Amazonas () is a department of Southern

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

. 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, which drains the department. It is made up entirely of Amazon Rainforest territory. The southern portion of the department, south of the

Putumayo River The Putumayo River or Içá River (, ) is one of the tributaries of the Amazon River, southwest of and parallel to the Japurá River. Course The Putumayo River forms part of Colombia's border with Ecuador, as well as most of the border with Per ...

, is called the "Amazonian Trapeze", which includes the triple border of Colombia,

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

and

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

, and its southern limit is the Amazon River.

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 (; 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 Amazon, arriving at the river's mouth on 24 A ...

(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 or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood ...

, 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'' of Colombia. It is located in the mouth of the Cara Paraná River, a tributary of the Putumayo River (Içá). El Encanto can be reached by air or river. The local navy base has ...

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

Mirití-Paraná Mirití-Paraná is a town and municipality in the southern Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colo ...

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. As of 2015, the population of Puerto Arica was 1,350. History Originally founded by Peruvian refugees from the War of the Pacific, it was awarded to Colombia afte ...

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

# 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 ...

References

External links