Ecuador Important data

Facts about Ecuador

Ecuador is a wonderful country located in the center of the world. Considered the best tourist destination in South America, we invite you to learn more about the country of the four worlds.

When was Ecuador founded?  The 10th of August, 1809
Ecuador capital: Quito is the capital of Ecuador.

Ecuador was born on May 13, 1830 by emancipating itself as a free and independent state after separating from Colombia.

It has four Regions in Ecuador, which are made up of 24 provinces.

Important Facts about Ecuador

• Official Name: Ecuador
• Origin of its name: It is called that thanks to the equinoctial line or Ecuador, this is the maximum parallel of the land that crosses from east to west.
• Capital: Quito (declared Cultural Heritage of Humanity)
• Location: In South America, equatorial region of the Pacific.
• Government: Constitutional, Democratic, Sovereign, Independent, Unitary, Intercultural, plurinational and secular, republican organization and decentralized government (Constitution / art 1).
• Functions: Executive, Legislative, Judicial, and Indigenous Justice, Transparency and Social Control Function, Electoral Function.
• Official language: Spanish.
• Other languages: Quichua, Shimi, Awapit, Cha'palachi, Tsafiqui, Paicoca, Aingae, Huaotirio, Shuar - chichán and záparo.
• Religion: Catholic prevalent. In addition other cults such as: Jehovah's Witnesses, Adventists, Evangelical, etc.
• National holiday: August 10
  Currency: The American dollar: bills: 5, 10, 20, 50,100 and fractions of: 1, 5, 10, 25 and 50 cents.
• Official time: Ecuador Continental GMT - 5 hours | Ecuador Island GMT - 6 hours
• Area:

• Continental Territory: 248,470 Km2
• Island Territory: 7,900 km2.
• Antarctic Territory: 323,000 km2.
• Total: 579,370 km2

• Natural regions:

• Sierra or Central Region
• Coast or coastal region
• Amazon region or east
• Insular region or Galapagos archipelago.

• Literacy: 89.8% (2000)
• Population: 14,483,499 (2010)
• Political division: 24 provinces divided into 811 221 cantons, 414 urban parishes, rural parishes
• National hero: Eugenio Espejo.
• Typical flower: The quina (tree of the rubiáceas with flowers in clusters that produces the tree of the cascarilla).
• Patron Saint: Our Lady of Mercy.
• Holidays: January 1, Good Friday, May 1, May 24, August 10, October 9, November 2 and 3, December 25.

Fun Facts about Ecuador, the country with zero latitude
These are the most relevant curiosities of Ecuador

• Ecuador is name after the line that divides the two northern and southern hemispheres of the planet, it passes very close to Quito.
• It has a territorial extension of about 280 thousand square kilometers, placing it within the smallest countries of South America.
• It has approximately 16.3 million inhabitants and according to the World Bank, its life expectancy is 76 years.
• The process of Independence of Ecuador lasted 21 years. It began in 1809 with a first cry for independence, which was followed by several battles, an annexation to Gran Colombia and finally the conformation as a republic in 1830.
• Since 2002, the official currency of Ecuador is the dollar; before it was “sucre” however due to the devaluation it suffered since 1999 the government made the decision to disappear it.
• Ecuador is a large banana exporter: According to a report from the 2014 El Agro magazine, Ecuador is the world's leading banana exporter. It is estimated that 30% of this fruit in the world comes from Ecuador.
• Thanks to the benefits of the mild climate in Ecuador you can find the best quality roses in the world.
• Although, it is the orchids that have given Ecuador international recognition. In 2013, it was named as “the country of orchids” because in the whole territory you can find four of the five subfamilies of this flower, which would mean, that in Ecuador there are about 4,000 of all the species that have been found all over the world.
• In addition to the Spanish language, more than 13 indigenous languages ​​are spoken in Ecuador. The most common is quichua, it is even taught formally in some schools. More about the languages ​​of Ecuador
• Ecuador is among the 15 countries with the most volcanoes in the world. In fact it is the third country with more volcanoes in the world, followed by Indonesia and Chile; It has 98 volcanoes in total, of which 27 are active.
• Chimborazo Volcano: It is considered the highest point in Ecuador and at the same time it is the furthest point from the center of the earth in the world, that is, its peak is the closest to the sun in the entire earth. It is 6,263 meters high and exceeds Mount Everest by 2 meters.
• Cotopaxi Volcano: It is the second highest volcano in the country, it is about 5,800 meters above sea level and is part of the snow-capped volcanoes of the Ecuadorian Andes
• Pichincha Volcano: Another important peak of Ecuador is the Pichincha volcano, which is accessed by a cable car with a wonderful view. It is about 4,000 meters high above sea level.
• Quilotoa Volcano: The crater of the volcano gives us one of the largest natural spectacles in the world, because it has formed a turquoise lagoon of about 3 kilometers in diameter.
• The historic center of Quito was declared World Heritage in 1978.
• The Galapagos Islands are internationally recognized for being the place where Charles Darwin developed an important research that contributed to his theory of evolution, they have been a Natural World Heritage Site since 1978.
• The Convent of San Francisco de Quito is one of the most important monuments of the capital of the country and is even considered the largest temple in America.
• In the City half of the world there is a monument at zero latitude, a point that was established in 1736, from which a line was drawn that delimits the southern part of the northern part of the world. However, subsequent investigations indicated that the measurements of the eighteenth century had failed for about 200 meters and the site that today is the Intiñán Museum was pointed out as the true half of the world.
• In Ecuador, one of the most popular drinks is cinnamon, a mixture of hot cinnamon water, naranjilla and aguardiente. Although originally taken in the Ecuadorian highlands to counteract cold.
• The Athens of Ecuador is as e knows the city of Cuenca due to its architectural style and its colorful colonial-type constructions. In addition, it was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
• In Ecuador there are not four seasons: According to experts, due to its location, Ecuador does not have four stations but two. The wet season from December to May and the dry season from June to November.
• Los Frailes is a set of paradisiacal beaches in western Ecuador that have sands of different colors and surrounded by forests and cliffs. The main beach has pink sand and from it you can access the white sand Tortuguita beach.
• The whales of Puerto López: during the month of August the visitors of Puerto López could appreciate a natural spectacle because humpback whales visit the place every year to mate or give birth. In fact sometimes they are seen to make huge and spectacular jumps.
• The lobería is an area of ​​the Galapagos Archipelago where visitors can live with sea lions and marine iguanas.
• Yasuni National Park is located in the Amazon area of Ecuador, the park covers about 1000 square kilometers and is considered the most diverse place in the world. It is reached by navigating the Napo River and in addition to being able to appreciate an extensive variety of fauna, you can see the way of life of the indigenous communities of the Haorani and Kichwa, who inhabit the depths of the forest.
• Vilcabamba Valley: Also known as the Longevity Valley, it boomed in the 70s when the majority of its population exceeded 100 years of life. Scientists believe that it was the minerals from the Chamba and Uchima rivers that brought good health to the locals.
  We hope this interesting data about Ecuador has served you.