HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Holguín (, ) is a municipality-city in
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 ...
. After
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.Santiago de Cuba Santiago de Cuba is the second-largest city in Cuba and the capital city of Santiago de Cuba Province. It lies in the southeastern area of the island, some southeast of the Cuban capital of Havana. The municipality extends over , and contains t ...
, and
Camagüey Camagüey () is a city and municipality in central Cuba and is the nation's third-largest city with more than 333,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of the Camagüey Province. It was founded as Santa María del Puerto del Príncipe in 1514, by Sp ...
, it is the fourth largest city in Cuba.


History

Before Columbus, the Taino people settled in huts made from
royal palm ''Roystonea regia'', commonly known as the royal palm, Cuban royal palm, or Florida royal palm, is a species of Arecaceae, palm native to Mexico, the Caribbean, Florida, and parts of Central America. A large and attractive palm, it has been plan ...
in the Holguin area later urbanized by the
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 countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...
; their artifacts are shown at the local Holguin La Periquera
museum A museum is an institution dedicated to displaying or Preservation (library and archive), preserving culturally or scientifically significant objects. Many museums have exhibitions of these objects on public display, and some have private colle ...
. The settlement was founded in 1523 on land donated by
Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar Diego Velázquez de CuéllarPronounced: (1465 – c. June 12, 1524) was a Spanish ''conquistador'' and ''adelantado'' who was first governor of Cuba. In 1511 he led the successful conquest and colonization of Cuba. As the first governor ...
to Captain Francisco García Holguín, a Spanish military officer. Holguin added his maternal surname to the name of the town, giving it the name San Isidoro de Holguín. Prior to 1976, Holguín was located in the province of Oriente. Before
Pope Francis's visit to the United States Pope Francis visited North America—Cuba and the United States—from 19 to 27 September 2015. It was his first state visit to both Cuba and the U.S., as well as the third official papal visit to Cuba and the Papal visits to the United States, ...
, in September 2015, he visited Cuba, and one of his stops was at the Diocese of Holguín to, among other things, commemorate the location where
Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...
landed.


Geography

The municipality is divided into ''repartos'' or
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. The old municipality was more extense, and in 1940 included: Aguarás, Aguas Claras, Alcalá, Arroyo Blanco del Sur, Báguanos, Cabezuelas, Cacocum, Calderón, Camazán, Cauto del Cristo, Corralillo, Cruces de Purnio, Damián, Floro Pérez, Gibara, Guabasiabo, Guayabal, Guirabo, Haticos del Purial, La Aguada, La Cuaba, La Palma, La Rioja, Las Calabazas, Managuaco, Melones, Norte, Omaja, Purnio, San Agustín, San Andrés, San Francisco, San Juan, San Lorenzo, Santa Rita, Sur, Tacámara, Tasajeras, Uñas, Uñitas, Velasco, Yareyal and Yayal. At present time, some of the above are part of other municipalities, but the following still belong to Holguín: Aguas Claras, Guirabo, La Cuaba, Las Calabazas, Purnio, San Andrés, Yareyal.


Economy


Demographics

In 2004, the municipality of Holguín had a population of 326,740. With a total area of , it had a population density of . By 2012, the population had increased slightly to 346,195 for a population density of .


Infrastructure

There are several small city parks such as
Parque Infantil
',
Parque San José
',
Parque San Isidoro (Las Flores)
',
Parque Martí
', among others, most central the
Calixto García
' in the downtown area. Close by one finds the galleries ''Centro Provincial de Arte'' and ''Bayado'', a
library A library is a collection of Book, books, and possibly other Document, materials and Media (communication), media, that is accessible for use by its members and members of allied institutions. Libraries provide physical (hard copies) or electron ...
, the club ''Casa de la Trova'', the Martí cinema, the ''Theatre Eddy Suñol'', th
Province Museum ''La Periquera''
a science museum, and a history museum. One of the most famous landmarks of the city is th
hill
Loma de la Cruz (English: Hill of the Cross), which can be ascended by climbing its +450 stairs, and from where the whole city can be admired. There, in the early years of the city, a large cross was erected with the belief that it would protect it from evil coming down from the North. Holguín has a
baseball stadium A ballpark, or baseball park, is a type of sports venue where baseball is played. The playing field is divided into two field sections called the infield and the outfield. The infield is an area whose dimensions are rigidly defined in part ba ...
, named after
Calixto García Calixto García y Íñiguez (August 4, 1839 – December 11, 1898) was a Cuban general in three Cuban uprisings, part of the Cuban War for Independence: the Ten Years' War, the Little War, and the War of 1895, itself sometimes called the C ...
.


Transportation

Holguín is served by Frank País Airport (HOG/MUHG), located at 20°47´08"N, 076°18´54"W, with flights 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.Bicitaxi, and taxi.


Education

The main post-secondary education institution is the University of Holguín "Oscar Lucero Moya" (Spanish
Universidad de Holguín
"Oscar Lucero Moya", UHO). Other post-secondary educational centers are
Universidad de Ciencias Médicas
(University of Medical Sciences) "Mariana Grajales"
Universidad Pedagógica
(Pedagogical University of Holguin, formerly Instituto Superior Pedagógico, ISPH) "José de la Luz y Caballero", an
Universidad Deportiva
(formerly Facultad de Cultura Física) "Manuel Piti Fajardo".


Notable people

* Faustino Oramas, Cuban composer and musician * Mario Kindelán, Olympic Gold Medalist amateur boxer *
Fredi González Fredi Jesús González (born January 28, 1964) is a Cuban-born American professional baseball coach (baseball), coach and manager (baseball), manager who is the current third base coach for the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball (MLB). He ...
, MLB manager and coach * Eglise Gutiérrez, opera singer * Reinaldo Arenas, poet and novelist * Oscar Hijuelos, Cuban-American Pulitzer Prize-winning author, whose parents were born and raised in Holguín before immigrating to the USA.Hijuelos, Oscar
''Thoughts Without Cigarettes: A Memoir''
2011.
* Puntillita (Manuel Licea), Cuban popular singer * Aroldis Chapman, Major League Baseball player * Odalis Revé, Olympic Gold Medallist judoka


Sister cities

* Santa Fe,
New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...
, United States *
Saltillo Saltillo () is the capital and largest city of the northeastern Mexican state of Coahuila and is also the municipal seat of the municipality of the same name. Mexico City, Monterrey, and Saltillo are all connected by a major railroad and high ...
,
Coahuila Coahuila, formally Coahuila de Zaragoza, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Coahuila de Zaragoza, is one of the 31 states of Mexico. The largest city and State Capital is the city of Saltillo; the second largest is Torreón and the thi ...
, Mexico *
Yazd Yazd (; ) is a city in the Central District of Yazd County, Yazd province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. At the 2016 census, its population was 529,673. Since 2017, the historical city of Yazd is rec ...
, Yazd Province,
Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...


References


Bibliography


External links


Holguín Web portalHolguin beaches guideHolguin Cuba

Cuba HolguinHolguin

Casa particular website - English city guide and photos
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holguin Cities in Cuba Populated places in Holguín Province Populated places established in 1523 1520s establishments in Cuba 1520s establishments in the Spanish West Indies 1523 establishments in the Spanish Empire