Génova () is a municipality in the southern 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's located 52 km south of the departmental 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 municipality 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.
In 2023 Génova had an estimated population of 7,726.
History
Génova was founded by Segundo Henao Patiño, who had founded
Calarcá in 1886. During the Thousand Day War, Henao was told by mule drivers arriving from
Antioquia and
Tolima that the government war ministry was executing liberal guerrillas, with or without trial. In order to hide from these potential reprisals, he organized a group of liberals from
Calarcá to explore the mountains to the south.
The expedition, headed by Henao, included the families Patiño, Ossa, Ospina, Restrepo, Aria, Herrera, Aguilar, Cardona, González, Orozco and Giraldo. The group planted out land along the Gris and Azul rivers. There were already several settlers living in the region, near the Gris River.
Henao was well known throughout the region for his role in the foundation of Calarcá, and all of the settlers enthusiastically supported him when he announced his intention to form a new town. He was placed in charge of choosing a site and designing the street plans. Henao chose a site near the joining of the Gris and San Juan rivers, on the land of Luis Ossa.
The official foundation took place on October 12, 1903. Génova became a ''corregimiento'' of
Calarcá in 1906, and was later included in the municipality of
Pijao when this was created in 1927. In 1937 the town became a separate municipality, with Fución Londoño the first mayor.
Climate
Génova 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 of 21°C.
Notable people
*
Luis Garavito (born 1957), prolific serial killer
*
Manuel Marulanda
Pedro Antonio Marín Marín (13 May 1930 – 26 March 2008), known by his "nom de guerre" Manuel Marulanda Vélez, was the founder and main leader of the Marxist–Leninist FARC-EP ("''Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia – Ejército ...
(c.1930-2008), FARC-EP leader
References
* Loaiza Piedrahita, Oscar (2004), ''Los corredores del tiempo: Guía turística por la historia del Quindío''. . Book in Spanish on the history of the municipalities of Quindío until the foundation of the department in 1966. The local history is placed in the context of wider events in Colombia.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Genova, Quindio
Municipalities of Quindío Department