Yauco ('yau-"ko) is a city (ciudad) and municipality (municipio) in southwestern Puerto Rico located in the southern coast of the island by the Caribbean Sea, south of Maricao, Lares and Adjuntas; east of Sabana Grandeand Guánica; and west of Guayanilla. Yauco is spread over 20 wards and Yauco Pueblo (The downtown area and the administrative center of the city).
According to the United States Census Bureau estimates, the 2000 population of Yauco was 46,384 persons. Its land area is 176.5 square kilometers with a population density of 262.8 per square kilometer. Its postal zip code is 00698, telephone area code is 787, and it is in the Atlantic time zone.
Yauco is also the name of the principal town (zona urbana) of the municipality. The town's population in 2000 was 19,609. The town, built on a hillside, has stepped streets and traditional houses, some of which are open for tours.
Yaucanos also call their home la Ciudad del Café (City of Coffee), la Capital Taína (Taino Capital), and los Corsos (The Corsicans).
History
Founding
Yauco, originally known as coayuco, was founded February 29, 1756 (the loose translation of "coayuco" in Taino is "yucca plantation".) Once known as the coffee capital of the world, its coffee, low in caffeine but rich in taste, and its trade in coffee was beaten by market policies of the twentieth century, including the desire of the puertorican government and sugar industry to develop trade in sugar at the expense of coffee. It is still known for its exports of coffee and tobacco.
Flag
The flag of Yauco consists of two horizontal stripes of equal width, green the superior and gold the inferior one. To the center the official shield of Yauco.
Coat of Arms
Shield divided in quarters by a cross in the center that represents the Christendom. In a silver field a gold and black boiler, with seven necks and heads of black serpents in each handle, three to the right hand, confronted with four to the left-hand side. Bordered by a checkered band in gold and black. The second and third quarter, in a field of gold, two coffee plant flowers of five leaves of silver and four red. The coffee plant flower and the coffee grains, represent their cultivation in the Yauco municipality. The border of the shield represents the beads of the rosary. The three tower crown, establishes its category of town.
Demographics
Barrios (Districts/Wards)
- Aguas Blancas
- Algarrobo
- Almácigo Alto
- Almácigo Bajo
- Barina
- Caimito
- Collores
- Diego Hernández
- Duey
- Frailes
- Jácana
- Naranjo
- Quebradas
- Ranchera
- Río Prieto
- Rubias
- Sierra Alta
- Susúa Alta
- Susúa Baja
- Vegas
Geo/Topography
Mount Membrillo, the Rodadero Peak and the Curet Hill.
Rivers; Chiquito, Duey Loco, Naranjo and Yauco.
Agriculture
Coffee, cotton oranges, sugar and tobacco.
Industrial
Produces textiles and other light manufactures.
Landmarks and Places of Interest
- Casa Agre
- Casa Cesari
- Ideal Teather
- Lucchetti Lake
- Nuestra Señora del Rosario Hermitage Ruins
- Tozza Castle
- Vegas Lake
Festivals and Events
- National Coffee Festival - February
- Patron Festivities - October
Notable Yaucanos
- Amaury Veray - Composer
- Francisco Lluch Mora - Poet
- Loida Figueroa - Poet, historian & novelist.
Yauco, Puerto Rico. (2006, October 17). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 17:31, October 24, 2006, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Yauco%2C_Puerto_Rico&oldid=82103028
