Tipacoque facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Tipacoque
Municipality and town
View of Tipacoque
Flag Seal
Location of the municipality and town of Tipacoque in the Boyacá Department of Colombia
Country	Colombia
Department	Boyacá Department
Province	Northern Boyacá Province
Founded	28 November 1968
Founded by	Elvia Sandoval de Rojas
Area
• Municipality and town	72.067 km2 (27.825 sq mi)
Elevation	1,850 m (6,070 ft)
Population  (2015)
• Municipality and town	3,206
• Urban	867
Time zone	UTC-5 (Colombia Standard Time)
Website	Official website: http://www.tipacoque-boyaca.gov.co/

Tipacoque is a town and municipality in Boyacá Department, Colombia. It is located high up in the Andes mountains, specifically in the Eastern Ranges. Tipacoque sits on the western side of the amazing Chicamocha River Canyon. It's part of the Northern Boyacá Province region.

What's in a Name?

The name Tipacoque comes from an older word, Zipacoque. In the ancient Chibcha language, this meant "dependency of the zaque". A zaque was a powerful leader of the Muisca, who lived in this area long ago. Tipacoque was once under the rule of these Muisca leaders.

Geography and Climate

Tipacoque covers an area of about 72 square kilometers (about 28 square miles). To the north, it shares borders with Covarachía and Capitanejo. To the south, it borders Soatá. The Chicamocha River forms a natural border to the east, separating Tipacoque from Capitanejo and Boavita.

To the west, a part of the Eastern mountain range separates it from Onzaga in the Santander Department. This mountain range has different heights, from 1,200 meters (about 3,900 feet) at the bottom of the Chicamocha Canyon to over 3,000 meters (about 9,800 feet) at a spot called "Cruz de Roble".

Altitude and Temperature

The town of Tipacoque is located at an altitude of about 1,850 meters (6,070 feet) above sea level. The average temperature here is around 18 °C (64.4 °F). The warmest months are December and January, when temperatures can go above 25 °C (77 °F). The weather in Tipacoque is mostly dry.

Plants and Animals

The area around Tipacoque has many different kinds of plants. The animals you might find here also vary. In the higher parts of the mountains, you can find mammals like rabbits, armadillos, and tinajos (a type of rodent). In the lower areas, reptiles are more common.

Many birds live here too, such as garrapateros, hummingbirds, toches, turpiales, gurrias, doves, perdices, pregoneros, and cuchicas. These are native birds that live near the small streams that flow into the Chicamocha River.

Did You Know?

• The novel Tipacoque: Estampas de provincia (1971) by Eduardo Caballero Calderón tells stories about Colombian society in this part of Boyacá.

Gallery

See also

In Spanish: Tipacoque para niños