Chile, meaning "ends of the earth" or "sea-gulls" in Native American, is located in South America on the west coast with 6, 435 km (2,600 miles) of coastline. It seems big, but is actually smaller than Texas. It has a width of 110 miles. The bordering countries are Argentina, Bolivia and Peru. It has a temperate climate with, "…three distinct longitudinal structural regions-the Andes, the coastal range and the central Valley…" (Chile: Geography, [on-line]). The Andes is one of the most active volcano ranges in the world and the Atacama Desert is, "…one of the driest on earth." (Chile, [on-line]) It also has many earthquakes a year. Chile also has a growing economy, a warm climate, a diverse population, and a governmental system similar to our own.
Chile has many different climatic conditions. For example, in the northern part of Chile, "the average annual rainfall in this area is .04 inches" (Chile: climate [online]). This means that in this area of Chile it rains only a few times a year. Temperatures in this area are cooler by the coast and a little warmer inland, especially in the central basin. For the most part the warmest time of the year is in February, where temperatures average around 72 degrees Fahrenheit. In July, one of their coldest months, the high is 62 degrees. This area of Chile is the warmest of the three climatic regions.
In central Chile, there is more rain compared to the north. The average amount of precipitation a year is approximately fifteen inches. The average temperature for the hot month of January is 68 degrees Fahrenheit and the cold month of July is about 46 degrees (Chile: climate, [online]). However, this region is very fertile and is often compared to California. Thus, there is a definite climate change in the central region of Chile.
The final climate region of Chile is the southern area. In this region, it’s cool and rainy all year round. It has the coolest temperatures and the most precipitation of the three regions in Chile. Its annual precipitation is 200 inches. The warmest temperature for the area is 57 degrees Fahrenheit in the month of January and 40 degrees in July (Chile: climate, [online]). This area also receives a lot of snow. Thus, Chile’s seasons are opposite ours. Our warmer months seem to be their colder ones.
The population of Chile has grown over the past seventeen years from 11,275 million in 1982 to 13 million at the beginning of 1990 (Chile: population, [online]). This is an average of 1.7 percent growth during that time. Chile is made up of immigrants from a mixed group of Europe and American Indian descendents called mestizos. The percentage of "pure" Europeans that make up the population of Chile varies between two and thirty percent. There is only five percent that are "pure" Native Indian. The majority of the population lives in central Chile-over ninety percent to be exact (Chile: population, [online]). The average population density does not exceed fifty inhabitants per square kilometer. In addition, Chile’s average population density is seventeen per square kilometer. Finally, of all the countries in Latin America, Chile is one of the most urbanized with eighty-six percent of its population residing in urban areas (Chile: population, [online]). Thus, the population in Chile is very diverse and spread throughout the country.
The major plants in Chile are tamarugo (a spiny acacia tree), llareta, ichu, and tola. The latter three are the plants used as food by the Indian population and the llama herds. The matorral, a vegetal formation, is made of hardwoods, shrubs, cactin, and green grass. These are disappearing because it is overused as firewood.
The animal population in Chile lacks diversity. Animal migration is restricted due to the varying climatic zones and this makes it hard for different animals to migrate into the country. Rodents are the most abundant species. Some examples are the chin-chilla, degu and mountain viscacha. These are all farmed for their furs. There aren’t many carnivores, but they do have wolves, puma, guina, and colo colo. They also have a frog named Darwin’s frog because Charles Darwin discovered it.
The Inca Empire was underway in Chile when the Spaniards came and conquered them under a man named Francisco Pizarro. He and his partner were only able to conquer northern Chile, so another man Pedro de Valdivia came and founded the first city in Chile, Santiago (Encyclopedia Americana, 474).
The first two cities in Chile were Santiago and Concepcion by the Spanish. Santiago was settled in 1541 and Concepcion in 1550. The country never had many riches, so it didn’t have a great number of settlers. Many people were afraid to settle in Chile because of Indian attacks. People did choose to settle in countries surrounding Chile, and because of this, they began to learn new things and want their independence (Americana, 474).
Chile went through a lot of things to eventually gain their independence. At first, when they tried to gain independence, Spanish troops in Peru suppressed them. After they finally gained their independence, it only lasted for a short time. Then they had a civil war and tried the Parliamentary Government. This type of government lasted until 1925, when after years of trying to agree, the president gave up his position. When he did this, Chile had to succumb to 4 years of dictatorship (Americana, 474).
In the early 1970’s, Marxism was in use and the first President freely elected was Salvador Allende. He tried to move Chileans towards socialism with little success, so he went after the peasants and lower class for support. After 3 years, Allende was unable to control the people and the government, and an overthrow was planned. The Popular Unity Government took the place of Allende, and many people were hurt and killed during that time (Americana, 474).
In 1980, a new constitution was made and it had built into it a transition period of 17 years. After 8 years of rule under this constitution the military picked Pinochet, the commander of the Army as their choice for the candidacy. When the vote was finally held in 1989, Christian Democrat Patricio Aylwin won and took control of the government (Americana, 474).
The year 1990 marked the beginning of Chile’s government being headed by an elected president. This first president was Patricio Alwyn Azocar of the Christian Democratic Party. He has the authoritative power to appoint the members of the Supreme Court that heads up the judiciary. Chile’s legislative branch is made of the bicameral National Congress. The lower house (Chamber of Deputies) consists of 120 members that are elected to four-year terms whereas the upper house (Senate) consists of 47 members. Thirty-eight of these members are elected to eight-year terms, five are appointed by the president and Supreme Court, and four are commanders in chief of military branches. Thus, their government is quite similar to ours (Britannica, 212).
Chile consists of thirteen administrative regions that are each under the leadership of an administrator, or intentente, that is appointed by the government. These regions are broken down even smaller into forty provinces and are headed by a governor or gobernador. Once again, these provinces are divided into municipalities that are administrated by appointed mayors called alcaldes. Thus, Chile is politically broken down into small parts so as to allow better control over the country as a whole.
Having a common language and history have always helped Chileans to have a unifying culture. They have always been known for having a high tolerance towards minorities, including Christian and non-Christian groups. They have many colorful religious festivals throughout the year that are very popular among the people of Chile. The most significant form of creative arts is Literature, especially poetry. Soccer is the most famous sport, along with skiing and swimming (Britannica, 212).
Chile’s economy is a private, as well as state, owned free market economy that is powered by hydroelectric and thermal energy. It is best known for its mining and manufacturing industries(Encyclopedia Britannica,212). However, it is agriculturally based as well. The Gross National Product has recently been increasing at a faster rate than the population. In 1988, the GNP per capita was $1,510(Chile: economy [on-line]). One-third of this revenue is made from of finance, insurance, real estate, public administration, defense, restaurants, and hotels. In addition, one-fourth comes from mining and manufacturing, and one-sixth from wholesale and retail trade (Britannica, 212).
As far as mining is concerned, Chile is the world’s largest producer of copper, as well as a major producer of molybdenum and iodine. The two largest copper mines are Chuquicamta and El Teniente. The mineral production in Chile provides more than four-fifths of the money made off exports and government revenues. A large amount of petroleum is used in Chile. They import 90% of it because they don’t produce enough to support their needs. Hydroelectric power plants generate 2/3 of Chile’s electric power while petroleum burning plants generate the rest (World, 467).
In the agricultural sense, Chile is somewhat hindered by its land of which only 5% is suitable for growing crops (Americana, 474). Thus, the food supply is never enough to provide for the whole population. However, of the farming that they do accomplish, wheat is the dominant production. Other crops produced are corn, rice, oats, sugar beets, grapes, potatoes, barley, apples, tomatoes, and dry beans. Livestock is also a contributor to Chile’s agricultural production-to a third of it to be exact. Cattle, sheep, pigs, and poultry are the principal livestock. The fishing industry is also very productive in Chile. In fact, its total annual catch is one of the world’s largest (Britannica, 212)
Chile is very dependent on its manufacturing industry. Its principal products are cement, cellulose, fishmeal, wheat flour, blister copper, refined copper, crude steel, pig iron, tires, raw sugar, newsprint, beer, glass sheets, and cigarettes. These products are primarily exported to the United States, Japan, Germany, and Brazil. Chile receives most of its imports from the United States. These imports include: mechanical and electrical equipment, mineral products, chemicals, textiles, and synthetic plastic rubber. Thus, the US plays a major role on Chile’s import/export industry (Britannica, 212).
Chile’s free market economy depends largely on its production of copper, but is also reliant on its agricultural production. The sufficiency of Chile’s economy provides for its GNP to be above the average in all of Latin America (Britannica, 212).
In summary, Chile is a very diverse country with a unique history, a warm climatic region, a growing economy, and a large population.
Chile. (1995) In Encyclopedia Americana
Chile. (1994) In Encyclopedia Britannica.
Chile. (1998) In World Book Encyclopedia.
CIA Fact Book. Chile [online]. Available: http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/factbook/ci.html
Chile [online]. Available: http://www.ddg.com/LIS/InfoDesignF94/aurelia/chihis.htm