Ecuador

The land of Ecuador was home to advanced ancient cultures, including the Valdivia, who made some of the oldest pottery in the Americas, and was later incorporated into the northern reaches of the Inca Empire, with Quito as an important centre. Spanish conquistadors took the region in the sixteenth century, and it became part of the colonial domain governed from Quito. Independence came in 1822, secured at the Battle of Pichincha, after which Ecuador was briefly part of Gran Colombia before becoming a separate nation.

Ecuador is divided into four strikingly different regions: the warm Pacific coast with its plains and ports, the cool highlands of the Andes running down the centre with a chain of volcanoes, the Amazon rainforest spilling across the east, and the volcanic Galapagos Islands far out in the Pacific. The towering volcano Chimborazo, because of the planet's bulge at the equator, has a summit that is the farthest point on the Earth's surface from the centre of the planet.

The flag of Ecuador has three horizontal bands, a broad yellow band over blue and red, with the national coat of arms in the centre. The colours are shared with Colombia and Venezuela, the partners in Bolivar's former Gran Colombia, and are often interpreted as yellow for the land's abundance, blue for the sea and sky, and red for the blood of heroes. The coat of arms features the condor and the volcano Chimborazo above a steamship on a river.

Ecuador is a predominantly Roman Catholic country, the faith brought by Spanish colonisation, which remains influential in its festivals, traditions, and family life, though the share identifying as Catholic has declined and evangelical churches have grown. In the highlands and the Amazon, indigenous communities often blend Catholic practice with their own ancestral beliefs, honouring the earth and the mountains. Religion continues to shape the rhythm of the year and the culture of the country.

Ecuadorian cuisine varies by region, from the seafood of the coast to the hearty highland fare of the Andes. A coastal favourite is ceviche, seafood marinated in citrus, and encebollado, a fish soup, is considered a national dish. In the mountains, dishes feature potatoes, corn, and, on special occasions, roast guinea pig, an Andean tradition. Plantains, both sweet and savoury, are eaten throughout the country, reflecting its tropical bounty.

Ecuador's varied climate makes it an important agricultural exporter. It is the world's largest exporter of bananas, a mainstay of its economy, and a renowned source of fine-flavour cacao, prized by chocolate makers. The cool highlands grow flowers, especially roses, which are flown to markets around the world, along with coffee, and the coast produces shrimp from extensive farms. This agricultural wealth, alongside oil, underpins the national economy.

The ancient Valdivia culture, the Inca presence, and independence secured at the Battle of Pichincha in 1822 shaped Ecuador's history. Perhaps its greatest claim on the wider world came through the Galapagos Islands, where the young naturalist Charles Darwin observed the islands' distinctive animals in 1835, observations that helped lead him to the theory of evolution by natural selection. In 2000 Ecuador adopted the United States dollar as its currency after a financial crisis.

Ecuador has a population of around 18 million people, a mix of mestizos of combined European and indigenous heritage, sizeable indigenous communities especially in the highlands and Amazon, and people of African and European descent on the coast. Spanish is the main language, alongside indigenous tongues such as Quechua. The population is split between the two largest cities, the highland capital Quito and the coastal port of Guayaquil, with the rest spread across the country's varied regions.