Tungurahua ( es, Provincia del Tungurahua, literally ''Province of the Tungurahua''; ) is one of the twenty-four

provinces of Ecuador Ecuador is divided into 24 provinces ( es, provincias, singular''provincia''). The provinces of Ecuador and their capitals are: List 1 Population as per the census carried out on 2010-11-28 In addition, there were four areas that were non-del ...

. Its capital is Ambato. The province takes its name from the

Tungurahua Tungurahua (; from Quichua ''tunguri'' (throat) and ''rahua'' (fire), "Throat of Fire")) is an active stratovolcano located in the Cordillera Oriental of Ecuador. The volcano gives its name to the province of Tungurahua. Volcanic activity resta ...

volcano, which is located within the boundaries of the provinces.

Population

In 2011, Tungurahua had an estimated population of 581,389. Approximately 10% of that population is made up of indigenous peoples, while another 70% are of

mestizo (; ; fem. ) is a term used for racial classification to refer to a person of mixed Ethnic groups in Europe, European and Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous American ancestry. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also r ...

or mixed race heritage. The final 20% is made up of peoples of African, Asian, and European ancestry.

Climate

The province has a dry, temperate climate. Like all mountainous areas, the region experiences the phenomenon known as

microclimate A microclimate (or micro-climate) is a local set of atmospheric conditions that differ from those in the surrounding areas, often with a slight difference but sometimes with a substantial one. The term may refer to areas as small as a few squ ...

s, in which small portions of the province have drastically different conditions from others due to winds and area pressure. Generally though, Tungurahua experiences temperatures between 14 and 17 degree Celsius in the day-time, with cooler nights. At higher altitudes, conditions are much colder. Despite the area being near the

Equator The equator is a circle of latitude, about in circumference, that divides Earth into the Northern and Southern hemispheres. It is an imaginary line located at 0 degrees latitude, halfway between the North and South poles. The term can als ...

, mountains such as Carihuayrazo and

Chimborazo Chimborazo () is a currently inactive stratovolcano in the Cordillera Occidental range of the Andes. Its last known eruption is believed to have occurred around 550 A.D. Chimborazo's summit is the farthest point on the Earth's surface from th ...

are covered in snow for much of the year.

Geography

The province is very mountainous, containing the

volcano near Baños, as well as bordering the Carihuayrazo and

volcanoes to the south. Baños attracts the highest number of tourists. The principal river of the province is the Patate River, which flows to the east toward the Amazon Region.

Political division

The province is divided into nine cantons which stretch from Ambato in the west to Baños in the east. The following table lists each with its population at the 2001

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 incl ...

, its area in square kilometres (km²), and the name of the

canton seat A canton is a type of administrative division of a country. In general, cantons are relatively small in terms of area and population when compared with other administrative divisions such as counties, departments, or provinces. Internationally, t ...

capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...

.Cantons of Ecuador
Statoids.com. Retrieved 4 November 2009.

Places of interest

* Parque de la Familia *

Llanganates National Park Llanganates National Park ( es, Parque Nacional Llanganates, links=no) is a protected area in Ecuador situated in the Cotopaxi Province, Napo Province, Pastaza Province and Tungurahua Province. Located within the park is Cerro Hermoso ("beautiful ...

References

External links

* Provinces of Ecuador {{Ecuador-geo-stub