El Poblado is also known as Las Manzanas de Oro (The Golden Apples)[4] because it is the main center of the industrial and commercial life of the second largest economy of Colombia.

The name El Poblado (The Village) derives from the first Spanish settlement of the Aburrá Valley in 1616 that was built in what is today its main square.

The Spanish explorer Francisco Herrera y Campuzano established the first European settlement in the Aburrá Valley, in what is today El Poblado Square, by a royal edict of March 2, 1616.

A later edict stated that indigenous people, white and mestizos, could not live together, and by 1675, the Spanish administration moved the center to a new village in what is today the Berrio Square.

[4] At that time the most famous fincas (estates) were Provenza, Manila, Patio Bonito, Vizcaya, Castropol and Astorga, that would remain the barrio names.

At the beginning of the 20th century, El Poblado was the preferred area for wealthy families of the city to buy rural villas.

With the construction of the Medellín - El Poblado Avenue, the land became valuable for urban settlements, and the villas or "fincas" were built in Envigado.

The rich families of Barrio Prado started to move to El Poblado because La Candelaria became overpopulated and the land rose in price.

In the 1970s El Poblado became the place for Medellín's wealthy residents and was the second urban center; it was given the nickname Milla de Oro (Golden Mile) and the Zona Rosa was established – an exclusive tourist area for business, night clubs and general activities for locals and visitors.

The avenue is oriented north to south and runs along the eastern side of the Medellín River and is the urban limit of the Commune.

The road is also the eastern limit of the commune and has many commercial buildings, hotels, restaurants and places to view the Aburrá Valley.

Some of the more important malls are: The commune has the highest level of education of the city[citation needed] with several private and government-owned schools and colleges.