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Sancti Spíritus () is a municipality and capital city of the province of Sancti Spíritus in central
Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
and one of the oldest Cuban European settlements. Sancti Spíritus is the
genitive case In grammar, the genitive case ( abbreviated ) is the grammatical case that marks a word, usually a noun, as modifying another word, also usually a noun—thus indicating an attributive relationship of one noun to the other noun. A genitive ca ...
of
Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
''Sanctus Spiritus'' ("
Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit, otherwise known as the Holy Ghost, is a concept within the Abrahamic religions. In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is understood as the divine quality or force of God manifesting in the world, particularly in acts of prophecy, creati ...
").


History

The city was founded by Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar in 1514. The city contributed men for
Hernán Cortés Hernán Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro Altamirano, 1st Marquis of the Valley of Oaxaca (December 1485 – December 2, 1547) was a Spanish ''conquistador'' who led an expedition that caused the fall of the Aztec Empire and brought large portions o ...
' 1518 expedition to Mexico, including Alonso Hernandez Puertocarrero, Gonzalo de Sandoval, and Juan Velazquez de Leon.Diaz, B., 1963, The Conquest of New Spain, London: Penguin Books, Francisco Iznaga, a
Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...
landowner in the western portion of Cuba during the first thirty years of the colonization of Cuba, was elected mayor of Bayamo in 1540. Iznaga was the originator of a powerful lineage which finally settled in Sancti Spíritus and Trinidad, where Torre Iznaga (Iznaga Tower) is. His descendants fought for the independence of Cuba and for annexation to the U.S., from 1820 to 1900.


Geography

The municipality is divided into the
barrio ''Barrio'' () is a Spanish language, Spanish word that means "Quarter (urban subdivision), quarter" or "neighborhood". In the modern Spanish language, it is generally defined as each area of a city delimited by functional (e.g. residential, comm ...
s of Banao, Bellamota, Bijabo, Guasimal, Hospital, Jíbaro, Manacas, Mapos, Paredes, Paula, Pelayo, Pueblo Nuevo, San Andrés, Tuinicú, Tunas de Zaza and Zaza del Medio. The Zaza Reservoir is located southwest of the city. The city has a central park which is a place of great entertainment for the persons of all ages. The geographic center of Cuba is located off the shores of the municipality.


Climate

According to the
Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...
system, Sancti Spíritus has a
tropical savanna climate Tropical savanna climate or tropical wet and dry climate is a tropical climate sub-type that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification categories ''Aw'' (for a dry "winter") and ''As'' (for a dry "summer"). The driest month has less than ...
, abbreviated "Aw" on climate maps.Climate Summary for Sancti Spiritus, Cuba
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Demographics

In 2022, the municipality of Sancti Spíritus had a population of 142,618. With a total area of , this means a population density of .


Main sights

The Iglesia Parroquial Mayor del Espíritu Santo is located two blocks south of the town's main square; it is a venerable green-towered church whose early 16th-century origins make it the country's oldest. Nearby is the Museo de Arte Colonial ''(Colonial Art Museum)'', one of Sancti Spíritus's most attractive colonial homes and a standout attraction. The opulent former palatial mansion of the Valle Iznaga clan, one of Cuba's most elite families who fled Cuba after Fidel's Revolution, it became the property of the state in 1961. Ninety percent of what you see inside, from furniture to paintings, is original. Though the family obviously kept an impressive collection of Limoges porcelain, French gilded mirrors, Italian marble tables, and Baccarat crystal chandeliers here, it wasn't their primary residence; the house was used mostly to host family members in transit, so the furnishings were rather eclectic. The three bedrooms are decorated in grand style, though, with handmade lace, embroidered sheets, and hand-painted glass. There is a gorgeous and very Cuban leather ''sillón fumador'' (smoking chair) and, in the music room, the mid-18th-century American piano, one of only two of its type in Cuba. In the tearoom is the family seal, which says: ''"El que más vale no vale tanto como Valle vale"'' ("He who has the greatest worth isn't worth as much as a Valle is worth"—playing off the Spanish word for "worth" with the family surname). Another interesting landmark is one of Cuba's older bridges over the Yayabo river. Built in 1815 with clay bricks it forms five arcs, the center being 9 meters tall. The entire bridge is only 85 meters long and was designed for pedestrians and carriages during colonial-era Cuba but has thus far resisted heavier modern traffic. Sancti Spíritus has a famous Medical University located at the Main road in Olivos III. It has students from all over the world representing 34 nationalities. The university is affiliated with ELAM in Havana.


Transport

The city is crossed in the middle by the Carretera Central (CC), the Cuban principal highway spanning the length of the island. It is also served by the
Sancti Spíritus Airport Sancti Spíritus Airport is an airport serving Sancti Spíritus, the capital city of the Sancti Spíritus Province in Cuba. Facilities The airport resides at an elevation of above mean sea level. It has one runway designated 03/21 with an asp ...
and by the A1 motorway, at the exit "Sancti Spíritus- Yaguajay", located near Guayos. It counts a
railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...
on Cabaiguán-Sancti Spíritus-Tunas de Zaza line, with express trains from/to
Havana Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.Sancti Spíritus Gallos, and its home ground is José Antonio Huelga Stadium. The local football team is the FC Sancti Spíritus.


Education

The Facultad de Ciencias Medicas Sancti Spiritus is a medical school located in Sancti Spíritus.


Notable people

* Joaquín Casillas, former soldier, and commanding officer, in the Cuban Constitutional Army. * Yuli Gurriel, MLB player for the
Miami Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League East, East Division. The ...
, formerly of the
Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...
. * Lourdes Gurriel Jr., MLB player for the
Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West Division. The franchise was established ...
.


Gallery

File:2012-02-Sancti Spiritus Street Scene 01 anagoria.JPG, Street scene File:2012-02-Museo de Arte Colonial Sancti Spiritus Cuba anagoria.JPG, Museo de Arte Colonial File:2012-02-pedestrian zone Sancti Spiritus anagoria.JPG, Pedestrian zone File:2012-02-Agrarmarkt Sancti Spiritus Kuba anagoria 02.JPG, Agricultural Market


See also

* Zaza Dam *
Municipalities of Cuba The Provinces of Cuba, provinces of Cuba are divided into 168 municipality, municipalities (). They were defined by Cuban Law Number 1304 of July 3, 1976Fifth United Nations Conference on the Standardization of Geographical Names, Vol. II, publish ...
*
List of cities in Cuba This is a list of cities in Cuba with at least 20,000 inhabitants, listed in descending order. Population data refers to city proper and not to the whole municipality, because they include large rural areas with several villages. All figu ...


References


External links


Information for touristsInteresting Places
* Histori

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sancti Spiritus Cities in Cuba Populated places in Sancti Spíritus Province Populated places established in 1514 1510s establishments in the Spanish West Indies 1510s in Cuba 1514 establishments in the Spanish Empire