Writers, Poets and Intellectuals
(Arranged by date of birth)

Silveria Espinosa de Rendón (1815-1886) Writer and poet.
She is one of the oldest and most internationally famous Colombian writers. Many of her works are in literary anthologies. She was born near Sopó.

Federico Rivas (1856-1922) – Poet and Journalist
Rivas Frade was mainly known for his humorous rhymes.
He won the "Juegos Florales" poetry contest twice, for his poems Mientras Llueve and Consolátrix Affictorum. He also wrote dramas and operettas.
He was the cofounder of Bogota's first liberal newspaper. Rivas Frade was born in La Mesa.

Adolfo León Gómez (1858 - 1927) Dramatist, poet, historian and fable writer.
This remarkable writer was the president of the Academy of Jurisprudence, Letters and History. Some of his works include: The Pig and the Moon, The Bogotanian and Anecdotal History of South America.
Leon Gómez was born in Pasca.

Luis María Murillo (1896-1974). Agronomist, entomologist and writer.
Murillo was the founder of the Columbian “Plant Health Centre" (Sanidad Vegetal), cofounder of the Colombian Academy of Exact, Physical, and Natural Sciences, and member of several other scientific organizations.
He wrote many important books such as, Francisco José de Caldas and the Scientific Principles of the Federalism and Colombia: A Biological Archipelago.
He was born in Guasca.

Abelardo Forero (1912-2006) – Historian, journalist and politician.
This well-known writer produced such literary works as Four Coaches Travel towards Bayonne, Cromwell and Rousseau, and World War I . He was born in Facatativá.

Nicolás Gómez (1913-1994) –- Philosopher.
The musings of Gómez Dávila, the most outstanding Colombian philosopher of the 20th Century, were first published in a private edition book titled Texts.
In 1977, his new writings came out in the book New Notes to an Implicit Text, published by Colcultura. In 1992, a new publication by the “Caro y Cuervo Institute”, titled Subsequent Notes to an Implicit Text, was released. In 2006, the complete works of the philosopher was published in Bogotá.
Some historians locate his place of birth in Cajicá. Some others say he was born in Bogota.

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Joaquín Piñeros (1915-1958) – Writer, humanist and politician.
This distinguished Colombian writer, was an honorary member of the Academy of History of Cundinamarca, a member of the Colombian Academy of History, and the Colombian Academy of the Spanish Language.
Some of his works are The Book of the New Kingdom, Vision of Colombia, The Return to Bolívar, and Reflections on the Study of Colombian Literature.
Piñeros was born in Soacha.

Roberto Velandia (1923-2011) Historian and politician.
Roberto Velandia is one of the most important historian of Cundinamarca and one of the best in Colombia. He is a member of the Academy of History of Cundinamarca, the Colombian Academy of History, the Bolivariana Society of Colombia, and the Spanish Royal Academy of History. He also has filled some of the highest political posts.
Among his most outstanding works are: Historical Encyclopaedia of Cundinamarca, Historical Cities of Cundinamarca, A Century of Colombian Historiography: One Hundred Years of the Colombian Academy of History, Discovery and Roads to the Eastern Plains, and The Discovery of America and Its Preceding Facts.
Velandia was born in Pandi.

Hernando Forero (1925-2016) Writer, surgeon and professor.
Dr. Forero has been highly acknowledged throughout the country as a great surgeon, as well as a writer and professor. He has been the president of the Academy of History of Cundinamarca several times.
His best-known book is Native Sociology and Ecosystems in the Eastern Forests . He was born in Pasca.

Germán Castro (1940-1921) Writer and journalist.
One of the foremost Colombian chroniclers in recent years Germán Castro Caycedo is also a respected journalist. He has been the author of numerous books, such as Bitter Colombia, The Karina, and Your Will Be Done. Some of his works have been translated into other languages.
In 1999, he was presented with the “Rodolfo Walsh Prize" and in 2005 he received the “Editorial Planeta Prize in Journalism”. He was born in Zipaquirá.

Gustavo Castro – Journalist, writer, poet and business administrator.
Castro is a very well known journalist who has written for the most important newspapers and magazines in the country. He has been président of RCN Radio, vice-president of the National TV Board and a member of the Board of Tourism.
His works include: Television Has Killed Our Soul: The Yellow Journalism and some of his poems are found in Amor Profundo. He was born in Zipaquirá in 1942.

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