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Costa Rica 2010 Photos

Monday, February 1, 2010

Who are the Ticos?






Emily Stanley, 16

When talking about who “ticos” really are, we seem to think about their government, and past, but what I really think we ought to look at is their real lifestyle that they live every day. One example of this is their religious practices, which consist of 76.3% of the population being Roman Catholic, and 13.7% being Evangelical. Whereas there are much smaller numbers for those who are other religions, such as there being only 1.3% Jehovah's Witnesses, and the other Christian faiths being .7% Protestant. For something completely outside of Christianity, there is the other 4.8%, and 3.2% of the population claim to have no religion at all. However, because of a recent and small immigration from Asia and the Middle East, there are other religions starting to develop more, but specifically Buddhism, but there is a Jewish synagogue in San Jose.

Costa Rica has written and revised its Constitution during all its political trials and tribulations overtime, and through this document, is how they will function in society, as holds true for every society. Costa Rica has one of the most stable countries in its region, which obviously must hold true for its people’s decision making skills, and they have relatively high level educations, and it has a literacy rate of 97% one of the highest in Latin America, making it a very well educated country, more so than most, with educated people.

Though Costa Ricans seem to have an educated mind, they can still enjoy life. While having a well set up government, they have a culturally varied history. Because of the immigration of the Spaniards, the use of Spanish language, and the Catholic religion, it remains to this day some of the main cultural aspects of the country. The old style dances, such as Costa Rican swing are big musical influences in the lives of older citizens, where as things like Reggaeton and American Pop, are most popular among the youth of the country. Through those dances, guitar when accompanied to folk music is a popular aspect of culture. The Department of Culture, Youth, and Sports, runs most funding on these areas, where they are having trouble with funding for smaller activities; the common activities are easily paid for, and remain high quality forms of entertainment. These are a culturally diverse people, who are maintaining a stable government, while still attempting to have an enjoyable life.

- Emily Stanley