Quindío () is a
department of
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 in the western central of the country, specifically in the
Andean region. Its capital is
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 ...
. It is famous for its coffee plantations, colorful architecture, benign weather, and tourist landmarks. This department is located in a strategic area, in the center of the triangle formed by the three main cities of the country:
Bogotá
Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...
,
Medellín
Medellín ( ; or ), officially the Special District of Science, Technology and Innovation of Medellín (), is the List of cities in Colombia, second-largest city in Colombia after Bogotá, and the capital of the department of Antioquia Departme ...
and
Cali
Santiago de Cali (), or Cali, is the capital of the Valle del Cauca department, and the most populous city in southwest Colombia, with 2,280,522 residents estimate by National Administrative Department of Statistics, DANE in 2023. The city span ...
. Quindío is the second-smallest Colombian department (0.2% of the national territory) with 12 municipalities. Ethnographically and culturally, it belongs to the
Paisa region.
History
Before the Spanish invasion the entire area was inhabited by the peoples of the
Quimbaya civilization until the 10th century B.C. At the time of Spanish conquest the area was inhabited by indigenous people of
Carib descent known as the Pijao tribes. The native population was gradually reduced due to slavery, armed confrontations, and massacres during the
Rubber boom, causing the territory to remain mostly uninhabited over the following centuries. At the present time, only a small population of nearly 2000
Amerindians
In the Americas, Indigenous peoples comprise the two continents' pre-Columbian inhabitants, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with them in the 15th century, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with the pre-Columbian population of ...
remains in an indigenous reservation near
La Tebaida.
The first settlement to be founded in the area was
Salento
Salento (; Salentino dialect, Salentino: ''Salentu''; Griko language, Salento Griko: ) is a Cultural area, cultural, List of historical states of Italy, historical, and geographic region at the southern end of the administrative region of Apuli ...
in 1842. In the 19th century northern peasants from
Antioquia set out to settle in the area and their goal was to stay there permanently in a process known as Colonización antioqueña (
Antioquian Colonisation). Due to the inaccessibility of the territory and the lack of roads, trade and communications were made through
mule
The mule is a domestic equine hybrid between a donkey, and a horse. It is the offspring of a male donkey (a jack) and a female horse (a mare). The horse and the donkey are different species, with different numbers of chromosomes; of the two ...
caravans (
arriería) or by porters such as the
silleros.
In 1905, the old Department of Antioquia was partitioned into two, giving rise to the new
Department of Caldas
Caldas () is a department of Colombia named after Colombian patriotic figure Francisco José de Caldas. It is part of the Paisa Region and its capital is Manizales. The population of Caldas is 998,255, and its area is 7,291 km2. Caldas i ...
, which at the time included the modern department of
Risaralda. In 1908 Quindio territory, then in jurisdiction of the
Cauca Department
Cauca Department (, ) is a department of Southwestern Colombia. Located in the southwestern part of the country, facing the Pacific Ocean to the west, the Valle del Cauca Department to the north, Tolima Department to the northeast, Huila De ...
, was annexed to Caldas department.
Also, see
list of governors of Quindío Department.
Municipalities
In order of population:
*
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 ...
, capital city. Named after the
Caucasus
The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...
republic of
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 ...
.
*
Calarcá. Named after
Cacique
A cacique, sometimes spelled as cazique (; ; feminine form: ), was a tribal chieftain of the Taíno people, who were the Indigenous inhabitants of the Bahamas, the Greater Antilles, and the northern Lesser Antilles at the time of European cont ...
(Chief) Calarca of the
Pijao people.
[ :es:Cacique Calarcá]
*
La Tebaida. Named after the
Thebaid
The Thebaid or Thebais (, ''Thēbaïs'') was a region in ancient Egypt, comprising the 13 southernmost nome (Egypt), nomes of Upper Egypt, from Abydos, Egypt, Abydos to Aswan.
Pharaonic history
The Thebaid acquired its name from its proximit ...
region of
ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt () was a cradle of civilization concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in Northeast Africa. It emerged from prehistoric Egypt around 3150BC (according to conventional Egyptian chronology), when Upper and Lower E ...
.
*
Circasia. Named after the
Caucasus
The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...
region of
Circassia
Circassia ( ), also known as Zichia, was a country and a historical region in . It spanned the western coastal portions of the North Caucasus, along the northeastern shore of the Black Sea. Circassia was conquered by the Russian Empire during ...
.
*
Montenegro
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, national_anthem = ()
, image_map = Europe-Mont ...
. Named after the Balkan republic of
Montenegro
, image_flag = Flag of Montenegro.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Montenegro.svg
, coa_size = 80
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, national_anthem = ()
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.
*
Quimbaya. Named after the indigenous
Quimbaya civilization.
*
Salento
Salento (; Salentino dialect, Salentino: ''Salentu''; Griko language, Salento Griko: ) is a Cultural area, cultural, List of historical states of Italy, historical, and geographic region at the southern end of the administrative region of Apuli ...
. Named after the
Salento
Salento (; Salentino dialect, Salentino: ''Salentu''; Griko language, Salento Griko: ) is a Cultural area, cultural, List of historical states of Italy, historical, and geographic region at the southern end of the administrative region of Apuli ...
region in Italy.
*
Córdoba. Named after the
Andalusia
Andalusia ( , ; , ) is the southernmost autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain, located in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomou ...
n city of
Córdoba, Spain
Córdoba ( ; ), or sometimes Cordova ( ), is a city in Andalusia, Spain, and the capital of the Province of Córdoba (Spain), province of Córdoba. It is the third most populated Municipalities in Spain, municipality in Andalusia.
The city prim ...
.
*
Pijao. Named after the
Amerindian
In the Americas, Indigenous peoples comprise the two continents' pre-Columbian inhabitants, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with them in the 15th century, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with the pre-Columbian population of ...
Pijao federation.
*
Génova. Named after the Italian city of
Genoa
Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...
.
*
Buenavista. Named after the Spanish city of
Buenavista de Valdavia.
*
Filandia. Named from the Latin words "filia" (daughter) and "Andia" (
Andes
The Andes ( ), Andes Mountains or Andean Mountain Range (; ) are the List of longest mountain chains on Earth, longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range ...
), thus "daughter of the Andes" (the northernmost municipality of the department).
Geography

Most of its surface is occupied for the western face of the
Cordillera Central. Highest mountain: (
Nevado del Quindío) high. The lowest area is the valley of
La Vieja River, high.
This department consists entirely of mountain landscapes covered in tropical
rainforest
Rainforests are forests characterized by a closed and continuous tree Canopy (biology), canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforests can be generally classified as tropi ...
and
Guadua bamboo forests. The ground is enriched with ancient volcanic eruptions, raising its fertility. There are also many rivers and streams, including the
Quindío River which rises in the
Cocora Valley.
The weather varies widely, having two rainy seasons (April and November) separated by two dry seasons. The annual precipitation is around and comes from the humidity of winds from the
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...
being cooled as they rise over the
Andes
The Andes ( ), Andes Mountains or Andean Mountain Range (; ) are the List of longest mountain chains on Earth, longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range ...
. The average temperature is between in the La Vieja river valley and in Salento.
Quindío wax palm tree
With law 61 of 1985, the Colombian Congress adopted the Quindío wax palm tree, ''
Ceroxylon quindiuense'', a local endangered species adapted to high altitudes, as the National Tree. As ratified on September 16, 1985, by the then president of Colombia,
Belisario Betancur, the law states: "The species commonly known as the Quindío wax palm tree, scientific name Ceroxylon quindiuense, is declared the national tree and symbol of our fatherland. The national government is empowered to buy as much land as needed to create wildlife sanctuaries with the purpose of preserving this national symbol and its natural environment. It is forbidden to cut down the Quindío wax palm tree. The punishment for doing so shall be a fine and a term in jail"."
The Quindío wax palm tree was nearly driven to extinction by the extraction of the resinous substance that it exudes. Furthermore, its leaves were widely used for the celebration of
Holy Week processions, especially that of
Palm Sunday
Palm Sunday is the Christian moveable feast that falls on the Sunday before Easter. The feast commemorates Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem, an event mentioned in each of the four canonical Gospels. Its name originates from the palm bran ...
.
Economy
Quindío's economy is based mainly in the harvest of
coffee
Coffee is a beverage brewed from roasted, ground coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content, but decaffeinated coffee is also commercially a ...
. It is one of the most important producers of
Colombian coffee. The department belongs to the
Colombian Coffee-Growers 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 ...
which is the center of production and export of the highest quality coffee in Colombia.
Plantain,
cassava
''Manihot esculenta'', common name, commonly called cassava, manioc, or yuca (among numerous regional names), is a woody shrub of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to South America, from Brazil, Paraguay and parts of the Andes. Although ...
, Salentune potato and
sugarcane
Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fib ...
are also cultivated, mostly for sale in local markets.
Tourism
*
Quimbaya museum
*
Colombian National Coffee Park
*
PANACA park
*
Cocora Valley
*
El Mariposario (Butterfly
vivarium)
*
National Bamboo and Guadua Investigation Center
*
Peñas Blancas
*
Nevado del Quindío
Culture
Gastronomy

Some of the typical food and drinks are:
* Salentune Patacón, which is made with
plantain, smashed in a thin layer, fried and covered with grounded cheese and
pineapple
The pineapple (''Ananas comosus'') is a Tropical vegetation, tropical plant with an edible fruit; it is the most economically significant plant in the family Bromeliaceae.
The pineapple is indigenous to South America, where it has been culti ...
sauce
* Quindian
arepa filled with shredded chicken and pieces of pig
chicharrón
(, plural ; ; ; ) is a dish generally consisting of fried pork belly or fried pork rinds. may also be made from chicken, mutton, or beef.
Name
, as a dish with sauces, or as finger-food snacks, are popular in Andalusia and Canarias in ...
*
Cocora, which is a baked trout
* Maduro, which is a broiled plantain filled with cheese and Bocadillo (thick
guava
Guava ( ), also known as the 'guava-pear', is a common tropical fruit cultivated in many tropical and subtropical regions. The common guava '' Psidium guajava'' (lemon guava, apple guava) is a small tree in the myrtle family (Myrtaceae), nativ ...
jam)
* Roasted
gurre
*
Guatin stew
* Coffee wine (obtained from fermentation of coffee berries) with flavor similar to
coffee liqueur
* Coffee
arequipe
*
Corn
Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout Poaceae, grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples of Mexico, indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago ...
chicha
''Chicha'' is a Fermentation, fermented (alcoholic) or non-fermented beverage of Latin America, emerging from the Andes and Amazonia regions. In both the pre- and post-Spanish conquest of Peru, Spanish conquest periods, corn beer (''chicha de jo ...
fermented in a large pottery recipient containing a
horseshoe
A horseshoe is a product designed to protect a horse hoof from wear. Shoes are attached on the palmar surface (ground side) of the hooves, usually nailed through the insensitive hoof wall that is anatomically akin to the human toenail, altho ...
to enhance the flavor
* Carajillo, a typical
cocktail
A cocktail is a mixed drink, usually alcoholic beverage, alcoholic. Most commonly, a cocktail is a combination of one or more liquor, spirits mixed with other ingredients, such as juices, flavored syrups, tonic water, Shrub (drink), shrubs, and ...
made of one part of hot coffee, one part of sugarcane
aguardiente and
cinnamon
Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus ''Cinnamomum''. Cinnamon is used mainly as an aromatic condiment and flavouring additive in a wide variety of cuisines, sweet and savoury dishes, biscuits, b ...
sticks
Festivals and celebrations
Quindío department is the main exponent of traditional Cultura Cafetera (
coffee culture) in the country. There are several events all around the year that attracts a large number of visitors to this region. With the purpose of preserving this cultural expression, the regional government promotes the declaration of Patrimony of Humanity by the UNESCO.
Among other events:

*The National Coffee Party is the main event of the department. It is celebrated each year since 1960 in Calarcá, the last days of June. The event includes the national beauty contest of coffee.
*The international fair of handcrafts, each may in Armenia.
*The day of St. Isidro (July-all the municipalities).
*The National festival of
kite
A kite is a tethered heavier than air flight, heavier-than-air craft with wing surfaces that react against the air to create Lift (force), lift and Drag (physics), drag forces. A kite consists of wings, tethers and anchors. Kites often have ...
s (August- La Tebaida).
*The anniversary of Armenia (October), with the
Yipao or jeep parade.
*The
candlelight festival of Quimbaya (December) .
*The
Bullfighting season of La Macarena (January- Armenia).
The Quimbayan Christmas Panther
The Quimbayan Christmas Panther is an indigenous & sacred animal recognized by indigenous and
mestizo
( , ; fem. , literally 'mixed person') is a term primarily used to denote people of mixed European and Indigenous ancestry in the former Spanish Empire. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also refer to people who are culturall ...
communities in the Quindío Department of Colombia. Belief in the Christmas Panther (el puma de navidad) has developed throughout the history of the Quimbayan holiday known as the Alumbrado de Navidad (see
Feast of the Immaculate Conception
The Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception celebrates the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary on 8 December, nine months before the feast of the Nativity of Mary on 8 September. It is one of the most important Marian feasts in the l ...
), celebrated on the 7th of December in recognition of the Roman Catholic belief in the Immaculate Conception of Christ. It is believed that the significance of the puma stems from the arrival of ethnically Spanish colonialists from
Antioquia in the region during the 1850s. The colonialist's
Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
traditions of using candlelight to celebrate the Immaculate Conception was combined with belief of the local Quimbaya tribe in the effect that fire (luces de fogota) had in protecting against
panther attacks as pumas and other local fauna are believed to fear fire. Thus, in an instance of religious
syncretism
Syncretism () is the practice of combining different beliefs and various school of thought, schools of thought. Syncretism involves the merging or religious assimilation, assimilation of several originally discrete traditions, especially in the ...
, the Alumbrado de Navidad and the symbolism of the puma to native peoples were linked. It is still a common practice to display the symbol of the panther (in the form of sculptures made of ''terra cotta'', cloth, plastic, etc.) in conjunction with the lighting of candles on the night of December the 7th. Such religious syncretism is especially visible in the rural pueblos of Quindío where many residents claim full or partial descent from Quimbaya native peoples of the region.(the Quimbayan christmas panther is blue with yellow tail).
Fauna and Flora

Quindío is the natural habitat of 520 species of birds and about 60 species of mammals. Many of them are endemisms. The area has the largest number of Heliconia species in the world and a large numbers of species of orchids, mainly of the genera Cattleya, Odontoglossum, Miltonia, Phragmipedium and Peristeria (plant), Peristeria. The natural forests typical of the area, such as the páramo, and the cloud forest, are decreasing progressively due to agricultural activities. As a result, many of the endemic species are threatened, endangered or critically endangered. Some of them are:
* Yellow-eared parrot
* Andean guan
* Colombian weasel
* Epicrionops columbianus caecilian
* Mano de Oso tree.
References
External links
Biblioteca Luis Ángel Arango/Quindío
{{DEFAULTSORT:Quindio Department
Quindío Department,
Departments of Colombia
States and territories established in 1966