Libertador General San Martín is a town in

Jujuy Province Jujuy is a province of Argentina, located in the extreme northwest of the country, at the borders with Chile and Bolivia. The only neighboring Argentine province is Salta to the east and south. Geography There are three main areas in Jujuy ...

, Argentina, and capital of the Ledesma Department, located on the National Route Nº34. It is colloquially called Ledesma or Libertador. The town was founded under the name of ''Pueblo Nuevo Ledesma'' in 1899, on an area donated by the owners of the Ledesma

sugar refinery A sugar refinery is a refinery which processes raw sugar from cane or sugar extracted from beets into white refined sugar. Cane sugar mills traditionally produce raw sugar, which is sugar that still contains molasses, giving it color ...

. Two years later, the outline and later subdivision of the eight blocks surrounding the main square was made. In 1906 the railroad arrived, and the station was built halfway from the town to the industrial centre. The area was enjoyed an economic expansion strengthened by the first Lebanese and

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

n immigration. In 1950 the town was renamed after the Libertador General San Martín. Ledesma S.A.A.I. remains the town's largest employer. The firm maintains sugarcane plantations; fruit orchards, packaging and concentrate facilities; sugar, cellulose, and paper mills; and

alcohol fuel Various alcohols are used as fuel for internal combustion engines. The first four aliphatic alcohols (methanol, ethanol, propanol, and butanol) are of interest as fuels because they can be synthesized chemically or biologically, and they have ...

facilities. Located on the banks of the San Francisco River, and only from the entrance to the

Calilegua National Park Calilegua National Park () is a federally protected area in Jujuy Province, Argentina. It was established on July 19, 1979, and is also the largest protected area in Argentina dedicated to conserving subtropical evergreen mountain rainforests kn ...

, tourism in the area has recently started to grow. Hot springs and trekking routes are some of the other touristic attractions available to the visitors. The local

Guaraní Guarani, Guaraní or Guarany may refer to Ethnography * Guaraní people, an indigenous people from South America's interior (Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Bolivia) * Guarani language, or Paraguayan Guarani, an official language of Paraguay * G ...

community performs a traditional Yeyure ceremony called

Arete guazú Arete guazú ("big day" or "true day" in the Guarani language, "Arete Guasu" in Spanish) is a traditional Guaraní festival celebrated in Argentina, Bolivia and Paraguay. It is also known as '"Carnaval Grande" (big carnival), "Kandaváre" or "Pim P ...

, "Carnaval Grande" or "Pim Pim" in the town every year. This event takes place at the foot of a tree that symbolizes the goddess

Pachamama Pachamama is a goddess revered by the Indigenous peoples of the Andes. In Inca mythology she is an " Earth Mother" type goddess, Dransart, Penny. (1992) "Pachamama: The Inka Earth Mother of the Long Sweeping Garment." ''Dress and Gender: Makin ...

, to whom they offer

basil Basil (, ; , ; ''Ocimum basilicum'' (, )), also called great basil, is a culinary herb of the family Lamiaceae (mints). It is a hardiness (plants), tender plant, and is used in cuisines worldwide. In Western cuisine, the generic term "basil" r ...

, drinks,

cigarettes A cigarette is a narrow cylinder containing a combustible material, typically tobacco, that is rolled into thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end, causing it to smolder; the resulting smoke is orally inhaled via the oppo ...

and

Chicha ''Chicha'' is a Fermentation, fermented (alcoholic) or non-fermented beverage of Latin America, emerging from the Andes and Amazonia regions. In both the pre- and post-Spanish conquest of Peru, Spanish conquest periods, corn beer (''chicha de jo ...

in gratitude. They then dance around in a flurry of streamers, confetti and talcum powder.

Notable people

Ariel Ortega Arnaldo Ariel Ortega (born 4 March 1974) is an Argentine former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. His nickname is "El Burrito" (''The Little Donkey''), thus he is called "Burrito Ortega". Ariel Ortega first played f ...

(born 1974), Argentine football player *

José María Paz Brigadier General José María Paz y Haedo (September 9, 1791 – October 22, 1854) was an Argentine military figure, notable in the Argentine War of Independence and the Argentine Civil Wars. Childhood Born in Córdoba, Argentina, the son ...

(born 1978), Argentine football player

References

External links

Visit San Martín''Libertador Hoy''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Libertador General San Martin, Jujuy Populated places in Jujuy Province Populated places established in 1899 1899 establishments in Argentina