Santa Sofía, Boyacá

Originally, Santa Sofía was called Guatoque, a name derived from Muysccubun, meaning "creek of the mountain". The name was changed in 1906 to Santa Sofía, because mail that was meant to go to Guateque, in southern Boyacá, was accidentally delivered in Guatoque. The name Santa Sofía was given to the town honouring Sofía Ángulo de Reyes, spouse of the then president of Colombia Rafael Reyes.

The area of Santa Sofía before the Spanish conquest was inhabited by the Muisca, who used the area to cross the lands towards the northern parts of their Muisca Confederation.

It was in nearby Sorocotá that De Quesada and his men first discovered the potato in 1537{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OA8lAQAAMAAJ&pg=PT5|title=Contributions from Texas Research Foundation|date=1962|publisher=Texas Research Foundation|language=en}}{{Cite book|last=Pemberton|first=John|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JxAQHFL7qtQC&pg=PT148|title=Conquistadors: Searching for El Dorado: The Terrifying Spanish Conquest of the Aztec and Inca Empires|date=2011|publisher=Canary Press eBooks|isbn=978-1-907795-96-1|language=en}}{{Cite book|last=Sokolov|first=Raymond|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EH9LqhXuJ3QC&pg=PA125|title=Why We Eat What We Eat: How Columbus Changed the Way the World Eats|date=1993-04-05|publisher=Simon and Schuster|isbn=978-0-671-79791-1|language=en}} together with maize and beans{{Cite book|last=Brücher|first=Heinz|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ryjwCAAAQBAJ&pg=PA22|title=Useful Plants of Neotropical Origin: and Their Wild Relatives|date=2012-12-06|publisher=Springer Science & Business Media|isbn=978-3-642-73313-0|language=en}} alongside many aspects of local culture and customs as described in the History of the conquest of the New kingdom of Granada by Juan de Castellanos.{{Cite book|last=Snodgrass|first=Mary Ellen|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cWJgDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT747|title=World Food: An Encyclopedia of History, Culture and Social Influence from Hunter Gatherers to the Age of Globalization: An Encyclopedia of History, Culture and Social Influence from Hunter Gatherers to the Age of Globalization|date=2012-09-15|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-317-45160-0|language=en}}

Within the boundaries of the municipalities is located the Hoyo de la Romera, a sinkhole where unfaithful Muisca women were punished.{{citation needed|date=October 2021}}

Santa Sofía, then as Guatoque, was founded by Spanish colonists ordered by Amar y Borbón on January 10, 1810, just before the independence of Colombia from the Spanish Empire was called.

Santa Sofía has a subtropical highland climate (Köppen: Cfb){{Cite journal |date=23 October 2023 |title=Table 1 Overview of the Köppen-Geiger climate classes including the defining criteria. |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/s41597-023-02549-6/tables/1 |journal=Nature: Scientific Data |language=en}} with consistently mild temperatures.

{{Weather box|width=auto

|metric first=y

|single line=y

|collapsed = Y

|location = Santa Sofía (Inst Agr Sta Sofia), elevation {{convert|2300|m|ft|abbr=on}}, (1981–2010)

|Jan high C = 21.9

|Feb high C = 22.4

|Mar high C = 22.2

|Apr high C = 21.9

|May high C = 21.6

|Jun high C = 21.4

|Jul high C = 21.1

|Aug high C = 21.4

|Sep high C = 21.8

|Oct high C = 21.6

|Nov high C = 21.2

|Dec high C = 21.4

| year high C = 21.6

|Jan mean C = 16.1

|Feb mean C = 16.3

|Mar mean C = 16.3

|Apr mean C = 16.4

|May mean C = 16.4

|Jun mean C = 16.2

|Jul mean C = 15.9

|Aug mean C = 16.1

|Sep mean C = 16.1

|Oct mean C = 16.0

|Nov mean C = 15.9

|Dec mean C = 15.9

| year mean C = 16.1

|Jan low C = 10.5

|Feb low C = 10.7

|Mar low C = 11.2

|Apr low C = 11.7

|May low C = 11.9

|Jun low C = 11.6

|Jul low C = 11.3

|Aug low C = 11.5

|Sep low C = 11.3

|Oct low C = 11.1

|Nov low C = 11.1

|Dec low C = 10.9

| year low C = 11.2

|precipitation colour = green

|Jan precipitation mm = 49.5

|Feb precipitation mm = 74.2

|Mar precipitation mm = 109.5

|Apr precipitation mm = 146.5

|May precipitation mm = 120.9

|Jun precipitation mm = 69.0

|Jul precipitation mm = 60.8

|Aug precipitation mm = 55.7

|Sep precipitation mm = 86.7

|Oct precipitation mm = 155.4

|Nov precipitation mm = 136.1

|Dec precipitation mm = 81.2

|year precipitation mm = 1136.3

| unit precipitation days = 1.0 mm

| Jan precipitation days = 9

| Feb precipitation days = 13

| Mar precipitation days = 17

| Apr precipitation days = 19

| May precipitation days = 19

| Jun precipitation days = 14

| Jul precipitation days = 13

| Aug precipitation days = 12

| Sep precipitation days = 15

| Oct precipitation days = 20

| Nov precipitation days = 18

| Dec precipitation days = 13

| year precipitation days = 176

| Jan humidity = 73

| Feb humidity = 73

| Mar humidity = 74

| Apr humidity = 76

| May humidity = 75

| Jun humidity = 74

| Jul humidity = 73

| Aug humidity = 72

| Sep humidity = 72

| Oct humidity = 75

| Nov humidity = 77

| Dec humidity = 76

| year humidity = 74

|source 1 = Instituto de Hidrologia Meteorologia y Estudios Ambientales{{cite web

|url=http://www.ideam.gov.co/documents/21021/553571/Promedios+Climatol%C3%B3gicos++1981+-+2010.xlsx/f28d0b07-1208-4a46-8ccf-bddd70fb4128

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160815025712/http://www.ideam.gov.co/documents/21021/553571/Promedios%2BClimatol%C3%B3gicos%2B%2B1981%2B-%2B2010.xlsx/f28d0b07-1208-4a46-8ccf-bddd70fb4128

|archive-date=15 August 2016

|title=Promedios Climatológicos 1981–2010

|publisher=Instituto de Hidrologia Meteorologia y Estudios Ambientales

|language=es

|access-date=3 June 2024

|url-status=dead}}

}}

Main economical activities of Santa Sofía are livestock farming and agriculture, especially curuba, tomatoes and strawberries. Other products cultivated are potatoes, maize, peas, beans, sugarcane and yuca.

Santa Sofía is a rural community that gives access to the Guatoque Páramo and the Paso del Ángel, an ancient indigenous road. There are various caves and waterfalls located around Santa Sofía.

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File:Santa Sofia Boyaca.JPG|Central square

File:Santa Sofia Boyaca 03.JPG|Central square

File:Santa Sofia Boyaca Alcaldia.JPG|Town council building

File:Santa Sofia invernaderos.JPG|Greenhouses

File:Quebrada de Guatoque.JPG|Guatoque creek

File:Rio Moniquira.JPG|Moniquirá River

File:Paso del Angel.JPG|Paso del Ángel

File:Desde el Paso del Angel.JPG|Ancient road, Paso del Ángel

File:Hoyo de la Romera.JPG|Hoyo de la Romera

{{clearboth}}

{{commonscat|Santa Sofía, Boyacá}}

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{{Municipalities boyaca department}}

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Category:Municipalities of Boyacá Department

Category:Populated places established in 1810

Category:1810 establishments in the Spanish Empire