Colombia

[kuh-luhm-bee-uh; Spanish kaw-lawm-byah]

noun

a republic in NW South America. 439,828 sq. mi. (1,139,155 sq. km). Capital: Bogotá.

Related formsCo·lom·bi·an, adjective, nounpro-Co·lom·bi·an, adjective, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for colombia

Contemporary Examples of colombia

The refugees come from Panama, Paraguay, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Mexico, Colombia, Guatemala, and Puerto Rico.
The 2014 Novel of the Year
Nathaniel Rich
December 29, 2014
BOGOTÁ, Colombia — Most Latin Americans celebrated the rapprochement between the United States and Cuba.
Venezuela Says Goodbye to Its Lil Friend, While the Rest of the Continent Cheers
Catalina Lobo-Guererro
December 20, 2014
In Colombia, it was perceived more like a coincidence or perhaps even an opportunistic play by the FARC.
Venezuela Says Goodbye to Its Lil Friend, While the Rest of the Continent Cheers
Catalina Lobo-Guererro
December 20, 2014
Now the question in Colombia, is, will a bilateral ceasefire be announced in coming days?
Did The U.S.-Cuba Deal Help Drive A Rebel Ceasefire in Colombia?
Richard McColl
December 18, 2014
A ceasefire by leftist rebels in Colombia could close the last one.
Did The U.S.-Cuba Deal Help Drive A Rebel Ceasefire in Colombia?
Richard McColl
December 18, 2014

Historical Examples of colombia

The United States of Colombia possesses less than 250 miles of road.
The Railroad Question
William Larrabee
The country of the Goajires is a peninsula of Colombia bordering on Venezuela.
The Sexual Question
August Forel
Shall I tell you how I killed his brother in the wilds of Colombia?
Victory
Joseph Conrad
On November 3, the trouble in Colombia reached its culminating point.
American Boy's Life of Theodore Roosevelt
Edward Stratemeyer
The means of intercommunication are as primitive as those of Colombia.
Commercial Geography
Jacques W. Redway

British Dictionary definitions for colombia

Colombia

noun

a republic in NW South America: inhabited by Chibchas and other Indians before Spanish colonization in the 16th century; independence won by Bolívar in 1819; became the Republic of Colombia in 1886; violence and unrest have been endemic since the 1970s. It consists chiefly of a hot swampy coastal plain, separated by ranges of the Andes from the pampas and the equatorial forests of the Amazon basin in the east. Language: Spanish. Religion: Roman Catholic majority. Currency: peso. Capital: Bogotá. Pop: 45 745 783 (2013 est). Area: 1 138 908 sq km (439 735 sq miles)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for colombia

Colombia

South American nation, independent from 1819 as part of Gran Colombia (after its breakup in 1850, as New Granada, then Colombia from 1863); named for Italian explorer Christopher Columbus (Italian Colombo, Portuguese Colom, Spanish Colón).

colombia in Culture

Colombia

Republic in northwestern South America, bordered by Panama to the northwest, Venezuela to the northeast, Ecuador and Peru to the south, and Brazil to the southeast. Its capital and largest city is Bogotá.

Note

Its major legal crop is coffee.

Note

Trafficking of marijuana and cocaine remains a problem in Colombia. With support from the United States, the Colombian government has attacked drug traffickers, but the country continues to be torn by civil war between left-wing and right-wing factions.