Einar H. Dyvik
Research expert covering Nordics and global data for society, economy, and politics
Bogotá– statistics & facts
Perched at 2,635 meters above sea level rises the city formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá, founded on August 6th, 1538, by the Spanish colonizers as the capital of the New Kingdom of Granada (currently Colombia and Panama) on the territory of the Muiscas. The two most accepted etymologies suggest that the name Bogotá comes from the Chibcha word Bacatá meaning either “wailing of the farmland” or “lady of the shining mountain.” Nowadays, the city still functions as the capital of Colombia and is the most populous in the country, with three times more inhabitants than the second most populous city, Medellín. With all of this, it is no surprise that Bogotá is the Colombian epicenter in most levels and is the cultural, historical, economic, and industrial capital of the country.
