A European Informational Website
learn more
Founded in 1495 during the first wave of European colonization of the New World, today Santiago de los Caballeros (the first "Santiago" of America) is the second most important city in the Dominican Republic on the island of Hispaniola. Also known as Santiago de los 30 Caballeros. It is the capital of Santiago Province. The city served many times as the capital of the nation but not for long periods of time. Many wanted Santiago as the main city for it's rich fertile lands and it' central location.
The original colony was in the city of Jacagua, but when it was destroyed by an earthquake, it was moved to its present location in 1506. It was devastated by another earthquake in 1562. Santiago de los Caballeros has sometimes been the capital of the country, and was an important strategic city in the Dominican War of Independence in 1844.
On a hill overlooking Santiago is a high marble monument. Construction of the monument began in 1944 on the orders of then-dictator Rafael Trujillo. He named it the "Monument of the Peace of Trujillo". Trujillo was assassinated in 1961, after which the monument was renamed the "Monument to the Heroes of the Restoration".
Like Santo Domingo, Santiago has recently experienced an era of rapid growth and development. It has become a city of great importance for the nation and the region's development. Santiago like any other fast growing city is faced with numerous amount of problems including precarious Electricity and Water infrastructure just to name a few. An approx. of the population of Santiago is in the 750,000 habitants, but with the undocumented Haitian migrants the population could raise to over 1 Million habitants. With the amounts of people from other cities traveling to Santiago, the population should surpass 1.1 million. The fastest growing community in the city of Santiago is La Trinitaria.
Santiago de los Caballeros is located on a hilly terrain in the middle of the Cibao Valley in the Central Region of the Dominican Republic, one of the most fertile lands found in the Republic. The Yaque del Norte river passes by Santiago wich is in between Cordillera Central and Cordillera Oriental, two of the three major mountain ranges in the island of Hispaniola, forming the Cibao Valley.
Santiago is Dominican Republic's second largest city. Santiago has a population of more than 750,000 inhabitants. Its most important economic activity is in the service sector, having one of the largest tax-free zone parks in the country. Santiago also has economical activity in the Agricutural Sector taking advantage of the rich fertile lands of the Cibao Valley.
Santiago has a few universities including Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra (PUCMM) and UTESA. It also has many private schools since the public education sector in the Dominican Republic is not well-developed.
Santiago has a blooming life around the Monument area. Dozens of restaurants circle the center of the city making it an active nightlife area. Bars, Clubs, and the park surrounding the monument provide recreation and fun attracting crowds of visitors and tourists. The central portion of the city has an extremely active nightlife which is many times considered the best nightlife in the country. The cibaeños love for merengue tipico creates an atmosphere every night in Santiago and captivates energy and excitment throughout the region. People from every other towns and rural areas surrounding Santiago talk about the wild nightlife Santiago has to offer.
As much as the nation does, Santiago residents enjoy baseball and love to see the Dominican winter season with the local team being Aguilas Cibaeñas Baseball team. Other sports in the city are played but not in significant amounts.
Despite the fact that Santiago is the second largest city in the Dominican Republic, the metropolitan area of New York City has a larger population of Dominicans.