Santa Elena de Uairén () is a small Venezuelan city (29,795 inhabitants in 2006) in the state of Bolívar near the border with

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 ...

and

Guyana Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...

. It was founded by Lucas Fernández Peña in 1923. The city's name originates from his first daughter, Elena, and Uairén, the river that crosses the city. Located in the middle of La Gran Sabana, Santa Elena is home to many travel agencies offering tours in

Canaima National Park Canaima National Park () is a park in south-eastern Venezuela that roughly occupies the same area as the La Gran Sabana, Gran Sabana region. It is located in Bolívar State (Venezuela), Bolívar State, reaching the borders with Brazil and Guya ...

, flights over

Angel Falls Angel Falls (; Pemon: ''Kerepakupai Merú'' or ''Parakupá Vená'') is a waterfall in Venezuela. It is the world's tallest uninterrupted waterfall, with a height of , and a plunge of . The waterfall drops over the edge of the Auyán-tepui m ...

, and hiking tours to the famous Monte Roraima. The town is notable for its influential presence of indigenous peoples; there is even a community called Manakrü (pronounced mah-nah-CREE) populated entirely by indigenous people. The schools in this neighborhood use both Spanish and

Pemon The Pemon or Pemón (Pemong) are Indigenous people living in areas of Venezuela, Brazil, and Guyana.See pp.112,113 and 178 of ''Venezuela: the Pemon'', in '' Condé Nast Traveler'', December 2008. The Pemon people are divided into many dialects ...

, an indigenous language. Due to its proximity to the Brazilian state of

Roraima Roraima ( ) is one of the 26 states of Brazil. Located in the country's North Region, it is the northernmost and most geographically and logistically isolated state in Brazil. It is bordered by the state of Pará to the southeast, Amazonas t ...

, Santa Elena sees a busy exchange between the two countries of Brazilian consumer products from Brazil and Venezuelan oil and petrol. Other Brazilian cities that trade with Santa Elena de Uairen are

Manaus Manaus () is the List of capitals of subdivisions of Brazil, capital and largest city of the States of Brazil, Brazilian state of Amazonas (Brazilian state), Amazonas. It is the List of largest cities in Brazil, seventh-largest city in Brazil, w ...

, Santarém,

Macapá Macapá () is a city in Brazil with a population of 512,902 (2020 estimate), and is the capital of Amapá state in the country's North Region, Brazil, North Region, located on the northern channel of the Amazon Delta near its mouth on the Atlant ...

, and

Belém Belém (; Portuguese for Bethlehem; initially called Nossa Senhora de Belém do Grão-Pará, in English Our Lady of Bethlehem of Great Pará), often called Belém of Pará, is the capital and largest city of the state of Pará in the north of B ...

. Santa Elena is relatively safe compared to other Venezuelan cities.

Languages

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 ...

- the language of almost all the indigenous people in the area is Pemón, a language of the Caribbean family related to the extinct Tamanaco and Chaimas. * Portuguese - in Santa Elena de Uairén, it is also common to find that a percentage of the residents speak Portuguese, due to its proximity to Brazil. In 1999, a free zone was declared in the city and it is crowded with Brazilians during the weekends seeking low(er)-priced food, electronics, and hygiene products.

2019 massacre

In 2019, the Venezuelan National Guard shot several Pemon civilians in the city, shortly after they had killed a large number of protesters in San Francisco de Yuruaní. The massacre began at 7:00 AM and resulted in 11 deaths as well as 31-57 injuries. Widespread criticism erupted in response to the attack.

Climate

Sister Cities

* Pacaraima,

Ciudad Bolívar Ciudad Bolívar (; Spanish for "Bolivar City"), formerly known as Angostura and St. Thomas de Guyana, is the capital of Venezuela's southeastern Bolívar, Venezuela, Bolívar State. It lies at the spot where the Orinoco River narrows to about ...

, Bolívar State *

Upata Upata () is a Venezuelan city inside the bulk of Guayana at the north of the Bolívar State. It is the capital and most important town of Piar Municipality. It is located between the basins of the rivers Orinoco and Cuyuní. The name of Upata ...

, Bolivar State * Boa Vista,

References

Mina Zapata
at

Mindat.org Mindat.org is a non-commercial interactive online database covering minerals around the world. Originally created by Jolyon Ralph as a private project in 1993, it was launched as a community-editable website in October 2000. it is operated by ...

External links