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Cumaná | |
|---|---|
  .jpg)  Top:Cumana Fortless (Castillo San Antonio Eminencie),Second:Cumana Cathedral, Ayacucho Park (Parque del Ayacucho),Bottom:Panorama view of Cumana, Araya Peninsula and Cariaco Bay, from Cumana Fortless (all item from left to right) | |
 Seal | |
| Motto: La tierra donde nace el sol, Primogénita del continente americano (English):"The land where the sun rises, Firstborn of the American Continent") | |
.svg)  Cumaná Location in Venezuela | |
| Coordinates:10°27′23″N64°10′3″W / 10.45639°N 64.16750°W /10.45639; -64.16750 | |
| Country |  Venezuela |
| State | Sucre |
| Municipality | Sucre |
| Founded | 1510 |
| Government | |
| • Type | Mayor–council |
| • Mayor | Luis Sifontes (PSUV) |
| Area | |
• Total | 598 km2 (231 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 43 m (141 ft) |
| Population (2022) | |
• Total | 405,626 |
| • Demonym | Cumanés |
| Demonym(s) | cumanés (m),cumanesa (f) |
| Time zone | UTC−04:00 (VET) |
| Postal code | 6101 |
| Area code | 0293 |
| Climate | BSh |
| Website | www.alcaldiabolivarianadesucre.com(in Spanish) |
Cumaná (Spanish pronunciation:[kumaˈna]) is the capital city ofVenezuela'sSucre State. It is located 402 kilometres (250 mi) east ofCaracas. Cumaná was one of the first cities founded bySpain in the mainlandAmericas and is theoldest continuously-inhabited Hispanic-established city inSouth America. Its early history includes several successful counters by the indigenous people of the area who were attempting to prevent Spanish incursion into their land, resulting in the city being refounded several times. The municipality of Sucre, which includes the capital city, Cumaná, had a population of 358,919 at the 2011 Census; the latest estimate (as at mid 2016) is 423,546.[1]
The city is located at the mouth of theManzanares River on theCaribbean coast, in the northeast of Venezuela. It is home to first and most important of the five campuses of theUniversidad de Oriente, and is a busy maritime port, home of one of the largesttuna fleets in Venezuela. The city is close toMochima National Park, whose beaches are a popular tourist destination among Venezuelans.
Key heroes of and contributors to the Venezuelan independence movement were born in Cumaná, includingAntonio José de Sucre, the ‘Gran Mariscal de Ayacucho’, a leading general who also served as President of Bolivia and President of Peru. Cumaná is also the birthplace to eminent poets, writers and politicians likeAndrés Eloy Blanco, an important figure in Latin American literature and who later rose to the national political scene; as well asJosé Antonio Ramos Sucre, another distinguished poet and diplomat. Several important scientists includingPehr Löfling from Sweden,Alexander von Humboldt from Germany, andAimé Bonpland from France accomplished experimental works and discoveries while visiting or living in Cumaná in the 18th century. The city is also home to aToyota plant, which manufactures theHilux andToyota Fortuner.
Cumaná was the first settlement founded bySpain inVenezuela andSouth America, established in 1515 byFranciscanfriars,[2] under the name Nueva Toledo, but due to successful attacks by the indigenous people (such as theCumanagoto people), it had to be refounded several times untilDiego Hernández de Serpa's refoundation in 1569 with the name of Cumaná. The birthright of the continent is disputed with the town of Santa Fe (Sucre).Bartolomé de las Casas, attempting a peaceful colonization scheme, was pre-empted byGonzalo de Ocampo's 1521 punitive raids against the local indigenous people, in retaliation for the destruction of the Dominican convent at Chiribichi. In 1537New Andalusia Province was established, with Cumaná as capital (for which the Province was also known as theProvince of Cumaná).
AfterAmerindian attacks became less of a threat, the city was on several occasions destroyed byearthquakes. Thus, the oldest part of the city is late 17th and 18th century; almost none of the 16th century architecture survived. The city gained independence in 1811.[citation needed]
The city has a hotsemi arid (Koppen: BSh) climate, narrowly bordering atropical savanna climate (Koppen: Aw).
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Record high °C (°F) | 35.2 (95.4) | 37.3 (99.1) | 38.4 (101.1) | 39.7 (103.5) | 38.4 (101.1) | 36.5 (97.7) | 39.8 (103.6) | 36.4 (97.5) | 37.3 (99.1) | 37.4 (99.3) | 37.0 (98.6) | 36.0 (96.8) | 39.8 (103.6) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 31.9 (89.4) | 32.2 (90.0) | 32.8 (91.0) | 33.6 (92.5) | 33.3 (91.9) | 32.5 (90.5) | 32.0 (89.6) | 32.5 (90.5) | 33.2 (91.8) | 33.1 (91.6) | 32.7 (90.9) | 32.0 (89.6) | 32.6 (90.7) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 26.0 (78.8) | 26.4 (79.5) | 26.9 (80.4) | 28.0 (82.4) | 27.9 (82.2) | 27.2 (81.0) | 26.7 (80.1) | 27.0 (80.6) | 27.6 (81.7) | 27.6 (81.7) | 27.3 (81.1) | 26.5 (79.7) | 27.1 (80.8) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 21.6 (70.9) | 21.8 (71.2) | 22.5 (72.5) | 23.7 (74.7) | 24.0 (75.2) | 23.7 (74.7) | 23.3 (73.9) | 23.5 (74.3) | 23.9 (75.0) | 23.8 (74.8) | 23.5 (74.3) | 22.5 (72.5) | 23.1 (73.6) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 16.5 (61.7) | 17.0 (62.6) | 18.1 (64.6) | 19.5 (67.1) | 16.1 (61.0) | 18.7 (65.7) | 18.9 (66.0) | 19.9 (67.8) | 19.4 (66.9) | 19.5 (67.1) | 19.5 (67.1) | 18.1 (64.6) | 16.1 (61.0) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 21.2 (0.83) | 18.7 (0.74) | 25.8 (1.02) | 23.0 (0.91) | 56.4 (2.22) | 93.4 (3.68) | 122.8 (4.83) | 140.6 (5.54) | 92.0 (3.62) | 80.5 (3.17) | 71.6 (2.82) | 43.8 (1.72) | 789.8 (31.09) |
| Average rainy days(≥ 1.0 mm) | 3.6 | 2.7 | 2.2 | 2.9 | 6.4 | 12.3 | 16.4 | 16.6 | 12.0 | 11.6 | 9.8 | 7.4 | 103.9 |
| Source:NOAA[3] | |||||||||||||
The city features a wide variety of colonial style architecture still in excellent condition. The San Antonio de la Eminencia Castle, a large Spanish fort, is open to the public and can be seen from the beach. Also surviving is theSanta Maria de la Cabeza castle, which was built in 1669. The Museo del Mar (Museum of the Sea) displays marine and maritime artifacts.[citation needed]
The Cumana region is home to theEndler's livebearer, a vibrantly coloured aquarium fish named after John Endler who discovered it in nearby Laguna de Los Patos. This fish is now extinct within the lake but survives in home aquaria across the world.[citation needed]
The city is served byAntonio José de Sucre Airport, with commercial passenger airline flights to Caracas.[citation needed]
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