Baracoa, August 15 (RHC)-- The city of Baracoa is celebrating its 507th birthday on August 15th, with a long history of tradition and the legacy left by the Spanish, Africans and Native indigenous communities. 

Located in the northeastern part of the Cuban province of Guantánamo, between the Bays of Baracoa and Miel, it was the first city set up by Spaniards in Cuba on August 15, 1511 and the headquarters of the island’s first Bishop’s office. 

Named Villa de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción de Baracoa by Spanish conqueror Diego Velázquez, Baracoa is also known as the City of Landscapes, the City of the Rain, the City of Mountains, the City of the Waters.  Its name means “existence of the sea” in the Arauac language. 

Baracoa's 507th anniversary is being celebrated in Cuba with different cultural activities all this week.