Luke and Jessica Marie
Missionaries to Bolivia
The ancient history of Bolivia is first and foremost woven into the great Andean empires of the Aymara civilization. This innovative and powerful culture was eventually conquered by the Incas at the end of the 15th century.
In their obsessive search for
gold and silver, the Spanish arrived here in the 16th century; they
quickly defeated the Incas, and changed the economic and social fabric
of Bolivia forever. During its 300 years of
colonial rule, Spain continually searched for precious metals, and in
the process forced Indian labor to do the work. The silver mines they
discovered at Potosi proved to be the largest ever in the western
hemisphere. In 1809, the "Liberator,"
Simon Bolivar (Bolivia's namesake) began the battle for
independence, and after the Spanish defeat in 1824, Bolivia finally
gained its hard-fought freedom in 1825. Typical of a new, upstart
country, political instability, coups, countercoups and rewritten
constitutions were commonplace, as numerous leaders tried to reform the
country. In the late 1800s, civilian
governments came into power, and for almost fifty years Bolivia enjoyed
relative political stability; its economy improved for all but the
indigenous Indians. Then, after losing a regional
war with Paraguay in 1935, in which it lost much of it original
territories, military control returned and a long series of military
governments controlled the country till 1982, when the country again
returned to a democratically elected form of government. Today, though reform is in
the air, it remains one of the poorest and least developed countries in
South America, and dependent on foreign aid. On the real positive side,
this marvelous land of natural beauty has vast quantities of untapped,
gas, gold, oil and silver deposits, as well as a large palette of
colorful attractions for all travelers. 
Name Bolivia (long form) Republic
of Bolivia
Population 8,857,900
Population & Density (all countries)
here
Capital City La Paz (seat of government) (812,000); Sucre
(legal capital and seat of judiciary) (224,000)
Currency Boliviano (BOB)
Currency Converter
here
Languages Spanish, Quechua, Aymara, others
Flag
here
National Day August 6
Religions Catholic (95%), Protestant (5%) Geographic Coordinates
Latitude/Longitude (Capital City) 16º 30' S, 68º 10' W
Relative Location The landlocked country of Bolivia is positioned in
the southern and western
hemispheres.
It's located in west-central South America, and bordered by Peru,
Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina and Chile. Land Statistics
Coastline 0 miles (0 km) (landlocked)
Land Areas (land) 418,685 sq
miles (1,084,390 sq km) (water) 5,479 sq miles
(14,190 sq km) (TOTAL) 424,164 sq
miles (1,098,580 sq km)
Land Area (all countries)
here
Landforms Bolivia's western half is covered by the Andes, as
three meandering high mountain chains dominate the landscape. The Cordillera Occidental (in
the west) is a long-line of mostly bleak, dormant volcanoes; the
Cordillera Central stands in the middle, while the (eastern)
Cordillera Oriental is a massive snow-capped series of stunning granite
mountains. The Altiplano (a high
plateau) is sandwiched between the cordilleras. Once just deep
valleys (or rifts) between the three mountain ranges, over eons
of time it filled with sedimentary debris washed down from the
surrounding peaks. The eastern slopes of the
Cordillera Oriental descend gently into rolling hills; numerous rivers
flow eastward here, forming long narrow valleys. Northeast of La Paz,
the landscape descends into fertile semitropical valleys, drained by
narrow rivers. The southeast is covered by semiarid plains that turn
swampy during heavy rains. Bolivia's Altiplano contains
several salt flats, the dried remnants of ancient lakes; Uyuni Saltpan
is the largest one, covering almost 3,500 sq miles. Deep and cold, Lake Titicaca,
3,810 meters above sea level, is the highest navigable body of water in
the world; salty Lake Poopo is the largest inland lake, varying greatly
in size based on rainfall. Most of Bolivia's significant
rivers (or rios) are located central and north. Countrywide,
important ones included the Beni, Desaquadero, Guapore, Madre de Dios
and Mamore. 
Highest Pt. Nevado Sajama - 21,463 ft. (6,542 m)
Lowest Pt. Paraguay River - 295 ft. (90 m)
Land Divisions 9 departments: Chuquisaca, Cochabamba, Beni, La
Paz, Oruro, Pando, Potosi, Santa Cruz and Tarija.