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=Country Name: Uruguay=



A map of Uruguay.

=Geography and Climate= Uruguay’s climate is mostly mild, and temperatures usually remain the same. Uruguay is located in the Southern Hemisphere, which is opposite of North America. This means, that Uruguay’s seasons occur at the opposite times that the Northern Hemisphere's (U.S., Canada) seasons occur. Uruguay has winter from about June through September, and Uruguay has summer from about December through March. During the winter, temperatures are usually around fifty to sixty degrees Fahrenheit. Even though the temperature goes below freezing often, it rarely snows in Uruguay. Also, the winds from the ocean make it very cold. During the summer, temperatures are usually around seventy to eighty one degrees Fahrenheit. Lastly, the nation’s capital, Montevideo, receives about 37-45 inches of yearly precipitation.

Uruguay is South America’s second smallest nation, and is divided into three regions. The first is the Western Lowlands, which are in the Northern part of Uruguay. It is on the Northern border of the country, and it includes the Uruguay River. The second of the regions is called the Central Plateau. It is located in Eastern Uruguay and it is the interior of the three regions. The last region is called the Coastal Plains, and it holds fertile, grasslands. Not just the Coastal Plains are fertile, most of Uruguay has very rich soil. Uruguay’s largest river, also known as an inland water way, is called the Rio Negro. This means black river. The river gets it’s name from it’s dark, clear waters. Overall, Uruguay is a very small country. It’s total size is 68,037 square miles, which is similar to the size of Oklahoma.



The Uruguay River.

=**Economy**= Uruguay’s economy is based off two main things, agriculture and their service industry. Since agriculture is a main part of the economy, the country produces a lot of the world’s cattle and wool. Although agriculture is a main part, it is only ten percent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product. Some of the other products that Uruguay produces are; soybeans, wheat, rice, wood, and corn. The service industry part of the economy is also very important. It employs 74% of all of Uruguay’s workers.The most common types of jobs in the service industry are; working for the government, tourism, health care, retail sales and more. The economy only consists of two main components, but they have other industries like; leather apparel, meat and fish processing, foot wear and more. Although Uruguay’s economy is usually doing fine, they have had to borrow money from other countries especially for oil.

Even though Uruguay’s economy is typically strong, they have had some severely rough times. During the 1990's and early 2000's, Uruguay’s economy was very slow. In most cases, prices of goods increased, and the value of pesos (their currency) decreased. On top of that, Uruguay had a lot of debt because the items they imported were more expensive then the things they exported. In 1999, the prices of goods in Brazil became less expensive, so people bought most of their products from Brazil, and not Uruguay. Also that year, Uruguay’s cows became sick with foot and mouth disease. This lead to Uruguay being unable to export meat to North America, which decreased their income. By 2006, things had calmed down and the economy recovered.

A coin in Uruguay, a type of Pesos which is their currency.

= = =Holidays, Festivals, and Religion= Uruguay is a country with many holidays and festivals. Just like the U.S., Uruguay celebrates Christmas and New Year’s eve. They celebrate a big holiday called Carnival, which is celebrated on February 4th and 5th. During this holiday, there are two major parades; Desfile de Carnival and Desfile de Llamadas. Another big holiday is Dia de la riza, which means day of races, and it takes place on October 13th. This holiday is celebrated instead of Columbus Day all over South America. The holiday honors people who helped contribute to the discovery of Latin America. Just like the U.S., Uruguay has national independence day. This national milestone is celebrated on August 25th. Since it is celebrated during the winter, schools and businesses are closed. Many people enjoy all of Uruguay's festivities.

During these celebrations, the people of Uruguay eat a lot of food. Beef is an extremely common food, and it’s used to make foods like steak sandwiches, beef platters, and sausage. Beer, wine, and soft drinks are very common to drink. Another drink that is served is called clerico, which is a mixture of wine and fruit juice. Since the people of Uruguay eat so much meat, it is one of the highest meat consuming countries in the world.

Uruguay is a country with no main religion, but Roman Catholicism is the most commonly studied religion there. In the 1963 census, 62% of Uruguay counted themselves as Catholics. But in the past few years, 47% percent of Uruguay have counted themselves as Catholics. Also, non-Catholics represent about 11% of Uruguay, and Jews less than 1%. Since Uruguay has no official religion, the country is not religious overall, and less than half attend services on a regular basis.

A picture of celebration during Carnival.

=Every Day Living in Uruguay= Although Uruguay differs from the United States in many ways, greetings are very similar. When men greet each other, they greet with a firm handshake. When men greet close friends or family, they greet with a hug and or kiss. Verbal greetings depend on the time of day. In the morning, a common greeting is Buenos Dias. Similarly, in the afternoon a greeting is Buenas Tardes. Lastly, at night, Buenas Noches is very common. In countries where people speak Spanish often, it is important to show respect while you talk to elderly or important people. For example, if you are talking to a close friend who you don’t need to speak formally to, you say Como estas? (how are you?). If you are speaking to a teacher, an elderly person, or someone who you want to show respect to, you say Como esta usted? It is interesting to see how much the Spanish people care about showing respect.

Greetings in Uruguay are similar to greetings in the U.S., but their marital and dating customs are slightly different. In rural areas, dating usually begins at age 15. Also, in some rural areas, young men keep the tradition of asking the girl’s father for permission to date his daughter. Some common dates include: dining at a restaurant, dancing, going to the beach, taking walks, going to concerts, movies, and lots more. Couples usually get married in their late twenties. Since Spanish people like to be respectful, they usually wear conservative clothing. In Uruguay and other countries, the younger you are, the more casual you tend to dress. Even though people like to be respectful in Uruguay, woman don’t usually wear skirts or dresses, pants and slack are more common.



A pic ture of people speaking in Spanish.

Births || 9.69 deaths || 6.06 deaths || CIA World Factbook || poverty line || 20.9% of households || 15.1% of households || CIA World Factbook || Percentage of Populations || 1,431,000 million people 42.75% of population || 245 million people 79% || CIA World Factbook wikipedia ||
 * || Uruguay || United States || Source ||
 * Population Growth Rate || .231% || .963% || CIA World Factbook ||
 * Population Density || 51 || 84 || info.com/IPA ||
 * Percent of Population under 15 || 23% || 13% || globalhealthfacts.org ||
 * Life Expectancy: Male/ Female || Male: 73.07 Female: 79.46 || Male: 75.92 Female: 80.93 || CIA World Factbook ||
 * Infant Mortality Per 1,000 Live
 * Literacy Rate || 98% of total population || 99% of total population || CIA World Factbook ||
 * GDP per Capita || 13,700$ || 47,200$ || CIA World Factbook ||
 * Percent of Population below the
 * Number of Internet Users, and
 * Human Development (HDI) || .910% || .783% || Wikipedia ||

**__Country Profile__**
__Country:__ Uruguay __Capital City:__ MonteVideo __Date of Independence (from what country)?__ August 25th, 1825. From Spain. __Type of Government:__ Democracy __Current Head of Government:__ Jos'e Mujica __Currency:__ Pesos __Total Population:__ 3,400,000 people __Major Languages:__ Spanish, Portunil, Brazilero __Major Ethnic Groups:__88% white, 8% Mestizo, 4% black. __Major Religions:__ Christian, Jewish, Others. __Area in Square Miles:__ 68,498 square miles __Attractions:__It's capitol is very interesting, and a good place to visit.

Material for this presentation came from the following sources: >
 * [|__http://discoverer.prod.sirs.com/discoweb/disco/do/article?urn=urn%3Asirs%3AUS%3BARTICLE%3BART%3B0000225345__]
 * __Uruguay in Pictures__ , Alison Behnke-
 * [|__http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/620116/Uruguay__]
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000099; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">[|__http://online.culturegrams.com/world/world_country_sections.php?contid=7&wmn=South_America&cid=170&cn=Uruguay&sname=Personal_Appearance&snid=7__]
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000099; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">[|__http://www.world66.com/southamerica/uruguay/economy__]
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000099; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">[|__http://online.culturegrams.com/world/world_country_sections.php?contid=7&wmn=South_America&cid=170&cn=Uruguay&sname=Economy&snid=19__]
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000099; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">[|__http://www.explore-uruguay.com/uruguay-holidays.html__]
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000099; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">[|__http://www.mapsofworld.com/uruguay/society-and-culture/religion.html__]
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000099; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">[|__http://online.culturegrams.com/world/world_country_sections.php?contid=7&wmn=South_America&cid=170&cn=Uruguay&sname=Religion&snid=5__]
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000099; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">[|__http://online.culturegrams.com/world/world_country_sections.php?contid=7&wmn=South_America&cid=170&cn=Uruguay&sname=Personal_Appearance&snid=7__]
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000099; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">[|__http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/620116/Uruguay__]
 * []