Samaná

Samaná, in full Santa Bárbara de Samaná, is a town and municipality in northeastern Dominican Republic and is the capital of Samaná Province. It is located on the northern coast of Samaná Bay. The town is an important tourism destination and is the main center for whale-watching tours in the Caribbean region.GeographySamaná is located in a small plain close to the coast but, now, most of the town is in the hills that enclose the plain.It is the largest municipality of the province. It has a total area of 412.11 km² (almost 49% of the total area of the province), including the three municipal districts that are part of the municipality.Most of the territory is occupied by the Sierra de Samaná, a short mountain range with steep slopes but no high mountains. The highest mountain is Monte Mesa (605 m).PopulationThe demonym for the inhabitants of Samaná, both the city and the province, is Samanés (men and women). It is also possible to use Samanense.HistoryThe town of Santa Barbara of Samaná sits on the Samaná Peninsula which came first into written history on 13 January 1493, when Christopher Columbus made here the last stop of his first voyage to the New World. He landed on what today is known as the Rincón Beach, where he met the Ciguayos who presented him with the only violent resistance he faced during this visit to the Americas. The Cigüayos had refused to trade their bows and arrows that Columbus's pathfinders wanted. In the ensuing clash, two Amerindians were wounded. Because of the Ciguayos' use of arrows, the Admiral called the inlet the Bay of Arrows (or Gulf of Arrows). Columbus took on board four natives to show in Spain, but only one survived. For most of the colonial period, the Spanish did not settle here, opening the place for runaways and privateers.