Cartagena, Colombia

Cartagena
District and city
Cartagena de Indias
Top: Bocagrande Harbor. Second row: View of Santa Cruz Manga Island, Heredia Theatre. Third row: ClockTower (Torre del Reloj), Pilar Republicano, San Felipe Barajas Castle (Castillo de San Felipe de Barajas) (above), Charleston Hotel (below). Bottom: City Skyline.
Top: Bocagrande Harbor. Second row: View of Santa Cruz Manga Island, Heredia Theatre. Third row: ClockTower (Torre del Reloj), Pilar Republicano, San Felipe Barajas Castle (Castillo de San Felipe de Barajas) (above), Charleston Hotel (below). Bottom: City Skyline.
Flag of Cartagena
Official seal of Cartagena
Nicknames: 
La ciudad mágica (The Magic City)
La ciudad cosmopolita (The Cosmopolitan City)
La heroica (The Heroic)
El corralito de piedra (The Rock Corral)
La fantástica (The Fantastic)
Motto: 
"Por Cartagena"
Cartagena is located in Colombia
Cartagena
Cartagena
Cartagena is located in South America
Cartagena
Cartagena
Coordinates: 10°24′N 75°30′W / 10.400°N 75.500°W / 10.400; -75.500
CountryColombia
DepartmentBolívar
RegionCaribbean
Foundation1 June 1533
Founded byPedro de Heredia
Named forCartagena, Spain
Government
 • MayorWilliam Jorge Dau Chamat[1]
Area
 • District and city83.2 km2 (32.1 sq mi)
 • Metro
597.7 km2 (230.8 sq mi)
Elevation
2 m (7 ft)
Population
 (2020[3])
 • District and city914,552
 • RankRanked 5th
 • Density11,000/km2 (28,000/sq mi)
 • Metro
1,028,736[2]
 • Metro density1,721/km2 (4,460/sq mi)
DemonymCartagenero(s) (in Spanish)
GDP (PPP, constant 2015 values)
 • Year2023
 • Total$17.1 billion[4]
 • Per capita$15,600
Time zoneUTC-5 (COT)
Postal code
130000
Area code57 + 5
Patron saintsSaint Catherine and Saint Sebastian
Average temperature30 °C (86 °F)
City treeArecaceae
Websitewww.cartagena.gov.co (in Spanish)
Official namePort, Fortresses and Group of Monuments, Cartagena
TypeCultural
Criteriaiv, vi
Designated1984 (8th session)
Reference no.285
RegionLatin America and Caribbean

Cartagena (/ˌkɑːrtəˈhnə/ KAR-tə-HAY-nə), known since the colonial era as Cartagena de Indias (Spanish: [kaɾtaˈxena ðe ˈindjas] ), is a city and one of the major ports on the northern coast of Colombia in the Caribbean Coast Region, along the Caribbean sea. Cartagena's past role as a link in the route to the West Indies provides it with important historical value for world exploration and preservation of heritage from the great commercial maritime routes.[5] As a former Spanish colony, it was a key port for the export of Bolivian silver to Spain and for the import of enslaved Africans under the asiento system. It was defensible against pirate attacks in the Caribbean.[6] The city's strategic location between the Magdalena and Sinú Rivers also gave it easy access to the interior of New Granada and made it a main port for trade between Spain and its overseas empire, establishing its importance by the early 1540s.

Modern Cartagena is the capital of the Bolívar Department, and had a population of 876,885 according to the 2018 census,[7] making it the second-largest city in the Caribbean region, after Barranquilla, and the fifth-largest city in Colombia. The metropolitan area of Cartagena is the sixth-largest urban area in the country, after metropolitan area of Bucaramanga. Economic activities include the maritime and petrochemical industries, as well as tourism.

The present city — named after Cartagena, Spain and by extension, the historic city of Carthage - was founded on 1 June 1533, making it one of South America’s oldest colonial cities;[8] but settlement by various indigenous people in the region around Cartagena Bay dates from 4000 BC. During the Spanish colonial period Cartagena had a key role in administration and expansion of the Spanish empire. It was a center of political, ecclesiastical, and economic activity.[9] In 1984, Cartagena's colonial walled city and fortress were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

It was also the site of the Battle of Cartagena de Indias in 1741 during the War of Jenkins' Ear between Spain and Britain.

  1. ^ Batista, Lia Miranda (1 January 2020). "William Dau Chamatt se posesionó como nuevo alcalde de Cartagena" [William Dau Chamatt Takes Office As the New Mayor of Cartagena]. El Universal (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 January 2020.
  2. ^ "Proyecciones de Población 2018–2020, total municipal por área (estimate)". DANE. Archived from the original on 23 February 2020. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  3. ^ Proyecciones de Población 2018–2020, total municipal por área. DANE (Report) (in Spanish). 2020. Archived from the original on 23 February 2020. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  4. ^ "TelluBase—Colombia Fact Sheet (Tellusant Public Service Series)" (PDF). Tellusant. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  5. ^ Centre, UNESCO World Heritage. "Port, Fortresses and Group of Monuments, Cartagena". UNESCO World Heritage Centre.
  6. ^ Lance R. Grahn, "Cartagena" in Encyclopedia of Latin American History and Culture, vol. 1, p 581. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons 1996.
  7. ^ Citypopulation.de
  8. ^ "Big on Charm: Colonial Cartagena". Travel. 17 November 2015.
  9. ^ Grahn, "Cartagena" p. 582.

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