Mao, Dominican Republic

Place in Valverde, Dominican Republic

Santa Cruz de Mao

Mao

Sign in Mao, Dominican Republic

Seal

Santa Cruz de Mao

Mao in the Dominican Republic

Coordinates: 19°34′0″N 71°05′0″W﻿ / ﻿19.56667°N 71.08333°W﻿ / 19.56667; -71.08333
Country|  Dominican Republic
Province| Valverde
Founded| 1875
Municipality since| 1882
Area

[1]

• Total

| 423.60 km2 (163.55 sq mi)
Elevation

[2]

| 78 m (256 ft)
Population

(2019)[3]

• Total

| 207,818
• Density| 490/km2 (1,300/sq mi)
• Demonym

| Maeño(a)
Distance to
– Santo Domingo|
210 km
Municipal Districts|

Climate| BSh

The Dominican city of Santa Cruz de Mao, or simply Mao, is the head municipality of the Valverde province, in the northwest of the country.

It is the largest city of the Dominican northwest and the centre of the region. Its name, a Taíno word, comes from the River Mao, near the city. Its nickname is Ciudad de los Bellos Atardeceres (English, "City of the Beautiful Sunsets"); this was given by Juan De Jesus Reyes, renowned poet and Dominican literary icon. There are no mountains to the west of the city and it is common to see a "red" sky at sunset; it is a very dry region and there is much dust in the air which gives the sky a red color.

## History

[edit]

For most of its history, the region was called "El Despoblado"; that means a region without any population, because it is a very dry region and agriculture was not possible.

When the governor of the Spanish colony gave the order in 1606 that everybody living on the northern coast had to move inland, some people came to live around the present Mao. They had cattle that were raised in hatos. "Hato" means a large farm for raising cattle (a ranch), and so the names of many places around Mao derive from the word: Hatico, Hato del Yaque, Hato Nuevo, Hato Viejo, Hato del Medio.[4]

The town of Mao was built close to where the River Mao flows into the River Yaque del Norte. The first Catholic church was built in 1869.

The town was made a Puesto Cantonal (an old category similar to the present Municipal District under a military government). Mao was elevated to the category of municipality in 1882, and in 1904 its official name was changed to "Valverde" after José Desiderio Valverde, former President of the Dominican Republic.[4] Because the name Mao was known by everybody and Valverde was a new name, people called the city "Valverde (Mao)", and it is still common to say so.

When the province was created in 1959, Mao was made its head municipality and provincial capital.[4]

## Santa Cruz de Mao city

[edit]

*   *   *   *

## Climate

[edit]

Hotel in Mao, Dominican Republic city

Unlike the humid northern coast of the Dominican Republic, Mao is located in a sheltered valley and like the southern coastal fringe of Hispaniola, has a hot semi-arid climate (Köppen BSh), with the temperature being warm year-round and some months being wetter than others. Mao receives 699.6 millimetres (27.54 in) of rainfall annually over 60.8 precipitation days. The driest month is January, which receives 21.3 millimetres (0.84 in) of rain on average, and the wettest month is May, which receives 119.1 millimetres (4.69 in) of rainfall on average. May also has the most precipitation days of any month (9.3) and July has the least (2.5). On 31 August 1954, Mao recorded a temperature of 43.0 °C (109.4 °F), which is the highest temperature to have ever been recorded in the Dominican Republic.[5]

Climate data for Mao, Dominican Republic (1961-1990)

Month  | Jan  | Feb  | Mar  | Apr  | May  | Jun  | Jul  | Aug  | Sep  | Oct  | Nov  | Dec  | Year
Record high °C (°F)  | 36.8
(98.2)  | 38.8
(101.8)  | 39.8
(103.6)  | 38.0
(100.4)  | 40.2
(104.4)  | 40.4
(104.7)  | 39.0
(102.2)  | 43.0
(109.4)  | 40.0
(104.0)  | 39.8
(103.6)  | 40.0
(104.0)  | 37.6
(99.7)  | 40.4
(104.7)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)  | 30.2
(86.4)  | 30.9
(87.6)  | 32.1
(89.8)  | 33.0
(91.4)  | 33.7
(92.7)  | 34.7
(94.5)  | 35.1
(95.2)  | 35.5
(95.9)  | 35.2
(95.4)  | 34.1
(93.4)  | 31.7
(89.1)  | 30.1
(86.2)  | 33.0
(91.4)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)  | 18.7
(65.7)  | 19.1
(66.4)  | 19.9
(67.8)  | 20.9
(69.6)  | 21.9
(71.4)  | 22.7
(72.9)  | 23.1
(73.6)  | 23.0
(73.4)  | 22.5
(72.5)  | 21.9
(71.4)  | 20.7
(69.3)  | 19.2
(66.6)  | 21.1
(70.0)
Record low °C (°F)  | 13.2
(55.8)  | 12.2
(54.0)  | 14.0
(57.2)  | 13.6
(56.5)  | 17.0
(62.6)  | 19.0
(66.2)  | 19.0
(66.2)  | 19.0
(66.2)  | 18.8
(65.8)  | 18.0
(64.4)  | 14.8
(58.6)  | 12.6
(54.7)  | 12.2
(54.0)
Average rainfall mm (inches)  | 21.6
(0.85)  | 34.4
(1.35)  | 38.5
(1.52)  | 71.4
(2.81)  | 119.1
(4.69)  | 72.0
(2.83)  | 27.3
(1.07)  | 42.9
(1.69)  | 75.3
(2.96)  | 81.9
(3.22)  | 74.9
(2.95)  | 40.3
(1.59)  | 699.6
(27.53)
Average rainy days (≥ 1.0 mm) | 3.0  | 3.3  | 3.3  | 5.6  | 9.3  | 6.0  | 2.5  | 4.1  | 6.0  | 7.1  | 6.3  | 4.3  | 60.8
Source: NOAA[6]

## Economy

[edit]

The main economic activity of the province is agriculture; the main products in the municipality are rice, bananas and plantain.

## Notable people

[edit]

* Monica Boyar (1920–2013), Dominican-born American singer
* Pedro Borbón (1946-2012), Dominican professional baseball pitcher
* Félix Fermín (born October 9, 1963) Dominican former professional baseball shortstop /Manager in LIDOM
* Omar Minaya (born November 10, 1958) Dominican-born (MLB) baseball executive

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Superficies a nivel de municipios, Oficina Nacional de Estadistica Archived 2009-04-17 at the Wayback Machine
2. ^ De la Fuente, Santiago (1976). Geografía Dominicana (in Spanish). Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic: Editora Colegial Quisqueyana.
3. ^ Censo 2012 de Población y Vivienda, Oficina Nacional de Estadistica
4. ^ a b c Brea Tió, Héctor (1997). Mao y su gente (in Spanish). Santo Domingo: Librería La Trinitaria.
5. ^ Mejía, Mariela (7 January 2011). "Frío extremo, calor agobiante" (in Spanish). Diario Libre. Archived from the original on 4 November 2013. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
6. ^ "Mao Climate Normals 1961-1990". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (FTP). Retrieved September 18, 2016. (To view documents see Help:FTP)

* v
* t
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Provincial capitals of the Dominican Republic

* Azua
* Baní
* Barahona
* Bonao
* Comendador
* Cotuí
* Dajabón
* El Seibo
* Hato Mayor
* Higüey
* Jimaní
* La Romana
* La Vega
* Mao
* Moca
* Monte Cristi
* Monte Plata
* Nagua
* Neiba
* Pedernales
* Puerto Plata
* Sabaneta
* Salcedo
* Samaná
* San Cristóbal
* San Francisco de Macorís
* San José de Ocoa
* San Juan de la Maguana
* San Pedro de Macorís
* Santiago de los Caballeros
* Santo Domingo
* Santo Domingo Este

* v
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* e

Municipalities of the Dominican Republic

Azua|

* Azua de Compostela
* Estebanía
* Guayabal
* Las Charcas
* Padre Las Casas
* Peralta
* Pueblo Viejo
* Nueva Sabana Yegua
* Sabana Yegua
* Tábara Arriba
* Las Yayas de Viajama

Baoruco|

* Galván
* Los Ríos
* Neiba
* Tamayo
* Villa Jaragua

Barahona|

* Cabral
* El Peñón
* Enriquillo
* Fundación
* Jaquimeyes
* La Ciénaga
* Las Salinas
* Paraíso
* Polo
* Santa Cruz de Barahona
* Vicente Noble

Dajabón|

* Dajabón
* El Pino
* Loma de Cabrera
* Partido
* Restauración

Distrito Nacional|

See: Sectors

Duarte|

* Arenoso
* Castillo
* Eugenio María de Hostos
* Las Guáranas
* Pimentel
* San Francisco de Macorís
* Villa Riva

Elías Piña|

* Bánica
* Comendador
* El Llano
* Hondo Valle
* Juan Santiago
* Pedro Santana

El Seibo|

* Miches
* Santa Cruz de El Seibo

Espaillat|

* Cayetano Germosén
* Gaspar Hernández
* Jamao al Norte
* Moca
* San Víctor

Hato Mayor|

* El Valle
* Hato Mayor del Rey
* Sabana de la Mar

Hermanas Mirabal|

* Salcedo
* Tenares
* Villa Tapia

Independencia|

* Cristóbal
* Duvergé
* Jimaní
* La Descubierta
* Mella
* Postrer Río

La Altagracia|

* Higüey
* San Rafael del Yuma

La Romana|

* Guaymate
* La Romana
* Villa Hermosa

La Vega|

* Concepción de la Vega
* Constanza
* Jarabacoa
* Jima Abajo

María Trinidad Sánchez|

* Cabrera
* El Factor
* Río San Juan
* Nagua

Monseñor Nouel|

* Bonao
* Maimón
* Piedra Blanca

Monte Cristi|

* Castañuelas
* Guayubín
* Las Matas de Santa Cruz
* Pepillo Salcedo
* San Fernando de Monte Cristi
* Villa Vásquez

Monte Plata|

* Peralvillo
* Sabana Grande de Boyá
* Yamasá
* Bayaguana
* Monte Plata

Pedernales|

* Oviedo
* Pedernales

Puerto Plata|

* Altamira
* Guananico
* Imbert
* Los Hidalgos
* Luperón
* San Felipe de Puerto Plata
* Sosúa
* Villa Isabela
* Villa Montellano

Peravia|

* Baní
* Matanzas
* Nizao

Samaná|

* Las Terrenas
* Santa Bárbara de Samaná
* Sánchez

San Cristóbal|

* Bajos de Haina
* San Cristóbal
* Cambita Garabitos
* Los Cacaos
* Sabana Grande de Palenque
* San Gregorio de Nigua
* San Gregorio de Yaguate
* Villa Altagracia

San José de Ocoa|

* Rancho Arriba
* Sabana Larga
* San José de Ocoa

San Juan|

* Bohechío
* El Cercado
* Juan de Herrera
* Las Matas de Farfán
* San Juan de la Maguana
* Vallejuelo

San Pedro de Macorís|

* Consuelo
* Guayacanes
* Quisqueya
* Ramón Santana
* San José de los Llanos
* San Pedro de Macorís

Sánchez Ramírez|

* Cevicos
* Cotuí
* Fantino
* La Mata

Santiago|

* Baitoa
* Jánico
* Licey al Medio
* Puñal
* Sabana Iglesia
* San José de las Matas
* Santiago de los Caballeros
* Tamboril
* Bisonó
* Villa González

Santiago Rodríguez|

* San Ignacio de Sabaneta
* Monción
* Villa Los Almácigos

Santo Domingo|

* Los Alcarrizos
* Boca Chica
* Pedro Brand
* San Antonio de Guerra
* Santo Domingo Este
* Santo Domingo Norte
* Santo Domingo Oeste

Valverde|

* Esperanza
* Laguna Salada
* Santa Cruz de Mao

Authority control databases

International|

* VIAF

National|

* Germany
* United States

Other|

* Yale LUX

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