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Cesar Department
Department of Cesar or Cesar Department , is a department of Colombia. It is in the north of the country in the Caribbean region, bordering to the north with La Guajira Department, to the west with the Magdalena Department and Bolivar Department, to the south with Santander Department, and to the west with the Norte de Santander Department, also bordering the country of Venezuela.
Valledupar became its capital when the Department was created in 1967 by decree. The "Cesar" name is an adaptation from the amerindian name Chet-tzar to Spanish, which means "calm water", name also of the same river (Cesar River) and the valley that its basin crosses, most of the department. [*]
History
Before the Spanish conquerors arrived, the territory was populated by numerous groups of Amerindians, among them the Malibu tribe, Tairona tribe, Arhuaco tribe, Motilones tribe, Eupari tribe, Guatapuries tribe, Chimila tribe and Tupe tribe; all of them part of the Caribe Indians family. The first European conqueror to arrive at these lands was Pedro de Badillo in 1529, and in 1531 the German Ambrosius Ehinger, who invaded the territory, and because of encountering a great resistance by the local tribes he ordered the execution of their chief Upar. The colonization finally was accomplished by Capuchin friars who subdued the Indians.
Geography
The Cesar Department has an extension of 22.905 km, its geography is divided into two different regions: the mountainous region of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta and Serrania del Perija and the flat lands belonging to two valleys between this two mountain systems, the Cesar river valley and the Magdalena River Valley.
Lower lands present a warm and dry climate, annual precipitations are less than 1,300 mm a year. The mountainous regions are characterized by low temperatures and precipitations ranging more than 2,000 mm a year.
Administrative Divisions
Municipalities
Aguachica
Astrea
Becerril
Bosconia
Chimichagua
Chiriguana
Codazzi
Curumani
El Copey
El Paso
Gamarra
Gonzalez
La Gloria
La Jagua de Ibirico
Manaure
Pailitas
Pelaya
Pueblo Bello
Rio de Oro
Robles La Paz
San Alberto
San Diego
San Martin
Tamalameque
Valledupar
Government and Politics
Governors
Department Assembly
Economy
The economy of the Cesar Department is sustained by the Agricultural sector, secondly by a Services industry following with Commercial Industry and Mining. Cattle raising is exploited extensively (using large farms), and for this reason large portions of forests have been chopped off to create corrals. In agriculture, plantations of cotton, rice, sugar cane, oil palm, yucca and plantain. Services are centered on commerce and the industry is represented by oil products, fats and milk derived products. As one of the biggest water resources areas of Colombia, if not America, part of the Magdalena River crosses the Department and helps create the Cienaga de Zapatosa (Zapatosa Marsh) along with the Cesar river. It has a great potential to develop a fishing industry also, but it is practiced at a minimum. Most of the territory has not been explored in the search of more minerals due to violence, but because of recent findings, it became a potential source. [*]
References
Cesar 30 Anos de Progreso - Gobernacion del Cesar (1997) booklet
Cesar Department official website
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This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Cesar Department
