Falcón | ||
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State of Venezuela | ||
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Motto: Dios y Federación (English: God and Federation) |
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Location within Venezuela |
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Country | Venezuela | |
Created | 1864 | |
Capital | Coro | |
Government | ||
• Governor | Stella Lugo (2012–2016) | |
Area | ||
• Total | 24,800 km2 (9,600 sq mi) | |
Area rank | 10th | |
2.71% of Venezuela | ||
Population (2011 census) | ||
• Total | 902,847 | |
• Rank | 11th | |
3.45% of Venezuela | ||
Time zone | UTC-04:30 | |
ISO 3166 code | VE-I | |
Emblematic tree | Cují yaque (Prosopis juliflora) | |
Website | www |
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^[c] As Coro State; in 1874, it was renamed as Falcón State. |
Falcón State (Spanish: Estado Falcón, IPA: [esˈtaðo falˈkon]) is one of the 23 states (estados) that constitute Venezuela. The state capital is Coro.
Falcón State covers a total surface area of 24,800 km² and, in 2011 had a census population of 902,847. The Paraguaná Peninsula is connected to the rest of the state by the Médanos Isthmus. It borders with the ABC islands of Aruba, Curaçao and Bonaire on the north, Zulia state on the west, and both Lara state and Yaracuy state on the south. The island of Aruba is 27 km off the northern coast of Paraguaná Peninsula. The other two ABC Islands (Bonaire and Curaçao) are a little further off the coast of the state.
There are four national parks in the state: the Médanos de Coro National Park, the Cueva de la Quebrada del Toro, Morrocoy, and Juan Crisóstomo Falcón National Park.
The area was first explored in 1499 by Juan de la Cosa and Amerigo Vespucci, as part of an expedition overseen by Alonso de Ojeda. The State is named after President Juan Crisóstomo Falcón.