Supriya Ghosh (Editor)

Corozal District

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Country
  
Website
  
www.corozal.com

Capital
  
ISO 3166 code
  
BZ-CZL

Area
  
1,860 km²

Team
  
Nizhee Corozal FC

Corozal District httpswwwchaacreekcomsitesdefaultfilesstyl

Points of interest
  
Ambergris Caye, Belize Barrier Reef, Hol Chan Marine Reserve, Santa Rita Corozal, Banana Beach Resort

Colleges and Universities
  
Corozal Junior College, Belize Adventist Junior Co, Centro Escolar Mexico J

776 cerros lane cerros sands corozal district belize


Corozal District is the northernmost district of the nation of Belize. The population was 33,335 in 2000. The district capital is Corozal Town.

Contents

Map of Corozal District, Belize

Pre-Columbian Maya ruins are found in Corozal at Santa Rita near Corozal Town, and at Cerros.

852 actuncan court cerros sands corozal district belize


Villages

Corozal District includes the villages of Buena Vista, Calcutta, Caledonia, Carolina, Chan Chen, Chunox, Concepcion, Consejo, Copper Bank, Cristo Rey, Estrella, Libertad, Little Belize, Louisville, Paraiso, Patchacan, Progresso, Ranchito, San Andres, San Antonio, San Joaquin, San Narciso, San Roman, San Victor, San Pedro, Santa Clara, Sarteneja, Xaibe, and Yo Chen. The island of Ambergris Caye is geographically closer to Corozal District than the district in which it is administrated, Belize District.

Political divisions

There are four political divisions in the Corozal District.

  • Corozal Bay is represented by the United Democratic Party's Pablo Marin, Minister of Health, in his second term. Marin defeated relative and former PUP representative Vildo Marin. The division includes most of Corozal Town proper.
  • Corozal North covers the villages immediately north and west of Corozal Town and is held by first-term representative Hugo Patt of the UDP.
  • Corozal Southeast has long been a PUP stronghold under father and son Florencio Marin Sr. (who stepped down in 2008 after seven terms) and Florencio Marin Jr., who is now in his second term.
  • Corozal Southwest is represented by first-term representative Ramiro Ramirez, who beat incumbent Gabriel Martinez in 2012.
  • Economy

    While Corozal District depended for many years on the sugar industry, at one time having its own sugar factory in Libertad Village, today the economy is more diversified. Sugar production and other agricultural crops such as papaya are still central to the way of life of many rural Corozalenos, but occupations in the tourism industry are slowly becoming more prominent. Now almost 65% of Corozalenos depend on the Commercial Free Zone for employment. The Zone is located on the border of Belize and Mexico.

    Contraband is the biggest source of growing income in Corozal since it is adjacent to Mexico, and includes such things as vegetables, fruits, liquors, cigarettes, and gasoline.

    Languages

    English is the most spoken language in Corozal, followed by Spanish. 80% speak English very well and 60% speak Spanish very well.

    Corozal's villages are divided by color and language:

    Corozal Town, the main center of the District, is peopled by a mix of Belize's races and cultures, most notably the Mestizos. Spanish and English are the major languages spoken.

    Calcutta, Estrella Village, Libertad, Ranchito, and San Antonio are populated by East Indian people and speak English and Spanish very well.

    Chan Chen, Chunox, Cristo Rey, Louisville, Patchakan, San Pedro, San Victor Village, Xaibe, and Yo Chen are populated by Maya people and speak Spanish and the Yucatán Mayan language very well, along with some English.

    Buena Vista, Caledonia, Conception, San Narciso, San Roman, and Santa Clara are populated by Maya- Mestizo people who speak Spanish and some English. They are not obliged to learn English, because school teachers teach in Spanish but write in English and because at work the primary language is Spanish, so villagers are not exposed to English on a daily basis.

    Progresso, San Andres, and Sarteneja Village are populated by Creole and Hispanic people, who share their cultures and languages in English and Spanish.

    Little Belize is populated by Mennonites, who speak German.

    Education

    Corozal Community College and Corozal Junior College are found in the village of San Andres and also near San Antonio in Corozal District.

    St. Viator Vocational High School is located just outside Chunox in the Corozal District.

    Escuela Secundaria Tecnica Mexico or ESTM is located in the village of San Roman in the Corozal District.

    References

    Corozal District Wikipedia