Santiago Metropolitan Region () is one of

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

's 16 first-order

administrative division Administrative divisions (also administrative units, administrative regions, subnational entities, or constituent states, as well as many similar generic terms) are geographical areas into which a particular independent sovereign state is divi ...

s. It is the country's only

landlocked A landlocked country is a country that has no territory connected to an ocean or whose coastlines lie solely on endorheic basins. Currently, there are 44 landlocked countries, two of them doubly landlocked (Liechtenstein and Uzbekistan), and t ...

administrative

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

and contains the nation's capital,

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

. Most commercial and administrative centers are located in the region, including Chile's main international airport,

Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport , also known as Santiago International Airport and Nuevo Pudahuel Airport, located in Pudahuel, north-west of central Santiago, is Chile's largest aviation facility and busiest international ai ...

. With an area of and population over seven million, it is Chile's most populated and most densely populated region.

History

The region's history of European influence started in 1542, a few days after

was founded. When the Santiago cabildo was built, its function was to supervise the entire territory. Later, with the creation of the cities of La Serena and Concepción and the creation of their respective cabildos, its territorial reach was reduced. On 30 August 1826, 8

provinces A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...

were created, with the Santiago Province being one of them, but it wasn't until 1980 that the Metropolitan Region was created.

Geography

Metropolitana is Chile's only landlocked region and lies in the

Intermediate Depression The Central Valley (), Intermediate Depression, or Longitudinal Valley is the depression between the Chilean Coastal Range and the Andes Mountains. The Chilean Central Valley extends from the border with Peru to Puerto Montt in southern Chile, wi ...

valley between the

Chilean Coast Range The Chilean Coastal Range () is a mountain range that runs from north to south along the Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast of South America parallel to the Andes, Andean Mountains, extending from Morro de Arica in the north to Taitao Peninsula, where ...

and the

Andes mountains The Andes ( ), Andes Mountains or Andean Mountain Range (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long and wide (widest between 18°S ...

. Cerro San Cristóbal dominates the sprawling Santiago cityscape at a height of above sea level with city suburbs steadily climbing the foothills of the Andes to the east. The

Tupungato Tupungato, one of the highest mountains in the Americas, is a massive Andes, Andean lava dome dating to Pleistocene times. It lies on the Argentina–Chile border, between the Chilean Metropolitan Region (near a major international highway about ...

stratovolcano A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a typically conical volcano built up by many alternating layers (strata) of hardened lava and tephra. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile with ...

, measures on the

Argentine Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...

border, is one of South America's highest peaks. The dominant drainage basin feeds into the

Maipo River The Maipo River is the main river flowing through the Santiago Metropolitan Region and the Valparaíso Region of Chile. It is located just south of the capital of Santiago. The Mapocho River, which flows through central Santiago, is one of its tri ...

; its main tributaries are the

Mapocho The River Mapocho () (Mapudungun: ''Mapu chuco'', "water that penetrates the land") is a river in Chile. It flows from its source in the Andes mountains onto the west and divides Chile's capital Santiago, Chile, Santiago in two. Course The Mapoc ...

, Yeso and Colorado rivers.

Climate and natural features

The climate of the Metropolitan Region is temperate Mediterranean cold, of the kind called ''continental''. Precipitation is concentrated in the winter months, generally as snow over 900 m

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level ...

and, in colder years, over the city of Santiago. Winter tends to be cold with frequent frosts during which temperature drops below . The summer months are usually dry and hot. The Cordillera de la Costa acts as a climate screen and reduces marine influence, which makes the climate more continental. This situation becomes apparent when comparing precipitation from a coastal location such as

Valparaíso Valparaíso () is a major city, Communes of Chile, commune, Port, seaport, and naval base facility in the Valparaíso Region of Chile. Valparaíso was originally named after Valparaíso de Arriba, in Castilla–La Mancha, Castile-La Mancha, Spain ...

(460 mm) with that of Santiago de Chile (360 mm). The annual median precipitation reaches 367 mm on average. The annual median temperature comes out to , with a median high of and a median low of in urban areas. Rural areas tend to be colder, as temperature reaches in the coldest months (July, August) Most of the region is made up of an extremely fertile, level prairie that the locals call ''la Depresión intermedia'' (

). The terrain is known for its low elevation in relation to sea level and for being surrounded by hills, as well as emergent so-called ''island hills'', such as Santa Lucía (an ancient extinct volcano), Blanco, and Renca, present today in the city of Santiago. There is some occurrence of the

endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, inv ...

Chilean Wine Palm ''Jubaea'' is a genus of palms with one species, ''Jubaea chilensis'', commonly known in English as the Chilean wine palm or Chile cocopalm, and palma chilena in Spanish. It is native to southwestern South America and is endemic to a small area ...

, '' Jubaea chilensis'' within the Santiago Province;C. Michael Hogan (2008
''Chilean Wine Palm: Jubaea chilensis'', GlobalTwitcher.com, ed. Nicklas Stromberg
this iconic tree of central Chile had a much larger range prehistorically, before the decimation of much of its habitat by the expanding human population.

Economy and culture

The region's principal industries include manufacturing, services, retail, and financial services. The capital of Santiago serves as the country's administrative, industrial, commercial, financial and cultural center, producing 41.5% of Chile's gross domestic product, according to central bank estimates. The

Plaza de Armas ''Plaza de armas'' (pl. ; literally ''arms square'' or ''place-of-arms'') is a Spanish language, Spanish term commonly used to refer to town square, town squares in Latin America, Spain and the Philippines, as well as a name commonly given to th ...

, the central square in downtown Santiago, hosts the city's cathedral and city hall. Eight city blocks around the presidential palace,

La Moneda Palacio de La Moneda (, ''Palace of the Mint''), or simply La Moneda, is the seat of the president of the Republic of Chile. It also houses the offices of three cabinet ministers: Interior, General Secretariat of the Presidency, and General Sec ...

, are where most ministries, services and commercial banks can be found.

Vitacura Vitacura is a communes of Chile, commune of Chile located in Santiago Province, Chile, Santiago Province, Santiago Metropolitan Region. It is one of the most expensive and fashionable areas of Santiago, Chile, Santiago. Inhabitants are primarily h ...

and El Golf host most of the city's high-rise buildings and are also home to the Latin American headquarters of several United Nations organizations. Though Santiago's expansion has caused newer vineyards to move to more rural locations, many of the country's oldest wineries, built in the 19th century, have preserved cellars in the valley.

Government and administration

The region is divided into 6

, which are themselves divided into 52

communes 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 ...

. Since 2021 the region is governed by the governor, who is elected by popular vote. The current governor is Claudio Orrego Larraín (

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

). This table is based on the corresponding Spanish article

References

Gallery

File:SantiagoIDHcomunas.png, Metropolitan communes by Human Development Index File:Santiago en invierno.jpg, Santiago de Chile File:Palacio_de_LaMoneda02.png, View of Palacio de

File:AvKennedy_Santiago_Chile_2005.jpg, Kennedy Avenue, East Santiago with the

Hyatt Hyatt Hotels Corporation, commonly known as Hyatt Hotels & Resorts, is an American multinational corporation, multinational hospitality company headquartered in the 150 North Riverside, Riverside Plaza area of Chicago that manages and franchise ...

at the far right. File:Av-Isidora-Goyenechea-STGO.jpg, Isidora Goyenechea Avenue, Santiago financial district. File:Barrio_tipico_La_Florida.jpg, Typical middle-class neighbourhood File:Vitacura_at_night.jpg, Santiago at night File:El_Colorado_ski.jpg, One of the region's ski centers File:Vista_del_Sanhattan_desde_P._Bicentenario..jpg, ''Sanhattan'', Santiago's financial district with the Great Tower of Santiago. File:Sanhattan.png, Santiago's Financial District with the Great Tower on the right and the Titanium on the left. File:AvenidaApoquindo.jpg, Apoquindo Avenue, the main avenue leading to the financial district. File:Housechile.JPG, House in one of the region's ski centers. {{Authority control Geography of Santiago, Chile States and territories established in 1980 Regions of Chile