Moca, Dominican Republic

Moca
Sagrado Corazón de Jesús Church
Moca
Coordinates: 19°23′N 70°31′W / 19.383°N 70.517°W / 19.383; -70.517Coordinates: 19°23′N 70°31′W / 19.383°N 70.517°W / 19.383; -70.517
Country	Dominican Republic
Province	Espaillat
Municipality since	1822
Area
• Total	239.36 km2 (92.42 sq mi)
Elevation	183 m (600 ft)
Population (2012)
• Total	173,442
• Density	720/km2 (1,900/sq mi)
• Demonym	Mocano(a)
Distance to  – Santo Domingo	145 km
Municipalities	8
Climate	Af
Website	http://am.gob.do/

Moca is the capital of Espaillat province, in the Cibao region of the Dominican Republic, and it is the tenth-largest city of that country. Moca is located 11 miles/18 kilometers away from the country’s second-largest city, Santiago. Known as "La Villa Heroica" (Village of Heroes) due to the amount of men and women from Moca who have played a major role in the Dominican Republic's history in bringing down two dictators, Ulises Heureaux and Rafael Trujillo, and bringing democracy back to the country.

Moca is home to the Corazon Sagrado de Jesus ("Sacred Heart of Jesus") Cathedral. All its pane glass windows were originally brought from Italy depicting the apostles and Jesus' path to the crucifixion. Agriculture forms the primary livelihood of the inhabitants. Plantain and yucca are main crops. Most crops are harvested by hand.

Moca is also recognized for its strong political up bringing. Former dictator Rafael Trujillo owned a house in Moca. In fact, the house is located a few blocks from the church Sagrado Corazon De Jesus (picture above).

According to Emiliano Tejera, Moca means a tree that overlooks the river banks. Others claim that the word comes from the region of Mocán, a section in the province of La Vega near the river. Others claim that the word Moca is based on the coffee crop name: Mocca. According to Franklin Torres Moca is derived from an Aboriginal term which was adopted by the European settlers.

Moca has a total area of 339.21 km². The municipality sits on a volcanic coral reef with hills to the west and low mountains to the north; these mountains are part of the Cordillera Septentrional. The highest mountain in the municipality, and in the province, is El Mogote at (970 m). Moca is at an elevation of 183 m with an average temperature in the city of 25.3°C and an average rainfall of 1,174.4 mm.