Territorial evolution of Colombia

Throughout history, the borders and territorial organization of Colombia have been through various transformations, mainly due to political and demographics criteria, but much less due to cultural factors,^[1] among other internal and external factors. Even when the independent governments have at various points tried to organize the territory of the nation in order to achieve a better administration, the general shape of the artificial borders of the subnational entities have followed the outline made during the Spanish conquest and the colonial periods.

Most of the territorial changes were made during the 19th century, the period in which the Colombian War of Independence took place, as well as the most violent civil wars that the country has endured.

The history of the administrative and political organization of Colombia does not begin with the arrival of the Spanish to the New World. Before this, numerous peoples and groups existed, each with their own cultural structures, differing from one another. One of such peoples, an perhaps the most advanced one, that inhabited the Colombian territory was the indigenous Muisca people, who formed one of the most organized societies of the continent in the interior of the country.^[2]

In 1508, the first colonial political and administrative subdivisions began to be made, in turn becoming the base for modern Colombia.

The Kingdom of Tierra Firme was created that same year, becoming the first Spanish colonial territorial entity on the continental New World. It covered the northern coastal territories of South America and the southernmost territories of continental Central America, from the Guianas all the way to the Cabo Gracias a Dios, in modern-day Honduras and Nicaragua. This entity was created 16 years after Columbus' landing at Guanahani and 9 years after the moment Alonso de Ojeda landed at Cabo de la Vela, in the Guajira Peninsula, the northernmost point of continental South America.^[3]