El Tocuyo
El Tocuyo | |
|---|---|
Shire Town | |
 El Tocuyo Cathedral (Temple of La Concepcion) | |
 Flag Municipio-ESCUDO.jpg) Seal | |
.svg)  El Tocuyo Location in Venezuela | |
| Coordinates: 9°46′56″N 69°47′35″W / 9.78222°N 69.79306°W | |
| Country |  Venezuela |
| State | Lara |
| Municipality | Morán Municipality |
| Demonym | Tocuyano |
| Founded | 7 December 1545 |
| Area | |
| • Total | 2,231 km2 (861 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 622 m (2,041 ft) |
| Population (2001) | |
| • Total | 41,327 |
| Demonym | Tocuyano/a |
| postal code | 3018 |
| Area code | 0253 |
| Climate | Aw |
El Tocuyo is a fertile valley and city in west-central Venezuela at 622 m (2,041 ft) elevation. It is located in south-central Lara State about 60 km southwest of Barquisimeto. The town of El Tocuyo was founded by Juan de Carvajal in 1545 on the banks of the Tocuyo River and it was the administrative capital of Venezuela Province from 1546 to 1548. Its original name was Nuestra Señora de la Pura y Limpia Concepción del Tocuyo. El Tocuyo is now just the municipal seat of Morán. Its population is 41,327 (2001).
The surrounding area has good soil and an ideal climate for agriculture, dry and warm with plenty of water available from the Tocuyo River. The area has been occupied since prehistoric times. When the Spanish arrived they found the Gayones Indians, who inhabited this valley, sowing corn and other agricultural products as cotton and yucca. After the Spanish came, sugar cane was, for centuries, the biggest crop; but since 1980 vegetables such as tomatoes, onions, chiles, and potatoes are taking its place.[citation needed]
History
[edit]Foundation
[edit]In 1545, Philipp von Hutten, a German captain general representing the Welser bankers of Augsburg, embarked on an expedition in search of El Dorado, leaving Santa Ana de Coro, where Spanish relatives faced hardships. Juan de Carvajal, a Crown notary since around 1530, opposed the Welsers, denouncing their exploitations. Carvajal, having served in Hispaniola, returned to Coro in 1544 as lieutenant governor, and led an expedition to found a new city, El Tocuyo, in 1545, due to Coro's inhospitable conditions.[1][2]
El Tocuyo Award
[edit]Formerly known as "Ruth Ocumárez Award" which being granted to those contestants in Miss Universe that was highly favored by the pageant fans to be in the semifinals but didn't made to be in the first cut.[3][4] Mariam Habach is the founder of El Tocuyo Awards way back in 2016.
Miss El Tocuyo titleholders
[edit]| Year | Represented | Titleholder | Age | Hometown | National title | Continent | Host city and country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Venezuela
|
Mariam Habach | 21 | Lara (state) | Miss Venezuela 2015 | South America | Pasay, Metro Manila, Philippines |
| 2017 |  Mexico
|
Denisse Franco | 19 | Culiacán | Nuestra Belleza México 2017 | North America | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States |
 Ecuador
|
Virginia Limongi | 24 | Portoviejo | Miss Ecuador 2018 | South America | Bangkok, Thailand | |
 Argentina
|
Mariana Varela | 23 | Avellaneda | Miss Universe Argentina 2019 | South America | Atlanta, Georgia, United States | |
 South Africa
|
Natasha Joubert | 23 | Centurion | Miss Universe South Africa 2020 | Africa | Hollywood, Florida, United States | |
 Spain
|
Sarah Loinaz | 23 | San Sebastián | Miss Universe Spain 2021 | Europe | Eilat, Israel | |
 Philippines
|
Celeste Cortesi | 25 | Pasay | Miss Universe Philippines 2022 | Asia-Pacific | New Orleans, Louisiana, United States | |
| Mexico
|
Melissa Flores | 25 | Venustiano Carranza | Mexicana Universal | North America | San Salvador, El Salvador | |
| TBA | TBA | TBA | TBA | TBA | Mexico City, Mexico |
Notable people
[edit]- Lisandro Alvarado (b. 1858 - d. 1929) - Doctor, Naturalist, Historian, Ethnologist, and Linguist
- Mariam Habach (b. 1996) - Dentist, psychologist, former Miss Venezuela 2015, and Miss Universe 2016 contestant. Founder of El Tocuyo Awards in 2016.
- Zulmarys Sánchez (b. 1987) - Venezuelan olympic sprint canoer.
References
[edit]- ^ Sixto Laya, Gimón. Guatopo Gold Mines and the Conquest, Venezuela, 16th Century.
- ^ "Venezuela - a country study" (PDF). Federal Research Division Library of Congress. ISBN 0-8444-0747-X.
- ^ "Miss U judge explains why Venezuela didn't make the first cut". ABS-CBN News. January 31, 2017. Event occurs at 6:39 PM, Philippine Standard Time (UTC+8). Retrieved 11 January 2023.
- ^ Bracamonte, Earl D. C. (May 20, 2021). "El Tocuyo: Miss Universe 2020 fan favorites who were snubbed as finalists". philstar.com. PhilStar Global. Retrieved 11 January 2023.
External links
[edit]
- "Historia de Venezuela para nosotros: El Tocuyo" Fundación Empresas Polar, in Spanish, title "History of Venezuela for us: El Tocuyo"
- https://web.archive.org/web/20160303220628/http://www.eltocuyo.8m.com/
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