Ibarra (; full name San Miguel de Ibarra;

Quechua Quechua may refer to: *Quechua people, several indigenous ethnic groups in South America, especially in Peru *Quechuan languages, a Native South American language family spoken primarily in the Andes, derived from a common ancestral language **So ...

: Impapura) is a city in northern

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...

and the capital of the

Imbabura Province Imbabura () is a province located in the Andes of northern Ecuador. The capital is Ibarra. The people of the province speak Spanish, and a large portion of the population also speaks the Imbaburan Kichwa variety of the Quechua language. The s ...

. It lies at the foot of the

Imbabura Volcano Imbabura is an inactive stratovolcano in northern Ecuador. Although it has not erupted for about 7,500 years, it is not thought to be extinct. Imbabura is intermittently capped with snow and has no permanent glaciers. Covered in volcanic a ...

and on the left bank of the Tahuando river. It is about northeast of Ecuador's capital

Quito Quito (; qu, Kitu), formally San Francisco de Quito, is the capital and largest city of Ecuador, with an estimated population of 2.8 million in its urban area. It is also the capital of the province of Pichincha. Quito is located in a valley o ...

History

Ibarra was founded in 1606 by order of the President of the

Royal Audience of Quito The of Quito (sometimes referred to as or ) was an administrative unit in the Spanish Empire which had political, military, and religious jurisdiction over territories that today include Ecuador, parts of northern Peru, parts of southern Colo ...

, Miguel de Ibarra. The development of the city included the systematic construction of public buildings including an important number of

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * C ...

es but an earthquake in 1868 destroyed most of them. After the devastating earthquake of August 16, 1868 the city was re-settled in 1872. Based on its newest date of foundation, Ibarra is the youngest city in Ecuador. The

Inca The Inca Empire (also known as the Incan Empire and the Inka Empire), called ''Tawantinsuyu'' by its subjects, (Quechua for the "Realm of the Four Parts", "four parts together" ) was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The admin ...

ruler

Atahualpa Atahualpa (), also Atawallpa (Quechua), Atabalica, Atahuallpa, Atabalipa (c. 1502 – 26-29 July 1533) was the last Inca Emperor. After defeating his brother, Atahualpa became very briefly the last Sapa Inca (sovereign emperor) of the Inca Empir ...

is said to have been born in the Inca settlement of

Inca-Caranqui The Inca-Caranqui archaeological site is located in the village of Caranqui on the southern outskirts of the city of Ibarra, Ecuador. The ruin is located in a fertile valley at an elevation of . The region around Caranqui, extending into the pres ...

about 2 km from the city. Helados de paila (handmade

ice cream Ice cream is a sweetened frozen food typically eaten as a snack or dessert. It may be made from milk or cream and is flavoured with a sweetener, either sugar or an alternative, and a spice, such as cocoa or vanilla, or with fruit such as str ...

sorbet Sorbet (), also called "water ice", is a frozen dessert made using ice combined with fruit juice, fruit purée, wine, liqueur, honey, etc. Generally sorbets do not contain dairy ingredients, while sherbets do. Etymology The word "sorbet" e ...

and still sold in the markets today) was first made in Ibarra during

n times (but not by Incas; by the native indigenous), using snow or ice from the nearby

(which is no longer snow bound). Using a large bronze pan surrounded by

ice shavings Shaved ice is a large family of ice-based desserts made of fine shavings of ice or finely crushed ice and sweet condiments or syrups. Usually, the syrup is added after the ice has been frozen and shaved—typically at the point of sale; however, ...

, the juices of various fruits are stirred into the pan to freeze.

Ibarra today

Today, Ibarra is a mid-sized

market Market is a term used to describe concepts such as: *Market (economics), system in which parties engage in transactions according to supply and demand *Market economy *Marketplace, a physical marketplace or public market Geography *Märket, an ...

city rising in popularity with

tourists Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mo ...

, yet still retains a very authentic Ecuadorian vibe. It has a unique ethnic composition for Ecuador, with the population being a mix of Mestizos, Amerindians (mostly

Otavalo people The Otavalos are an indigenous people native to the Andes, Andean mountains of Imbabura Province in northern Ecuador. The Otavalos also inhabit the Otavalo (city), city of Otavalo in that province. Commerce and handcrafts are among the principal e ...

), and

Afro-Ecuadorians Afro-Ecuadorians or Afroecuatorianos (Spanish), are Ecuadorians of predominantly Sub-Saharan African descent. History and background Most Afro-Ecuadorians are the descendants of enslaved Africans who were transported by Spanish slavers to Ecuad ...

. Ibarra is known for its mild weather, colonial whitewashed houses (giving it the nickname The White City), and cobbled streets.viva travel guides: Ibarra
/ref> The Santo Domingo church houses a museum holding paintings. The town is the seat of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Ibarra The Roman Catholic Diocese of Ibarra ( la, Dioecesis Ibarrensis) is a diocese located in the city of Ibarra in the Ecclesiastical province of Quito in Ecuador. Churches *Basílica de Nuestra Señora de La Merced Bishops Ordinaries *José Igna ...

. Markets are on Saturdays, and the main

festival A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival c ...

is the ''Fiesta de los Lagos'', which is held on the last weekend of September. Two colorful parades known as ''El Pregón'' and ''Virgen del Carmen'' are held on 16 July every year. Other town attractions are the many restaurants specializing in local

cuisine A cuisine is a style of cooking characterized by distinctive ingredients, techniques and dishes, and usually associated with a specific culture or geographic region. Regional food preparation techniques, customs, and ingredients combine to ...

, along with the clubs, discos and a

paragliding Paragliding is the recreational and competitive adventure sport of flying paragliders: lightweight, free-flying, foot-launched glider aircraft with no rigid primary structure. The pilot sits in a harness or lies supine in a cocoon-like 'po ...

club. Andrea Scacco was elected to be the new mayor of Ibarra in 2019 planning to reduce xenophobia and to create a women's refuge in the city.

Climate

Ibarra features a

warm-summer mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate (also called a dry summer temperate climate ''Cs'') is a temperate climate sub-type, generally characterized by warm, dry summers and mild, fairly wet winters; these weather conditions are typically experienced in the ...

(''Csb'') under the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

. This is possible due to the town's high elevation (7,300 ft) in the Ecuadorian Andes providing cooler temperatures and a seasonal rain-shadow characteristic. The dry/warm season is technically local winter due to the town's location being south of the

Intertropical Convergence Zone The Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ ), known by sailors as the doldrums or the calms because of its monotonous windless weather, is the area where the northeast and the southeast trade winds converge. It encircles Earth near the thermal e ...

from June to September. However, since Ibarra is located just north of the equator this season could be classified as a summer. The

highland climate Alpine climate is the typical weather (climate) for elevations above the tree line, where trees fail to grow due to cold. This climate is also referred to as a mountain climate or highland climate. Definition There are multiple definitions of ...

is mild all year round. Sister Cities: *

Winchester, Kentucky Winchester is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Clark County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 18,368 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Lexington-Fayette, KY Metropolitan Statistical Area. Winchester is located ro ...

Etawah Etawah also known as Ishtikapuri is a city on the banks of Yamuna River in the state of Western Uttar Pradesh in India. It is the administrative headquarters of Etawah District. Etawah's population of 256,838 (as per 2011 population census) m ...

, Uttar Pradesh, India

References

External links

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Benefits Discounts & Promotions in Ibarra
{{Authority control Populated places in Imbabura Province Populated places established in 1606 Provincial capitals in Ecuador 1606 establishments in the Spanish Empire