Cordilleras
a name applied in America to various chains of mountains.
The Cordilleras of South America are described under ANDES; and the Rocky Mountains are the Cordilleras of North America. Those of Central America extend from Darien to the N. of Mexico, and gradually increase in elevation from the Isthmus of Panama, until they form magnificent plateaus, and reach a height of more than 17,000 feet in Mexico.