(Rev. 10 Sep 2008)
Ozark Hispanic Studies League
CULTURE BOWL TOURNAMENT QUESTIONS
This list of questions has resulted from many years of collecting from many different sources. They have been transcribed several times. There are probably many typographical and some factual errors. Please do not hesitate to call such errors to the attention of the administrator for correction. Additionally, if you find any questions that are difficult to understand or are poorly worded, let the administrator know. If you feel any of the questions are outdated or of dubious value or if you have any suggestions for new questions to add to the list, submit them to the sponsor for next year. We will use this list as the basis for references. If you find mistakes, please use the numbers here as references.
NOTES: Most of the articles (a, an, the) and some other non-essential words have been removed as the first word in the answer. This is to allow more complete scrambling.
Answers must be given as shown on the list even if the answer to a given question might be correct. For example:
Question: Name the musical instrument similar to the xylophone.
Answer: Marimba
Explanation: Even though both the vibraphone and the marimba are similar to the xylophone, only
‘marimba’ will be accepted as it is the answer given.
Anytime an answer includes two or more elements and the word ‘and’, then all elements must be given. For example:
Question: When was the Golden Age of Spanish literature?
Answer: Sixteenth and seventeenth centures.
Explanation: Both ‘sixteenth’ and ‘seventeenth’ must be mentioned.
Anytime an answer includes two or more elements and the word ‘or’ is used, then one of the elements given will be considered correct.
Question: What style of architecture can be seen in the Alhambra?
Answer: Moorish or Arabic.
Explanation: Either ‘Moorish’ or ‘Arabic’ will be acceptable.
Judges will have the right to accept slight variations in the answers. Judges also have the right to ask contestants to repeat an answer or to ask for more detail. The last answer given will be considered correct. Their decision on acceptance will be final.
Questions and answers in the color teal relate to proverbs and are new to this list.
Questions and answers in red may need further research.
QUESTIONS / ANSWERS01. What Nicaraguan leader did the Sandanista National Liberation front overthrow in 1979? / Anastasio Somoza Debayle
02. Name the former capital of Guatemala. / Antigua
03. Guatemala has had two capitals. Name them. / Antigua and Guatemala
04. What were the two Indian tribes that Columbus and other explorers encountered in the Caribbean Islands? / Arawak and carib
05. “Dorado” one of Puerto Rico’s beautiful beaches lies on what body of water? / Atlantic Ocean
06. Who was the first Spanish explorer to cross the isthmus of Panama? / Balboa
07. Which is Panama’s leading export? Oil, sugarcane or bananas / Bananas
08. Who founded Santo Domingo? / Bartolomé Colón
09. Many Puerto Rican players of this sport have had successful careers in the USA. Name the sport. / Baseball
10. Who was Roberto Clemente? / Baseball player
11. What country was formally known as British Honduras? / Belize
12. Which Central American country’s official language is English? / Belize
13. What color beans are generally used in Cuba? / Black
14. What does a Guatemalan refer to with the word “patojo”? / Boy
15. What is Belize’s former name? / British Honduras
16. This daughter of a Cuban American stars in such films as Shrek, Being John Malkovich and The Mask. / Cameron Diaz
17. In what sea is Cuba located? / Caribbean
18. From whom do Nicaragua’s Sadinistas take their name? / César Augusto Sandino (Nicaraguan guerilla leader, fought U.S. Marines 1920’s)
19. Before the U.S. engineered the Panama Canal, to what country did the land belong? / Colombia
20. What was the “Football War”? / Conflict between El Salvador and Honduras ignited by hotly contested soccer matches in 1969
21. What are plaintains or plátanos? / Cooking bananas (in Mexico plátano macho)
22. What Puerto Rican frog has recently invaded Hawaii? / Coqui
23. What nationality are ticos? / Costa Rican
24. What is the largest Caribbean Island? / Cuba
25. What Spanish speaking Caribbean country is closest to Florida? / Cuba
26. What country is famous for the dance the mambo? / Cuba
27. For which country did Jose Martí fight? / Cuba
28. What country produces the most sugar in Latin America? / Cuba
29. Where did the rumba originate? / Cuba
30. From what country is singer Gloria Estefan? / Cuba
31. The Sierra Maestra mountain range is located in the southeast of which Cribbean country? / Cuba
32. Name the 5 Latin American countries that do not have volcanoes? / Cuba, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Uruguay Paraguay
33. Two Spanish-speaking countries have flags with identical design, but with two colors, red and blue, reversed. What are the countries? / Cuba, Puerto Rico
34. What was the nationality of the poet Jose Martí? / Cuban
35. What is a merengue? / Dance (national dance of the Dominican Republic)
36. What was Ricky Ricardo’s real name? / Desi Arnaz
37. Who was Lucille Ball’s first husband and what was his nationality? / Desi Arnaz - Cuban
38. What Caribbean country shares an island with Haiti? / Dominican Republic
39. From what country is baseball player Sammy Sosa? / Dominican Republic
40. What is the oldest country in the Caribbean? / Dominican Republic
41. What country is famous for the dance the merengue? / Dominican Republic
42. What Spanish speaking country is located on the island of Hispaniola? / Dominican Republic
43. What country was founded by Juan Pablo Duarte in 1844? / Dominican Republic
44. In what country did the “jipijapa”, the Panama hat, originate? / Ecuador
45. What Spanish name was given to the Puerto Rican Spanish Harlem in New York City? / El Barrio
46. What is the smallest Central American country? / El Salvador
47. Which country bordering the Pacific Ocean is Central America’s most densely populated country? / El Salvador
48. From November 1999 to June 2000, the US and Cuba struggled over custody of what boy? / Elián Gonzalez
49. Who is Hugo Chávez’ mentor? / Fidel Castro
50. What lures most sportsmen to Costa Rica? / Fishing
51. What do the 5 stars in the center of Honduran flag stand for? / Five original Central American countries
52. Where in the U.S. is there a large concentration of Cuban-Americans? / Florida
53. What is a “coqui”? / Frog, native to el Yunque in Puerto Rico
54. Which country exports large quantities of chicle? / Guatemala
55. What Central American Spanish speaking country borders Mexico? / Guatemala
56. In what country would you find “patojos”? / Guatemala
57. In 3 Central America countries the name of the capital contains at least a part of the name of the country. Name the three cities. / Guatemala City, Panama City, and San Salvador
58. Where would you find “el Castillo del Morro”? / Harbor of Havana
59. What is the capital of Cuba? / Havana
60. What would you buy in a Puerto Rican botánica? / Herbs and cures
61. Which Caribbean island houses 2 nations, 1 French speaking, and 1 Spanish speaking? / Hispanola
62. What Latin American flag has a blue stripe on top and bottom and 5 stars on a white stripe in the center? / Honduras
63. What is the most mountainous country of Central America? / Honduras
64. What nation lies just north of Nicaragua? / Honduras
65. In what country is the 2nd largest barrier reef? / Honduras
66. Name the 7 Central American countries. / Honduras, Costa Rico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Belize, Panama
67. What is ‘Borinquen’? / Indigenous name for Puerto Rico
68. Where did Columbus establish his first colony? / Island of Hispaniola
69. Who is the well-known blind singer from Puerto Rico? / Jose Feliciano
70. Who wrote the words to the song “Guantanamera”? / Jose Martí
71. What famous Spanish explorer founded San Juan, Puerto Rico? / Juan Ponce de León
72. What is the name of the governor’s house in Puerto Rico? / La Fortaleza
73. What do Puerto Ricans call Puerto Rico? / La isla
74. Tegucigalpa, capital of Honduras, was founded first as what? / Mining camp
75. In the original indigenous language what does “Tegucigalpa” mean? / Mountain of silver
76. What was the name of Columbus’ first colony / Navidad
77. The longest living dictator in the world is Fidel Castro. What country does he rule? / None. He retired.
78. Name the program established in the 1941 aimed at helping Puerto Rico. / Operation Bootstrap
79. What Central American country borders South America? / Panama
80. What Central American country’s name completes the palindrome: A man, a plan, a canal, ___ / Panama
81. The second largest peninsula on the Pacific coast of Latin America is the Azure Peninsula. In what country is it located? / Panama
82. In what Latin American country is the Darien rain forest located? / Panamá
83. What is the nationality of the singing group “Menudo”? / Puerto Rican
84. Where did Puerto Rican singer Marc Anthony grow up? / New York
85. What is the largest country in Central America? / Nicaragua
86. From what Spanish-speaking area is the actress Rita Moreno? / Puerto Rico
87. What was the original name of the city of San Juan, Puerto Rico? / Puerto Rico
88. From what country is Ricky Martin? / Puerto Rico
89. Name the three Spanish speaking Caribbean countries. / Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic and Cuba
90. What is the national emblem of Guatemala? / Quetzal bird
91. What is “el Yunque”? / Rainforest in Puerto Rico
92. Who is the current leader of Cuba? / Raúl Castro
93. What Puerto Rican actress played in West Side Story? / Rita Moreno
94. Who was the first Puerto Rican baseball player to be voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1973? / Roberto Clemente
95. What Hispanic boxer was nicknamed “Hands of Rock”? / Roberto Durán
96. Who is the father of modernism? / Ruben Darío
97. What is the capital of Costa Rica? / San Jose
98. What is the capital of El Salvador? / San Salvador
99. Where did Columbus make his first landfall? / San Salvador, now known as Watling Island
100. What is the oldest capital founded by conquistadores? / Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
101. What war brought independence from Spain for Cuba? / Spanish American War
102. What it the capital of Honduras? / Tegucigalpa
103. What is the name of the currency used in Puerto Rico? / U.S. dollar
104. Puerto Rico is a commonwealth of what country? / United States
105. What countries border Mexico? / United States, Guatemala, Belize
106. What explorer from Spain discovered the Pacific Ocean? / Vasco Nunez de Balboa
107. In Puerto Rico, who would wear a ‘pollera’. / Girls or women (skirt)
108. After which World War was there a large influx of Puerto Ricans to Spanish Harlem in New York City? / World War II
109. What is the oldest university in the New World? / University of Saint Thomas Aquinas (1539)
110. When was Santo domingo founded? / 1496
111. When and how did Jose Martí die? / 1895 in an invasion of Cuba
112. When did Puerto Ricans acquire U.S. citizenship? / 1917
113. What is the “Operation Bootstrap”? / 1941 economic program of Puerto Rico
114. When did Belize win its independence? / 1981