Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a country located in the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands, along with Saint Martin, that are shared by two sovereign states; the Dominican Republic is the second-largest Caribbean nation by area at 48,671 square kilometers, third by population with 10 million people, of which three million live in the metropolitan area of Santo Domingo, the capital city. Christopher Columbus landed on the island on December 5, 1492, which the native Taíno people had inhabited since the 7th century; the colony of Santo Domingo became the site of the first permanent European settlement in the Americas, the oldest continuously inhabited city, the first seat of the Spanish colonial rule in the New World. After more than three hundred years of Spanish rule the Dominican people declared independence in November 1821.
The leader of the independence movement José Núñez de Cáceres, intended the Dominican nation to unite with the country of Gran Colombia, but no longer under Spain's custody the newly independent Dominicans were forcefully annexed by Haiti in February 1822. Independence came 22 years after victory in the Dominican War of Independence in 1844. Over the next 72 years the Dominican Republic experienced internal conflicts and a brief return to colonial status before permanently ousting Spanish rule during the Dominican War of Restoration of 1863–1865. A United States occupation lasted eight years between 1916 and 1924, a subsequent calm and prosperous six-year period under Horacio Vásquez was followed by the dictatorship of Rafael Leónidas Trujillo until 1961. A civil war in 1965, the country's last, was ended by U. S. military occupation and was followed by the authoritarian rule of Joaquín Balaguer, the rules of Antonio Guzmán & Salvador Jorge Blanco. Since 1996, the Dominican Republic has moved toward representative democracy and has been led by Leonel Fernández for most of the time since 1996.
Danilo Medina, the Dominican Republic's current president, succeeded Fernandez in 2012, winning 51% of the electoral vote over his opponent ex-president Hipólito Mejía. The Dominican Republic has the ninth-largest economy in Latin America and is the largest economy in the Caribbean and Central American region. Over the last two decades, the Dominican Republic has had one of the fastest-growing economies in the Americas – with an average real GDP growth rate of 5.4% between 1992 and 2014. GDP growth in 2014 and 2015 reached 7.3 and 7.0% the highest in the Western Hemisphere. In the first half of 2016 the Dominican economy grew 7.4% continuing its trend of rapid economic growth. Recent growth has been driven by construction, manufacturing and mining; the country is the site of the second largest gold mine in the Pueblo Viejo mine. Private consumption has been strong, as a result of low inflation, job creation, as well as a high level of remittances; the Dominican Republic is the most visited destination in the Caribbean.
The year-round golf courses are major attractions. A geographically diverse nation, the Dominican Republic is home to both the Caribbean's tallest mountain peak, Pico Duarte, the Caribbean's largest lake and point of lowest elevation, Lake Enriquillo; the island has an average temperature of biological diversity. The country is the site of the first cathedral, castle and fortress built in the Americas, located in Santo Domingo's Colonial Zone, a World Heritage Site. Music and sport are of great importance in the Dominican culture, with Merengue and Bachata as the national dance and music, baseball as the favorite sport; the "Dominican" word comes from the Latin Dominicus. However, the island has this name by Santo Domingo de Guzmán, founder of the Order of the Dominicans; the Dominicans established a house of high studies in the island of Santo Domingo that today is known as the Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo and dedicated themselves to the protection of the native taínos of the island, who were subjected to slavery, to the education of the inhabitants of the island.
For most of its history, up until independence, the country was known as Santo Domingo—the name of its present capital and patron saint, Saint Dominic—and continued to be known as such in English until the early 20th century. The residents were called "Dominicans", the adjective form of "Domingo", the revolutionaries named their newly independent country "Dominican Republic". In the national anthem of the Dominican Republic, the term "Dominicans" does not appear; the author of its lyrics, Emilio Prud'Homme uses the poetic term "Quisqueyans". The word "Quisqueya" derives from a native tongue of the Taino Indians and means "Mother of the lands", it is used in songs as another name for the country. The name of the country is shortened to "the D. R." The Arawakan-speaking Taíno moved into Hispaniola from the north east region of what is now known as South America, displacing earlier inhabitants, c. AD 650, they engaged in hunting and gathering. The fierce Caribs drove the Taíno to the northeastern Caribbean during much of the 15th century.
The estimates of Hispaniola's population in 1492 vary including one hundred thousand, three hundred thousand, an
Samaná Province
Samaná is a province of the Dominican Republic in the Samaná Peninsula. Its capital is Santa Bárbara de Samaná known as Samaná. Samaná is on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean in the northeastern part of the Dominican Republic, it is known for the mountains of which it is entirely formed. Samaná has numerous beaches. On 6 November 2006 the Samaná El Catey International Airport, started operations. Samana was discovered by Europeans on January 12, 1493 by Christopher Columbus, greeted with a barrage of spears and arrows from native Taíno warriors, it is said that this was the first instance of violent opposition to the Spanish conquistadors in the Americas. The Samaná Province is home to what are known in the Dominican Republic as Americanos de Samaná where descendants of free black Americans immigrated beginning in 1824, they took advantage of the pro-African immigration policy of president Jean Pierre Boyer when Samaná was under Haitian rule. This migration to Santa Bárbara, Samaná began with 34 African-American families.
This African-American culture distinguished themselves from the rest of the Dominican Republic as they maintain many elements of 19th century African-American culture—such as their brand of English, games, community organizations, African-American names, manners and some recipes that have been preserved as a result of their isolation, which until the 20th century was accessible only by boat. Most are of the African Methodist Episcopal and Wesleyan faith brought to the island by their ancestors. Samaná is one of the breeding places of the humpback whale. Thousands of humpback whales come to the coast off Samaná from January to March. At one time proposed to be the capital of the country, Samaná was to be sold to the United States as a military base during Pedro Santana's presidency, but the deal was never realized, because the United States felt that the cost was too much. A highway connecting the Samaná peninsula to Santo Domingo is opened to the public in 2008, it halved the driving time from 4 hours to 1.5 hours as it is a straight 120 kilometres, connecting from just east of Santo Domingo to just west of Sanchez.
There is a significant tourist development evident throughout the Samaná peninsula that of large all-inclusive resorts, in anticipation of the increased tourism to follow the road's completion. The province as of June 20, 2006 is divided into the following municipalities and municipal districts within them: Sánchez Samaná Arroyo Barril El Limón Las Galeras Las Terrenas The following is a sortable table of the municipalities with population figures as of an estimate on the 2012 census. Urban population are those living of municipal districts. Rural population are those living in the neighborhoods outside of them. For comparison with the municipalities and municipal districts of other provinces see the list of municipalities and municipal districts of the Dominican Republic. Samaná has one harbor. Airports El Portillo Airport, Located in El Portillo, Samaná. Arroyo Barril Airport, Located in Arroyo Barril, Samaná. Samaná El Catey International Airport, Located in Sanchez, SamanáPorts Cayo Levantado Port, located in Arroyo Barril, near Arroyo Barril International Airport, Samaná.
Samaná Bay Samaná English Samaná Peninsula Familias de Samaná, Sabana de la Mar y Sanchez, historia El Catey International Airport Samana Oficina Nacional de Estadística, Statistics Portal of the Dominican Republic A blog post about the Dominican Republic's African-American descendants that established themselves in Samaná Clips of a documentary by Nestor Montilla Sr. that depicts the saga of thousands of free African-Americans who fled and settled in Samaná
Peravia Province
Peravia is a province of the Dominican Republic. Before January 1, 2002 it was included in what is the new San José de Ocoa province, published statistics and maps relate it to the old, Peravia, it is named after the Peravia Valley. Along the Azua Province, Peravia is characterized by its dry climate and its dunes that surround the coast. One popular attraction is the Salinas beach, which has grown to be a popular tourist destination with a developed town that has shops and hotels; the province as of June 20, 2006 is divided into the following municipalities and municipal districts within them: Baní Catalina El Carretón El Limonal Paya Villa Fundación Villa Sombrero MatanzasSabana Buey Nizao Pizarrete Santana The following is a sortable table of the municipalities and municipal districts with population figures as of the 2012 census. Urban population are those living of municipal districts. Rural population are those living in the neighborhoods outside of them. For comparison with the municipalities and municipal districts of other provinces see the list of municipalities and municipal districts of the Dominican Republic.
Oficina Nacional de Estadística, Statistics Portal of the Dominican Republic Oficina Nacional de Estadística, Maps with administrative division of the provinces of the Dominican Republic, downloadable in PDF format
Carlos Febles
Carlos Manuel Febles is a retired professional baseball player who played second base in the Major Leagues. He was listed at 5 ft 11 in and 170 lb, he is the third base coach for the Boston Red Sox. After attending high school in the Dominican Republic at La Romana High, he was signed by the Kansas City Royals in 1993 as an amateur free agent. A touted prospect in the late 1990s, Febles burst onto the scene in 1999, drawing hype as a potential Rookie of the Year candidate and one of the best glovemen in the game. Along with Carlos Beltrán, he became part of the "Dos Carlos" team in Kansas City. After a hot start however, Febles' hitting cooled off, he would continue to struggle at the plate for the next three seasons, it was not until 2003 that the Royals gave up on Febles, but not before he had logged the third most games at second base in Royals' history. In 506 Major League games played, all with Kansas City, Febles collected 414 hits, including 65 doubles, 18 triples and 24 home runs. Febles has been a coach or manager in the Boston Red Sox' organization since 2007.
He began as a hitting coach with Lancaster JetHawks and Salem Red Sox. He was named the 2011 manager of the Spinners, the Red Sox' Short-Season A New York–Penn League farm club. After one season, Febles was promoted to manage the Greenville Drive, the Red Sox' affiliate in the Class A South Atlantic League and rehired for 2013. Another promotion followed when Febles was appointed manager of the 2014 Salem Red Sox, Boston's Class A Carolina League affiliate. Febles led the Red Sox to a 68–68 record and a berth in the Carolina League playoffs, where they were defeated by the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, two games to one, in the opening round. Febles was reappointed as Salem's pilot for 2015, led them to a 66–73 mark, he was promoted to manager of the Double-A Portland Sea Dogs for 2016. In 2017, Febles spent his second consecutive year as the Sea Dogs' skipper. Through 2017, his won-lost record as a manager was 400–504. Febles was named third base coach for the MLB Red Sox on November 2, 2017. Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference
Dominican Liberation Party
The Dominican Liberation Party is the current governing political party in the Dominican Republic. Founded in 1973 by former president Juan Bosch, the party, along with the Dominican Revolutionary Party, have dominated politics in the country since the establishment of democracy; the party has been elected into office four times now, with Danilo Medina as current President of the Dominican Republic, in the 1996, 2004, 2008 and 2012 elections, though losing in 2000. In May 2006 the party and its allies gained control of both houses of Congress. At the legislative elections, 16 May 2002, the party won 29.1% of the popular vote and 41 out of 150 seats in the Chamber of Deputies and 2 out of 31 seats in the Senate. Its candidate at the presidential election of 16 May 2004, Leonel Fernández, won 57.1% of the vote. Founded by Juan Bosch in 1973, the PLD was to the left of Bosch's original party, the Dominican Revolutionary Party. Bosch did not win. Following Bosch’s retirement, Fernandez became the leader of the party and won the 1996 presidential elections after forming an alliance with Dr. Joaquín Balaguer, Bosch’s political enemy for over 30 years.
He did not run for another term in 2000, but returned to the presidency in 2004. The party's logo is a yellow five-pointed star on a purple background. In the 16 May 2006 legislative elections, the party led the Progressive Bloc, that won 96 out of 178 deputies and 22 out of 32 senators. On May 16, 2008, presidential elections were carried and PLD candidate Leonel Fernández won 54%, defeating 7 other presidential candidates. On May 16, 2010, congressional and municipal elections held, the Dominican Liberation Party won a majority of Senators and Representatives, as well the largest number of mayors around the country. On May 20, 2012 the PLD won its third straight Presidential elections with its candidate Danilo Medina, with 51.2% of the vote, against former President Hipólito Mejía, from the Dominican Revolutionary Party who obtained 46.9% on these elections. By 2016, the PLD will have retained the Presidency of the Dominican Republic for 16 out of the previous 20 years, will become the only party in Dominican Republic to have attained this achievement in the country's democratic history, after the dictatorship of Rafael Trujillo which lasted between 1930 until 1961.
Liberalism Contributions to liberal theory Liberalism worldwide List of liberal parties Liberal democracy Dominican Liberation Party official site
Distrito Nacional
The Distrito Nacional is a subdivision of the Dominican Republic enclosing the capital Santo Domingo. It is not in any of the provinces. Before October 16, 2001, the Distrito Nacional was much larger, including what is now known as Santo Domingo Province. Published statistics and maps show the former, Distrito Nacional; the Distrito Nacional has no undeveloped areas. The Poligono Central is the central area of Santo Domingo. Upscale neighborhoods of Naco and Paraiso are located within this central poligon. Most of the financial activity in Santo Domingo is located in the Poligono; the Distrito Nacional houses the central government's executive branch Presidential Office, the national congressional building and the top judicial court building. It houses all the nationwide public office's main buildings, called Ministerios. For the main article, please select Ciudad Colonial; the Ciudad Colonial is the oldest continually occupied European settlement in the Western hemisphere, established by Bartholomew Columbus and the Spanish explorers in the New World.
It has several historic landmarks and is declared as World Heritage Site by the UNESCO. There are various nightlife activities available inside the Distrito Nacional. Upscale nightclubs, hotels, restaurants with international bars are available. Discothèque DJs and live performances caters both local sounds and dance music Most nightclubs alternate between the two main genres. Several chain restaurants are available serving dinner up to midnight. Most restaurants within hotels don't close at all, the majority of casinos serve complimentary snacks all night. Most restaurants are specialized on the following cuisines: Local, French, Mexican, Seafood and Japanese). There are several movie cinemas that are on par with worldwide premiers. Jazz music outlets, live theater, live concerts and sports events are available throghtout the whole week. Distrito Nacional has several urban parks, the largest one, Parque Mirador Sur, overlooking the Caribbean Sea from a high cliff from the Avenida Mirador Sur, it has several miles of open road designed for picnic and cycling.
Roller skating and Kendo are practiced in areas of the park. Other places in the area include: Plaza de la Cultura Juan Pablo Duarte - which houses several national museums and is host of the International Book Fair, it houses the Teatro Nacional. The Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional holds concerts under the direction of Maestro José Antonio Molina. Centro Olímpico Juan Pablo Duarte - Olympic facility in the center of the city, it includes the Estadio Olímpico Félix Sánchez. Estadio Quisqueya - baseball stadium, home of two national teams: Tigres del Licey and Leones del Escogido; the former is the winningest team of the Caribbean Series. There are several shopping malls that represent international brands of clothing, electronic goods and the like. Banks, barber shops, internet cafés, travel agencies, dental offices and supermarkets can all be found under a single roof. There are plenty of private schools that offer teaching in both Spanish and English. Among the public universities is the first university of the Americas, Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo, located near the center-south of the city.
The first private university, Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra, has a campus nearby. The Distrito Nacional boasts the first and only underground public transportation system in the country; the first line connects the Distrito Nacional with Santo Domingo Norte. Other means of public transportation include: taxi services, public bus routes, urban transportation by bus, local airports and rent cars. International flights are handled by the near Las Américas International Airport, it can be reached from the city center through some 20 miles of expanded expressway and new suspension bridge. The Distrito Nacional is represented in the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies on the same scale as a Province, its local government is the same as the provincial municipios, without the equivalent of a provincial tier of government. The Distrito Nacional is subdivided in incorporated areas called sectores which could be considered as small urban towns. All sectores are serviced directly by the municipal mayor's office.
Some sectores prefixes: Ciudad - applies to the original older parts of town, some dating back to colonial times. Villa - the urban outskirts of both the old city of Santo Domingo and the current Distrito Nacional. Oficina Nacional de Estadística, Statistics Portal of the Dominican Republic Oficina Nacional de Estadística, Maps with administrative division of the provinces of the Dominican Republic, downloadable in PDF format "Barrios y sub-barrios del Distrito Nacional", City Council of the National District
La Romana Province, Dominican Republic
La Romana is a province of the Dominican Republic. The capital is named La Romana, is the third-largest city in the country. La Romana was elevated to the category of province in 1944. La Romana is home to Casa de Campo, one of the world's largest resorts and top golfing destinations, including the Teeth of the Dog golf course. Many international and local artists perform at "Altos de Chavón", an artistic community and university; the province as of June 20, 2006 is divided into the following municipalities and municipal districts within them: Guaymate La Romana La Caleta Villa Hermosa Cumayasa The following is a sortable table of the municipalities with population figures as of an estimate on the 2012 census. Urban population are those living of municipal districts. Rural population are those living in the neighborhoods outside of them. For comparison with the municipalities and municipal districts of other provinces see the list of municipalities and municipal districts of the Dominican Republic.
Oficina Nacional de Estadística, Statistics Portal of the Dominican Republic Oficina Nacional de Estadística, Maps with administrative division of the provinces of the Dominican Republic, downloadable in PDF format
Dominican Republic
