Tobatí is a city in Tobatí District in the Cordillera Department, Paraguay. The population of the city is 9,688. [1]
Tobatí is a city in Tobatí District in the Cordillera Department, Paraguay. The population of the city is 9,688. [1]
Tobati was founded in June 1539 by Domingo Martínez de Irala. There are various opinions as to the meaning of the town's name. One is from the Spanish definition of the word, referring to the rocky terrain, consisting largely of limestone. Another is that it is the combination of the Guaraní language words "tova," meaning "face" and "tí," meaning "nose," or together - "nose on the face." The third option is that the name is a combination of the Guaraní words, tova, and morotí - referring to an indigenous legend of a white faced warrior priest who would come to lead the tribes into a glorius era. [2]
One of the greatest heroes in Paraguayan history, the "Liberator of Paraguay," Captain Pedro Juan Caballero hailed from Aparypy, Tobati. Captain Caballero was the leader of the Paraguayan War for Independence from Spain, and is known as a very able military tactician. Caballero continued to serve his country after the War for Independence as one of the members of the governing Junta of Paraguay until the ascension of the "Perpetual Dictator," Doctor José Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia. [2]
Tobati was the subject of two very well known and respected sociological studies and books. The first is titled, Tobati: A Paraguayan Town, by Helen and Elman Service. The second is titled Tobati : tradicion y cambio en un pueblo paraguayo, by Diego Hay.
As with most Paraguayan towns, Tobatí is predominately Roman Catholic. There are small Evangelical, Baptist, and Jehovah’s Witnesses communities present in the town as well. The town is divided into Barrios, generally named after Saints, and feast days of the Saints are celebrated in their respective Barrios as neighborhood events. The religious life of the town centers around the feast day of Mary of the Immaculate Conception, the Patron Saint of Tobatí, on December 8. [2]
The church in Tobatí contains the holy relic carving of the Virgin Mary of Immaculate Conception, which was carved by an indigenous convert to Christianity hundreds of years ago. This Indian was pursued by his tribe to be put to death for his conversion to Christianity. As he hid behind a tree the Indian prayed to the Holy Mother for protection in turn for his devotion and promise to create an icon to glorify her. The tribe passed him by unnoticed and he subsequently carved two statues of the Holy Virgin. One resides in the church in Tobati, and the other in the Basilica in neighboring Caacupe. [2]
Tobatí is renowned throughout Paraguay for the woodworking, ceramics, and sculptures of its artisans. One artisan in particular, Don Zenón Páez is world-renowned. [2]
The major industry and income source for Tobatí is the production of building materials. The majority of roofing tile and bricks supplying Paraguay have their origin in the many factories in Tobati. Additionally, much of the Tobateño production is exported to neighboring Argentina and Brazil. While some factories are modernized and run off electric machines and kilns, and some employ a mixture of modern and traditional methods, the vast majority are traditional operations. First, the clay for the products is milled in wooden churns powered by horses or mules walking in circles around the mill. Workers then form the tiles and bricks in hand molds and place them in the sun to dry. In the final step the products are cooked in wood fired kilns for 24 hours or more.
Each year, a community service trip consisting of approximately 100 students from the Kingswood Oxford School in West Hartford, Connecticut travel down to Tobatí. The group originated due to the organization of one instructor at the school, Ron Garcia, whose family is from Tobatí and who still has many family members in the town. Team Tobati sends a large group of students and health care professionals each year over spring break to Tobatí, Paraguay on a public service trip to work with rural villages in providing access to health care and education. The group also sends smaller contingents of students and medical professionals at various times during the year. Additionally, Team Tobati has funded an artisan village and an educational institute, which are maintained year-round.
The Immaculate Conception is the belief that the Virgin Mary was free of original sin from the moment of her conception. It is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Debated by medieval theologians, it was not defined as a dogma until 1854, by Pope Pius IX in the papal bull Ineffabilis Deus. While the Immaculate Conception asserts Mary's freedom from original sin, the Council of Trent, held between 1545 and 1563, had previously affirmed her freedom from personal sin.
Guarani are a group of culturally-related indigenous peoples of South America. They are distinguished from the related Tupi by their use of the Guarani language. The traditional range of the Guarani people is in present-day Paraguay between the Paraná River and lower Paraguay River, the Misiones Province of Argentina, southern Brazil once as far east as Rio de Janeiro, and parts of Uruguay and Bolivia.
Cordillera is a department in Paraguay. The capital is the city of Caacupé.
Paraguarí is a departamento in Paraguay. At the 2002 census it had a population of 221,932. The capital is the city of Paraguarí.
The Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, also called Immaculate Conception Day, celebrates the sinless lifespan and Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary on 8 December, nine months before the feast of the Nativity of Mary, celebrated on 8 September. It is one of the most important Marian feasts in the liturgical calendar of the Roman Catholic Church celebrated worldwide.
Paraguarí is a city, distrito and capital of Paraguarí Department in Paraguay, located 66 km from the country's capital, Asunción. At the 2002 census it had a population of 22,154.
Yaguarón is a city in Paraguay, located at the base of Yaguarón Hill in the Yaguarón District of Paraguarí Department, 48 kilometres (30 mi) from the capital Asunción. The town began as a Franciscan reservation for the Guaraní Indians.
Quimbaya is a town and municipality in the western part of the department of Quindío, Colombia. It is 20 km northwest of the departmental capital Armenia. The name of the city derives from the name of the Precolumbian culture that inhabited the area, the Quimbaya civilization. Located along the Colombian coffee growing axis, the municipality was made part of the "Coffee Cultural Landscape" UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2011.
Piribebuy is a town and district in the Cordillera Department of Paraguay. It is of spontaneous origin, though some attribute its founding to Martin Ledesma de Valderrama in 1636. Since its founding documents were burned during the Paraguayan War, March 8, 1636, was later appointed as its Day of Establishment. Piribebuy is known for its Church "Dulce Nombre de Jesus", also known as "Ñandejará Guasu," and also has a small history museum dedicated to memorabilia from the War of Triple Alliance, explaining Piribebuy's large role in the war, as well as memorabilia from the Chaco War and Colonial Times.
Mompox or Mompós, officially Santa Cruz de Mompox, is a town and municipality in northern Colombia, in the Bolívar Department. The town initially grew from its proximity to the Magdalena river and has preserved much of its colonial character. It also played an important role in the liberation of South America from Spain. Today, Mompox depends upon tourism, fishing, and some commerce generated by the local cattle raising. It has about 30,000 inhabitants, and is adjacent to the municipalities of Pinillos and San Fernando. The historic center of Mompox was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1995, owing to its preserved colonial architecture and mixture of architectural styles.
Chipa is a type of small, baked, cheese-flavored rolls, a popular snack and breakfast food in Paraguay. The recipe has existed since the 18th century and its origins lie with the Guaraní people of Asunción. It is inexpensive and often sold from streetside stands and on buses by vendors carrying a large basket with the warm chipa wrapped in a cloth.
Sopa paraguaya is a traditional food of the Paraguayan cuisine similar to corn bread. Corn flour, cheese, onion and milk or whey are common ingredients. It is a spongy cake rich in caloric and protein content.
A patronage of the Blessed Virgin Mary is a form of spiritual protection attributed to Mary, mother of Jesus, in favor of some occupations, activities, religious orders, congregations, dioceses, and geographic locations.
The chipa guasu is a cake made with corn grains, onions and Paraguayan cheese. It is one of 70 varieties of chipa, a traditional set of side dishes from Paraguay. It is often served in asados.
Atyrá is one of the oldest cities of Paraguay, alongside Yaguarón, Villarrica, Encarnación, Pilar, San Lorenzo, Humaitá among others. Atyrá is 61 KM East from the country's capital, Asunción, located in the Altos Cordillera, as it is part of the Cordillera Department, in Central Paraguay.
Ypané is a city in the Central Department of Paraguay, 27 km from Asunción. It is accessed by Routes 1 and 2. The town was founded March 23, 1538 by the Spanish Governor Domingo Martínez de Irala. Its main activities are trade and industry.
Christianity is the predominant religion in Paraguay, with Catholicism being its largest denomination. In the most recent census (2002) Paraguayans of all ages 10 and older had their religious identities enumerated, and 89.6% were classified as Catholics. In 2018, respondents to a survey in Paraguay marked 88.3% of the country as Catholic and the second leading religion was Evangelism.
Paraguayan Indigenous art is the visual art created by the indigenous peoples of Paraguay. While indigenous artists embrace contemporary Western art media, their arts also include pre-Columbian art forms. Indigenous art includes ceramics, baskets, weaving and threading, feather art and leather work. It is a hybrid nature includes the embroideries, lace, woodcarving and different metal products. Paraguay is particularly known for its indigenous featherwork and basket weaving.
Paraguayan Argentines are Argentine citizens of full or partial Paraguayan descent or Paraguay-born people who reside in Argentina. Paraguayan people comprise an important ethnic group in the country due to the sustained immigration that gained importance in the 1970s. The number of people born in Paraguay living in Argentina has been estimated in around 325,000. Therefore, it is the largest foreign community in the country outnumbering individuals from Italy and Spain. It is also one of the fastest growing foreign nationalities. Despite all this, its numbers have been undercounted so it is believed that the real amount is even much higher.
The cuisine of Paraguay is the set of dishes and culinary techniques of Paraguay. It has a marked influence of the Guaraní people, in fusion with the Spanish cuisine and other marked influences coming from the immigration received by bordering countries such as Italian cuisine and Portuguese food. The gastronomy product of the syncretism and Hispanic-Guaraní fusion, is of greater weight in the Paraguayan history and considered the mother of the whole region, having Asunción as the starting point of many Spanish expeditions in the Southern Cone. It is worth clarifying that in society Paraguayan, the exchange of knowledge occurred between mestizos, criollos and guaraníes, before and even after the Jesuit missions. In 2017, the Ministry of the National Secretariat of Culture of Paraguay decided:
"Declare as 'Intangible Cultural Heritage of Paraguay' the production, handcrafted and traditional production of four typical Paraguayan meals still in force such as vori-vori, locro, Paraguayan soup and jopara and its recipes, knowledge, practices and knowledge that are passed down from generation to generation and document the material and immaterial elements associated with it as a cultural manifestation. "
