Tacuarembó Department

The Tacuarembó department () is a department of Uruguay. The capital is the city of Tacuarembó.
Its code is UY-TA.
Name.
The department and its capital city are named after "Tacuarembó" river, the main tributary of the Río Negro river.
History.
The first division in departments of Uruguay was in 1816. At that time, the Paysandú Department included all the territory north of the Río Negro, including the actual departments of Artigas, Rivera, Tacuarembó, Salto, Paysandú and Río Negro. On 16 June 1837 a new division of Uruguay was made and this territory was divided in three parts; one of these parts was the Tacuarembó Department that included also the actual department of Rivera, until it was split from it in 1884.
Geography.
The Tacuarembó department is in the north central part of the country. It has an area of , the largest in the country. It is has a population of 90,053 inhabitants (2011 census) for a population density of .
To the west of the department there is a chains of low and rounded hills in the department, the "Cuchilla de Haedo".
Limits.
It borders Rivera Department to its north and northeast, the departments of Salto, Paysandú and Río Negro to its west and Durazno and Cerro Largo to the south separated by the Río Negro.
Rivers.
The Río Negro river forms the southern border of the department but the most important river that is completely within the department is the "Tacuarembó" river, the main tributary of Río Negro.
Climate.
The Köppen climate classification type for the climate at Paso de los Toros, in the southwest of the department, is a "Humid subtropical climate" and of the subtype Cfa.
The average amount of precipitation for the year in Paso de los Toros is . The month with the most precipitation on average is January with of precipitation. The month with the least precipitation on average is December with an average of .
The average temperature for the year in Paso de los Toros is . The warmest month, on average, is January with an average temperature of . The coolest month on average is July, with an average temperature of .
Demographics.
The inhabitants of the Tacuarembó department (and of the city of Rivera) are known, in Spanish, as "Tacuaremboenses".
Evolution of the population in Tacuarembó
According to the 2011 census, the Tacuarembó department has a rural population of 9,660.