Bolivia — map and facts

About Bolivia

Bolivia is a landlocked country in west-central South America, bordered by Peru and Chile to the west, Argentina and Paraguay to the south, and Brazil to the north and east. It covers approximately 1,098,581 square kilometres, making it the fifth-largest country in South America, with a population of around 12 million people. Bolivia has two capitals: Sucre is the constitutional capital and seat of the judiciary, while La Paz serves as the seat of government and is the world's highest-seated executive capital at approximately 3,650 metres above sea level. The country is one of the most ethnically diverse in the Americas, with a large indigenous majority including Quechua and Aymara peoples. Bolivia is a presidential republic; Evo Morales, the country's first indigenous president, held office from 2006 to 2019. The economy is based on natural resources, particularly lithium, natural gas, silver, tin, and zinc. Spanish is the principal official language alongside 36 recognised indigenous languages, including Quechua and Aymara.

Geography and Landscape

Bolivia's geography is extraordinarily diverse, encompassing high-altitude Andean peaks, sweeping plateaus, tropical lowlands, and vast wetlands. The western region is dominated by the Andes Mountains, which divide into two main chains: the Cordillera Occidental and the Cordillera Oriental. Between these ranges lies the Altiplano, a high plateau averaging 3,750 metres above sea level that is home to most of Bolivia's population. Lake Titicaca, the world's highest navigable lake at 3,812 metres, straddles the border with Peru on the northern Altiplano. The Salar de Uyuni in the southwest is the world's largest salt flat, covering approximately 10,582 square kilometres and containing vast lithium reserves. The Yungas region forms a dramatic transition zone from the Andes to the lowland Amazon basin. The eastern lowlands, known as the Oriente, encompass tropical rainforests, the vast Llanos de Mojos wetlands, and the Gran Chaco scrubland in the southeast. The country's highest peak is Nevado Sajama at 6,542 metres.

History

Bolivia's territory was home to the Tiwanaku civilisation, which flourished near Lake Titicaca between roughly 300 and 1000 CE and profoundly influenced later Andean cultures. The region was subsequently absorbed into the Inca Empire during the fifteenth century. Spanish conquistadors, led by Diego de Almagro and later Gonzalo and Hernando Pizarro, arrived in the 1530s and established colonial rule. The silver mines of Potosí, discovered in 1545, became among the richest in the world, funding the Spanish Empire for over two centuries. The city of Potosí grew to be one of the largest cities in the world during the sixteenth century. Independence movements gained momentum in the early nineteenth century; Bolivia declared independence on 6 August 1825, named in honour of Simón Bolívar, who played a crucial role in liberation campaigns alongside Antonio José de Sucre. The subsequent republican period was marked by political instability, military coups, and the loss of its Pacific coastal territory to Chile following the War of the Pacific (1879–1884), leaving Bolivia landlocked.