Colombia - Facts, data, location, ext

Essay by CheatMeat21High School, 12th gradeA+, September 2006

download word file, 4 pages 2.3

Colombia located in the northwestern part of South America is one of many Spanish speaking countries. Colombia shares a boarder with Ecuador, Peru Brazil, Venezuela, and Panama. Colombia's capital and largest city, Bogotá;, is located near the center of Colombia. Medellín located northwest of Bogota and Cali to the southwest are also good size cites.

The climates in Colombia do not change very much due to the fact it is located so close to the equator. But the climates do change due to elevation. Elevations below about 300 feet are known as the tierra caliente or the "hot land". The middle regions are known as tierra templada or, in English, the "moderate land". The highest elevation located 6,500 feet or higher, is known as tierra fría which translated is "cold land". The amount or precipitation varies greatly between regions. Averaging more then 100 inches of rain a year, the Magdalen Valley and tropical forest receives the most rain in Colombia. But the region along the Caribbean is the hottest and driest part of the country containing short rainy seasons. Located closest to the equator the Guajira peninsula receives the least amount of rain in Colombia. It is easy to see that the equator has a lot to do with Colombia's climates.

Colombia was named after the famous explorer Christopher Columbus. In the early 1500's Spaniards came to Colombia looking for gold. They enslaved the native Indians and ruled Colombia for three hundred years. It wasn't until 1819 that a man by the name of Simón Bolívar led Colombia to independent from Spain. By 1826 all the Spanish colonies in South America were independent. In the 1970's and 1980's guerilla groups were formed to fight the government and attempt to create a communists state. Due to...