Bogota is also a city in New Jersey, see Bogota, New Jersey.

Bogotá (known officially in Spanish as Bogotá D.C. (Distrito Capital), formerly as Santa Fé de Bogotá D.C.) is a city of 8.0 million people and the capital of Colombia.

At an altitude of 8,660 feet (2640 meters) above sea level in the Cordillera Oriental of the Northern Andes Mountains, Bogotá is situated on a sloping plain at the base of two mountains, Guadalupe and Monserrate, upon whose crests stand two imposing churches.

Several small streams, one of which, the San Francisco, passes through the city, unite near the south-western extremity of the plateau and form the Rio Funza, or Bogotá, which finally plunges over the edge at Tequendama in one of Bogotá's biggest tourist attractions: a beautiful, perpendicular waterfall of about 475 feet (145 meters). The climate is mild and temperate, the average annual temperature being about 58°F (14°C) and rainfall about 44 inches (110 cm).

The city is laid out in a grid, with numbered carreras intersecting numbered calles. Among the city's squares is the Plaza Bolívar, where some of the important public buildings and churches are located. Bogotá is connected by road to the Atlantic coast to the north and the Pacific coast to the west, as well as to all other major cities of Colombia. The Pan-American Highway and the Simón Bolívar Highway both pass through the city. The city is served by El Dorado International Airport. The TransMilenio transportation system is the most modern form of public transit serving the city.

Bogotá has traditionally been a major center of art, culture, and learning for northern South America. Sometimes called the "Athens of South America," Bogotá is home to several universities, including National University of Colombia (1830), Los Andes University (1948), The Pontificia Universidad Javeriana (Javeriana Pontifical University) (1622), the Universidad Externado de Colombia (1886), and the University of Santo Tomás (1580).

In addition to the Museo del Oro, which holds the world's largest collection of pre-Columbian gold, there is also the National Museum of Colombia which contains a large collection of pre-Columbian and Spanish colonial artifacts and Colombian art. Bogotá has many other history and art museums, among them the Children's Museum of Bogotá, museum of science and technology ("Maloka"), a museum of natural history, the Bogotá Planetarium, La Casa de la Moneda (Bogotá Mint) to which an important collection of modernist art was recently donated, The Botero Museum and several modern art galleries.

History

Bogotá, called Bacatá by the indigenous Chibcha, was the center of their civilization before the Spanish conquest, and sustained a large population. The European settlement was founded in 1538 by Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada and was named "Santa Fé de Bacatá" after his birthplace Santa Fé and the local name. "Bacatá" had become the modern "Bogotá" by the time it was made the capital of the viceroyalty of New Granada, and the city soon became one of the centers of Spanish colonial power and civilization in South America. In 1810-11 its citizens revolted against Spanish rule and set up a government of their own, but had to contend with Spanish military loyalists, who controlled the city until 1819, when Simón Bolívar captured the city after his victory at Boyacá. Bogotá was then made the capital of Gran Colombia, a federation combining the territories of modern Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, and Ecuador. When that republic was dissolved into its constituent parts, Bogotá remained the capital of New Granada, which later became the Republic of Colombia. See History of Colombia.

In August 2000 the capital's name was officially changed (again) from "Santa Fé de Bogotá" to the more usual "Bogotá". The local government consists in a Capital District, the current chief of government is Luis Eduardo Garzón.

Flag

The Flag of Bogotá originates from the insurgency movement against the colonial authorities which began on July 20, 1810. During this insurgency, the rebels wore armbands with yellow and red bands, as these colours were the ones in the Spanish flag which was the one used as the flag for the New Kingdom of Granada.

In October 9, 1952, exactly 142 years after these events, decree 555 of 1952 (available at [1] (http://calsegen01.alcaldiabogota.gov.co:7772/sisjur/normas/Norma1.jsp?i=3274)) officially and definitively adopted the patriotic armband as the flag of Bogotá.

The flag itself is divided vertically in two, the top half being yellow and the bottom half being red. The yellow colour denotes the virtues of justice, clemency and being benign, the so-called "mundane qualities" (defined as nobility, excellence, richness, generosity, splendour, health, steadfastness, joy and prosperity), long life, eternity, power and constancy. The red colour denotes the virtue of charity, as well as the qualities of bravery, nobility, values, audacity, victory, honour and furour.

Symbol

The Coat of Arms of the city of Bogotá was ceded by emperor Charles V (Charles I of Spain) to the New Kingdom of Granada, as evidenced by the Royal Decree given in Valladolid, Spain on December 3, 1548. It contains a black eagle in the center, which symbolises steadfastness. The eagle is crowned with gold and holds a red pomegranate inside a golden background. The border contains olive branches with nine golden pomegranates in a blue background. The two red pomegranates symbolize audacity, and the nine golden ones represent the nine states which constituted the New Kingdom of Granada at the time. In 1932 the coat of arms was officially recognized and adopted as the Symbol of Bogotá.

Anthem

Main article: Anthem of Bogotá

The lyrics to the anthem of Bogotá were written by Pedro Medina Avendaño, the melody was composed by Roberto Pineda Duque. The song was officially declared the anthem of Bogotá by decree 1000 of July 31, 1974, by then Mayor of Bogotá, Aníbal Fernandez de Soto.

Culture and modern life

Festival Iberoamericano de Teatro

Music Festivals (all genres year round)

Bogota half-marathon

Ciclovia

Toros (bullfigths)

Urban development

La Candelaria (Old Town)

Centro de Negocios (Business center)

Barrios y ciudadelas (districts)

Community centers, malls and "plazas"

Transportation

Goods and Services

Parks

Security

Reference

• This article incorporates text from the public domain 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica. Please update as needed.

External links

• Alcaldia de Bogotá (http://www.bogota.gov.co/) - Official web site for the City of Bogotá (Spanish)
• Museo del Oro (The Gold Museum) (http://www.banrep.gov.co/museo/home4_eng.htm)
• Bogotá from the air (http://www.villegaseditores.com/loslibros/9588156211/memoria_de_diseno.html) - On-line book with aerial photographs of Bogotá (Spanish)
• Museos de Bogotá (http://www.villegaseditores.com/loslibros/9589138519/memoria_de_diseno.html) - On-line book with a description of every major museum in the city (Spanish)
• El Tiempo  (http://www.eltiempo.com/) - Online edition of one of the main newspapers in Bogota (Spanish)
• El Espectador (http://www.elespectador.com/) - Online edition of one of the main newspapers in Bogota (Spanish)
• Los Andes University (http://www.uniandes.edu.co/) (Spanish)
• Javeriana Pontificial University (http://www.javeriana.edu.co/) (Spanish)
• National University of Colombia (http://www.unal.edu.co/) (Spanish)
• Havard Gazette Archives (http://www.news.harvard.edu/gazette/2004/03.11/01-mockus.html) Article about Antanas Mockus' many inspired strategies to change Bogota (English)