Maturín
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- For other similarly names places, see Maturin.
| Maturín | |||
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| Nickname: "La Ciudad Distinta" | |||
| Motto: "La Ciudad más limpia de Venezuela" | |||
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| Coordinates: | |||
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| Country | Venezuela | ||
| State | Monagas | ||
| Municipality | Maturín | ||
| Government | |||
| - Mayor | Numa Rojas (2004 – 2008) | ||
| Area | |||
| - Total | 13,352 km² (5,155.2 sq mi) | ||
| Elevation | 67 m (220 ft) | ||
| Population (2006) | |||
| - Total | 450,000 | ||
| - Density | 28.0/km² (72.5/sq mi) | ||
| Website: Alcaldía de Maturín | |||
Maturín is the capital of the Venezuelan state of Monagas. The city has a population of 500,000 people according to the 2006 census.
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[edit] Geography
Maturin is located at 67 meters of altitude and 520 kilometres from the country's capital, Caracas. It is right next to the Guarapiche River and it's a crossroad for roads towards the center, the Caribbean coast and the Orinoco River
[edit] History
December 7, 1760 is the official date of the foundation of Maturín (according to the Venezuelan Academy of History) by the Franciscan missionary Lucas de Zaragoza. However, the Jesuit priest Pablo Ojer found in Spain a document which proves a previous foundation of the city in 1722. This primitive town was called San Juan de la Tornera de Maturín and its founder was the Spanish governor Juan de la Tornera y Sota. San Juan de la Tornera de Maturín had the category of city for Spaniards, but it did not survive very long because of the lack of population and little economical resources. At the beginning San Judas Tadeo de Maturín (Lucas de Zaragoza gave this name to Maturín) was a Spanish mission created for the conversion of Indians Chaimas and Waraos, who lived next to Maturín. The Spaniards decided to move to Maturín and in nineteenth century it received the category of city and the name of San Fernando de Maturín.
Maturín (as a part of the province of Cumaná) was on the republican side during the declaration of the Venezuelan independence on July 5, 1811. Five battles took place in Maturín from 1813 to 1814, including the famous battle of Alto de los Godos. In this battle the Venezuelan patriots, leaded by Manuel Piar, obtained a great victory against the Spanish general Domingo Monteverde. Antonio José de Sucre, José Francisco Bermúdez, José Tadeo Monagas, José Gregorio Monagas and José Félix Ribas were others who fought in the five battles. The last battle of Maturín (1814), however, was a defeat. Persons, who had escaped from Caracas during the military campaign of José Tomás Boves against the republic, came to Maturín to shelter from the Spanish troops. After the battle of Urica (where Boves died) Tomás José Morales, a Spanish general, decided to take the town. The republicans defended the town, but they were beaten and many of them were murdered by Morales. The town was destroyed. Some survivors of the last battle rebuilt Maturín two years later.
Maturín grew slowly during nineteenth century. The causes of this lack of population were civil wars (which destroyed the former farming and livestock richness of the region and killed many people) and fatal diseases, such as malaria and yellow fever, which were caused by mosquitoes. In 1909 Maturín became capital of the new Monagas state. Before that the town was the capital of the canton Maturín from 1856 to 1859. In twentieth century Maturín has had a quick demographic growth thanks to the discovery of petroleum fields near to the town and a health campaign done by doctors to finish with mosquitoes. Maturín is the headquarters of a catholic bishopric since 1958.
[edit] Origin of the name Maturín
Maturín was named after an Indian chief (el Indio Maturín) who lived with his tribe next to the bank of Guarapiche river. The Indian chief was murdered by a supposed Spanish captain named Arrioja during a battle of the Indians against Spaniards in the actual location of the town in 1718. Since then the place was known as el Sitio de Maturín (place of Maturín).
Some historians concluded that the name Maturín has a French root, not an Indian one. They based their opinions on the legend of a supposed French missionary who had explored this area at the end of seventeenth century. The legend says that the missionary (whose surname might have been Mathurin) baptized a young Indian and gave him the name Mathurin. This young Indian became el indio Maturín later. Besides there is a French saint who lived during fourth century whose name was St. Mathurin. The young Indian might have been named after this saint by the French missionary. However the legend of this supposed French missionary has not been proved yet. On the other hand other historians disagreed with that theory. They argued that there is a plant with the same name. Besides there are some place names of Indian roots which are very similar to the name Maturín.
[edit] Law and government
Maturín has one municipality: Maturín Municipality, Venezuelan law specifies that municipal governments have four main functions: executive, legislative, comptroller, and planning. The executive function is managed by the mayor, who is in charge of representing the municipality's administration. The legislative branch is represented by the Municipal Council, composed of seven councillors, charged with the deliberation of new decrees and local laws. The comptroller tasks are managed by the municipal comptroller's office, which oversees accountancy. Finally, planning is represented by the Local Public Planning Council, which manages development projects for the municipality.
[edit] Mayors since 1990
- María Elena de Cañizales (1990-1992) Acción Democrática
- Dr. José Enrique López Tablero (1993-1995) COPEI, MAS
- Domingo Urbina Simoza (1996-2000), (2000-2004) Acción Democrática
- Prof. Numa Rojas (2004-) Movimiento Quinta República
[edit] Economy
Maturín is one of the most important cities in the east of the country as its strategic position serves as a bridge to the other states of the region. The city has grown during the last few years mainly because of the increase of the oil industry in the state. It is possible to travel there by land or by using José Tadeo Monagas International Airport. Maturín is served by Conviasa, Aeropostal, rutaca and Aserca which have daily non-stop flights connecting the city with Caracas international airport at Maiquetía and Piarco international airport.
[edit] Education
A universitarian level Maturín has the following public universities:
- Universidad de Oriente (UDO-Monagas).
- Universidad Pedagógica Experimental Libertador (UPEL).
- Universidad Nacional Abierta (UNA).
- Universidad Bolivariana de Venezuela (UBV).
- Universidad Nacional Experimental Simón Rodríguez (UNESR).
Private universities:
- Universidad Gran Mariscal de Ayacucho (UGMA).
- Universidad Cecilio Acosta (UNICA).
- Universidad de Margarita (UNIMAR).
- Universidad Santa María (USM).
Others private institutions of higher education are:
- Instituto Universitario Politécnico Santiago Mariño (IUPSM).
- Instituto Universitario de Tecnología Industrial Rodolfo Loreto Arismendi (IUTIRLA).
- Instituto Universitario de Tecnología Venezuela (IUTV).
[edit] Places of Interest
Plaza Bolívar is the main town square of Maturín and also the oldest of the city. In front of it is the Palacio de Gobierno (built in 1942), where the governor of the state of Monagas carries out his duties.
The church San Simón is the oldest in Maturín. It was built between 1884 and 1887 and is located in front of the Plaza Bolivar.
The cathedral Nuestra Señora del Carmen is a catholic temple of Roman style. Its construction began in 1961 and was finished in 1981. It is located on Bolívar avenue. The church is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Maturín.
Amana del Tamarindo is a small town located thirty minutes from Maturín. It received its name from a tamarind tree located in the town, like the Amana river. Under this tree, which still exists, was the birthplace of general José Tadeo Monagas.
[edit] Media
El Oriental (founded in 1982), la Prensa de Monagas (founded in 1998), Extra, el Sol de Maturín (founded in 1970) y el Periódico de Monagas are newspapers from Maturín.
Maturín has many radio stations. MW stations are Radio Maturín 1180 (founded in 1961), Radio Guarapiche 840 (founded in 1983) and Radio Monagas 960 (founded in 1948). FM stations are Maturín 94.7, Monagas 93.5 (founded in 1991), PDVSA 95.5, Caliente 102.5, Ritmo 104.0, La Romántica 97.1, Fiesta 102.1, Órbita 88, Rumbera, XL 106.0, Olímpica, La Mega 90.9, Onda 96.3, 92.7, Ruta de Escape 105.0.
TV Monagas, Orivisión and TVO Monagas are the TV (VHF) stations of the town.
[edit] Notable natives
- Andrés Rojas: General during the Venezuelan independence.
- Dr. Carlos Möhle: Musician, composer and dentist.
- José Gabriel Núñez Romberg: Musician.
- José Antonio Núñez Romberg: Mathematician, teacher and historian.
- Félix Armando Núñez: Poet, teacher and dean of the University of Chile.
- Idelfonso Núñez Mares: Poet and teacher.
- Eloy Palacios: Sculptor.
- Dr. José María Núñez: Historian.
[edit] Copa America
Maturin was chosen to be one of the nine cities where the Copa America 2007 is going to take place, Three matches will be played at Maturin at the "Estadio Monumental de Maturin" (Maturin's Monumental Stadium) corresponding to the "B" group where Brazil, Mexico, Chile & Ecuador are. This will be a brand new stadium that will have a capacity for 52.000 people, the biggest in Venezuela. After the Copa America 2007 finishes this stadium will be the home of the local soccer team that plays in the 1st division of the Venezuelan league "Monagas Sport Club"
[edit] Sources
- González Oropeza, Hermann (1985): Historia del Estado Monagas. Biblioteca de Temas y Autores Monaguenses, Caracas.
[edit] External links
- Maturín is at coordinates Coordinates:
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