from 1863 to the early 1900s there were numerous territorial changes, including the merger and splitting of states, but from then until the 1990s the states were left unchanged. states that existed during this time included "guzmán blanco state" (1873–1889). originally a renamed aragua state, in 1881 the states of miranda, guárico, nueva esparta and the vargas department of the federal district were merged into the state. this was part of a territorial reorganisation reducing the number of states from 20 to 9, which was reversed in 1901.