GUAYAQUIL, DIOCESE OF
Guayaquil, or Santiago de G., is a city and diocese in Ecuador, situated on the right bank of the Guayas River, which flows into the Gulf of Guayaquil, the largest gulf in the Pacific Ocean on the South American coast. Pope Pius XII, by the apostolic constitution *Peramplum quarundam* of 6 May 1950, separated the territory of the Galápagos Islands from Guayaquil, erecting them into an apostolic prefecture under the jurisdiction of the Sacred Congregation of Propaganda Fide (*AAS*, 42 [1950], pp. 707-708).
The diocese covers an area of 32,303 km² and has a population of 683,887 inhabitants, of whom 680,240 are Catholic. It comprises 40 parishes served by 43 secular and 25 regular priests, one seminary, 15 male and 10 female religious communities (1949). The diocese was established on 27 January 1838 by separation from the Diocese of Cuenca; it was suffragan to Lima until 13 January 1849, when it came under the jurisdiction of Quito. The first bishop was J. de Garaicoa (1538-51).
Among the sacred monuments worthy of note are the Cathedral, the churches of St Francis, St Dominic, St Alexis, St Joseph, and the churches of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary. Notable also are the municipal library and museum.