Cochabamba

Cochabamba
Quchapampa
City & Municipality
From the top to bottom, left to right: Metropolitan Cathedral, Palacio Portales, Templo del Hospicio, Aerial view of central Cochabamba, Tunari mountains, Banco Mercantil Simon Patiño, Cochabamba seat of government
Flag of Cochabamba
Coat of arms of Cochabamba
Nicknames: 
"City of Eternal Spring"
"The Garden City"
"La Llajta"
Cochabamba is located in Bolivia
Cochabamba
Cochabamba
Location in Bolivia
Cochabamba is located in South America
Cochabamba
Cochabamba
Cochabamba (South America)
Coordinates: 17°23′18″S 66°09′35″W / 17.38833°S 66.15972°W / -17.38833; -66.15972
Country Bolivia
DepartmentCochabamba
ProvinceCercado Province
MunicipalityCochabamba Municipality
FoundedAugust 15, 1571
Government
 • TypeMunicipal Autonomous Government
 • MayorManfred Reyes Villa (Súmate)
Area
 • City & Municipality170 km2 (70 sq mi)
 • Land169 km2 (65 sq mi)
 • Water1 km2 (0.4 sq mi)
 • Urban
111 km2 (43 sq mi)
Elevation
2,558 m (8,392 ft)
Population
 (2012 Census)[1]
 • Urban
856,198
 • Metro
1,430,688
DemonymCochabambino
GDP (PPP, constant 2015 values)
 • Year2023
 • Total (Metro)$11.8 billion[2]
 • Per capita$8,400
Time zoneUTC-4 (BOT)
ClimateBSk
WebsiteOfficial website

Cochabamba (Aymara: Quchapampa; Quechua: Quchapampa) is a city and municipality in central Bolivia in a valley in the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cochabamba Department and the fourth largest city in Bolivia, with a population of 630,587 according to the 2012 Bolivian census.[1] Its name is from a compound of the Quechua words qucha "lake" and pampa, "open plain."[3] Residents of the city and the surrounding areas are commonly referred to as cochalas or, more formally, cochabambinos.

It is known as the "City of Eternal Spring" or "The Garden City" because of its spring-like temperatures all year round.[4] It is also known as "La Llajta," which means "town" in Quechua. It is the largest urban center between the higher capital of La Paz and Santa Cruz de la Sierra in the tropical plains of the east. It sits south-west of the Tunari mountains, and north of the foothills of the Valle Alto. In antiquity, the area featured numerous lakes, which gave the city its name. Many of these lakes have since disappeared to urban development, but Coña Coña and Alalay lakes are extant examples. It has been a populated settlement since the Pre-Inca period, and is today an important cultural, educational, political, and commercial centre.

  1. ^ a b "Ciudades/Comunidades/Centros poblados y Localidades Empadronadas en el Censo de Población y Vivienda 2012". Instituto Nacional de Estadística de Bolivia. Archived from the original on 2015-06-12. Retrieved 2015-06-10.
  2. ^ "TelluBase—Bolivia Fact Sheet (Tellusant Public Service Series)" (PDF). Tellusant. Retrieved 2024-01-11.
  3. ^ Diccionario Bilingüe Iskay simipi yuyayk'ancha pdf[page needed]
  4. ^ Pisarro, Marcelo (14 January 2021). "Veredas cochabambinas". cienciaspardas.substack.com. Retrieved 2021-03-17.