Bagaces (canton)

Canton in Guanacaste province, Costa Rica

Canton in Guanacaste, Costa Rica

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Bagaces canton

10°30′56″N 85°14′52″W / 10.515659°N 85.2477995°W / 10.515659; -85.2477995Country

Costa RicaProvinceGuanacasteCreation7 December 1848^[1]Head cityBagacesDistricts

Districts

Bagaces
Fortuna
Mogote
Río Naranjo

Government

• TypeMunicipality • BodyMunicipalidad de BagacesArea

• Total889.07 km² (343.27 sq mi)Elevation

396 m (1,299 ft)Population

(2011)

• Total19,536 • Density22/km² (57/sq mi)Time zoneUTC−06:00Canton code504Websitewww.bagaces.go.cr

Bagaces is a canton in the Guanacaste province of Costa Rica.^[2]^[3] The head city is in Bagaces district.

History

In the Pre-Columbian era, Bagaces was home to the Nicarao people who settled in Guanacaste after migrating from Central and southern Mexico. Evidence of Mesoamerican style markets and Jade showed that Bagaces had flourished during Pre-Columbian times.^[4]^[5]^[6]^[7] Bagaces was created on 7 December 1848 by decree 167.^[1] Bagaces is also one of the oldest settlements in early Spanish conquest in the 1540s. It became an important town after 1601 when the "Mule Trail" was established communicating Cartago, the capital of the province, with Guatemala, the capital of the Captaincy General. Bagaces was a necessary night stop and later acquired fame because of its dry bisquist (Biscocho) and cheese (Queso Bagaces), an important supply for the long ride.

Geography

Bagaces has an area of 1,273.49 km²^[8] and a mean elevation of 396 metres.^[2]

The Salto River on the west and Tenorio River on the east delineate this canton, with the Tempisque River as the southern border and the northern border high in the Cordillera de Guanacaste. Miravalles Volcano sits near that border's midway point.

Districts

The canton of Bagaces is subdivided into the following districts:

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1864	1,638	—
1883	991	−39.5%
1892	1,476	48.9%
1927	1,890	28.0%
1950	4,079	115.8%
1963	9,836	141.1%
1973	9,828	−0.1%
1984	10,103	2.8%
2000	15,972	58.1%
2011	19,536	22.3%
Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos^[9] Centro Centroamericano de Población^[10]

For the 2011 census, Bagaces had a population of 19,536 inhabitants.^[11]

Transportation

Road transportation

The canton is covered by the following road routes:

National Route 1
National Route 6
National Route 164
National Route 165
National Route 922
National Route 923

References

^ ^a ^b Hernández, Hermógenes (1985). Costa Rica: evolución territorial y principales censos de población 1502 - 1984 (in Spanish) (1 ed.). San José: Editorial Universidad Estatal a Distancia. pp. 164–173. ISBN 9977-64-243-5. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
^ ^a ^b "Declara oficial para efectos administrativos, la aprobación de la División Territorial Administrativa de la República N°41548-MGP". Sistema Costarricense de Información Jurídica (in Spanish). 19 March 2019. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
^ División Territorial Administrativa de la República de Costa Rica (PDF) (in Spanish). Editorial Digital de la Imprenta Nacional. 8 March 2017. ISBN 978-9977-58-477-5.
^ "The Kingdom Of This World".
^ "The Aboriginals of Costa Rica".
^ "Las culturas indígenas y su medioambiente".
^ "Central American Nahua".
^ "Área en kilómetros cuadrados, según provincia, cantón y distrito administrativo". Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 24 October 2020. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
^ "Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos" (in Spanish).
^ "Sistema de Consulta de a Bases de Datos Estadísticas". Centro Centroamericano de Población (in Spanish).
^ "Censo. 2011. Población total por zona y sexo, según provincia, cantón y distrito". Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 September 2020.