Draft:Tacarigua (Nueva Esparta)

Pre-Hispanic period

Human occupation of the Tacarigua valley dates back approximately 1,500 years, according to historian Domingo Carrasquero's reconstruction, based on the work of anthropologists Cecilia Ayala Lafée-Wilbert, Pedro Rivas Gómez and Werner Wilbert.^[4] Scholars identify five waves of indigenous settlement in present-day Nueva Esparta, originating from the Araya Peninsula (Sucre State) some 4,300 years ago.

It was during the fourth wave — the El Agua period (1,580–750 years ago) — that the first groups settled in the Tacarigua valley, drawn by its abundant water supply and fertile soils. This period saw the development of local pottery (griddles, clay jars and pitchers) and the cultivation of maize and yuca.^[5]

The valley was known to the Spanish as the Valle de los Olleros ("Valley of the Potters"), in reference to the craft tradition that extended along the corridor as far as Pedrogonzález; the indigenous name was Valle de Arimacoa, mentioned by the chronicler Juan de Castellanos in his Elegías de Cubagua y Margarita.

Encounter with the Spanish (1579)

The first documented contact between the Tacariba people and the Spanish took place during the tenure of Miguel Maza de Lizana, acting Governor of Margarita. Historians including Guillermo Morón, Jesús Manuel Subero and José Joaquín Salazar Franco unanimously identify him as the first Spaniard to reach the valley of Tacarigua.^[6]

In January 1580, while imprisoned in La Española on charges of misgovernment, Maza de Lizana dictated a deposition before Fray Juan Manuel Martínez de Manzanillo, recorded in the Archivo General de Indias (Legajo 96, Document 58), in which he described founding five settlements on the island, including one for the Tacariba people:

…so that the Indians be duly instructed and taught in their villages, they should observe the order of the 5 villages that this witness founded… the other in the savannah of the Portezuelo of the northern band, where the Indians of Tacariba in the valley of San Juan and the northern band should establish their settlement and village…

Based on his own "Method of Reasoned Deduction", historian Carrasquero proposes 29 September 1579 — the feast of Saint Michael the Archangel, whose name Maza de Lizana shared — as the most probable date of the encounter. This date is a hypothesis and has not been confirmed by primary documentary sources.^[5]

War of Independence

During the Venezuelan War of Independence, Tacarigua actively supported the Patriot cause. El Portachuelo — the mountain pass above the town, historically known as the Portezuelo de la Banda del Norte — was the island's key strategic point between 1813 and 1902.

Among the Margaritans who distinguished themselves in the independence struggle were Captain José Victorino Guzmán of Tacarigua, hero of the Portachuelo; and legislator José Jesús Guevara of Porlamar, who represented Margarita at the Congress of Angostura in 1819. Eduardo Blanco mentions the women of Tacarigua in Venezuela Heroica for their role in the Battle of Matasiete.^[7]

Between 1815 and 1818, the town served as a field hospital and cavalry pasture for Patriot forces.

Administrative history

Tacarigua became a parish of the second canton of Margarita Island in 1832. It passed through several administrative arrangements — the Norte Department of Miranda State (1875), the Great State of Guzmán Blanco (1881, with a recorded population of 871), and the Federal Territory of Margarita (1900) — before Nueva Esparta was definitively established as a state in 1909. In 1916, Tacarigua was constituted as the Guevara parish of Gómez Municipality, its current designation.^[5]

Location

The town lies in the centre-north of Margarita Island, in a valley between the hills of El Tamoco, La Palma Real, El Mureche and El Portachuelo. The nearest settlements are El Salado and Manzanillo to the north and El Maco to the west.

Relief

The town is surrounded by a system of hills that provide its water supply: El Tamoco, La Palma Real, El Mureche, Cerro Pelón and El Portachuelo (historically the Portezuelo de la Banda del Norte), the last of which served as a strategic pass during the War of Independence and the civil conflicts of the 19th and early 20th centuries.^[5]

Water resources

A 1971 study by the Central University of Venezuela described Tacarigua as "the most important water zone in eastern Venezuela".^[8] The surrounding hills feed several permanent streams and springs, including the Belén spring and the Orinoco stream.

Territorial organisation

The town has three historic nuclei — Tacarigua Afuera, Tacarigua Adentro and Tacarigüita — to which have been added the more recent sectors of Corazón de Jesús, San Sebastián, Toporo and El Conchal.

Crafts

Tacarigua's traditional crafts include palm-leaf weaving (hats, baskets and household objects) and hammock-making. The valley's pottery tradition, documented since pre-Hispanic times, today survives in the nearby village of El Cercado, recognised as the island's principal pottery centre.^[9] On the slopes of La Palma Real hill, cacao is grown on small artisan farms.

Gastronomy

The Tacarigua cachapa — a fresh corn pancake served with hand-moulded cheese, made with maize grown in the town's own conucos (small plots) — is the town's signature dish and a gastronomic reference across the island. From 2017 to 2019, the town hosted the Feria de la Cachapa y el Guarapo de Caña (Cachapa and Sugarcane Juice Fair), which attracted over 70 producers and featured demonstrations of a traditional wooden sugarcane press.^[10]

Music

The Margaritan galerón and the décima are the musical traditions most deeply rooted in Tacarigua. Notable performers include Hernán Malaver "El Tacariguero" and Dalmiro Malaver "La Culebrita de Oriente".^[11]

Patron saint festivals

The town celebrates two major patron saint festivals:

• Sacred Heart of Jesus (June): patron of the eponymous sector and the town as a whole, celebrated with religious and cultural events and a popular marathon.
• Saint Sebastian (20 January): patron of the San Sebastián sector (Tacarigua Adentro), considered one of the finest patron saint festivals in the state, featuring processions, popular dances, fireworks and improvised galerones sung in honour of the martyr during the octave celebrations in the Los Listas sector.

Cultural institutions

• Fundación Cheguaco (José Joaquín Salazar Franco Foundation): coordinates historical research and publishes the Tacarigua Histórica series.
• CDC "Pablo Romero Millán" (Cultural Development Committee, est. 8 August 1968).
• Casa de la Cultura "Poeta Pedro Rivero Navarro": home of the José Joaquín Salazar Franco Library and an open-air concert venue.

Politics and public life

• Diego Bautista Urbaneja Alayón (Tacarigua, 21 January 1817 – Caracas, 9 November 1892): jurist, first Attorney General of the Republic (1863), Minister of Foreign Affairs (1886) and acting President of Venezuela on several occasions between 1875 and 1879. His remains lie in the National Pantheon of Venezuela.

Literature and history

• José Joaquín Salazar Franco (Tacarigua, 27 July 1926 – La Asunción, 30 September 2000): historian, writer, folklorist and official chronicler of Tacarigua from 1987. Known by his hypocoristic Cheguaco, he is the foremost scholar of the history and culture of Margarita Island.

Visual arts

• Carlos Stohr (Prague, 1931 – Caracas, 2017): Czech-Venezuelan artist, the only graphic chronicler in Venezuela's history. Author of the Rastros y Rostros series (over 5,200 works). Declared Living Cultural Heritage in 2001. Known as El Tacaricheco for his deep bond with the town.

Music and academia

• Jennifer Moya: singer and Doctor of Education, professor at the University of the East. Winner of the national singing competition Talentum (Venevisión).

Sport

• Nicomedes Maza González "Nico" (b. 1963): para-athlete, silver medallist in the 4×100 m relay and bronze medallist in the high jump at the 1991 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Minneapolis.
• Félix José Guerra Alfonzo "Félix Che" (b. 1962): the only professional baseball player born in Tacarigua; signed with the Leones del Caracas in 1977.
• Manuel Felipe Morao González (b. 1984): taekwondo athlete, bronze medal at the 2008 South American Games and silver medal at the Central American and Caribbean Games.
• Tomás "Tomasito" Jiménez (b. 1949): cyclist, with over 100 races competed across Venezuela.^[12]
• Aquilino González (b. 1955): marathon runner, winner of multiple long-distance races in Nueva Esparta and eastern Venezuela.^[12]