The capital and largest city is Bogotá. Colombia, officially Republic of Colombia, republic in north-western South America, bordered on the north by Panama and the Caribbean Sea, on the east by Venezuela and Brazil, on the south by Peru and Ecuador, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean. Colombia is the only South American nation with coasts on both the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean. The total land area is 1,141,750 sq km. .

Population
        35,652,000
        (1996 estimate)
Population Density
        31 people/sq km
        (80 people/sq mi)
        (1996 estimate)
Urban/Rural Breakdown
        70% Urban
        30% Rural
Largest Cities
        Bogotá 5,237,635
        Cali   1,718,871
        Medellín 1,621,356
        Barranquilla 1,064,255
        (1995 estimates)
Ethnic Groups
        58% Mestizo
        20% White
        14% Mulatto
        8%  Other
        including blacks, Native Americans, and people of mixed race
Languages
Official Language
        Spanish
Other Languages
        Native American languages
Religions
        95% Roman Catholicism
        5% Other
        including Protestantism and Judaism