Melo | |
|---|---|
Capital city | |
 Artigas Monument and Plaza Constitución | |
  Melo | |
| Coordinates:32°22′0″S54°11′0″W / 32.36667°S 54.18333°W /-32.36667; -54.18333 | |
| Country |  Uruguay |
| Department |  Cerro Largo |
| Founded | 1795 |
| Founded by | Agustín de la Rosa |
| Area | |
• Total | 18.8 km2 (7.3 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 80 m (260 ft) |
| Population (2023 Census) | |
• Total | 56,013 |
| • Density | 2,980/km2 (7,720/sq mi) |
| • Demonym | melense |
| Time zone | UTC -3 |
| Postal code | 37000 |
| Dial plan | +598 464 (+5 digits) |
| Climate | Cfa |
| Website | Official site of Cerro Largo |
Melo (Spanish pronunciation:[ˈmelo]) is the capital city of theCerro Largo Department of north-easternUruguay. As of the census of 2023, it is the ninth most populated city of the country with a population of 56,013.
It is located at the center of the department, on the intersection ofRoute 7 withRoute 8, 60 kilometres (37 mi) south ofAceguá and the border with Brazil. Other primary roads to the city are Route 26 and Route 44.
The streamArroyo Conventos (a tributary ofTacuarí River) flows by the west limits of the city.
Melo has ahumid subtropical climate, described by theKöppen climate classification asCfa. Summers are warm (with hot days and cool nights) and winters are cool, with frequentfrosts andfog. The precipitation is evenly distributed throughout the year, with an average of 1,241 mm (48.85 in), and the annual average temperature is 17 °C (63 °F).
This city has the lowest recorded temperature in Uruguay, of -11 °C (12.2 °F), on June 14, 1967.[1]
| Climate data for Melo, Cerro Largo (1991–2020, extremes 1937–2020) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 43.0 (109.4) | 40.5 (104.9) | 40.4 (104.7) | 38.0 (100.4) | 32.3 (90.1) | 30.2 (86.4) | 30.0 (86.0) | 35.0 (95.0) | 37.0 (98.6) | 37.0 (98.6) | 38.4 (101.1) | 45.0 (113.0) | 45.0 (113.0) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 30.2 (86.4) | 29.4 (84.9) | 27.9 (82.2) | 24.4 (75.9) | 20.4 (68.7) | 17.7 (63.9) | 17.1 (62.8) | 19.3 (66.7) | 20.3 (68.5) | 23.1 (73.6) | 26.1 (79.0) | 28.9 (84.0) | 23.7 (74.7) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 23.8 (74.8) | 23.3 (73.9) | 21.7 (71.1) | 18.3 (64.9) | 14.7 (58.5) | 12.2 (54.0) | 11.6 (52.9) | 13.4 (56.1) | 14.7 (58.5) | 17.5 (63.5) | 19.8 (67.6) | 22.3 (72.1) | 17.8 (64.0) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 17.4 (63.3) | 17.1 (62.8) | 15.4 (59.7) | 12.1 (53.8) | 8.9 (48.0) | 6.8 (44.2) | 6.1 (43.0) | 7.5 (45.5) | 9.2 (48.6) | 12.0 (53.6) | 13.5 (56.3) | 15.7 (60.3) | 11.8 (53.2) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 1.0 (33.8) | 3.6 (38.5) | 0.0 (32.0) | −5.2 (22.6) | −5.9 (21.4) | −11.0 (12.2) | −9.6 (14.7) | −4.8 (23.4) | −4.0 (24.8) | −3.0 (26.6) | 1.2 (34.2) | 4.0 (39.2) | −11.0 (12.2) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 90.4 (3.56) | 132.9 (5.23) | 100.5 (3.96) | 154.9 (6.10) | 120.4 (4.74) | 120.7 (4.75) | 116.0 (4.57) | 110.3 (4.34) | 132.8 (5.23) | 134.3 (5.29) | 99.7 (3.93) | 101.2 (3.98) | 1,414.1 (55.67) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 1.0 mm) | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 87 |
| Averagerelative humidity (%) | 69 | 72 | 74 | 76 | 79 | 81 | 79 | 77 | 75 | 74 | 71 | 69 | 75 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 275.3 | 229.5 | 232.3 | 189.0 | 169.1 | 141.9 | 159.9 | 184.0 | 179.8 | 205.2 | 252.2 | 274.8 | 2,493 |
| Source 1:Instituto Uruguayo de Metereología[2][3] | |||||||||||||
| Source 2:NOAA (precipitation and sun 1991–2020),[4]Instituto Nacional de Investigación Agropecuaria (humidity 1980–2009)[5] | |||||||||||||
It was founded on 27 June 1795 by Agustín de la Rosa, an officer to theSpanish Empire.[6] It was named afterPedro Melo de Portugal, a Spanish colonial official of Portuguese royal ancestry.
Given its proximity to some Portuguese colonies in Brazil, the "Melo Village" (inSpanish, "Villa de Melo"), as it was once named, was invaded by Portuguese forces in 1801, 1811, and 1816. With Uruguayan independence, Melo was officially declared capital of the department of Cerro Largo.[citation needed]
In 1845, the city square was renamed in honor ofManuel Oribe, a formerPresident of Uruguay and a political leader of theWhite Party (Partido Blanco), which brought to light the relations of this corner of the country with that National Movement (the vast majority of its inhabitants have belonged to that same political community).
Melo had acquired the status of "Villa" (town) before the Independence of Uruguay. Its status was elevated to "Ciudad" (city) on 22 May 1895 by the Act of Ley Nº 2.3279.[7] It was capital of one of the nine original departments of the Republic.
The historian J.C. Chasteen has discussed the place of Melo in the history of Uruguay in his bookHeroes on Horseback: A Life and Times of the Last Gaucho Caudillos.[8]
In 2023 Melo had a population of 56,013 inhabitants.[9]
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 1908 | 12,355 |
| 1963 | 33,741 |
| 1975 | 38,487 |
| 1985 | 42,245 |
| 1996 | 46,883 |
| 2004 | 50,578 |
| 2011 | 51,830 |
| 2023 | 56,013 |
Source:National Statistics Institute[10]
There are two museums:
Near Melo is situated the oldPosta del Chuy, a stone inn near an ancient bridge over the Chuy del Tacuarí creek.
Melo was visited by PopeJohn Paul II in 1988. This formed the background to the 2006 filmEl Baño del Papa (The Pope's Toilet) about an enterprising citizen with the ill-fated idea of making money by building a toilet and charging the hordes of Brazilians expected to visit Melo to see the Pope.
Capital:Melo | ||
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