Brief History of Belize
Belize was the site of several Mayan city states until their decline at the end of the first millennium A.D. The British and Spanish disputed the region in the 17th and 18th centuries; it formally became the colony of British Honduras in 1854. Territorial disputes between the UK and Guatemala delayed the independence of Belize until 1981. Guatemala refused to recognize the new nation until 1992. Tourism has become the mainstay of the economy. Current concerns include an unsustainable foreign debt, high unemployment, growing involvement in the South American drug trade, growing urban crime, and increasing incidences of HIV/AIDS.
Belize is not exactly Latin American, nor firmly Caribbean. English is the official language, yet not the mother tongue, of most Belizeans. A former British colony, but heavily influenced by the USA. Belize is hard to categorize, but it seems to have picked the best from all these worlds and forged a unique national culture, with various distinct sub-groups operating happily and freely within it. Remarkable for a tiny country of around 300,000 people.
