Cundinamarca

Department in central Colombia, situated in the Andes; area 22,373 sq km/8,638 sq mi; population (1996) 1,875,337. The departmental capital is also the national capital, Bogotá. Dairy-farming and coffee-growing form the basis of the department's economy.

Much of the territory of Cundinamarca consists of intermontane basins at around 2,500 m/8,202 ft above sea-level. The fertile soil here supports the extensive grazing of cattle. The densely populated slopes leading down to the Magdalena river valley are the site of the area's large coffee plantations. North of Bogotá is the town of Zipaquirá, famous for its vast rock salt mine and its underground cathedral carved out of salt rock, which took ten years to complete.