La Habana is the capital city, major port, and leading commercial center of Cuba. The city, under the name "Ciudad de La Habana" (City of Havana) province, is one of the 14 Cuban provinces. The province has 2.3 million inhabitants, and the metropolitan area over 3 million, making Havana the largest city in both Cuba and the Caribbean region, and the ninth-largest in Latin America. The province is both the smallest and the most populous in Cuba.

Havana is located about 170 km (106 mi) southwest of Key West, Florida on the northwest coast of Cuba, facing the Straits of Florida, and is surrounded by Havana Province (distinct from Ciudad de La Habana province) and the coast.

Havana, founded in 1515, is one of the oldest cities founded by Europeans in the Western Hemisphere. The city was protected by walls and fortificaions as it was often attacked by pirates and French corsairs. The sinking of the U.S. battleship Maine in Havana's harbor in 1898 was the immediate cause of the Spanish-American War. Old Havana and its fortifications are protected by UNESCO. Havana is the center of the Cuban government, and various ministries and headquarters of businesses are based there. Much of Cuba's industrial and service economy is based in Havana.


source: wikipedia.org

Contributed by: [alex]