Colombia in the world: coffee, literature, music, sport and science

Colombia is a country of around fifty million people, but its influence reaches far beyond its borders. A cup of coffee in Stockholm, a rose bought for Valentine's Day in Toronto, a novel read in Cairo, a song playing in a café in Kuala Lumpur, a cyclist climbing the Alps: chances are that Colombia is behind some of them. Living in Manizales has made me more aware of how often I meet Colombia in the rest of the world. This article celebrates the many ways this country has made its mark globally.

For an introduction to the country itself, start with my Colombia travel guide.

Coffee: Colombia in every cup

For many people around the world, Colombia means coffee. The country is one of the world's major producers of washed arabica, known for its balanced acidity, smooth body and fruity or caramel notes. Hundreds of thousands of families grow coffee, mostly on small farms in the mountains.

Colombia was also a pioneer in coffee branding. The fictional coffee grower Juan Valdez, with his mule Conchita, became one of the most recognized symbols of a country's product. Today, Colombian specialty coffee wins international competitions, and young growers experiment with fermentation and varieties to create unique flavors. The Coffee Cultural Landscape, where I live, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Read more in my Coffee Region guide.

Flowers: Colombia's gift to the world

If you have bought roses, carnations or chrysanthemums in North America, there is a good chance they came from Colombia. The country is one of the largest flower exporters in the world, second only to the Netherlands by many measures, and it supplies a large share of the flowers sold in the United States. The high plateau around Bogotá, with its stable climate and strong sunlight close to the equator, is ideal for flower growing. Around Valentine's Day and Mother's Day, cargo planes full of flowers leave Bogotá every day. Medellín celebrates this tradition every August with its Flower Festival.

Emeralds

Colombia is famous for producing some of the finest emeralds in the world, prized for their intense green color. The mining regions of Boyacá, such as Muzo, have produced legendary stones for centuries. In Bogotá, you can visit emerald museums and the jewelry district to learn how the stones are mined, cut and valued.

Literature: the magic of Gabriel García Márquez

In 1982, Gabriel García Márquez, born in the Caribbean town of Aracataca, received the Nobel Prize in Literature. His novel One Hundred Years of Solitude, which tells the story of the Buendía family in the fictional town of Macondo, has been translated into dozens of languages and is considered one of the great novels of the twentieth century. It made "magical realism" famous worldwide. Many of my English students read it in Spanish and then discuss it in English, which is a wonderful exercise.

Colombia has many other important writers, such as Jorge Isaacs, whose nineteenth-century novel María is a classic of romantic literature, Álvaro Mutis, winner of the Cervantes Prize, and contemporary authors like Laura Restrepo, Héctor Abad Faciolince and Juan Gabriel Vásquez, whose books reach international readers.

Art

Fernando Botero, from Medellín, created a style recognized instantly around the world: people, animals and objects with generous, rounded volumes. His sculptures stand in public squares in many countries, and he donated many works to museums in Bogotá and Medellín. Doris Salcedo, a Colombian sculptor, has exhibited in the world's major museums with powerful works about memory and loss. Street art in neighborhoods like Comuna 13 in Medellín and the center of Bogotá attracts visitors from everywhere.

Music: Colombia's rhythm goes global

Colombian music fills dance floors and playlists on every continent.

• Shakira, from Barranquilla, is one of the best-selling Latin artists of all time, and she brought Colombian and Arabic influences to global pop.
• Carlos Vives modernized vallenato and cumbia, mixing them with pop and rock.
• Juanes took Colombian rock and pop to international audiences.
• J Balvin, Maluma, Karol G and Feid, from Medellín, helped make reggaeton and Latin urban music a global phenomenon.
• Joe Arroyo and Grupo Niche are legends of Colombian salsa.
• Totó la Momposina brought traditional Caribbean music to world stages.

Traditional rhythms like cumbia have traveled across Latin America and beyond, adapting to local tastes in Mexico, Argentina and elsewhere. Read more in Colombian music and festivals.

Cinema and television

The film Embrace of the Serpent, directed by Ciro Guerra and shot in the Amazon, was the first Colombian film nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Colombian television also has a global footprint: the telenovela Yo soy Betty, la fea was adapted in many countries, including the English-language series Ugly Betty. And Colombia's landscapes, music and magical atmosphere inspired an animated film from a major international studio that introduced Colombian culture to millions of children worldwide.

Sport

Cycling

Colombia's mountains produce extraordinary climbers. In the 1980s, Luis "Lucho" Herrera became a hero in European races. More recently, Nairo Quintana won the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España, and Egan Bernal became the first Latin American to win the Tour de France in 2019. On Sundays, thousands of Colombians cycle the mountain roads, following in their footsteps.

Football

Colombia's national team won the Copa América in 2001 and reached memorable World Cup moments, such as James Rodríguez winning the Golden Boot in 2014. Players like Carlos Valderrama, Radamel Falcao and Luis Díaz have shone in the world's best leagues. The women's national team has also become an inspiration.

Olympic champions

Mariana Pajón won Olympic gold in BMX in 2012 and 2016, and Caterine Ibargüen won gold in the triple jump in 2016. Weightlifting and other sports have also brought medals.

Science and innovation

• Rodolfo Llinás, a Colombian neuroscientist, made major contributions to understanding the brain.
• Manuel Elkin Patarroyo became internationally known for his research on a malaria vaccine.
• Medellín was recognized internationally as an innovative city for its urban transformation, with cable cars and escalators connecting hillside neighborhoods and libraries built in communities that needed them most.
• Biodiversity research: as one of the most biodiverse countries on earth, Colombia hosts scientists studying birds, frogs, orchids and ecosystems. In 2024, Cali hosted COP16, the United Nations biodiversity conference.

Peace and resilience

In 2016, Colombia signed a peace agreement with the FARC guerrilla after more than half a century of conflict, and President Juan Manuel Santos received the Nobel Peace Prize. The process has been complex and remains a work in progress, but it showed the world a country determined to build a different future. Many former conflict areas are now opening to ecotourism and agriculture, often led by local communities.

Biodiversity: a global treasure

Colombia is home to an extraordinary share of the planet's plant and animal species. It has the most bird species of any country, and it is among the leaders in orchids, butterflies and amphibians. Its páramos supply water to millions of people, and its Amazon rainforest contributes to the stability of the global climate. Protecting Colombia's nature is not only a national task but a contribution to the whole world. See the wonders of Colombia and Colombia, a beautiful country.

Food that is traveling the world

Colombian food is becoming better known internationally. Arepas, empanadas, bandeja paisa and ajiaco now appear in restaurants in many cities abroad, often opened by Colombian migrants. Colombian chefs in Bogotá, Medellín and Cartagena have earned international recognition by using native ingredients such as Amazonian fruits, Pacific seafood and Andean tubers. And Colombian cacao, considered fine-flavor cacao, is used by chocolate makers around the world.

Colombians around the world

Millions of Colombians live abroad, in the United States, Spain, Chile, Canada and many other countries. They bring their music, food, work ethic and warmth to new communities. At the same time, Colombia has welcomed large numbers of migrants, especially from Venezuela, in one of the largest migration movements in recent Latin American history. This exchange of people keeps Colombia connected to the world in both directions.

Colombia as a destination

For years, many foreigners knew Colombia only through negative headlines. Today, it is one of the fastest-growing travel destinations in Latin America, praised for its diversity, its people and its value. Cities like Medellín, Bogotá and Cartagena attract tourists, students and digital nomads, and the country offers a visa for remote workers. The famous tourism slogan, "the only risk is wanting to stay," has proven true for many visitors, including me.

Colombia, English and the global future

As Colombia becomes more connected to the world, English matters more and more. Coffee growers sell directly to international buyers, flower exporters negotiate with clients in North America, tourism businesses welcome visitors from everywhere, and young professionals work remotely for global companies. Many Colombians are learning English to take part in this future, and it is a privilege to help some of them. If you are one of them, start with remote work options and business emails in English.

Colombian products you may already use

Beyond coffee, flowers and emeralds, many everyday products connect Colombia with homes around the world. Colombia exports bananas, avocados, cut flowers, cacao, sugar and fresh fruit such as passion fruit and physalis, known in Colombia as uchuva. Colombian textiles, fashion designers and swimwear brands have built an international reputation, and Medellín hosts one of the most important fashion fairs in Latin America. Colombian software developers, designers and call centers serve clients across the Americas. Next time you look at a label in a supermarket, you may discover that Colombia is closer than you thought.

Colombian words the world has learned

Some Colombian words and expressions have traveled with its music, television and migrants. Many Spanish speakers in other countries now recognize "parce" (friend), "bacano" (cool) and "chévere" (great, also used in Venezuela and elsewhere). The word "telenovela" itself is understood across languages, and Colombian productions helped make the format global. In English, words like "cumbia" and "vallenato" are used without translation in music reviews. Language follows culture, and Colombian culture travels far.

Discussion questions for English learners

If you are practicing English, try answering these questions out loud or in writing:

1. Which Colombian contribution to the world surprises you most, and why?
2. What product or person from your own country is famous internationally?
3. Have you read a book or heard music from Colombia? What did you think?
4. How can a country change its international image?
5. Why do you think coffee became such an important symbol of Colombia?

Questions like these are the kind we discuss in my conversation classes. They help you practice opinions, comparisons and storytelling.

A small country with a big voice

Colombia proves that a country's influence is not measured only by its size or its economy. It is measured by its creativity, its products, its artists, its athletes and its people. Every time I drink a good cup of coffee or hear cumbia playing somewhere far away, I think of the green mountains of Caldas and the generous people who made me feel at home. Colombia is in the world, and the world is better for it.

The next time you meet Colombia somewhere unexpected, in a song, a cup, a bouquet or a book, take a moment to imagine the mountains, rivers and people behind it. That is the best way to understand how a country can be both local and global at the same time: deeply rooted in its own land, and open to everyone who wants to know it.

And if one day you decide to visit, you will find that the real Colombia is even richer than its reputation. The coffee tastes better at the farm, the music sounds better in the street, and the stories are best heard from the people who live them.