Lake · Paraguay
Lake Ypacaraí
Lake Ypacaraí is a shallow lake about 50 km east of Asunción, the capital of Paraguay. Its name means "holy lake", and a famous song about it has been sung by many singers.
Picture credit: Cmasi (CC0) · Cmasi (CC0) · Cmasi (CC0) · Wikimedia Commons
Where is Lake Ypacaraí?
Countries on its shores: Paraguay.
Middle of the lake: 25.30° S, 57.35° W
The story behind it
Lake Ypacaraí is about 24 km long from north to south and about 6 km wide. Sources disagree about its size: one gives about 56 km², another about 90 km². It is shallow: on average only about 1.7 to 3 metres deep. Several streams flow into it, and the Salado River carries its water to the Paraguay River. Three towns lie on its shores: Areguá, Ypacaraí and San Bernardino, a popular summer resort. Long ago the lake was called Tapycua. Its present name is linked to a blessing of the lake by the missionary Luis de Bolaños around 1600. Every September the Ypacaraí Festival takes place. Sadly, the lake is also the most polluted in Paraguay: tiny organisms called cyanobacteria have turned the water green, and swimming is not advised. The Ypoá lakes lie in a much larger wetland, but their open water is smaller, so Ypacaraí counts as Paraguay's largest natural lake.
Find it on the globe
Lake Ypacaraí is there as a small blue dot with its name, right on the water. From far away the planet is only a blue ball; detail arrives as you zoom in, and this one appears once you are close enough. Open it on the globe.
It sits at its real coordinates, not near them — the same numbers listed in the facts above. Switch off the layer for this kind of place and it disappears again; the buttons for that are down the right-hand edge.
Questions children ask
How big is Lake Ypacaraí?
Lake Ypacaraí is about 24 km long and 6 km wide. Sources give different areas, from about 56 km² to about 90 km².
What does the name Ypacaraí mean?
Ypacaraí means "holy lake". The name is linked to a blessing of the lake by the missionary Luis de Bolaños around 1600.
Can you swim in Lake Ypacaraí?
Swimming is not advised at the moment. Cyanobacteria, tiny organisms that can be harmful, have turned the water green.
Where these numbers come from
Every figure on this page was checked against public reference sources before publication. Where sources genuinely disagree, the text says so.
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