Ecuador is a fascinating country located in South America. It is known for its diverse landscape, from the Andes Mountains to the Amazon rainforest to the Galapagos Islands. Ecuador also has a rich culture and history. Let’s explore some brainteasers and riddles inspired by this remarkable country.
Geography Riddles
What South American country has its name derived from the equator?
Answer: Ecuador. The country is named after the equator, which passes through it.
What natural landmark serves as part of the border between Ecuador and Peru?
Answer: The Andes Mountains. The towering Andes Mountains extend into both Ecuador and Peru, forming part of the border between the two countries.
What natural wonders can you find in Ecuador that inspired Darwin’s theory of evolution?
Answer: The Galapagos Islands. The diversity of life found on the Galapagos Islands led Charles Darwin to develop his theory of evolution by natural selection.
Which Ecuadorian province has a name meaning “land of volcanoes”?
Answer: Tungurahua. Tungurahua Province in central Ecuador takes its name from the Tungurahua volcano, with Tungurahua meaning “land of volcanoes” in the local Quechua language.
What body of water does Ecuador border to the west?
Answer: The Pacific Ocean. Ecuador has coastline bordering the eastern Pacific Ocean to the west.
What important parallel line passes through Ecuador?
Answer: The equator. Ecuador lies right on Earth’s equator, hence its name.
What is the name of the world-famous Ecuadorian islands that inspired scientific theories about the origin of species?
Answer: The Galápagos Islands. The Galápagos Islands played an integral role in the development of Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection.
History & Culture Riddles
What was the Inca Empire in today’s Ecuador called?
Answer: Tawantinsuyu. In Ecuador during the height of the Inca Empire, the Quechua name Tawantinsuyu was used, meaning “land of the four corners.”
What ancient Ecuadorian civilization settled near Lake Quilotoa?
Answer: The Cañari. The Cañari inhabited the region surrounding Lake Quilotoa in Ecuador between 500 BCE and 500 CE.
When did Ecuador first declare independence from Spain?
Answer: 1820. Ecuador made its first declaration of independence from the Spanish Empire in 1820.
What crop was Ecuador’s chief export before oil?
Answer: Cacao. Ecuador was a major exporter of cacao beans which are used to make chocolate prior to the oil boom.
What unique payment system uses Ecuador’s volcano Tungurahua as a symbol?
Answer: Sucre currency. Ecuador’s former currency, the Sucre, featured an image of the iconic Tungurahua volcano.
What traditional Ecuadorian musical instrument is made from wood and sheepskin?
Answer: The rondador. The rondador is an Ecuadorian musical instrument consisting of a wooden stick attached to a sheepskin drumhead.
What is the name of the most popular style of folk music coming from Ecuador’s Andean region?
Answer: Pasillo. Pasillo music developed in Ecuador’s Andean highlands and is the country’s archetypal genre of folk music.
Society & Lifestyle Riddles
On average, how many languages do native Ecuadorians speak?
Answer: Two languages on average. Many Ecuadorians speak both Spanish and Indigenous languages such as Kichwa.
What brightly colored carriage bus serves as public transit in Ecuador’s highlands?
Answer: Chiva bus. Colorfully painted chiva buses offer cheap public transportation throughout the Andes region.
What starchy, potato-like vegetable features heavily in Ecuadorian cuisine?
Answer: Yuca. Also known as cassava or manioc, yuca is a staple starch in many Ecuadorian dishes.
What is a traditional Ecuadorian meal wrapped and cooked inside a banana leaf?
Answer: Humita. Humitas are a traditional Ecuadorian food made of ground corn with cheese, cream and spices wrapped and steamed in banana leaves.
What fermented Ecuadorian drink has a similar taste and process to kombucha?
Answer: Chicha. Chicha is an Ecuadorian drink made by fermenting corn, cassava, or other starches in water.
What tagua seeds are commonly used by artisans to carve ornate buttons and figurines?
Answer: Tagua palm seeds. Ecuadorian artisans carve tagua or vegetable ivory from the hard seeds of the tagua palm.
Flora & Fauna Riddles
What is the national bird of Ecuador?
Answer: The Andean condor. The majestic Andean condor, one of the world’s largest flying birds, is the national symbol of Ecuador.
What Ecuadorian wildlife was named after Charles Darwin’s ship HMS Beagle?
Answer: The Beagle Channel turtle. Pelomedusa darwinii, or the Galápagos Beagle Channel turtle, is named for the ship that brought Darwin to Ecuador.
What is the most species-rich rainforest found in Ecuador?
Answer: Yasuní National Park. Yasuní National Park contains Ecuador’s most biodiverse section of the Amazon rainforest.
What carnivorous reptiles found in mangrove swamps lend their name to the longest river in Ecuador?
Answer: Crocodiles. The Coca River takes its name from the Kichwa word for crocodile, coca.
What nutritious Andean grain was first domesticated in Ecuador?
Answer: Quinoa. The highly nutritious pseudocereal quinoa trace its origins to domestication in Ecuador’s Andean highlands.
What famous evolutionary theorist studied Ecuador’s giant tortoises that bear his name?
Answer: Charles Darwin. The Galápagos giant tortoises helped inspire Darwin’s theory of evolution and the saddleback subspecies is named after him.
Literary Riddles
What magical realism novel is partly set in Ecuador by author Gabriel Garcia Marquez?
Answer: One Hundred Years of Solitude. Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s famous book One Hundred Years of Solitude includes scenes set in Ecuador.
In Jules Verne’s “In Search of Castaways”, what geographic feature do the heroes search for near Ecuador?
Answer: The Galápagos Islands. In the Jules Verne book, the heroes try to locate shipwreck survivors near the Galápagos Islands off Ecuador’s coast.
Economy Riddles
What oil company city in Ecuador houses workers extracting petroleum from the Amazon region?
Answer: Nueva Loja. Also called Lago Agrio, Nueva Loja is an oil boomtown supporting workers drilling for petroleum.
What seed oils compete with palm oil production in Ecuador’s coastal regions?
Answer: Soybean and sunflower oils. In addition to palm oil, soybean oil and sunflower oil are leading Ecuadorian vegetable oil exports.
What fair trade cooperative helps indigenous Ecuadorian cacao farmers export chocolate?
Answer: Cooperative Camari. Camari helps small-scale indigenous Ecuadorian cacao growers export and commercialize fair trade organic chocolate.
Sports Riddles
Which marathon race takes runners from the Andes down to Ecuador’s Amazon rainforest?
Answer: The Tena Marathon. The Tena Marathon descends more than 11,000 feet from the mountains down to the Ecuadorian town of Tena in the jungle.
What sport uses a hardball called a balón and scores by throwing it through a vertical hoop?
Answer: Ecuavóley. Ecuavóley is Ecuador’s take on volleyball that uses a heavier leather ball called a balón.
Trivia Riddles
The Galapagos tortoise Diego fathered over 800 offspring, what was his estimated age when he died?
Answer: Around 100 years old. Diego the Galapagos giant tortoise is estimated to have been over 100 years old when he died in 2022.
Which Ecuadorian province hosts a popular hot springs resort fed by the Tungurahua volcano?
Answer: Baños, Tungurahua. The town of Baños located in Tungurahua Province is famed for its hot springs resorts.
As of 2022, who is Ecuador’s first Afro-Ecuadorian minister?
Answer: Francisco Jiménez. Francisco Jiménez recently became the first Afro-Ecuadorian appointed minister in Ecuador.
Which famous rainforest activist fought successfully against oil drilling in Ecuador’s Yasuni National Park?
Answer: Nemonte Nenquimo. Waorani leader Nemonte Nenquimo helped protect Ecuadorian rainforest from oil operations.
What popular snack’s name means “golden ear” in Spanish, referring to its corn origin?
Answer: Chifle. The crispy fried corn snack chifle gets its name from chifla, meaning “corn cob” in Ecuador.
Conclusion
We’ve covered geography, history, culture, society, wildlife, literature, economics, sports, and trivia in these 53 riddles about Ecuador. From the Galapagos Islands to ancient civilizations like Cañari, Ecuador has served as inspiration across arts and sciences. The country continues being culturally and ecologically significant today. Whether exploring Andean music, Amazonian ecology or rich folklore, Ecuador’s riddles enlighten as much as entertain.
