jueves, 3 de mayo de 2012

Colombia


The Republic of Colombia

Official Languages
The official language of Colombia is Spanish.  In Colombia, there are 500,000 speakers of American Indian Languages.  A few of the immigrant languages include Catalan-Valencian-Balear, Yagua and Yuhup.  Out of the 101 languages in Colombia, 81 are still spoken today.  Some of those extinct languages include Anserma, Arma and Barbacoas.  Along with those three, in total there are 21 languages that are extinct.  Achagua is one of the most important languages in Colombia.  It is spoken by people who are in the eastern region of Colombia.  It is part of the Maipurean Arawakan language group. 



History
In around 10,000 BC, Colombia had indigenous people settled there.  In the early 1500’s the Spanish settled along the north coast of Columbia.  In 1886 the republic of Colombia was declared, as it was previously called the United States of Columbia.  In Colombia, before there was the Spanish control there were many indigenous people and this is why there are still some languages from the indigenous people.  The first group to come to Colombia was the Spanish colonists and then after came the immigration of some Europeans in 1499.  Around the start of the 20th century there were a number of Europeans and people from North America that migrated to Colombia.  All of these historic events have come to influence Colombia and the languages that are still around there. 


Interesting Facts
The population of Colombia is almost 45 million people.  The literacy rate is 70% for the country of Columbia.  In Colombia there is no college.  After the students get done with their equivalent of high school, they either go to a technical school or a school to train them in the career that they want.  Colombia is at the crossroads for Central America and North America.  The Spanish that they speak in the Republic of Colombia is in some peoples opinion a good Spanish for learners because they have a very neutral accent.  There is English taught in the public education throughout the Republic of Colombia.  Although, it is taught to the people in Colombia, there are very few people who can speak English.  

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