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Nicaragua, largest country in Central America. Nicaragua is sometimes called “the land of lakes and volcanoes,” and the largest lakes in Central America and a chain of volcanic peaks dominate the western part of the country. Lakes also fill the craters of many of the volcanoes. Most of Nicaragua's people live in the country’s western lowlands, where most of the country’s economic activity also occurs. Managua, the country’s capital and largest city, lies along the shores of Lake Managua in western Nicaragua, on geologic fault lines. Severe earthquakes destroyed Managua twice in the 20th century. Nicaragua also has thick rain forests, rugged highlands, and fertile farming areas.
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Nicaragua's economy is based largely on agriculture, especially on crops grown for export. Coffee is the most important agricultural export, while corn is the major crop grown for domestic consumption. Nicaragua ranks among the poorest nations in Central America, after years of corrupt dictatorship, natural disasters, revolution, and civil war.
Nicaragua extends from the Caribbean Sea on the east to the Pacific Ocean on the west. It is bounded on the north by Honduras and on the south by Costa Rica. Located within the tropics, Nicaragua extends 490 km (300 mi) from east to west and 470 km (290 mi) north to south at its widest points. Rivers form large sections of its northern and southern borders, and its two coastlines together stretch 910 km (565 mi) in length.
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Its area of 129,494 sq km (49,998 sq mi) makes Nicaragua the largest of the region’s countries. Within its borders lie the two largest lakes in Central America, Lake Nicaragua and Lake Managua.
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Nicaragua's landscape ranges from tropical rain forest and marshes to forested mountain slopes. Western Nicaragua is lined with active volcanoes, and volcanic ash from their frequent eruptions has produced soil that is among the most fertile in Central America. The country is also subject to severe earthquakes. Nicaragua's major resources are its excellent soil and its potential as a canal route. In addition to gold and silver, Nicaragua has mineral resources, including copper, as yet untapped. Hydroelectric potential is limited, but volcanoes provide a potential source for generating more geothermal energy. Timber reserves are extensive but are being depleted rapidly to provide lumber and more land for agriculture. Today, 15.9 percent of the land is farmed, and 43 percent is forested.
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Nicaragua has a population of 5,570,129 (2006 estimate). It is among the poorest nations in Central America, a legacy of exploitation by dictators, of natural disasters, and of a devastating civil war. Most of its people are mestizos (of mixed European and Native American ancestry). Minority groups include people of African, Native American, and European descent. Traditionally, a small upper class has controlled most of the nation's land and its economic and political power.
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Nicaragua has a young, rapidly growing population, with 40 percent (2006) of its people under the age of 15. The birth rate (25 per 1,000 people) greatly outpaces the death rate (4 per 1,000), contributing to a population growth rate of 1.9 percent. Population growth in Nicaragua slowed during the 1980s as hundreds of thousands of people fled the country to avoid the civil war, but it returned to higher levels in the 1990s as the conflicts ended and some refugees and exiles returned. An estimated 45 percent of the population survives on less than $1 a day, with poverty levels highest in rural areas.
Nicaragua has a population density of 46 persons per sq km (120 per sq mi), several times less than that of nearby El Salvador, the most densely settled nation on the mainland of the Americas. However, Nicaragua's Caribbean lowlands are very sparsely settled, while the population is quite dense in the Pacific coast region, where most of the cities are located. An estimated 57 percent of Nicaragua's population lives in or around cities. Managua, the capital, had an estimated population of 1.1 million in 2003. It is by far the largest city and the center for government, communications, and industry. Managua is prone to earthquakes, which destroyed the city in 1931 and again in 1972.
"Nicaragua," Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2006
http://encarta.msn.com © 1997-2006 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
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