When you go through the history of Venezuela, you would find that the culture of Venezuela was influenced by the Arawak, Carib, and Chibcha Indians even before Columbus explored Venezuela in the year 1498. The earliest inhabitants of Venezuela were the Chibcha Indians who came here in the Upper Paleolithic Period. The Arawak were the next to follow and then came the Caribs.
Columbus was the first European to set his feet on the soil of Venezuela. He named the country as Isla de García. The name Venezuela was given by the next explorer that is Amerigo Vespucci. Since the country reminded him of Venice, he gave it the name Venezuela meaning ‘Little Venice’.
For years Venezuela was time and again invaded by explorers because of its natural reserve of pearls. However, by the 1520s, the Spanish explorers started slave trading and the first target were the local inhabitants.
Venezuela passed through these phases and the landmark moment of the history came when Simon Bolivar led the revolution against the Spanish rule and led to the ultimate freedom of the country. In fact it is written in golden letters in the history of Venezuela that it was one of the first among the South American colonies to revolt in the year 1810 and finally win independence in 1821. At first it was a federation with Colombia and Ecuador and then became a republic in the year 1830.
This phase in the history of Venezuela was marked by political unrest due to the usurpation by various dictators. Slowly towards the end of the 19th century, the country had developed a good infrastructure and had invited foreign investments. In the beginning of the 20th century it became an important oil producing region. With the stability in the economy, came the stability in politics also. Since 1959, it has emerged as the most stable democracies of South America.
The oil boom of the 1970s helped to boost the economy of Venezuela to a great extent. When Hugo Chavez took the office of president in the year 1999, the Constitution of Venezuela was written and enforced, marking an epoch in the history of Venezuela.
You can find out from a study of the history of Venezuela that the country has witnessed lots of turmoil and have finally achieved success in political and economic fields.
For authentic information on history of Venezuela, browse through the site travel.mapsofworld.
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