Vicuña () 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 ...

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 ...

and

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

Elqui Province Elqui Province ( es, Provincia de Elqui) is a province in the Chilean region of Coquimbo (IV). The provincial capital is the city of Coquimbo. Geography and demography According to the 2012 census by the National Statistics Institute (''INE''), ...

Coquimbo Region The Coquimbo Region ( es, Región de Coquimbo, ) is one of Chile's 16 regions (first order administrative divisions). It is bordered by Atacama to the north, Valparaíso to the south, Argentina to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

, founded during the government of

Bernardo O'Higgins Bernardo O'Higgins Riquelme (; August 20, 1778 – October 24, 1842) was a Chilean independence leader who freed Chile from Spanish rule in the Chilean War of Independence. He was a wealthy landowner of Basque-Spanish and Irish ancestry. Althou ...

to secure sovereignty over the Elqui Valley. Poet

Gabriela Mistral Lucila Godoy Alcayaga (; 7 April 1889 – 10 January 1957), known by her pseudonym Gabriela Mistral (), was a Chilean poet-diplomat, educator and humanist. In 1945 she became the first Latin American author to receive a Nobel Prize in Lite ...

was born there in 1889. It shares borders to the west with the communes of

La Higuera La Higuera (; ) is a small village in Bolivia located in the Province of Vallegrande, in the Department of Santa Cruz. It is situated in the La Higuera Canton (civil parish) belonging to the Pucará Municipality. Geography The village is situ ...

, La Serena and

Andacollo Andacollo () is a city and commune in the Elqui Province, Coquimbo Region, Chile. History Andacollo is a copper and gold mining city located in the mountains of the Small North (El Norte Chico) in Chile. It was founded in 1891. Several legend ...

, to the east with

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

and to the south with

Paihuano Paiguano () or Paihuano () is a small agricultural town and commune in the Elqui Province of the Coquimbo Region of Chile. Demographics According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Paiguano had 4,168 inhabitants (2,145 me ...

and Rio Hurtado. The commune is administered by the municipality of Vicuña, which is the principal city of the

Valle de Elqui The Elqui River starts in the west Andes and flows into the Pacific Ocean near the Chilean city of La Serena. It is a wine and pisco producing area. Vicuña, the main town of the middle valley, was the home of Nobel Laureate poet Gabriela Mistral ...

History

Vicuña was founded on February 22, 1821, by Colonel Joaquín Vicuña Larraín, who was the first

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 ...

of Coquimbo Province, by order of

. He named it ''Villa de San Isidro de Vicuña''. In 1872, its name was shortened to Vicuña, in honor of its founder.

Topography

The Vicuña commune covers an area of , making it the largest commune in both the province and the

, and the second-largest commune in the country. Vicuña occupies the major part of the mid and upper

Elqui River The Elqui River starts in the west Andes and flows into the Pacific Ocean near the Chilean city of La Serena. It is a wine and pisco producing area. Vicuña, the main town of the middle valley, was the home of Nobel Laureate poet Gabriela Mistral ...

basin, and the entire length of the Turbio river. The area is dominated by a mountainous backdrop, and extensive plains on the valley floor, where high-quality grapes for

pisco Pisco is a colorless or yellowish-to-amber colored brandy produced in winemaking regions of Peru and Chile. Made by distilling fermented grape juice into a high-proof spirit, it was developed by 16th-century Spanish settlers as an alternative t ...

are grown, along with other fruits and vegetables. The La Punilla, Atimonate, Balalita, Los Tilos mountain ranges contain several peaks with altitudes over 4,000 m.

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 incl ...

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 commune covers an area of and has a population of 24,010 inhabitants (12,302 male and 11,708 female). The population grew 10.8% (2,350 persons) between 1992 and 2002. There are 12,910 inhabitants in the

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, t ...

of the city of Vicuña and 11,100 in

rural areas 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 describ ...

Economy

Vicuña is a major center for

production.

Cooperativa Agrícola Pisquera Elqui Limitada Cooperativa Agrícola Pisquera Elqui Limitada (CAPEL), also called Pisco Capel, is one of Chile's biggest spirits company and producer of pisco. Most of its croplands are in the Elqui Valley where the company was founded as a producers cooperati ...

(CAPEL) runs the main pisco distillery in the zone. Economic activity centers on the culture of grapes, fruits, cereals, and vegetables. Other industries include sheep ranching and iron and copper mining. Tourism has grown greatly in the last few years, primarily due to quality hotels and restaurants. The area around Vicuña experiences approximately 300 totally clear days and nights annually, and several large astronomical observatories are located nearby, including the touristic Mammalluca Observatory. The urban area is made up of buildings from around 1900. The city has a square of ancient trees, which displays sculptures that honor

, who was awarded the

Nobel Prize in Literature ) , image = Nobel Prize.png , caption = , awarded_for = Outstanding contributions in literature , presenter = Swedish Academy , holder = Annie Ernaux (2022) , location = Stockholm, Sweden , year = 1901 , ...

. Other points of interest include the Temple of the Immaculate Conception; the Bauer Tower, which houses the office of tourism; and the Gabriela Mistral museums.

Tourism

A few kilometres outside town is the Route of the Grappa, visiting the factories known as pisqueras: Ruta Norte, Capel, Mistral, Tres Erres and Artesanos de Cochiguaz. The Mammalluca Observatory located 9 km north of Vicuña, has tourist and education programs. At the

Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory The Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) is an astronomical observatory located on Cerro Tololo in the Coquimbo Region of northern Chile, with additional facilities located on Cerro Pachón about to the southeast. It is approximately ...

, daily tourist visits are offered.

Administration

The commune is administered by the

alcalde Alcalde (; ) is the traditional Spanish municipal magistrate, who had both judicial and administrative functions. An ''alcalde'' was, in the absence of a corregidor, the presiding officer of the Castilian '' cabildo'' (the municipal council) a ...

Fernando Guamán Guamán ( Ind.), who is advised 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 counci ...

of six members: * René Ahumada Tapia ( RN) * Simón Alquinta Sirvent (

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 ...

) * Carmen Luz Rojas Araya ( PRSD) * Silvia Piñones Rivera (

PPC PPC may refer to: Computing * Personal programmable calculator, programmable calculators for personal use * Pay-per-click, an internet advertising model * PearPC, a PowerPC platform emulator * Peercoin, a peer-to-peer cryptocurrency * Periphera ...

) * Mario Aros Carvajal (Ind.) * Leonor Ortega Wanders ( PS) Within the

electoral divisions of Chile Chile has two distinct electoral division systems: * To elect members of the Chamber of Deputies and of the Senate, Chile is divided into several electoral divisions, namely electoral districts and senatorial constituencies. * To elect members of ...

, Vicuña is represented in the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourbon R ...

by deputies Marcelo Díaz ( PS) and Mario Bertolino ( RN) as a part of the 7th electoral district (together with La Serena,

Paiguano Paiguano () or Paihuano () is a small agricultural town and commune in the Elqui Province of the Coquimbo Region of Chile. Demographics According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Paiguano had 4,168 inhabitants (2,145 men ...

and

). The commune is represented in the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

by senators

Evelyn Matthei Evelyn Rose Matthei Fornet (born November 11, 1953) is a Chilean politician who served as Minister of Labor and Social Security under Chilean President Sebastián Piñera until July 2013. She was the Independent Democrat Union Party's nominee fo ...

(

) and

Jorge Pizarro Jorge Pizarro Soto (born April 21, 1952) is a Chilean politician with brief Political Science studies. Since March 1997 he has been a senator for Coquimbo and was the president of the senate from 2010 to 2011. He is a member of the Christian De ...

( PDC) as part of the 4th senatorial constituency (Coquimbo).

References

External links

*
Municipality of Vicuña
*
Portal de Elqui
*

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vicuna, Chile Communes of Chile Populated places established in 1821 Populated places in Elqui Province 1821 establishments in Chile