Colonization on the southern frontier of Costa Rica: a historical-cultural landscape
This thesis examines the influence of Italian colonists on present-day land use in the cantón (county) of Coto Brus, Costa Rica. Coto Brus is situated in an intermontane depression in southeastern Costa Rica, and is separated from the Pacific coastal lowlands and the United Fruit company port of Golfito by the Fila de Cal, a limestone range that rises over 1,500 meters almost vertically from the coastal plain. In 1952, a 10,000 hectare area centered around what is now San Vito, was colonized by Italians. Previous to that colonization attempt, Coto Brus was a frontier area covered by rain forest and occupied by only a few Costa Rican and Panamanian squatters in the vicinity of present day Agua Buena, Cañas Gordas, and Sabalito. Today the cantón of Coto Brus is one of Costa Rica's leading commercial coffee producing areas outside the Meseta Central. It is the assumption of this thesis that, while native Costa Ricans played a role in the history of the cantón, it was the "outside" or non Iberian cultural baggage brought to the region by Italians that is the reason for the area's present economic success. It appears that the colony's initial socioeconomic underpinnings had a major influence on the successful agricultural evolution of the region. These vestigial influences are apparent when on examines the history of the region's (1) present day land use patterns, (2) its cultural landscape as evidenced by such traits as roads and house types, and (3) the various agricultural and economic systems. In addition, while Costa Rica stands out among its Central American neighbors as an economic success, it appears that small coffee and vegetable farms outside the Meseta Central have not been as successful as those in Coto Brus. The focus of this thesis, therefore, will be upon the cultural and economic influences imparted upon the cantón by the Italian colony.
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| Format: | biblioteca |
| Language: | spa |
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Memphis (EUA)
1992
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| Subjects: | COLONIZACION, UTILIZACION DE LA TIERRA, ASPECTOS SOCIOECONOMICOS, HISTORIA, PAISAJISMO, ASPECTOS SOCIOCULTURALES, SISTEMAS DE CULTIVO, TURISMO, ZONA SUR, COTO BRUS, COSTA RICA, |
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