Mahates is a river town and
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...
located in the
Bolívar Department, northern
Colombia
Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
. The town of Mahates was founded on April 17, 1533 by
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...
conquistador
Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (, ; meaning 'conquerors') were the explorer-soldiers of the Spanish and Portuguese Empires of the 15th and 16th centuries. During the Age of Discovery, conquistadors sailed beyond Europe to the Americas, O ...
Pedro de Heredia
Pedro de Heredia (c. 1505 in Madrid – January 27, 1554 in Zahara de los Atunes, Cádiz) was a Spanish conquistador, founder of the city of Cartagena de Indias and explorer of the northern coast and the interior of present-day Colombia.
Earl ...
.
The municipality of Mahates also covers the village of
Palenque de San Basilio, inhabited mainly by
Afro-Colombian
Afro-Colombians or African-Colombians ( es, afrocolombianos, links=no) are Colombians of full or partial sub-Saharan African descent (Blacks, Mulattoes, Pardos, and Zambos).
History
Africans were enslaved in the early 16th Century in Colombi ...
s which are direct descendants of
African slaves
Slavery has historically been widespread in Africa. Systems of servitude and slavery were common in parts of Africa in ancient times, as they were in much of the rest of the ancient world. When the trans-Saharan slave trade, Indian Ocean sl ...
brought by the Spanish during the
Colonization of the Americas
During the Age of Discovery, a large scale European colonization of the Americas took place between about 1492 and 1800. Although the Norse had explored and colonized areas of the North Atlantic, colonizing Greenland and creating a short ter ...
and have preserved their ancestral traditions. In 2005 the Palenque de San Basilio village was proclaimed
Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity
The Proclamation of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity was made by the Director-General of UNESCO starting in 2001 to raise awareness of intangible cultural heritage and encourage local communities to protect them and th ...
by
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
.
History
The town of Mahates was founded in 1533 by
Pedro de Heredia
Pedro de Heredia (c. 1505 in Madrid – January 27, 1554 in Zahara de los Atunes, Cádiz) was a Spanish conquistador, founder of the city of Cartagena de Indias and explorer of the northern coast and the interior of present-day Colombia.
Earl ...
after founding
Cartagena de Indias
Cartagena ( , also ), known since the colonial era as Cartagena de Indias (), is a city and one of the major ports on the northern coast of Colombia in the Caribbean Coast Region, bordering the Caribbean sea. Cartagena's past role as a link ...
. In 1538 was given in
encomienda
The ''encomienda'' () was a Spanish labour system that rewarded conquerors with the labour of conquered non-Christian peoples. The labourers, in theory, were provided with benefits by the conquerors for whom they laboured, including military ...
to his son,
Antonio de Heredia who transfer the property to Luis Pelo de Águila who finally erected the parish. Due to its rapid increase on population Mahates quickly became a village and political chiefdom of the municipality and First Instance Court until the end of the 19th century.
In 1650 the
Canal del Dique
The Canal del Dique ( Levee Channel) is a 118 km artificial canal connecting Cartagena Bay (at the corregimiento of Pasacaballos) to the Magdalena River in the Bolívar Department in northern Colombia. The canal is a bifurcation or artific ...
was built and Mahates became an obliged pass for commercial routes passing by the area. Through the history of Colombia Mahates has been a division, named as Partition, Cantón, Province, District of Province and Municipality.
In 1860 two-thirds of the village of Mahates were destroyed by a fire when Mahates was part of the
Sovereign State of Bolívar
''Sovereign'' is a title which can be applied to the highest leader in various categories. The word is borrowed from Old French , which is ultimately derived from the Latin , meaning 'above'.
The roles of a sovereign vary from monarch, ruler or ...
,
Granadine Confederation
The Granadine Confederation ( es, Confederación Granadina) was a short-lived federal republic established in 1858 as a result of a constitutional change replacing the Republic of New Granada. It consisted of the present-day nations of Colombia an ...
and capital of the
Province of Mahates, which also included today's municipalities of
Calamar and
Arjona Arjona may refer to:
* Arjona, Bolívar, Colombia
* Arjona, Spain
* Taifa of Arjona, a medieval taifa kingdom in Spain
* ''Arjona'' (plant), genus of plants in the family Schoepfiaceae
People with the surname
* Adria Arjona (born 1992), Puerto R ...
, then districts.
In 1865 the Province of Mahates is demoted to a lower territorial category, also losing territory. With the construction of the railway between
Cartagena de Indias
Cartagena ( , also ), known since the colonial era as Cartagena de Indias (), is a city and one of the major ports on the northern coast of Colombia in the Caribbean Coast Region, bordering the Caribbean sea. Cartagena's past role as a link ...
and Calamar in 1894 the transportation of commercial goods over the canal lost importance and Mahates became less strategically important. Later, with the construction of the highway set to pass through the town of Mahates is then deviated away from the town.
Geography
The municipality of Mahates is located in the northern part of the Bolivar Department, bordering with the municipalities of
Calamar and
Arroyo Hondo to the east, the municipality of
Soplaviento to the northeast,
San Estanislao {{Infobox settlement
, settlement_type = City & District
, official_name = San Estanislao de Kostka
, native_name =
, nickname = Santaní
, motto =
, image_skyline =
, imagesize ...
to the north,
Arjona Arjona may refer to:
* Arjona, Bolívar, Colombia
* Arjona, Spain
* Taifa of Arjona, a medieval taifa kingdom in Spain
* ''Arjona'' (plant), genus of plants in the family Schoepfiaceae
People with the surname
* Adria Arjona (born 1992), Puerto R ...
to the west,
María La Baja
María La Baja is a town and municipality located in the Bolívar Department, northern Colombia.
History
María La Baja was founded by Alonso de Heredia (brother of Pedro de Heredia) on December 8, 1535.
Geography and climate
The municipality of ...
to the southwest and the municipality of
San Juan Nepomuceno covering a total of .
Demographics
Ethnic composition
The population in the municipality of Mahates is mostly
mulattos
(, ) is a racial classification to refer to people of mixed African and European ancestry. Its use is considered outdated and offensive in several languages, including English and Dutch, whereas in languages such as Spanish and Portuguese is ...
. In the village of
San Basilio de Palenque
San Basilio de Palenque or Palenque de San Basilio, often referred to by the locals simply as Palenke, is a Palenque village and corregimiento in the Municipality of Mahates, Bolivar in northern Colombia. Palenque was the first free African to ...
the majority of its inhabitants are moreno (dark-skinned)
Afro-Colombians
Afro-Colombians or African-Colombians ( es, afrocolombianos, links=no) are Colombians of full or partial sub-Saharan African descent (Blacks, Mulattoes, Pardos, and Zambos).
History
Africans were enslaved in the early 16th Century in Colom ...
who still preserve customs and from their African ancestors as well as their creole language,
Palenquero
Palenquero (sometimes spelled Palenkero) or Palenque ( pln, Lengua) is a Spanish-based creole language spoken in Colombia. It is believed to be a mixture of Kikongo (a language spoken in central Africa in the current countries of Congo, DRC, Gab ...
.
Population
Because the municipality has and agricultural economy, the majority of the population lives in the rural area (62.39%) the rest in the urban area (37.61%). In 1985 the population of the municipality totalled 18,831 people. In the 1993 general census, Mahates decreased its population to 18,412 people.
Government
The municipality of Mahates is governed by a popularly elected Mayor and represents the maximum authority of the executive branch of power in the municipality. The mayor is a direct representative of the
Governor of Bolívar Department for the municipality. The legislative branch is represented by a popularly elected Municipal Council. The judicial branch is represented by sectional courts, judges and attorneys.
The Major of Mahates's main functions include:
# Abide and make abide by the
Colombian Constitution of 1991
The Political Constitution of Colombia of 1991 ( es, Constitución Política de Colombia de 1991), is the Constitution of the Republic of Colombia. It was promulgated in Constitutional Gazette number 114 on Thursday, July 4, 1991, and is also ...
, the law, decrees by the government, ordinances and accords with the municipal council.
# Preserve the public order in accordance with laws and instructions ordered by the
President of Colombia
The president of Colombia ( es, Presidente de Colombia), officially known as the president of the Republic of Colombia ( es, Presidente de la República de Colombia) or president of the nation ( es, Presidente de la Nacion) is the head of stat ...
.
# Suppress or fusion municipality entities and dependencies in accordance with respective needs.
Administrative divisions
Town of Mahates neighborhoods
* 12 October
* 16 May
* 7 August
* Centella
* El Campo
* El Puente
* La Concepcion
* La Guayana
* La Loma
* La Vera
* Remanso de Paz
* Santander
Corregimientos
* Evitar
* Gamero
* Malagana
* Mandinga
*
San Basilio de Palenque
San Basilio de Palenque or Palenque de San Basilio, often referred to by the locals simply as Palenke, is a Palenque village and corregimiento in the Municipality of Mahates, Bolivar in northern Colombia. Palenque was the first free African to ...
* San Joaquin
Veredas
* Cruz del Vizo
* La Manga
* Paraiso
* Pava
* Raicero
* Songó
* Todo Sonrisa
References
External links
*
Mahates official website*
Mahates municipality official website
{{Coord, 10, 14, N, 75, 11, W, region:CO_type:city_source:GNS-enwiki, display=title
Municipalities of Bolívar Department
Populated places established in 1533
1533 establishments in the Spanish Empire