Bolivar state

Bolívar is one of the twenty-three states that, together with the capital district and federal dependencies, form the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. Its capital is Ciudad Bolívar and its most populous city, Ciudad Guayana.

It is located in the southeast of the country, in the Guayana region, bordered to the north by Guárico, Anzoátegui, Monagas and Delta Amacuro, to the east by Guyana Esequiba, (currently under claim), to the south by Brazil through the watershed from the Orinoco and Amazonas basins, to the southwest with Amazonas and to the west with Apure. With 240,528 km², it is the largest state, with 2,049,653 inhabitants in 2018, the sixth most populous —behind Zulia, Miranda, Carabobo, Lara and Aragua— and with 5.8 inhabitants/km², the fourth least densely inhabited, ahead of Apure, Delta Amacuro and Amazonas, the least dense.

Its territory is located almost entirely on the Guyanese massif. It has 11 autonomous municipalities and 47 civil parishes. Its main cities are: Ciudad Bolívar, Ciudad Guayana, Upata and Caicara del Orinoco.

History

During the colony, it was part of the province of Nueva Andalucía and later it was annexed to the province of Guayana from 2 when King Carlos III created the General Captaincy of Venezuela.

In 1821 (during Gran Colombia) it became the department of Orinoco with the largest extension of the time (whose capital was Santo Tomás de la Nueva Guayana de la Angostura del Orinoco or Angostura).

When Gran Colombia was dissolved, the territory changed to the province of Guayana until 1854 when it became the province of Orinoco (whose capital was Ciudad Bolívar).

After the separation in 1856 of the then Federal Amazonas Territory, the province of Guayana was renamed the Sovereign State of Guayana in 1864 once the Federal Revolution came to power under the command of Juan Crisóstomo Falcón.

In 1881 it became one of the nine political entities into which the country was divided, receiving the name of the Great Bolívar State made up of Guayana and Apure. In the year 1887, the current Delta Amacuro State was segregated from the Guayana State. In 1899, the separation and establishment of the autonomy of the Apure and Guayana States took place; and it is from the Constitution of 1901, when the name of Guayana State is changed to Bolívar State, as a tribute to the Liberator Simón Bolívar, who established in the city of Angostura, today Ciudad Bolívar, the bases of the action that allowed him to liberate the current Bolivarian nations (Venezuela, Colombia, Panama, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia).

For the gubernatorial elections of October 15, 2017, the results for the governorship of Bolívar State were announced 3 days later, proclaiming Justo Noguera Pietri of the PSUV as governor, after not presenting irreversible results in the elections. elections, the position was disputed with Andrés Velásquez. Days later, Velásquez declared alleged fraud in the state elections, inserting an appeal before the CNE to dismiss said elections.

Geography of Bolívar

Geographic location

It borders to the north with the Orinoco River and the States of Delta Amacuro, Monagas, Anzoátegui State and Guárico; to the south with the Federative Republic of Brazil; to the southwest with the Amazonas State; to the east with Guyana, in dispute with the Cooperative Republic of Guyana and to the west with the Apure State.

In a relief between the Guayanese shield, three large landscapes can be recognized: that of the savannahs and isolated low mountains of Orinoco, the mountainous one dominated by the tabular peaks of the Tepuis and the valleys of the tributaries of the Orinoco and the lowlands and in part Yuruari sabaneras, limited to the east by the Imataca mountain range.

Hydrography

River in Canaima National Park. The golden tone is due to the presence of many minerals, dissolved in the water.

Except for the area included in the Yuruari-Cuyuni river basin, the entire state is included in the Orinoco drainage system. Among the most important rivers are the Caroní, the Paragua and the Caura, among others. All of them dig their channels through a rugged topography in the hard rocks of the Guiana shield, giving rise to rapid valleys and waterfalls. These unevenness have allowed, in the case of the Caroní River, to establish powerful hydroelectric plants. The Guri Reservoir and Simón Bolívar Hydroelectric Power Plant (formerly Raúl Leoni), which covers more than 80,000 hectares, is the most important electricity generation center in Venezuela. The Churún river, a tributary of the Caroní, flows from the Auyantepui plateau with a drop of 936.60 meters: Angel Falls, the highest in the world.

Surface

The Bolívar State is the largest State in Venezuela and covers a large area of 242,801 km², which represents 26.49% of the national total. In addition, from Iure, it owns the territories of Guayana Esequiba that are located to the south of the Sierra de Imataca and Cuyuní river, Cuyuní-Mazaruní, Potaro-Siparuni and Alto Tacutu-Alto Esequibo, which increases the territory by 124,414 km².

The geography of Bolívar state is as follows: it is located in the southeast of Venezuela, it has jungle vegetation and a savannah climate. The State is limited in majority by the Orinoco river, which delimits with several states of Venezuela and with the Republic of Brazil. In addition to the Cooperative Republic of Guyana it borders the state through the Essequibo River, although this is currently disputed.

Political-territorial organization

Bolívar State is made up of 11 municipalities, with 47 parishes and 1 disputed territory with Guyana.

Municipalities of Bolivar
Brazil Guayana Esquiba Amazon Apure Guárico Anzoátegui Delta Amacuro Angosture Caroní Chien Cedeño The Callao Grand Sabana Angostura del Orinoco Piar Roscio Siphomen Sucre

Demographics

Populated centers

Bolivar City is the capital; famous for its colonial architecture.

Bolívar state is made up of several towns, but some are outstanding for certain reasons, which make some of those towns more livable than others. Some of these large populations are:

• Guayana City (formed by San Félix de Guayana and Puerto Ordaz).
• Ciudad Bolívar
• Caicara del Orinoco
• City Piar
• The Callao
• The Dorado
• Maripa
• St. Helena de Uairén
• Tumeremo
• Up.
• Guasipati
• El Palmar

Transportation

Access to the State is possible by water, land and air; the entrance from the states of Amazonas, Apure, Guárico, Anzoátegui, Monagas and Delta Amacuro; being the international airports of Ciudad Bolívar and Ciudad Guayana the most important, it also has international access. Other national traffic airports are in La Urbana, Caicara del Orinoco, Upata, Guasipati, La Paragua, El Dorado, Santa Elena de Uairén, Canaima and other smaller ones distributed throughout the entity.

The main land routes are the North trunk highway 19 that crosses the Orinoco River through the Angostura bridge from Soledad, Independencia Municipality, in Anzoátegui state to Ciudad Bolívar and continues to Ciudad Guayana; and the Highway that crosses the Orinoco through the Orinoquia Bridge and joins the Trunk Highway 19 very close to Ciudad Guayana. This is where trunk line 10 starts via Upata, Guasipati, El Callao, Tumeremo, El Dorado, La Escalera – Gran Sabana- km 88, to Santa Elena de Uairén, crosses the border with Brazil, reaches the Line to continue to Boa Vista and Manaus Brazil. Other roads communicate with Amazonas state to the west.

The waterways are mainly in the Orinoco, in fishing boats among others, but there are also trips through certain rivers of the State, such as the Caura and the Caroní.

Economy

In the Bolívar State there are large energy sources that are very important for Venezuela (the Guri Dam, among others), famous agricultural products (Guayanese cheese, cotton, cassava, blasted cassava, white and brown catalinas, naiboa, among others), and many minerals in great demand (iron, gold, bauxite, among others), located in Ciudad Guayana.

Steel Industry

Bolívar State has the Siderúrgica del Orinoco (SIDOR), which is responsible for the production of steel with Direct Reduction technologies and Electric Arc Furnaces, with natural resources available in the Guayana region. The company has been affected by the low production of the item, for 2007 the plant produced 4.3 million tons while for 2017, it only produces 260,000 metric tons of steel.

Coltan Company

In 2017, coltan began to be produced by the company Parguaza, a company constituted by the Venezuelan State and the Venezuelan corporation Faoz.

Culture

In numerous indigenous cultures of the Bolívar State there are musical and craft manifestations. In other environments the joropo is danced, exactly to the northwest of the State, due to the proximity of the Guariqueños and Apureños plains, the passage, the blows, the tunes to the sound of the harp, cuatro and maracas, are characteristic of this area of Bolívar. The carnivals in El Callao are very colorful, which have already gained fame and tradition with the peculiar Guyanese Calipso. This dance originated with the arrival of the West Indians who brought their customs and their typical English, mixed with ours, emerging together with the local patois and many more customs.

Handicrafts in the Bolívar State are mostly referred to basketry, made with moriche palm. The indigenous people make objects that are utilitarian and that are highly sought after by tourists, such as peony seed necklaces, San Pedro tears, toucan beaks, etc.…

House of Culture: Carlos Raúl Villanueva House of Culture (Ciudad Bolívar),

María Cova Fernández House of Culture (Upata),

House of Culture Ciudad Guayana,

Maripa House of Culture,

Tumeremo Cultural Complex

Ethnicities

Bolívar State is home to various ethnic groups native to the country. Among the main groups are the Pemones, the Yekuana-Sanemá, the Panares, the Hotis and the Piaroas. All of these groups speak their own languages, although most also speak Spanish.

Languages

Apart from Spanish, which is the main language, several languages are spoken in some sectors of Bolívar.

• Caribbean family: pemon, yekuana, panare and akawayo
• Yanomamo family: Sanemá
• English: San Martín de Turumbán

In addition, there are isolated languages such as Joti. The Arutani-Sapé languages have probably become extinct. According to article 9 of the Constitution of the Bolívar State of 2001, Spanish is the official language of the State and all aboriginal languages are official for their respective peoples. It also has the Portuguese language for Brazilian emigrants in the Sifontes municipality

Folklore

In the numerous indigenous cultures of the Bolívar State, there are musical and craft manifestations.

The inhabitants of the jungle use reed flutes and rattles for their spiritual invocations or for joy in moments of collective expansion. Music that is characterized by being sad, monodic, but beautifully made.

In other environments the joropo is danced, exactly to the northwest of the State, due to its proximity to the Guariqueños and Apureños plains; the passage, the blows, the tunes to the sound of the harp, maracas and cuatro are characteristic in this area of the Bolívar State.

Penetrating inland, the carnivals in El Callao are very colorful, which already have fame and tradition with the peculiar Calipso.

The Guyanese Calypso originated with the arrival of West Indians to the State, who bringing their customs in their typical English, mixed with ours, emerging calypso and many more customs. Notable figure of the carnival comparsas and its main sponsor was the popularly called Negra Isidora, who gave this show a lot of importance.

Sports

Cachamay Stadium located in Guayana City.

The Bolívar State has several professional soccer teams that participate in the different divisions of professional soccer, the most important being Mineros de Guayana, the one that has obtained the most national and international achievements and one of the best in Venezuela and the LALA F.C. which both teams that play in the First Division of Venezuela, Chicó de Guayana F.C. and the AIFI Foundation, both teams are active in the Second Division of Venezuela, all based at the Cachamay Stadium in Ciudad Guayana with capacity for 41,600 spectators, Angostura F.C. Minervén F.C. (formerly Minerven del Callao) team that plays in the Second Division of Venezuela, and Minasoro F.C. the oldest club in Venezuela which was founded in 1958, a team that plays in the Third Division of Venezuela, both based in the Héctor Thomas Stadium in El Callao with capacity for 5,000 spectators.

The 2007 Copa América, held throughout Venezuela, including the Bolívar State, some matches were played in the re-inaugurated Cachamay Stadium, for which it has been the largest international event held in the State, there have also been various international tournaments of lower categories and has hosted several games of the Copa Libertadores, the Copa Conmebol and the Copa Sudamericana.

It also has the largest baseball stadium in the country, the La Ceiba Stadium in Ciudad Guayana, recently restored and with a capacity for 30,000 spectators.

In 2007, with the expansion of the Professional Basketball League of Venezuela, the awarding of a franchise in the area of basketball was approved, which was initially called Macizos de Guayana and at the beginning of 2008 in its presentation to the press was renamed like Gigantes de Guayana, which became the tenth team in the Venezuelan basketball league playing since then at the Hermanas González Gymnasium.

At the end of 2011, the first season of the new Venezuelan Volleyball Super League was held, where the Huracanes de Bolívar team debuted, it was the champion of the 2011 season, beating the Industriales de Valencia team in the final, it dominated all the season from start to finish demonstrating the high level and his supremacy in Venezuela

Gastronomy

The gastronomy of the Bolívar State is the result of the fusion of various Venezuelan indigenous cultures. It is characterized by the use of cassava, cashews, corn and fish, from which dishes with unique and extraordinary flavors derive.

The Bolívar State has a very varied gastronomy using the products of the area, being the cassava (prepared from cassava) the main accompaniment of the various dishes, standing out later the river fish known as sapoara and cashews from where Various sweets, nougats, etc. are prepared. Varieties of cheeses are also made, such as: telita, hand cheese and guayanés, among others.

The sapoara, gastronomic tradition of the Bolívar State, is a fish that abounds in the vicinity of the Orinoco and Caroní rivers, it is famous in Ciudad Bolívar and in general in all the riverside areas of the Orinoco river. This fish is prepared in sancocho, fried, stuffed and roasted. It is defined by specialists as the most characteristic and distinctive fish of Ciudad Bolívar due to its habit of appearing once a year, being one of the few places where it can be fished, in front of the Orinoco promenade in Ciudad Bolívar.

The fishing of the sapoara, takes place exactly in front of the dock where the boats that transport the inhabitants of Ciudad Bolívar and Soledad arrive, here the great festival of the city is held during the month of August of each year known internationally as "The Sapoara Fair".

One of the most famous dishes that is prepared with the sapoara is the dorada, baked, stuffed and the morrocoy cake cut into wheels, in sancocho and the rest is left to the imagination of housewives or great chefs of the gastronomic item that abound in the State.

This is how the recipes of specialists who have been cooking for demanding national and international palates for years suggest that the fish can be prepared fried (dorado), with salt and garlic as the main ingredient. If you prefer to eat it baked, you should not forget to open the back and cover it with salt, applying various seasonings such as chopped seasonings (chili, onion, paprika), mustard, etc., and fill it with vegetables and egg and then wrap it in aluminum foil, placing in the oven until golden brown. This dish can be accompanied by cassava, salad and rice or with some gratin potatoes, all according to the taste of each person.

The sancocho de sapoara, is undoubtedly also a delight of the culinary art of the Bolívar State; It is prepared like any soup and the vegetables and seasonings of your choice are added. This fish, due to its condition and only appearance during one month of the year, forces everyone to enjoy its nutrients and its rich flavor.

Without a doubt, this variety that the Bolívar State offers is marked by the different cultures that make up our region. A tradition that is kept alive by our indigenous people despite time, where the inhabitants and visitors are part of it. Gastronomy of the Bolívar State

Politics and government

Canaima, is located in the southeast of the Bolivar State.

The State is autonomous and politically equal to the rest of the Federation, it organizes its administration and its Public Powers through the Constitution of the Bolívar State, approved by the Legislative Council in Ciudad Bolívar on July 2, 2001.

Executive Branch

It is made up of the Governor of Bolívar State and a group of State Secretaries. The Governor is elected by the people by direct and secret vote for a period of four years and with the possibility of being reelected continuously, being in charge of the state administration. The current governor is Angel Marcano of the PSUV.

Legislative branch

The legislature of the State rests on the unicameral Legislative Council of the Bolívar State, elected by the people through direct and secret vote every four years and may be re-elected continuously, under a system of proportional representation of the population of the State and its municipalities, the State has 15 deputies, of which 4 belong to the opposition and 11 to the ruling party, including a representation of the indigenous peoples and communities of the Bolívar State.