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La Rioja Province (Argentina)
Topics: La Rioja Province (Argentina) Provinces of Argentina Wine regions of Argentina
La Rioja is a one of the provinces of Argentina and is located in the west of the country. Neighboring provinces are from the north clockwise Catamarca, Cordoba, San Luis and San Juan.
Among Argentines it is famous and infamous as the province where former president and controversial figure Carlos Menem was governor and caudillo.
History
Petroglyphs at the Talampaya National Park dated around 10,000 years BCE set original inhabitants long before the arrival of the Spanish conquerors. When they arrived to La Rioja in the 16th century they found the diaguitas, capayanes and the olongastas.
Juan Ramirez de Velazco founded Todos los Santos de la Nueva Rioja in 1591 under the government of Tucuman of the Viceroyalty of Peru. In 1630 there was an uprising of the calchaquies aborigins that was finished by governor Albornoz.
In 1783, after the creation of the Viceroyalty of the Rio de la Plata the control of the province of 10,000 inhabitants passed to the Cordoba indendency. The province acquired independence from Cordoba in 1820. The figure of the caudillo Juan Facundo Quiroga emerges and after a perdiod of internal instability in Argentina the province finally joined the Argentine Confederation in 1853.
The immigration to Argentina of the early 20th century was less numerous in La Rioja than in other Argentine provinces. Among the few to adventure to the province were Syrians and Lebanese immigrants.
Geography and climate
Located in the Argentine Northwest area, its landscape is arid to semi-arid, and the dry climate receives annually 200 mm of precipitations, has short winters and very hot summers.
From the Andes at the west, with peaks of up to 6,795 meters (Monte Pissis), the relief's height descents towards the sierras of the neighbouring dry Pampas zone.
The Talampaya National Park is a dry red-soil canyon of the ancient extinguished Talampaya river, which contains many walls and rock formations that make it an interesting tourist destination.
Economy
La Rioja's agriculture (as well as cities) lays on the shore of the few permanents rivers and oasis that allow irrigation, with only 190 square kilometres of cultivated land. Vineyards, nuts and olive plantations are the most common, followed by cotton.
The province's main activity is the grape, and its associated wine production, specially around the Chilecito area, with a production of 8 million litres per year.
Cattle and goats are secondary activities, particularly for skin and leather. Clay represents the main mining activity, and uranium is also extracted near El Colorado.
Tourism is an expanding activity. Besides the Talampaya National Park, tourists visiting La Rioja usually go also to the Chilecito town, Cerro de La Cruz, Termas de Santa Teresita hot baths and the village of Villa Sanagasta.
La Rioja's development plan is being designed by Proyectos Innovadores
Political division
The province is divided in 18 departments (Spanish departamentos).
Arauco (Aimogasta)
Capital (La Rioja)
Castro Barros (Aminga)
Chamical (Chamical)
Chilecito (Chilecito)
Coronel Felipe Varela (Villa Union)
Famatina (Famatina)
General angel Vicente Penaloza (Tama)
General Belgrano (Olta)
General Juan Facundo Quiroga (Malazan)
General Lamadrid (Villa Castelli)
General Ocampo (Milagro)
General San Martin (Ulapes)
Independencia (Patquia)
Rosario Vera Penaloza (Chepes)
San Blas (San Blas)
Sanagasta (Sanagasta)
Vinchina (Vinchina)
See also
1894 San Juan earthquake
External links
Gobierno de La Rioja Official website
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article La Rioja Province (Argentina)
