The Tarapacá Region ( es, Región de Tarapacá, ) is one of

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 ...

's 16 first-order

administrative divisions Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...

. It comprises two provinces,

Iquique Iquique () is a port city and commune in northern Chile, capital of both the Iquique Province and Tarapacá Region. It lies on the Pacific coast, west of the Pampa del Tamarugal, which is part of the Atacama Desert. It has a population of 191,468 ...

and

Tamarugal Tamarugal Province ( es, Provincia de Tamarugal) is one of two provinces in the northern Chilean region of Tarapacá. The capital is the city of Pozo Almonte. Name The province is named after Pampa del Tamarugal. Spanish name: * Provincia de Tam ...

. It borders the Chilean

Arica and Parinacota Region The Arica y Parinacota Region ( es, link=no, Región de Arica y Parinacota ) is one of Chile's 16 first order administrative divisions. It comprises two provinces, Arica and Parinacota. It borders Peru's Department of Tacna to the north, Boliv ...

to the north,

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

Oruro Department Oruro (; Quechua: ''Uru Uru''; Aymara: ''Ururu'') is a department of Bolivia, with an area of . Its capital is the city of Oruro. According to the 2012 census, the Oruro department had a population of 494,178. Provinces of Oruro The departme ...

and

Potosí Department Potosí (; Aymara language, Aymara: ''Putusi''; qu, P'utuqsi) is a Departments of Bolivia, department in southwestern Bolivia. It comprises 118,218 km2 with 823,517 inhabitants (2012 census). The capital is the city of Potosí. It is most ...

on the east, Chile's

Antofagasta Region The Antofagasta Region ( es, Región de Antofagasta, ) is one of Chile's sixteen first-order administrative divisions. The second-largest region of Chile in area, it comprises three provinces, Antofagasta, El Loa and Tocopilla. It is bordered t ...

to the south and the Pacific Ocean to the west. The port city of

is the region's capital. Much of the region was once the

Tarapacá Province Tarapacá was a province in Chile, from 1883 to 1928. It was ceded to Chile under the Treaty of Ancón, formerly being part of the Peruvian province of the same name. History The province was created in 1883, having been awarded to Chile under t ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

, which was annexed by Chile under the 1883

Treaty of Ancón The Treaty of Ancón was a peace treaty signed by Chile and Peru on 20 October 1883, in Ancón District, Ancón, near Lima. It was intended to settle the two nations' remaining territorial differences at the conclusion of their involvement in the ...

at the close of the

War of the Pacific The War of the Pacific ( es, link=no, Guerra del Pacífico), also known as the Saltpeter War ( es, link=no, Guerra del salitre) and by multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought ...

. The region was important economically as a site of intense

saltpeter Potassium nitrate is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . This alkali metal nitrate salt is also known as Indian saltpetre (large deposits of which were historically mined in India). It is an ionic salt of potassium ions K+ and nitrat ...

mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic via ...

, before synthetic nitrate manufacturing became possible. A number of abandoned mining towns can still be found in the region. The present day Tarapacá Region was created in 2007 by subdividing the former Tarapacá Region under Law No. 20,175, which was signed by

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Michelle Bachelet Verónica Michelle Bachelet Jeria (; born 29 September 1951) is a Chilean politician who served as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights from 2018 to 2022. She previously served as President of Chile from 2006 to 2010 and 2014 to 201 ...

Arica Arica ( ; ) is a Communes of Chile, commune and a port city with a population of 222,619 in the Arica Province of northern Chile's Arica y Parinacota Region. It is Chile's northernmost city, being located only south of the border with Peru. The ...

Administration

The government of the region resides in the

intendant An intendant (; pt, intendente ; es, intendente ) was, and sometimes still is, a public official, especially in France, Spain, Portugal, and Latin America. The intendancy system was a centralizing administrative system developed in France. In ...

, who is assigned by the president. Each of the region's two provinces are further subdivided into communes.

Climate

A desert climate dominates the region. Near the coast, cloudiness can limit the temperature swing throughout the day, but in other drier areas, temperatures can vary greatly as is typical in deserts. A marginal desert region can be found over above sea level, which sees milder temperatures and summer rains.

Rivers

Isluga River Isluga River is a river in Chile and Bolivia, and is also known as Sitani or Arabilla. It starts at the confluence of the rivers Chaguane and Huinchuta and flows for before reaching the Laguna Mucalliri of the Salar de Coipasa. It receives water f ...

* Cariquima * Concosa (Altiplano)

Economic activities

*Fishing *Tourism *Mining ** Cerro Colorado ** Collahuasi

References

External links