A port city in South America, Asunción is the capital of Paraguay. Although the city is located within a landlocked country, it lies on the east bank of the Paraguay River, which widens to form a broad bay. The Pilcomayo River joins the Paraguay on the opposite shore.

Places of interest

The avenues in Asunción are lined with orange and other flowering trees, and there are many plazas and gardens. Among the interesting buildings in the city are the cathedral, the presidential palace, and the Pantheon of Heroes, all built in the 19th century. The modern Hotel Guaraní was designed by the Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer. The city's museums include the National Historical Museum as well as institutions devoted to archaeology and modern art.

Economy

Asunción processes and exports much of the food that is grown throughout the country. Cotton, sugarcane, corn (maize), tobacco, fruit, and cattle products are processed in the city. Industrial plants produce textiles, vegetable oils, footwear, and tobacco products. The government employs many people in Asunción. Others work in service industries such as health care, tourism, and trade.

History

The Guaraní Indians lived in the area that is now Asunción before the arrival of the Spanish in the 16th century. The city was named when a stockade, or wooden fort, was completed there by the Spanish on the Roman Catholic Feast of the Assumption (Asunción in Spanish) in 1537. Asunción was the most important Spanish colonial city in the eastern part of South America until Buenos Aires took over the role in the 17th century.

Paraguay declared its independence from Spain in 1811, and Asunción became the capital of the new republic. Brazil took control of the capital for almost a decade in the 19th century, but in 1876 Asunción again became the center of government for Paraguay. For much of the second half of the 20th century, the capital was home to a strict military ruler. As the century ended, new leaders were in place in Paraguay, but the economy worsened. Just outside Asunción, many shacks have been built to house the poor who work in the city and who farm its surrounding fields. Population (1992 estimate), 500,940.