Ecuador Tagua Necklace – Yellow, Blue & Red Waterfall

Handmade necklace crafted from tagua nut (vegetable ivory) and açaí seeds, woven with waxed thread. Waterfall style, in the yellow, blue and red of Ecuador. Lightweight and one-of-a-kind — a unique piece of the Amazon, gift-ready.

GET TO KNOW ECUADOR — wear your heritage, and learn it too.

Where in the world: Ecuador is a northwestern South American country on the Pacific coast, straddling the equator — the line that gives it its name — with Colombia to the north and Peru to the east and south. Its capital is Quito, high in the Andes, and its Galápagos Islands lie about 600 miles offshore in the Pacific.

People: about 16.9 million inhabitants counted in the 2022 census (INEC). The census recorded Mestizo 77.5%, Montubio 7.7%, Indigenous 7.7%, Afro-Ecuadorian 4.8%, and European/White 2.2% — though Indigenous organizations dispute the Indigenous figure as an undercount. Ecuador's constitution defines it as a plurinational, intercultural state.

Language: Spanish is the official language. Kichwa and Shuar are official languages of intercultural relation.

Religion: mostly Catholic, with a fast-growing Evangelical share. In Latinobarómetro's 2024 survey, 65% identified as Catholic, 19% as Evangelical, and 13% as having no religious affiliation. Indigenous communities often blend traditional beliefs with Christian practices.

Economy: built on oil, bananas, shrimp, flowers and cacao. GDP is about $124.7 billion (2024), GDP per capita about $6,875 (2024). Its currency is the US dollar, adopted in 2000.

Safety in context: Ecuador's homicide rate rose sharply in recent years, reaching 45.7 per 100,000 people in 2023 (8,221 homicides) — among the highest in the region, driven by gang violence concentrated in some coastal cities. The Galápagos Islands and Quito's historic center are generally visited with normal precautions.

Must-see places: Quito's historic center (UNESCO), the Galápagos Islands, Cuenca, Baños, the Otavalo market, Cotopaxi volcano, the Amazon around Yasuní, and Montañita beach.

Figures are approximate, from Ecuador's national census and international sources. When you wear this set, you carry a piece of Ecuador with you.