Sucre Department Explained

Sucre Department
Native Name:Spanish; Castilian: Departamento de Sucre
Native Name Lang:es
Type:Department
Image Map1:Sucre Topographic 2.png
Map Caption1:Topography of the department
Coordinates:9.3°N -99°W
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name: Colombia
Subdivision Type1:Region
Subdivision Name1:Caribbean Region
Parts Type:Largest city
Parts Style:para
P1:Sincelejo
Established Title:Established
Established Date:August 18, 1966
Blank Name Sec1:Provinces
Blank1 Name Sec1:Municipalities
Blank1 Info Sec1:26
Seat Type:Capital
Seat:Sincelejo
Leader Title:Governor
Leader Name:Lucy Ines García Montes (2024-2027)
Unit Pref:Metric
Area Total Km2:10917
Area Rank:27th
Population Footnotes:[1]
Population Total:904,863
Population As Of:2018
Population Rank:21st
Population Density Km2:auto
Demographics Type1:GDP
Demographics1 Title1:Total
Demographics1 Info1:COP 11,516 billion
(US$ 2.7 billion)
Timezone1:UTC-05
Iso Code:CO-SUC
Blank Name Sec2:HDI (2019)
Blank Info Sec2:0.744[2]
· 19th of 33
Website:www.sucre.gov.co

Sucre (pronounced as /es/) is a department in the Caribbean Region of Colombia. The department ranks 27th by area, 10670km2 and it has a population of 904,863, ranking 20th of all the 32 departments of Colombia. Sucre is bordered by the Caribbean on the northwest; by Bolívar Department on the east and by Córdoba Department on the west.

Sucre was named in honor of the Independence hero Antonio José de Sucre who was quoted by the founders of this department in reference to Simón Bolívar's death as saying "They have killed my heart", expression said while cruising the territory of the present day Sucre Department.

As of 2009, the Sucre Department has an estimated population of 802,733, of which 234,886 are in the department capital Sincelejo, according to the DANE projections.

History

Pre-Columbian

Before the Spanish Conquest, the land comprising the department of Sucre was mainly inhabited by two groups of indigenous people - the Zenú and the Turbacos. The Zenú language was perhaps part of the Chibchan language family by the Arhuacos branch. The Turbaco people were part of the Cariban language family and they controlled the area adjacent to the Gulf of Morrosquillo. The Zenú people - by the Finzenú and Panzenú branches - controlled the rest of the territory, which used to be part of a bigger territory along the current department of Córdoba and parts of Bolívar and Antioquia sometimes known as Zenú kingdom or Zenú nation.

The area adjacent to the coast was inhabited by the Turbaco people and it was the border lands of the Carib's territories in the Cariibean Coast of Colombia. This specific part of the Carib's included the coasts of the present day departments of Magdalena, Atlántico and Bolívar.

The Zenú engineers were able to develop a complicated hydraulic infrastructure in the basin of the San Jorge river - they also worked in the basin of the Sinú river in lands of the Córdoba Department - involving flood control works as well as drainage and irrigation systems.[3]

Colonization

See also: Sincelejo. The first Spanish conquerors that sighted to the coastline of the present day Sucre Department were Alonso de Ojeda, Juan de la Cosa, Rodrigo de Bastidas and Francisco Cesar around 1499.

The conquerors thought the territory to be rich in precious metals since, but soon they would find out they were wrong about that. This situation led to the encomenderos to employ the indigenous workforce almost exclusively for cattle rising on the northern areas.

The territory had been under the tutelage of the government settled in Cartagena – except a brief period of time when it was under the jurisdiction of the central government in Bogotá – this control was effective by several denominations while the country evolved from its colonial institutions until its final republican form in 1886 and until the establishment of Sucre as a department independent from Bolivar.

DateTerritory
1535Province of Cartagena (art of the Audience of Panama)
17th-18th centuriesProvince of Cartagena (Part of the New Kingdom of Granada)
1810–1821Department of Cundinamarca (Part of the Gran Colombia)
1821–1829Department of Magdalena (Part of the Gran Colombia)
1830–1858Province of Cartagena(Part of the Republic of New Granada)
1858–1863Sovereign State of Bolívar (Part of the Granadine Confederation)
1863–1886Sovereign State of Bolívar (Part of the United States of Colombia)
1886–1966Departamento de Bolivar (Part of the Republic of Colombia)

Modern history

In 1963, the Second Assembly of Municipalities created the Department of Sucre. People vouched for its creation after a campaign led by CorpoSucre. On July 28, 1966, the Senate of Colombia started a debate on the creation of the department and on August 18 of the same year approved its creation under the 47 Law of 1966 sanctioned by the then-president of Colombia, Carlos Lleras Restrepo.

Geography

Administrative Divisions

Provinces

Sucre is subdivided into 5 regions or provinces:Mojana Province

Montes de María Province

Morrosquillo

Sabanas

San Jorge

Municipalities

  1. Buenavista
  2. Caimito
  3. Chalán
  4. Colosó
  5. Corozal
  6. Coveñas
  7. El Roble
  8. Galeras
  9. Guaranda
  10. La Unión
  11. Los Palmitos
  12. Majagual
  13. Morroa
  14. Ovejas
  15. Palmito
  16. Sampués
  17. San Benito Abad
  18. San Juan Betulia
  19. San Marcos
  20. San Onofre
  21. San Pedro
  22. Sincé
  23. Sincelejo
  24. Sucre
  25. Tolú
  26. Toluviejo

Oceanic areas

The Archipelago of San Bernardo is within the Sucre Department.

Climate

January through March are dry month of almost no rainfall.[4]

Demography

According to the 2018 population census results, 12% of the population self identifies as indigenous people, gathering 5.5% of the national indigenous population; also, 11% of the population self identifies as black, creole, palenquero or afro-colombian.[5] Venezuelans started to arrive to the department in 2016 and now represent almost 3% of the population, according to the official figures in 2022. [6]

The rest of the population does not declare any ethnicity and are descendants mainly from Spanish, Indigenous and Black people; Arabs started to come in big numbers to Colombia after 1880 and they settled particularly in the Caribbean region of the country, including Sucre, they were mainly Lebanese, Palestinians and Syriacs arrived in smaller numbers, their descendants are estimated to be more than 3 million in the country, their contribution is noticeable in the culture, economy and politics in the Caribbean region. [7]

As of 2022, the population is getting closer to more than 1 million inhabitants as the national and local population growth is propelled by the massive arrival of Venezuelan migrants. During the 80s and 90s the department had high fertility rates and low death rates, in recent years the growth has slowed down as the fertility rate fell below the replacement level and the demographic transition impacts the department. [8]

Almost 32% of the entire population resided in the capital city Sincelejo and 62% of the department population lives in urban areas, specially around the capital city where Corozal, Sampues, Morroa and Los Palmitos are placed, gathering almost half a million people, according to the official population projections. [9]

YearAverage population [10] Live births DeathsNatural changeCrude birth rate (per 1000)Crude death rate (per 1000)Natural change (per 1000)Total fertility rate
1985590,46116,3964,53511,86127.87.720.13.44
1986600,24916,4984,42112,07727.57.420.13.36
1987610,19716,6274,33012,29727.37.120.23.29
1988620,24516,7454,26112,48427.06.920.13.23
1989630,35716,8924,20812,68426.86.720.13.19
1990640,53917,0534,17212,88126.66.520.13.15
1991650,81017,1664,14913,01726.46.420.03.12
1992661,13217,1684,13613,03226.06.319.73.06
1993671,15617,0984,13112,96725.56.219.32.99
1994681,13017,0254,11012,91525.06.019.02.93
1995690,85116,9044,10012,80424.55.918.62.86
1996700,34216,8864,10112,78524.15.918.22.82
1997709,72117,0064,11112,89524.05.818.22.81
1998719,12117,2444,13113,11124.05.718.32.83
1999728,57917,4204,15713,26323.95.718.22.83
2000738,06917,6054,18913,41623.95.718.22.84
2001747,55617,6954,22613,46923.75.718.02.84
2002756,95617,6604,26513,39523.35.617.72.81
2003766,16017,5224,30613,21622.95.617.32.76
2004775,12417,3784,34913,02922.45.616.82.72
2005783,53517,1924,39512,79721.95.616.32.67
2006792,20017,0304,48512,54521.55.715.82.63
2007800,84816,8794,57912,30021.15.715.42.59
2008809,41416,7314,67612,05520.75.814.92.56
2009817,93716,6034,77511,82820.35.814.52.52
2010826,41116,4934,87811,61520.05.914.12.49
2011834,73616,3734,98211,39119.66.013.62.46
2012842,95016,2485,09011,15819.36.013.32.43
2013851,15716,1515,19810,95319.06.113.12.40
2014859,32416,0275,30610,72118.76.212.52.37
2015867,70115,9135,41610,49718.36.212.12.34
2016877,39715,8345,53310,30118.16.311.82.30
2017888,63815,8295,65510,17417.86.411.42.28
2018904,86315,8825,80610,07617.66.411.22.24
2019928,98416,1235,88410,23917.46.311.12.20
2020950,61216,0526,1479,90516.96.510.42.14
2021966,89315,2687,1198,14915.87.48.42.01
2022980,94215,2586,6758,58315.66.88.81.97

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: DANE. February 13, 2013. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20091113143414/http://www.dane.gov.co/daneweb_V09/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=75&Itemid=72. November 13, 2009.
  2. Web site: Sub-national HDI - Area Database - Global Data Lab. hdi.globaldatalab.org. en. 2018-09-13.
  3. http://fundacionlaberinto.mforos.com/1458445/6872641-departamento-de-sucre/
  4. Book: Leroy . Gordon . HUMAN GEOGRAPHY AND ECOLOGY IN THE SINU COUNTRY OF COLOMBIA . 1957 . CALIFORNIA UNIV BERKELEY.
  5. Web site: Censo Nacional de Población y Vivienda 2018 . DANE . 3 April 2023.
  6. Web site: Distribución de Venezolanos en Colombia - Corte28 de febrero de 2022 . Migración Colombia . 3 April 2023.
  7. Web site: Colombia y Medio Oriente . La República . 3 April 2023.
  8. Web site: Proyecciones de población . DANE . 3 April 2023.
  9. Web site: Proyecciones de población municipales . DANE . 3 April 2023.
  10. Web site: Estimaciones del cambio demográfico . DANE . 3 April 2023.