50 Fun Facts About Bogota

Which conquistador founded Bogotá in 1538?

Belalcázar and Federmann attended the official founding ceremony the following year.

Which indigenous people inhabited the Bogotá savanna before the Spanish arrived?

Their goldwork fills the city's Gold Museum.

What name did the Spanish crown give the city in 1540?

It honoured a town near Granada where Jiménez de Quesada grew up.

Who rebaptised the city as Bogotá after independence?

He did it to honour the Muisca and mark the break from Spain.

Which 1819 battle cleared Bolívar's path to the city?

Bolívar entered the city victorious on 10 August 1819.

What is Bogotá's average altitude?

That makes it the third-highest capital city in the world.

Bogotá ranks where among the world's highest capital cities?

No urban area on earth is both higher and more populous.

How many localities is Bogotá subdivided into?

They range from Usaquén and Chapinero to Ciudad Bolívar and Sumapaz.

What share of Colombia's nominal GDP does Bogotá produce?

It is the leading Latin American destination for new foreign direct investment projects.

What is the name of Bogotá's main airport?

It is named after the mythical golden city and handles Latin America's largest cargo volume.

Which airport did El Dorado replace when it was ordered in 1955?

President Gustavo Rojas Pinilla ordered the construction.

What is the most accepted meaning of the Chibcha name Bacatá?

Another reading is "The Lady of the Andes".

Who was the zipa ruling the savanna at the time of the Spanish conquest?

His brother Sagipa became the last zipa.

How many reed houses did Jiménez de Quesada build at the 1538 founding?

They referred to the Twelve Apostles.

What name did Jiménez de Quesada give the settlement at its founding?

The Spanish crown renamed it Santa Fe two years later.

In which square is the city's founding site traditionally located?

The official founding followed eight months later at Theusaquillo.

After 1717, the city became the capital of which viceroyalty?

The Royal Audiencia had been created there in 1550.

On what date was the Junta de Santa Fe established, often called Colombia's independence day?

Rebels wore yellow-and-red armbands, the origin of the city flag.

Who translated and secretly published the Rights of Man in the city in 1794?

He was sentenced to ten years in prison and exile.

Which Spanish general recaptured the city for the crown on 6 May 1816?

He was sent by Ferdinand VII to reconquer the colonies.

Whose assassination in 1948 sparked the riots known as El Bogotazo?

Downtown was virtually destroyed and the tram system never recovered.

What is Bogotá's bus rapid transit system called?

Its first phase opened in 2000 under Mayor Enrique Peñalosa.

What is the gondola lift that serves Ciudad Bolívar called?

Line T opened in December 2018 with four stations.

What is the Sunday car-free programme on major highways called?

Roads close from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sundays and public holidays.

What is the licence-plate-based driving restriction called?

It restricts cars with certain plate numbers during peak hours.

What pulled Bogotá's first tramway when it opened in 1884?

It ran from Plaza de Bolívar to Chapinero on wooden rails.

What is Bogotá's historic centre called?

It features Spanish Colonial and Baroque architecture around Plaza de Bolívar.

What is the presidential residence in Bogotá called?

The Palacio Liévano houses the mayor's office on the same square.

Which mountain overlooking the city can be reached by cable car or funicular?

Guadalupe is the neighbouring peak in the Eastern Hills.

Roughly how many pieces of tumbaga gold does the Gold Museum hold?

It is the largest collection of pre-Columbian gold in the world.

How many works by Fernando Botero does the Museo Botero hold?

It also has 87 works by international artists.

In what year was the National Museum of Colombia founded?

It is one of the oldest museums in the Americas.

What is Bogotá's free open-air music festival held in Simón Bolívar Park?

It spawned Salsa, Hip Hop, Ballet, Opera and Jazz "al Parque" spin-offs.

In which year did UNESCO name Bogotá World Book Capital?

It joined the UNESCO Creative Cities Network for music in 2012.

What is Colombia's oldest opera house, opened in Bogotá in 1892?

It is home to the National Symphony Orchestra of Colombia.

Which institution, the region's most important of its kind, draws over 6 million visitors a year?

BibloRed, the city's public network, has some 150 hubs.

Which architect designed the Virgilio Barco Library in Simón Bolívar Park?

He was the leading exponent of organic architecture in the city.

What is ajiaco?

It is served with sour cream, capers, avocado and rice.

What hot drink is made from aguapanela, cinnamon and aguardiente?

Carajillo is coffee with aguardiente instead.

Which two clubs share the Campín Stadium?

La Equidad plays at the Techo Metropolitan Stadium.

Which team did Colombia beat 1-0 at El Campín in the 2001 Copa América final?

It was Colombia's first continental title.

Bogotá hosted the first edition of which multi-sport event in 1938?

The city also hosted the National Games in 2004.

What colours make up Bogotá's flag?

They come from the armbands worn by the rebels of 20 July 1810.

What bird appears at the centre of Bogotá's coat of arms?

Charles V granted the arms in 1548; the eagle was also a Habsburg symbol.

Which tree was declared the city's emblematic tree in 2002?

An orchid, Odontoglossum luteopurpureum, is the emblematic flower.

Which building became Colombia's tallest when it opened in 2015?

It overtook the Colpatria Tower.

What nickname does Bogotá's educational tradition give it?

The city had 113 higher education institutions in 2002.

Where was Bogotá's first snowfall in over 150 years recorded in 2012?

Further significant snowfalls followed in 2016, 2017, 2020 and 2022.

What was Bogotá's population within city limits at the 2018 census?

Estimates put the floating population as high as 4 million more.

The world's largest continuous páramo ecosystem lies in which locality?

It marks the extreme south of the Capital District.