Managua - City of Nicaragua

Managua is the capital city of Nicaragua as well as the department and municipality by the same name. It is also the largest city in Nicaragua. It is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Managua. The city was declared the national capital in 1852. Previously, the capital had alternated between the cities of León and Granada.

The city has been witness to the rise and fall of political powers throughout Nicaragua's history and suffered two devastating earthquakes over the course of the 20th century. Managua is the economic, political, cultural, commercial and industrial center of Nicaragua.

In 2007, after a successful literacy campaign, Managua was declared the first capital city in Central America to be rid of illiteracy.

Nicaragua was inhabited by Paleo-Indians as far back as 6,000 years ago.This is confirmed by the ancient footprints of Acahualinca found along the shores of Lake Managua, along with other archaeological evidence, mainly in the form of ceramics and statues made of volcanic stone like the ones found on the island of Zapatera and petroglyphs found in Ometepe island.

Managua, like much of Western Nicaragua except for the Sierras, has a tropical climate with constant temperatures averaging between 28 and 32 degrees Celsius . The months of December and January are chilly; March and April are humid and somewhat arid.

Managua is the national education center, with most of universities and higher education institutions based there. Nicaragua's higher education consists of 48 universities and 113 colleges and technical institutes which serve student in the areas of electronics, computer systems and sciences, agroforestry, construction and trade-related services.

National Autonomous University of Nicaragua
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Nicaragua is the principal state-funded public university of Nicaragua. UNAN was established in 1812 and its main campus is located in Managua. The original campus, UNAN-Leon, is located in León and is now secondary, mainly used for medicine majors.

Polytechnic University of Nicaragua
Universidad Politecnica de Nicaragua is a university located in Managua, Nicaragua. It was founded in 1967. The university is divided into 6 schools: School of Administration, Commerce and Finance, School of Law, School of Design, School of Nursing, School of Engineering, Music Conservatory.

Managua is Nicaragua's cultural capital, boasting several restaurants, theaters, museums, and luxurious shopping centers. The city is also home to many communities of immigrants and ex-pats from but not limited to: Taiwan, China, Germany, the United States, Palestine, and Latin American countries.