Columbian singer Shakira has split from her boyfriend of 11 years, Argentinian Antonio de la Rua, DPA reported.
The pair "made a mutual decision to take time apart from our romantic relationship" in August, according to a posting on the singer's website dated Monday.
The pair considered the separation to be "temporary" and "a time of individual growth," the website said, adding that they would "continue to be partners in our business and professional lives."
De la Rua, a 37-year-old lawyer by training whose father was Argentine president from 1999 to 2001, started dating Shakira in 2000 and has had a key role in managing her contracts and finances.
The 33-year-old singer, born Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll, had her first big hit in English-speaking countries in 2001 with Whenever, Wherever. More recently, she sang the theme song for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, titled Waka Waka (This Time for Africa).