Guantánamo
| Guantánamo | |
|---|---|
| Municipality | |
 | |
.png) Guantánamo Province (yellow) and Cuba | |
  Guantánamo | |
| Coordinates: 20°08′12″N 75°12′50″W / 20.13667°N 75.21389°WCoordinates: 20°08′12″N 75°12′50″W / 20.13667°N 75.21389°W | |
| Country |
 Cuba |
| Province | Guantánamo |
| Established | 1797[1] |
| Area[2] | |
| • Municipality | 741.4 km2 (286.3 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 46 m (151 ft) |
| Population (2011)[3] | |
| • Municipality | 210,407 |
| • Density | 280/km2 (740/sq mi) |
| • Metro | 216,734 |
| Demonym | Guantanamero/ra |
| Time zone | EST (UTC-5) |
| Postal code | 95100 |
| Area code(s) | +53 21 |
Guantánamo is a municipality and city in southeast Cuba and capital of Guantánamo Province.
Guantánamo is served by the Caimanera port near the site of a U.S. Naval base. The area produces sugarcane and cotton wool. These are traditional parts of the economy.
Geography
The municipality is mountainous in the north, where it overlays the Sierra Maestra (mountains), and borders the Windward Passage of the Caribbean Sea in the south. It is crossed by the Guantánamo, Yateras, Guaso, San Andrés and Sabanalamar rivers. The Guantánamo Bay is a natural harbour south of the city.
The municipality is divided into the barrios of Arroyo Hondo, Baitiquirí, Bano, Bayate, Caimanera, Camarones, Caridad, Corralillo, Cuatro Caminos, Filipinas, Glorieta, Gobierno, Guaso, Hospital, Indios, Isleta, Jaibo Abajo, Las Lajas, Macurijes, Mercado, Ocujal, Parroquia, Palma de San Juan, Rastro, Tiguabos and Vínculo.[1]
United States Naval Base
About 15 km away from the city lies the Guantánamo Bay, a superior natural harbor which has been militarily occupied by the United States since 1898, when it was captured from Spain in the Battle of Guantánamo Bay, and was subsequently leased from Cuba in 1903 by the Cuban–American Treaty. It is the site of the Guantanamo Bay detention camp.
Demographics
In 2004, the municipality of Guantánamo had a population of 244,603.[3] With a total area of 741 km2 (286 sq mi),[2] it has a population density of 330.1 /km2 (855 /sq mi).
Famous Guantanameros
Notable natives of Guantánamo include athletes Joel Casamayor,Erislandy Lara, Yuriorkis Gamboa, Yumileidi Cumbá, Jaime Jefferson, Yargelis Savigne, Dayron Robles, Luis Delís, Cuban-American gymnast Annia Hatch, and cosmonaut Arnaldo Tamayo Méndez.
The song "Guantanamera"
"Guantanamera" (Spanish: "from Guantánamo [feminine]", thus "woman from Guantánamo") is perhaps the best known Cuban song and that country's most noted patriotic song. In 1966, a version by American vocal group The Sandpipers, based on an arrangement by Pete Seeger, became an international hit.
See also
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Guije.com. "Guantánamo". Retrieved 2007-10-05. (Spanish)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Statoids. "Municipios of Cuba". Retrieved 2007-10-05.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Atenas.cu (2004). "2004 Population trends, by Province and Municipality". Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-10-05. (Spanish)
Further reading
- Jonathan M. Hansen, Guantánamo: An American History. New York: Hill and Wang, 2011.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Guantánamo. |
- Complete guide to Guantánamo City
- Detailed information about Zoologico de Piedra (Stone Zoo)
- Article about the prison history
- (Spanish) City webpage
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