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Map of Antioquia

Antioquia is a first-level division of Colombia. Its largest mapped city is Medellín, with about 3.30 million people in the metropolitan area. The interactive map below is centred on Antioquia, and the tables list its 6 mapped cities along with the ports, World Heritage Sites nearest to them.

Cities Mapped
6
Largest City
Medellín
3.30 million
Country
Colombia
South America

Interactive Map of Antioquia

6.4

About Antioquia

Antioquia (Spanish pronunciation: [anˈtjokja] ) is one of the 32 departments of Colombia, located in the central northwestern part of Colombia with a narrow section that borders the Caribbean Sea. Most of its territory is mountainous with some valleys, much of which is part of the Andes mountain range. Antioquia has been part of many territorial divisions of former countries created within the present-day territory of Colombia. Before the adoption of the Colombian Constitution of 1886, Antioquia State had a sovereign government.

The department covers an area of 63,612 km2 (24,561 sq mi), and has a population of 6,994,792 (2023). Antioquia borders the Córdoba department and the Caribbean Sea to the north; Chocó to the west; the departments of Bolívar, Santander, and Boyaca to the east; and the departments of Caldas and Risaralda to the south.

Medellín is Antioquia's capital and the second-largest city in the country. Other important towns are Rionegro located in the East, Apartadó on the Caribbean Coast, Santa Fe de Antioquia, the old capital on the Cauca River, and Puerto Berrío on the Magdalena.

Summary adapted from Wikipedia: Antioquia Department (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Antioquia, Colombia
Image via Wikimedia Commons.

Antioquia in Depth

History

Before Spanish colonization, Indigenous peoples inhabited the Antioquia region. Some specialists believe they came from Caribbean Sea, while others say they came from the interior Amazon River.

Antioquia was primarily populated by the Kalina or "Mainland Caribs." Some scattered groups of Muisca were said to be present in the Darién region, a coastal region in the far north that is now in Panama, but no historical records refer to Muisca in Antioquia.

The Kalina in Antioquia comprised smaller groups called families. The most prominent were the Catía, Nutabe, and Tahamí, who inhabited central Antioquia. The Quimbaya occupied southern Antioquia.

The Quimbaya, Kalina, and Muisca were the most prominent groups the conquistadores encountered upon their arrival in Antioquia.

Geography

Antioquia is the sixth-largest department of Colombia. It is predominantly mountainous, crossed by the Cordillera Central and the Cordillera Occidental of the Andes. The Cordillera Central divides to form the Aburrá valley, in which the capital, Medellín, is located. The Cordillera Central forms the plateaus of Santa Rosa de Osos and Rionegro.

While 80% of the department's territory is mountainous, Antioquia also has lowlands in Bajo Cauca, Magdalena Medio, and eastern Sonsón, as well as coastline on the Caribbean Sea, in Urabá. This area has a tropical climate and is of high strategic importance due to its location.

Demographics

During the 16th and 18th centuries, Antioquia received many immigrants from Spain, especially northern Spain. Most Indigenous peoples died from the introduction of European diseases, and many of those who survived intermarried with early Spanish settlers, who were mostly men; later, Spanish women also began to immigrate. Thousands of Scottish and English who settled in Antioquia fought for the Colombian army during independence. During the 19th and 20th centuries, immigrants (including Jews) arrived from Italy, Germany, United Kingdom, France, Portugal, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine and Syria. Many people from Antioquia are referred to as Paisas, people of mainly Spanish ancestry, a lot of them Basque.

Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Antioquia Department (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Antioquia: Key Facts

Key facts about Antioquia
Population6,677,930 (2020)
Area63,612 km²
Established1826

Facts from Wikidata Q123304 (CC0).

History of Antioquia: Empires and States

The atlas records 5 polities whose mapped territory included part of Antioquia, from The Spanish Empire in 1540 CE to 2024 CE. They are listed in the order they first appear.

Polities that held Antioquia, in chronological order
PolityPeriod here
The Spanish Empire1540–1810 CE
New Granada1811–1821 CE
Gran Colombia1822–1833 CE
Republic of New Granada1834–1858 CE
Republic of Colombia1866–2024 CE

Historical Maps of Antioquia

Antioquia on the world map in each year one of these states held it:

Derived by testing mapped cities against dated territorial polygons. Dates are when the polygons cover this place, not the polity's whole lifespan, and polities absent from the source dataset are not listed.

Largest Cities in Antioquia

6 cities mapped. Ranked by metropolitan population. A port city's harbour is written up on the page of its sea.

Largest Cities in Antioquia
#NamePopulation
1Medellín3.30 million
2Bello519,670
3Turbo50,508
4Yarumal35,315
5Puerto Berrío33,983
6Sonsón18,817

Ports in Antioquia

1 port mapped. Ranked by approach channel depth, the figure that limits which ships can call. Harbours link to their write-up on the page of the sea or coast they lie on. Assigned by the nearest mapped city, so features near the boundary may belong to a neighbouring division.

Ports in Antioquia
#NameChannel Depth
1Turbo31.1 m

UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Antioquia

1 World Heritage Site mapped. Listed by year of inscription, earliest first. Sites shared with another country appear under each. Assigned by the nearest mapped city, so features near the boundary may belong to a neighbouring division.

UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Antioquia
#NameInscribed
1Los Katíos National Park1994

Antioquia: Quick Answers

Where is Antioquia?
Antioquia is a first-level division of Colombia, in South America. Its mapped cities centre on 6.6558° N, 75.5357° W.
What is the largest city in Antioquia?
Medellín is the largest city mapped in Antioquia, with a metropolitan population of about 3.30 million.
How many cities are in Antioquia?
YearMaps maps 6 cities and towns in Antioquia, with a combined metropolitan population of about 3.96 million. This counts mapped settlements, not every municipality.

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