Itapua Department

Itapúa Departamento de Itapúa
Department
Flag Coat of arms
Coordinates: 27°20′S 55°53′W / 27.333°S 55.883°W / -27.333; -55.883
Country	Paraguay
Established	1906
Capital	Encarnación
Government
• Governor	David Benjamín Franz Kugler (ANR)
Area
• Total	16,525 km2 (6,380 sq mi)
Population (2002)
• Total	453,692
• Density	27/km2 (71/sq mi)
Time zone	AST (UTC-04)
• Summer (DST)	ADT (UTC-03)
ISO 3166 code	PY-7
Number of Districts	30
Website	http://www.itapua.gov.py

Itapúa (Spanish pronunciation: [itaˈpu.a]) is a department in the southern region of Paraguay. The capital is the city of Encarnación. It is divided into 30 districts, making it the department with the most districts in the country.

This department was created after the breakup of the Misiones Department, with the city of Encarnación as the capital. It had a high economic growth in the first 30 years by the coming of immigrants and the Carlos Antonio Lopez Railway, the growth was accompanied with several ups and downs.

Then came an era of decline until the 50s when the Carnaval Encarnaceno became known and attracted tourists from various regions. In the 80s the department became more industrial, but modestly, compared with other departments like Central Department.

In 1989 the Yacyretá Dam displaced the people living in the Yacyretá Reservoir, which still continues. The San Roque González de Santa Cruz Bridge was inaugurated in 1991, connecting not only the city of Encarnación and Posadas, but Paraguay with Argentina.

The name is in Guaraní and refers to the place where Encarnación, the current capital city, was founded. The site was known as "itá" (rock, stone) and "punta" (tip); hence the name means "Tip of the Stone".

According to the 2002 National Census Itapúa has a total population of 453,692 inhabitants making it the third most populated department of the country after Central and Alto Paraná, 8,9% of Paraguay's total population lives in this department.

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Wikipedia