Valle del Cauca is a
department of Colombia
.
It is in
the western side of the country, facing the Pacific Ocean
, and it is considered one of the most important
departments in the Republic of Colombia.
Its
capital is Santiago de
Cali
. Given its privileged location, lately it has
been considered as the Pacific Door of Colombia.Besides Cali
such cities
as Buenaventura, Cartago and Tulua
have great
economical, political, social and cultural influence on the
department's life. Valle del Cauca has the largest number of
independent towns (i.e. not in Metropolitan areas) with over
100,000 inhabitants in the country, counting 6 within its borders.
Buenaventura has the largest and busiest
seaport in Colombia, moving
about 8,500,000 tons of merchandises.
History
Prehistory
Hunter gatherer societies
Palinological analysis performed by experts have determined that
during the Superior
Pleistocene some
(40,000 - 10,500 years ago), the valleys of "
El Dorado"
and "
Alto Calima" had Andean forest and Sub Andean
vegetation. The discovery of projectiles indicated that there were
communities of hunter-gatherers to the end of the
Pleistocene and the beginning of the
Holocene.
The extinguishing of the Pleistocenic megafauna in the beginning of
the Holocene pushes humans to adapt to their new environment,
making them turn into hunter-gatherers. In the lower basin of the
Calima River (Sauzalito River, El
Recreo River and El Pital River) archaeologists found the oldest
hunter-gatherers vestiges that inhabited the Valley of the
Cauca River. According to these, in 5000 BC
these societies already had some level of primitive agriculture and
cultivated
maize. There is little information
about the years between 3000 and 1500 BC.
Agricultural-Pottery societies (1500 BC - 600 AD)
In 1500 BC
the first Agricultural-Pottery society appears extending along the
Calima River (in what is nowadays the
towns of Restrepo
and Darien
called Ilama
Culture. Its society had a social structure of
Cacicazgos (chiefdoms) that prevailed until the
arrival of the
Spaniards. The economy of Ilama was based in migratory
agriculture using maize, yuca, beans, hunting, fishing, textile
confectioning and metallurgy. The Chief or "
Cacique" was
the head of the settlement and also had "
chamanes"
(spiritual leaders), warriors, farmers, hunters, pottery men, and
goldsmiths.
By 100 AD the Ilamas had developed into the
Yotoco Culture which expanded the
region of the Ilamas further into the Cauca River and the Pacific Ocean and to the south to the region of what is now the
city of Cali.
The Yotocos prevailed in the region until 1200 AD and were a highly
stratified society headed by caciques which managed several
settlements. The population had increased, forcing them to develop
effective agricultural techniques to feed its population which also
improved the techniques on pottery and metal works. The agriculture
of the Yotocos was more varied than that of the Ilamas and was
based on
maize,
yuca,
beans,
arracacha,
achiote among others. The Yotoco started
declining in the 6th Century AD.
Agricultural-pottery in Pre Columbia era (600-1600)
This archeological period is called Late and is divided into Late
Period I (6th to 13th centuries) and Late Period II (14th to 16th
Centuries). In the Late period I the region of Valle del Cauca was
inhabited by the Early
Sonso Culture,
Bolo, Sachamate and La Llanada. During the Late Period II the
region was inhabited by the Late Sonso Culture, Pichinde, Buga and
Quebrada Seca. Their development is attributed to the growth of
population and the almost all the settlers in the area became
subject to the rule of one main
Cacique.
Discovery by Spaniards and Conquest
The first
Spanish explorers arrived in the area after founding the village of
Popayan
in an expedition that came from Quito
and was
headed by Sebastián de
Belalcázar. In the Valle del Cauca the explorers founded
the village of
Villa de Ampudia
named after one of them called
Juan de
Ampudia. By orders of Belalcazar the village is then moved to
the Riviera of the Cauca River within the Gorrones Indigenous
peoples territory.
In 1536 a Captain last named Muñoz orders
the city to be moved to the Lili Valley were the Village of
Cali was founded on July 25 of that same
year.
Another
Spanish explorer coming from the village of Cartagena de
Indias
named Juan de
Vadillo commanded a second group of explorers and entered Cali
on December 23, 1538, but he returned to Cartagena leaving many of
his men behind including Pedro
Cieza de León.
A third
group of explorers led by Almirant Jorge
Robledo under orders of Lorenzo de
Aldana advanced to the North of the Valle del Cauca and founded
the villages of Anserma
(now part of Caldas
Department) on August 15, 1539; Cartago
on August 9, 1540 and the village of Antioquia
on November 25, 1541 and under command of Pascual de Andagoya who arrived from
Panama
to Cali with
a fourth group of explorers.
Department of Valle del Cauca
The Department of Valle del Cauca was created by decree number 340
of April 16, 1910 which also created 12 other departments for
Colombia. The Valle del Cauca Department was a result of the union
of four former departments;
Cartago,
Buga, and
Cali.
Geography
The department of Valle del Cauca is located on the western part of
the country, between 3° 05’ and 5° 01’ latitude N, 75° 42’ and 77°
33’ longitude W.
Its limits to the north border the
departments of Risaralda and
Quindío, the department of
Cauca to the south, Tolima to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west as well as the department Chocó. The valley is
geographically limited by the Central and Western mountain ranges
and is 'bathed' by numerous rivers which empty into the
Cauca River. The department is divided into four
zones: the Pacific Fringe, which is humid and mostly jungle; the
western mountain range, also humid and full of jungle, heavily
deforested due to the paper industry; The Andean valley of the
Cauca river, whose surrounding lands are the most fertile of the
country; and the western ridge of the central mountain range. The
anthem of Valle del Cauca is "Salve Valle del Cauca, mi tierra"
("Hail Valley of the Cauca, my land").
Government
The government of Valle del Cauca is similarly set up as the
Government of Colombia in
which there are three branches of power; judicial, executive and
legislative with control institutions at government level. The
executive branch in Valle del Department is represented by the
Governor of Valle
del Cauca Department, the legislative branch is represented by
the
Department
Assembly of Valle del Cauca and its deputies and the judicial
is represented by the four department level of the
Judicial Branch of Colombia;
Superior Tribunal of Cali,
Penal Court of the
Circuit of Cali, the
Administrative
Tribunal of Valle del Cauca and
Superior Military Tribunal for
military cases. Valle del Cauca Department has 42 municipalities,
each one having a mayor which is a popularly elected representative
of the governor.
Administrative divisions
Municipalities
Department's agencies and institutions
Economy
The department's economy is mainly centered on agriculture. In its
valley it has
sugar cane,
cotton,
soy, and
sorghum crops and Coffee crops in the mountains. The
department is known for its sugar industry, which provides sugar to
the markets of the rest of the country and nearby countries. The
sugar is obtained from the large sugar cane plantations, which were
introduced to the department by
Sebastián de Belalcázar.
The production by the city of Yumbo also stands out, where several
companies are found, most prominently the paper and cement
businesses.
The port at Buenaventura
is Colombia's main port on the Pacific coast,
allowing for the import and export of goods, and is of great
importance for the economy of both the department and the
country.
Demographics
More than 80% of the population lives in cities or towns. The
coverage of public services is among the highest in the country,
with electrical power and education standing out the most. The food
most closely associated with the department is
sancocho de gallina, a stew made with an old
hen, potatoes, yucca, corn and other ingredients; the
characteristic flavor comes from a herb called
cimarron or
recao (
Eryngium
foetidum).
Population
The capital of the department is Santiago de Cali, with
approximately 2,800,000 inhabitants, was founded by Sebastián de
Belalcázar in 1536. It is made up of 42 municipalities, the most
populous being, from north to south, Cartago (Famous for its
craftsmanship, its embroidery and for the "Casa del Virrey", House
of the Viceroy), Roldanillo (Venue of the museum on the artist Omar
Rayo), Tuluá (Located in the middle of the department), Yumbo
(Industrial capital of the department venue for more than 2000
Industries of various types), Ginebra, Palmira, Buga and
Jamundí.
Population of towns over 100,000 inhabitants (Not metropolitan
areas):
| Town |
Female |
Male |
Total |
| Cali |
1,095.850 |
979,530 |
2,075,380 |
| Buenaventura |
167,972 |
156,235 |
324,207 |
| Buga |
57,635 |
53,852 |
111,847 |
| Cartago |
64,209 |
57,532 |
121,741 |
| Palmira |
144,582 |
133,776 |
278,258 |
| Tulua |
95,922 |
87,314 |
183,236 |
|
References
External links
: Univalle is one of the largest
and most respected universities in Colombia. It is entirely
funded by the government.
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