| Settlement Type: | Municipality |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | Cuba |
| Subdivision Type1: | Province |
| Subdivision Name1: | Ciego de Ávila |
| Subdivision Type2: | Province of Ciego de Avila |
| Leader Title: | President |
| Leader Name: | Viviana Martínez Cárdenas |
| Established Title: | Established |
| Established Date: | 1840 |
| Area Total Km2: | 450 |
| Population As Of: | 2022 |
| Population Total: | 156,322 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Population Urban: | 131,551 |
| Population Density Urban Km2: | auto |
| Population Demonym: | Avileño/a |
| Timezone: | EST |
| Utc Offset: | -5 |
| Coordinates: | 21.8481°N -78.7631°W |
| Elevation M: | 55 |
| Postal Code Type: | Postal code |
| Postal Code: | 65200 |
| Area Code: | +53 43 |
| Blank Name: | Highways |
| Blank Info: | Carretera Central |
| Ciego de Avila | |
| Population Rural: | 24,771 |
Ciego de Ávila (pronounced as /es/) is a city in the central part of Cuba and the capital of Ciego de Ávila Province. The capital city has a population of about 156,322 and the province 430,507.[1]
Ciego de Ávila lies on the Carretera Central highway and on a major railroad. Its port, Júcaro, lies 24km (15miles) south-southwest on the coast of the Gulf of Ana Maria of the Caribbean Sea, in the adjacent municipality of Venezuela. The city is located about 460km (290miles) east of Havana and 110km (70miles) west of the city of Camagüey. It was part of the Camagüey Province until 1976, when Fidel Castro's government made Ciego de Ávila the capital of the newly created Ciego de Ávila Province.
By 1945, the municipality was divided into the barrios of Angel Castillo, Ceballos, Guanales, Jagüeyal, Jicotea, José Miguel Gómez, Júcaro, La Ceiba, Majagua, Norte, San Nicolás and Sur. After the new political and administrative division of Cuba in 1976, it was divided into four municipalities (Majagua, Ciego de Ávila, Baragua, and Venezuela).[2]
Ciego de Ávila experiences a tropical savanna climate (Köppen Aw).
The city of Ciego de Ávila was founded by 1840, having at the time 263 inhabitants. In 1877, its municipal government was created and the city became independent of the city of Morón. Ciego de Ávila gained importance when the Spanish army built a fortified military line, known as Trocha de Júcaro a Morón, to impede the pass of insurrectionist forces to the western part of the island during the 1st War of Independence (1868–1878). This "trocha", which made this region famous, was thought to be strong enough to stop the Cuban forces, but was not able to stop the pass of General Máximo Gómez and several hundred men. Many of the old Spanish colonial buildings in Ciego de Ávila (such as the Teatro Principal) were commissioned under Angela Hernández, viuda de Jiménez, a rich socialite who battled to create a cultural mecca in her hometown.
In 2022, the Municipality of Ciego de Ávila had a population of 156,322. With a total area of 445km2,[3] it has a population density of 350/km2.
Its present radio station, Radio Surco (previously Radio Cuba), was founded October 10, 1952.
Ciego de Ávila's basketball team has been one of the most successful teams in the country, as it has won 9 national championships since 2005.