Palma Soriano

Palma Soriano is a Cuban municipality-city in the Santiago de Cuba Province. With a 2024 population of 102,826 in the city proper, it is the second-largest in the province and the 16th-largest in Cuba.^[1][2][3]

It is located on the banks of the Cauto River. It was founded in 1775, through the donation made to the Catholic Church by Mrs. De los Llamos y Rizo, who offered for its foundation the land of the Cauto Garzón hacienda, which would later become Palma Soriano, following the increase in the population that settled on the premises of said farm. Santiago Soriano, a Spanish descendant, acquired a farm that was part of the Ingenio Cauto Garzón, where he built his house next to a palm tree, next to the island's royal road on the banks of the Cauto River. Upon Mr. Soriano's death, the inhabitants began to name the place as the Palma de Soriano, until after several names, in 1899, at the request of its inhabitants and a letter from the Archbishop of Santiago de Cuba, the city was declared a Palma Soriano Municipality.^[4]

Palma Soriano is a commercial and manufacturing centre for the agricultural and pastoral hinterland, which yields sugarcane, cacao, coffee, corn (maize), fruits, and cattle. Coffee, soft drinks, and furniture are the main industrial products. Manganese is found in the vicinity. The city is on the country’s Central Highway, major rail line, and has a noncommercial airfield.^[5]