Antofagasta
For the copper-mining company named after the region, see Antofagasta plc.
is a port city and episcopal see in northern Chile, about north of Santiago. It is the capital of both Antofagasta Province and Antofagasta Region. According to the 2002 census, it has a municipal population of 296,905 and an urban area population of 318,779. The city's name comes from either a Quechua or Aymara word for "town of the great saltpeter bed."
Geography
Antofagasta is a long and narrow city located south of the Mejillones Peninsula and north of the Cerro Coloso, north of Santiago. The city is bordered on the east by steep hills that are part of Chile's Cordillera de la Costa, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean.
Antofagasta lies in the Atacama Desert, which is among the Earth's driest regions. According to The Chilean Geological Magazine, annual rainfall in the city averages less than 4 mm, and there was a period of 40 years when no rain fell. [*]
Mejillones is a small port 65 km to the north, on the northern part of Peninsula de Mejillones. About 90 km north of Antofagasta is Hornitos, a beach that attracts both tourists and locals. Tocopilla is a coastal city 188 km north of Antofagasta. Calama, the second-largest city in the Antofagasta Region, is 213 km northeast of the regional capital. La Negra is a medium-sized industrial complex approximately 10 km south-east of Antofagasta, on the Pan-American Highway.
History
The first native inhabitants were the Changos, who fished, gathered shellfish, and hunted sea lions. The region was also part of the Incan Empire.
Founded between 1866 and 1874 as a seaport for the recently discovered silver mines nearby, Antofagasta's original name was Penas Blancas (Spanish for "White Boulders"). It was part of the Litoral Province of Bolivia until February 14, 1879, when it was occupied by Chilean troops. This event marked the beginning of the War of the Pacific. Antofagasta is sometimes referred to as the Captive Province in Bolivia. The Bolivian government has made efforts to regain control of the city.
Administration
The commune of Antofagasta belongs to 2 circunscripcion (II Region of Antofagasta), which is represented in Senado by the senators Carlos Cantero (RN Renovation) and Jose Antonio Gomez (PRSD). Of equal way, the commune is part of distrito number 4, which is represented in Camara de Diputados of Congreso Nacional by the deputies Manuel Rojas (UDI) and Pedro Araya (PDC)
Economy
Antofagasta's economic development has been based on extraction of raw materials. Primary extraction has shifted from guano to potassium nitrate (saltpeter) to copper. Antofagasta was formerly known as the main copper port of Chile, however, in recent years Mejillones have taken the leadership in copper transportation mainly due major infrastructure investment in that area (including a new port called "Megapuerto de Mejillones"). The city's economic mainstay is based on providing housing and services to the mining operations surrounding the city.
Antofagasta's industrial complex is north of the city. The city has a small agricultural zone in Quebrada La Chimba.
Demographics
According to the 2002 census, Antofagasta has a municipal population 296,905, and a greater conurbation contaning 318,779, making it the fourth-largest city in Chile. Its inhabitants are primarilly Chilean, with significant Croatian and Greek minorities. Because there are several large mines near Antofagasta, temporary migrant workers in the mines form a significant portion of residents.
Transportation
Antofagasta has an airport, Aeropuerto Cerro Moreno, with civilian and military operations. The city also has two seaports: one is a government-owned port near downtown Antofagasta; the other is part of La Escondida copper mine and is located south of the city, near Cerro Coloso.
North of the city, along the seacoast, is a natural monument that features a large rock with a wave-created opening, called La Portada de Antofagasta ("The Doorway to Antofagasta").
Education
The city has several public and private educational facilities. Two major public universities operate in the city. Several private universities have been open since 2002. Previously, the now-defunct Universidad Jose Santos Ossa was the only private university in Antofagasta.
Although the public schools are distributed almost uniformly throughout the city, private schools operate mainly in the central and southern part of the city, where the wealthiest inhabitants reside.
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Antofagasta
