Belize is the most sparsely populated nation in Central America. It is larger than El Salvador. Slightly more than half of the people live in rural areas. About one-fourth live in Belize City, the principal port, commercial centre, and former capital.

Most Belizeans are of multiracial descent. About 48.7% of the population is of mixed Maya and European descent (Mestizo); 24.9% are of African and Afro-European ancestry; about 10.6% are Mayan; and about 6.1% are Afro-Amerindian (Garifuna). The remainder, about 9.7%, includes European, East Indian, Chinese, Middle Eastern, and North American groups.

Because Belize's original Maya peoples were decimated by disease and wars, many of the country's Maya today are descended from other groups. The current Maya population consists of several different tribes. The Yucatecs fled to Belize in the late 1840s to escape the Caste War in Yucatan, Mexico. They live in the Orange Walk and Corozal districts, which border on Mexico. In the 1870s-1880s, the Kekchi ran from Verapaz, Guatemala, where their lands were being stolen for coffee plantations, which then enslaved them. They settled villages in the Toledo district. Living near rivers and streams, their lifestyle is self-reliant. The Mopans originated in Belize, but most were driven out to Guatemala after the British assumed control from the Spanish in the late 1700s. They returned to Belize in 1886, running from enslavement and taxation in Peten. The Cayo district and San Antonio in the Toledo district are their homes now. Some of the Kekchi and Mopan have mixed together.

English is the official language. The Spanish language is the native tongue of about 35% of the people and is spoken as a second language by another 20%. The various Maya groups still speak their original Mayan languages. Most people speak an English-based creole language, called Kriol in the new orthography, similar to various other English-based Creoles of the Caribbean. English is the primary language of public education, with Spanish taught in primary and secondary school as well. Bilingualism is encouraged.

The rate of functional literacy is 94.1%.

About 80% of the population is Christian; the Buddhist Church and other groups account for most of the remaining 20%. Mennonites make up 4.1% of the population. Their colloquial language is Plautdietsch, while standard German is mainly used as the language of worship and religious education. Muslim settlers number about 7,160 (2.5% of the population).

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12/27/07 by visitEarth
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