Colombia: Basic Facts

COLOMBIA

Report by: Colombia Group
Lit 201 – Literatures of the World
March 1, 2013

Country Highlights

 Capital: Bogota
 Language: Spanish
 Currency: Colombian peso
 Government: Multiparty
Republic
 Religion: Roman Catholic
 Population: 47 million (2012)
 Names: Colombia is named
after Christopher Columbus,
was a part of New Granada
colony

Colombian Climate
Colombia has many extremes of landscape, and
different elevations dictate various climates:
1. Hot zone (tierra caliente)
2. Temperate zone (tierra templada)
3. Cold zone (tierra fria)
4. Bleak and treeless zone (paramos)
Rainy and dry seasons alternate in three-month
cycles. There are two wet seasons: April to June and
October to December. Northern areas have one long
rainy season, from May through October.

Peoples: Appearance

Most Colombians are Mestizos, Mulatoes, Whites, Blacks,
and Native Americans.

Peoples: Costume

La Pollera Colora or ‘brightly colored skirt’ for women

Peoples: Ornaments

Sombrero vueltiao (hat) for men
and
Ruana (cape) for both genders

Customs & Traditions
• Festivals provide the ideal setting to see, hear and
experience Colombian culture.
 Carnaval de Negros y Blancos
 Carnaval de Barranquilla
 Wind and Kite Festival
 Feria de las Flores or The Flower Fair

Customs & Traditions
Unique Colombian Marriage Customs:
• No Bridesmaid or Best Man
• A Dance
• The Coins or Las Arras
Famous food:
• Bandeja paisa or "paisa platter" - national dish
• Colombian coffee

Art

• Pre-colonial
Early artifacts were
made of clay, stone,
and gold. Gold was
abundant was used to
make ornaments
inspired by nature and
the supernatural

Art
• Colonial: inspired by Christianity

Art
• Modern has been
influenced by international
art styles with a unique
Colombian twist.

Language: Spanish

• Hola – Hello
• Adios – Goodbye
• Gracias – Thank you
• Si – Yes
• No – No

Religion: Roman Catholicism

Beliefs:
 Authority Within the Church
 The Bible
 Forgiveness of Sin
 Hell
 Mary's Status
 Purgatory
 Salvation
 Saints

Religion: Roman Catholicism

Practices:
 Baptism
 Clergy Selection
 The Lord's Supper
 Prayer
 Right to Life
 Sacraments
 Statues

Geography: Location &
Neighbors
•located in north-west South America. It is the
fourth largest country in Latin America.

Map of Colombia

•It is bordered by Ecuador and
Peru on the south, Brazil and
Venezuela in the east, and
Panama on the north-west. It has
extensive coastlines on both the
Pacific and the Carribean.

Geography
Colombia is a country of contrasts.
It has both snow-capped
mountains, tropical regions with
rainforests, grassy plains, and
warm beaches.
• Country:
3 major regions:
1. The Andean region
2. The Coastal region
3. Rainforests and llanos
Highest point:
Pico Cristobal Colon

Geography: Extremes of Landscape &
Climate

Bodies of Water
• 2 major rivers: Cauca and Magdalena

•Colombia has both coasts in the Caribbean Sea and
Atlantic Ocean.

Tourist Spots
Amazon Rainforest

Tourist Spots
Ciudad Perdida or the Lost City.

History

• Precolonial: The land was originally
home to many groups of Native
Americans. Chibcha, a group in the
Andes, traded gold and emeralds for
the Guajira’s (another group) cotton
and salt. Other groups are the
Tayrona, Muisca, and Quimbaya.
• 1530s: Spanish conquered the Chibcha
for gold, and they brought African
slaves to work in sugarcane
plantations along with Chibcha
survivors.

History: Legend of El Dorado
 El Dorado is the name of a
Muisca tribal chief who covered
himself with gold dust and, as an
initiation rite, dove into the
Guatavita Lake, and offer gold to
their gods.

 Later, it became the name of a
legendary "Lost City of Gold",
that fascinated explorers since
the days of the Spanish
Conquistadors. No evidence for
its existence has been found.

History
• 1717: The area became the
Spanish colony of New
Granada.
• 1819: Colombia won
independence from Spain,
led by Simon Bolivar and
Francisco Santander. The
independent republic of Gran
Colombia was declared and it
included present-day states
of Colombia, Ecuador,
Panama, and Venezuela.

History
• 1830: This republic has disintegrated and Colombia (with
Panama), Ecuador, and Venezuela became independent
nations. During this period, the Liberal and Conservative
parties were founded.
• 19th century was characterized by rivalry and armed struggles
between Liberal and Conservative factions.
• 1899-1902: War of a thousand days – a civil war over
government disagreements. Another civil strife known as
‘The Violence’ flared again in 1948-1959.
• 1980s: Some wealthy Colombians engage in illegal drug
trade. The government campaigned to stop this, but has met
violent resistance from durg lords.
• Today Colombia is the third largest oil producer in South
America.

Featured short story: “One of these
days” by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
About the author...
Gabriel Garcia Marquez was a
journalist and fiction writer.
His work introduced readers
to magical realism, which
combines fact and fantasy.
His novels One Hundred Years
of Solitude and Love in the
Time of Cholera have drawn
worldwide audiences. He won
a Nobel Prize in 1982.

Colombia: Basic Facts

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