Venezuela has over 1,000 rivers, with the Orinoco River being the largest at 2,500 km long. The Orinoco splits into two branches and is joined by the Caroni River, which provides hydroelectric power. Approximately 27,000 people live in Venezuela today, with the largest ethnic groups being Mestizo (50%), Arab (29%), and people of African descent (10%). Venezuela was inhabited as early as 15,000 BC, and was colonized by Spain starting in 1498 when Columbus first arrived, with independence declared in 1811 but not fully achieved until 1821 after several battles.

1. Ernesto Medina Reyes
History 141 – Section 71154

2. Geography
• Venezuela has more than 1,000 rivers
• Orinoco is the 8th largest river in the world originating in the Guiana highlands and
flowing 2,500 kilometers to the Atlantic ocean.
– Highest water levels in August and the lowest in March and April
– The river splits in two and allows for vessels to navigate the lower Orinoco to the
Amazon
– Most other rivers flow down from the northern mountains to the Rio Apure, a tributary
of the Orinoco
• Caroni River flows northward from the Guiana highlands into the Orinico and is the
second most important river in Venezuela. It contributes significantly to the
nation’s hydroelectric power production and has encouraged industrialization in
the northern Guiana highlands and lower Orinoco valley.

3. The People
• Approximately 27,000 people live in Venezuela today.
• 50% Mestizo
– Mixed European and American Indian
– Mostly descended from Spaniards during the colonial
period but also include
Italian, Portuguese, Germans, French and English
• 29% Arab
• 10% African Descent
– Mulattos – European/African
– Zambos – Amerindian/African
• 1% Indigenous

4. History
• Evidence of human inhabitation of Venezuela is dated as
far back as 15,000 B.C.
• It is estimated that approximately one million people lived
in Venezuela prior to the Spanish conquest.
• Columbus landed in Venezuela in 1498 during his third
voyage to the Americas and gave it the nickname Land of
Grace.
• Spanish colonization of the country began in 1522 in the
present day city of Cumana.
• Early settlements were focused on the northern coast but
the Spaniards pushed inland on the Orinoco River in the
mid 18th century.
• On July 5, 1811, Venezuela declared independence under
the leadership of Francisco de Miranda but was
devastated by an earthquake in Caracas in 1812.
• A second Republic of Venezuela was proclaimed on
August 7, 1813 but only lasted a few months.
• On June 24, 1821 Simon Bolivar was victorious in the
Battle of Carabobo against Spain and finally won
Venezuela’s independence.
• Another victory by Jose Prudencio Padilla and Rafael
Urdaneta at the Battle of Lake Maracaibo helped seal
Venezuela’s fate and induct it into the Gran Colombia, a
republic of liberated countries including
Colombia, Ecuador, Panama, Peru, and part of Brazil.
• In 1830, a rebellion led by Jose Antionio Paez, liberated
Venezuela from Gran Colombia and Paez became the first
president of the new republic.

5. Sources
• Venezuela - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venezuela#History
• Demographics of Venezuela - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Venezuela
• Wayuu People - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayuu
• Timoto – Cuica People - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timoto-cuicas
• Geography of Venezuela - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_Venezuela
• Venezuelan War of Independence -
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venezuelan_War_of_Independence