Managua is the capital city of Nicaragua as well as the department and municipality by the same name. It is also the largest city in Nicaragua. It is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Managua. The city was declared the national capital in 1852. Previously, the capital had alternated between the cities of León and Granada. The city has a population of about 1,680,100; composed predominantly of mestizos and whites.
Founded in 1819 and given the name of Leal Villa de Santiago de Managua , its original purpose was to serve as a rural fishing village. Efforts to make Managua the capital of Nicaragua began in 1824, after the Central American nations became independent from Spain. Managua's location between the rival cities of León and Granada made it an ideal compromise site. Managua's economy is based mainly on trade. The city is Nicaragua's chief trading center for coffee, cotton, and other crops. It is also an important industrial center. Its chief products include beer, coffee, matches, textiles, and shoes.
The city has been witness to the rise and fall of political powers throughout Nicaragua's history and has suffered two devastating earthquakes over the course of the 20th century. Managua is the economic, political, cultural, commercial and industrial center of Nicaragua. In 2007, after a successful literacy campaign, Managua was declared the first capital city in Central America to be rid of illiteracy.
Since the earthquake, residential and business areas have been built on the outskirts of Managua. Large villages of housing units were built for thousands of families left homeless by the earthquake. Other new construction included schools, hospitals, and shopping centers. These buildings were specially constructed to withstand severe earthquakes. A rise in foreign visitors are powering the nation's tourism industry. The Nicaraguan capital has been dubbed as the Venice of Central America because of its escalating use of makeshift canals that can be found throughout the city. Managua also houses the only eternal flame in Central America and one out of the five in Latin America.
Managua was built in the 1850s on the site of an Indian community. The city occupies an area on a fault. Seismologists predict that Managua will continue to experience a severe earthquake every 50 years or less.
Residents of the city and of the department of Managua are called managüenses.
Etymology
The name Managua originates from Mana-ahuac , which in the indigenous Nahuatl language translates to "adjacent to the water" or site "surrounded by water". The city stands today on an area historically inhabited by Indigenous people centuries before the Spanish conquest of Central America in the 16th century.
History
Prehistorical
Nicaragua was inhabited by Paleo-Indians as far back as 6,000 years ago. This is confirmed by the ancient footprints of Acahualinca found along the shores of Lake Managua, along with other archaeological evidence, mainly in the form of ceramics and statues made of volcanic stone like the ones found on the island of Zapatera and petroglyphs found in Ometepe island.
Contemporary History--The Old Managua
In 1857, after Granada was destroyed by a U.S. mercenary army led by William Walker, that the capital was firmly established in Managua. Between 1852 and 1930 Managua underwent extensive urbanization; becoming a base of governance, infrastructure and services. The city was hampered by major floods in 1876 and 1885 and a disastrous earthquake in 1931, which destroyed much of the city. Under the rule of dictator Anastasio Somoza García and his family (1936–1979), it began to grow rapidly. New government buildings were erected, industry developed, and universities were established; Managua had become Central America's most developed city. Today's references differentiate the 1970s Managua by labeling it as "La Antigua Ciudad," which in English translates to "The Ancient City" or "The Old City."
Managua's progress came to a sudden halt after suffering its second major earthquake on December 23, 1972, which destroyed 90% of the city and killed over 19,120 people. The city was practically cleared from its very foundation. Infrastructure had been terribly damaged and rehabilitation or restorationg of these buildings was nearly impossible. Managua at the time lacked the ability and manpower since its limited resources were directed to other disaster relief purposes. Managua's ability to cope with the disaster were also limited. A limited amount of fire squadrons and ambulence services were not able to handle the skyrocketing demand for its services. Some buildings burned to the ground, while the foundations of others simply gave way. The city was in no position to reconstruct and thus cleared away much of its rubble as quickly as it could. Residencies, government buildings and entire avenues were demolished. Escaping the city center, earthquake victims found refuge in the outskirts of the city. The migration of residents away from the city center allowed for it to go undeveloped. For roughly 20 years, the addition of corruption within the Somoza regime also hindered the center's development. The regime allocated part of the funds for reconstruction. Today, the city center remains somewhat isolated from the rest of the capital.
The Civil War of 1979 to overthrow the Somoza regime and the 11-year long Contra War of the 80's further devastated the city's economy. To make matters worse, a series of natural disasters, including Hurricane Mitch in 1998 made economic recovery more difficult. However, after winning the free elections of 1990, the democratic opposition began the reconstruction of Managua in earnest.
La Antigua Ciudad de Managua—The Old City of Managua Present-Day
Downtown has been partially rebuilt and new governmental buildings, galleries, museums, apartment buildings, squares, promenades, monuments, boat tours on Xolotlan Lake, restaurants, night entertainment, and new broad avenues have resurrected part of Managua's downtown former vitality. Commercial activity, however, remains low. Residential and commercial buildings have been constructed on the outskirts of the city, in the same locales that were once used as refuge camps for those who were homeless after the earthquake. These booming locales have been of concern to the government because of their close proximity to Lake Nicaragua. Concerns over water pollution and native wildlife have brought some residents closer to the old city center and the rest of the mainland.
Geography
Managua is located on the southern shores of Lake Managua (also known as Lake Xolotlán). Lake Managua contains the same fish species as Lake Cocibolca, except for the freshwater sharks found exclusively in the latter. Once a Managuan scenic highlight, the lake has been polluted from the dumping of chemical and waste water since 1927. A waste water treatment plant funded by the German government to decontaminate the lake is expected to be the largest in Central America and was inaugurated in 2009.
Managua extends about 544 km along Lake Managua at an altitude of 55 metres (165 ft) above sea level, gaining altitude toward the Sierras de Managua where it is over 970 metres (2910 ft) above sea level.
Lagoons within city limits
Managua features four smaller lagoons in the city limits. The most centrally located is the Tiscapa Lagoon in the Tiscapa Lagoon Natural Reserve.
- The Laguna de Tiscapa (Tiscapa Lagoon) is south of the old downtown. Tiscapa Lagoon is of volcanic origin and was formed approximately 10,000 years ago.
- Asososca lagoon, to the west, is Managua's most important source of drinking water. Asososca is at the beginning of Carretera al Sur (Southern Highway), close to the connection with the Carretera Nueva a León (New Highway Via León).
- Nejapa lagoon, south of the Asososca lagoon, is also along the Southern Highway.
- The fourth is Acahualinca lagoon, which is located to the northwest. This lagoon, which gives its name to a nearby district to the east, is located on the shores of Lake Managua. This lagoon is mostly noted for having shallow waters.
Climate
Managua, like much of Western Nicaragua except for the Sierras, has a tropical climate with constant temperatures averaging between 28 and 32 degrees Celsius (82 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit). The months of December and January are chilly; March and April are humid and somewhat arid.
Maps
The Openstreetmap project has partially mapped Managua here
Flora
Managua, due to its tropical climate, varied topography, naturally fertile soils, and abundant rain and water sources, boasts a great variety of flora. Therefore, many different types of trees (some of them not found in the rest of the world, such as chilamates, ceibos, pochotes, genizaros, tiguilotes, royal palms, pinuelas and the madroño, wh
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