Trinidad () is the capital city of

Flores Flores is one of the Lesser Sunda Islands, a group of islands in the eastern half of Indonesia. Administratively, it forms the largest island in the East Nusa Tenggara Province. The area is 14,250 km2. Including Komodo and Rinca islands ...

in southern

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

. It has a population of 22,893 (National Census 2034). Formerly it was called ''Santísima Trinidad de los Porongos,'' or simply ''Porongos.'' Its inhabitants are known as trinitarios or also as porongueros because the city is located near the Porongos stream.

Geography

Trinidad is located in the central area of Flores department, on ''Cuchilla Porongos'', between the Sarandí and Porongos streams and on the intersection of Route 3 with Route 14. The stream

Arroyo Sarandí Arroyo often refers to: * Arroyo (watercourse), an intermittently dry creek Arroyo may also refer to: Places United States * Arroyo, Pennsylvania * Arroyo, Puerto Rico, a municipality * Arroyo, West Virginia Spain * Arroyo (Santillana del Mar), ...

, flows west of the city, while the stream

Arroyo Porongos Arroyo often refers to: * Arroyo (watercourse), an intermittently dry creek Arroyo may also refer to: Places United States * Arroyo, Pennsylvania * Arroyo, Puerto Rico, a municipality * Arroyo, West Virginia Spain * Arroyo (Santillana del Mar), ...

flows east of the city, both tributaries of the river

Río Yí Rio or Río is the Portuguese and Spanish word for "river". The word also exists in Italian, but is largely obsolete and used in a poetical or literary context to mean "stream". Rio, RIO or Río may also refer to: Places United States * Rio, Fl ...

. Trinidad occupies an area of on an altitude of above sea level.

History

Initially it was called "Porongos". Even to this day, the inhabitants of the city are referred to as either 'trinitarios' or 'porongueros'. Porongos was founded on 18 July 1805 by General

José Gervasio Artigas José Gervasio Artigas Arnal (; June 19, 1764 – September 23, 1850) was a soldier and statesman who is regarded as a national hero in Uruguay and the father of Uruguayan nationhood. Born in Montevideo, Artigas enlisted in the Spanish ...

, the

an independence leader. It had acquired the status of "Pueblo" (village) before the Independence of Uruguay. It reached the status of "Villa" (town) under the name "Villa de Porongos". It was renamed to "Villa de la Santísima Trinidad" (Most Holy Trinity) and became capital of the newly created Department of Flores on 30 December 1885 by the Act of Ley Nº 1.854. Its naming reflects a less secular period in the country's history. In July 1903 it was renamed "Trinidad" and its status was elevated to "Ciudad" (city) by the Act of Ley Nº 2.829.

Population

In 2023, Trinidad had a population of 22,893. This makes Trinidad the largest city by far in the department of

. Source: ''Instituto Nacional de Estadística de Uruguay''

Tourism

A nature reserve with a variety of flora and fauna is situated west of the city, on Route 3. Nearby there are interesting prehistoric sites to visit: the Palace Cave and the rock paintings at

Chamangá Chamangá is an area within a rocky terrain in the Flores Department of Uruguay, where a considerable quantity of ancient rock art has survived. The Chamangá River, a tributary of the Yí River, flows nearby. History In recent years there ...

Places of worship

* Most Holy Trinity Parish Church (

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

) * Our Lady of Luján Parish Church (Roman Catholic)

Politics

Following a sizeable meeting in Trinidad in 2007, the 'Vamos Uruguay' grouping within the Colorado Party was founded by

Pedro Bordaberry Juan Pedro Bordaberry Herrán (born 28 April 1960) is a Uruguayan attorney, lecturer, and politician, serving as Senate of Uruguay, Senator of the Republic since 2025. He previously served in the same position from 2010 to 2020, as Ministry of To ...

Herrán, the front-running presidential candidate of the Colorados for 2009. Following these beginnings in Trinidad, local chapters of the organization were subsequently established in many departments of

Notable people

Chory Castro Gonzalo "Chory" Castro Irizábal (born 14 September 1984) is a Uruguayan professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Midfielder#Winger, left winger for Porongos. He started his career at Club Nacional de Football, Nacional, bu ...

(born 1984), football player * Noelia Etcheverry (born 1986), television presenter

References

External links

Official site of Flores departmentINE map of Trinidad
{{Authority control Populated places in the Flores Department Populated places established in 1805 1805 establishments in the Spanish Empire