Turmequé

Municipality and town in Boyacá Department, Colombia

Flag

Location of the municipality and town of Turmequé in the Boyacá Department of Colombia

Country

ColombiaDepartmentBoyacá DepartmentProvinceMárquez ProvinceFounded20 July 1537Founded byGonzalo Jiménez de QuesadaGovernment

• MayorPedro Antonio Murillo Moreno
(2020-2023)Area

• Municipality and town106 km² (41 sq mi) • Urban

4 km² (2 sq mi)Elevation

2,389 m (7,838 ft)Population

• Municipality and town6,182 • Density58/km² (150/sq mi) • Urban

2,565Time zoneUTC-5 (Colombia Standard Time)WebsiteOfficial website

Turmequé is a town and municipality in the Colombian Department of Boyacá, part of the subregion of the Márquez Province. Turmequé is located at 105 kilometres (65 mi) northeast from the capital Bogotá. The municipality borders Ventaquemada in the west, in the east Úmbita, in the north Nuevo Colón and in the south the municipality Villapinzón of the department of Cundinamarca.^[1]

History

Turmequé was an important center for the Muisca who inhabited the Altiplano Cundiboyacense before the arrival of the Spanish conquest led by Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada, who founded modern Turmequé on July 20, 1537 in his search for El Dorado. Turmequé was part of the Muisca Confederation led by the zaque based in Hunza, present-day department capital Tunja. The name of the village is Chibcha and means "vigorous chief".^[2] Another name for the town is Valle de las trompetas ("Trumpet Valley") because of the trumpets the Spanish conquistadores were bringing with them.^[1] Turmequé has given its name to the Colombian national game of tejo, previously called Turmequé. In the village center a statue honouring the Muisca sports god Chaquén still remembers this.

Before the municipality was split, it used to be extensive in area. In 1773 Villapinzón (then called Hato Viejo) became a separate unity and in 1776 Ventaquemada was separated from Turmequé.^[1]

Economy

The town center is for the most part focused on commerce and services while the rural area has agriculture; potatoes, beans, maize, onions, peas, wheat, barley and fruits such as prunes, blackberries, pears and apples and the typical Colombian fruits curuba and feijoa. Livestock farming consists of mainly pork.

Tourism

Being the birthplace of tejo, Turmequé has considerable amount of tourism. Each year the national championships of tejo are held here. The town also has a religious museum.