15 Interesting facts about Ecuador

Today we will tell you some awesome and interesting facts about Ecuador, you will be amazed after reading these facts about Ecuador. Despite its small size compared to the South American giants of Brazil and Argentina, Ecuador is home to an impressive array of wonders including quaint colonial towns, the Amazon rainforest, spectacular Andean mountains and volcanoes, and sure the Galapagos Islands, fragile but attractive. Whether by nature, wildlife, or culture in many aspects preserved, this diverse country is sure to impress the visitor.

15 Interesting facts about Ecuador

• • • The national tree of Ecuador is the cinchona tree that produces quinine, the first medicine used to prevent and treat malaria. Science owes the astronomer Charles-Marie de La Condamine and Joseph de Jussieu the first serious botanical information on cinchona. While they were measuring the arc of the meridian near Quito, they took advantage of their presence in the country to search for the origin of the famous bark of Peru.
    • Ecuador is one of only two countries in South America that do not share a border with Brazil.
    • In 2008, Ecuador was the first country to officially recognize the rights of nature . Rather than treating nature as a good, Ecuador recognizes that nature has constitutional rights and has the “right to exist, to persist, to maintain and to regenerate its life cycles.
    • Ecuador granted political asylum to Julian Assange. Charged by the US government and under extradition request from Sweden, his country of origin, Assange takes refuge at the Embassy of Ecuador in London. He has been there since June 2012.
    • The summit of Chimborazo volcano , the highest mountain in Ecuador, is the closest point to Earth in the sun. Due to the location of the volcano along the equatorial bead, its summit is the farthest point from the Earth’s core . It also means that Ecuador is the closest country to space.
  • Ecuador has the highest biodiversity per square kilometer in the world , be it animal or plant. For example, more than 300 species of trees per hectare have been recorded in some areas and there are about 3500 different orchids.
  • It is well known that Ecuador is named after the equator that runs through the country. It is indeed the only country in the world officially named after a geographical feature .
  • The imaginary line of the equator is largely highlighted on the tourist site of “Mitad del Mundo”, north of the capital, Quito. It’s supposed to be the place where you can stand with one foot in the northern hemisphere and one in the south. Unfortunately, thanks to modern readjustments and calculations, it has been shown that the exact line of Ecuador is actually 240 meters north of the line marked by the monument.
  • Ecuador has the first and second UNESCO World Heritage sites in the world. At the inaugural UNESCO World Heritage Conference in 1978, 32 sites were initially designated. Each World Heritage Site has a number – the # 1 site is the Galapagos Islands and # 2 is the city of Quito. 
  • Quito, the capital of Ecuador, is 2,850m above sea level, making it the highest official capital in the world . La Paz in Bolivia is higher but it is not the constitutional capital of Bolivia (which is Sucre), only the seat of government.
  • Ecuador is one of the three countries created in 1830 following the collapse of Greater Colombia. After the independence of the Spanish colony, the Viceroyalty of New Granada, the Republic of Greater Colombia (1819-1830) was created. It included the territories of present-day Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Panama as well as parts of northern Peru, Guyana and northwestern western Brazil.
  • The Hat known worldwide as Panama is actually from Ecuador . The woven straw hats along the Ecuadorian coast were sent to Panama initially to be sold to canal workers and, once the canal opened, for affluent Westerners passing through the Panama Canal.
  • Ecuador is the world’s largest banana exporter , accounting for up to 29% of all bananas exported in 2011.
  • Ecuador was voted the best country for expatriates for the second year in a row. Quality of life, cost of living, and personal finances have all been cited as excellent reasons for giving this No.1 place to the equator.
  • There are at least 14 recognized languages ​​spoken in Ecuador. While Spanish is of course the official language, 13 indigenous languages ​​are also recognized, including Quichua and Shuar.