Distrito Nacional Facts for Kids

The Distrito Nacional is a special area in the Dominican Republic. It surrounds the capital city, Santo Domingo. Unlike other parts of the country, it's not part of any province. It acts like a municipality (a city area with its own local government), but it also has some features of a province. For example, it gets to elect one senator to the country's congress.

Before October 16, 2001, the Distrito Nacional was much bigger. It used to include the area that is now the Santo Domingo Province.

Where is the Distrito Nacional?
A Look at History
People Living Here
Geography and Rivers
- Climate
Images for kids
See also

Where is the Distrito Nacional?

The Distrito Nacional is located on the southern coast of the Dominican Republic. To its north, east, and west, it borders the Santo Domingo province. To the south, it meets the beautiful Caribbean Sea.

A Look at History

The Distrito Nacional was first created in 1844 by the Dominican government. Back then, it was called the Santo Domingo province. It included several towns like Santo Domingo, Baní, and San Cristóbal.

In 1932, its name was changed to Provincia Nacional. Some of its northern towns, located beyond the Isabela and Ozama rivers, became part of the San Cristóbal Province.

Later, in 1934, its name changed again to Distrito Nacional. At this point, it became more like a special municipality than a regular province. After a brief change to Distrito de Santo Domingo, the name went back to Distrito Nacional in 1955.

People Living Here

In 2014, the last time a national census was taken, there were 1,402,749 people living in the Distrito Nacional. This makes it the second most populated area in the country, right after the Santo Domingo province.

The area is very crowded! The population density was 15,313.9 people per square kilometer. This is the highest population density in the entire country.

About 14.85% of the Dominican Republic's total population lives here. This means it's the 2nd most populated administrative division out of 31 provinces plus the National District.

As of As of 2016^[update], it's estimated that the total population of the Distrito Nacional is about 1,015,150 people.

Geography and Rivers

The Distrito Nacional is made up of just one municipality. Its total area is 91.6 km² (35.4 sq mi). This makes it the smallest administrative division in the country. It covers about 0.2% of the Dominican Republic's total area.

Two important rivers flow through the Distrito Nacional: the Ozama and the Isabela. The Ozama River forms the eastern border of the Distrito Nacional. It separates it from Santo Domingo Este, a main town in the Santo Domingo province. The Isabela River, which flows into the Ozama, forms the northern border of the Distrito Nacional. It separates it from Santo Domingo Norte.