Ypacaraí is a town in the Central Department of Paraguay on the Lake Ypacarai. On the Paraguayan highway system, it is located between Asunción and Caacupé, near Areguá and San Bernardino. Known as the "City of Folklore" after the Ypacaraí Festival, it is located on the Ybytypanemá mountain range, which is in the Los Altos mountain range, near the Ypacaraí lake. In 2020, the village had a population of 28,283, and is 64.1 m above sea level. Notable agricultural crops of the area include tobacco and cotton. Lake Ypacaraí is popular with tourists and locals in the landlocked nation of Paraguay. Paraguayan footballer Carlos Gamarra is from Ypacaraí. Etymology Ypacaraí, means "Conjured Lake", so called because in 1603, the missionary Luis de Bolaños blessed the lake to contain its waters, since they flooded all the way to the Valley of Pirayú. The Guarani words, "ypa" means lake and "karai" means Lord or blessed, thus Paraguay has the Lord's Lake or Blessed Lake. There are other versions, such as the one that says that when the Spaniards arrived they asked the natives what the lake was called and, responding, they said "Ypa Karaí?" Which when translated is "Are you referring to the water, Sir?". History The city that already existed at the end of the 17th century – was one of the Itauguá companies, with the name of «Guazú Virá», later changed to «Tacuaral». On 27 March 1864, the extension of the railway line to the Guazú Virá station was inaugurated, called "Estación Tacuaral" (from there it takes the name of "Tacuaral"), around said station the community grew due to the movement that this generated. Over the years the idea of separating from Itauguá arose and a commission was formed to take the request to the President of the Paraguayan Republic, General Patricio Escobar. This commission was made up of: Lytton Snead, José Galo Guanes, Higinio Escobar, Eustaquio Feliú, David Baruch, Ramón Negrete, Dionisio Pérez and Eliseo Patiño, thus initiating the corresponding procedures. On 13 September of the year 1887 the creation of "Ypacaraí" was established. The first people to lead the town were Mr. Higinio Escobar as police chief and justice of the peace and Father Adolfo Valenzuela, in charge of religious services. The district was very marginalized during the Stroessner dictatorship, which is why it came to be known as "the capital of folklore and democracy". Geography Ypacaraí limits