Arauco Province Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids

Arauco Province

Provincia de Arauco

Province of Chile

General view of Lebu

Seal

Arauco, in red, in the Bío Bío Region

Arauco Province

Location in Chile

Chile

Arauco, Cañete, Contulmo, Curanilahue, Lebu, Los Álamos, Tirúa

Government

• Type

Provincial

Area

• Total

5,643.3 km² (2,178.9 sq mi)

Population

(2002 Census)

• Total

157,255

• Density

27.8658/km² (72.1721/sq mi)

Time zone

UTC-4 (CLT)

• Summer (DST)

UTC-3 (CLST)

Website

Official website: http://www.gobernacionarauco.gov.cl/

The Arauco Province (which is Provincia de Arauco in Spanish) is one of three provinces in the Bío Bío area of Chile. It's like a big county within a larger region. The main city and capital of Arauco Province is Lebu.

History of Arauco Province
Geography of Arauco Province
Population of Arauco Province
- Population Numbers
- Main Cities
How Arauco Province is Governed
- Communes of Arauco
Gallery
See also

History of Arauco Province

Let's look at how Arauco Province came to be.

Early Beginnings in 1852

The original Arauco Province was created in 1852. It was formed from the southern parts of another province called Concepción. Back then, it had three main areas: Arauco, Laja, and Nacimiento.

Changes Over Time

Things changed quite a bit in 1927. Arauco was no longer its own province and became part of Concepción again. But this didn't last long! In 1934, Arauco was made a province once more. This time, it included the areas of Arauco, Cañete, and Lebu.

Forming the Bío Bío Region

In 1975, regions were created in Chile. The Bío Bío region was formed by combining several provinces. These included Arauco, Biobío, Concepción, and Ñuble. This is how Arauco Province became part of the Bío Bío Region we know today.

Geography of Arauco Province

Arauco Province is located in the southwest part of the Bío Bío region. It stretches along the Pacific Ocean coast.

Size and Location

The province covers an area of about 5,643 square kilometers (2,179 square miles). Its capital city, Lebu, is right on the coast. Lebu is about 90 kilometers (56 miles) south of Concepción, which is the capital of the Bío Bío region.

Neighboring Areas

Arauco Province shares its borders with several other places:

To the north, it borders the Concepción province.
To the northeast, you'll find the Biobío province.
To the east, it touches the Malleco province, which is in the Araucanía region.
To the south and southwest, it borders the Cautín province, also in the Araucanía region.
To the west, it meets the vast Pacific Ocean.

	Concepción province	Biobío province
Pacific Ocean		Malleco province
	Arauco province

Cautín province	Cautín province	Malleco province

Mocha Island

There's a small island called Mocha located west of Arauco Province in the Pacific Ocean. This island is part of the comuna (a local area) of Lebu. Mocha Island is about 48 square kilometers (18.5 square miles) in size.

Population of Arauco Province

Let's look at how many people live in Arauco Province.

Population Numbers

According to the last national census in 2002, there were 157,255 people living in the province. This means that for every square kilometer, there were about 27.9 people. Most of the people, about 117,569, lived in urban (city) areas. This was about 74.8% of the total population.

Main Cities

Here are some of the largest cities in Arauco Province, based on the 2002 census:

The biggest city was Curanilahue, with 30,126 people.
The capital city, Lebu, had 20,838 people.
Other important cities include Cañete (19,839 people), Arauco (16,291 people), and Los Álamos (13,035 people).

How Arauco Province is Governed

Arauco is a province, which means it's a second-level administrative division in Chile. Think of it as a local government area.

Communes of Arauco

The province is made up of 7 smaller areas called communes (or comunas in Spanish). The city of Lebu is the capital of the province. A governor is in charge of running the province.