colombia notes
DESCRIPTION
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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