The History of Valledupar () refers to the historical events related to the Colombian city of Valledupar. The region of what is now Valledupar was prior to the Spanish conquest of the Americas inhabited by numerous indigenous tribes pertaining to three major language families; the Arawaks, Kalina (Caribs) and Chibchas. Pre-Columbian The territory of what is now the municipality of Valledupar was inhabited predominantly by indigenous peoples pertaining to the Chimila, sharing the same language and culture (Euparies, Cariachiles, Pocabuyes, Sucuigas, Guanaos, Socuigas, Garupares, Chiriguanaes, Malibues, Sondaguas, Tamalameques, Itotos, etc.) and to a lesser extent to the Tupes, which were a mixture between immigrating Kalina peoples and the Chimila. Their territory extended between the central region of the Guajira Peninsula to the Magdalena River between the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta and the Serranía del Perijá mountain ranges, covering most of the Valley of the Cesar River (also referred to as Valley of Upar or Valley of the Pocabuys). There were two major cities in the region one was called Thamara (present-day Tamalameque) and the other was Upari named after their powerful chief. the cacique Upar. The Spanish scribes described Thamara as a very large city with more than a thousand huts. The Chimila society was structured in a pyramidal structure with a working class divided into fishers, hunters, artisans, miners, goldsmiths and merchants. The Chimila used Archuaco as their slaves. The Chimila believed in an immortal figure called Masirguta and were monotheist believing in the god Narayajana (also referred to as Yao). Chimila were practiced musical rites with drums of many sizes, flutes with a tip made out of wax varying in between two and five holes, imitated the singing of the rufous-vented chachalaca birds with an instrument called guacharaca and maracas. The Chimila cultivated the maize in a technical manner and to a lesser extend other local species of vegetables and fruits for consumption and certain trees near their huts to produces shadows and freshen their area. Chimila also harvested the Gynerium sagittatum, a cane used to produce bows and arrows. Spanish conquest and colonization The Spanish expedition led by Alonso de Ojeda, Amerigo Vespucci and Juan de la Cosa arrived to the coast of the Guajira Peninsula in 1499. In a second voyage bordered the coast southwest as further as to the gulf of Urabá. In 1501 Rodrigo de Bastidas repeated the trip along Juan de la