Rauco 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 ...

Curicó Province Curicó Province ( es, Provincia de Curicó) is one of four provinces of the central Chilean region of Maule (VII). Its capital is the city of Curicó. It lies between the provinces of Colchagua and Talca and extends from the Pacific to the Ar ...

, Maule Region. It is a mostly rural commune (60% of its population is rural), located 10 km away from the city of Curicó. The commune spans an area of . In

mapudungún Mapuche (, Mapuche & Spanish: , or Mapudungun; from ' 'land' and ' 'speak, speech') is an Araucanian language related to Huilliche spoken in south-central Chile and west-central Argentina by the Mapuche people (from ''mapu'' 'land' and ''che ...

, Rauco means "the land of chalky water". The geographic limits are: North with Chépica, East with Teno, South with Sagrada Familia and Curicó, and West with Hualañé.

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 ...

by 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 ...

, the Rauco commune had 8,566 inhabitants 4,364 men and 4,202 women. Of these, 3,114 (36.4%) 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 5,452 (63.6%) 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 grew by 9.5% (744 persons) between the 1992 and 2002 censuses.

Tourism

The road that links Rauco with Curicó and Hualañé, presents characteristics for the practice of cycling. The commune of Rauco has attractive features, like the suspension bridge (Puente de Cimbra), a few blocks away from the town square, where people usually go to picnics, bathing, among other things. The dam, located in the area of La Palmilla, despite being private property, allows for camping, and the fishing of Basilichthys australis. Also, the area of El Parrón is known for its goat cheese, and the husbandry of sheep and goats. Other nearby areas include El Llano (known for its mushrooms and marmalade), Majadilla, Palquibudi, and Tricao. Rauco, like most of Curicó's communes, has some colonial style houses, some of which used to be the main house for large estates.

Administration

As a commune, Rauco 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 2013-2017 alcalde is Enrique Olivares Farías, of the (

Social Democrat Radical Party The Radical Party of Chile ( es, Partido Radical de Chile), is a social-democratic political party in Chile. The party was founded as the Social Democrat Radical Party (''Partido Radical Socialdemócrata'') on 18 August 1994 out of a union ...

). Within the electoral divisions of Chile, Rauco is represented in the Chamber of Deputies by Roberto León ( PDC) and Celso Morales (

UDI Udi may refer to: Places * Udi, Enugu, a local government areas and city in Nigeria * Udi, a place in the Etawah district of Uttar Pradesh, India People * Udi Gal (born 1979), Israeli Olympic sailor * Udi Vaks (born 1979), Israeli Olympic judoka ...

) as part of the 36th electoral district, together with

Curicó Curicó (), meaning "Black Waters" in Mapudungun (originally meaning "Land of Black Water"), is the capital city of the Curicó Province, part of the Maule Region in Chile's central valley. The province lies between the provinces of Colchagu ...

Teno ''Technische Nothilfe'' (abbreviated as TN, T.N, T.H, Tech Nh, TeNo, TENO; ) was a German organisation. It began as a strikebreaker organisation after the First World War, but developed into a volunteer emergency response unit. During the Naz ...

Romeral Romeral is a Chilean town and commune in Curicó Province, Maule Region. The commune spans and area of . Demographics According to the 2002 census of Population and Housing by the National Statistics Institute, the Romeral commune had 12,707 in ...

, Molina,

Sagrada Familia Sagrada is a Spanish word meaning "sacred Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. T ...

Hualañé Hualañé () is a town and commune of the Curicó Province in Chile's seven region of Maule. Situated in the Mataquito River valley, its main activities are the agriculture of tomatoes, potatoes, and grapes for wine. The commune spans an area of ...

Licantén Licantén is a town within the Licantén commune, administered by the Municipality of Licantén within the Curicó Province in the Maule Region of Chile. The commune also include the coastal town of Iloca. Demographics According to the 2002 cens ...

and

Vichuquén Vichuquén is a commune in the Curicó Province of Chile's Maule Region. History The Spanish arrived along the Lico rivers in 1585, where settlements of the Mapuche and Inca already existed. In 1865, Vichuquén founded its capital of the villa ...

. The commune is represented in the Senate by Juan Antonio Coloma Correa (UDI) and Andrés Zaldívar Larraín (PDC) as part of the 10th senatorial constituency (Maule-North).

References

External links

*
Municipality of Rauco
{{Communes in Maule Region Populated places in Curicó Province Communes of Chile