Amazonas () is a

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

of Southern

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

in the south of the country. It is the largest department in area while having the third smallest population among the departments. Its capital is Leticia and its name comes from the

Amazon River The Amazon River (, ; es, Río Amazonas, pt, Rio Amazonas) in South America is the largest river by discharge volume of water in the world, and the disputed longest river system in the world in comparison to the Nile. The headwaters of t ...

, which drains the department.

Toponymy

The department name comes from the name of the Amazon River. The river was named by the Spanish explorer

Francisco de Orellana Francisco de Orellana Bejarano Pizarro y Torres de Altamirano (; 1511 – November 1546) was a Spanish explorer and conquistador. In one of the most improbably successful voyages in known history, Orellana managed to sail the length of the Amaz ...

(1511–1546), who, on his voyage of exploration, said he was attacked by "fierce females" who looked like Amazons of the Greek mythology; however, the existence of a female warrior tribe in that time hasn't been demonstrated and it is possible that they were long-haired Native American warriors who impressed the conqueror, who called the jungle and the river with the name of Amazon.

Demographics

The following ethnic groups are found in the department: Bora, Cocama, Macuna, Mirana, Okaina, Ticunas, Tucano, Uitoto, Yagua, and Yucuna, among others. These groups are more than 5,000 years old. In 2018, the population comprised 76,589 people.

National parks

The Amazonas Department covers of

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

, most of it under the name of "forest reserve" since 1959. There are currently four "National Parks" (Amacayacú, Cahuinarí, Rio Puree, and Yagoje Apaporis).

Municipalities and communities

El Encanto El Encanto is a town and municipality in the ''Amazonas Department'', Colombia. It is located in the mouth of the Caraparaná River, tributary of the Putumayo River (Içá). El Encanto can be reached by air or river. The local navy base has a r ...

# La Chorrera # La Pedrera # La Victoria # Leticia #

Mirití-Paraná Mirití-Paraná is a town and municipality in the southern Colombian Department of Amazonas. ReferencesGobernacion del Amazonas, Mirití-Paraná Municipalities of Amazonas Department {{AmazonasCO-geo-stub ...

Puerto Alegría Puerto Alegría () is a town and municipality in the Colombian Department of Amazonas. Puerto Alegria was founded by Orlando Benjumea and Reinaldo Martínez, and officially recognized by the Colombian government as a municipality on January 1, ...

Puerto Arica Puerto Arica is a town and municipality in the Colombian Department of Amazonas. History Originally founded by Peruvian refugees from the War of the Pacific, it was awarded to Colombia after the Salomón-Lozano Treaty. These refugees would late ...

Puerto Nariño Puerto Nariño is the second municipality of the Amazonas department of Colombia, located on the shore of the Amazon River. It has about 6,000 residents, most of them are indigenous (from the Ticuna tribe) and its specificity is that it is ent ...

# Puerto Santander #

Tarapacá San Lorenzo de Tarapacá, also known simply as Tarapacá, is a town in the region of the same name in Chile. History The town has likely been inhabited since the 12th century, when it formed part of the Inca trail. When Spanish explorer Diego d ...

References

External links