Colombia History Trivia

1. What is the name of the main tribe of people who occupied the area that is now Bogota prior to the invasion of the Spanish?

From Quiz History of Bogota

Answer: Muisca

The Muisca themselves were a diverse tribe of people divided into many different caciques. They were mostly farmers who lived along the most fertile lands in Colombia. They were also expert miners of salt (some of their salt mines are still in operation today). They would trade salt for emeralds from the Muzo. The southern part of the Muisca lands was called Bacata, from which Bogota received its name.

From Quiz History of Colombia

Answer: 1964

The FARC started in the 1960s and has been active ever since. They are a Marxist-Leninist revolutionary guerrilla organization. The FARC is described as a terrorist group by the Colombian government. According to the Colombian government, FARC has an estimated 6,000-8,000 members in 2008, down from 16,000 in 2001, making it the largest as well as the oldest insurgent group in the Americas. It carries out bombings, murders, mortar attacks, and engages in narcotic trafficking, kidnapping, extortion, hijacking, as well as guerrilla and conventional military action. The group later became involved with the cocaine trade.

From Quiz The History of Colombia

Answer: 1819

Colombia became independent in 1819 under the name of 'Republic of the New Granada'. It consisted of what is known today as Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador and Panama.

From Quiz History of Bogota

Answer: Gonzalo Jimenez de Quesada

Gonzalo Jimenez de Quesada had brought a crew with him to South America to search for the mythological city of El Dorado. However, he abandoned that quest when he heard of the emeralds and salt the native tribes had. The Spanish took many of the emeralds as well as much of the gold and set fire to the Muisca's Sun Temple. He then traveled to the southern part of the Muisca Empire, Bacata, but found it abandoned as the Muisca got word of the Spanish invasion and fled. The zipa (or Southern Muisca leader) was hunted down and killed. The new Spanish city was renamed Santa Fe de Bogota and eventually shortened to Bogota.

From Quiz History of Colombia

Answer: Simon Bolivar

Manuel Marulanda was one of the leaders of the FARC, and Albaro Uribe Velez was elected President of Colombia in 2002 and re-elected in 2006. Manuel Marulanda, who is also nicknamed "Tirofijo" died in the colombian jungle on March 26, 2008. Albaro Uribe Velez studied at Harvard University, the University of Antioquia, and Oxford University. Simon Bolivar was born in Caracas, Venezuela.

From Quiz The History of Colombia

Answer: Cartagena

Usually, slaves brought from Africa would get to Cartagena and then would be traded for other goods at the walled city.

From Quiz History of Bogota

Answer: The first religious sermon in the city

Unlike other cities in South America, Bogota was stable from its outset. The city was laid out in the pattern of those of famous Spanish cities. Naturally, the cathedral was the most important building in the city and on the day of Bogota's founding, Domingo de las Casas, a Dominican friar, gave the city's first sermon. He did so at the location where a cathedral now stands in Bogota's Santander Park.

From Quiz Colombia: The Good With The Bad

Answer: Simon Bolivar

Like de Miranda, Bolivar conceived of a larger South American state called Gran Colombia. Following a successful fight against Spanish imperial forces weakened by the Napoleonic Wars in Europe, Bolivar served as president of Gran Colombia (encompassing present-day Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, and Panama, as well as parts of Peru, Guyana, and Costa Rica) until his death in 1830.

From Quiz History of Colombia

Answer: July, 20, 1810

The only correct answer is July 20 1810. The others are made up. The leader was Simon Bolivar who died in Santa Marta, Colombia on December, 17, 1830. July 20, 1810 colombia was fighting for its independence from Spain. Its centuries as part of the Spanish Empire explain Colombians mostly speak Spanish.

From Quiz The History of Colombia

Answer: Panama

The strategic location of Panama helped in getting support from Washington and finally gained its independence from Colombia in 1903. That's when the construction of the canal started.

From Quiz History of Bogota

Answer: Fine arts

Dominican and Jesuit friars opened a number of universities in Bogota in quick succession. They even founded schools exclusively for women, which was rare at the time. The first university to be founded was Saint Thomas Aquinas in 1580, which is still in operation today. Bogota quickly became noted for these schools brought artists from painters to woodworkers to the city. They formed their own small communities. Their works were primarily religious in nature though there was a substantial amount of secular pieces as well.

From Quiz Colombia: The Good With The Bad

Answer: The Conservatives and the Liberals

The Conservatives were originally followers of Simon Bolivar. Their platform called for a strong central government allied with the Roman Catholic Church and stringent limits on who could vote. The Liberals were followers of Francisco de Paula Santander. They supported broadly distributed voting rights, schools run by the government instead of the Church, and a weaker central government with more local control over civic affairs. These positions have shown various patterns of consistency and change over the years. The Conservatives still hold religiosity as a major party tenet, while the Liberals have aligned with the Socialist International.

From Quiz History of Colombia

Answer: July, 4, 1952, Medellin, Antioquia, Colombia

Albaro Uribe Velez was born in July 4, 1952 at Medellin, Antioquia, Colombia. His is one of five children; his father was a wealthy landowner and cattle Rancher named Alberto Uribe Sierra. His mother, Laura Velez, was active in local politics. The family is Roman Catholic. He is married to Lina Moreno de Uribe and has two sons.

From Quiz History of Bogota

Answer: Commoners

The comuneros were just the rank and file people of Colombia. Many of them were decedents of Spanish immigrants centuries before, while others were mestizos or mixed raced. Jose Antonio Galan led the rebellion against Spanish rule at a time when other Spanish colonies on the continent were also rebelling or at least in the midst of political turmoil. The revolt was not successful and Galan was hanged in 1782. However, he did inspire future rebellions including those of Simon Bolivar.

From Quiz Colombia: The Good With The Bad

Answer: Panama

The Thousand Days War left 100,000 Colombians dead. In the resulting civil disarray, the Theodore Roosevelt-led United States backed a military uprising in Panama, severing the new country from Colombia. The United States then constructed the Panama Canal across the Central American isthmus, a project that the Colombian government had previously opposed.

From Quiz History of Colombia

Answer: Bogota

The only correct answer is Bogota. The others are also in Colombia but are not the capital. Bogota was founded on August 6, 1538. It was also formerly called Santa Fe de Bogota. Bogota is also the most populous city in the country, with 7,033,914 inhabitants in 2007.

From Quiz History of Bogota

Answer: Alexander von Humboldt

Alexander von Humboldt was something of a Renaissance man who was a noted expert in many fields. Today he is probably best remembered for being a botanist. In 1801, Humboldt met Jose Celestino Mutis, a Spanish botanist who shared his research with the Prussian. Alexander von Humboldt learned a great deal from Mutis and a botanical university in Bogota was named after him.

From Quiz Colombia: The Good With The Bad

Answer: The two major parties agreed to share power and alternate the presidency.

In 1957, Colombia's previous two presidents, Conservative Laureano Gómez and Liberal Alberto Lleras, proposed this solution in the Declaration of Sitges, leading to a government paradigm known as the National Front. Though often repressive, the 16-year National Front system did effectively eliminate "La Violencia" before being phased out in 1974.

From Quiz History of Colombia

Answer: August 9, 1972, Carolina del Principe, Medellin, Colombia

Juanes was born in Carolina del Principe, Antioquia, Colombia. He is the eldest child of Alicia Vásquez and Javier Aristizábal. He had an elder brother. His father died of cancer, his friend was killed, and his counsins alo died. He learned to play the guitar when he was 7, taught by his father and brother.

From Quiz The History of Colombia

Answer: Simon Bolivar & Bolivar

He also fought for the independence of Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia. Bolivar was born in Caracas, Venezuela and died in Santa Marta, a city on the Caribbean coast of Colombia.

From Quiz History of Bogota

Answer: "Spain does not need wise people"

Spain was at war with its American colonies during what was called the Reconquista of the Spanish Colonies. Colombia was a particularly troublesome colony for Spain as most the revolution's leaders there were scientists and philosophers. Pablo Morillo ordered the execution of one of the rebel leaders, Francisco Jose de Caldas. At the execution, Morillo declared "Espana no necesita sabios" which means "Spain does not need wise people". That phrase became a rallying call in the colonies to push further against Spain. It was a semi-popular expression within Spain itself to stoke patriotic emotions.

From Quiz History of Colombia

Answer: Shakira, Juanes, and Carlos Vives

RBD, Mana, and Paulina Rubio are Mexican, Daddy Yankee is Puerto Rican, Celia Cruz is Cuban, Akon, Fall Out Boy, and Pussycat Dolls are American groups, and Juan Luis Guerra is from Dominican Republic.

From Quiz History of Bogota

Answer: Battle of Boyaca

The Battle of Boyacá was fought on the outskirts of Bogota on August 7, 1819. Simon Bolivar and Francisco de Paula Santander led the rebels to victory in a decisive battle. This was the first of a few battles that the Spanish lost and thus gave independence for a new South American country. After the rebel win, Gran Colombia was formed. Bogota continued as the capital and its educational and scientific influence grew even further.

From Quiz The History of Colombia

Answer: Popayán

Popayan is a city in southwest Colombia. It used to be very important during the colony but it lost its importance when cities like Bogota, Medellin and Cali started to grow.

From Quiz History of Bogota

Answer: Assassination of Jorge Eliecer Gaitan

Jorge Eliecer Gaitan was a presidential candidate who was assassinated during the 1948 campaign. He was widely expected to defeat the incumbent president Mariano Ospina Perez. Who killed Gaitan is unknown but the most likely culprit is Juan Roa Sierra, who was subsequently killed by a mob. Perez would continue to serve as president until 1950. Riots and violence ensued in the aftermath and downtown Bogota was nearly destroyed entirely. It has been said that Fidel Castro took part in the riot and stole munitions from a depot. El Bogotazo sparked a ten year period called La Violencia or the Violence.

From Quiz Colombia: The Good With The Bad

Answer: Sofia Vergara

Vergara and her writers make good use of Colombian tropes on "Modern Family". In one episode, Gloria's son Manny is stopped by the Transportation Security Administrations under suspicion of carrying contraband. Gloria counters by pointing out several passengers whose accoutrements would make them more likely problems. A TSA agent suspiciously suggests that Gloria knows far too much about the subject. Gloria's response? "Yeah, I'm Colombian." Vergara began working in commercials and as a runway model in her native Colombia. She first reached international fame on the Univision travel program "Fuera de serie" ("Out of Sequence" or, idiomatically, "Out of This World") in 1995.

From Quiz History of Bogota

Answer: FARC

FARC is the notorious Colombian guerilla organization known for its drug cartels, drug dealing and kidnapping. Thirty-six people were killed and hundreds injured in 2003 when a bomb went off in the El Nogal Nightclub's parking garage. The Colombian government blamed FARC and allegedly presented evidence implicating FARC. FARC denied the attack and said it could have been an act of state sponsored terrorism.

From Quiz History of Colombia

Answer: Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Panama

Panama was part of Colombia until it was acquired by the U.S. in 1903. The original Greater Colombia, which broke up in 1863, consisted primarily of what later became Venezuela, Ecuador and, of course, Colombia and Panama. It included small areas of Peru, Ecuador, Guyana and Brazil.

From Quiz The History of Colombia

Answer: Cesar Gaviria Trujillo & Cesar Gaviria

He was also for a long time the Secretary General of the OAS.

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