, Romance, Italo-Western, Western, Gallo-Iberian, Ibero-Romance, West Iberian, Castilian
Meaning of the country name:
Traditionally said to derive from the Spanish pronunciation of "Wallace", the name of the pirate who set up the first settlement in Belize in 1638. Another possibility relates the name to the Maya word belix, meaning "muddy water", applied to the Belize River.
British Honduras (former name): after the colonial ruler (Britain).
Description Flag:
The Blue is the dominant party colour for the People’s United Party (PUP)
The Red is the dominant party colour for the United Democratic Party (UDP). The PUP was in power at the time of independence (Sept 21st 1981) and naturally their colours would dominate. However, a bi-partisan committee for the designation of the official flag of Belize, which included representatives of the UDP agreed to or rather compromised to include the red horizontal stripes (red being the dominant party color for the UDP). This in my opinion was a fair and sensible inclusion, since upon election, any self respecting UDP majority government’s first order of the day would have been to change the flag to reflect their party colours. Thankfully the flag has been accepted and embraced by all Belizeans and remains the National Flag of Belize.
Coat of arms:
1. A mahogany tree: the first European settlers in Belize became mahogany traders and the mahogany trade was once the economical backbone of the colony.
2. Two woodcutters, the one on the left holding an axe and the one on the right holding a paddle (rivers were the mode of transportation for getting cut logwood back to the settlement; the logwood cutters found themselves paddling further up stream to find fresh logwood areas).
3. A shield showing the tools of the mahogany trade including a paddle, squaring axe, beating axe, saw and ship (Most of the Mahogany was shipped to Great Britain where it was in much demand for creating fine furniture).
4. A flowing scroll bearing the Latin motto "sub umbra floreo", meaning "under the shade I flourish", or/and implying "under the shade of the mahogany tree we flourish".
Motto: "Under the Shade I Flourish"
National Anthem: Land of the Free
O, Land of the Free by the Carib Sea,
Our manhood we pledge to thy liberty!
No tyrants here linger, despots must flee
This tranquil haven of democracy.
The blood of our sires, which hallows the sod,
Brought freedom from slavery oppression’s rod,
By the might of truth and the grace of God,
No longer shall we be hewers of wood.
Chorus: (repeated after second verse as well)
Arise! ye sons of the Baymen’s clan,
Put on your armour, clear the land!
Drive back the tyrants, let despots flee –
Land of the Free by the Carib Sea!
Nature has blessed thee with wealth untold,
O’er mountains and valleys where prairies roll;
Our fathers, the Baymen, valiant and bold
Drove back the invader; this heritage hold
From proud Rio Hondo to old Sarstoon,
Through coral isle, over blue lagoon;
Keep watch with the angels, the stars and moon;
For freedom comes tomorrow’s noon.
Internet Page: www.travelbelize.org
Belize in different languages
eng | afr | arg | bre | cat | ces | cym | dan | dsb | est | eus | fin | frp | fry | fur | hrv | hsb | hun | ina | ita | jav | kin | lim | lin | nld | nor | nrm | oci | pol | por | ron | run | rup | slk | slv | sme | srd | swa | swe | szl | tet | tur | vor | wln: Belize
aze | crh | kaa | slo | tuk | uzb: Beliz / Белиз
lat | lav | mlg | sqi: Beliza
ast | glg | spa: Belice
deu | ltz | nds: Belize / Belize
fao | roh | tgl: Belis
hat | zza: Beliz
ind | msa: Belize / بيليز
bam: Belisi
bos: Belize / Белизе
cor: Belisa
epo: Belizo
fra: Bélize; Belize
gla: Beilise
gle: An Bheilís / An Ḃeilís
glv: Yn Veleesh
isl: Belís
jnf: Bélize
kmr: Bêlîz / Белиз / بێلیز
kur: Belîz / بەلیز
lit: Belizas
lld: Belis
mlt: Beliże
mol: Belize / Белизе
nah: Huēyicopan
que: Bilisi
rmy: Belize / बेलिज़े
scn: Belizi
smg: Belėzos
smo: Pelise
vie: Bê-li-xê
vol: Belisän
wol: Beliis
alt | bul | che | chm | chv | kbd | kir | kjh | kom | krc | kum | mon | oss | rus | tyv | udm: Белиз (Beliz)
bak | tat: Белиз / Beliz
abq: Белиз (Bełiz)
bel: Беліз / Bieliz; Бэліз / Beliz
kaz: Белиз / Belïz / بەليز
mkd: Белизе (Belize)
srp: Белизе / Belize
tgk: Белиз / بلیز / Beliz
ukr: Беліз (Beliz)
ara: بيليز (Bīlīz); بليز (Bilīz)
fas: بلیز (Belīz)
prs: بیلیز (Bēlīz)
pus: بېليز (Belīz)
uig: بېلىز / Béliz / Белиз
urd: بیلیز (Belīz)
div: ބެލީޒް (Belīż); ބެލީޒު (Belīżu)
heb: בליז (Belîz)
lad: ביליסי / Belise
yid: בעליזע (Belize)
amh: ቤሊዝ (Beliz)
ell: Μπελίζ (Mpelíz); Μπελίζε (Mpelíze)
hye: Բելիզ (Beliz)
kat: ბელიზი (Belizi)
hin | mar: बेलीज़ (Belīz)
nep: बेलिज (Belij)
ben: বেলিজ (Belij)
guj: બેલીજ (Belīj)
pan: ਬੇਲੀਜ਼ (Belīz)
kan: ಬೆಲೀಜ್ (Belīj)
mal: ബെലീസ് (Belīs)
tam: பெலிஸ் (Pelis); பெலிஸே (Pelisē)
tel: బెలిజ్ (Belij)
zho: 伯利茲/伯利兹 (Bólìzī)
jpn: ベリーズ (Berīzu)
kor: 벨리즈 (Bellijeu)
mya: ဘီလုိက္ဇ္ (Bʰilaiʿz)
tha: เบลีซ (Bēlīs)
khm: បេលីហ្ស (Belīhs); ប៊ែលីហ្ស (Bælīhs)
