Maturín

Maturín, city, capital of Monagas estado (state), northeastern Venezuela. It is located on the Río Guarapiche between the easternmost outliers of the Andean highlands and the Orinoco delta. Maturín is named after a Native American chief who was killed in a battle in 1718 against the Spanish conquistadores.

Founded in 1760 by Capuchin missionaries, the city is a commercial and manufacturing centre for an agricultural and pastoral region that produces cattle, corn (maize), sorghum, coffee, and peanuts. With the discovery of the Furrial oilfield in the 1980s, Maturín experienced an economic boom and came to be considered the oil capital of eastern Venezuela. Oil from nearby fields to the north and west is piped through the city, which is accessible by highway from Carúpano, in Sucre state, and from the Barcelona–Puerto La Cruz area in northeastern Anzoátegui state. A road leads south from Maturín to Barrancas, on the Orinoco River. The city also has an international airport. Pop. (2001) 339,936; (2011) 447,283.