Suba, Bogotá

Suba is either derived from the Muysccubun contraction Suba, meaning "Flower of the Sun" (uba = "fruit" or "flower", sua = "Sun", minus its last vowel, making it a possessive)[2] or from the words sua (Sun) and sie (water).[3]

Suba has certain green areas, mostly concentrated in the west of the locality, on the Suba and the La Conejera Hills, as well as the plains where urbanization has developed. Suba has become a residential area with small industrial and commercial zones located in the south of the locality. The Suba Hills separate the locality into two parts; the eastern side being more integrated with the urban area of Bogotá.

The locality borders the Bogotá River to the northwest and borders at Calle 240 the municipality of Chia. To the south, the Juan Amarillo River and Calle 100 form the boundary with the localities of Engativá and Barrios Unidos. The eastern limit is the Autopista Norte with the locality of Usaquén and to the west, the Bogotá River forms the boundary with the municipality of Cota.

Besides the Bogota and Juan Amarillo rivers the locality of Suba is covered by other streams and wetlands like the Torca and Guaymaral wetlands, La Conejera, Córdoba and the Tibabuyes wetland.

During the Last Glacial Maximum in the Late Pleistocene, the climate in the region of Suba gave rise to alternations of páramo and Andean forests. Since approximately 12,000 years BP, groups of hunter-gatherers inhabited the area. Around 3500 BC, the people began to domesticate animals, cultivate crops and create arts and crafts. By 500 BC, maize and potatoes were the predominant products cultivated and by the year 800 the Muisca inhabited the area. After the Spanish conquest of the Muisca, in 1538, the Muisca were preserved in a Resguardo, located in the area of Suba and to the north in Chía and Cota. In 1550, Antonio Días Cardoso and Hernán Camilo Monsilva founded the village of Suba.

On June 22, 1850, the Resguardo of the Muisca in Suba was closed and the indigenous people forced away from the urban areas. This process continued until the year 1877.

On November 16, 1875, Suba was declared a territory free of indigenous people and became a satellite municipality of Bogotá. It became a municipality by decree during the Sovereign State of Cundinamarca. The rural area then was divided into landlords and peasants.

In 1954 the municipality was formally annexed to the "Special District of Bogotá" during the reign of Gustavo Rojas Pinilla while still keeping its municipality status. In 1977, a minor city hall was constructed and in 1991 Suba was elevated to a locality of the renamed Capital District.

In 1990, the indigenous peoples of Suba and their towns were legally recognized by the government and ratified in the Colombian Constitution of 1991. In 1992 and 2001, the Cabildo Muisca of Suba and the Cabildo Muisca of Bosa respectively were legally recognized in an official ceremony with the participation of the then Mayor of Bogotá Antanas Mockus as stipulated in the Law 89 of 1890 and after more than a century without legal existence, it was also ratified in 2005.[4]

According to the numbers provided by the respective Cabildos, the Muisca population of Suba is estimated to 5186 people. The indigenous last names with their origin in Suba are conserved as Niviayo, Bulla, Cabiativa, Caita, Nivia, Chisaba, Muzuzu, Neuque, Yopasá, and Quinche.

• Suba and La Conejera Hills
• Wetlands of Córdoba, Juan Amarillo and La Conejera
• Headquarters of the indigenous peoples Cabildo
• Central Park of Suba
• Viewpoint of Los Nevados

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Suba (Bogotá).

• Northwest Bogotá travel guide from Wikivoyage