Contulmo ( Mapudungun: "place of transit") is a

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

and

commune 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 ...

Arauco Province Arauco Province ( es, Provincia de Arauco) is one of four provinces of the Chilean region of Bío Bío. It spans a coastal area of just south of the mouth of the Biobío River, the traditional demarcation between the nation's major natural reg ...

Biobío Region The Biobío Region ( es, Región del Biobío ), is one of Chile's sixteen regions (first-order administrative divisions). With a population of 1.5 million, thus being the third most populated region in Chile, it is divided into three provinces: ...

. Colonized by Germans of

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

since 1884.

Geography

Contulmo spans an area of It is bordered by the commune of Cañete to the north and northwest, Tirúa to the southwest,

Purén Purén is a city (2002 pop. 12,868) and commune in Malleco Province of La Araucanía Region, Chile. It is located in the west base of the Nahuelbuta mountain range (650 km. south of Santiago). The economical activity of Purén is based in f ...

to the east and

Lumaco Lumaco is a town and commune in Malleco Province in the Araucanía Region of Chile. Its name in Mapudungun means "water of '' luma''". Lumaco is located to northeast of Temuco and from Angol. It shares a boundary to the north with the comm ...

to the southeast. The commune includes part of the lakes Lanalhue and Lleulleu. The town of Contulmo is surrounded by mountains and hills of the

Nahuelbuta Range The Nahuelbuta Range or Cordillera de Nahuelbuta () is a mountain range in Bio-Bio and Araucania Region, southern Chile. It is located along the Pacific coast and forms part of the larger Chilean Coast Range. The name of the range derives from th ...

Demographics

According to the 2002

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of the

National Statistics Institute National Institute of Statistics may refer to: *National Institute of Statistics of Bolivia *National Institute of Statistics of Cambodia *National Institute of Statistics and Census of Costa Rica *National Institute of Statistics and Census of Nica ...

, Contulmo has 5,838 inhabitants (3,020 men and 2,818 women). Of these, 2,442 (41.8%) lived in

urban area An urban area, built-up area or urban agglomeration is a human settlement with a high population density and infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas are created through urbanization and are categorized by urban morphology as cities ...

s and 3,396 (58.2%) in

rural area In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry typically are descr ...

s. The population fell by 13.3% (898 persons) between the 1992 and 2002 censuses.

Culture

In architecture and urban design the town shows the German colonization. Every year in April is celebrated the "Fest der Kolonisten" which means "feast of the colonists" in German, and in December is the "Feast of the White Strawberry", among other festivities.

Administration

Edificio Ilustre Municipalidad de Contulmo

As a commune, Contulmo is a third-level administrative division of Chile administered by a

municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

, headed by an alcalde who is directly elected every four years. The 2016-2020 alcalde is Mauricio Lebrecht Sperberg ( UDI). Within the electoral divisions of Chile, Contulmo is represented in the Chamber of Deputies by Manuel Monsalve ( PS) and Iván Norambuena (UDI) as part of the 46th electoral district, together with Lota, Lebu, Arauco,

Curanilahue Curanilahue () is a Chilean commune and city in Arauco Province, Biobío Region. Its name comes from Mapundungun "Cura", meaning "Stone", and "Nilahue" meaning "Ford". Demographics According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Instit ...

Los Álamos Los Álamos is a Chilean commune and city in Arauco Province, Biobío Region. Demographics According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Los Álamos spans an area of and has 18,632 inhabitants (9,456 men and 9,176 women). Of ...

, Cañete and Tirúa. The commune is represented in the Senate by Victor Pérez Varela (UDI) and Mariano Ruiz-Esquide Jara ( PDC) as part of the 13th senatorial constituency (Biobío-Coast).

References

External links

*
Municipality of Contulmo
{{Authority control Communes of Chile Populated places in Arauco Province Populated places established in 1884 1884 establishments in Chile