Hato Mayor del Rey

The Dominican city of Hato Mayor del Rey, or usually just Hato Mayor, is the head municipality of the Hato Mayor province.

In English, Hato Mayor del Rey means the largest cattle ranch of the King.

Population
The municipality had, in 2010, a total population of 44,900: 22,225 men and 22,675 women. The urban population was  of the total population.

History
The town grew around a small church built in 1520 in lands given by the Dávila family; for that reason, in old times the town was called Hato Mayor de Dávila.

It was made a municipality by the Haitian government in 1843. After the Dominican independence in 1844, Hato Mayor was not a municipality until 1848 when it was made one in the El Seibo province.

In 1984, when the Hato Mayor province was made, the city of Hato Mayor del Rey became its capital city.

Geography
Hato Mayor del Rey has a total area of . It has three municipal districts (a subdivision of a municipality): Guayabo Dulce, Mata Palacio and Yerba Buena.

Hato Mayor del Rey is at  to the northwest of Santo Domingo and at  to the west of El Seibo. It is at an elevation of  above sea level.

The municipality is  in the eastern part of the country, just to the south of the Cordillera Oriental (in English, "Eastern mountain range") in the region known as Llano Costero del Caribe (in English, "Caribbean Coastal Plain").

Hato Mayor del Rey has the municipality of El Valle to the north, the El Seibo province to the northeast and east, the San Pedro de Macorís province to the south and the Monte Plata province to the west.

Climate
Hato Mayor del Rey has a tropical monsoonal climate (Köppen climate classification : Am), with a dry season and a heavy monsoon the rest of year.

The average amount of rainfall for the year in the city is . Most rains fall during the end of summer. The month with the most precipitation on average is October with  of rainfall, followed by May with .

The driest season is winter. The month with the least rainfall on average is February with an average of  and the second is January with .

Hato Mayor del Rey is in a warm region; the average temperature for the year is . The warmest month, on average, is July with an average temperature of . The coolest month on average is January, with an average temperature of .

Administrative division
The municipality of Hato Mayor del Rey has three municipal districts:

+ Municipal districts of Hato Mayor del Rey Code  Municipal district  Population(2010) 300102  Yerba Buena  3,244 300103  Mata Palacio  5,393 300104  Guayabo Dulce  7,980

Economy
Farming is the only economic activity in the municipality, except for some small industries. Cattle raising is very important in the region because there are many savannas with grasses around the city and to the south of it; the dairy industry is important, with an important production of different types of cheese.

References

Category:Settlements in the Dominican Republic
Category:1520s establishments in North America
Category:16th-century establishments in the Spanish Empire