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The Costa Rica Portal

Introduction

Costa Rica (UK: /ˌkɒstə ˈriːkə/, US: /ˌkoʊstə-/ ^ⓘ; Spanish: [ˈkosta ˈrika]; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in the Central American region of North America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as maritime border with Ecuador to the south of Cocos Island. It has a population of around five million0 in a land area of nearly 51,180 km² (19,760 sq mi). An estimated 352,381 people live in the capital and largest city, San José, with around two million people in the surrounding metropolitan area.

The sovereign state is a presidential republic. It has a long-standing and stable constitutional democracy and a highly educated workforce. The country spends roughly 6.9% of its budget (2016) on education, compared to a global average of 4.4%. 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.

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. (Full article...)

The Costa Rica Quiz

True or false: voting is mandatory in Costa Rica.

Answer

True, but in practice this is not enforced.^[2]

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The Basílica de Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles

Cartago (Spanish pronunciation: [kaɾˈtaɣo]) is the head city of Cartago canton of the Cartago Province, and is composed of the Oriental and Occidental districts as stated in the administrative divisions of Costa Rica. It was the capital of Costa Rica from 1574 to 1824. (Full article...)

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Did you know (auto-generated)

... that footballer Alexandra Pinell scored the Costa Rica U20 team's only goal at the FIFA tournament hosted by their country?
... that goalkeeper Daniela Solera had the most touches of any Costa Rican player in their opening match of the 2023 World Cup?
... that in August 2021 Sheika Scott became the youngest player to score in the Costa Rican Women's Premier Division, at just 14 years old?

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...that Inca Dove is a small New World dove that ranges from the southwestern United States and Mexico through Central America to Costa Rica?

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Related portals

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Image 1The scarlet macaw is native to Costa Rica. (from Wildlife of Costa Rica)
Image 21849 national coat of arms was featured in the first postal stamp issued in 1862. (from Costa Rica)
Image 3An 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 (from Costa Rica)
Image 4Red-eyed tree frog (Agalychnis callidryas) (from Costa Rica)
Image 5Population pyramid for Costa Rica 2023 (from Costa Rica)
Image 6The zebra longwing butterfly (from Wildlife of Costa Rica)
Image 7Costa Rican breakfast with gallo pinto (from Costa Rica)
Image 8Hospital Calderón Guardia, named after the president who instituted universal health care across the country in 1941 (from Costa Rica)
Image 9Typical settlement of the Diquis indigenous people before the arrival of Columbus. (from History of Costa Rica)
Image 10Costa Rican school children (from Costa Rica)
Image 11Costa Rican kids. (from Culture of Costa Rica)
Image 12Real GDP per capita development in Costa Rica (from Costa Rica)
Image 13Eyelash viper (Bothriechis schlegelii) (from Wildlife of Costa Rica)
Image 14Barack Obama and Laura Chinchilla with Costa Rican children in San José (from Costa Rica)
Image 15Arenal Volcano National Park is one of the country's tourist attractions. (from Costa Rica)
Image 16The mangrove hummingbird is endemic to Costa Rica and specializes in feeding from the tea mangrove plant with its uniquely shaped beak. (from Wildlife of Costa Rica)
Image 17Gregorio José Ramírez was the most notable political chief of the province of Costa Rica, leading republican forces victorious in the Battle of Ochomogo. (from History of Costa Rica)
Image 18A coffee plantation in the Orosí Valley (from Costa Rica)
Image 19Costa Rican Women in traditional dress (from Culture of Costa Rica)
Image 20Development of life expectancy in Costa Rica (from Costa Rica)
Image 21Countries (in blue) which have signed Free Trade Agreements with Costa Rica (from Costa Rica)
Image 22Provinces 1 Alajuela, 2 Cartago, 3 Guanacaste, 4 Heredia, 5 Limón, 6 Puntarenas, 7 San José (from Costa Rica)
Image 23The Ujarrás historical site in the Orosí Valley, Cartago province. The church was built between 1686 and 1693. (from Costa Rica)
Image 24Costa Rica supporters at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil (from Costa Rica)
Image 25The Heliconius doris butterfly (from Wildlife of Costa Rica)
Image 26Chatham beach on Cocos Island. (from Water resources management in Costa Rica)
Image 27Costa Rica's tropical landscape (from Water resources management in Costa Rica)
Image 28Basílica de Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles (Basilica of Our Lady of the Angels, Cartago), during the 2007 pilgrimage (from Costa Rica)
Image 29A red-eyed tree frog (Agalychnis callidryas) (from Wildlife of Costa Rica)
Image 30Stone spheres created by the Diquis culture at the National Museum of Costa Rica. The sphere is the icon of the country's cultural identity. (from Costa Rica)
Image 31José María Castro Madriz formally declared Costa Rica as independent from the Federal Republic of Central America in 1848. (from History of Costa Rica)
Image 32Gallo Pinto (from Culture of Costa Rica)
Image 33Waterfall in the Tenorio Volcano National Park (from Costa Rica)
Image 34Costa Rica map of Köppen climate classification (from Costa Rica)
Image 35Hospital CIMA in Escazú (from Costa Rica)
Image 36The Rio Celeste (sky blue river) at Tenorio Volcano National Park in Costa Rica. (from Water resources management in Costa Rica)
Image 37The extent of Costa Rica's western EEZ in the Pacific (from Costa Rica)
Image 38Las Carretas (oxcarts) are a national symbol. (from Costa Rica)
Image 39Yigüirro, Costa Rica's national bird (from Wildlife of Costa Rica)
Image 40An industrial park in Heredia (from Costa Rica)
Image 41Mantled howler monkey, male (from Wildlife of Costa Rica)
Image 42Epiphytes near Santa Elena (from Wildlife of Costa Rica)
Image 43The golden toad, an amphibian once endemic to Costa Rica, is now extinct. (from Wildlife of Costa Rica)
Image 44The University of Costa Rica is the largest university in the country and one of the most recognizable across Central America. (from Costa Rica)
Image 45The 1849 national coat of arms was featured in the first postal stamp issued in 1862. (from History of Costa Rica)

Costa Rica news

6 January 2025 –

Colombian bank Davivienda and Canadian bank Scotiabank announces a merger where Davivienda will absorb Scotiabank's operations in Colombia, Costa Rica and Panama, and, Scotiabank will acquire 20% of Davidienda's stakes. (Scotiabank)

26 November 2024 –

Five people are killed and another is in critical condition when a Cessna 206 Stationair aircraft crashes into the Pico Blanco mountain near San José, Costa Rica. (DW) (The Tico Times)

Costa Rica news from Wikinews...