ColombiaSpanish 3

Notes

Location In Northern South

America Borders Caribbean

Sea, Pacific Ocean, Panama, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru and Brazil

Twice the size of Texas

Republic of Colombia“Liberdad y Orden”

Capital: Bogotá

Language: Spanish

Ethnic Groups 58% Mestizo

Mix of European and Indian/Native

26% White 15% African 1% Indian

GovernmentInformation

Bicameral Congress of 104

Senators & House of Representatives with 166

Voting Age: 18 years old

Juan Manuel Santos Calderon

President since Aug. 2010Serves a 4 year term

EnvironmentWelcome to the Ring

of Fire!

15 active major volcanoes

Devastating earthquakes , floods, tsunamis

Human destruction: pollution, military conflicts, deforestation, fossil fuels, contamination

Human waste and garbage in city water supply

An example of the large environmental problems in Colombia

Economy48% live below the poverty line

Largely agricultural but growing industry Problems!

One of the world’s leading suppliers of coffee

Coca

The Coca Plant is indigenous to Colombia and

is a native and essential plant to the livelihood of the

country.

When chewed, coca acts as a mild stimulant and

suppresses hunger, thirst, pain, and fatigue.

Plant that is the source of cocaine.

History of ColombiaA brief history of Colombia

Earliest Colombians10,000 BC: Hunter-Gatherers in Bogotá

Colonial Times1525 – First Spanish

permanent settlement in Santa Maria Spanish colonists live all

throughout South America during this time

May 1810: Breaking News! Napoleon's forces conquer

Southern Spain. Napoleon appoints his brother Joe as King of Spain

Problems everywhere

Gran ColombiaSpanish colonies =

Spanish Pride Strongly disliked

French leadership

1816 – Independence from Spain (but part of the United Provinces)

1819 – 1830: Gran Colombia = one large country of Colombia, Venezuela and part of Peru

Early Republic HistoryCharacterized by military conflicts and

political instability: many people but no real leader

Notable IssuesThousands Days War: 1899-1902

100,000 citizens killed

Building of the Panama Canal in 1903 (Working with the United States)

“La Violencia”: 1940’s and 1950’s 300,000 killed