Venezuela - History and Culture

Venezuela, formally known as the 'Bolivian Republic of Venezuela', is situated on the northern coast of South America. This country stretches over an area of 916,445 square kilometers which includes various islands in the Caribbean sea. Venezuela is flanked by Brazil to its South, Columbia to its west, Guyana to its east and the the Caribbean sea to its north. It is segregated into 23 states and the average population is 26,414,816.

History of Venezuela

When Christopher Columbus came to Venezuela in 1498, it was occupied by the Indians comprising of mainly three groups: the Carib, Arawak and Chibcha. Following Columbus, many other Spanish explorers started coming to Venezuela. One such person was Alonso de Ojeda, who, on looking at the villages made over water by the natives, named it 'Venezuola', meaning 'little Venice' in Italian. In 1522, Venezuela became a colony of Spain, however, it was ruled from the capital of Columbia as the Spanish felt that Venezuela was not as rich in minerals as other parts of South America.

The Spanish ruled Venezuela and its neighboring countries for almost three centuries. The struggle for independence began in 1810 under the leadership of Simon Bolivar. This fight for freedom had to experience a lot of setbacks, but ultimately Venezuela gained independence in 1821. Initially, Venezuela was a part of the Republic of Greater Columbia which included Columbia, Ecuador and Panama. Under the leadership of Jose Antonia Paez, Venezuela attained the status of an independent Republic and established a new constitution in 1930. Jose Antonia Paez became the first President of independent Venezuela.

However, the years after independence were filled with turbulence and chaos. Venezuela saw a string of dictators, wars and civil strife which continued till the 20th century. There were dictators who worked for the betterment of the country by building new infrastructure and promoting economic growth, and there were also dictators who cared only for personal benefits. General Juan Vicente Gomez was the longest-ruling dictator who ruled from 1908 to 1935. Following his death, the country came under military rule, after which Presidents were elected through democratic elections from the year 1947.

During the rule of Gomez, oil was found in the Maracaibo basin which helped in the economic development of the country. But it did not bring a change in the conditions of the poor. A promise of several social and economic reforms by Hugo Chavez resulted in him being elected as President in 1994. He was re-elected in 2000 and in 2006, and is currently serving his third term as the president of Venezuela.

Culture of Venezuela

The culture of a country is influenced by its history and this fact rings true in case of Venezuela too. The culture of Venezuela is a combination of the cultures of native Indians, Caribbeans, Spaniards, Italians and the African slaves brought in during the Spanish colonization.

Language: Spanish is the language spoken by a majority of the people in Venezuela, however native languages still exist in certain parts of the country.

Religion: Roman Catholicism is the religion followed by most Venezuelans, though some people practice protestantism. There are also people who follow tribal beliefs in certain remote areas of the country.

Art and Literature: The music of Venezuela is an amalgamation of African, Spanish and native music. Cuatro is the national musical instrument while gaita is the traditional national music of Venezuela. Though salsa is one of the most popular dances in the country, joropo is its national dance.

The literature of Venezuela originated in the period of Spanish colonization and was heavily influenced by the Spaniards. Political literature that developed and began being followed during the freedom struggle movement, gave rise to Venezuelan Romanticism and in turn to remarkable poets and authors.

Architecture: The buildings in Venezuela built during the colonial period are simple and are Spanish in their architectural style. However, Venezuela is best-known for its modern architecture that developed after the discovery of oil in the country.

The people of Venezuela are fun-loving and the World Values Survey has reported that Venezuelans belong to the category of the happiest people in the world. The history of Venezuela and the amalgamation of various cultures found here, makes it a unique nation.