Lavalleja

Inland department in southern Uruguay; area 10,016 sq km/3,867 sq mi; population (1996) 61,466. The capital is Minas, which was the birthplace of the 19th-century Uruguayan patriot Juan Antonio Lavalleja, after whom the department is named. The area is watered by the River Cebollati. Lavalleja is chiefly an agricultural region, producing wheat, maize, linseed, and oats, but livestock is also farmed.