Coronel, Chile facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Coronel
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City of Coronel
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| Country | Chile | ||||
| Region | Biobío | ||||
| Province | Concepción | ||||
| Villa de Coronel | August 30, 1849 | ||||
| Government | |||||
| • Type | Municipality | ||||
| Area | |||||
| • Total | 279 km2 (108 sq mi) | ||||
| Elevation | 16 m (52 ft) | ||||
| Population
(2012 Census)
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| • Total | 107,759 | ||||
| • Density | 386.2/km2 (1,000.3/sq mi) | ||||
| Demonym(s) | Coronelino | ||||
| Time zone | UTC−4 (CLT) | ||||
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−3 (CLST) | ||||
| Postal code |
4190000
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| Area code(s) | 56 + 41 | ||||
| Website | Official website: http://www.coronel.cl | ||||
Coronel is a city and commune in Chile. It is located in the Concepción Province, which is part of the Biobío area. The city was officially founded on August 30, 1849.
Contents
Geography of Coronel
Coronel is built on a flat, sandy area. This area stretches from the mouth of the Biobío River to the Arauco Gulf bay. The landscape here is often muddy and has many forests, which is typical for this region.
When the first Spanish explorers arrived, they found a land covered in thick forests. Only the areas very close to the coast were clear. This kind of landscape is still a key feature of the province today.
The total size of the Coronel commune is about 279.4 square kilometers. It has a long coastline along the Pacific Ocean to the west. Other communes surround it: San Pedro de la Paz to the north, Hualqui to the north and east, and Lota and Santa Juana to the south.
Santa María Island is also part of Coronel. A special representative from the city government manages things on the island.
Climate in Coronel
Coronel has a temperate Mediterranean climate. This type of weather is common along the Chilean Coast Range. Temperatures do not change too much throughout the year.
Because Coronel is west of the mountains, it often gets winds from the west and northwest. These winds bring more rain because of how they interact with the mountains. Being close to the Pacific Ocean also helps keep the temperatures mild. The average temperature in summer is about 17°C, and in winter, it is around 8°C.
History of Coronel
The land south of the Biobío River, including Coronel, was originally home to the Mapuche people. The Spanish called them araucanos and their coastal land Araucanía.
This area was also part of the Kingdom of Araucania and Patagonia. This was an unrecognised state that was created on November 19, 1861.
The Mapuche people living in Coronel Bay were in a war zone known as Butanmapu de la costa. Before the Spanish arrived, it is thought that about half of the Mapuche population lived in this region. Their tribes were spread out evenly on both sides of the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta mountains.
The nearby city of Lota was an early place for coal mining. The mines had many deep tunnels. One mine, Pique Arenas Blancas, was the last to close. It closed after a gas explosion, which sadly caused the death of 21 miners. This mine was the deepest in South America, going down about 1,000 meters.
A famous naval battle from World War I happened off the coast of Coronel. This was the Battle of Coronel, fought on November 1, 1914. Ships from the United Kingdom and Germany took part in this battle.
Coronel was once the main city of the Lautaro Department. This area later became known as the Coronel Department.
People of Coronel
According to the 2002 census by the National Statistics Institute, Coronel covers an area of 279.4 square kilometers. It had 95,528 people living there at that time. This included 46,766 men and 48,762 women.
Most of the people, about 95.8%, lived in urban areas (cities and towns). Only 4.2% lived in rural areas (the countryside). Between 1992 and 2002, the population of Coronel grew by 14.5%, adding 12,102 people. A man from Coronel is called a Coronelino, and a woman is called a Coronelina.
How Coronel is Governed
Coronel is a commune, which is a local administrative area in Chile. It is managed by a communal council. The head of this council is an alcalde (mayor), who is chosen directly by the people every four years.
The alcalde from 2012 to 2016 was Leonidas Romero. The communal council has several members who help run the city. These members include:
- José Suazo Muñoz
- Francisco Merino Olivares
- Edmundo Salas Norambuena
- Francisco Reyes Aguayo
- Daniel Rosales Salgado
- Hugo Monsalves Obreque
- Carmen Madinagoitia Chamorro
- Osvaldo Campos Torres
For national elections, Coronel is part of the 45th electoral district. This means its citizens help choose members for the Chamber of Deputies. Currently, Marcelo Chávez (PDC) and Clemira Pacheco (PS) represent this district.
Coronel is also part of the 12th senatorial constituency (Biobío-Cordillera). This constituency elects members to the Senate. Alejandro Navarro Brain (MAS) and Jacqueline Van Rysselberghe Herrera (UDI) are the senators for this area.
See also
In Spanish: Coronel (Chile) para niños
