Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. Ecuador also includes the Galápagos Islands in the Pacific, about 1,000 kilometers (621 mi) west of the mainland. The country's capital is Quito, but its largest city is Guayaquil.
The History of Ecuador covers human habitation in the region reaching back 8,000 years.
Quito, officially San Francisco de Quito, is the capital of Ecuador, with an estimated population of 2.8 million in its metropolitan area. It is also the capital of the province of Pichincha. Quito is located in a valley on the eastern slopes of Pichincha, an active stratovolcano in the Andes.
Galápagos is a province of Ecuador in the country's Insular region, located approximately 1,000 km (620 mi) off the western coast of the mainland. The capital is Puerto Baquerizo Moreno.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Ecuador have evolved significantly in the past decades. Both male and female forms of same-sex sexual activity are legal in Ecuador and same-sex couples can enter into civil unions and same-sex marriages.
The Grammis are music awards presented annually to musicians and songwriters in Sweden. The oldest Swedish music awards, they were instituted as a local equivalent of the Grammy Awards given in the United States. The awards ceremony is generally held each year in February in Stockholm. The awards were established in 1969 and awarded until 1972 when they were cancelled, then revived in 1987.
Christian Rogelio Benítez Betancourt, also known as Chucho, was an Ecuadorian professional footballer who played as a striker.
The Central Bank of Ecuador is the central bank of the country, and an institution of the Executive Function, which has institutional, administrative, financial, and technical autonomy. It is in charge of executing the monetary policy established by the Monetary Policy and Regulation Board of Ecuador, which has been the institution's highest governing body since October 2021.
The Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) is a volunteer-based, non-government organization whose goal is to prevent animal cruelty through education, animal sheltering and advocacy, based in Quezon City, Philippines. It was founded in 1954 by Muriel Jay. PAWS believes that the creation of a more peaceful society starts with the widening of mankind's circle of compassion which includes animals, thereby envisions a nation that respects animals, practices responsible pet ownership and protects wildlife. The volunteer-based organization rehabilitates these animals in the hope of finding them new homes and a second chance at a good life. PAWS does not take in pets of other people, but only victims of cruelty or neglect where the animal offenders are charged with violation of the Animal Welfare Act in court.
When it comes to religion, the Ecuadorian society is relatively homogeneous, with Christianity being the primary religion. Catholicism is the main Christian denomination in the country. There are also small minorities of other religions.
Ricardo Armando Patiño Aroca is an Ecuadorian politician who has served as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ecuador from 2010 until 2016, under the government of President Rafael Correa. Previously he was Minister of Finance and Minister of the Coast. He is one of the ideologists of The Citizens' Revolution who with Correa wanted to gradually introduce a democratic socialist government in Ecuador. On 4 March 2016, he was named as Defense Minister by President Correa.
Shai Dahan is an American contemporary painter and street artist who works with painting, drawing, illustrations and sculptures.
Cubana de Aviación Flight 389 (CU389/CUB389) was a scheduled international passenger flight, flying from the former Mariscal Sucre International Airport in Quito to Havana's José Martí International Airport, with a stopover at Simón Bolívar International Airport in Guayaquil, operated by Cuban flag carrier Cubana de Aviación.
Arthur was an Ecuadorian dog who attached himself to a Swedish adventure racing team when they were competing in the Adventure Racing World Championship in 2014, and was then brought to Sweden.
The Soi Dog Foundation is a nonprofit organisation for the welfare of stray dogs and cats. Its headquarters is in Phuket, Thailand, and it is a legally registered nonprofit organisation in Thailand, the US, Canada, Australia, France, UK, Switzerland, and the Netherlands. Its primary goal is to care for homeless and abused dogs in Thailand. It was established by British couple John and Gill Dalley with the help of Margot Homburg Park in Phuket in 2003.
Arthur the King is a 2024 American adventure film directed by Simon Cellan Jones, written by Michael Brandt, and starring Mark Wahlberg, Simu Liu, and Juliet Rylance. It is based on a true event Arthur - The Dog Who Crossed the Jungle to Find a Home by Mikael Lindnord. In the film, the captain of an adventure racing team befriends a wounded stray dog named Arthur, who accompanies the team on a grueling 435-mile (700-km) endurance race through the Dominican Republic.
Lasse Gunnar Diding, originally Lars Gunnar Diding, is a Swedish hotelier, entrepreneur, and celebrity. He operated Hotell Gästis (1987–2018) and Hotell Havanna (2013–2018) in Varberg. In 2007, Diding was named Entrepreneur of the Year in Varberg. He is well-known in Sweden due to his frequent use of Vladimir Lenin in naming things: in addition to opening the Lenin Spa at Hotell Gästis and being the founder of the Lenin Award, Diding has proposed to name a football stadium and a public park in Varberg after Lenin. In 2017, he was a part of the documentary Revolution: 100 years young by the Russian television network RT. 1 January 2023, Lasse Diding opened Leninland in Varberg. The establishment welcomes writers in residence and claims to be a “cultural free zone for free-thinking writers and journalists on the left”.
Arthur - The Dog Who Crossed the Jungle to Find a Home is a memoir written by Mikael Lindnord and Val Hudson in 2016. It is the true story of one man and a dog who found each other during an adventure race in Ecuador.
On 9 January 2024, an armed conflict broke out in Ecuador involving the country's government against several organized crime groups, most notably the Los Choneros cartel.
