José Miguel de Velasco or Velasco is a province in the

Santa Cruz department Santa Cruz () is the largest of the nine constituent departments of Bolivia, occupying about one-third (33.74%) of the country's territory. With an area of , it is slightly smaller than Japan or the US state of Montana. It is located in the ...

Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...

. Its capital is

San Ignacio de Velasco San Ignacio de Velasco, is the capital of the José Miguel de Velasco Province and the San Ignacio de Velasco Municipality in the Santa Cruz Department of Bolivia. History The Jesuit mission of San Ignacio de Velasco was founded in 1748 by th ...

. The province is named after the Bolivian president

José Miguel de Velasco Franco José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced very differently in each of the two languages: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , ...

. It was created by law on October 12, 1880, during the presidency of

Narciso Campero Narciso Campero Leyes (29 October 1813 – 12 August 1896) was a Bolivian general and politician who served as the 20th president of Bolivia from 1880 to 1884. He was a member of the Liberal Party. The Narciso Campero Province was named afte ...

. Until its creation it was integrated into

Chiquitos Province Chiquitos Province is one of the fifteen provinces of the Bolivian Santa Cruz Department, situated in the center of the department. Its capital is San José de Chiquitos. The province was created on January 23, 1826, during the presidency of m ...

.Official site of José Miguel de Velasco Province
(Spanish)

Geography

Velasco is located between the major Bolivian city of

Santa Cruz de la Sierra Santa Cruz de la Sierra (; ), commonly known as Santa Cruz, is the largest city in Bolivia and the capital of the Santa Cruz Department (Bolivia), Santa Cruz department. Situated on the Pirai River (Bolivia), Pirai River in the eastern Tropical ...

and the

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

ian border. An unpaved highway connects the province with the city of Santa Cruz to the west and Brazil to the east.Guia Turistica de la Provincia "Velasco", Gobierno Municipal de San Ignacio de Velasco, 1996

Subdivision

José Miguel de Velasco Province is divided into three

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

which are further subdivided into cantons. Towns in the province include

Santa Ana de Velasco Santa Ana de Velasco (or simply Santa Ana) is a small town in the Santa Cruz Department, Bolivia. History The mission of Santa Ana was founded in 1755 by Julian Knogler. Location Santa Ana is the central town of ''Cantón Santa Ana'' and i ...

Culture

Velasco features a mestizo culture, blending the culture of the Spanish conquistadors and missionaries with those of the indigenous peoples. Spanish is the most commonly used language in public, though indigenous languages, such as

Chiquitano The Chiquitano or Chiquitos are an indigenous people of Bolivia, with a small number also living in Brazil. The Chiquitano primarily live in the Chiquitania tropical savanna of Santa Cruz Department, Bolivia, with a small number also living in ...

, are also used. Due to the proximity of the province to Brazil, Portuguese speakers can be found, particularly merchants in the city of San Ignacio. There is a small presence of

Mennonite Mennonites are a group of Anabaptism, Anabaptist Christianity, Christian communities tracing their roots to the epoch of the Radical Reformation. The name ''Mennonites'' is derived from the cleric Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland, part of ...

s and descendants of post-World War II German immigrants.

Places of interest

* San Miguel de Velasco *

San Rafael de Velasco San Rafael de Velasco or San Rafael is the seat of the San Rafael Municipality in the José Miguel de Velasco Province, Santa Cruz Department, Bolivia. It is part of the Jesuit Missions of Chiquitos. In 1990 it was declared a World Heritage Sit ...

Gallery

File:San Rafael de Velasco 001.JPG,

mission church File:San Miguel de Velasco 002.jpg, San Miguel de Velasco mission church File:Santa Ana de Velasco 002.JPG,

mission church File:San Ignacio de Velasco 001.JPG, St. Ignatius Cathedral, San Ignacio de Velasco File:San Ignacio de Velasco y la Represa Guapomó Santa Cruz Bolivia.jpg, View of

town

References

External links

Map of the José Miguel de Velasco Province
Provinces of Santa Cruz Department (Bolivia) {{SantaCruzBO-geo-stub