San Pedro de Macoris

There are four possible origins of the name "San Pedro": the first is that the name was chosen in honor of Saint Peter (San Pedro); the second is that it references San Pedro Beach near the city's port; the third is that it is a tribute to General Pedro Santana, who was president at the time; and finally, the name may have been chosen simply to distinguish the city from San Francisco de Macorís, a city in the north. Macorís comes from the previous name of the Higuamo river, which appears in ancient documents as the Macorix river. There is debate as to whether the name is of Carib, Arawakan, or Ciguayo origin. San Pedro de Macorís has been poetically referred to as "Macorís of the Sea" and the "Sultana of the East", and many call it the "Capital of the East".

The western bank of the Higuamo river saw a visible population increase after 1822 as a result of refugees from Santo Domingo fleeing invading Haitian forces. The Dominican Senate declared the region (Macorix) to be a military post in 1846 at the request of the inhabitants. At that time, Macorís was part of the Seybo province. After 1840, the inhabitants moved from the western side of the Higuamo river to the eastern side, where the city sits today. Over the years, the population gradually increased, dedicating itself to the production of basic provisions. On October 1, 1856, Macoris' first Catholic church was founded by Pedro Carrasco Capeller, a priest from San José de los Llanos. The church was subsequently destroyed and rebuilt several times. In 1910 the city saw the opening of the San Pedro Apóstol cathedral. …

San Pedro de Macorís has a tropical savanna climate (Köppen Aw) with consistently hot temperatures and a dry season from January to March.