San Andrés | ||||||||
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City and municipality | ||||||||
San Andrés Island.
View of San Andrés Beach
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Maps of the islands of San Andrés and Providencia |
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Location of San Andrés in Colombia | ||||||||
Coordinates: 12°35′5″N 81°42′2″W / 12.58472°N 81.70056°WCoordinates: 12°35′5″N 81°42′2″W / 12.58472°N 81.70056°W | ||||||||
Country | Colombia | |||||||
Region | Insular | |||||||
Department | San Andrés, Providencia y Santa Catalina | |||||||
Area | ||||||||
• Total | 26 km2 (10 sq mi) | |||||||
Population (2005) | ||||||||
• Total | 55,426 | |||||||
• Languages spoken | Creole, English, Spanish | |||||||
• Ethnic groups | 20% Raizals and 80% mainland Colombians | |||||||
Time zone | Eastern Time Zone (UTC-05) |
San Andrés is the capital city of the department of San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina, in Colombia. As of 2005 its population was of 55,426.
It is situated at the north end of San Andrés Island, on the Caribbean Sea. The population is considered to be about 20% Raizals and 80% mainland Colombians. The economy is mainly sustained by tourism and commercial fishing. Once a duty-free port, it still has a relatively vigorous shopping district selling various consumer goods at bargain prices, including Colombian gold and emerald jewellery, leather goods and other distinctively Colombian wares.
San Andres has become such a byword for bargain shopping in Colombia that many towns and cities have a bargain shopping area known as a San Andresito ("little San Andres").