All the South American states enumerated above, with the exception of
Brazil, were first taken possession of and "settled" by the Spanish,
and the Spanish language still remains in them the language of
government, education, and society. Brazil was first taken possession
of and "settled" by the Portuguese, and in Brazil the Portuguese
language prevails, just as elsewhere in the continent the Spanish
language prevails. Among the natives many different languages are
found, but in Brazil a "common language" is used, one introduced by
the original Portuguese missionaries, and understood by nearly all the
tribes. Between Brazil and Venezuela is a triangular piece of country
called Guiana, which, unlike the rest of South America, is still under
the control of European powers. It consists of three parts--French
Guiana, Dutch Guiana, and British Guiana--colonies of France, Holland,
and Great Britain, respectively. Leaving out Guiana, South America has
received its entire civilisation from Spain and Portugal, and, with
the exception of Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil, there has been little
or no emigration to any South American country except from these two
European countries. To Argentina, however, there has been a large
emigration from Italy especially, but also from France, Great Britain
(mainly from Ireland and Wales), Germany, and Sweden. A similar
emigration has taken place to Uruguay, though the foreigners in
Uruguay are principally Basques, a people that live on the border-land
between Spain and France, but are neither Spanish nor French. In
Brazil the immigration, where it has not been Portuguese, has been
chiefly Italian and German, and in the temperate region of the extreme
south of Brazil a large German population exists. Everywhere in South
America the parts most prosperous are the parts that have come most
directly under the influence of recent European emigration.