What do the names of the departments of Colombia mean and what is their origin?

If you take a map book and look at the map of Colombia, you will notice that the national territory is made up of six regions: Amazon, Andean, Caribbean, Insular, Orinoquía and Pacific. And if you stop to look in more detail you will find that There are a total of 32 departments in the country.

Although this is common knowledge, that is only the tip of the iceberg in this matter.

Have you ever wondered, where did the names of the departments come from?

To solve this question, the language learning platform Preply analyzed its etymological origin, finding that some are derived from words from indigenous cultures, tributes to historical figures and references to geographical conditions.

One of the first names analyzed was Amazonas, whose origin dates back to the ancient Greek “Ἀμαζών” (Amazōn). This term refers to the mythical Amazonian warriors and can be interpreted as ‘without breasts’, a concept related to the ancient belief that these warrior women amputated one breast to better handle the bow and spear.

Moving on to Antioquia, Preply found that the department’s name is derived from the Greek Antiochus, meaning ‘opposed to’ or ‘resistant.’ Arauca, meanwhile, It takes its name from the Arauca River, which in turn comes from an indigenous Araucanian tribe.

Amazon

iStock

(See: These are the best countries in Latin America to start a professional career)

As for the Bolívar, it would have been named in honor of Simón Bolívar, leader of the independence of Colombia, Venezuela, Bolivia and Ecuador. If we look deeper, the surname Bolívar originates from the Basque Country region (Spain) and means ‘valley of the mill’.

The report also mentions other parts of the country such as Córdoba, which It is named after José María Córdoba.a hero of Colombian independence; Cundinamarca, which is a deformation of the Chibcha term Kuntur Marga, which means ‘place of the condor’, and Boyacá, which comes from the Chibcha ‘Boiaca’ and can be interpreted as ‘chief’s enclosure’ or ‘region of blankets’.

Added to these are Magdalena, whose name is derived from the Magdalena River, a place that was in turn named in this way by the Spanish colonizers in honor of Saint Mary Magdalene, and Meta, which comes from the indigenous word ‘meeta’ which means ‘shining river’.

The names of the departments

It is worth noting that Preply’s research was based on theories shared and agreed upon by experts, historians and different sources, as well as the Cultural Information System of the Government of Colombia.

In that order of ideas, this is the etymology of the departments:

– Amazon: without breast

– Antioch: resistant.

– Arauca: loud sound.

-Atlantic: titan who carries the world.

– Bolivar: mill valley.

– Boyaca: blanket region.

– Caldas: hot waters.

– Caqueta: dew of the pasture.

– Casanare: black water river.

– Cease: back.

– Crashed: mate to carry chicha.