Colombia
From the Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia that anyone can change
Colombia is a country of South America. It is located at the North-West part of that Continent and it has an area of 1.141.748 km² (440,839 sq mi). It is the only South American country with coasts in both Oceans (Pacific and Atlantic). Colombia has an extension of 928.660 km² in those oceans. The full name of the country in Spanish is República de Colombia that in English it would be "Republic of Colombia". The name "Colombia" is said /kəˈlʌm.bɪ.ə/ and it is different from Columbia, the name of many places in United States of America.
The countries that have borders on the continent with Colombia are: Venezuela (east), Brazil (south-east), Peru (south), Ecuador (south-west) and Panama (west). The countries that have borders with Colombia on the sea are: Nicaragua, Panama, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica, Haiti and Dominican Republic.
42.888.592 people live in Colombia[1] and it is the third most populated country of Latin America after Mexico and Brazil. It is also the third Spanish country of the world after Mexico and Spain.
The capital of Colombia is Bogotá. The second major city is Medellín and it is also a big industrial center. The third biggest and important city in the Cauca region of Colombia is Cali. The most important city of the country in the Caribbean costs is Barranquilla. It is also the first national port. Cartagena de Indias is one of the most beautiful and turistic cities. It has a great Spaniard wall of the 17th Century and an old town with buildings aged 500 years. Followed by the these cities comes Bucaramanga a great city near venezula's border and city which helds the center of textile industry of Colombia.
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[change] The meaning of the name
Etimology is the meaning of a word. The word "Colombia" means "the Land of Christopher Columbus". He was an Italian man who discovered America in 1492 in the name of Spain. Francisco de Miranda, a Spaniard, gave the name "Colombia" to the American continent, but after it become the name of some places of the continent like this country. The name "America" was given in honor of Americo Vespucio, the first man who did a complete map of the continent.
In 1819 Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador and Panama were together in an only country and it was known as "Gran Colombia". That country was divided by three countries in 1830. The official language is Spanish, but there are many dialects spoken by minorities.
[change] Generalities
Colombia is a tropical country. Many people think that it is a very hot country because it is tropical. Colombia has many regions and some of the regions are cold because there are a lot of mountains (the Andes). Bogotá for example, is 2640 meters up the sea level and for this reason its climate is cold. Barranquilla is at the same level of the sea and it is hot. In Colombia there are many snow mountains. For example, there is a mountain in the north named Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta.
Because of the many altitudes, Colombia has many different fruits, vegetables and kinds of animals. It has many valleys, beaches, plains, mountains and forests like the Amazon Rain Forest.
[change] Security
Colombia has been introduced by the International Mass Media as a dangerous country in the last decades because its political conflict with guerrillas, paramilitary armies and mafia. Many persons have lost their lives in the Colombian conflict and it had also a high number of kidnapped persons by common criminals and gun groups. After the election of President Alvaro Uribe in 2001, Colombia became a safer country. The new government reduced delinquency, drug trafficking, guerrillas, paramilitary groups and corruption and the country's economy improved.every country has problems with security, not only colombia.Alvaro uribe made the country of colombia very very safe, now a days colombia is safer than some other places because of the president.
[change] Transport
Most parts of Colombia are modern and the country has a fair net of roads. All the Colombian cities have their airports and there are many ports in both oceans (Pacific and Atlantic). Because Colombia is a huge territory and there are many mountains, airports are very important in the country. There are some regions like Amazon Forest and Dariend that the most important way of transportation is by the rivers.
- Roads: In Colombia starts the Pan American Higway in South America. You can go as far as Tierra de Fuego in Chile using that road. Most of the Colombian cities are connected by road in Colombia. The most important roads are the Bogotá-Medellín Highway; the Bogotá-Cali Highway; the Bogotá-Cucuta Higway; the Bogotá-Barranquilla Highway and many others connecting big cities like Medellín, Cali, Barranquilla and Cartagena de Indias with other important centers. You can go by road from Bogotá to Caracas, Venezuela and Quito, Ecuador. The main cities have modern bus stations.
- Airports: They are very important in Colombia and all the main cities have their own airports. The ElDorado International Airport in Bogotá is the most important. The Palmaseca International Airport in Cali is the second most important. Other important airports are the ones of Medellín, Barranquilla, San Andrés and Cartagena de Indias. The Colombian airports have international connection with most of the South American capitals, North America and Europe. The main Colombian airline is Avianca and it is the second oldest world airline and one of the most important in Latin America.
- Ports: Colombia has coasts in both oceans - Atlantic and Pacific - and it is one of the first world water reserve because it has many rivers and lakes. The longest rivers are Amazon, Magdalena, Cauca, Atrato and many others. The main ports in the Atlantic coast are Barranquilla, that is the first Colombian port, Cartagena de Indias and Santa Marta. There are other ones like Rioacha and Turbo. The ports in the Pacific coast are Buenaventura and Tumaco. The port of the San Andres Island is also one of the most importants for the country in the Caribbean and Antillean Sea. The city of Leticia is a very important river port in the Amazon river.
- Train: The National Train was very important to Colombia during the 20th century, but it was forgotten when roads and airports were developed. Today the railways in Colombia are used more for tour visits, but they are not modern. There are some important railways in areas of economic exploitation.
- Transportation in the cities: The main Colombian cities have a very good system of transportation. There are public buses that connect the suburbs to the center of the cities. Every city has its own way of identify the buses by numbers, routs and names. There are many companies of taxi in Colombia, many of them with good services. They use to call a taxi by phone when they need the service and people there recommend that way. There are also very modern urban transports in the main cities like Transmilenio in Bogotá, the Metro in Medellín, and similar proposals in Cali, Barranquilla, Cartagena de Indias and many others that are being developed.
[change] Cities
Colombia also has some of the most beautiful cities in the world.
- Bogotá is the second capital city of South America after Buenos Aires and the third largest city after Buenos Aires and Sao Pablo. It is also one of the higest capital cities of the world, 2640 meters up the sea level. It has a very active cultural, political, industrial and commercial life. Bogotá is also a place of international meetings, seminars, NGOs, organizations, universities, telecommunication centers and conventions. It is located in the Andes. Many famous Colombians come from Bogotá: Juan Pablo Montoya.
- Medellín is the second largest city of Colombia. At the end of the 20th Century is was known as the "most violent city of the world" because it was the place of Pablo Escobar, the leader of the Mafia. Now Medellín is safe and it is also one of the most beautiful cities of South America. It is a very important industrial center, the first commercial area of the country and a leader in health care and medicine. Many foreigners come to Medellín for health services. It is located in the Andes and it is known as the "City of the Eternal Spring" because it has a nice weather. Many famous Colombians come from Medellín: the singer Juanes, the soccer player René Higuita, the artist Fernando Botero and many others.
- Cali is the third largest city. It is very famous for its plantations of sugar canne. Cali is the "World Capital of Salsa". In Cali there are many skilfull salsa dancers and very important Salsa groups. Cali is also a very modern city. It is also an industrial city and its airport is the second one of Colombia. Near Cali is the port city of Buenaventura in the Pacific Ocean. Cali is located in a Valley of the Andes. The name of the Valley is Cauca because it is crossed by the Cauca River.
- Barranquilla is the fourth largest city and it is the first city of the Colombian Caribbean Sea. Barranquilla is famous for its trade and international connections because it is a big port. From Barranquilla is the Colombian singer Shakira.
- Cartagena de Indias is the most important tourist center in the Colombian Caribbean Sea. It is also one of the most beautiful cities of the continent. Many tourist come to visit the city.
- Bucaramanga is located near the limitation with Venezuela. This city is a great destination for travelers due to its Spanic history and its technological & urban development; it has rapidly reached the list of most popular cities in Colombia.
- Eje Cafetero (Coffee Axe) is the name of the region of coffee in Colombia. There are three important cities: Pereira, Manizales and Armenia. The coffee is the first product of the Colombian economic.
[change] Science
Colombia is famous for its advance in medicine. Many foreigners come to the country to get health services. The medicine in Colombia is very good for transplant of organs and plastic surgery. Doctor Manuel Elkin Patarroyo discovered a medicine against malaria. He donated his discovery to be used in Africa and Latin America. He did not want to make business of it, but to help the poor people.
[change] History
[change] Before the Spaniards
The land where is today Colombia had people since more than 20,000 years ago. The first people had many groups, cultures and languages. There are many tools, caves and things of those peoples. In Colombia the people was similar to the ones of Asia, because the scientists say that the first men came to America from Siberia or South East Asia more than 50,000 years ago. The peoples of Colombia where called Arawak, Caribe, and Chibcha. But they have many other groups. The most famous were the Muiscas. El Dorado legend coms from the Muiscas: the king of the Muiscas used to bath in the Guatavita Lake and he used a lot of gold for it. The Spaniards heard about and the people told them that there was a great golden city somewhere. Since then they started to look for El Dorado. The International Airport of Bogotá is called "El Dorado International Airport" because the legend was born in Colombia. The descendants of the first peoples of Colombia live integrated with others. Some groups live in the forest, but many live in countryside and in the cities.
[change] The Colony
The Spaniards lead by Christopher Columbus discovered America in 1492. Columbus saw the coasts of Venezuela, Colombia and Panama and he gave to it his own name. But it was Alonso de Ojeda the first to do an exploration in the area of Gulf of Darien. After that the Spaniards founded the first European cities in the American continent: Santa Marta in 1525 and Cartagena de Indias in 1533. It was from Colombia that the Spaniards conquered the Incas of Peru. They founded also the city of Popayán in 1536 and they conquered the Confederation of the Muiscas. In Bacatá, the capital of the Muiscas, the Spaniards founded the city of Santa Fe in 1538. In 1550 the Spaniards declared the territory as a colony and its capital was Santa Fe de Bogotá, but in the first decades it depended from Peru. Soon after, it was declared a Viceroyalty.
[change] The independence
Antonio Nariño was one of the most important persons to lead a movement for the independence of Colombia. He was a politician, journalist and militar.
On November 11 1810 the city of Cartagena de Indias declared its dependence from Spain.
[change] Politics
Colombia just had an election in May 2006 and the president Alvaro Uribe was elected again. He will be president until 2010. Alvaro Uribe was the first president in Colombia to win a second election in over 100 years.
[change] Resources
Colombia is well known for its exquisite coffee, coal, and emeralds. It is also the biggest supplier of Plantains (a kind of banana used for cooking which are known as platanos in Colombia) to the United States. There are a few armed conflicts in Colombia. Most rebel groups finance their operations with the trade of illegal drugs (mostly Cocaine).
[change] References
- ↑ Dane 2005.
[change] Bibliography
- RODAS, Albeiro, Bogotá, the Gate and Hall of South America, Colombia Passport: Economics, Society and Culture in Colombia, Sihanoukville, Cambodia, 2007.
| Countries and territories of South America | |
|---|---|
| Independent | Argentina · Bolivia · Brazil · Chile · Colombia · Ecuador · Guyana · Paraguay · Peru · Suriname · Uruguay · Venezuela |
| Governed by other countries | Falkland Islands · French Guiana · South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands |
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|---|---|
| Antigua and Barbuda · Bahamas¹ · Barbados · Belize · Dominica · Grenada · Guyana · Haiti · Jamaica · Montserrat · Saint Kitts and Nevis · Saint Lucia · Saint Vincent and the Grenadines · Suriname · Trinidad and Tobago | |
| Associate members | Anguilla · Bermuda · Cayman Islands · British Virgin Islands · Turks and Caicos Islands |
| Observer countries | Aruba · Colombia · Dominican Republic · Mexico · Netherlands Antilles · Puerto Rico · Venezuela |
| ¹ Member of the community but not the Caribbean (CARICOM) Single Market and Economy. | |
