Uribia, La Guajira
Encyclopedia
Uribia is town and municipality of the Colombia
n Department
of La Guajira
. It is the youngest municipality of this Department since the year 2000. Northern Zone of the Cerrejón
coal
mines are located in this municipality. The municipality also contains the Serranía de Macuira
mountain range which is an isolated low altitude mountain range in the middle of La Guajira Desert
. One third of this mountain range is also a National Natural Park of Colombia.
The Municipality of Uribia covers most of the northern area of the Guajira Peninsula
, the northern most part of South America
. Uribia borders to the north and west with the Caribbean sea
which surround most more than half the municipality; to the east Uribia slightly borders with the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela; to the south with the municipality of Maicao and southwest with the municipality of Riohacha
.
The Upper Guajira, is semi-arid presenting clay formations with scarce vegetation such as cactus and other xerophile
s. The Serrania de Macuira
lays in the Middle of the upper region presenting three predominant hills 650 m over sea level such as the Macuira, Jarará and La Teta.
s of the Wayuu people restarted in 1887 with the return of the Capuchin friars under reverend friar José María de Valdeviejas. In 1905, Pope Pius X
created the Vicariate of La Guajira and as first Vicar, friar Atanasio Vicente Soler y Royo in an attempt to "civilize" the Wayuu people.
The friars the created the orphanages for Wayuu children beginning with the La Sierrita orphanage built in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountains in 1903; followed by the San Antonio orphanage in 1910 located by the Calancala River, Nazareth orphanage in the Serrania de Macuira mountains in 1913 creating a direct influence over the Rancheria
s of Guarrachal, El Pájaro, Carazúa, Guaraguao, Murumana, Garra patamana and Karraipía. While Nazareth had some control over the rancherías of Taroa, Maguaipa, Guaseipá and Alpanapause. The friars constantly visited the settlements inviting to attend mass. Wayuu children in the orphanage were educated with traditional European customs. Conflicts between the Wayuu people and the Colombian government decreased since then. In 1942 the village of Uribia celebrated for the first time Christmas
and New Year's Eve
.
Uribia was founded officially on March 1, 1935 by Captain Eduardo Londoño Villegas in honor of Colombian Liberal Party
leader Rafael Uribe Uribe
, prior to this the village was named Chitki in Wayuu language
. The main plaza was crated and named after Francisco de Paula Santander
one of the leaders of the Colombian independence from Spain.
.
ethnic group. Cultural activities are directly related to them. The town celebrates the Festival of the Wayuu Culture
from May 31 to June 1 every year.
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...
n Department
Departments of Colombia
Colombia is an unitary republic formed by thirty-two departments and a Capital District . Each department has a Governor and a Department Assembly , elected by popular vote for a four-year period. The governor cannot be re-elected in consecutive periods...
of La Guajira
Department of La Guajira
La Guajira is a department of Colombia. It occupies most of its namesake peninsula, the Guajira Peninsula in the northeast region of the country, facing the Caribbean Sea and Venezuela in the northern most part of South America...
. It is the youngest municipality of this Department since the year 2000. Northern Zone of the Cerrejón
Cerrejón
Cerrejón is a coal mine located in the Guajira department in the north of Colombia. It is the largest mining operation in Colombia and among the largest open-pit coal mines in the world. The legal entity managing the Cerrejón operation is known as Carbones del Cerrejón Ltd...
coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
mines are located in this municipality. The municipality also contains the Serranía de Macuira
Serranía de Macuira
Serranía de Macuira is a mountain range in northern Colombia located in the municipality of Uribia, Guajira Peninsula and part of the La Guajira Department. The Serrania de Macuira stands in the middle of the La Guajira Desert at 864 meters over sea level, isolated from the mountain ranges of...
mountain range which is an isolated low altitude mountain range in the middle of La Guajira Desert
La Guajira Desert
La Guajira Desert is located in the northernmost part of Colombia, north of Bogota, in the La Guajira Department, covering most of La Guajira Peninsula including Venezuelan territory. The area holds immense coal reserves, exploited in a zone known as El Cerrejon...
. One third of this mountain range is also a National Natural Park of Colombia.
Geography
Guajira Peninsula
Guajira Peninsula , is a peninsula in northern Colombia and northwestern Venezuela in the Caribbean Sea...
, the northern most part of South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
. Uribia borders to the north and west with 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....
which surround most more than half the municipality; to the east Uribia slightly borders with the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela; to the south with the municipality of Maicao and southwest with the municipality of Riohacha
Riohacha
Riohacha, Rio Hacha or Rio de la Hacha , is a city in the Riohacha Municipality in the northern Caribbean Region of Colombia by the mouth of the Ranchería River and the Caribbean sea, capital city of the La Guajira Department. Founded by conquistador Nikolaus Federmann in 1535, Riohacha was named...
.
The Upper Guajira, is semi-arid presenting clay formations with scarce vegetation such as cactus and other xerophile
Xerophile
Xerophiles are extremophilic organisms that can grow and reproduce in conditions with a low availability of water, also known as water activity. Water activity is a measure of the amount of water within a substrate that an organism can use to support sexual growth. Xerophiles are often said to...
s. The Serrania de Macuira
Serranía de Macuira
Serranía de Macuira is a mountain range in northern Colombia located in the municipality of Uribia, Guajira Peninsula and part of the La Guajira Department. The Serrania de Macuira stands in the middle of the La Guajira Desert at 864 meters over sea level, isolated from the mountain ranges of...
lays in the Middle of the upper region presenting three predominant hills 650 m over sea level such as the Macuira, Jarará and La Teta.
Evangelization
The process of evangelizationEvangelization
Evangelization is that process in the Christian religion which seeks to spread the Gospel and the knowledge of the Gospel throughout the world. It can be defined as so:-The birth of Christian evangelization:...
s of the Wayuu people restarted in 1887 with the return of the Capuchin friars under reverend friar José María de Valdeviejas. In 1905, Pope Pius X
Pope Pius X
Pope Saint Pius X , born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto, was the 257th Pope of the Catholic Church, serving from 1903 to 1914. He was the first pope since Pope Pius V to be canonized. Pius X rejected modernist interpretations of Catholic doctrine, promoting traditional devotional practices and orthodox...
created the Vicariate of La Guajira and as first Vicar, friar Atanasio Vicente Soler y Royo in an attempt to "civilize" the Wayuu people.
The friars the created the orphanages for Wayuu children beginning with the La Sierrita orphanage built in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountains in 1903; followed by the San Antonio orphanage in 1910 located by the Calancala River, Nazareth orphanage in the Serrania de Macuira mountains in 1913 creating a direct influence over the Rancheria
Ranchería
The Spanish word ranchería, or rancherío, refers to a small, rural settlement. In the Americas the term was applied to native villages and to the workers' quarters of a ranch. English adopted the term with both these meanings, usually to designate the residential area of a rancho in the American...
s of Guarrachal, El Pájaro, Carazúa, Guaraguao, Murumana, Garra patamana and Karraipía. While Nazareth had some control over the rancherías of Taroa, Maguaipa, Guaseipá and Alpanapause. The friars constantly visited the settlements inviting to attend mass. Wayuu children in the orphanage were educated with traditional European customs. Conflicts between the Wayuu people and the Colombian government decreased since then. In 1942 the village of Uribia celebrated for the first time Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
and New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve is observed annually on December 31, the final day of any given year in the Gregorian calendar. In modern societies, New Year's Eve is often celebrated at social gatherings, during which participants dance, eat, consume alcoholic beverages, and watch or light fireworks to mark the...
.
Official foundation
Colombian Liberal Party
The Colombian Liberal Party is a center-left party in Colombia that adheres to social democracy and social liberalism.The Party was founded in 1848 and, together with the Colombian Conservative Party, subsequently became one of the two main political forces in the country for over a century.After...
leader Rafael Uribe Uribe
Rafael Uribe Uribe
Rafael Uribe Uribe was a Colombian lawyer, journalist, and general in the liberal party rebel army.-Early years:...
, prior to this the village was named Chitki in Wayuu language
Wayuu language
The Wayuu language, or Goajiro , is spoken by 305,000 indigenous Wayuu people in northeastern Colombia and northwestern Venezuela on the Guajira Peninsula....
. The main plaza was crated and named after Francisco de Paula Santander
Francisco de Paula Santander
Francisco José de Paula Santander y Omaña , was a Colombian military and political leader during the 1810–1819 independence war of the United Provinces of New Granada...
one of the leaders of the Colombian independence from Spain.
Capital of the Special Commissary of La Guajira
Uribia became a regional capital town of the Special Commissary of La Guajira until 1954, when the National Intendency of La Guajira was created and the capital transferred to RiohachaRiohacha
Riohacha, Rio Hacha or Rio de la Hacha , is a city in the Riohacha Municipality in the northern Caribbean Region of Colombia by the mouth of the Ranchería River and the Caribbean sea, capital city of the La Guajira Department. Founded by conquistador Nikolaus Federmann in 1535, Riohacha was named...
.
Culture
Uribia is predominantly inhabited by indigenous peoples pertaining to the WayuuWayuu
Wayuu is an Amerindian ethnic group of the La Guajira Peninsula in northern Colombia and northwest Venezuela. They are part of the Maipurean language family.- Geography :...
ethnic group. Cultural activities are directly related to them. The town celebrates the Festival of the Wayuu Culture
Festival of the Wayuu Culture
The Festival of the Wayuu Culture is a festival in Colombia, celebrated in the town of Uribia, Department of La Guajira. It takes place from May 31 through June 2 of every year....
from May 31 to June 1 every year.