: : : Altagracia () is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

in the

Rivas Department Rivas () is a Departments of Nicaragua, department of the Republic of Nicaragua. It covers an area of and has a population of 183,611 (2021 estimate). The department's capital is the city of Rivas, Nicaragua, Rivas. The indigenous inhabitants of ...

Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...

. It is the largest town on the island of Ometepe, above the town of

Moyogalpa Moyogalpa () is a municipality in the Rivas department of Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 a ...

. Its original name was Astagalpa, meaning ‘house of the herons’ in

Nahuatl Nahuatl ( ; ), Aztec, or Mexicano is a language or, by some definitions, a group of languages of the Uto-Aztecan language family. Varieties of Nahuatl are spoken by about Nahuas, most of whom live mainly in Central Mexico and have smaller popul ...

. This city also has a ferry port, Puerto de Gracia, that services Granada and San Carlos near the Rio San Juan. However, due to seasonal water level fluctuations, this port and the nightly ferry crossings are often seasonally cancelled.

History

Altagracia is home to a cathedral which was built in 1924. The city has recently installed a sculpture park next to the cathedral that contains important pre-Columbian art made from

basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...

rock. The figures are of great size, and represent human figures and their

alter egos An alter ego (Latin for "other I") means an alternate Self (psychology), self, which is believed to be distinct from a person's normal or true original Personality psychology, personality. Finding one's alter ego will require finding one's other ...

, mainly the

eagle Eagle is the common name for the golden eagle, bald eagle, and other birds of prey in the family of the Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of Genus, genera, some of which are closely related. True eagles comprise the genus ''Aquila ( ...

and

jaguar The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large felidae, cat species and the only extant taxon, living member of the genus ''Panthera'' that is native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the biggest cat spe ...

. Also present in Altagracia is the Museum of Ometepe (''Museo de Ometepe'') with a large

archaeological Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

and

ethnographic Ethnography is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of individual cultures. It explores cultural phenomena from the point of view of the subject of the study. Ethnography is also a type of social research that involves examining ...

collection.

Tradition

The city patron is San Diego de Alcalá and his festival, Fiesta de San Diego, is celebrated from November 12–18.Explore Nicaragua: Ometepe Island
/ref> The traditional dance called ''baile del Zompopo'' is performed on the 17th of November. This tradition is mixed with the celebration of Xolotl, who inhabited Nicaragua in

pre-Columbian In the history of the Americas, the pre-Columbian era, also known as the pre-contact era, or as the pre-Cabraline era specifically in Brazil, spans from the initial peopling of the Americas in the Upper Paleolithic to the onset of European col ...

times before the Spaniards arrived. When the

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

arrived in Ometepe in 1613, this tradition was already existent, although they brought with themselves an image of San Diego de Alcalá and with time they obtained his figure and replaced Xolotl.

Gallery

File:Finca Magdalena Altagracia and Concepcion.jpg, View from Finca Magdalena in Altagracia, Rivas. The Concepción volcano in the background. File:Santo Domingo I.jpg, Playa Santo Domingo. The Maderas volcano in the background. File:Ojo de Agua Altagracia.jpg, Ojo de Agua, Altagracia, in Ometepe Island.

References

External links

* Municipalities of the Rivas Department {{Nicaragua-geo-stub

History

Tradition

Gallery

See also

References

External links