From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ciénaga is a municipality and village in the Magdalena
Department, Colombia,
second largest population center in this department after the city
of Santa Marta. It
is situated at 11° 00' North, 74° 15' West,
between the Sierra Nevada de Santa
Marta, the Caribbean Sea and the Ciénaga Grande de Santa
Marta marsh in northern Colombia. The town is situated north
from Magdalena and at 35 km from Santa Marta. In 1993, there
were 121.681 inhabitants (65.357 in urban areas and 56.324 in rural
areas).
History
Prior to the arrival of the Spanish colonizers the area was
vastly populated by Chimila Indians and a village known as
Pongueyca. The Foundation of Ciénaga has always been a
matter of dispute due to many different historical theories and the
lack of sources. It is believed to be founded first in what is now
a small village known as Pueblo Viejo and the site of a former
Chimila tribe. In 1585 monk Fray Tomás Ortiz established a Parish
that would later burn in a fire. It was then refounded as city by
Fernando de Mier y Guerra under the name of Villa de San Juan
Bautista de la Ciénaga but also was known with the names of
Aldea Grande, Córdoba, Pueblo de la
Ciénaga and simply Ciénaga.
During the war of independence from Spain, Ciénaga became a
battle ground on November 10, 1820 battle between loyalist and
independentists of what became known as the Battle of Ciénaga.
On December 6, 1928 the events of the Santa Marta massacre (in Spanish, matanza
de las bananeras) occurred in this town. It was a massacre of
workers for the United Fruit Company, an unknown number of workers
died after the government decided to send the military forces to
end a month long strike organized by the workers' union in order to
demand better working conditions.
Culture
Ciénaga has been place of birth and home to numerous notable
people including native Thousand Days War hero, musician and
farmer Col. Clemente
Escalona, father and teacher of vallenato composer Rafael Escalona. Guillermo
Buitrago, who died very young - 29 years old - but became a
very important figure of the 20th century's folklore in Colombia. The city remembers pays
an annual homage to him in the Guillermo de Jesús Buitrago
Guitar Festival. It was also the birth place of the cumbia cienaguera founder and
musical composer Andrés Paz Barros. Ciénaga celebrates every year
in January 20 the Fiesta del Caimán (Feast of the Caiman)
honoring a local legend known as La Historia de
Tomasita.
Gallery
See also
External
links
References
Coordinates: 11°0′25″N 74°15′0″W / 11.00694°N
74.25°W / 11.00694;
-74.25
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