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Outline of Colombia


The Republic of Colombia is a sovereign country located in northwestern South America. Colombia is bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Atlantic Ocean, through the Caribbean Sea; to the north-west by Panama; and to the west by the Pacific Ocean. Colombia also shares maritime borders with the Caribbean countries of Jamaica, Haiti and the Dominican Republic and the Central American countries of Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica.

Colombia is the 26th most extensive nation in the world and the fourth most extensive in South America , with an area more than twice that of France. It also has the third-largest population in Latin America after Brazil and Mexico.

The territory of what is now Colombia was originally inhabited by indigenous tribes which had migrated from North and Central America, including the Muisca, Quimbaya, and Tairona. To the south lay the Inca Empire. The Spanish arrived in 1499, and initiated a period of conquest and colonisation which ultimately led to the creation of the Viceroyalty of New Granada with its capital at Bogota. Independence from Spain was won in 1819, but by 1830 "Gran Colombia" had collapsed with the secession of Venezuela and Ecuador. Modern day Colombia, with Panama, emerged as the Republic of New Granada. The new nation experimented with federalism as the Granadine Confederation (1858), and then the United States of Colombia (1863), before the Republic of Colombia was finally declared in 1886. Panama seceded in 1903.

Colombia has a long tradition of constitutional government, and the Conservative and Liberal parties, founded in 1843 and 1848 respectively, are two of the oldest surviving political parties in the Americas. However, tensions between the two have frequently erupted into violence, most notably in the Thousand Days War (1899-1902) and La Violencia, beginning in 1948. Since the 1960s, government forces have been engaged in conflict with left-wing insurgents and illegal right-wing paramilitaries. Fuelled by the cocaine trade, this escalated dramatically in the 1990s. However, the insurgents lack the military or popular support necessary to overthrow the government, and in recent years the violence has been decreasing. Insurgents continue attacks against civilians, and large swathes of the countryside remain under guerrilla influence, but the Colombian government has stepped up efforts to reassert government control throughout the country, and now has a presence in every one of its municipalities.

Colombia is a standing middle power with the second largest Spanish-speaking population in the world after Mexico. It is also one of the largest manufacturers in South America. Colombia is very ethnically diverse, and the interaction between descendents of the original native inhabitants, Spanish colonisers, African slaves and twentieth-century immigrants from Europe and the Middle East has produced a rich cultural heritage. This has also been influenced by Colombia's incredibly varied geography. The majority of the urban centres are located in the highlands of the Andes mountains, but Colombian territory also encompasses Amazon rainforest, tropical grassland and both Caribbean and Pacific coastlines. Ecologically, Colombia is considered to be among 17 of the most megadiverse countries in the world.

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Colombia':

General reference

Pronunciation:

Common English country name: Colombia

Official English country name: The Republic of Colombia

Common endonym(s):

Official endonym(s):

Adjectival(s): Colombian

Demonym(s):

Etymology: Name of Colombia

International rankings of Colombia

ISO country codes: CO, COL, 170

ISO region codes: See [[ISO 3166-2:CO]]

Internet country code top-level domain: .co

Geography of Colombia

Colombia is: a country

Location:

* Western Hemisphere, on the Equator

** South America

* Time zone: UTC-05

* Extreme points of Colombia

** High: Pico Cristobal Colon or Pico Simon Bolivar

** Low: North Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea 0 m

* Land boundaries: 6,309 km

2,050 km

1,800 km

1,644 km

590 km

225 km

* Coastline: 3,208 km

**Caribbean Sea 1,760 km

**North Pacific Ocean 1,448 km

Population of Colombia: 44,603,000 - 29th most populous country

Area of Colombia: 1,141,748 km2

[[:commons:Atlas of Colombia|Atlas of Colombia]]

Environment of Colombia

Climate of Colombia

Environmental issues in Colombia

Ecoregions in Colombia

Renewable energy in Colombia

Geology of Colombia

Protected areas of Colombia

* Biosphere reserves in Colombia

* National parks of Colombia

Wildlife of Colombia

* Flora of Colombia

* Fauna of Colombia

** Birds of Colombia

** Mammals of Colombia

Natural geographic features of Colombia

Main article: Landforms of Colombia

Fjords of Colombia

Glaciers of Colombia

Islands of Colombia

Lakes of Colombia

Mountains of Colombia

* Volcanoes in Colombia

Rivers of Colombia

* Waterfalls of Colombia

Valleys of Colombia

World Heritage Sites in Colombia

Regions of Colombia

Main article: Regions of Colombia

Ecoregions of Colombia

Main article: Ecoregions in Colombia

Administrative divisions of Colombia

Main article: Administrative divisions of Colombia

Districts of Colombia

* Municipalities of Colombia

Districts of Colombia
Municipalities of Colombia

Capital of Colombia: Bogota

Cities of Colombia

Demography of Colombia

Main article: Demographics of Colombia

Government and politics of Colombia

Main article: Government of Colombia and Politics of Colombia

Form of government: unitary presidential welfare state

Capital of Colombia: Bogota

Elections in Colombia

* (specific elections)

Political parties in Colombia

Political scandals of Colombia

Taxation in Colombia

Branches of government

Executive branch of the government of Colombia

Head of state & Head of government: President of Colombia, Vice President of Colombia

Cabinet of Colombia

Legislative branch of the government of Colombia

Congress of Colombia (bicameral)

* Upper house: Senate of Colombia

* Lower house: House of Representatives of Colombia

Judicial branch of the government of Colombia

Supreme Court of Colombia

Constitutional Court of Colombia

Superior Council of Judicature

Attorney General of Colombia

Foreign relations of Colombia

Diplomatic missions in Colombia

Diplomatic missions of Colombia

United States-Colombia relations

International organization membership

The Republic of Colombia is a member of:

Agency for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (OPANAL)

Andean Community of Nations (CAN)

Caribbean Community and Common Market (Caricom) (observer)

Caribbean Development Bank (CDB)

Central American Bank for Economic Integration (BCIE)

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)

Group of Three (G3)

Group of 24 (G24)

Group of 77 (G77)

Inter-American Development Bank (IADB)

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)

International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD)

International Chamber of Commerce (ICC)

International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)

International Criminal Court (ICCt)

International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol)

International Development Association (IDA)

International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRCS)

International Finance Corporation (IFC)

International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)

International Hydrographic Organization (IHO)

International Labour Organization (ILO)

International Maritime Organization (IMO)

International Mobile Satellite Organization (IMSO)

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

International Olympic Committee (IOC)

International Organization for Migration (IOM)

International Organization for Standardization (ISO)

International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement (ICRM)

International Telecommunication Union (ITU)

International Telecommunications Satellite Organization (ITSO)

International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC)

Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU)

Latin American Economic System (LAES)

Latin American Integration Association (LAIA)

Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA)

Nonaligned Movement (NAM)

Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW)

Organization of American States (OAS)

Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA)

Rio Group (RG)

Southern Cone Common Market (Mercosur) (associate)

Union Latina

United Nations (UN)

United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)

United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)

United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO)

United Nations Security Council

Universal Postal Union (UPU)

World Confederation of Labour (WCL)

World Customs Organization (WCO)

World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU)

World Health Organization (WHO)

World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)

World Meteorological Organization (WMO)

World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)

World Trade Organization (WTO)

Law and order in Colombia

Main article: Law of Colombia

Capital punishment in Colombia

Constitution of Colombia

Crime in Colombia

Human rights in Colombia

* LGBT rights in Colombia

* Freedom of religion in Colombia

Law enforcement in Colombia

Military of Colombia

Main article: Military of Colombia

Command

* Commander-in-chief:

** Ministry of Defence of Colombia

Forces

* Army of Colombia

* Navy of Colombia

* Air Force of Colombia

* Special forces of Colombia

Military history of Colombia

Military ranks of Colombia

Local government in Colombia

History of Colombia

Main article: History of Colombia, Timeline of the history of Colombia, and

Economic history of Colombia

Military history of Colombia

Culture of Colombia

Main article: Culture of Colombia

Architecture of Colombia

Cuisine of Colombia

Ethnic minorities in Colombia

Festivals in Colombia

Humor in Colombia

Languages of Colombia

Media in Colombia

National symbols of Colombia

* Coat of arms of Colombia

* Flag of Colombia

* National anthem of Colombia

People of Colombia

Prostitution in Colombia

Public holidays in Colombia

Records of Colombia

Religion in Colombia

* Buddhism in Colombia

* Christianity in Colombia

* Hinduism in Colombia

* Islam in Colombia

* Judaism in Colombia

* Sikhism in Colombia

World Heritage Sites in Colombia

Art in Colombia

Art in Colombia

Cinema of Colombia

Literature of Colombia

Music of Colombia

Television in Colombia

Theatre in Colombia

Sports in Colombia

Main article: Sports in Colombia

Football in Colombia

Colombia at the Olympics

Economy of Colombia

Main article: Economy of Colombia

Economic rank, by nominal GDP (2007): 40th (fortieth)

Agriculture in Colombia

Banking in Colombia

* National Bank of Colombia

Communications in Colombia

Companies of Colombia

Currency of Colombia: Peso

*ISO 4217: COP

Economic history of Colombia

Energy policy of Colombia

Mining in Colombia

Oil industry in Colombia

Tourism in Colombia

Transport in Colombia

Colombia Stock Exchange

Education in Colombia

Main article: Education in Colombia

Infrastructure of Colombia

Communications in Colombia

* Internet in Colombia

Energy in Colombia

Health care in Colombia

Transportation in Colombia

* Airports in Colombia

* Rail transport in Colombia

* Roads in Colombia

Water supply and sanitation in Colombia

See also

Index of Colombia-related articles

List of Colombia-related topics

List of international rankings

Member state of the United Nations

Outline of geography

Outline of South America

External links

; Government

Portal del Estado - Colombia Online Government web site

Presidencia de la Republica de Colombia - Official Presidential web site

Ministerio de Comercio, Industria y Turismo - Commerce, Industry and Tourism Boreau

National System of Cultural Information

UNICEF en Colombia

Banco de la Republica - Central Bank

Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica - National Statistics Administrative Dept.

Instituto Nacional de Vias - Transport and Road Agency

Senate of Colombia

Colombia's House of representatives

Colombia's Judicial branch

Policia Nacional - Police

Armada Nacional de Colombia - Navy

Ejercito Nacional de Colombia - Army

Departamento Administrativo de Seguridad - Homeland Security

- Agustin Codazzi Geographic Institute - Maps of Colombia

; Other

Encyclopaedia Britannica Colombia Country Page

[https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/co.html CIA World Factbook - Colombia]

US Colombia Free Trade Promotion Agreement - Congressional Research Service

US-Colombia Free Trade Deal Costly for Poor People - Oxfam

A U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement: Strengthening Democracy and Progress in Latin America - Cato Institute

Breaking the Grip? Obstacles to Justice for Paramilitary Mafias in Colombia - Human Rights Watch

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This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Outline of Colombia


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