Villa Nueva is a

City A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

in the

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...

department of

. The city centre of Villa Nueva at Villa Nueva Central Park is located south of

Guatemala City Guatemala City ( es, Ciudad de Guatemala), known locally as Guatemala or Guate, is the capital and largest city of Guatemala, and the most populous urban area in Central America. The city is located in the south-central part of the country, nest ...

. The city has a population of 618,397 (2018 census), making it the second largest in Guatemala Department, after

. It was founded on 17 April 1763, long before Guatemala declared its independence from the Spanish Empire. The local economy largely depends on industry, with the municipality having some 100 factories that produce such products as textiles, metallurgical goods, and plastics. The area's agricultural products include rice, dairy, fruits, and vegetables. Mayor Salvador Gándara, serving from 2000 to 2011, was longlisted for the 2008

World Mayor World Mayor is a biennial award organized by the City Mayors Foundation since 2004. It intends to raise the profile of mayors worldwide, as well as honour those who have served their communities well and who have contributed to the well-being of c ...

award; Sites of interest include the

Naciones Unidas National Park Naciones Unidas National Park is a forested park area of 4.91 km2, located 21 km south of Guatemala City, just north of Lake Amatitlán in the municipality of Villa Nueva. It is one of the last remaining nature reserves in the Guatemal ...

, . and several malls, like

Metrocentro Metrocentro is a Salvadoran shopping mall chain in Central America. History and organisation Metrocentro is owned by Grupo Roble, which is based in San Salvador, El Salvador. The shopping mall Metrocentro in San Salvador is the largest sh ...

and Santa Clara.url=www.walmart.com.gt

History

Amatitlán Department creation

During governor

Mariano Rivera Paz Mariano Rivera Paz (24 December 1804 – 26 February 1849) was Head of State of Guatemala and its first president. Biography Mariano Rivera Paz was born in Guatemala City and studied law in the Royal and Pontifical University of San Carlo ...

' time in office, a decree was issued on 6 November 1839 declaring Amatitlán and independent district, which also included Palín and Villa Nueva. The decree says: # "The city of

Amatitlán Amatitlán () is a town, with a population of 98,176 (2018 census),Citypopulation.de
Population of cities & t ...

, San Cristóbal Palín, Villa Nueva, San Miguel and Santa Inés Petapa and all the annexed locations to these settlements will form an independent district for its political government and will be under the charge of a Lieutenant Corregidor, who will act according to the applicable law starting on 2 October of this year and will earn a thousand pesos a year". # "In the same district there will be a local court to impart justice". The district changed its name to Amatitlán Department according to the executive order of 8 May 1866 of field Marshall

Vicente Cerna y Cerna Vicente Cerna y Cerna (22 January 1815 – 27 June 1885) was president of Guatemala from 24 May 1865 to 29 June 1871. Loyal friend and comrade of Rafael Carrera, was appointed army's Field Marshal after Carraera's victory against Salvadorian lead ...

government.

Amatitlán Department dissolution and creation of the Villa Nueva municipality

Amatitlán Department was abolished by decree 2081 of 29 April 1935 of president general

Jorge Ubico Jorge Ubico Castañeda (10 November 1878 – 14 June 1946), nicknamed Number Five or also Central America's Napoleon, was a Guatemalan dictator. A general in the Guatemalan army, he was elected to the presidency in 1931, in an election where ...

regime. This decree literally reads: "Considering that it is convenient for the country's best interest that the Amatitlán Department be dissolved.
Decrees: # Amatitlán Departament is abolished # Municipalities of

Amatitlán Amatitlán () is a town, with a population of 98,176 (2018 census),Citypopulation.de
Population of cities & t ...

, Villa Nueva,

San Miguel Petapa San Miguel Petapa () also known as Petapa is a city and municipality in the Guatemala department of Guatemala, located south of Guatemala City. The city has a population of 129,124 according to the 2018 census.Villa Canales Villa Canales is a city and municipality in the Guatemala department of Guatemala, situated 22 km south of the capital Guatemala City. As of the 2018 census, the city had a population of 124,680,Guatemala Department Guatemala Department is one of the 22 departments of Guatemala. The capital is Guatemala City, which also serves as the national capital. The department consists of Guatemala City and several of its suburbs. The department covers a surface are ...

and those of Palín and

San Vicente Pacaya San Vicente Pacaya () is a town and municipality in the Escuintla department of Guatemala. Climate San Vicente Pacaya has a subtropical highland climate ( Köppen: ''Cwb''). Geographic location Films The municipality was the filming loca ...

to the

Escuintla Department Escuintla () is one of the 22 departments of Guatemala. The capital of the department is the city of Escuintla. Escuintla covers an area of 4,384 km² and is situated in the coastal lowland region, directly south of Guatemala City, and bord ...

. # The executive branch will issue the proper instructions to comply with this decree, which will be in effect on 1 July of this year".

Climate

Villa Nueva 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 of p ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...

: ''Aw'').

Notes and references

References

Bibliography

* {{Authority control Amatitlán Department Municipalities of the Guatemala Department