Caracas (English spelling)

Japanese: カラカス（英語表記）Caracas

The capital of Venezuela. It is located in the north of South America, where the northeastern extension of the Andes Mountains approaches the Caribbean Sea. The city occupies a long, narrow valley running east to west, surrounded by high mountains. Because it is located at an altitude of 900 to 1000 meters, the climate is mild for its low latitude, with an average annual temperature of about 20°C. The annual precipitation is about 600 mm, falling mainly from May to November. The city was founded by the Spanish in 1567 and named after the Caracas tribe of Indians who lived in the valley. In 1577, it became the administrative center of the region, and later became the location of the General of Venezuela. The Spanish-style city, designed in a quadrangle with a square at the center, gradually expanded toward the surrounding area, but was destroyed by major earthquakes in 1755 and 1812. It also suffered heavy damage during the War of Independence, which was waged in the early 19th century by Simon Bolivar, who was born in the city. When Venezuela seceded from Gran Colombia and became an independent republic in 1830, Caracas became its capital. In 1870, President A. Guzmán Blanco started a plan to reform the city of Caracas, but J. V. Gomez, who became president at the beginning of the 20th century, focused on the development of Maracay in the west during his nearly 30 years in office, and the development of Caracas stagnated for a time. After Gomez's death, the city began to develop as a modern city, and the population increased, the city area expanded, and the city was modernized very rapidly, and the Caracas metropolitan area now extends to the state of Miranda in the south. As a result, industry developed, and Caracas has become an industrial city where most of the country's industries are concentrated, including lumber, sugar, construction, food processing, tobacco, and clothing. It is also the educational and cultural center of Venezuela, and the city has higher education institutions such as the Central University of Venezuela (1721), libraries, museums, and theaters. The University City, built by architect C. Villanueva and others between 1940 and 1960, is a masterpiece of modern urban planning and was registered as a World Heritage Site in 2000. As the transportation hub of Venezuela, it is connected to all parts of the country by rail and road, with the outer port of La Guaira facing the Caribbean Sea about 10 km to the north and the international airport at Maiquetia on the coast to the west. It is also the capital of the special administrative region known as the Federal District (area 433 ^km2 , population 2,097,400 (2009)). The metropolitan area population is 2,985,000 (2007).

Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia About Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia Information

Japanese:

ベネズエラの首都。南アメリカ北部，アンデス山脈の北東の延長にあたる山脈がカリブ海に迫る部分にあり，市街は周囲を高い山地に囲まれた東西に細長い谷を占める。標高 900～1000mの高地に位置するため，低緯度にあるわりに気候は温和で，年平均気温約 20℃。年降水量は約 600mmで，おもに5～11月に降る。 1567年スペイン人が町を建設，この谷に住んでいたインディオのカラカス族にちなんで命名。 1577年この地方の行政中心地とされ，のちベネズエラ総監府の所在地となった。広場を中心に四角形に設計されたスペイン風の市街は周辺に向かってしだいに拡大していったが，1755年，1812年の大地震により大破。また，市に生まれたシモン・ボリバルにより 19世紀初めに展開された独立戦争のときにもしばしば大きな被害を受けた。ベネズエラが大コロンビアから離脱して 1830年共和国として独立するとともに，その首都となった。 1870年 A.グスマン・ブランコ大統領のもとにカラカス都市改革計画が開始されたが，20世紀初め大統領となった J.V.ゴメスは 30年近くにわたる在任期間中，西のマラカイの発展に力を注いだため，カラカスの発展は一時停滞した。ゴメスの死後近代都市としての発展が始まり，人口の増加，市域の拡大，市街の近代化などがきわめて急速に進行，カラカス大都市圏は南のミランダ州に及ぶようになった。それに伴って工業が発達し，製材，製糖，建設，食品加工，たばこ，衣料など，同国の工業の大部分が集中する工業都市となっている。またベネズエラの教育，文化の中心地でもあり，市内にはベネズエラ中央大学 (1721) をはじめとする高等教育機関，図書館，博物館，劇場などがある。 1940年から 1960年にかけて，建築家 C.ビリャヌエバらによって建設された大学都市は，近代都市計画の傑作といえ，2000年世界遺産の文化遺産に登録された。ベネズエラの交通中心地として，鉄道，道路により国内各地と結ばれ，北約 10kmにはカリブ海に臨む外港ラグアイラ，その西の沿岸マイケティアには国際空港がある。連邦区と呼ばれる特別行政区 (面積 433km²，人口 209万7400〈2009〉) の首都でもある。首都圏人口 298万5000（2007）。

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