History records October 30, 1577 as the date on which the delimitation of the Ciego de Ávila settlement took place. As for the origin of the toponymic, some people say that the site was surrounded by forests. Others consider that the place simply retained the last name of the first colonizer who settled in these places, Ávila, whose name is still unknown.

For a long time, Ciego de Ávila was called by the state of Antonio José Venegas, a site that became a compulsory stop for travelers who covered the distance between the towns of Porto Principe and Sancti Spiritus, because people could not only find there food and lodging, but they could also change the horses to continue traveling.

In the first war of the 19th century, the Spaniards carried out a military construction that crossed the territory from north to south, Júcaro-Morón Fortress Line, destined to prevent the advance of the insurgent troops towards the west of the country. The insurgent troops, however, achieved their objective and the Fortress Line later became one of the symbols of the province.

Part of the economic development of the territory, however, was due to the commercial activities that took place to supply the Fortress Line. The development of the Central Railroad, the flourishing of the sugar industry and the promotion of citrus cultivation would contribute to this development. Years later, the widespread cultivation of pineapple made this fruit become another of the symbols of the province.

The most recent identifier of the province had its origin in the early inauguration of a radio station in the territory. This was the beginning of a history of more than eighty years, during which the continuous contribution of prestigious speakers to the national media earned the province to be declared Capital of the Locution.

Ciego de Ávila became a province in 1976, as a result of the last political-administrative division. Its territory limits to the north with the Old Canal of The Bahamas, to the South with the Gulf of Ana María and the Jardines de la Reina archipelago, to the East with the province of Camagüey and to the West with the province of Sancti Spíritus.

Ciego de Ávila has an area of 6 900, 2 km2, a figure that includes 589.3 km2 of adjacent keys. The most important key is located to the north, where three large keys, Coco, Guillermo and Paredón, seat one of the most important tourist poles in the country. These keys are linked to each other and to the big island by means of causeway.

The total area places the province in seventh place. This is divided into ten municipalities, Ciego de Ávila, Morón, Baraguá, Chambas, January 1st, Venezuela, Ciro Redondo, Majagua, Florence and Bolivia. The population is estimated at about 404,000 inhabitants.

The rivers of Ciego de Ávila are not very abundant, however in the territory there are two large underground basins that constitute the main reserves of fresh water. Two large aquatic resources, the Laguna de la Leche, with 130 million cubic meters of water and La Redonda, with 80 million complete the natural water resources.

With a privileged geographical location and accessibility, the province of Ciego de Ávila occupies the center of the island and is only 450 km from Havana. An extensive network of roads and railways crosses the territory, which also has two international airports and two ports, one on the north coast and one on the south coast.