Geography of Colombia

Geography of Colombia
ContinentSouth America
RegionCaribbean South America
Coordinates4°00′N 72°00′W / 4.000°N 72.000°W / 4.000; -72.000
AreaRanked 25th
 • Total1,141,748 km2 (440,831 sq mi)
 • Land91.2%
 • Water8.8%
Coastline3,208 km (1,993 mi)
BordersTotal land borders:
6,672 km2 (2,576 sq mi)
Venezuela: 2,341 km2 (904 sq mi)
Brazil: 1,790 km2 (690 sq mi)
Peru: 1,494 km2 (577 sq mi)
Ecuador: 708 km2 (273 sq mi)
Panama: 339 km2 (131 sq mi)
Highest pointPico Cristobal Colon
5,775 metres (18,947 ft)
Lowest pointPacific Ocean
0 metres (0 ft)
Longest riverMagdalena River 1,528 km (949 mi)
Largest lakeLake Tota 55 km2 (21 sq mi)
Exclusive economic zone808,158 km2 (312,032 sq mi)

The Republic of Colombia is situated largely in the north-west of South America, with some territories falling within the boundaries of Central America. It is bordered to the north-west by Panama; to the east by Brazil and Venezuela; to the south by Ecuador and Peru;[1] and it shares maritime limits with Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti.[2][3]

Colombia has a land size of 1,141,748 km2 (440,831 sq mi) and it is the 25th largest nation in the world and the fourth-largest country in South America (after Brazil, Argentina, and Peru).[4] Colombia's population is not evenly distributed, and most of the people live in the mountainous western portion of the country as well as along the northern coastline; the highest number live in or near the capital city of Bogotá. The southern and eastern portions of the country are sparsely inhabited, consisting of tropical rainforest, and inland tropical plains that contain large estates or large livestock farms, oil and gas production facilities, small farming communities, and indigenous tribes with their territories. Colombia has the 35th largest Exclusive Economic Zone of 808,158 km2 (312,032 sq mi).

  1. ^ "The Republic of Colombia shares land borders with five (5) countries". cancilleria.gov.co.
  2. ^ "Maritime borders". cancilleria.gov.co.
  3. ^ (in Spanish) UNAL: History of the Colombian current territory[permanent dead link] UNAL Accessed 23 August 2007.
  4. ^ DANE: 2005 Census of Colombia - total area Archived 2013-04-03 at the Wayback Machine dane.gov.co Accessed 23 August 2007.

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