Fusagasugá | |||
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Nickname(s): The Garden City of Colombia | |||
Motto: Tierra Grata Pleasing Earth | |||
Location of the town and municipality of Fusagasugá in Cundinamarca Department. |
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Location of the town and municipality of Fusagasugá in Cundinamarca Department. | |||
Coordinates: 4°20′N 74°21′W / 4.333°N 74.350°WCoordinates: 4°20′N 74°21′W / 4.333°N 74.350°W | |||
Country | Colombia | ||
Region | Andean Region | ||
Department | Cundinamarca | ||
Province | Sumapaz Province | ||
Established as Town for Natives | February 5–13, 1592 | ||
Established as Town for Whites | May 7, 1776 | ||
Government | |||
• Type | Municipality | ||
• Mayor | Carlos Daza | ||
Area | |||
• City | 206 km2 (80 sq mi) | ||
• Urban | 13.02 km2 (5.03 sq mi) | ||
• Rural | 190.98 km2 (73.74 sq mi) | ||
Elevation | 1,765 m (5,791 ft) | ||
Highest elevation | 3,050 m (10,010 ft) | ||
Lowest elevation | 550 m (1,800 ft) | ||
Population (2015) | |||
• City | 134,523 | ||
• Density | 650/km2 (1,700/sq mi) | ||
• Urban | 108,157 | ||
• Urban density | 8,300/km2 (22,000/sq mi) | ||
• Rural | 26,366 | ||
• Rural density | 140/km2 (360/sq mi) | ||
Demonym(s) | fusagasugueño | ||
Area code(s) | 57 + 1 | ||
Website | Official website (Spanish) |
Fusagasugá (Spanish pronunciation: [fusaɣasuˈɣa]) or Fusa is a town and municipality in the department of Cundinamarca, in central Colombia. It is located some forty miles from the capital, Bogotá. With 134,523 inhabitants, Fusagasugá is the second largest municipality in the department. It was founded in 1592 by Spanish priests.
It borders Pasca, Arbeláez, Tibacuy, Silvania and other municipalities of Sumapaz. Its elevation is 5,669 feet (1,728 m) above sea level, and the average temperature 68 °F (20 °C.)
The interpretation of the name in Spanish varies from "Mujer que se hace invisible" (Woman who becomes invisible) to "Mujer que se esconde tras la montaña" (Woman who hides herself behind the mountain). However, many people shorten its name to "Fusa".
The Sutagao people inhabited the region until the new town was founded by Oídor Bernardino Albornoz between 5–13 February 1592. Not much is known about the previous indigenous residents. During the visit of Oídor Ibarra, there were 759 indigenous people residing in Fusagasugá. When Oídor Aróstequi arrived in February 1760, the indigenous population had dwindled to 85, and there were 644 new settlers divided among 109 families. On February 19, 1760, a small hospital was established near the church and Father Vicente de Fresneda was given charge of it.
During a visit, two officials, Moreno and Escandón, considering the decline in the indigenous population and the corresponding growth in the local settler population, issued a decree on January 8, 1776 that the native villages in the Fusagasugá area, Pandi and Tibacuy, no longer existed, and consolidated them into the present-day city of Pasca. In the wake of this decision, all streets and plazas in the cities were renamed.
In 1771, on the direction of the mayor of Fusagasugá, the viceroy Messia de la Zerda ordered the construction of a new avenue, Santafé, which would go from Fusagasugá, passing through the nearby town of Sibaté. On August 8, 1774, Father Francisco Escobar announced that Fusagasugá was on the road that passed over the mountains and led to the neighboring towns of Apicalá and Melgar; such that travelers could not reach Bermajal, located on the same mountain as Fusagasugá, without passing through Fusagasugá. This established the suburb's local importance.