Basílica Catedral Metropolitana Santa María de la Encarnación
Encyclopedia
The Basílica Catedral Metropolitana Santa María de la Encarnación is a Roman Catholic minor basilica
and cathedral
dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary located in Santo Domingo
, Dominican Republic
. The church is the primatial cathedral of the Americas. The seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Santo Domingo
. The basilica was decreed on August 31, 1920.
Basilica
The Latin word basilica , was originally used to describe a Roman public building, usually located in the forum of a Roman town. Public basilicas began to appear in Hellenistic cities in the 2nd century BC.The term was also applied to buildings used for religious purposes...
and cathedral
Cathedral
A cathedral is a Christian church that contains the seat of a bishop...
dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary located in Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo, known officially as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city in the Dominican Republic. Its metropolitan population was 2,084,852 in 2003, and estimated at 3,294,385 in 2010. The city is located on the Caribbean Sea, at the mouth of the Ozama River...
, Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
. The church is the primatial cathedral of the Americas. The seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Santo Domingo
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Santo Domingo
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Santo Domingo is a Metropolitan Archdiocese, in the Dominican Republic. It is responsible for the dioceses of Baní, Barahona, Nuestra Señora de la Altagracia en Higüey, San Juan de la Maguana and San Pedro de Macorís.The see was elevated to an archdiocese on 12...
. The basilica was decreed on August 31, 1920.