Caldas (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈkaldas]) is a department of Colombia named after Colombian patriotic figure Francisco José de Caldas. It is part of the Paisa Region and its capital is Manizales. The population of Caldas is 998,255, and its area is 7,291 km². Caldas is also part of the Colombian Coffee-Growers Axis region along with the Risaralda and Quindio departments.
Department of Caldas
Departamento de Caldas | |
---|---|
Department | |
![]() Flag ![]() Coat of arms | |
![]() Caldas shown in red | |
![]() Topography of the department | |
Coordinates: 5°06′N 75°33′W | |
Country | ![]() |
Region | Andean Region |
Established | 1905 |
Capital | Manizales |
Government | |
• Governor | Luis Carlos Velásquez Cardona (2020-2024) |
Area | |
• Total | 7,888 km2 (3,046 sq mi) |
• Rank | 28th |
Population (2018)[1] | |
• Total | 998,255 |
• Rank | 17th |
• Density | 130/km2 (330/sq mi) |
Time zone | UTC-05 |
ISO 3166 code | CO-CAL |
Municipalities | 27 |
HDI (2019) | 0.778[2] high · 6th of 33 |
Website | gobernaciondecaldas.gov.co |
Caldas has 6 districts.
In Caldas is the Miel I Dam.[3]
Year | Pop. | ±% |
---|---|---|
1938 | 769,968 | — |
1951 | 1,067,324 | +38.6% |
1964 | 712,916 | −33.2% |
1973 | 698,042 | −2.1% |
1985 | 883,024 | +26.5% |
1993 | 1,030,062 | +16.7% |
2005 | 968,740 | −6.0% |
2018 | 998,255 | +3.0% |
Source:[4] |
The population of Caldas is 984,128 (2013), half of whom live in Manizales. The racial composition is:
The local inhabitants of Caldas are known as caldenses. Of the five main regional groups in Colombia, the predominant group in Caldas are known as paisa, referring to those living in the Paisa region, which covers most of Antioquia, as well as the departments of Caldas, Risaralda and Quindío.
![]() |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Caldas Department. |
| |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Capital: Manizales | |||||||||||||
Districts and municipalities |
|
Departments of Colombia | ||
---|---|---|
![]() |