Trinidad

Trinidad

(trēnēthäth`), town (1983 est. pop. 43,500), Sancti Spíritus prov., central Cuba. Tobacco processing is the chief industry, although other agricultural processing has been developed. During the colonial period, Trinidad flourished as a port and was attacked several times by the British. The town is a living relic of the colonial period and has been declared a national monument and UNESCO World Heritage site.

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The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Trinidad

 

an island in the Atlantic Ocean, off the northeastern coast of South America; the main part of the state of Trinidad and Tobago. Area, 4,800 sq km. Population, more than 800,000 (1971).

Of continental origin, Trinidad is separated from the mainland by the Dragon’s Mouth, the Gulf of Paria, and the Serpent’s Mouth. The shores are weakly indented and are framed by coral reefs to the north; there are mangrove forests on the southern shores. A mountain range in the north has elevations to 940 m at Mount Aripo. Most of the island is a low-lying plain, which is marshy in the east, with two low, parallel ranges that have elevations to 300 m. There are mud volcanoes along the southern shore. Trinidad has deposits of natural asphalt, such as Pitch Lake; oil, on the continental shelf in the southwest and southeast; and natural gas. The climate is subequatorial. The monthly average temperature is 25°–27°C; annual precipitation ranges from 1,200 mm in the west to 3,800 mm in the northeast, which is exposed to the trade winds. Evergreen forests predominate; there are thin forests in the northwest.

E. N. LUKASHOVA

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Trinidad

 

a city in Cuba, in southern Las Villas Province. Population, 31,500 (1970). Founded in 1514, Trinidad has been declared a national monument. The city’ streets, laid out in a grid pattern, are lined with one-story yellow and pink houses with wooden and metal window gratings. In the city center there are houses and churches dating from the turn of the 19th century, for example, the Brunet Palace (1812) and the Church of San Francisco de Asís (1787–1811). Local industries produce cigars and cigarettes, paper, and footwear. After 1959, Trinidad became a tourist and vacation center.

REFERENCE

Varona, E. A. de. Trinidad de Cuba. Havana, 1946.

The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

Trinidad

an island in the West Indies, off the NE coast of Venezuela: colonized by the Spanish in the 17th century and ceded to Britain in 1802; joined with Tobago in 1888 as a British colony; now part of the independent republic of Trinidad and Tobago. Pop.: 1 208 282 (2000)

Collins Discovery Encyclopedia, 1st edition © HarperCollins Publishers 2005