Colombia
The
Republic of Colombia is a country in north-western
South America. It is bound to the north by Panama and the
Caribbean Sea, to the east by Venezuela and Brazil, to the south by Ecuador and Peru, and to the west by the
Pacific Ocean.
History
\nMain article: History of Colombia
Spanish explorers arrived in the area around 1500, at which time they encountered many Chibchan peoples who they subjugated through warfare, disease, exploitation, and conquest. They soon established settlements that eventually grew into the provinces which where part of the Captaincy General of New Granada. As it became a Viceroyalty in 1717, some other provinces of northwestern South America came under its jurisdiction. An independence movement sprang up around 1810 that finally succeeded in 1819 when the territory of the Viceroyalty of New Granada became the Republic of Greater Colombia (Gran Colombia).
Internal political and territorial divisions led to the secession of Venezuela and Quito (today's Ecuador) in 1830 and the remaining Department of Cundinamarca was renamed New Granada until 1856 when it became the Granadine Confederation until 1863 when it became the United States of Colombia until 1886 when it became the Republic of Colombia. Internal divisions remained, occasionally igniting civil war and contributing to the US-sponsored secession of Panama in 1903. The country continues to be plagued by guerrilla insurgents such as FARC, counter-insurgency paramilitary groups such as AUC and the effects of the influential drug trade, which are hampering political and economic reforms and leading to disruptions of public life and international concern.
Politics
\nMain article: Politics of Colombia
Colombia is a republic where the executive branch dominates government structure. The president, elected together with the vice-president by popular vote for a single four-year term, functions as both head of state and head of government.
Colombia's bicameral parliament is the Congress or Congreso, which consists of the 102-seat Senate and the 166-seat Chamber of Representatives. Members of both houses are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms.
The Colombian judicial system has undergone significant reforms in the 1990s.
Departments
\nMain article: Departments of Colombia
Colombia is divided into 32 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento):
\n
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Additionally, there is one capital district (
distrito capital), Bogotá D.C.
Geography
\nMain article: Geography of Colombia
The western half of Colombia is dominated by the Andes, which split into three great mountain ranges, the Western, Central and Eastern Cordillera. In between the ranges the
Cauca and
Magdalena rivers flow into the low-lying plains along the
Caribbean coast. The highlands are home to some occasionally active
volcanoes and the highest point is the Pico Cristobal Colon at 5,775 m.
The eastern half is characterised by lowland plains, often densily forested, which contain many rivers such as the
Putumayo, the
Yapura, the Meta, or the Guaviare that either flow to the
Orinoco or the
Amazon River. Colombia controls the islands of\n
Archipelago de San Andres y Providencia in the Caribbean and the other in the
Pacific Ocean.
The local
climate is tropical along both coasts and in the eastern plains, whereas the mountain ranges and highlands can be considerably cooler. Colombia's largest city is its capital
Bogotá, other major cities include
Medellín,
Cali,
Cartagena,
Barranquilla, Ibagué, Manizales,
Pasto,
Cúcuta and
Bucaramanga.
Economy
\nMain article: Economy of Colombia
Colombia's economy suffered from weak domestic demand, austere government budgets, and a difficult security situation. The current government faces economic challenges ranging from pension reform to reduction of
unemployment. Two of Colombia's leading exports,
oil and
coffee, face an uncertain future; new exploration is needed to offset declining oil production, while coffee harvests and prices are depressed.
Problems in public security are a concern for Colombian business leaders, who are calling for progress in the government's peace negotiations with insurgent groups. Colombia is looking for continued support from the international community to boost economic and peace prospects.
Demographics
\nMain article: Demographics of Colombia
Colombia has a diverse population that reflects its colourful history and the peoples that have populated her from ancient, to colonial and modern times. The historic amalgam of three main groups; indigenous Amerindians,
Spanish colonists, and imported
African slaves, are the basis of Colombia's current demographics.
Race mixing between these three was widespread and has produced distinct groups that now constitute much of the population. The country's largest ethnic group are known as
mestizos (58%) and are the result of intermingling between Spaniards and Amerindians. Whites are mainly creoles, descendants of Spanish colonist, and constitute the largest minority (20%) followed closely by mulattos (14%) which are descended from the unions of Spaniards and African slaves. The remainder of the population is comprised of unmixed descendants of African slaves (4%) and zambos who descend from the mixture of African slaves and Amerindians (3%). Today, only about 1% of the people can be identified as fully Amerindian on the basis of language and customs. The predominant religion in Colombia is
Roman Catholicism.
Colombia is the third-most populous country in
Latin America, after
Brazil and
Mexico. Movement from rural to urban areas has been heavy. The urban population increased from 57% of the total population in 1951 to about 74% by 1994. Thirty cities have a population of 100,000 or more. The nine eastern lowlands departments, constituting about 54% of Colombia's area, have less than 3% of the population and a density of less than one person per square kilometre.
Culture
\nMain article: Culture of Colombia
\nMiscellaneous topics
External links
\n* PEC - Official governmental portal (in Spanish)\n*
Casa de Nariño - Official presidential site (in Spanish)\n*
Colombia Banknotes\n*
Colombia from the air - On-line book with aerial pictures of Colombia (English)\n*
Colombia, a new vision - On-line book with photographs of Colombia and its people (English)
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Category:South American countries
