Quindío Department

Quindío (Spanish pronunciation: [kinˈdi.o]) is a department of Colombia. It is in the western central region of the country, crossed by the Andes mountains. Its capital is Armenia. It is famous for the quality of the coffee plantations, colorful architecture, benign weather, variety of hotel accommodations and tourist landmarks. This department is located in a strategic area, in the center of the triangle formed by the three main cities of the country: Bogotá, Medellín and Cali. Quindío is the second-smallest Colombian department (0.2% of the national territory) with 12 municipalities. Ethnographically and culturally it belongs to the Paisa region.

Department of Quindío

Departamento del Quindío
Department
Motto(s): 
Young, Rich and Powerful
(Spanish: Joven, Rico y Poderoso)
Anthem: Himno del Quindío
Quindío shown in red
Topography of the department
Coordinates: 4°32′N 75°42′W
Country Colombia
RegionAndean Region
EstablishedJuly 1, 1966
CapitalArmenia
Government
 • GovernorCarlos Eduardo Osorio Buritica (2016-2019)
Area
 • Total1,845 km2 (712 sq mi)
Area rank31st
Population
 (2018)[1]
 • Total539,904
 • Rank22nd
 • Density290/km2 (760/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC-05
ISO 3166 codeCO-QUI
Municipalities12
HDI (2017)0.767[2]
high · 4th
Websitewww.quindio.gov.co

History
Historical population
YearPop.±%
1973 322,815—    
1985 392,208+21.5%
1993 495,212+26.3%
2005 534,552+7.9%
2018 539,904+1.0%
Source:[3]

Before the Spanish invasion the entire area was inhabited by the peoples of the Quimbaya civilization until the 10th century B.C. At the time of Spanish conquest the area was inhabited by indigenous people of Carib descent known as the Pijao tribes. The native population was gradually reduced due to slavery, armed confrontations, and massacres during the Rubber boom, causing the territory to remain mostly uninhabited over the following centuries. At the present time, only a small population of nearly 2000 Amerindians remains in an indigenous reservation near La Tebaida.

The first settlement to be founded in the area was Salento in 1842. In the 19th century northern peasants from Antioquia set out to settle in the area and their goal was to stay there permanently in a process known as Colonización antioqueña (Antioquian Colonisation). Due to the inaccessibility of the territory and the lack of roads, trade and communications were made through mule caravans (arriería) or by porters such as the silleros.

In 1905, the old Department of Antioquia was partitioned into two, giving rise to the new Department of Caldas, which at the time included the modern department of Risaralda. In 1908 the territory, then in jurisdiction of the Cauca Department, was annexed to Caldas department.

Other relevant events in the history of the Quindío department are:

  • 1942: The opening of the first beer factory (BAVARIA)
  • 1947: The opening of the first coffee roaster industry (Café Luz)
  • 1954: The most successful coffee harvest in the history of the country (“bonanza cafetera”)
  • 1964: Opening of the Metalmechanic Industries of Quindío
  • 1964: The Regional Autonomous Corporation is created to protect the local environment
  • 1965: Opening of the Soft drinks factory Gaseosas Regional (with production of pineapple, kola and chocolate flavored pop sodas)
  • 1966: The pyramidal cathedral to the Immaculate Conception with post-modern architecture is built.
  • 1967: Ivan Botero Gomez enterprise starts operations

also see list of Governors of the Department of Quindío.

Municipalities
Salento. Main street

In order of population:

Geography
La Vieja River

Most of its surface is occupied for the western face of the Cordillera Central. Highest mountain: (Nevado del Quindío) 5,150 m (16,896 ft) high. The lowest area is the valley of La Vieja River, 1,100 m (3,609 ft) high.

This department consists entirely of mountain landscapes covered in tropical rainforest and Guadua bamboo forests. The ground is enriched with ancient volcanic eruptions, raising its fertility. There are also many rivers and streams, including the Quindío River which rises in the Cocora Valley.

The weather varies widely, having two rainy seasons (April and November) separated by two dry seasons. The annual precipitation is around 2,500 mm (98 in) and comes from the humidity of winds from the Pacific Ocean being cooled as they rise over the Andes. The average temperature is between 24 °C (75 °F) in the La Vieja river valley and 16 °C (61 °F) in Salento.

Quindío wax palm tree
Quindío wax palm tree is the national tree of Colombia

With law 61 of 1985, the Colombian Congress adopted the Quindío wax palm tree, Ceroxylon quindiuense, a local endangered species adapted to high altitudes, as the National Tree. As ratified on September 16, 1985, by the then president of Colombia, Belisario Betancur, the law states: "The species commonly known as the Quindío wax palm tree, scientific name Ceroxylon quindiuense, is declared the national tree and symbol of our fatherland. The national government is empowered to buy as much land as needed to create wildlife sanctuaries with the purpose of preserving this national symbol and its natural environment. It is forbidden to cut down the Quindío wax palm tree. The punishment for doing so shall be a fine and a term in jail"."

The Quindío wax palm tree was nearly driven to extinction by the extraction of the resinous substance that it exudes. Furthermore, its leaves were widely used for the celebration of Holy Week processions, especially that of Palm Sunday.

Economy

Quindío's economy is based mainly in the harvest of coffee. It is one of the most important producers of Colombian coffee. The department belongs to the Colombian Coffee-Growers Axis which is the center of production and export of the highest quality coffee in Colombia. plantain, cassava, Salentune potato and sugarcane are also cultivated, mostly for sale in the local markets.

Tourism
Coffee museum in Colombian National Coffee Park

Culture

Gastronomy
Coffee is the base for several different drinks and food in the Quindío cuisine. In the picture, Cafe Cortado

Some of the typical food and drinks are:

  • Salentune Patacón, which is made with plantain, smashed in a thin layer, fried and covered with grounded cheese and pineapple sauce
  • Quindian arepa filled with shredded chicken and pieces of pig chicharrón
  • Cocora, which is a baked trout
  • Maduro, which is a broiled plantain filled with cheese and Bocadillo (thick guava jam)
  • Roasted gurre
  • Guatin stew
  • Coffee wine (obtained from fermentation of coffee berries) with flavor similar to coffee liqueur
  • Coffee arequipe
  • Corn chicha fermented in a large pottery recipient containing a horseshoe to enhance the flavor
  • Carajillo, a typical cocktail made of one part of hot coffee, one part of sugarcane aguardiente and cinnamon sticks

Festivals and celebrations

Quindío department is the main exponent of traditional Cultura Cafetera (coffee culture) in the country. There are several events all around the year that attracts a large number of visitors to this region. With the purpose of preserving this cultural expression, the regional government promotes the declaration of Patrimony of Humanity by the UNESCO.

Among other events:

Paper lanterns in Quimbaya, Quindío candlelight festival
  • The National Coffee Party is the main event of the department. It is celebrated each year since 1960 in Calarcá, the last days of June. The event includes the national beauty contest of coffee.
  • The international fair of handcrafts, each may in Armenia.
  • The day of St. Isidro (July-all the municipalities).
  • The National festival of kites (August- La Tebaida).
  • The anniversary of Armenia (October), with the Yipao or jeep parade.
  • The candlelight festival of Quimbaya (December) .
  • The Bullfighting season of La Macarena (January- Armenia).

The Quimbayan Christmas Panther

The Quimbayan Christmas Panther is an indigenous & sacred animal recognized by indigenous and mestizo communities in the Quindío Department of Colombia. Belief in the Christmas Panther (el puma de navidad) has developed throughout the history of the Quimbayan holiday known as the Alumbrado de Navidad (see Feast of the Immaculate Conception), celebrated on the 7th of December in recognition of the Roman Catholic belief in the Immaculate Conception of Christ. It is believed that the significance of the puma stems from the arrival of ethnically Spanish colonialists from Antioquia in the region during the 1850s. The colonialist's Catholic traditions of using candlelight to celebrate the Immaculate Conception was combined with belief of the local Quimbaya tribe in the effect that fire (luces de fogota) had in protecting against panther attacks as pumas and other local fauna are believed to fear fire. Thus, in an instance of religious syncretism, the Alumbrado de Navidad and the symbolism of the puma to native peoples were linked. It is still a common practice to display the symbol of the panther (in the form of sculptures made of terra cotta, cloth, plastic, etc.) in conjunction with the lighting of candles on the night of December the 7th. Such religious syncretism is especially visible in the rural pueblos of Quindío where many residents claim full or partial descent from Quimbaya native peoples of the region.(the Quimbayan christmas panther is blue with yellow tail).

Fauna and Flora
Odontoglossum
cruentum

Quindío is the natural habitat of 520 species of birds and about 60 species of mammals. Many of them are endemisms. The area has the largest number of heliconia species in the world and a large numbers of species of orchids, mainly of the genera cattleya, odontoglossum, miltonia, phragmipedium and peristeria. The natural forests typical of the area, such as the páramo, and the cloud forest, are decreasing progressively due to agricultural activities. As a result, many of the endemic species are threatened, endangered or critically endangered. Some of them are:

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References
  1. "DANE". Archived from the original on November 13, 2009. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
  2. "Sub-national HDI - Area Database - Global Data Lab". hdi.globaldatalab.org. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
  3. "Reloj de Población". DANE. Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadísitica. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
  4. es:Cacique Calarcá
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