ABSTRACT
The multiple histories of the region known today as Latin America are permeated by a series of colonial and neocolonial operations taking place since the 16th century and even before that. The processes of formation of the nation-states in the (former) colonies of Latin America are the result of successive and complex processes of colonial expansion that began many centuries ago and have had long-lasting effects on the region’s historical and cultural processes. They have been characterized by the establishment of dictatorships and military – or even paramilitary or parastate – regimes during the 20th and the beginning of the 21st century.
