Located in South America, Ecuador is a country that by its geographical location enjoys 12 hours of daylight every day of the year! It houses a variety of interesting spaces; from colonial towns to Andean peaks passing through Amazon jungles and a unique place in the world: the Galapagos Islands . Join us to know 50 Curiosities of Ecuador. The country with the highest capital .
Ecuador or the Republic of Ecuador is a country of approximately 16.3 million inhabitants. Divided from north to south by a volcanic section of the Andes mountain range is a beautiful and extraordinarily diverse country. It is the ninth country in the world in biodiversity.
50 Curiosities of Ecuador
1. In the territory that today is Ecuador, the first humans settled more than 14,000 years ago.
2. The territory was conquered by the Inca Empire in the 15th century and later, in the middle of the 16th century, by the Spaniards.
3. After achieving independence from Spain, Simón Bolívar united Ecuador with Venezuela and Colombia, which included what is now Panama, in a large country that he called the Gran Colombia. This country lasted between 1819 and 1830 dividing later into 3 different countries. One of them Ecuador.
4. The top of the world is in Ecuador. The point furthest from the center of the earth is Mount Chimborazo. Win Everest by 2'4 km. approximately. This is because the Earth widens in the area of the equator.
5. One of the curiosities of Ecuador is that casting a vote when they are called to the polls is not only a right, but also an obligation. All citizens between 18 and 65 are required to vote.
6. Ecuador is the only country whose name is a geographical feature. It is called Ecuador because the equator crosses it.
7. It is the most densely populated country in South America and the fifth in the Americas.
8. In 1978, at the inaugural conference of the UNESCO World Heritage Convention the first two World Heritage sites were in Ecuador. They were the Galapagos Islands and Quito, the capital.
9. One of the curiosities of Ecuador is that its national tree, the cinchona, is the one that produces quinine, the first medicine used to prevent and treat malaria.
10. Ecuador is geographically divided into 4 very different regions: the Coast which are the coastal lowlands, the Sierra or highlands of the mountains, east of the Amazon or the East which are the lowlands of the eastern jungle and finally the insular region which are the Galapagos Islands .
11. The Galapagos Islands are about 1,000 km away. of continental Ecuador.
12. In 1835 Charles Darwin, aboard the Beagle, arrived in the Galapagos Islands. Much of his discoveries and observations at the site served as the basis for his theory of evolution
13. Another of the curiosities of Ecuador is that it is the largest exporter of bananas in the world.
14. In addition to bananas, it also exports oil in amounts that account for 33% of the country's income.
15. Since 2000, the currency of Ecuador is the US dollar.
16. The language of Ecuador The official language is Spanish, but there are 13 recognized indigenous languages that are spoken regularly in some communities of the country.
17. Ecuador was one of the first countries in the world to eliminate the death penalty. He did it in 1906.
18. The highest active volcano in the world, Cotopaxi, is located in Ecuador.
19. In the country you can also find one of the 7 largest megavolcanoes in the world. It is the Chalupas and its boiler has 16 km.
20. In Ecuador the duration of the days practically does not have difference between the winter and the summer and this is due to its location in the terrestrial equator. Sunrise and sunset occurs about 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. throughout the year.
21. Although the capital of Ecuador is Quito , between the cities of Ecuador the most populated is Guayaquil with almost 4'3 million inhabitants.
22. Other important Ecuadorian cities are: Basin , Portoviejo, Babahoyo, Machala, Esmeraldas, Loja or Ambato. All of them exceed 500,000 inhabitants.
23. Quito is the capital of Ecuador . In the city live 3.1 million people. It is the highest country capital in the world: 2,850 m. above sea level. La Paz in Bolivia would be higher, but it is not the constitutional capital , which falls in the city of Sucre.
24. Due to the altitude, in the capital of Ecuador the water boils at 90º instead of at 100º.
Quito is a city rich in legends transmitted orally and that reflect a tradition of hundreds of years. Among the most popular legends of Quito is it so:
25. That of the Indian Cantuña who according to the legend agreed with the devil to give his soul to be able to finish the atrium of the Church of San Francisco, in the historic center of Quito.
26. The legend of the Virgin of the Volcano that is located on the top of the Guagua Pichincha volcano and that protects the inhabitants of Quito from the eruptions.
27. North of Quito, about 26 km. from the capital of Ecuador, is the Middle of the World City . Because neither Asia neither Africa they offered stability, between 1736 and 1744 the Franco-Spanish geodesic mission traveled to Ecuador to locate the approximate site through which the equinoctial line passes, ie half the world .
28. In the Middle of the World City You can stand with one foot in the northern hemisphere and the other in the southern hemisphere. However, recent updates have revealed that the exact position of the equator is about 240 meters from the line we see in the Middle of the World City.
29. One of the most popular tourist visits is the Middle of the World Monument . It is common for visitors to be photographed on the equator line. He Middle of the World Monument It has been renovated and moved several times and currently houses a small museum of the country's indigenous culture.
30. The Ecuador Flag It has three bands of three colors: yellow, which represents the diversity of the country and is twice as wide as the others, blue by sea and sky and red by the blood of those who fought for its independence. In addition, the coat of arms of Ecuador usually appears in the center.
31. The flag of Ecuador is very similar to that of Colombia and that of Venezuela, countries with which it formed the so-called "Gran Colombia" at the beginning of the 19th century.
32. It is difficult to say that there is a Ecuador food that can be called "national" since the kitchen varies a lot from one place to another in the country. On the coast more fish, bananas and beans are consumed and in the Sierra meat, white corn and rice.
33. One of the curiosities of Ecuador It's in your food. The guinea pig is consumed. The guinea pig is a kind of guinea pig that is considered a delicacy.
34. One of the typical dances of Ecuador is the "corridor". It is also danced in other countries of the region, but in Ecuador it is slower and more melancholic. This happens, according to musicologists, because of the influence of other popular dances such as the Sanjuanito and the Yaraví.
35. The indigenous Kichwa tradition of making beautiful drum designs has become an expression of unique and colorful art that has become famous throughout the world and is known as "Tigua".
36. Have you heard about the "Panama hats"? Well, they are really from Ecuador. They were manufactured in this country and exported to protect the workers who built the Panama Canal from the sun. Later they were sold to tourists who crossed the canal.
37. According to the telephone companies, in Ecuador there are more mobile phone lines (cell phones) than inhabitants.
38. In 1949, radio announcers reproduced the broadcast that Orson Wells had starred in 1938 in the USA. following "War of the Worlds" by G.K. Wells. In Quito, panic spread and when the citizens knew that it was not true the extraterrestrial invasion burned the radio station. More than 10 people died.
39. In 2012, in the city of Guayaquil, a clean-up campaign was launched, which consisted of garbage trucks emitting music instead of beeps to warn of their arrival; 7 out of 10 users were satisfied with the initiative.
40. One of the curiosities of Ecuador is that its Constitution recognizes the Rights of Nature, says exactly: "Nature or Pacha Mama, where life is reproduced and made, has the right to be fully respected its existence and the maintenance and regeneration of its life cycles, structure, evolutionary functions and processes [...]. "
41. In Ecuador you can find more than 1,600 different bird species, representing 15% of the world total.
42. In addition, around 25,000 different plant species grow on its soil.
43. In Ecuador there are 41 species of mammals endemic to the country.
44. The Andean condor that we see on the Ecuadorian flag is in danger of extinction and is the largest flying bird in the world.
45. It is the country with the highest number of orchid species: it has 4,250. Of these, 1,301 are endemic to the country.
46. Among these thousands of orchids you can enjoy the " dracula simia "That has developed an extraordinary resemblance to the face of a monkey.
47. In Guayaquil there is a shelter for iguanas. It is known as "the Park of the Iguanas" and is in the downtown Seminar Park of the city.
48. In 2017, Ecuador received almost 1.7 million tourists, which represents a large increase over previous years.
49. In that same year, according to population statistics, more than 1.2 million Ecuadorians lived outside of Ecuador.
50. As the last of these curiosities of Ecuador , point out that it is becoming a golden retirement for American retirees. Spectacular landscapes linked to a high quality of life at very moderate costs.
Other curiosities of America | By countries
What do you think of these curiosities of Ecuador , one of the most biodiverse countries in the world and the first one in its Constitution to protect nature? Do you want to know the most surprising side of other American countries, such as Venezuela, Mexico, USA ...? You're lucky! In the following list you will discover more curiosities of America , distributed by countries, that will fascinate you. Do not miss it!
- Curious facts of Mexico
- Curious Data of Argentina
- Curious Facts of Colombia
- Curious Data of Venezuela
- Curious data of Brazil
- Curious Data of the United States
- Curiosities of Canada
- Curiosities of Puerto Rico
Did you know this curiosities of Ecuador ? Did you know that because of its location and geography it has become a refuge for the flora and fauna of the planet? We have loved discovering them! If you know some curious data from Ecuador that we have not mentioned, share it with us and we can expand the list!
Images: Diego Delso , David Adam Kess , Eduardo Navas , JORGITO1983 , , Silva Pedro ,