Coro

Coro
/kaw"rddaw/, n.
a city in NW Venezuela. 68,701.

* * *

 
city, capital of Falcón state, northwestern Venezuela. It lies 200 miles (320 km) west-northwest of Caracas, at the southern end of the isthmus linking the Paraguaná Peninsula to the mainland. It is 105 feet (32 metres) above sea level. Coro and its Caribbean port, La Vela, 7 miles (11 km) to the east-northeast, were designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1993.

      Coro was founded in 1527 during an attempt by the Spanish crown to suppress slave hunting in the area. Its original name, Santa Ana de Coriana, was derived from the name of the Coros Indians, who inhabited the region. The settlement was the site of the chief factory (trading station) of the Welsers (Welser Family), the German banking house to which the Spanish king Charles V mortgaged western Venezuela between 1528 and 1546 (in effect, it served as a regional capital during this period). It became the base for expeditions in search of Eldorado, the legendary country of gold. Francisco de Miranda (Miranda, Francisco de), the “precursor of independence,” led his forces (1806) to Coro in the first attempt to free the colony from Spanish domination.

 The city exhibits a unique blend of architectural styles; Spanish, Dutch, and local traditional influences are apparent in more than 600 historic buildings. Some cobblestone streets still run through the city, and mud-brick homes dot the region surrounding the port. Many colonial-era churches are there, and Coro was the seat of the first bishopric (1531) in Venezuela. The city's cathedral, erected in 1583, is one of the two oldest churches in Venezuela; its tower walls include gun slits for defense against pirate attacks. Drastically remodeled in 1928, the cathedral was returned to near-original condition after it was designated a national monument in 1957. The Convent of the Salcedas, built by 1620, was later used as a school; the convent was restored in 1978, and it now houses an ecclesiastical museum. Among other notable structures are the Arcaya House and the House of the Iron Windows, both 18th-century, and the Bishop's House, now privately owned. On the isthmus connecting the mainland to the peninsula lies Médanos de Coro (Coro Dunes) National Park (1974), which includes the only extensive area of sand dunes (sand dune) in South America.

      In Coro's irrigated hinterland, tobacco, coffee, cacao, and castor beans are cultivated. Soap, shoes, and cigars are manufactured in the city. Salt deposits and coal mines are nearby, and the city's commercial activities have grown with the development of oil refineries on the peninsula. Coro is linked by highway and railroad with La Vela and by highway and air with Venezuela's major urban centres. Pop. (2001 est.) 159,000.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Coro — Santa Ana de Coro Héraldique …   Wikipédia en Français

  • coro — sustantivo masculino 1. Área: música Agrupación de personas que cantan, sobre todo si lo hacen de manera habitual o profesional: Al finalizar la misa, el coro entonó la salve. Canta desde pequeña en el coro de la iglesia. Sinónimo: coral. 2. Área …   Diccionario Salamanca de la Lengua Española

  • Coro — or CORO may refer to: Santa Ana de Coro, a Venezuelan city, the capital of Falcón State Coro region, a geographical region of Venezuela Coro Province, historic province of Gran Colombia Coro (music), Italian for choir Coro (singer), a Dominican… …   Wikipedia

  • CORO — CORO, colonial city of Venezuela whose streets still preserve the characteristics of the epoch. It is the capital of the Falcón State, with a population of 244,341 inhabitants (2004). The city was recognized by UNESCO as a Cultural Patrimony of… …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • Coro TV — Type Broadcast television network Country Venezuela Availability …   Wikipedia

  • Coro TV — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Coro TV (CTV) es un canal televisivo regional de carácter comunitario. El canal fue creado en julio de 1990 y puede ser visto por los habitantes de la ciudad de Santa Ana de Coro en el Municipio Miranda del estado… …   Wikipedia Español

  • coro — / kɔro/ s.m. [dal lat. chorus, gr. khorós ]. 1. a. (mus.) [gruppo di cantanti che eseguono simultaneamente un opera musicale: c. polifonico ; c. di voci bianche ] ▶◀ corale. b. [componimento per gruppi di cantanti: eseguire un c. ] ▶◀ corale. 2.… …   Enciclopedia Italiana

  • coro — |ó| s. m. Vento do noroeste, segundo a náutica antiga.   ‣ Etimologia: latim corus, i coro |ô| s. m. 1. Parte da igreja destinada ao canto. 2. Canto de muitas vozes reunidas. 3. Música para coristas. 4. Coristas. 5.  [Figurado] Reunião de pessoas …   Dicionário da Língua Portuguesa

  • Coro [1] — Coro (ital.), so v. w. Chor …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Coro [2] — Coro, 1) Provinz der südamerikanischen Republik Venezuela, 5271 QM., erstreckt sich mit der Halbinsel Paraguana in das Caraibische Meer; Klima heiß, aber nicht ungesund; Boden nur theilweis fruchtbar, theilweis bewaldet; urbar gemacht sind 22… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Coro — Coro, unansehnliche Hauptstadt des Staates Falcon in Venezuela, auf der sandigen Landzunge, welche die Halbinsel Paraguana mit dem Festland verbindet, 2 km vom Golf de C., wird durch einen Aquädukt mit Wasser versorgt, hat mehrere höhere Schulen …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”