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La Sagrada

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La Sagrada
Aypuruy (Runakuna)
La Sagrada Luz Sale del Cielo
Aerial Guayaquil.jpg
Flag of La Sagrada
Official seal of La Sagrada
Etymology: Palian for "The holy light beams down from heaven"
Nickname(s): 
Ciudad de la luz
("City of light")
Ciudad de Dios
("City of God")
Usaipaca
Runakuna; "End of the world"
Motto(s): 
Prosperidad y serenidad
("Prosperity and serenity")
Country Aiyaca
DepartmentLa Sagrada DFC
Founded16th century
Founded bySansón de Llarena
Government
 • MayorGuillermo Gómez Gomis (ES)
Area
 • Urban
271.1 km2 (104.7 sq mi)
 • Metro
326.8 km2 (126.2 sq mi)
 • Department702.3 km2 (271.2 sq mi)
Population
 (2020 est.)
 • Density6,570/km2 (17,000/sq mi)
 • Urban
1,519,817
 • Metro
2,147,338
 • Department
2,901,651
Demonym(s)Sagradan/Sagradene (sagradés/sa, sagradense, sagradí)
Time zoneUTC-3 (Eastern Marceaunian Standard Time)

La Sagrada (Palian: /lɑː ˈsagra:ða/, Runakuna: Aypuruy), officially known as La Sagrada Luz Sale del Cielo (Palian: /lɑː ˈsɑgra:ða lus 'sɑl:ej ðel 'sielo/; "The holy light shines down from heaven") is the capital and second-largest city of the Aiyacan Republic. With a metropolitan population of over 2.1 million, it is one of the largest cities in Marceaunia Minor, and an economic hub for finance and trade entering Paliophone Marceaunia, as well as domestic businesses within Aiyaca. La Sagrada houses Aiyaca's national-level legislative and judicial buildings, and receives diplomatic missions to Aiyaca from abroad. While smaller in size and population than San Luis, its economic output is larger and the city boasts a significantly higher average income and standard of living.

The city was founded as a coastal port town in the 16th century by Palian conquistador Sansón de Llarena, and was one of then first cities founded in modern-day Aiyaca. After the establishment of the Viceroyalty of Rocia in 1553, La Sagrada served as an important regional port for trade from Auressia due to its proximity and ease to traverse. The city was an early centre of the Lacasine Rebellion and its colonial administration was one of the first to pledge its allegiance to Manuel Lacasa when he revolted against Palian colonial rule in 1797. Despite this, Verbo Divino remained the capital of the Union of Aillaca-Rocia when its constitution was drafted and ratified in 1812. Nonetheless, La Sagrada retained its regional importance as a port and trade hub on the eastern coast of the Union.

When the nations split, La Sagrada was unanimously voted as the new capital of the Aiyacan Republic by the First Transitional Triumvirate in 1904, and president Juan Andres Curbelo was inaugurated in the city. La Sagrada experienced a major population boom in the immediate post-independence period, both from rural Aiyacans migrating for work and Auressians migrating into the new world in search of new lives. By 1930, La Sagrada was the third-largest city in Marceaunia Minor, and Aiyaca's neutrality in the Second Great War saw the city benefit from extensive wartime migration, particularly from Amandine, Albrennia and Palia. Subsequently, a significant upper-class demographic emerged in the city and it quickly became a centre of science and literature in mid-20th century Marceaunia. In 1959, it was the location of the Pacarán Declaration (named for the city's Pacarán district), the founding charter of the Assembly of Marceaunian States, and has since hosted the organisation's official diplomatic headquarters.

In the 21st-century, La Sagrada has continually modernised socially, economically and technologically. It is consistently rated one of the best cities in Marceaunia Minor for LGBT rights, and is ranked highly for urban living standards in Marceaunia. Its picturesque beaches also provide a significant tourism sector, and the city hosts many resorts along its coastal promenades. Its colonial-era architecture can be seen in the city's centre, including many ornate cathedrals built in the 17th and 18th centuries. More recently, the city's council and the Aiyacan government have outlined commitments to bring the city to complete carbon neutrality by 2035, part of a greater urban rejuvenation project called La Sagrada–Ciudad Futura 2035.

Etymology

The city's official name, La Sagrada Luz Sale del Cielo, is a direct Palian translation of "the holy light shines down from heaven". The name was first used in a map of the region dating back to 1570, and is thought to have originated from conquistador Sansón de Llarena, who founded the city in the 16th century. Over time, the name was eventually truncated into its modern form, La Sagrada, which is seeing an increased amount of official usage over its longer name.

The name of the city follows a wider colonial Palian trend of having a long official name, in reference to religion (in this case, Morism) or its geography, and shares a similar etymology to Rocian city Verbo Divino.

Over various different points in its history, La Sagrada has been known as La Sagrada Luz, La Sagrada Luz del Cielo and even by abbreviated forms such as La Sagrada L.S.C. and La Sagrada Lusaci.

History

Colonial Affiliations
Palia Kingdom of Palia 1556–1743
Blayk Blaykish Empire 1743
Palia Kingdom of Palia 1743–1812
Union of Aillaca-Rocia 1812–1904
 Aiyaca 1904–present

The founding of the city by Palian conquistadors and colonists dates back to the 16th century. Historians disagree on the exact date of foundation but the first concrete evidence of human settlement in La Sagrada is the cornerstone of the Catedral de Nuestra Señora Arriba ("Cathedral of Our Lady Above") in the centre of the city, in which the year 1556 is inscribed. As it was likely one of the first buildings built in the city, historians have used it as an estimation of the year of the city's settlement ever since.

Its location on the eastern coast of Marceaunia Minor made La Sagrada a popular destination for trade and migration, and the city quickly became a popular port and an essential naval asset to the Palian crown. In 1579, governor Cornieles de Cuevas Rubias built the Pomacusma Fort in the western hills of the city, overlooking the bay on which the city lay. At its time, it was likely one of the more advanced naval forts in the Palian world, and one of the first examples of device forts in the new world.

La Sagrada expanded quickly during the 17th century and emerged as the primary city of what is now Aiyaca, and the secondary city to Verbo Divino in the Rocian viceroyalty.

Geography

Politics and government

Transport

Demographics

Twin towns – sister cities