All about...#27 - Ecuador

In simple words, Ecuador is a Spanish-speaking, mountainous, but warm country located in western South America. It has an amazing landscape and atmosphere that attracts many people to it and is also buzzing with culture. In case you were wondering, the country gets its name from the equator, which passes through it. But let's divide these facts into categories:

- Political/Economic

- Physical

- Demography

- Fun facts

Today, Ecuador is a growing country. It is 50% urban, meaning the cities and towns are growing and helping the economy. The largest cities in Ecuador are Guayaquil, Quito (the capital), Cuenca, and Santo Domingo. 80 years ago, the country was only 30% urban.  As you may have known, the capital is Quito, but the Largest city with a population of 2 million is actually Guayaquil - there have been plans to move the capital there, but it's not been made yet. Ecuador has 24 zones/provinces.

The countries GDP is 62nd highest in the world, at about 100 billion. The country has an abundance of forests, lakes, and seas, which makes sense, because they are big in fishing and lumber (they care about their forests though). They also have many mining sites which is where they get gold, aluminum, etc.

As mentioned in the introduction, Ecuador is a very mountainous country, but it also has some geographical regions: The Coast, the Andes, the Amazon, and the Galapagos Islands, which are home to a variety of unique animals like the Giant tortoise. The highest mountain of Ecuador, located in the Andes is the Chimborazo mountain.

Make sure if you visit, mind that Ecuador is one of the countries with the most volcanoes per sq mile. It has over 27 active volcanoes!!!

Let's talk about ethnic groups first - the majority of the country - at 72% is Mestizo. Afro-Ecuadorians make up 7%, and other groups include the indigenous people and the Caucasians.

Since Spain colonized it, the main language of Ecuador is, of course, Spain. But of course, they also speak English.

The country is a strong catholic nation - introduced by the Spanish in the 1500s. There are many churches in the country today. 80% is catholic, and 11% is protestant.