Ciénaga, Magdalena
Encyclopedia
Ciénaga is a municipality and a town 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 in the northern part of 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). The mean annual temperature is 34°C.
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 Banana 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.
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 on January 20 the Fiesta del Caimán (Feast of the Caiman
) honoring a local legend known as La Historia de Tomasita.
Magdalena Department
Magdalena is a department of Colombia, located to the north of the country by the Caribbean Sea. The capital of the Magdalena Department is Santa Marta and was named after the Magdalena River...
, Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
, second largest population center in this department, after the city of Santa Marta
Santa Marta
Santa Marta is the capital city of the Colombian department of Magdalena in the Caribbean Region. It was founded in July 29, 1525 by the Spanish conqueror Rodrigo de Bastidas, which makes it the oldest remaining city in Colombia...
. It is situated at 11° 00' North
11th parallel north
The 11th parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 11 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane. It crosses Africa, the Indian Ocean, South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Pacific Ocean, Central America, South America and the Atlantic Ocean....
, 74° 15' West, between the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta
Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta
The Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta is an isolated mountain range apart from the Andes chain that runs through Colombia. Reaching an altitude of 5,700 metres above sea level just 42 km from the Caribbean coast, the Sierra Nevada is the world's highest coastal range...
, the Caribbean Sea
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean located in the tropics of the Western hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico and Central America to the west and southwest, to the north by the Greater Antilles, and to the east by the Lesser Antilles....
and the Ciénaga Grande de Santa Marta
Ciénaga Grande de Santa Marta
The Ciénaga Grande de Santa Marta is the largest of the swampy marshes located between the Magdalena River and the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, weakly separated from the Caribbean Sea by a narrow strait....
marsh in northern Colombia. The town is situated in the northern part of 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). The mean annual temperature is 34°C.
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 documented 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 San Juan del Córdoba, 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 Banana 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 WarThousand Days War
The Thousand Days' War , was a civil armed conflict in the newly created Republic of Colombia, between the Conservative Party, the Liberal Party and its radical factions. In 1899 the ruling conservatives were accused of maintaining power through fraudulent elections...
hero, musician and farmer Col
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
. Clemente Escalona, father and teacher of vallenato
Vallenato
Vallenato, along with cumbia, is currently a popular folk music of Colombia. It primarily comes from the Colombia's Caribbean region. Vallenato literally means "born in the valley". The valley influencing this name is located between the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta and the Serranía de Perijá in...
composer Rafael Escalona
Rafael Escalona
Rafael Calixto Escalona Martinez was a Colombian composer and troubadour. He was known for being one of the most prominent vallenato music composers and troubadours of the genre and for being the co-founder of the Vallenato Legend Festival, along with Consuelo Araújo and Alfonso López Michelsen.He...
. Guillermo Buitrago
Guillermo Buitrago
Guillermo de Jesús Buitrago Enríquez, a Colombian composer of vallenato music, was born in Ciénaga Magdalena, Colombia on 1 April 1920 and died 19 April 1949. - Discography :...
, who died very young - 29 years old - but became a very important figure of the 20th century's folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
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
Cumbia
Cumbia is a music genre popular across Latin America. The cumbia originated in the Caribbean coast of Colombia, where it is associated with an eponymous dance and has since spread as far as Mexico and Argentina...
cienaguera founder and musical composer Andrés Paz Barros. Ciénaga celebrates every year on January 20 the Fiesta del Caimán (Feast of the Caiman
Caiman
Caimans are alligatorid crocodylians within the subfamily Caimaninae. The group is one of two subfamilies of the family Alligatoridae, the other being alligators. Caimans inhabit Central and South America. They are relatively small crocodilians, with most species reaching lengths of only a few...
) honoring a local legend known as La Historia de Tomasita.