Antártica Chilena Province () is the southernmost of the four

provinces A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

's southernmost

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

Magallanes and Antártica Chilena Region The Magallanes Region (), officially the Magallanes y la Antártica Chilena Region () or Magallanes and the Chilean Antarctica Region in English, is one of Chile's 16 first order administrative divisions. It is the southernmost, largest, and sec ...

(XII). The capital is

Puerto Williams Puerto Williams (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Port Williams") is a city, port and naval base on Navarino Island in Chile. It faces the Beagle Channel. It is the Capital city, capital of Antártica Chilena Province, the Chilean Antarctic Provin ...

. The province comprises the extreme southern part of

Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego ( English: ''Big Island of the Land of Fire'') also formerly ''Isla de Xátiva'' is an island near the southern tip of South America from which it is separated by the Strait of Magellan. The western portion (61. ...

(south of the

Cordillera Darwin The Cordillera Darwin is an extensive mountain range mantled by an ice field that is located in Chile. Description Cordillera Darwin is located in the southwestern portion of Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego, entirely within the Chilean territor ...

), the islands south and west of Isla Grande (

Diego Ramírez Islands The Diego Ramírez Islands () are a small group of Chilean subantarctic islands located at the southernmost extreme of South America. History The islands were sighted on 12 February 1619 by the Spanish Garcia de Nodal expedition, and named a ...

), and Chile's claims in

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...

. The province is administratively divided into two

communes A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

(''comunas''):

Cabo de Hornos Cape Horn (, ) is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island. Although not the most southerly point of South America (which is Águila Islet), Cape Horn marks the nor ...

, located at the southern tip of South America, and

Antártica Antártica is a Chilean commune in Antártica Chilena Province, Magallanes y la Antártica Chilena Region, which covers all the Chilean Antarctic Territory (the territory in Antarctica claimed by Chile). It ranges from 53°W to 90°W and from t ...

, a wedge-shaped claim of Antarctica, which is not internationally recognized. Its total area of makes it almost twice as large as all other provinces of Chile combined.

Communes

# Commune of Cabo de Hornos (until 2001 called Navarino, capital Puerto Williams), area , population as of census 2002: 2,262, of which 1,952 are in the capital. As a commune, Cabo de Hornos is a third-level administrative division of Chile administered by a municipal council, headed by an alcalde who is directly elected every four years. The 2016-2020 alcalde is Patricio Fernández (PDC).The communal council has the following members: Daniel Fernando Valdebenito Contreras (PS) Ángela Barría Barrientos (RN) Juan Velásquez (PS) Carolina Guenel González (DC) Francis Delgado Ibaceta (RN) Paola Speake Ojeda (DC) # Commune of Antártica, area , population as of census 2002: 130. This territory as a whole is not recognized internationally. (''See'' Antarctic territorial claims.) The Municipality of Cabo de Hornos governs both Antártica and Cabo de Hornos from Cabo de Hornos, making it the only Chilean municipality to currently administer more than one commune.

Demography

According to the 2002 census by the National Statistics Institute (''INE''), it had a population of 2,392 inhabitants (1,518 men and 874 women), giving it a population density of . Of these, 1,952 (81.6%) lived in urban areas and 440 (18.4%) in rural areas. The province is the largest in Chile, yet it is also the least and most sparsely populated province in the country. Between the 1992 and 2002 censuses, the population grew by 23% (447 persons).

Territory recognition

182 - Punta Arenas - Revendications territoriales chiliennes - Janvier 2010

The South American portion of the territory is internationally recognized as part of Chile. However, the Commune of

, which encompasses most of the area of the province, is disputed. It forms the Chilean claim to

, stretching south of the 60th parallel to the

South Pole The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole or Terrestrial South Pole, is the point in the Southern Hemisphere where the Earth's rotation, Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface. It is called the True South Pole to distinguish ...

. This region of Antarctica claimed by Chile overlaps with land claims by

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. The Commune of Antártica is practically uninhabited except for research stations of various countries, although Chile maintains a permanent civilian population at Villa Las Estrellas (near Frei Montalva Station), including women and children, a small school, and even a bank, in order to support its territorial claim of the area. The official population for the area as of the census 2002 is 130 (115 male, 15 female). This does not include the staff of non-Chilean bases in the area. According to the Chilean argument, its claim to Antártica Chilena is as old as Chile itself. The Tordesillas Line established a west–east division of colonial territories between Portugal and Spain. On the first organization of the new conquered territories,

Charles V Charles V may refer to: Kings and Emperors * Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558) * Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain * Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise Others * Charles V, Duke ...

, ruler of the Spanish Empire assigned to Pedro Sancho de la Hoz control over Terra Australis, which included the Southern part of South America, Tierra del Fuego Archipelago, and all southern undiscovered territories (Terra Australis Ignota). This eventually merged with other territories in the

Captaincy General The Captaincy General was a division of a viceroyalty in Spanish or Portuguese colonial administration. Captaincies general were established districts that were under threat from foreign invasion or attack from indigenous peoples. Their gove ...

of the Kingdom of Chile.

Prehistory

Early settlement by prehistoric man is known to have occurred from

archaeological Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

recovery within this Province. Yaghans established many settlements on the islands of the present day province of the Antártica espana Province; for example, there is a significant early Yaghan

site at Wulaia Bay, which C. Michael Hogan terms the ''Bahia Wulaia Dome Middens''.C. Michael Hogan (2008
''Bahia Wulaia Dome Middens'', Megalithic Portal'', ed. Andy Burnham
/ref>

History

Puerto Williams and Porvenir were established in the late 19th century, mainly by

Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's extent varies depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the Western half of the ancient Mediterranean ...

an immigrants (esp. from

British Isles The British Isles are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner Hebrides, Inner and Outer Hebr ...

Scandinavia Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...

and the former

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

) and navigators in cruise ships and fish boats. The Chilean government transplanted Chilean settlers from the central part of the country in the 20th century to increase the province's sparse population.

References

External links

Gobierno Regional Magallanes y Antártica Chilena
Official website (in Spanish)
Gobernación Provincia de Antártica Chilena
Official website (in Spanish)
Prensa Antártica - News of the Antártica Chilena Province

Instituto Antártico Chileno

Cape Horn Biosphere Reserve
{{DEFAULTSORT:Antartica Chilena Province Provinces of Chile Provinces of Magallanes Region Chilean Antarctic Territory Tierra del Fuego