Circasia () is a municipality in the northern part of the department of Quindío,

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 located 7 km north of the department's capital

Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...

. Located within the

Colombian coffee growing axis The Coffee Axis () is a geographic, cultural, economic and ecological region of Colombia, located in the departments of Caldas, Risaralda and Quindío, as well as the regions of northwestern Tolima, northern and eastern Valle del Cauca and southw ...

, the historic center of Circasia was made part of the "Coffee Cultural Landscape"

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

in 2011.

History

Circasia was founded in 1884 by Javier Arias. It became a separate municipality in 1906 when was separated from Filandia. In 2023 the town had an estimated population of 29,500. Circasia is known for its Free Cemetery (Spanish: ''Cementerio Libre''), located on the outskirts of the township on the road to

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. It was founded in 1933 by Braulio Botero as a place in which any person could be buried, regardless of their religious beliefs. The cemetery is now a symbol for liberty and equality.

Geography

The township is situated a short distance from the highway between

and Pereira, Risaralda. There is a paved road southwest to

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, which passes through most of the rural area of the municipality. There is also a rural road north to Filandia, which descends to cross the Roble River at a point known as the Aguadeños Pass (). However, all public transport to Filandia uses the main highway.

Climate

Circasia has a

subtropical highland climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring c ...

with an average annual temperature of 18 °C.

Tourism

There are many nicely decorated coffee shops by the main square as many towns of Quindío. Circasia also offers destinations for fine dining. Circasia is quietly becoming a major destination for retirees in search of a quiet chateau style place to spend their spare time. Its colder climate sounds very attractive to regional developers.

Born in Circasia

* Natalia López Cardona, Model and beauty queen

References

Municipalities of Quindío Department {{Quindío-geo-stub