Navidad () is one of the six

communes An intentional community is a voluntary residential community which is designed to have a high degree of social cohesion and teamwork from the start. The members of an intentional community typically hold a common social, political, relig ...

Cardenal Caro Province Cardenal Caro Province ( es, Provincia Cardenal Caro) is one of the three provinces of the central Chilean region of O'Higgins (VI). The capital of Cardenal Caro is Pichilemu. Name The province is named after Cardinal José María Caro Rodríguez ...

, O'Higgins Region,

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 ...

. It borders the commune of

Santo Domingo , total_type = Total , population_density_km2 = auto , timezone = AST (UTC −4) , area_code_type = Area codes , area_code = 809, 829, 849 , postal_code_type = Postal codes , postal_code = 10100–10699 ( Distrito Nacional) , webs ...

(

Valparaíso Region The Valparaíso Region ( es, Región de Valparaíso, links=no, ) is one of Chile's 16 first order administrative divisions.Valparaíso Region, 2006 With the country's second-highest population of 1,790,219 , and fourth-smallest area of , ...

) and San Pedro (

Santiago Metropolitan Region Santiago Metropolitan Region ( es, link=no, Región Metropolitana de Santiago) is one of Chile's 16 first-order administrative divisions. It is the country's only landlocked administrative region and contains the nation's capital, Santiago. Mos ...

) in the north, the commune of

Litueche Litueche ( arn, land of the white lands; originally called ''El Rosario'', ''Rosario Lo Solís'' or simply ''Rosario'') is a Chilean town and commune in Cardenal Caro Province, O'Higgins Region. It is served by Litueche Airport. Demographics A ...

to the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. The commune has approximately 20 kilometres of coastline.

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 Chilean National Statistics Institute, Navidad spans an area of and has 5,422 inhabitants (2,878 men and 2,544 women). Of these, 712 (13.1%) 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 4,710 (86.9%) 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 only 1 person between the 1992 and 2002 censuses.

Geography

The landscape of the commune is predominantly plateau, rolling hills and ravines, common features of the central coastline of Chile. The

Rapel River Rapel River is a river of Chile located in the O'Higgins Region. It begins at the confluence of the rivers Cachapoal and Tinguiririca in an area best known as ''La Junta''. At present day, this area is impounded by Rapel Dam, creating Rapel L ...

is the main water source, though there are also some small streams and lagoons, such as ''El Culenar''. Navidad has attracted visitors due to a geological feature, the Navidad Formation, marine rock strata containing

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

ised marine life dating from the late

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ...

to the early

Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.333 million to 2.58Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended ...

in the 19th century. The French scientist and painter

Claudio Gay Claude Gay, often named Claudio Gay in Spanish texts, (March 18, 1800 – November 29, 1873), was a French botanist, naturalist and illustrator. This explorer carried out some of the first investigations about Chilean flora, fauna, geology and ge ...

was also commissioned by the Chilean government to study the area, as was the German geologist Rodolfo Philippi.

Origin and history

The modern town and commune boundaries were established on September 28, 1936, with the municipality authorities placed in the town of Navidad, the largest in the commune. In 1585, the

Franciscan , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

friar

Diego de Medellín Diego de Medellín, O.F.M. (1496 – November 1592) was a Roman Catholic prelate who served as Bishop of Santiago de Chile (1574–1592).

, third bishop of

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whos ...

, was concerned about the local people and wrote to the King of Spain about Navidad, Rapel, Matanzas and other settlements in the area, providing proof of the early origins of the name. One tradition holds that one Christmas Eve in the sixteenth century, the first Franciscan friars came to the port of Matanzas and celebrated Christmas there, staying in the valley for several days. They called the place ''Navidad'', the Spanish word for Christmas. Other versions of the story claim that the name ''Navidad'' originated with the

Jesuits , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders = ...

and the Jesuit convent located in Bucalemu. Jesuits played an important role in the conversion and education of the native people, teaching not just religion but also various artisan skills. None of these versions is confirmed.

Administration

As a commune, Navidad 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 ...

and led by an alcalde, who is directly elected every four years. The 2021-2024 alcalde is Yanko Blumen Antivilo.

Tourism

The climate of Navidad is Mediterranean, with rain from April to October and a dry summer. The coastline is very windy with big waves, making it a popular location for surfing.Surfing in Chile
This is chile August 01, 2009, retrieved August 11, 2013 Navidad has a strong farming tradition, and one interesting activity that can be observed here is the ''( Trilla a yegua suelta)'' festival, where

mare A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than fo ...

s are driven loose over harvested wheat to separate the grain from the chaff.

Localities

Some of the localities located in Navidad: Rapel, Licancheu, Culenar, Navidad, Las Brisas,

La Boca La Boca (; "the Mouth", probably of the Matanza River) is a neighborhood (''barrio'') of Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina. It retains a strong Italian flavour, many of its early settlers having originated in the city of Genoa. Geography L ...

, Vega de La Boca, Matanzas, Pupuya, Pupuya Sur, El Fullingue, Centinela, El Manzano, Tumán, La Polcura, Valle negro, Puertecillo, Valle Hidango, El Manzano, San Vicente de Pucalán, Quiñecaben, La Aguada, Lagunillas, El Chorrillo, Potrero de San Rafael, La Patagûilla, El Maitén, Vega de Pupuya

References

External links

*
Municipality of Navidad
{{Communes in O'Higgins Region Populated places in Cardenal Caro Province Beaches of Chile Populated coastal places in Chile Surfing locations in Chile Communes of Chile Landforms of O'Higgins Region Coasts of O'Higgins Region