Cocibolca

▪ ancient city, Nicaragua

      extinct city, Rivas department, Nicaragua, on the western shore of Lake Nicaragua. The last capital of the indigenous tribes that lived around the lake, it apparently declined following the Spanish conquest in the 16th century.

      The Nicaraguan artist Rodrigo Peñalba immortalized Cocibolca in murals depicting the final battle between its Indian inhabitants and the Spaniards. Cocibolca, meaning “sweet sea,” was also the Indian name for the lake.

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