Encarnación, Paraguay

Encarnación
Nuestra Señora de la Encarnación de Itapúa
City

Encarnacion Skyline

Flag

Coat of arms
Encarnación
Coordinates: 27°19′48″S 55°52′48″W / 27.33000°S 55.88000°W / -27.33000; -55.88000
Country  Paraguay
Department Itapúa
Founded March 25, 1615
Government
  Intendant Luis Yd
Area
  Total 274 km2 (106 sq mi)
Elevation 91 m (299 ft)
Population (2016)
  Total 127,527
  Density 435/km2 (1,130/sq mi)
Time zone AST (UTC-04)
  Summer (DST) ADT (UTC-03)
Area code(s) +595 71
Climate Cfa
Website www.encarnacion.gov.py

Encarnación (Spanish pronunciation: [eŋkarnaˈsjon]) is the capital city of the Paraguayan department of Itapúa, located at the south-east of the department, on the right-hand (western) shore of the Paraná River, opposite Posadas, Argentina. The city has an area of 274 km² and a population of 93,497 (2002 Census). Encarnación is the third-largest city of Paraguay.

Encarnación is connected to the Argentine city of Posadas by the San Roque González de Santa Cruz Bridge. The city is located on Route 1, some 370 km (225 miles) from Asunción, and located on Route 6, some 280 km (175 miles) from Ciudad del Este.

The Teniente Amin Ayub Gonzalez Airport (IATA: ENO, ICAO: SGEN), at coordinates 27°13′23″S 55°50′03″W, is 12 kilometres from the city, is the third most important airport of the country.

Demography

Encarnación is the capital of the department of Itapúa and has a total population of 93,497 and an urban population of 67,173 according to the 2002 National Census.[1]

Most of the inhabitants are of mixed Spanish and Amerindian descent as in the rest of Paraguay but there are also minorities of Germans, Ukrainians and Poles. In fact this is the largest settlement of Ukrainians in Paraguay.

History

The mission called Anunciación de Itapua was founded by the Paraguayan Jesuit San Roque González de Santa Cruz on March 25, 1615 on the southern side of the Paraná river.[2] That mission was relocated to the north side in the current location of the city in 1703 under the name Encarncación de Itapua. It gained in importance after the coming of the railway in 1894.

In 1957, the city was made the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Encarnación.

Because of its mild climate Encarnación is often called "The Pearl of the South". Encarnación was the birthplace of Alfredo Stroessner, general and head of state of Paraguay from 1954 to 1989.

Lately, the city experienced a radical change, with the loss of the "Zona Baja" because the "Plan de Terminación Yacyretá" (Termination plan of Yacyretá) giving way to a renewed modern city with wide avenues, bridges, etc. .

Tourism

San José Beach
Samba dancer from Encarnación

Lately Encarnación has become the tourism capital of the country, with its wide beaches and newly completed waterfront boardwalk. It is also the Carnival Capital of Paraguay, a yearly celebration of mostly Brazilian music and dance in February generally. The city is located near the Jesús and Trinidad Jesuit Ruins, declared World Heritage Sites by UNESCO in 1993.

Climate

Encarnación has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa). The summers are very hot and humid, and winters are temperate and cool. Due to its geographical position in the extreme south of the country Encarnación is the coldest city in Paraguay.

Encarnación registered snowfall in the winter of 1975, the first time in the history of Paraguay.

The annual mean temperature is 21 °C (70 °F). The annual mean relative humidity is 77%.

Climate data for Encarnación, Paraguay (1961–1990)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 40.5
(104.9)
39.4
(102.9)
39.3
(102.7)
35.4
(95.7)
34.0
(93.2)
31.6
(88.9)
32.4
(90.3)
34.8
(94.6)
36.6
(97.9)
38.0
(100.4)
40.4
(104.7)
42.0
(107.6)
42.0
(107.6)
Average high °C (°F) 31.2
(88.2)
30.6
(87.1)
29.2
(84.6)
25.9
(78.6)
23.2
(73.8)
20.9
(69.6)
21.4
(70.5)
22.5
(72.5)
23.9
(75)
26.5
(79.7)
28.4
(83.1)
30.5
(86.9)
26.2
(79.2)
Daily mean °C (°F) 25.5
(77.9)
24.9
(76.8)
23.4
(74.1)
20.0
(68)
17.3
(63.1)
15.2
(59.4)
15.5
(59.9)
16.6
(61.9)
18.1
(64.6)
20.6
(69.1)
22.7
(72.9)
24.8
(76.6)
20.4
(68.7)
Average low °C (°F) 19.4
(66.9)
19.5
(67.1)
17.9
(64.2)
14.3
(57.7)
11.7
(53.1)
9.9
(49.8)
10.2
(50.4)
10.8
(51.4)
12.3
(54.1)
14.3
(57.7)
16.3
(61.3)
18.3
(64.9)
14.6
(58.3)
Record low °C (°F) 9.3
(48.7)
7.0
(44.6)
5.4
(41.7)
2.4
(36.3)
−1.7
(28.9)
−3.8
(25.2)
−3.8
(25.2)
−2.8
(27)
−0.6
(30.9)
1.6
(34.9)
4.8
(40.6)
7.0
(44.6)
−3.8
(25.2)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 152.2
(5.992)
160.6
(6.323)
142.4
(5.606)
162.2
(6.386)
144.2
(5.677)
135.8
(5.346)
102.7
(4.043)
116.9
(4.602)
149.5
(5.886)
181.7
(7.154)
161.5
(6.358)
150.0
(5.906)
1,759.7
(69.28)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) 9 8 7 8 7 8 8 8 9 9 9 9 98
Average relative humidity (%) 69 74 75 77 79 78 76 74 72 70 69 67 73
Mean monthly sunshine hours 254.2 220.4 220.1 171.0 179.8 159.0 189.1 182.9 153.0 201.5 252.0 269.7 2,452.7
Mean daily sunshine hours 8.2 7.8 7.1 5.7 5.8 5.3 6.1 5.9 5.1 6.5 8.4 8.7 6.7
Source #1: NOAA[3]
Source #2: Deutscher Wetterdienst (sun, 1988–1996)[4]

References

  1. Atlas Censal del Paraguay - Itapúa, 2002.
  2. Gonzalez Torres, Dionisio (2010). Origen e Hisoria de lo pueblos del Paraguay. Asuncion, Paraguay: Servilibro.
  3. "Encarnación Climate Normals 1961–1990". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved March 9, 2015.
  4. "Klimatafel von Encarnación / Rio Paraná, Dep. Itapuá / Paraguay" (PDF). Baseline climate means (1961-1990) from stations all over the world (in German). Deutscher Wetterdienst. Retrieved February 14, 2016.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Encarnación.

Coordinates: 27°20′S 55°54′W / 27.333°S 55.900°W / -27.333; -55.900

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 12/1/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.