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Wikipedia

Costa Rica

Coordinates: 10°N 84°W / 10°N 84°W / 10; -84

Costa Rica (UK: /ˌkɒstə ˈrkə/, US: /ˌkstə/ (listen); Spanish: [ˈkosta ˈrika]; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica (Spanish: República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, and maritime border with Ecuador to the south of Cocos Island. It has a population of around five million[10][11] in a land area of 51,060 km2 (19,710 sq mi). An estimated 333,980 people live in the capital and largest city, San José, with around two million people in the surrounding metropolitan area.[12]

Republic of Costa Rica
República de Costa Rica (Spanish)
Anthem: "Himno Nacional de Costa Rica" (Spanish)
"National Anthem of Costa Rica"
Capital
and largest city
San José
9°56′N 84°5′W / 9.933°N 84.083°W / 9.933; -84.083
Official languagesSpanish
Recognized regional languages
Ethnic groups
(2011[2])
Religion
(2021)[4]
Demonym(s)
GovernmentUnitary presidential republic
• President
Rodrigo Chaves
Stephan Brunner
Mary Munive
LegislatureLegislative Assembly
Independence declared
• from Spain
15 September 1821
1 July 1823
14 November 1838
• Recognized by Spain
10 May 1850
• Constitution
7 November 1949[2]
Area
• Total
51,100 km2 (19,700 sq mi) (126th)
• Water (%)
1.05 (as of 2015)[5]
Population
• 2022 estimate
5,204,411[6] (124th)
• Density
220/sq mi (84.9/km2) (107th)
GDP (PPP)2022 estimate
• Total
$129.95 billion[7] (90th)
• Per capita
$24,837[7] (66th)
GDP (nominal)2022 estimate
• Total
$68.489 billion[7] (85th)
• Per capita
$13,090[7] (64th)
Gini (2020) 49.7[8]
high
HDI (2021) 0.809[9]
very high · 58th
CurrencyCosta Rican colón (CRC)
Time zoneUTC−6 (CST)
Driving sideright
Calling code+506
ISO 3166 codeCR
Internet TLD.cr
.co.cr

The sovereign state is a unitary presidential constitutional republic. It has a long-standing and stable democracy and a highly educated workforce.[13] The country spends roughly 6.9% of its budget (2016) on education, compared to a global average of 4.4%.[13] Its economy, once heavily dependent on agriculture, has diversified to include sectors such as finance, corporate services for foreign companies, pharmaceuticals, and ecotourism. Many foreign manufacturing and services companies operate in Costa Rica's Free Trade Zones (FTZ) where they benefit from investment and tax incentives.[14]

Costa Rica was inhabited by indigenous peoples before coming under Spanish rule in the 16th century. It remained a peripheral colony of the empire until independence as part of the First Mexican Empire, followed by membership in the Federal Republic of Central America, from which it formally declared independence in 1847. Following the brief Costa Rican Civil War in 1948, it permanently abolished its army in 1949, becoming one of only a few sovereign nations without a standing army.[15][16][17]

The country has consistently performed favorably in the Human Development Index (HDI), placing 62nd in the world as of 2020, and fifth in Latin America.[18] It has also been cited by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as having attained much higher human development than other countries at the same income levels, with a better record on human development and inequality than the median of the region.[19] It also performs well in comparisons of the state of democracy, press freedom and subjective happiness. It has the 7th freest press according to the Press Freedom Index, it is the 37th most democratic country according to the Freedom in the World index and it is the 12th happiest country in the World Happiness Report.

History

 
A stone sphere created by the Diquis culture at the National Museum of Costa Rica. The sphere is the icon of the country's cultural identity.

Pre-Columbian period

Historians have classified the indigenous people of Costa Rica as belonging to the Intermediate Area, where the peripheries of the Mesoamerican and Andean native cultures overlapped. More recently, pre-Columbian Costa Rica has also been described as part of the Isthmo-Colombian Area.

Stone tools, the oldest evidence of human occupation in Costa Rica, are associated with the arrival of various groups of hunter-gatherers about 10,000 to 7,000 years BCE in the Turrialba Valley. The presence of Clovis culture type spearheads and arrows from South America opens the possibility that, in this area, two different cultures coexisted.[20]

Agriculture became evident in the populations that lived in Costa Rica about 5,000 years ago. They mainly grew tubers and roots. For the first and second millennia BCE there were already settled farming communities. These were small and scattered, although the timing of the transition from hunting and gathering to agriculture as the main livelihood in the territory is still unknown.[21]

The earliest use of pottery appears around 2,000 to 3,000 BCE. Shards of pots, cylindrical vases, platters, gourds, and other forms of vases decorated with grooves, prints, and some modeled after animals have been found.[22]

The impact of indigenous peoples on modern Costa Rican culture has been relatively small compared to other nations since the country lacked a strong native civilization, to begin with. Most of the native population was absorbed into the Spanish-speaking colonial society through inter-marriage, except for some small remnants, the most significant of which are the Bribri and Boruca tribes who still inhabit the mountains of the Cordillera de Talamanca, in the southeastern part of Costa Rica, near the frontier with Panama.

Spanish colonization

The name la costa rica, meaning "rich coast" in the Spanish language, was in some accounts first applied by Christopher Columbus, who sailed to the eastern shores of Costa Rica during his final voyage in 1502,[23] and reported vast quantities of gold jewelry worn by natives.[24] The name may also have come from conquistador Gil González Dávila, who landed on the west coast in 1522, encountered natives, and obtained some of their gold, sometimes by violent theft and sometimes as gifts from local leaders.[25]

 
The Ujarrás historical site in the Orosí Valley, Cartago province. The church was built between 1686 and 1693.

During most of the colonial period, Costa Rica was the southernmost province of the Captaincy General of Guatemala, nominally part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain. In practice, the captaincy general was a largely autonomous entity within the Spanish Empire. Costa Rica's distance from the capital of the captaincy in Guatemala, its legal prohibition under mercantilist Spanish law from trade with its southern neighbor Panama, then part of the Viceroyalty of New Granada (i.e. Colombia), and lack of resources such as gold and silver, made Costa Rica into a poor, isolated, and sparsely-inhabited region within the Spanish Empire.[26] Costa Rica was described as "the poorest and most miserable Spanish colony in all America" by a Spanish governor in 1719.[27]

Another important factor behind Costa Rica's poverty was the lack of a significant indigenous population available for encomienda (forced labor), which meant most of the Costa Rican settlers had to work on their land, preventing the establishment of large haciendas (plantations). For all these reasons, Costa Rica was, by and large, unappreciated and overlooked by the Spanish Crown and left to develop on its own. The circumstances during this period are believed to have led to many of the idiosyncrasies for which Costa Rica has become known, while concomitantly setting the stage for Costa Rica's development as a more egalitarian society than the rest of its neighbors. Costa Rica became a "rural democracy" with no oppressed mestizo or indigenous class. It was not long before Spanish settlers turned to the hills, where they found rich volcanic soil and a milder climate than that of the lowlands.[28]

Independence

Like the rest of Central America, Costa Rica never fought for independence from Spain. On 15 September 1821, after the final Spanish defeat in the Mexican War of Independence (1810–1821), the authorities in Guatemala declared the independence of all of Central America. That date is still celebrated as Independence Day in Costa Rica[29] even though, technically, under the Spanish Constitution of 1812 that had been readopted in 1820, Nicaragua and Costa Rica had become an autonomous province with its capital in León.

Upon independence, Costa Rican authorities faced the issue of officially deciding the future of the country. Two bands formed, the Imperialists, defended by Cartago and Heredia cities which were in favor of joining the Mexican Empire, and the Republicans, represented by the cities of San José and Alajuela who defended full independence. Because of the lack of agreement on these two possible outcomes, the first civil war of Costa Rica occurred. The Battle of Ochomogo took place on the Hill of Ochomogo, located in the Central Valley in 1823. The conflict was won by the Republicans and, as a consequence, the city of Cartago lost its status as the capital, which moved to San José.[30][31][32]

 
The 1849 national coat of arms was featured in the first postal stamp issued in 1862.

In 1838, long after the Federal Republic of Central America ceased to function in practice, Costa Rica formally withdrew and proclaimed itself sovereign. The considerable distance and poor communication routes between Guatemala City and the Central Plateau, where most of the Costa Rican population lived then and still lives now, meant the local population had little allegiance to the federal government in Guatemala. Since colonial times, Costa Rica has been reluctant to become economically tied with the rest of Central America. Even today, despite most of its neighbors'[a] efforts to increase regional integration,[33] Costa Rica has remained more independent.

Until 1849, when it became part of Panama, Chiriquí was part of Costa Rica. Costa Rican pride was assuaged for the loss of this eastern (or southern) territory with the acquisition of Guanacaste, in the north.

Economic growth in the 19th century

Coffee was first planted in Costa Rica in 1808,[34] and by the 1820s, it surpassed tobacco, sugar, and cacao as a primary export. Coffee production remained Costa Rica's principal source of wealth well into the 20th century, creating a wealthy class of growers, the so-called Coffee Barons.[35] The revenue helped to modernize the country.[36][37]

Most of the coffee exported was grown around the main centers of population in the Central Plateau and then transported by oxcart to the Pacific port of Puntarenas after the main road was built in 1846.[37] By the mid-1850s the main market for coffee was Britain.[38] It soon became a high priority to developing an effective transportation route from the Central Plateau to the Atlantic Ocean. For this purpose, in the 1870s, the Costa Rican government contracted with U.S. businessman Minor C. Keith to build a railroad from San José to the Caribbean port of Limón. Despite enormous difficulties with construction, disease, and financing, the railroad was completed in 1890.[39]

Most Afro-Costa Ricans descend from Jamaican immigrants who worked in the construction of that railway and now make up about 3% of Costa Rica's population.[citation needed] U.S. convicts, Italians, and Chinese immigrants also participated in the construction project. In exchange for completing the railroad, the Costa Rican government granted Keith large tracts of land and a lease on the train route, which he used to produce bananas and export them to the United States. As a result, bananas came to rival coffee as the principal Costa Rican export, while foreign-owned corporations (including the United Fruit Company later) began to hold a major role in the national economy and eventually became a symbol of the exploitative export economy.[40] The major labor dispute between the peasants and the United Fruit Company (The Great Banana Strike) was a major event in the country's history and was an important step that would eventually lead to the formation of effective trade unions in Costa Rica, as the company was required to sign a collective agreement with its workers in 1938.[41][42]

20th century

Historically, Costa Rica has generally enjoyed greater peace and more consistent political stability than many of its fellow Latin American nations. Since the late 19th century, however, Costa Rica has experienced two significant periods of violence. In 1917–1919, General Federico Tinoco Granados ruled as a military dictator until he was overthrown and forced into exile. The unpopularity of Tinoco's regime led, after he was overthrown, to a considerable decline in the size, wealth, and political influence of the Costa Rican military. In 1948, José Figueres Ferrer led an armed uprising in the wake of a disputed presidential election between Rafael Ángel Calderón Guardia (who had been president between 1940 and 1944) and Otilio Ulate Blanco.[43] With more than 2,000 dead, the resulting 44-day Costa Rican Civil War was the bloodiest event in Costa Rica during the 20th century.

The victorious rebels formed a government junta that abolished the military altogether and oversaw the drafting of a new constitution by a democratically elected assembly.[44] Having enacted these reforms, the junta transferred power to Ulate on 8 November 1949. After the coup d'état, Figueres became a national hero, winning the country's first democratic election under the new constitution in 1953. Since then, Costa Rica has held 15 additional presidential elections, the latest in 2022. With uninterrupted democracy dating back to at least 1948, the country is the region's most stable.[45][46]

Geography

 
Costa Rica map of Köppen climate classification

Costa Rica borders the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Costa Rica also borders Nicaragua to the north and Panama to the south.

The highest point in the country is Cerro Chirripó, at 3,819 metres (12,530 ft). The highest volcano in the country is the Irazú Volcano (3,431 m or 11,257 ft) and the largest lake is Lake Arenal. There are 14 known volcanoes in Costa Rica, and six of them have been active in the last 75 years.[47]

Climate

Costa Rica experiences a tropical climate year-round. There are two seasons. The dry season is December to April, and the rainy season is May to November.

Flora and fauna

 
Red-eyed tree frog (Agalychnis callidryas)

There is a rich variety of plants and Costa Rican wildlife.

One national park, the Corcovado National Park, is internationally renowned among ecologists for its biodiversity (including big cats and tapirs) and is where visitors can expect to see an abundance of wildlife.[48][49] Corcovado is the one park in Costa Rica where all four Costa Rican monkey species can be found.[50] These include the white-headed capuchin, the mantled howler, the endangered Geoffroy's spider monkey,[50][51] and the Central American squirrel monkey, found only on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica and a small part of Panama, and considered endangered until 2008, when its status was upgraded to vulnerable. Deforestation, illegal pet-trading, and hunting are the main reasons for its threatened status.[52] Costa Rica is the first tropical country to have stopped and reversed deforestation; it has successfully restored its forestry and developed an ecosystem service to teach biologists and ecologists about its environmental protection measures.[53] The country had a 2018 Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 4.65/10, ranking it 118th globally out of 172 countries.[54]

Economy

 
Real GDP per capita development in Costa Rica
 
An Intel microprocessor facility in Costa Rica that was, at one time, responsible for 20% of Costa Rican exports and 5% of the country's GDP.
 
A proportional representation of Costa Rica's exports, 2019

The country has been considered economically stable with moderate inflation, estimated at 2.6% in 2017,[55] and moderately high growth in GDP, which increased from US$41.3 billion in 2011 to US$52.6 billion in 2015.[56] The estimated GDP for 2018 is US$59.0 billion and the estimated GDP per capita (purchasing power parity) is Intl$17,559.1.[55] The growing debt and budget deficit are the country's primary concerns.[57] A 2017 study by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development warned that reducing the foreign debt must be a very high priority for the government. Other fiscal reforms were also recommended to moderate the budget deficit.[58]

Many foreign companies (manufacturing and services) operate in Costa Rica's Free Trade Zones (FTZ) where they benefit from investment and tax incentives.[14] Well over half of that type of investment has come from the U.S.[59] According to the government, the zones supported over 82,000 direct jobs and 43,000 indirect jobs in 2015.[60] Companies with facilities in the America Free Zone in Heredia, for example, include Intel, Dell, HP, Bayer, Bosch, DHL, IBM and Okay Industries.[61][62]

Of the GDP, 5.5% is generated by agriculture, 18.6% by industry and 75.9% by services. (2016)[55] Agriculture employs 12.9% of the labor force, industry 18.57%, services 69.02% (2016)[63] For the region, its unemployment level is moderately high (8.2% in 2016, according to the IMF).[55] Although 20.5% of the population lives below the poverty line (2017),[64] Costa Rica has one of the highest standards of living in Central America.[65]

High-quality health care is provided by the government at a low cost to the users.[66] Housing is also very affordable. Costa Rica is recognized in Latin America for the quality of its educational system. Because of its educational system, Costa Rica has one of the highest literacy rates in Latin America, 97%.[67] General Basic Education is mandatory and provided without cost to the user.[68] A US government report confirms that the country has "historically placed a high priority on education and the creation of a skilled workforce" but notes that the high school drop-out rate is increasing. As well, Costa Rica would benefit from more courses in languages such as English, Portuguese, Mandarin, and French and also in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM).[67]

Trade and foreign investment

 
Countries (in blue) which have signed Free Trade Agreements with Costa Rica

Costa Rica has free trade agreements with many countries, including the US. There are no significant trade barriers that would affect imports and the country has been lowering its tariffs by other Central American countries.[69] The country's Free Trade Zones provide incentives for manufacturing and service industries to operate in Costa Rica. In 2015, the zones supported over 82 thousand direct jobs and 43 thousand indirect jobs in 2015 and average wages in the FTZ were 1.8 times greater than the average for private enterprise work in the rest of the country.[60] In 2016, Amazon.com for example, had some 3,500 employees in Costa Rica and planned to increase that by 1,500 in 2017, making it an important employer.[13]

The central location provides access to American markets and direct ocean access to Europe and Asia. The most important exports in 2015 (in order of dollar value) were medical instruments, bananas, tropical fruits, integrated circuits and orthopedic appliances.[70] Total imports in that year were US$15 billion. The most significant products imported in 2015 (in order of dollar value) were refined petroleum, automobiles, packaged medications, broadcasting equipment, and computers. The total exports were US$12.6 billion for a trade deficit of US$2.39 billion in 2015.[70]

Pharmaceuticals, financial outsourcing, software development, and ecotourism have become the prime industries in Costa Rica's economy. High levels of education among its residents make the country an attractive investing location. Since 1999, tourism earns more foreign exchange than the combined exports of the country's three main cash crops: bananas and pineapples especially,[71] but also other crops, including coffee.[72] Coffee production played a key role in Costa Rica's history and in 2006, was the third cash crop export.[72] As a small country, Costa Rica now provides under 1% of the world's coffee production.[37] In 2015, the value of coffee exports was US$305.9 million, a small part of the total agricultural exports of US$2.7 billion.[71] Coffee production increased by 13.7% percent in 2015–16, declined by 17.5% in 2016–17, but was expected to increase by about 15% in the subsequent year.[73]

Costa Rica has developed a system of payments for environmental services.[74] Similarly, Costa Rica has a tax on water pollution to penalize businesses and homeowners that dump sewage, agricultural chemicals, and other pollutants into waterways.[75] In May 2007, the Costa Rican government announced its intentions to become 100% carbon neutral by 2021.[76] By 2015, 93 percent of the country's electricity came from renewable sources.[77] In 2019, the country produced 99.62% of its electricity from renewable sources and ran completely on renewable sources for 300 continuous days.[78]

In 1996, the Forest Law was enacted to provide direct financial incentives to landowners for the provision of environmental services.[74] This helped reorient the forestry sector away from commercial timber production and the resulting deforestation and helped create awareness of the services it provides for the economy and society (i.e., carbon fixation, hydrological services such as producing fresh drinking water, biodiversity protection, and provision of scenic beauty).[74]

A 2016 report by the U.S. government report identifies other challenges facing Costa Rica as it works to expand its economy by working with companies from the US (and probably from other countries).[67] The major concerns identified were as follows:

  • The ports, roads, railways, and water delivery systems would benefit from major upgrading, a concern voiced by other reports too.[79] Attempts by China to invest in upgrading such aspects were "stalled by bureaucratic and legal concerns".
  • The bureaucracy is "often slow and cumbersome".
 
Poás Volcano Crater is one of the country's main tourist attractions.

Tourism

Costa Rica is the most-visited nation in the Central American region,[80] with 2.9 million foreign visitors in 2016, up 10% from 2015.[81] In 2015, the tourism sector was responsible for 5.8% of the country's GDP, or $3.4 billion.[82] In 2016, the highest number of tourists came from the United States, with 1,000,000 visitors, followed by Europe with 434,884 arrivals.[83] According to Costa Rica Vacations, once tourists arrive in the country, 22% go to Tamarindo, 18% go to Arenal, 17% pass through Liberia (where the Daniel Oduber Quirós International Airport is located), 16% go to San José, the country's capital (passing through Juan Santamaría International Airport), while 18% choose Manuel Antonio and 7% Monteverde.[84]

By 2004, tourism was generating more revenue and foreign exchange than bananas and coffee combined.[72][85] In 2016, the World Travel & Tourism Council's estimates indicated a direct contribution to the GDP of 5.1% and 110,000 direct jobs in Costa Rica; the total number of jobs indirectly supported by tourism was 271,000.[86]

A pioneer of ecotourism, Costa Rica draws many tourists to its extensive series of national parks and other protected areas.[87] The trail Camino de Costa Rica supports this by allowing travelers to walk across the country from the Atlantic to the Pacific coast. In the 2011 Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index, Costa Rica ranked 44th in the world and second among Latin American countries after Mexico in 2011.[88] By the time of the 2017 report, the country had reached 38th place, slightly behind Panama.[89] The Ethical Traveler group's ten countries on their 2017 list of The World's Ten Best Ethical Destinations includes Costa Rica. The country scored highest in environmental protection among the winners.[90] Costa Rica began reversing deforestation in the 1990s, and they are moving towards using only renewable energy.[91]

Government and politics

Administrative divisions

Costa Rica is composed of seven provinces, which in turn are divided into 82 cantons (Spanish: cantón, plural cantones), each of which is directed by a mayor. Mayors are chosen democratically every four years by each canton. There are no provincial legislatures. The cantons are further divided into 488 districts (distritos).

 
Barack Obama and Laura Chinchilla with Costa Rican children in San José

Foreign relations

Costa Rica is an active member of the United Nations and the Organization of American States. The Inter-American Court of Human Rights and the United Nations University of Peace are based in Costa Rica. It is also a member of many other international organizations related to human rights and democracy, such as the Community of Democracies. The main foreign policy objective of Costa Rica is to foster human rights and sustainable development as a way to secure stability and growth.[92]

 
The extent of Costa Rica's western EEZ in the Pacific
 
Symbolic act of Costa Rica's army abolition by president José Figueres Ferrer on December 1, 1948, at Cuartel Bellavista (former army headquarters), site which now hosts the National Museum

Costa Rica is a member of the International Criminal Court, without a Bilateral Immunity Agreement of protection for the United States military (as covered under Article 98). Costa Rica is an observer of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie.

On 10 September 1961, some months after Fidel Castro declared Cuba a socialist state, Costa Rican President Mario Echandi ended diplomatic relations with Cuba through Executive Decree Number 2. This freeze lasted 47 years until President Óscar Arias Sánchez re-established normal relations on 18 March 2009, saying, "If we have been able to turn the page with regimes as profoundly different to our reality as occurred with the USSR or, more recently, with the Republic of China, how would we not do it with a country that is geographically and culturally much nearer to Costa Rica?" Arias announced that both countries would exchange ambassadors.[93]

Costa Rica has a long-term disagreement with Nicaragua over the San Juan River, which defines the border between the two countries, and Costa Rica's rights of navigation on the river.[94] In 2010, there was also a dispute around Isla Calero, and the impact of Nicaraguan dredging of the river in that area.[95]

On 14 July 2009, the International Court of Justice in the Hague upheld Costa Rica's navigation rights for commercial purposes to subsistence fishing on their side of the river. An 1858 treaty extended navigation rights to Costa Rica, but Nicaragua denied passenger travel and fishing were part of the deal; the court ruled Costa Ricans on the river were not required to have Nicaraguan tourist cards or visas as Nicaragua argued, but, in a nod to the Nicaraguans, ruled that Costa Rican boats and passengers must stop at the first and last Nicaraguan port along their route. They must also have an identity document or passport. Nicaragua can also impose timetables on Costa Rican traffic. Nicaragua may require Costa Rican boats to display the flag of Nicaragua but may not charge them for departure clearance from its ports. These were all specific items of contention brought to the court in the 2005 filing.[96]

On 1 June 2007, Costa Rica broke diplomatic ties with Taiwan, switching recognition to the People's Republic of China. Costa Rica was the first of the Central American nations to do so. President Óscar Arias Sánchez admitted the action was a response to economic exigency.[97] In response, the PRC built a new, $100 million, state-of-the-art football stadium in Parque la Sabana, in the province of San José. Approximately 600 Chinese engineers and laborers took part in this project, and it was inaugurated in March 2011, with a match between the national teams of Costa Rica and China.

Costa Rica finished a term on the United Nations Security Council, having been elected for a nonrenewable, two-year term in the 2007 election. Its term expired on 31 December 2009; this was Costa Rica's third time on the Security Council. Elayne Whyte Gómez is the Permanent Representative of Costa Rica to the UN Office at Geneva (2017) and President of the United Nations Conference to Negotiate a Legally Binding Instrument to Prohibit Nuclear Weapons.[98]

Pacifism

On 1 December 1948, Costa Rica abolished its military force.[45] In 1949, the abolition of the military was introduced in Article 12 of the Costa Rican Constitution. The budget previously dedicated to the military is now dedicated to providing health care services and education.[44][99] According to Deutsche Welle, "Costa Rica is known for its stable democracy, progressive social policies, such as free, compulsory public education, high social well-being, and emphasis on environmental protection."[46] For law enforcement, Costa Rica has the Public Force of Costa Rica police agency.

In 2017, Costa Rica signed the UN treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.[100][101]

Environmentalism

In 2021 Costa Rica with Denmark launched the "Beyond Oil and Gas alliance" (BOGA) for stopping the use of fossil fuels.[102] The BOGA campaign was presented in the COP26 Climate Summit, where Sweden joined as a core member, while New Zealand and Portugal joined as associate members.[103]

Demographics

Costa Rican Censuses  
Year Population
1864 120,499
1883 182,073 51.1
1892 243,205 33.6
1927 471,524 93.9
1950 800,875 69.8
1963 1,336,274 66.9
1973 1,871,780 40.1
1984 2,416,809 29.1
2000 3,810,179 57.7
2011 4,301,712 12.9

The 2011 census counted a population of 4.3 million people[104] distributed among the following groups: 83.6% whites or mestizos, 6.7% mulattoes, 2.4% Native American, 1.1% black or Afro-Caribbean; the census showed 1.1% as Other, 2.9% (141,304 people) as None, and 2.2% (107,196 people) as unspecified.[1] By 2016, the UN estimation for the population was around 5.2 million.[10][11]

 
Costa Rica population pyramid in 2021

In 2011, there were over 104,000 Native American or indigenous inhabitants, representing 2.4% of the population. Most of them live in secluded reservations, distributed among eight ethnic groups: Quitirrisí (in the Central Valley), Matambú or Chorotega (Guanacaste), Maleku (northern Alajuela), Bribri (southern Atlantic), Cabécar (Cordillera de Talamanca), Guaymí (southern Costa Rica, along the Panamá border), Boruca (southern Costa Rica) and Térraba [es] (southern Costa Rica).

The population includes European Costa Ricans (of European ancestry), primarily of Spanish descent,[2] with significant numbers of Italian, German, English, Dutch, French, Irish, Portuguese, and Polish families, as well a sizable Jewish community. The majority of the Afro-Costa Ricans are Creole English-speaking descendants of 19th century black Jamaican immigrant workers.[105][106]

The 2011 census classified 83.6% of the population as white or Mestizo; the latter are persons of combined European and Amerindian descent. The Mulatto segment (mix of white and black) represented 6.7% and indigenous people made up 2.4% of the population.[2] Native and European mixed-blood populations are far less than in other Latin American countries. Exceptions are Guanacaste, where almost half the population is visibly mestizo, a legacy of the more pervasive unions between Spanish colonists and Chorotega Amerindians through several generations, and Limón, where the vast majority of the Afro-Costa Rican community lives.

Costa Rica hosts many refugees, mainly from Colombia and Nicaragua. As a result of that and illegal immigration, an estimated 10–15% (400,000–600,000) of the Costa Rican population is made up of Nicaraguans.[107][108] Some Nicaraguans migrate for seasonal work opportunities and then return to their country. Costa Rica took in many refugees from a range of other Latin American countries fleeing civil wars and dictatorships during the 1970s and 1980s, notably from Chile and Argentina, as well as people from El Salvador who fled from guerrillas and government death squads.[109]

 
Costa Rican school children

According to the World Bank, in 2010 about 489,200 immigrants lived in the country, many from Nicaragua, Panama, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, and Belize, while 125,306 Costa Ricans live abroad in the United States, Panama, Nicaragua, Spain, Mexico, Canada, Germany, Venezuela, Dominican Republic, and Ecuador.[110] The number of migrants declined in later years but in 2015, there were some 420,000 immigrants in Costa Rica[111] and the number of asylum seekers (mostly from Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala and Nicaragua) rose to more than 110,000, a fivefold increase from 2012.[112] In 2016, the country was called a "magnet" for migrants from South and Central America and other countries who were hoping to reach the U.S.[113][114]

Largest cities

 
 
Largest cities or towns in Costa Rica
Census 2011[citation needed]
Rank Name Province Pop.
 
San José
 
Cartago
1 San José San José 342 188  
Heredia
2 Cartago Cartago 151 744
3 Heredia Heredia 128 550
4 Puntarenas Puntarenas 122 335
5 Limón Limón 96 314
6 Liberia Guanacaste 64 797
7 San Isidro de El General San José 45 773
8 Alajuela Alajuela 42 975
9 Quesada Alajuela 42 060
10 Desamparados San José 36 794

Religion

Religion in Costa Rica (CIEP 2018)[4]

  Catholicism (52%)
  Protestantism (25%)
  No religion (17%)
  Other religions (3%)
  No answer (3%)
 
Basílica de Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles (Basilica of Our Lady of the Angels, Cartago), during the 2007 pilgrimage

Most Costa Ricans identify with a Christian religion, with Catholicism being the one with the largest number of members and also the official state religion according to the 1949 Constitution, which at the same time guarantees freedom of religion. Costa Rica is the only modern state in the Americas which currently has Catholicism as its state religion; other countries with state religions (Catholic, Lutheran, Anglican, Orthodox) are in Europe: Liechtenstein, Monaco, the Vatican City, Malta, Norway, United Kingdom, Denmark, Iceland, and Greece.[115]

The Latinobarómetro survey of 2017 found that 57% of the population identify themselves as Roman Catholics, 25% are Evangelical Protestants, 15% report that they do not have a religion, and 2% declare that they belong to another religion.[116] This survey indicated a decline in the share of Catholics and rise in the share of Protestants and irreligious.[116] A University of Costa Rica survey of 2018 show similar rates; 52% Catholics, 22% Protestants, 17% irreligious and 3% other.[4] The rate of secularism is high by Latin American standards.

Due to small, but continuous, immigration from Asia and the Middle East, other religions have grown, the most popular being Buddhism, with about 100,000 practitioners (over 2% of the population).[117] Most Buddhists are members of the Han Chinese community of about 40,000 with some new local converts. There is also a small Muslim community of about 500 families, or 0.001% of the population.[118]

The Sinagoga Shaarei Zion synagogue[119] is near La Sabana Metropolitan Park in San José. Several homes in the neighborhood east of the park display the Star of David and other Jewish symbols.[120]

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints claims more than 35,000 members, and has a temple in San José that served as a regional worship center for Costa Rica.[121] However, they represent less than 1% of the population.[122][123]

Languages

The primary language spoken in Costa Rica is Spanish, which features characteristics distinct to the country, a form of Central American Spanish. Costa Rica is a linguistically diverse country and home to at least five living local indigenous languages spoken by the descendants of pre-Columbian peoples: Maléku, Cabécar, Bribri, Guaymí, and Buglere.

Of native languages still spoken, primarily in indigenous reservations, the most numerically important are the Bribri, Maléku, Cabécar and Ngäbere languages; some of these have several thousand speakers in Costa Rica while others have a few hundred. Some languages, such as Teribe and Boruca, have fewer than a thousand speakers. The Buglere language and the closely related Guaymí are spoken by some in southeast Puntarenas.[124]

A Creole-English language, Jamaican patois (also known as Mekatelyu), is an English-based Creole language spoken by the Afro-Carib immigrants who have settled primarily in Limón Province along the Caribbean coast.[124]

About 10.7% of Costa Rica's adult population (18 or older) also speaks English, 0.7% French, and 0.3% speaks Portuguese or German as a second language.[125]

Culture

 
Las Carretas (oxcarts) are a national symbol.

Costa Rica was the point where the Mesoamerican and South American native cultures met. The northwest of the country, the Nicoya peninsula, was the southernmost point of Nahuatl cultural influence when the Spanish conquerors (conquistadores) came in the 16th century. The central and southern portions of the country had Chibcha influences. The Atlantic coast, meanwhile, was populated with African workers during the 17th and 18th centuries.

As a result of the immigration of Spaniards, their 16th-century Spanish culture and its evolution marked everyday life and culture until today, with the Spanish language and the Catholic religion as primary influences.

The Department of Culture, Youth, and Sports is in charge of the promotion and coordination of cultural life. The work of the department is divided into Direction of Culture, Visual Arts, Scenic Arts, Music, Patrimony, and the System of Libraries. Permanent programs, such as the National Symphony Orchestra of Costa Rica and the Youth Symphony Orchestra, are conjunctions of two areas of work: Culture and Youth.[citation needed]

Dance-oriented genres, such as soca, salsa, bachata, merengue, cumbia and Costa Rican swing are enjoyed increasingly by older rather than younger people. The guitar is popular, especially as an accompaniment to folk dances; however, the marimba was made the national instrument.

In November 2017, National Geographic magazine named Costa Rica as the happiest country in the world,[126] and the country routinely ranks high in various happiness metrics.[127] The article included this summary: "Costa Ricans enjoy the pleasure of living daily life to the fullest in a place that mitigates stress and maximizes joy".[128] It is not surprising then that one of the most recognizable phrases among "Ticos" is "Pura Vida", pure life in a literal translation. It reflects the inhabitant's philosophy of life,[129] denoting a simple life, free of stress, a positive, relaxed feeling.[130] The expression is used in various contexts in conversation.[131] Often, people walking down the streets, or buying food at shops say hello by saying Pura Vida. It can be phrased as a question or as an acknowledgement of one's presence. A recommended response to "How are you?" would be "Pura Vida."[132] In that usage, it might be translated as "awesome", indicating that all is very well.[131] When used as a question, the connotation would be "everything is going well?" or "how are you?".[129]

Costa Rica rates 12th on the 2017 Happy Planet Index in the World Happiness Report by the UN[133] but the country is said to be the happiest in Latin America. Reasons include the high level of social services, the caring nature of its inhabitants, long life expectancy and relatively low corruption.[134][135]

Cuisine

 
Costa Rican breakfast with gallo pinto

Costa Rican cuisine is a blend of Native American, Spanish, African, and many other cuisine origins. Dishes such as the very traditional tamale and many others made of corn are the most representative of its indigenous inhabitants, and similar to other neighboring Mesoamerican countries. Spaniards brought many new ingredients to the country from other lands, especially spices and domestic animals. And later in the 19th century, the African flavor lent its presence with influence from other Caribbean mixed flavors. This is how Costa Rican cuisine today is very varied, with every new ethnic group who had recently become part of the country's population influencing the country's cuisine.[136][unreliable source?]

Sports

 
Costa Rica supporters at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil

Costa Rica entered the Summer Olympics for the first time in 1936.[137] The sisters Silvia and Claudia Poll have won all four of the country's Olympic Medals for swimming; one Gold, one Silver, and two Bronze.[138][139][140]

Football is the most popular sport in Costa Rica. The national team has played in five FIFA World Cup tournaments and reached the quarter-finals for the first time in 2014.[141][142] Its best performance in the regional CONCACAF Gold Cup was runner-up in 2002. Paulo Wanchope, a forward who played for three clubs in England's Premier League in the late 1990s and early 2000s, is credited with enhancing foreign recognition of Costa Rican football.[143] Costa Rica, along with Panama, was granted the hosting rights of 2020 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup, which was postponed until 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[144][145] On 17 November 2020, FIFA announced that the event would be held in Costa Rica in 2022.[146]

As of late 2021, Costa Rica's women's national volleyball team has been the top team in Central America's AFECAVOL (Asociación de Federaciones CentroAmericanas de Voleibol) zone.[147] Costa Rica featured a women's national team in beach volleyball that competed at the 2018–2020 NORCECA Beach Volleyball Continental Cup.[148]

Education

 
The University of Costa Rica is the largest university of the country and one of the most recognizable across Central America

The literacy rate in Costa Rica is approximately 97 percent and English is widely spoken primarily due to Costa Rica's tourism industry.[67] When the army was abolished in 1949, it was said that the "army would be replaced with an army of teachers".[149] Universal public education is guaranteed in the constitution; primary education is obligatory, and both preschool and secondary school are free. Students who finish 11th grade receive a Costa Rican Bachillerato Diploma accredited by the Costa Rican Ministry of Education.

There are both state and private universities. The state-funded University of Costa Rica has been awarded the title "Meritorious Institution of Costa Rican Education and Culture" and hosts around 25,000 students who study at numerous campuses established around the country.

A 2016 report by the U.S. government report identifies the current challenges facing the education system, including the high dropout rate among secondary school students. The country needs even more workers who are fluent in English and languages such as Portuguese, Mandarin and French. It would also benefit from more graduates in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) programs, according to the report.[67] Costa Rica was ranked 56th in the Global Innovation Index in 2021, down from 55th in 2019.[150][151][152][153]

Health

 
Development of life expectancy in Costa Rica
 
Hospital Calderón Guardia, named after the president who instituted universal health care across the country in 1941

According to the UNDP, in 2010 the life expectancy at birth for Costa Ricans was 79.3 years.[154] The Nicoya Peninsula is considered one of the Blue Zones in the world, where people commonly live active lives past the age of 100 years.[155][156] The New Economics Foundation (NEF) ranked Costa Rica first in its 2009 Happy Planet Index, and once again in 2012. The index measures the health and happiness they produce per unit of environmental input.[157][158] According to NEF, Costa Rica's lead is due to its very high life expectancy which is second highest in the Americas, and higher than the United States. The country also experienced well-being higher than many richer nations and a per capita ecological footprint one-third the size of the United States.[159]

In 2002, there were 0.58 new general practitioner (medical) consultations and 0.33 new specialist consultations per capita, and a hospital admission rate of 8.1%. Preventive health care is also successful. In 2002, 96% of Costa Rican women used some form of contraception, and antenatal care services were provided to 87% of all pregnant women. All children under one have access to well-baby clinics, and the immunization coverage rate in 2020 was above 95% for all antigens.[160][161][162] Costa Rica has a very low malaria incidence of 48 per 100,000 in 2000 and no reported cases of measles in 2002. The perinatal mortality rate dropped from 12.0 per 1000 in 1972 to 5.4 per 1000 in 2001.[163]

 
Hospital CIMA in Escazú

Costa Rica has been cited as Central America's great health success story.[164] Its healthcare system is ranked higher than that of the United States, despite having a fraction of its GDP.[165] Prior to 1940, government hospitals and charities provided most health care. But since the 1941 creation of the Social Insurance Administration (Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social – CCSS), Costa Rica has provided universal health care to its wage-earning residents, with coverage extended to dependants over time. In 1973, the CCSS took over administration of all 29 of the country's public hospitals and all health care, also launching a Rural Health Program (Programa de Salud Rural) for primary care to rural areas, later extended to primary care services nationwide. In 1993, laws were passed to enable elected health boards that represented health consumers, social insurance representatives, employers, and social organizations. By 2000, social health insurance coverage was available to 82% of the Costa Rican population. Each health committee manages an area equivalent to one of the 83 administrative cantons of Costa Rica. There is limited use of private, for-profit services (around 14.4% of the national total health expenditure). About 7% of GDP is allocated to the health sector, and over 70% is government-funded.

Primary health care facilities in Costa Rica include health clinics, with a general practitioner, nurse, clerk, pharmacist, and a primary health technician. In 2008, there were five specialty national hospitals, three general national hospitals, seven regional hospitals, 13 peripheral hospitals, and 10 major clinics serving as referral centers for primary care clinics, which also deliver biopsychosocial services, family and community medical services, and promotion and prevention programs. Patients can choose private health care to avoid waiting lists.[citation needed]

Costa Rica is among the Latin America countries that have become popular destinations for medical tourism.[166][167] In 2006, Costa Rica received 150,000 foreigners that came for medical treatment.[166][167][168] Costa Rica is particularly attractive to Americans due to geographic proximity, high quality of medical services, and lower medical costs.[167]

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  1. ^ Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Panama

Further reading

  • Blake, Beatrice. The New Key to Costa Rica (Berkeley: Ulysses Press, 2009).
  • Chase, Cida S. "Costa Rican Americans". Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America, edited by Thomas Riggs, (3rd ed., vol. 1, Gale, 2014), pp. 543–551. online
  • Edelman, Marc. Peasants Against Globalization: Rural Social Movements in Costa Rica. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1999.
  • Eisenberg, Daniel (1985). "In Costa Rica". Journal of Hispanic Philology. Vol. 10. pp. 1–6.
  • Huhn, Sebastian: , 2009.
  • Keller, Marius; Niestroy, Ingeborg; García Schmidt, Armando; Esche, Andreas. "Costa Rica: Pioneering Sustainability". Excerpt (pp. 81–102) from Bertelsmann Stiftung (ed.). Winning Strategies for a Sustainable Future. Gütersloh, Germany: Verlag Bertelsmann Stiftung, 2013.
  • Lara, Sylvia Lara, Tom Barry, and Peter Simonson. Inside Costa Rica: The Essential Guide to Its Politics, Economy, Society and Environment. London: Latin America Bureau, 1995.
  • Lehoucq, Fabrice E. and Ivan Molina. Stuffing the Ballot Box: Fraud, Electoral Reform, and Democratization in Costa Rica. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002.
  • Lehoucq, Fabrice E. , 2006.
  • Longley, Kyle. Sparrow and the Hawk: Costa Rica and the United States during the Rise of José Figueres. (University of Alabama Press, 1997).
  • Mount, Graeme S. "Costa Rica and the Cold War, 1948–1990". Canadian Journal of History 50.2 (2015): 290–316.
  • Palmer, Steven and Iván Molina. The Costa Rica Reader: History, Culture, Politics. Durham and London: Duke University Press, 2004.
  • Sandoval, Carlos. Threatening Others: Nicaraguans and the Formation of National Identities in Costa Rica. Athens: Ohio University Press, 2004.
  • Wilson, Bruce M. Costa Rica: Politics, Economics, and Democracy: Politics, Economics, and Democracy. Boulder, London: Lynne Rienner Publishers, 1998.

External links

Government and administration
  • Official website of the government of Costa Rica (in Spanish)
Trade
  • World Bank Summary Trade Statistics Costa Rica

costa, rica, cities, other, countries, sinaloa, mato, grosso, other, uses, disambiguation, coordinates, listen, spanish, ˈkosta, ˈrika, literally, rich, coast, officially, republic, spanish, república, country, central, american, region, north, america, border. For cities in other countries see Costa Rica Sinaloa and Costa Rica Mato Grosso do Sul For other uses see Costa Rica disambiguation Coordinates 10 N 84 W 10 N 84 W 10 84 Costa Rica UK ˌ k ɒ s t e ˈ r iː k e US ˌ k oʊ s t e listen Spanish ˈkosta ˈrika literally Rich Coast officially the Republic of Costa Rica Spanish Republica de Costa Rica is a country in the Central American region of North America bordered by Nicaragua to the north the Caribbean Sea to the northeast Panama to the southeast the Pacific Ocean to the southwest and maritime border with Ecuador to the south of Cocos Island It has a population of around five million 10 11 in a land area of 51 060 km2 19 710 sq mi An estimated 333 980 people live in the capital and largest city San Jose with around two million people in the surrounding metropolitan area 12 Republic of Costa RicaRepublica de Costa Rica Spanish Flag Coat of armsAnthem Himno Nacional de Costa Rica Spanish National Anthem of Costa Rica source source track track track track track Capitaland largest citySan Jose9 56 N 84 5 W 9 933 N 84 083 W 9 933 84 083Official languagesSpanishRecognized regional languagesMekatelyuBribriPatoisEthnic groups 2011 2 83 6 White or Mestizo6 7 Mulatto mixed Black and White 2 4 Indigenous1 1 Black6 2 Others 1 Religion 2021 4 72 6 Christianity 47 5 Roman Catholic official 3 22 5 Protestant 2 6 Other Christian27 0 No religion0 4 OthersDemonym s Costa RicanTico a GovernmentUnitary presidential republic PresidentRodrigo Chaves 1st Vice PresidentStephan Brunner 2nd Vice PresidentMary MuniveLegislatureLegislative AssemblyIndependence declared from Spain15 September 1821 from First Mexican Empire1 July 1823 from the FederalRepublic ofCentral America14 November 1838 Recognized by Spain10 May 1850 Constitution7 November 1949 2 Area Total51 100 km2 19 700 sq mi 126th Water 1 05 as of 2015 5 Population 2022 estimate5 204 411 6 124th Density220 sq mi 84 9 km2 107th GDP PPP 2022 estimate Total 129 95 billion 7 90th Per capita 24 837 7 66th GDP nominal 2022 estimate Total 68 489 billion 7 85th Per capita 13 090 7 64th Gini 2020 49 7 8 highHDI 2021 0 809 9 very high 58thCurrencyCosta Rican colon CRC Time zoneUTC 6 CST Driving siderightCalling code 506ISO 3166 codeCRInternet TLD cr co crThe sovereign state is a unitary presidential constitutional republic It has a long standing and stable democracy and a highly educated workforce 13 The country spends roughly 6 9 of its budget 2016 on education compared to a global average of 4 4 13 Its economy once heavily dependent on agriculture has diversified to include sectors such as finance corporate services for foreign companies pharmaceuticals and ecotourism Many foreign manufacturing and services companies operate in Costa Rica s Free Trade Zones FTZ where they benefit from investment and tax incentives 14 Costa Rica was inhabited by indigenous peoples before coming under Spanish rule in the 16th century It remained a peripheral colony of the empire until independence as part of the First Mexican Empire followed by membership in the Federal Republic of Central America from which it formally declared independence in 1847 Following the brief Costa Rican Civil War in 1948 it permanently abolished its army in 1949 becoming one of only a few sovereign nations without a standing army 15 16 17 The country has consistently performed favorably in the Human Development Index HDI placing 62nd in the world as of 2020 update and fifth in Latin America 18 It has also been cited by the United Nations Development Programme UNDP as having attained much higher human development than other countries at the same income levels with a better record on human development and inequality than the median of the region 19 It also performs well in comparisons of the state of democracy press freedom and subjective happiness It has the 7th freest press according to the Press Freedom Index it is the 37th most democratic country according to the Freedom in the World index and it is the 12th happiest country in the World Happiness Report Contents 1 History 1 1 Pre Columbian period 1 2 Spanish colonization 1 3 Independence 1 4 Economic growth in the 19th century 1 4 1 20th century 2 Geography 2 1 Climate 2 2 Flora and fauna 3 Economy 3 1 Trade and foreign investment 3 2 Tourism 4 Government and politics 4 1 Administrative divisions 4 2 Foreign relations 4 3 Pacifism 4 4 Environmentalism 5 Demographics 5 1 Largest cities 5 2 Religion 5 3 Languages 6 Culture 6 1 Cuisine 6 2 Sports 7 Education 8 Health 9 See also 10 References 11 Further reading 12 External linksHistoryMain article History of Costa Rica A stone sphere created by the Diquis culture at the National Museum of Costa Rica The sphere is the icon of the country s cultural identity Pre Columbian period Main article Pre Columbian history of Costa Rica Historians have classified the indigenous people of Costa Rica as belonging to the Intermediate Area where the peripheries of the Mesoamerican and Andean native cultures overlapped More recently pre Columbian Costa Rica has also been described as part of the Isthmo Colombian Area Stone tools the oldest evidence of human occupation in Costa Rica are associated with the arrival of various groups of hunter gatherers about 10 000 to 7 000 years BCE in the Turrialba Valley The presence of Clovis culture type spearheads and arrows from South America opens the possibility that in this area two different cultures coexisted 20 Agriculture became evident in the populations that lived in Costa Rica about 5 000 years ago They mainly grew tubers and roots For the first and second millennia BCE there were already settled farming communities These were small and scattered although the timing of the transition from hunting and gathering to agriculture as the main livelihood in the territory is still unknown 21 The earliest use of pottery appears around 2 000 to 3 000 BCE Shards of pots cylindrical vases platters gourds and other forms of vases decorated with grooves prints and some modeled after animals have been found 22 The impact of indigenous peoples on modern Costa Rican culture has been relatively small compared to other nations since the country lacked a strong native civilization to begin with Most of the native population was absorbed into the Spanish speaking colonial society through inter marriage except for some small remnants the most significant of which are the Bribri and Boruca tribes who still inhabit the mountains of the Cordillera de Talamanca in the southeastern part of Costa Rica near the frontier with Panama Spanish colonization The name la costa rica meaning rich coast in the Spanish language was in some accounts first applied by Christopher Columbus who sailed to the eastern shores of Costa Rica during his final voyage in 1502 23 and reported vast quantities of gold jewelry worn by natives 24 The name may also have come from conquistador Gil Gonzalez Davila who landed on the west coast in 1522 encountered natives and obtained some of their gold sometimes by violent theft and sometimes as gifts from local leaders 25 The Ujarras historical site in the Orosi Valley Cartago province The church was built between 1686 and 1693 During most of the colonial period Costa Rica was the southernmost province of the Captaincy General of Guatemala nominally part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain In practice the captaincy general was a largely autonomous entity within the Spanish Empire Costa Rica s distance from the capital of the captaincy in Guatemala its legal prohibition under mercantilist Spanish law from trade with its southern neighbor Panama then part of the Viceroyalty of New Granada i e Colombia and lack of resources such as gold and silver made Costa Rica into a poor isolated and sparsely inhabited region within the Spanish Empire 26 Costa Rica was described as the poorest and most miserable Spanish colony in all America by a Spanish governor in 1719 27 Another important factor behind Costa Rica s poverty was the lack of a significant indigenous population available for encomienda forced labor which meant most of the Costa Rican settlers had to work on their land preventing the establishment of large haciendas plantations For all these reasons Costa Rica was by and large unappreciated and overlooked by the Spanish Crown and left to develop on its own The circumstances during this period are believed to have led to many of the idiosyncrasies for which Costa Rica has become known while concomitantly setting the stage for Costa Rica s development as a more egalitarian society than the rest of its neighbors Costa Rica became a rural democracy with no oppressed mestizo or indigenous class It was not long before Spanish settlers turned to the hills where they found rich volcanic soil and a milder climate than that of the lowlands 28 Independence See also Free State of Costa Rica and First Costa Rican Republic Like the rest of Central America Costa Rica never fought for independence from Spain On 15 September 1821 after the final Spanish defeat in the Mexican War of Independence 1810 1821 the authorities in Guatemala declared the independence of all of Central America That date is still celebrated as Independence Day in Costa Rica 29 even though technically under the Spanish Constitution of 1812 that had been readopted in 1820 Nicaragua and Costa Rica had become an autonomous province with its capital in Leon Upon independence Costa Rican authorities faced the issue of officially deciding the future of the country Two bands formed the Imperialists defended by Cartago and Heredia cities which were in favor of joining the Mexican Empire and the Republicans represented by the cities of San Jose and Alajuela who defended full independence Because of the lack of agreement on these two possible outcomes the first civil war of Costa Rica occurred The Battle of Ochomogo took place on the Hill of Ochomogo located in the Central Valley in 1823 The conflict was won by the Republicans and as a consequence the city of Cartago lost its status as the capital which moved to San Jose 30 31 32 The 1849 national coat of arms was featured in the first postal stamp issued in 1862 In 1838 long after the Federal Republic of Central America ceased to function in practice Costa Rica formally withdrew and proclaimed itself sovereign The considerable distance and poor communication routes between Guatemala City and the Central Plateau where most of the Costa Rican population lived then and still lives now meant the local population had little allegiance to the federal government in Guatemala Since colonial times Costa Rica has been reluctant to become economically tied with the rest of Central America Even today despite most of its neighbors a efforts to increase regional integration 33 Costa Rica has remained more independent Until 1849 when it became part of Panama Chiriqui was part of Costa Rica Costa Rican pride was assuaged for the loss of this eastern or southern territory with the acquisition of Guanacaste in the north Economic growth in the 19th century See also Liberal State Coffee was first planted in Costa Rica in 1808 34 and by the 1820s it surpassed tobacco sugar and cacao as a primary export Coffee production remained Costa Rica s principal source of wealth well into the 20th century creating a wealthy class of growers the so called Coffee Barons 35 The revenue helped to modernize the country 36 37 Most of the coffee exported was grown around the main centers of population in the Central Plateau and then transported by oxcart to the Pacific port of Puntarenas after the main road was built in 1846 37 By the mid 1850s the main market for coffee was Britain 38 It soon became a high priority to developing an effective transportation route from the Central Plateau to the Atlantic Ocean For this purpose in the 1870s the Costa Rican government contracted with U S businessman Minor C Keith to build a railroad from San Jose to the Caribbean port of Limon Despite enormous difficulties with construction disease and financing the railroad was completed in 1890 39 Most Afro Costa Ricans descend from Jamaican immigrants who worked in the construction of that railway and now make up about 3 of Costa Rica s population citation needed U S convicts Italians and Chinese immigrants also participated in the construction project In exchange for completing the railroad the Costa Rican government granted Keith large tracts of land and a lease on the train route which he used to produce bananas and export them to the United States As a result bananas came to rival coffee as the principal Costa Rican export while foreign owned corporations including the United Fruit Company later began to hold a major role in the national economy and eventually became a symbol of the exploitative export economy 40 The major labor dispute between the peasants and the United Fruit Company The Great Banana Strike was a major event in the country s history and was an important step that would eventually lead to the formation of effective trade unions in Costa Rica as the company was required to sign a collective agreement with its workers in 1938 41 42 20th century See also Reform State Historically Costa Rica has generally enjoyed greater peace and more consistent political stability than many of its fellow Latin American nations Since the late 19th century however Costa Rica has experienced two significant periods of violence In 1917 1919 General Federico Tinoco Granados ruled as a military dictator until he was overthrown and forced into exile The unpopularity of Tinoco s regime led after he was overthrown to a considerable decline in the size wealth and political influence of the Costa Rican military In 1948 Jose Figueres Ferrer led an armed uprising in the wake of a disputed presidential election between Rafael Angel Calderon Guardia who had been president between 1940 and 1944 and Otilio Ulate Blanco 43 With more than 2 000 dead the resulting 44 day Costa Rican Civil War was the bloodiest event in Costa Rica during the 20th century The victorious rebels formed a government junta that abolished the military altogether and oversaw the drafting of a new constitution by a democratically elected assembly 44 Having enacted these reforms the junta transferred power to Ulate on 8 November 1949 After the coup d etat Figueres became a national hero winning the country s first democratic election under the new constitution in 1953 Since then Costa Rica has held 15 additional presidential elections the latest in 2022 With uninterrupted democracy dating back to at least 1948 the country is the region s most stable 45 46 GeographyMain article Geography of Costa Rica Costa Rica map of Koppen climate classification Costa Rica borders the Caribbean Sea to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west Costa Rica also borders Nicaragua to the north and Panama to the south The highest point in the country is Cerro Chirripo at 3 819 metres 12 530 ft The highest volcano in the country is the Irazu Volcano 3 431 m or 11 257 ft and the largest lake is Lake Arenal There are 14 known volcanoes in Costa Rica and six of them have been active in the last 75 years 47 Climate Costa Rica experiences a tropical climate year round There are two seasons The dry season is December to April and the rainy season is May to November Flora and fauna Red eyed tree frog Agalychnis callidryas There is a rich variety of plants and Costa Rican wildlife One national park the Corcovado National Park is internationally renowned among ecologists for its biodiversity including big cats and tapirs and is where visitors can expect to see an abundance of wildlife 48 49 Corcovado is the one park in Costa Rica where all four Costa Rican monkey species can be found 50 These include the white headed capuchin the mantled howler the endangered Geoffroy s spider monkey 50 51 and the Central American squirrel monkey found only on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica and a small part of Panama and considered endangered until 2008 when its status was upgraded to vulnerable Deforestation illegal pet trading and hunting are the main reasons for its threatened status 52 Costa Rica is the first tropical country to have stopped and reversed deforestation it has successfully restored its forestry and developed an ecosystem service to teach biologists and ecologists about its environmental protection measures 53 The country had a 2018 Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 4 65 10 ranking it 118th globally out of 172 countries 54 EconomyMain article Economy of Costa Rica This section needs to be updated Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information September 2019 Real GDP per capita development in Costa Rica An Intel microprocessor facility in Costa Rica that was at one time responsible for 20 of Costa Rican exports and 5 of the country s GDP A proportional representation of Costa Rica s exports 2019 The country has been considered economically stable with moderate inflation estimated at 2 6 in 2017 55 and moderately high growth in GDP which increased from US 41 3 billion in 2011 to US 52 6 billion in 2015 56 The estimated GDP for 2018 is US 59 0 billion and the estimated GDP per capita purchasing power parity is Intl 17 559 1 55 The growing debt and budget deficit are the country s primary concerns 57 A 2017 study by the Organisation for Economic Co operation and Development warned that reducing the foreign debt must be a very high priority for the government Other fiscal reforms were also recommended to moderate the budget deficit 58 Many foreign companies manufacturing and services operate in Costa Rica s Free Trade Zones FTZ where they benefit from investment and tax incentives 14 Well over half of that type of investment has come from the U S 59 According to the government the zones supported over 82 000 direct jobs and 43 000 indirect jobs in 2015 60 Companies with facilities in the America Free Zone in Heredia for example include Intel Dell HP Bayer Bosch DHL IBM and Okay Industries 61 62 Of the GDP 5 5 is generated by agriculture 18 6 by industry and 75 9 by services 2016 55 Agriculture employs 12 9 of the labor force industry 18 57 services 69 02 2016 63 For the region its unemployment level is moderately high 8 2 in 2016 according to the IMF 55 Although 20 5 of the population lives below the poverty line 2017 64 Costa Rica has one of the highest standards of living in Central America 65 High quality health care is provided by the government at a low cost to the users 66 Housing is also very affordable Costa Rica is recognized in Latin America for the quality of its educational system Because of its educational system Costa Rica has one of the highest literacy rates in Latin America 97 67 General Basic Education is mandatory and provided without cost to the user 68 A US government report confirms that the country has historically placed a high priority on education and the creation of a skilled workforce but notes that the high school drop out rate is increasing As well Costa Rica would benefit from more courses in languages such as English Portuguese Mandarin and French and also in Science Technology Engineering and Math STEM 67 Trade and foreign investment Countries in blue which have signed Free Trade Agreements with Costa Rica Costa Rica has free trade agreements with many countries including the US There are no significant trade barriers that would affect imports and the country has been lowering its tariffs by other Central American countries 69 The country s Free Trade Zones provide incentives for manufacturing and service industries to operate in Costa Rica In 2015 the zones supported over 82 thousand direct jobs and 43 thousand indirect jobs in 2015 and average wages in the FTZ were 1 8 times greater than the average for private enterprise work in the rest of the country 60 In 2016 Amazon com for example had some 3 500 employees in Costa Rica and planned to increase that by 1 500 in 2017 making it an important employer 13 The central location provides access to American markets and direct ocean access to Europe and Asia The most important exports in 2015 in order of dollar value were medical instruments bananas tropical fruits integrated circuits and orthopedic appliances 70 Total imports in that year were US 15 billion The most significant products imported in 2015 in order of dollar value were refined petroleum automobiles packaged medications broadcasting equipment and computers The total exports were US 12 6 billion for a trade deficit of US 2 39 billion in 2015 70 A coffee plantation in the Orosi Valley Pharmaceuticals financial outsourcing software development and ecotourism have become the prime industries in Costa Rica s economy High levels of education among its residents make the country an attractive investing location Since 1999 tourism earns more foreign exchange than the combined exports of the country s three main cash crops bananas and pineapples especially 71 but also other crops including coffee 72 Coffee production played a key role in Costa Rica s history and in 2006 was the third cash crop export 72 As a small country Costa Rica now provides under 1 of the world s coffee production 37 In 2015 the value of coffee exports was US 305 9 million a small part of the total agricultural exports of US 2 7 billion 71 Coffee production increased by 13 7 percent in 2015 16 declined by 17 5 in 2016 17 but was expected to increase by about 15 in the subsequent year 73 Costa Rica has developed a system of payments for environmental services 74 Similarly Costa Rica has a tax on water pollution to penalize businesses and homeowners that dump sewage agricultural chemicals and other pollutants into waterways 75 In May 2007 the Costa Rican government announced its intentions to become 100 carbon neutral by 2021 76 By 2015 93 percent of the country s electricity came from renewable sources 77 In 2019 the country produced 99 62 of its electricity from renewable sources and ran completely on renewable sources for 300 continuous days 78 An industrial park in Heredia In 1996 the Forest Law was enacted to provide direct financial incentives to landowners for the provision of environmental services 74 This helped reorient the forestry sector away from commercial timber production and the resulting deforestation and helped create awareness of the services it provides for the economy and society i e carbon fixation hydrological services such as producing fresh drinking water biodiversity protection and provision of scenic beauty 74 A 2016 report by the U S government report identifies other challenges facing Costa Rica as it works to expand its economy by working with companies from the US and probably from other countries 67 The major concerns identified were as follows The ports roads railways and water delivery systems would benefit from major upgrading a concern voiced by other reports too 79 Attempts by China to invest in upgrading such aspects were stalled by bureaucratic and legal concerns The bureaucracy is often slow and cumbersome Poas Volcano Crater is one of the country s main tourist attractions Tourism Main article Tourism in Costa Rica See also List of airports in Costa Rica Costa Rica is the most visited nation in the Central American region 80 with 2 9 million foreign visitors in 2016 up 10 from 2015 81 In 2015 the tourism sector was responsible for 5 8 of the country s GDP or 3 4 billion 82 In 2016 the highest number of tourists came from the United States with 1 000 000 visitors followed by Europe with 434 884 arrivals 83 According to Costa Rica Vacations once tourists arrive in the country 22 go to Tamarindo 18 go to Arenal 17 pass through Liberia where the Daniel Oduber Quiros International Airport is located 16 go to San Jose the country s capital passing through Juan Santamaria International Airport while 18 choose Manuel Antonio and 7 Monteverde 84 By 2004 tourism was generating more revenue and foreign exchange than bananas and coffee combined 72 85 In 2016 the World Travel amp Tourism Council s estimates indicated a direct contribution to the GDP of 5 1 and 110 000 direct jobs in Costa Rica the total number of jobs indirectly supported by tourism was 271 000 86 A pioneer of ecotourism Costa Rica draws many tourists to its extensive series of national parks and other protected areas 87 The trail Camino de Costa Rica supports this by allowing travelers to walk across the country from the Atlantic to the Pacific coast In the 2011 Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index Costa Rica ranked 44th in the world and second among Latin American countries after Mexico in 2011 88 By the time of the 2017 report the country had reached 38th place slightly behind Panama 89 The Ethical Traveler group s ten countries on their 2017 list of The World s Ten Best Ethical Destinations includes Costa Rica The country scored highest in environmental protection among the winners 90 Costa Rica began reversing deforestation in the 1990s and they are moving towards using only renewable energy 91 Provinces 1 Alajuela2 Cartago 3 Guanacaste 4 Heredia 5 Limon 6 Puntarenas 7 San JoseGovernment and politicsMain article Politics of Costa Rica Administrative divisions Main article Administrative divisions of Costa RicaCosta Rica is composed of seven provinces which in turn are divided into 82 cantons Spanish canton plural cantones each of which is directed by a mayor Mayors are chosen democratically every four years by each canton There are no provincial legislatures The cantons are further divided into 488 districts distritos Barack Obama and Laura Chinchilla with Costa Rican children in San Jose Foreign relations Main article Foreign relations of Costa Rica Costa Rica is an active member of the United Nations and the Organization of American States The Inter American Court of Human Rights and the United Nations University of Peace are based in Costa Rica It is also a member of many other international organizations related to human rights and democracy such as the Community of Democracies The main foreign policy objective of Costa Rica is to foster human rights and sustainable development as a way to secure stability and growth 92 The extent of Costa Rica s western EEZ in the Pacific Symbolic act of Costa Rica s army abolition by president Jose Figueres Ferrer on December 1 1948 at Cuartel Bellavista former army headquarters site which now hosts the National Museum Costa Rica is a member of the International Criminal Court without a Bilateral Immunity Agreement of protection for the United States military as covered under Article 98 Costa Rica is an observer of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie On 10 September 1961 some months after Fidel Castro declared Cuba a socialist state Costa Rican President Mario Echandi ended diplomatic relations with Cuba through Executive Decree Number 2 This freeze lasted 47 years until President oscar Arias Sanchez re established normal relations on 18 March 2009 saying If we have been able to turn the page with regimes as profoundly different to our reality as occurred with the USSR or more recently with the Republic of China how would we not do it with a country that is geographically and culturally much nearer to Costa Rica Arias announced that both countries would exchange ambassadors 93 Costa Rica has a long term disagreement with Nicaragua over the San Juan River which defines the border between the two countries and Costa Rica s rights of navigation on the river 94 In 2010 there was also a dispute around Isla Calero and the impact of Nicaraguan dredging of the river in that area 95 On 14 July 2009 the International Court of Justice in the Hague upheld Costa Rica s navigation rights for commercial purposes to subsistence fishing on their side of the river An 1858 treaty extended navigation rights to Costa Rica but Nicaragua denied passenger travel and fishing were part of the deal the court ruled Costa Ricans on the river were not required to have Nicaraguan tourist cards or visas as Nicaragua argued but in a nod to the Nicaraguans ruled that Costa Rican boats and passengers must stop at the first and last Nicaraguan port along their route They must also have an identity document or passport Nicaragua can also impose timetables on Costa Rican traffic Nicaragua may require Costa Rican boats to display the flag of Nicaragua but may not charge them for departure clearance from its ports These were all specific items of contention brought to the court in the 2005 filing 96 On 1 June 2007 Costa Rica broke diplomatic ties with Taiwan switching recognition to the People s Republic of China Costa Rica was the first of the Central American nations to do so President oscar Arias Sanchez admitted the action was a response to economic exigency 97 In response the PRC built a new 100 million state of the art football stadium in Parque la Sabana in the province of San Jose Approximately 600 Chinese engineers and laborers took part in this project and it was inaugurated in March 2011 with a match between the national teams of Costa Rica and China Costa Rica finished a term on the United Nations Security Council having been elected for a nonrenewable two year term in the 2007 election Its term expired on 31 December 2009 this was Costa Rica s third time on the Security Council Elayne Whyte Gomez is the Permanent Representative of Costa Rica to the UN Office at Geneva 2017 and President of the United Nations Conference to Negotiate a Legally Binding Instrument to Prohibit Nuclear Weapons 98 Pacifism On 1 December 1948 Costa Rica abolished its military force 45 In 1949 the abolition of the military was introduced in Article 12 of the Costa Rican Constitution The budget previously dedicated to the military is now dedicated to providing health care services and education 44 99 According to Deutsche Welle Costa Rica is known for its stable democracy progressive social policies such as free compulsory public education high social well being and emphasis on environmental protection 46 For law enforcement Costa Rica has the Public Force of Costa Rica police agency In 2017 Costa Rica signed the UN treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons 100 101 Environmentalism In 2021 Costa Rica with Denmark launched the Beyond Oil and Gas alliance BOGA for stopping the use of fossil fuels 102 The BOGA campaign was presented in the COP26 Climate Summit where Sweden joined as a core member while New Zealand and Portugal joined as associate members 103 DemographicsMain article Demographics of Costa Rica Costa Rican Censuses Year Population 1864 120 499 1883 182 073 51 11892 243 205 33 61927 471 524 93 91950 800 875 69 81963 1 336 274 66 91973 1 871 780 40 11984 2 416 809 29 12000 3 810 179 57 72011 4 301 712 12 9The 2011 census counted a population of 4 3 million people 104 distributed among the following groups 83 6 whites or mestizos 6 7 mulattoes 2 4 Native American 1 1 black or Afro Caribbean the census showed 1 1 as Other 2 9 141 304 people as None and 2 2 107 196 people as unspecified 1 By 2016 the UN estimation for the population was around 5 2 million 10 11 Costa Rica population pyramid in 2021 In 2011 there were over 104 000 Native American or indigenous inhabitants representing 2 4 of the population Most of them live in secluded reservations distributed among eight ethnic groups Quitirrisi in the Central Valley Matambu or Chorotega Guanacaste Maleku northern Alajuela Bribri southern Atlantic Cabecar Cordillera de Talamanca Guaymi southern Costa Rica along the Panama border Boruca southern Costa Rica and Terraba es southern Costa Rica The population includes European Costa Ricans of European ancestry primarily of Spanish descent 2 with significant numbers of Italian German English Dutch French Irish Portuguese and Polish families as well a sizable Jewish community The majority of the Afro Costa Ricans are Creole English speaking descendants of 19th century black Jamaican immigrant workers 105 106 The 2011 census classified 83 6 of the population as white or Mestizo the latter are persons of combined European and Amerindian descent The Mulatto segment mix of white and black represented 6 7 and indigenous people made up 2 4 of the population 2 Native and European mixed blood populations are far less than in other Latin American countries Exceptions are Guanacaste where almost half the population is visibly mestizo a legacy of the more pervasive unions between Spanish colonists and Chorotega Amerindians through several generations and Limon where the vast majority of the Afro Costa Rican community lives Costa Rica hosts many refugees mainly from Colombia and Nicaragua As a result of that and illegal immigration an estimated 10 15 400 000 600 000 of the Costa Rican population is made up of Nicaraguans 107 108 Some Nicaraguans migrate for seasonal work opportunities and then return to their country Costa Rica took in many refugees from a range of other Latin American countries fleeing civil wars and dictatorships during the 1970s and 1980s notably from Chile and Argentina as well as people from El Salvador who fled from guerrillas and government death squads 109 Costa Rican school childrenAccording to the World Bank in 2010 about 489 200 immigrants lived in the country many from Nicaragua Panama El Salvador Honduras Guatemala and Belize while 125 306 Costa Ricans live abroad in the United States Panama Nicaragua Spain Mexico Canada Germany Venezuela Dominican Republic and Ecuador 110 The number of migrants declined in later years but in 2015 there were some 420 000 immigrants in Costa Rica 111 and the number of asylum seekers mostly from Honduras El Salvador Guatemala and Nicaragua rose to more than 110 000 a fivefold increase from 2012 112 In 2016 the country was called a magnet for migrants from South and Central America and other countries who were hoping to reach the U S 113 114 Largest cities Further information Cantons of Costa Rica Largest cities or towns in Costa Rica Census 2011 citation needed Rank Name Province Pop San Jose Cartago 1 San Jose San Jose 342 188 Heredia2 Cartago Cartago 151 7443 Heredia Heredia 128 5504 Puntarenas Puntarenas 122 3355 Limon Limon 96 3146 Liberia Guanacaste 64 7977 San Isidro de El General San Jose 45 7738 Alajuela Alajuela 42 9759 Quesada Alajuela 42 06010 Desamparados San Jose 36 794 Religion Main article Religion in Costa Rica Religion in Costa Rica CIEP 2018 4 Catholicism 52 Protestantism 25 No religion 17 Other religions 3 No answer 3 Basilica de Nuestra Senora de los Angeles Basilica of Our Lady of the Angels Cartago during the 2007 pilgrimage Most Costa Ricans identify with a Christian religion with Catholicism being the one with the largest number of members and also the official state religion according to the 1949 Constitution which at the same time guarantees freedom of religion Costa Rica is the only modern state in the Americas which currently has Catholicism as its state religion other countries with state religions Catholic Lutheran Anglican Orthodox are in Europe Liechtenstein Monaco the Vatican City Malta Norway United Kingdom Denmark Iceland and Greece 115 The Latinobarometro survey of 2017 found that 57 of the population identify themselves as Roman Catholics 25 are Evangelical Protestants 15 report that they do not have a religion and 2 declare that they belong to another religion 116 This survey indicated a decline in the share of Catholics and rise in the share of Protestants and irreligious 116 A University of Costa Rica survey of 2018 show similar rates 52 Catholics 22 Protestants 17 irreligious and 3 other 4 The rate of secularism is high by Latin American standards Due to small but continuous immigration from Asia and the Middle East other religions have grown the most popular being Buddhism with about 100 000 practitioners over 2 of the population 117 Most Buddhists are members of the Han Chinese community of about 40 000 with some new local converts There is also a small Muslim community of about 500 families or 0 001 of the population 118 The Sinagoga Shaarei Zion synagogue 119 is near La Sabana Metropolitan Park in San Jose Several homes in the neighborhood east of the park display the Star of David and other Jewish symbols 120 The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints claims more than 35 000 members and has a temple in San Jose that served as a regional worship center for Costa Rica 121 However they represent less than 1 of the population 122 123 Languages Main article Languages of Costa Rica The primary language spoken in Costa Rica is Spanish which features characteristics distinct to the country a form of Central American Spanish Costa Rica is a linguistically diverse country and home to at least five living local indigenous languages spoken by the descendants of pre Columbian peoples Maleku Cabecar Bribri Guaymi and Buglere Of native languages still spoken primarily in indigenous reservations the most numerically important are the Bribri Maleku Cabecar and Ngabere languages some of these have several thousand speakers in Costa Rica while others have a few hundred Some languages such as Teribe and Boruca have fewer than a thousand speakers The Buglere language and the closely related Guaymi are spoken by some in southeast Puntarenas 124 A Creole English language Jamaican patois also known as Mekatelyu is an English based Creole language spoken by the Afro Carib immigrants who have settled primarily in Limon Province along the Caribbean coast 124 About 10 7 of Costa Rica s adult population 18 or older also speaks English 0 7 French and 0 3 speaks Portuguese or German as a second language 125 CultureMain article Culture of Costa Rica Las Carretas oxcarts are a national symbol Costa Rica was the point where the Mesoamerican and South American native cultures met The northwest of the country the Nicoya peninsula was the southernmost point of Nahuatl cultural influence when the Spanish conquerors conquistadores came in the 16th century The central and southern portions of the country had Chibcha influences The Atlantic coast meanwhile was populated with African workers during the 17th and 18th centuries As a result of the immigration of Spaniards their 16th century Spanish culture and its evolution marked everyday life and culture until today with the Spanish language and the Catholic religion as primary influences The Department of Culture Youth and Sports is in charge of the promotion and coordination of cultural life The work of the department is divided into Direction of Culture Visual Arts Scenic Arts Music Patrimony and the System of Libraries Permanent programs such as the National Symphony Orchestra of Costa Rica and the Youth Symphony Orchestra are conjunctions of two areas of work Culture and Youth citation needed Dance oriented genres such as soca salsa bachata merengue cumbia and Costa Rican swing are enjoyed increasingly by older rather than younger people The guitar is popular especially as an accompaniment to folk dances however the marimba was made the national instrument In November 2017 National Geographic magazine named Costa Rica as the happiest country in the world 126 and the country routinely ranks high in various happiness metrics 127 The article included this summary Costa Ricans enjoy the pleasure of living daily life to the fullest in a place that mitigates stress and maximizes joy 128 It is not surprising then that one of the most recognizable phrases among Ticos is Pura Vida pure life in a literal translation It reflects the inhabitant s philosophy of life 129 denoting a simple life free of stress a positive relaxed feeling 130 The expression is used in various contexts in conversation 131 Often people walking down the streets or buying food at shops say hello by saying Pura Vida It can be phrased as a question or as an acknowledgement of one s presence A recommended response to How are you would be Pura Vida 132 In that usage it might be translated as awesome indicating that all is very well 131 When used as a question the connotation would be everything is going well or how are you 129 Costa Rica rates 12th on the 2017 Happy Planet Index in the World Happiness Report by the UN 133 but the country is said to be the happiest in Latin America Reasons include the high level of social services the caring nature of its inhabitants long life expectancy and relatively low corruption 134 135 Cuisine Further information Costa Rican cuisine Costa Rican breakfast with gallo pinto Costa Rican cuisine is a blend of Native American Spanish African and many other cuisine origins Dishes such as the very traditional tamale and many others made of corn are the most representative of its indigenous inhabitants and similar to other neighboring Mesoamerican countries Spaniards brought many new ingredients to the country from other lands especially spices and domestic animals And later in the 19th century the African flavor lent its presence with influence from other Caribbean mixed flavors This is how Costa Rican cuisine today is very varied with every new ethnic group who had recently become part of the country s population influencing the country s cuisine 136 unreliable source Sports Main articles Costa Rica at the Olympics and Football in Costa Rica Costa Rica supporters at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil Costa Rica entered the Summer Olympics for the first time in 1936 137 The sisters Silvia and Claudia Poll have won all four of the country s Olympic Medals for swimming one Gold one Silver and two Bronze 138 139 140 Football is the most popular sport in Costa Rica The national team has played in five FIFA World Cup tournaments and reached the quarter finals for the first time in 2014 141 142 Its best performance in the regional CONCACAF Gold Cup was runner up in 2002 Paulo Wanchope a forward who played for three clubs in England s Premier League in the late 1990s and early 2000s is credited with enhancing foreign recognition of Costa Rican football 143 Costa Rica along with Panama was granted the hosting rights of 2020 FIFA U 20 Women s World Cup which was postponed until 2021 due to the COVID 19 pandemic 144 145 On 17 November 2020 FIFA announced that the event would be held in Costa Rica in 2022 146 As of late 2021 Costa Rica s women s national volleyball team has been the top team in Central America s AFECAVOL Asociacion de Federaciones CentroAmericanas de Voleibol zone 147 Costa Rica featured a women s national team in beach volleyball that competed at the 2018 2020 NORCECA Beach Volleyball Continental Cup 148 EducationMain article Education in Costa Rica The University of Costa Rica is the largest university of the country and one of the most recognizable across Central America The literacy rate in Costa Rica is approximately 97 percent and English is widely spoken primarily due to Costa Rica s tourism industry 67 When the army was abolished in 1949 it was said that the army would be replaced with an army of teachers 149 Universal public education is guaranteed in the constitution primary education is obligatory and both preschool and secondary school are free Students who finish 11th grade receive a Costa Rican Bachillerato Diploma accredited by the Costa Rican Ministry of Education There are both state and private universities The state funded University of Costa Rica has been awarded the title Meritorious Institution of Costa Rican Education and Culture and hosts around 25 000 students who study at numerous campuses established around the country A 2016 report by the U S government report identifies the current challenges facing the education system including the high dropout rate among secondary school students The country needs even more workers who are fluent in English and languages such as Portuguese Mandarin and French It would also benefit from more graduates in science technology engineering and mathematics STEM programs according to the report 67 Costa Rica was ranked 56th in the Global Innovation Index in 2021 down from 55th in 2019 150 151 152 153 HealthMain article Health care in Costa Rica Development of life expectancy in Costa Rica Hospital Calderon Guardia named after the president who instituted universal health care across the country in 1941 According to the UNDP in 2010 the life expectancy at birth for Costa Ricans was 79 3 years 154 The Nicoya Peninsula is considered one of the Blue Zones in the world where people commonly live active lives past the age of 100 years 155 156 The New Economics Foundation NEF ranked Costa Rica first in its 2009 Happy Planet Index and once again in 2012 The index measures the health and happiness they produce per unit of environmental input 157 158 According to NEF Costa Rica s lead is due to its very high life expectancy which is second highest in the Americas and higher than the United States The country also experienced well being higher than many richer nations and a per capita ecological footprint one third the size of the United States 159 In 2002 there were 0 58 new general practitioner medical consultations and 0 33 new specialist consultations per capita and a hospital admission rate of 8 1 Preventive health care is also successful In 2002 96 of Costa Rican women used some form of contraception and antenatal care services were provided to 87 of all pregnant women All children under one have access to well baby clinics and the immunization coverage rate in 2020 was above 95 for all antigens 160 161 162 Costa Rica has a very low malaria incidence of 48 per 100 000 in 2000 and no reported cases of measles in 2002 The perinatal mortality rate dropped from 12 0 per 1000 in 1972 to 5 4 per 1000 in 2001 163 Hospital CIMA in Escazu Costa Rica has been cited as Central America s great health success story 164 Its healthcare system is ranked higher than that of the United States despite having a fraction of its GDP 165 Prior to 1940 government hospitals and charities provided most health care But since the 1941 creation of the Social Insurance Administration Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social CCSS Costa Rica has provided universal health care to its wage earning residents with coverage extended to dependants over time In 1973 the CCSS took over administration of all 29 of the country s public hospitals and all health care also launching a Rural Health Program Programa de Salud Rural for primary care to rural areas later extended to primary care services nationwide In 1993 laws were passed to enable elected health boards that represented health consumers social insurance representatives employers and social organizations By 2000 social health insurance coverage was available to 82 of the Costa Rican population Each health committee manages an area equivalent to one of the 83 administrative cantons of Costa Rica There is limited use of private for profit services around 14 4 of the national total health expenditure About 7 of GDP is allocated to the health sector and over 70 is government funded Primary health care facilities in Costa Rica include health clinics with a general practitioner nurse clerk pharmacist and a primary health technician In 2008 there were five specialty national hospitals three general national hospitals seven regional hospitals 13 peripheral hospitals and 10 major clinics serving as referral centers for primary care clinics which also deliver biopsychosocial services family and community medical services and promotion and prevention programs Patients can choose private health care to avoid waiting lists citation needed Costa Rica is among the Latin America countries that have become popular destinations for medical tourism 166 167 In 2006 Costa Rica received 150 000 foreigners that came for medical treatment 166 167 168 Costa Rica is particularly attractive to 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According to National Geographic 9 November 2017 a b What does Pura Vida mean 12 August 2016 Rankin Monica A 29 December 2017 The History of Costa Rica ABC CLIO ISBN 9780313379444 via Google Books a b PURA VIDA The Most Important Costa Rica Spanish Expression Speaking Latino 21 August 2012 Trester Anna Marie 2003 Bienvenidos a Costa Rica la tierra de la pura vida A Study of the Expression pura vida in the Spanish of Costa Rica PDF In Sayahi Lotfi ed Selected Proceedings of the First Workshop on Spanish Sociolinguistics Somerville MA Cascadilla Proceedings Project pp 61 69 ISBN 978 1 57473 400 3 Archived PDF from the original on 9 October 2022 World Happiness Report 2017 World Happiness Report worldhappiness report 20 March 2017 Brodwin Erin The 21 happiest countries in the world Business Insider Revealed The world s 10 happiest countries for 2019 The Telegraph 20 March 2017 Archived from the original on 10 January 2022 via www telegraph co uk Costa Rican Typical Food Southerncostarica biz Retrieved 2 November 2011 Mallon Bill 2006 Historical dictionary of the Olympic movement Ian Buchanan 3rd ed Lanham Md Scarecrow Press p 58 ISBN 978 0 8108 6524 2 OCLC 301358310 Costa Rican Medals and Results in the Olympic Games Olympian Data Base Retrieved 16 February 2022 Costa Rican Olympic Medalists list of medalists from Costa Rica www olympiandatabase com Retrieved 19 April 2022 Staff Tcrn 21 September 2018 Sylvia Poll s Record 30 Years of A Historical Feat The Costa Rica News Retrieved 19 April 2022 Griffiths F 24 June 2014 World Cup Costa Rica defies the odds in winning Group D Toronto Star Retrieved 29 June 2014 Martel B 29 June 2014 Navas Carries Costa Rica to World Cup Quarters ABC News Archived from the original on 30 June 2014 Retrieved 29 June 2014 World Cup 2014 Paulo Wanchope the player who put Costa Rica on the map has warning for England The Telegraph Archived from the original on 10 January 2022 Retrieved 4 June 2019 Costa Rica and Panama to host FIFA U 20 Women s World Cup 2020 FIFA com Retrieved 20 December 2019 Bureau of the FIFA Council decisions on FIFA events FIFA com Retrieved 12 May 2020 Update on FIFA Club World Cup 2020 and women s youth tournaments FIFA com Retrieved 17 November 2020 Belize drops game to Nicaragua drops to 1 4 at Central American Senior Women s Volleyball Championship Breaking Belize News 23 October 2021 Retrieved 28 December 2021 Continental Cup Finals start in Africa FIVB 22 June 2021 Retrieved 7 August 2021 Abolicion del Ejercito en Costa Rica Ministerio de Cultura Juventud y Deportes San Jose Costa Rica 2004 ISBN 9968 856 21 5 Global Innovation Index 2021 World Intellectual Property Organization United Nations Retrieved 5 March 2022 Global Innovation Index 2019 www wipo int Retrieved 2 September 2021 RTD Item ec europa eu Retrieved 2 September 2021 Global Innovation Index INSEAD Knowledge 28 October 2013 Archived from the original on 2 September 2021 Retrieved 2 September 2021 Human Development Report International Human Development Indicators UNDP Archived from the original on 25 June 2012 Retrieved 18 June 2012 Anne Casselman 14 April 2008 Long Lived Costa Ricans Offer Secrets to Reaching 100 National Geographic News Retrieved 4 March 2011 Dan Buettner 2 February 2007 Report from the Blue Zone Why Do People Live Long in Costa Rica ABC News Retrieved 4 March 2011 Irene Rodriguez 14 June 2012 Costa Rica es nuevamente el pais mas feliz del mundo segun indice Happy Planet Costa Rica once again the happiest nation of the world according to the Happy Planet Index La Nacion in Spanish Archived from the original on 4 May 2013 Retrieved 14 June 2012 Fiona Harvey 14 June 2012 UK citizens better off than EU counterparts says happiness index The Guardian Retrieved 14 June 2012 Nic Marks 14 June 2012 Measuring what matters the Happy Planet Index 2012 New Economics Foundation Archived from the original on 18 June 2012 Retrieved 17 June 2012 Immunization measles of children ages 12 23 months Costa Rica World Bank Retrieved 21 July 2022 Immunization HepB3 of one year old children Costa Rica World Bank Retrieved 21 July 2022 Immunization DPT of children ages 12 23 months Costa Rica World Bank Retrieved 21 July 2022 Unger Jean Pierre Buitron Rene Soors Werner Soors W 2008 Costa Rica Achievements of a Heterodox Health Policy American Journal of Public Health 98 4 636 643 doi 10 2105 AJPH 2006 099598 PMC 2376989 PMID 17901439 OECD 22 November 2017 Executive summary OECD Reviews of Health Systems Costa Rica 2017 OECD Reviews of Health Systems pp 11 12 doi 10 1787 9789264281653 3 en ISBN 9789264281639 Jacob Brian 2009 CLOSING THE GAPS The Challenge to Protect Costa Rica s Health Care System The Georgetown Public Policy Review 77 Archived from the original on 17 January 2013 Retrieved 19 May 2012 a b Herrick Devon M 2007 Medical Tourism Global Competition in Health Care PDF National Center for Policy Analysis Dallas Texas pp 4 6 9 ISBN 978 1 56808 178 6 Archived from the original PDF on 20 July 2011 a b c Bookman Milica Z Bookman Karla R 2007 Medical Tourism in Developing Countries Palgrave Macmillan New York pp 3 4 58 95 and 134 135 ISBN 978 0 230 60006 5 Medical Tourism Statistics and Facts Health Tourism com Retrieved 2 March 2011 Guatemala Honduras El Salvador Nicaragua and PanamaFurther readingBlake Beatrice The New Key to Costa Rica Berkeley Ulysses Press 2009 Chase Cida S Costa Rican Americans Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America edited by Thomas Riggs 3rd ed vol 1 Gale 2014 pp 543 551 online Edelman Marc Peasants Against Globalization Rural Social Movements in Costa Rica Stanford Stanford University Press 1999 Eisenberg Daniel 1985 In Costa Rica Journal of Hispanic Philology Vol 10 pp 1 6 Huhn Sebastian Contested Cornerstones of Nonviolent National Self Perception in Costa Rica A Historical Approach 2009 Keller Marius Niestroy Ingeborg Garcia Schmidt Armando Esche Andreas Costa Rica Pioneering Sustainability Excerpt pp 81 102 from Bertelsmann Stiftung ed Winning Strategies for a Sustainable Future Gutersloh Germany Verlag Bertelsmann Stiftung 2013 Lara Sylvia Lara Tom Barry and Peter Simonson Inside Costa Rica The Essential Guide to Its Politics Economy Society and Environment London Latin America Bureau 1995 Lehoucq Fabrice E and Ivan Molina Stuffing the Ballot Box Fraud Electoral Reform and Democratization in Costa Rica Cambridge Cambridge University Press 2002 Lehoucq Fabrice E Policymaking Parties and Institutions in Democratic Costa Rica 2006 Longley Kyle Sparrow and the Hawk Costa Rica and the United States during the Rise of Jose Figueres University of Alabama Press 1997 Mount Graeme S Costa Rica and the Cold War 1948 1990 Canadian Journal of History 50 2 2015 290 316 Palmer Steven and Ivan Molina The Costa Rica Reader History Culture Politics Durham and London Duke University Press 2004 Sandoval Carlos Threatening Others Nicaraguans and the Formation of National Identities in Costa Rica Athens Ohio University Press 2004 Wilson Bruce M Costa Rica Politics Economics and Democracy Politics Economics and Democracy Boulder London Lynne Rienner Publishers 1998 External linksCosta Rica at Wikipedia s sister projects Definitions from Wiktionary Media from Commons News from Wikinews Quotations from Wikiquote Texts from Wikisource Textbooks from Wikibooks Travel information from Wikivoyage Resources from Wikiversity Costa Rica The World Factbook Central Intelligence Agency Costa Rica at UCB Libraries GovPubs Costa Rica at Curlie Costa Rica Encyclopaedia Britannica Vol 7 11th ed 1911 pp 219 222 Street Art of San Jose by danscape Archived 28 February 2019 at the Wayback Machine Costa Rica profile from the BBC News Wikimedia Atlas of Costa Rica Key Development Forecasts for Costa Rica from International FuturesGovernment and administrationOfficial website of the government of Costa Rica in Spanish TradeWorld Bank Summary Trade Statistics Costa Rica Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Costa Rica amp oldid 1130845183, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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