CúCUTA

'Cúcuta' (pron. IPA ) is the capital and most populous city of the North Santander Department (Spanish: ''Departamento de Norte de Santander'') in northeastern Colombia. Due to its proximity to the Colombian-Venezuelan border, Cúcuta is an important commercial center. It is situated in the Cordillera Oriental in the Andes.
Its area of 1176 km² represents 5.65% of the department. Its altitude is 320 m above sea level, with an average temperature 28°C and annual average precipitation of 1,041 mm.
The city is bordered to the east by Venezuela and Puerto Santander, to the south by Villa del Rosario, Bochalema, and Los Patios, to the north by Tibú, and to the west by El Zulia and San Cayetano.^[1][2]
The metropolitan area of Cúcuta has undergone rapid population growth since the 1960s, largely in the peripheral municipalities of Villa del Rosario and Los Patios. There are two public universities: the Francisco de Paula Santander University and the University of Pamplona.

Contents

Etymology

History

Geography, climate and layout

Geography

Climate

Layout

Symbols

Flag of Cúcuta

Seal of Cúcuta

Anthem of Cúcuta

Demographics

Population

People

Government

Economy

US–Colombia Free Trade Agreement implications for Cúcuta

Telecommunications

Transport

Distances to other cities

Bridges

Education

Schools

Universities

Recent development

Landscape

Monuments

Parks

Greenery

References

External links

Etymology

Cúcuta was called San José de Guasimales from 1733 to 1793^[3], the year in which the name changed to San José de Cúcuta—"San José" (Saint Joseph) denotes the Virgin Mary's husband, and "Cúcuta" means "The House of Goblins", from the language of the Barí indigenous group.^[4]
In the city's seal, a legend states, ''Muy Noble, Valerosa y Leal Villa de San José de Cúcuta'' ("Very Noble, Valiant and Loyal Village of San José of Cúcuta").^[5]
The city has the nicknames "City Without Borders", "Gem of the North," and "City Forest."^[6]

History

Main articles: History of Cúcuta, Battle of Cúcuta, Earthquake of Cúcuta

Cúcuta was originally a pre-hispanic settlement. It was entrusted to Sebastian Lorenzo by Pedro de Ursua as an encomienda in 1550. Juana Rangel de Cuellar founded
Cúcuta on June 17, 1733, and donated a further 782 hectares. The village, centred on a church, grew considerably due to its strategic commercial location, and eventually became a city.^[7]

On 28 February 28 1813, Simón Bolívar captured the city in the Battle of Cúcuta, before his march to Caracas. The battle lasted from 9:00 a.m. until noon; 400 men led by Bolivar fought 800 troops led by the Spanish general Ramon Correa. Two Cúcutan soldiers were killed and 14 injured; on the opposing side, 20 Spanish forces were killed and 40 injured.^[8] The victory gave the independence to the city of Cúcuta and started the Admirable Campaign.^[9]
In 1821, the Congress of Cúcuta wrote and signed the Constitution of Cúcuta (also known as Constitution of the Greater Colombia) at the historic church of Cúcuta. The constitution unified New Granada (Colombia and Panamá), Ecuador, and Venezuela into the new country, Greater Colombia.
On 18 May 1875, the city was largely destroyed by the earthquake of Cúcuta, also known as the "Earthquake of the Andes", but was soon rebuilt. The earthquake occurred at 11:15 a.m.; it destroyed Villa del Rosario, San Antonio del Tachira and Capacho, seriously damaged the Venezuelan settlements of San Cristóbal, La Mulata, Rubio, Michelena, La Grita and Colón (among others), and was felt in Bogotá and Caracas.

In the 19th century, the construction of a railroad set off an Industrial Revolution in the city. The railroad had four branches: North, East, South and West.^[10] The North branch was constructed from 1878 to 1888, and connected Cúcuta with Puerto Santander and Venezuela. Construction of the East branch began in and South branches began in 1878; the South branch linked with Pamplona, Colombia, and ended in El Diamante. The West branch was not built owing to economic problems. The railroad company fell into bankruptcy and was closed in 1960.^[11]
The population of the city's metropolitan area was 59,323 in 1939, 532,564 in 1990, and 950,000 in 2005. Colombia. Proyecciones de población, por área, según municipios
Many of the city's historic buildings lie within the Park of Greater Colombia, including the House of Santander, the historic church, and the historic tamarind. All these are well preserved.^[12]

Geography, climate and layout

Geography

Main articles: Hydrography of Cúcuta and North Santander

The city is located in the eastern part of the Department of North Santander, in the Cordillera Oriental, close to the border with Venezuela. The city's area is 1,176 km², or 5.65% of the area of North Santander. The elevation is above sea-level.
Rivers in Cúcuta and Norte de Santander include the Pamplonita River, Guaramito River, San Miguel River and Zulia River.^[13]
The Pamplonita River crosses the Norte de Santander Department.

Zones(''Comunas'')	Small towns(''Corregimientos'')	Settlements(''Caseríos'')
★ #1, Centro ★ #2, Centro Oriental ★ #3, Sur Oriental ★ #4, Oriental ★ #5, Nororiental ★ #6, Norte ★ #7, Noroccidental ★ #8, Occidental ★ #9, Suroccidental ★ #10, Cementerio	★ Aguaclara ★ Banco de Arena ★ La Buena Esperanza ★ El Soldado ★ Puerto Villamizar ★ Ricaurte ★ San Faustino ★ San Pedro ★ Guaramito ★ El Palmarito.	★ Arrayanes ★ Boconó ★ Alto Viento ★ El Carmen ★ El Pórtico ★ El Rodeo ★ La jarra ★ Puerto León ★ Puerto Nuevo.

'Maps of Cúcuta'
Satellite map	Urban map

Climate

The mean temperature is 28.0 °C; high temperatures are around 35 °C. There is a sharp contrast between the wet season and the dry season. The driest months are December, January, February and March; the wettest are April, May, September, October and November. June and July usually have significant precipitation, whereas August is sunny and windy. The annual precipitation is around 1,041 mm.^[14]

'Climate of Cúcuta'
Maximum (red) and minimum (blue) temperature of Cúcuta	Medium temperature of Cúcuta

Layout

Cúcuta's streets are organized in a grid layout adopted from Spain in colonial times. ''Calles'' (streets) traverse from east to west, perpendicular to the hills, and numbering increases to the north and to the south from Calle 1. ''Avenidas'' (avenues) traverse from south to north, parallel to the hills, and numbering increases east to west from Carrera 1.
More than 300 neighborhoods form the urban network. Affluent neighborhoods are primarily situated in the north and north-east; poorer ones are in the south and south-east, many of them squatter areas. The middle class lives mostly in the central, west and northwest areas.

Symbols

Flag of Cúcuta

The red and black North Santander Department flag was exhibited for the first time in 1928, when the first National Olympics were held in Cali. However, the flag of Cúcuta was not legalized until Mayor Carlos A. Rangel issued Decree 106 on May 3, 1988.

Seal of Cúcuta

The shield of the city was adopted in 1958 by Decree 032 on February 3, 1958, after a request by the History Academy of North Santander. The shield is a classic shape, and carries the title conferred to the city by Royal Decree of the Emperor Carlos IV: ''Very noble, valiant and loyal Village of San José of Cúcuta''.
The upper part depicts the weapons of the city's founder Juana Rangel of Cuéllar, who donated lands for the foundation of the city on June 17, 1733. They are five silver and red fleur-de-lis in the shape of reels, on a golden background.
The lower part of the shield displays the weapons that the '' National Congress'' adopted for Colombia by the Law of October 6, 1821, at its meeting in the Villa del Rosario. In the center are a quiver of spears, marked with X's, and a set of bow and arrows, tied with tricolor tape. The spears represent attributes of the Roman consuls; the X is a symbol of the right of life or death; the bow and arrows are symbols of the Hispanic Indu race.

Anthem of Cúcuta

The ''Anthem of Cúcuta'' was legalized by means of Decree 039 of February 8, 1984, by Mayor Luis Vicente Mountain Forest. The lyrics were written by Dr. Manuel Orillo Martínez, and the music by the master Pablo Tarazona Prada. It was chosen as the Anthem of Cúcuta by a unanimous vote in a contest held in the Theater Zulima.

Demographics

Population

Cúcuta has undergone a large demographic growth, having 387,481 inhabitants in 1951 and now, 1,196,775. It is the fifth most populous city in Colombia. The metropolitan area, which includes the municipalities of Villa del Rosario, Los Patios, El Zulia, San Cayetano and Puerto Santander, has a combined population of more than 1.1 million people. It is the largest metropolitan area in eastern Colombia and fifth in Colombia behind Barranquilla and Bucaramanga.
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,196,755 people and 187,041 households in the city. The population density was 2,000/km², making Cúcuta one of the more densely-populated cities in the east of the country.

'Population of Cúcuta'
Population of Cúcuta 1964–2006	Población of main cities of the Andes

People

Many notable Colombians are from Cúcuta:

★ Francisco de Paula Santander, the first President of Colombia, known as "the man of the laws".

★ Virgilio Barco, a former president of Colombia.

★ Fabiola Zuluaga, the most successful Colombian tennis playerAzapedia: Fabiola Zuluaga asapedia.com Accessed 15 October 2006

★ Actors such as Lincoln Palomeque, Endry Carreño, Manolo Suñiga, Rafael García Herreros (the founder of Minuto de Dios)

★ Elias M. Soto, a classic musician.

★ Marino Vargas Villalta, civic leader and businessman. During the fifities and sixties, he was also the president of the popular and successful local soccer team, the Cúcuta Deportivo.

Government

Main articles: Government of Cúcuta


As of 2006, the mayor of Cúcuta is Ramiro Suárez Corzo, who has occupied the position since January 2004 (elected by a majority of 62.06%). He represents the movement Colombia Viva.
Cúcuta is the capital of Norte de Santander Department, and houses the Department Hall and the City Hall of the Metropolitan Area of Cúcuta along with the Francisco de Paula Santander Justice Palace. The Principal Mayor and Urban Council, both elected by popular vote, are responsible for city administration.
The city divided into 10 localities (''comunas''). The Metropolitan Area of Cúcuta is formed by Cúcuta (as the main city), Villa del Rosario, Los Patios, San Cayetano, El Zulia and Puerto Santander.
Politics in Cúcuta are not defined by a single political movement. Past rivals included the Partido Liberal Colombiano and the Colombian Conservative Party. Today the political landscape is shared by many political parties, none commanding majority support.

Economy

Cúcuta has an agricultural industry that mainly produces milk products and liquors. Construction in the city has boomed in recent years, but it remains primarily a commercial city, due to its proximity to Venezuela, which has led the major Colombian commercial centers, banks and warehouses to set up offices in the city.^[15]

US–Colombia Free Trade Agreement implications for Cúcuta

Colombia signed a Free Trade Agreement with the United States amidst opposition by Venezuela. Despite this opposition, industries from Venezuela are constructing their infrastructure in Cúcuta to export their products to the United States, registering their products as if they were Colombian, a strategy that would allow them to export without paying certain tariffs. For that reason, Cúcuta is expected to become an industrial city.^[16]
Colombian law provides tax exemptions for Venezuelan imports through the ''Zona Franca'', which, coupled with the motorway links between Cúcuta and Maracaibo, increases the possibility of exports from Maracaibo into Colombia.^[17]

Telecommunications

The city's telecommunications services include payphones, WiMAX wireless networks,^[18] and mobile phone networks (GSM, CDMA and TDMA).
Telecom Colombia offers the service of local, national and international telephony and broadband ADSL Internet. There are three mobile telephony operators: Comcel, Movistar and Tigo.

Transport

Public transportation in the Metropolitan Area of Cúcuta includes the Metrobus system.
For travel outside the city, there is a bus station called "Terminal de Transportes" (to be replaced by a new one), the Camilo Daza International Airport (Colombia) and the San Antonio Airport (Venezuela). Eighty years ago the city had the "Railroad of Cúcuta", which connected with Venezuela.
The highway to Bucaramanga (renovated in January 2007)^[19] connects Cúcuta with Bogotá, Medellín and Cali. The highway to Ocaña connects the city with Barranquilla, Cartagena and Santa Marta; the highway to San Cristóbal with Caracas.

Distances to other cities

'Cities of Colombia' ★ Pamplona – ★ Ocaña – ★ Bucaramanga – ★ Barrancabermeja – ★ Tunja – ★ Bogotá – ★ Manizales – ★ Armenia – ★ Pereira – ★ Medellín – ★ Montería – ★ Cartagena – ★ Barranquilla – ★ Cali –

'Cities of Venezuela' ★ San Cristóbal – ★ Mérida – ★ Maracaibo – ★ Barinas – ★ Acarigua – ★ Valencia – ★ Caracas –

Bridges

The city has many bridges:

★ San Rafael Bridge – official name is "Benito Hernández Bustos".

★ Francisco de Paula Andrade Troconis Bridge – the prolongation of the Av. 0, connecting the city with the municipality of Los Patios.

★ Elías M. Soto Bridge – rebuilt and extended to 6 rails.

★ San Luís Bridge – imported from England.

★ Rafael García Herreros Bridge – part of the East Anilo Vial.
Six overpasses are under construction.

Education

The basic education and the high school education are in Colombian "Calendary A" for schools (from February to November).

Schools ★ Colegio Calasanz ★ Colegio Salesiano ★ Colegio La Salle ★ Colegio Santo Angel de la Guarda ★ Colegio Santa Teresa ★ Colegio Los Almendros ★ Colegio Carmen Teresiano ★ Colegio Cardenal Sancha ★ Colegio Gremios Unidos

Universities ★ Universidad Libre de Colombia ★ Universidad de Pamplona ★ Universidad Simón Bolivar ★ Universidad Remilgton ★ Universidad Antonio Nariño ★ Universidad Francisco de Paula Santander

Recent development

The city has recently undergone development at an historically unprecedented rate. This has included construction of six overpasses, a convention center, a new bus terminal, a new Integrated Massive Transportation System called Metrobus, modernization of state owned schools, renewal of downtown, and doubling the capacity of the General Santander Stadium.
New industries are expected to come from Venezuela, which will place their factories in Cúcuta to export through the Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement between Colombia and the United States. Comite Empresarial: TLC

Landscape

Monuments

The main monuments in the city are:

★ The monument of the Battle of Cúcuta

★ The monument of Juana Rangel de Cuellar, the founder of Cúcuta

★ The monument of Camilo Daza, located in the Camilo Daza International Airport.

Parks

The main parks in the city are:

★ Santander Park (in Spanish, ''Parque Santander''), the main park of the city located in front of the city hall.

★ Colón Park (in Spanish, ''Parkque Colón''), constructed in honor of Cristobal Columbus (in Spanish, ''Cristobal Colón'').

★ Simón Bolivar Park (in Spanish, ''Parque Simón Bolivar''), constructed in honor of Simón Bolivar and donated by the Consulate of Venezuela in Cúcuta.

Greenery

From its founding, residents have valued Cúcuta's trees.
Cúcuta has more green zones than many other cities in Colombia. Some consider it an ''urban lung'', due to its many trees and lack of pollution. The greenery is thanks to gifts by prominent Cucuteños, and the legion of foreigners who reconstructed the city after the 1875 earthquake, led by engineer Francisco de Paula Andrade Troconis. The first planted trees were clemones. Soon they were replaced by acacias, peracos and almond trees that adorned the parks and roadsides. An example of this city design is the Avenue of the Lights (based on oití, ficus and cují), that forms a natural tunnel admired in the rest of the country and by tourists.
Palm trees are common in places such as Santander Park, Great Colombian Park, the Bank of the Republic and the Department Hall of Norte de Santander. The official flower of Cúcuta is the Isora.

References

1. Limites de Cúcuta
2. CúcutaNuestra.com – Mapa de Cúcuta
3. Enciclopedia Britannica
4. Geographical Data Chamber of Commerce of Cúcuta
5. Seal of Cúcuta Rincón del Vago
6. Diario La Opinión – Cúcuta es declarado municipio verde
7. San José de Cúcuta
8. Campaña Admirable
9. Campaña Admirable
10. Ferrocarril de Cúcuta
11. Especial 45 años
12. Centro Histórico Villa del Rosario
13. Colombia; Rio de Cucuta Ministerio del Medio Ambiente
14. Geographical Data Chamber of Commerce of Cúcuta
15. Cúcuta GreatestCities.com
16. Cúcuta quiere sacarle jugo al TLC COLFTA
17. Zona Franca ANDI
18. Masificarán Internet Inalámbrico en Cúcuta Javier Peña
19. Avanza Plan 2500 Javier Peña

External links

'Government'

★ City Hall of Cúcuta

★ Gobernación de Norte de Santander

★ Education Secretary of North Santander
'Health'

★ Hospital Erasmo Meoz

★ E.S.E. Francisco de Paula Santander
'Mass media'

★ Newspaper La Opinion

★ Cúcuta Nuestra

★ EnCúcuta

★ Cúcuta Linda
'Universities'

★ Universidad Francisco de Paula Santander

★ Universidad de Santander

★ Universidad Simón Bolívar

★ Universidad de Pamplona

★ Universidad Antonio Nariño