The
Dominican RepublicThe Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of 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 occupied by two countries...
is divided into thirty–one
provincias (
provinceA province is a territorial unit, almost always an administrative division, within a country or state.-Roman provinces:The word is attested in English since c.1330, deriving from Old French province , which comes from the Latin word provincia, which referred to the sphere of activity which a...
s; singular
provincia), while the national capital,
Santo DomingoSanto Domingo, is the capital and largest city in the Dominican Republic. Its metropolitan population was 2,084,852 in 2003, estimated at 2,253,437 in 2006. The city is located on the Caribbean Sea, at the mouth of the Ozama River...
, is contained within its own
Distrito NacionalThe Distrito Nacional is a subdivision of the Dominican Republic enclosing the capital Santo Domingo, and is not within any of the provinces. Before October 16, 2001, the Distrito Nacional was much larger, including what is now known as Santo Domingo Province...
("National District"; "D.N." on the map below).
The division of the country into provinces is laid down in the constitution (Title I, Section II, Article 5) and enacted by law. The latter is currently Law 5220 on the Territorial Division of the Dominican Republic (
Ley No. 5220 sobre División Territorial de la República Dominicana), issued 1959 and frequently amended to create new provinces and lower–level administrative units.
The provinces as administrative divisions
The provinces are the first–level
administrative subdivision| align="right" style="background:transparent;"| |align="right"| |}Administrative divisions are divisions of a political division. In other words, they are designated portions of a country. They are also called subnational entities. They are each granted a certain degree of autonomy, and...
s of the country. The headquarters of the central government's regional offices are normally found in the capital cities of provinces. The president appoints an administrative governor (
Gobernador Civil) for each province but not for the Distrito Nacional (Title IX of the constitution).
The provinces are divided into
municipalitiesThe provinces of the Dominican Republic are divided into two or more municipalities with the exception of the Distrito Nacional which consist of only one municipality Santo Domingo...
(
municipioMunicipio and município are terms used for subnational entities. They are often translated as municipality.-Overview:...
s), which are the second–level political and administrative subdivisions of the country.
The Distrito Nacional was created in 1936. Prior to this, the Distrito National was the old Santo Domingo Province, in existence since the country's independence in 1844. It is not to be confused with the new Santo Domingo Province split off from it in 2001. While it is similar to a province in many ways, the Distrito Nacional differs in its lack of an administrative governor and consisting only of one municipality,
Santo DomingoSanto Domingo, is the capital and largest city in the Dominican Republic. Its metropolitan population was 2,084,852 in 2003, estimated at 2,253,437 in 2006. The city is located on the Caribbean Sea, at the mouth of the Ozama River...
, the city council (
ayuntamientoAyuntamiento is the general term for the council of a municipality, or sometimes the municipality itself, in Spain and Latin America. Historically Ayuntamiento was often preceded by the word excelentísimo , when referring to the council...
) and mayor (
síndico) of which are in charge of its administration.
The provinces as constituencies
The provinces are also constituencies for the elections to the bicameral
National CongressThe Congress of the Dominican Republic is the bicameral legislature of the government of the Dominican Republic, consisting of two houses, the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies. Both senators and deputies are chosen through direct election....
(
Congreso de la República). Each province elects one member of the
SenateThe Senate is the upper house of the Dominican Republic's bicameral National Congress. The lower house is the Chamber of Deputies....
(
Senado) and a guaranteed minimum of two members of the
Chamber of DeputiesThe Chamber of Deputies is the lower house of theDominican Republic's bicameral National Congress. The upper house is the Senate.It currently comprises 178 deputies who are elected for four-year terms...
(
Cámara de Diputados).
Statistics
The following is a table of the provinces and their capital cities. The population figures are from the 2002 census.
| Province |
Capital |
| Area (km²) | Population | Density |
|---|
| Azua |
Azua Azua de Compostela is a city in the south of the Dominican Republic. It is the capital of Azua province, and is located 100 kilometres west of the national capital, Santo Domingo. It has a population of 85,000.-External links:*...
|
|
208,857 |
82 |
| Baoruco |
Neiba |
|
91,480 |
71 |
| Barahona |
BarahonaSanta Cruz de Barahona is the main city of the Barahona Province, in the south of the Dominican Republic. It is one of the most important cities on the island, with a very active port and many ecotourism attractions. The city is also a centre of sugar production and industry.-Population:The...
|
|
179,239 |
103 |
| Dajabón |
DajabónDajabón is a province of the Dominican Republic, on the border with Haiti. Its capital city is also called Dajabón.It was split from Monte Cristi province in 1938, and was called Libertador until 1961.-Location:...
|
|
62,046 |
61 |
Distrito NacionalThe Distrito Nacional is a subdivision of the Dominican Republic enclosing the capital Santo Domingo, and is not within any of the provinces. Before October 16, 2001, the Distrito Nacional was much larger, including what is now known as Santo Domingo Province...
|
Santo Domingo Santo Domingo, is the capital and largest city in the Dominican Republic. Its metropolitan population was 2,084,852 in 2003, estimated at 2,253,437 in 2006. The city is located on the Caribbean Sea, at the mouth of the Ozama River...
|
|
913,540 |
8,747 |
| Duarte |
San Francisco de MacorísSan Francisco de Macorís is considered as the third most important city in the Dominican Republic and is also the capital of the Duarte Province. It has had a very active role in the shaping of Dominican history, as it is known as one of, if not the most, politically active cities in the country....
|
|
283,805 |
177 |
Elías PiñaElías Piña is one of the 31 provinces of the Dominican Republic. It is located in the western part of the country, on the border with Haiti. Its capital city is Comendador....
|
Comendador Comendador is the capital of the Elías Piña province of the Dominican Republic. It has a border crossing to the Haitian town Belladère.-Population:The municipality had, in 2002, a total population of 25,475...
|
|
63,879 |
45 |
El SeiboEl Seibo, alternatively spelt El Seybo, is a province of the Dominican Republic. Before 1992 it included what is now Hato Mayor province.-Municipalities and municipal districts:...
|
El Seibo |
|
89,261 |
50 |
| Espaillat |
Moca |
|
225,091 |
268 |
| Hato Mayor |
Hato Mayor-Notable residents:* Antonio Bastardo - References :...
|
|
87,631 |
66 |
| Hermanas Mirabal |
Salcedo |
|
96,356 |
219 |
| Independencia |
Jimaní Jimaní is the capital and the second largest city of the Independencia Province of the Dominican Republic. It serves as one of the two main thoroughfares to Haiti , with a duty free open air marketplace operating on the border with the Haitian town of Malpasse...
|
|
50,833 |
25 |
| La Altagracia |
HigüeySalvaleón de Higüey is the capital city of the eastern province of La Altagracia, in the Dominican Republic. In 1981, the city had a total population of 35,501 inhabitants. The river Yuma flows through the urban area of Higüey....
|
|
182,020 |
60 |
| La Romana |
La Romana |
|
219,812 |
336 |
| La Vega |
La VegaConcepción de La Vega, or just La Vega, is the largest city and municipality of the central Dominican Republic.- History :In 1494, Christopher Columbus built a small fort near what is today the actual town of La Vega in the central Dominican Republic. It was intended to guard the route to the...
|
|
385,101 |
168 |
| María Trinidad Sánchez |
NaguaNagua is the capital of the María Trinidad Sánchez province of the Dominican Republic.A medium-sized town, Nagua's economy relies primarily on the production of agricultural products, principally rice, coconuts and cacao. Located on the Northeast coast north of the Samaná Peninsula, Nagua lies on...
|
|
135,727 |
|
| Monseñor Nouel |
Bonao Bonao is the capital of Monseñor Nouel province, Dominican Republic. It is located in the center of the country, to the northwest of the national capital Santo Domingo.The city is known as "Villa De Las Hortensias" - the town of hortensias...
|
|
167,618 |
169 |
| Monte Cristi |
Monte CristiSan Fernando de Monte Cristi is the capital of Monte Cristi Province, Dominican Republic.It is located in the northwest of the country in the coastal lowlands, close to the border with Haiti.- History :...
|
|
111,014 |
58 |
| Monte Plata |
Monte PlataMonte Plata is a province of the Dominican Republic, and also the name of its capital city. It was split from San Cristóbal in 1992. -Municipalities and municipal districts:...
|
|
180,376 |
69 |
| Pedernales |
Pedernales The Dominican city of Pedernales is the capital of the province of Pedernales, in the Dominican Republic. It is located in the southwest of the country...
|
|
21,207 |
10 |
| Peravia |
Baní Baní is a capital town of the Peravia Province, Dominican Republic. It is the commercial and manufacturing center in a region producing bananas and coffee.- Overview :...
|
|
169,865 |
214 |
| Puerto Plata |
Puerto PlataSan Felipe de Puerto Plata, often referred to as simply Puerto Plata, is the capital of the Dominican province Puerto Plata.The city is famous for resorts such as Playa Dorada and Costa Dorada, located east of San Felipe de Puerto Plata. There are a total of 100,000 hotel beds in the city.The only...
|
|
312,706 |
168 |
| Samaná |
Samaná Santa Bárbara de Samaná, or simply Samaná, is a city and municipality in northeastern Dominican Republic, capital of the Samaná Province...
|
|
91,875 |
108 |
| Sánchez Ramírez |
CotuíCotuí is a city in the Dominican Republic and is one of the oldest cities of the New World. It is the capital of Sánchez Ramírez Province in the Cibao. It was founded in the year 1510 by Rodrigo de Trujillo for order of Nicolas de Ovando, who was the governor of Hispaniola. Cotuí was the name of...
|
|
151,179 |
126 |
| San Cristóbal |
San Cristóbal San Cristóbal is a municipality and the capital of the San Cristóbal province in the Dominican Republic. Within the municipality there is one municipal district : Hato Damas.-Sectors:*5 de abril*Canastica*El Pomier...
|
|
532,880 |
421 |
| San José de Ocoa |
San José de OcoaSan José de Ocoa is a province of the Dominican Republic, and also the name of the province's capital city. It was split from Peravia on January 1, 2000...
|
|
62,368 |
73 |
| San Juan |
San Juan San Juan De La Maguana is the capital city and the largest city in the province of San Juan and is the 10th largest city in the Dominican Republic....
|
|
241,105 |
68 |
| San Pedro de Macorís |
San Pedro de Macorís San Pedro de Macorís is a municipality and the capital of the San Pedro de Macorís province in the Dominican Republic.-Demographics:...
|
|
301,744 |
|
| Santiago Santiago is a province of the Dominican Republic. Santiago is an intellectual, educational, and cultural center. It is also a major industrial center with the rum, textile, cigarette and cigar industry, which are based there. Shoe manufacturing and leather goods furniture making are an important...
|
SantiagoFounded in 1495 during the first wave of European colonization of the New World, today Santiago de los Treinta Caballeros is the second largest Metropolis in the Dominican Republic located in the North-central region of the Republic known as Cibao valley...
|
|
908,250 |
320 |
| Santiago Rodríguez |
Sabaneta San Ignacio de Sabaneta is the capital and municipality of Santiago Rodriguez in the northwestern part of the Dominican Republic. It is usually called only Sabaneta or Santiago Rodríguez.-Population:...
|
|
59,629 |
54 |
| Santo Domingo |
Santo Domingo EsteSanto Domingo Este is a municipality and the provincial capital of the Santo Domingo province in the Dominican Republic. Within the municipality there is one municipal district : San Luis.....
|
|
1,817,754 |
1,402 |
| Valverde |
Mao The Dominican city of Santa Cruz de Mao, or simply Mao, is the head municipality of the Valverde province, on the northwest of the country....
|
|
158,293 |
192 |
| Total |
|
|
8,562,541 |
176 |
External links
Oficina Nacional de Estadística (National Statistics Office). Official statistics portal of the Dominican Republic.
Blog of the Dominican Republic, videos, news, culture and music