Vallenar
title: "Vallenar" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["capitals-of-chilean-provinces", "communes-of-chile", "populated-places-in-huasco-province", "atacama-desert", "populated-places-established-in-1789", "1789-establishments-in-the-spanish-empire"] topic_path: "geography/spain" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vallenar" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| official_name | Vallenar |
| settlement_type | City and Commune |
| image_skyline | Plaza_de_Armas_de_Vallenar.jpg |
| image_shield | Escudo Vallenar.png |
| shield_alt | Coat of arms |
| image_map | Txu-oclc-224571178-sh19-01.jpg |
| map_caption | Vallenar's urban hinterland |
| map_alt | Vallenar's urban hinterland |
| pushpin_map | Chile |
| pushpin_map_narrow | yes |
| pushpin_label_position | bottom |
| pushpin_map_caption | Location in Chile |
| coordinates | |
| subdivision_type | Country |
| subdivision_name | Chile |
| subdivision_type1 | Region |
| subdivision_name1 | Atacama |
| subdivision_type2 | Province |
| subdivision_name2 | Huasco |
| government_footnotes | |
| government_type | Municipality |
| leader_title | Alcalde |
| leader_name | Cristian Tapia Ramos |
| established_title | Founded |
| established_date | 1789 |
| established_title1 | Founded as |
| established_date1 | San Ambrosio de Ballenary |
| founder | Ambrose O'Higgins |
| area_footnotes | |
| area_total_km2 | 7083.7 |
| population_footnotes | |
| population_as_of | 2012 Census |
| population_total | 52096 |
| population_density_km2 | auto |
| population_demonym | Vallenarino |
| population_blank1_title | Urban |
| population_blank1 | 48040 |
| population_blank2_title | Rural |
| population_blank2 | 4290 |
| demographics_type1 | Sex |
| demographics1_footnotes | |
| demographics1_title1 | Men |
| demographics1_info1 | 23,284 |
| demographics1_title2 | Women |
| demographics1_info2 | 24,765 |
| timezone | CLT |
| utc_offset | −4 |
| timezone_DST | CLST |
| utc_offset_DST | −3 |
| elevation_m | 441 |
| area_code | 56 + 51 |
| website | Official website |
| :: |
|official_name = Vallenar |native_name = |settlement_type = City and Commune |image_skyline = Plaza_de_Armas_de_Vallenar.jpg |image_caption = |image_flag = |flag_shield = |image_shield = Escudo Vallenar.png |shield_alt = Coat of arms |image_map = Txu-oclc-224571178-sh19-01.jpg |map_caption = Vallenar's urban hinterland |map_alt = Vallenar's urban hinterland |pushpin_map = Chile | pushpin_map_narrow = yes |pushpin_label_position = bottom |pushpin_map_caption = Location in Chile |coordinates = |subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = Chile | subdivision_type1 = Region | subdivision_name1 = Atacama |subdivision_type2 = Province |subdivision_name2 = Huasco | government_footnotes = | government_type = Municipality | leader_party = | leader_title = Alcalde | leader_name = Cristian Tapia Ramos |established_title = Founded |established_date = 1789 |established_title1 = Founded as |established_date1 = San Ambrosio de Ballenary |founder = Ambrose O'Higgins | area_footnotes = |area_total_km2 = 7083.7 |population_footnotes = |population_as_of = 2012 Census |population_total = 52096 |population_density_km2 = auto |population_demonym = Vallenarino |population_rank = |population_blank1_title = Urban |population_blank1 = 48040 |population_blank2_title = Rural |population_blank2 = 4290 |demographics_type1 = Sex |demographics1_footnotes = |demographics1_title1 = Men |demographics1_info1 = 23,284 |demographics1_title2 = Women |demographics1_info2 = 24,765 |timezone = CLT | utc_offset = −4 |timezone_DST = CLST | utc_offset_DST = −3 |elevation_m = 441 |postal_code_type = |postal_code = |area_code = 56 + 51 |website = Official website |footnotes =
Vallenar is a city and commune in Atacama Region, Chile. It is the capital of the Huasco Province and is located in the valley of the Huasco River. Vallenar has 52,000 inhabitants. Its main activities are farming and mining. It was founded as San Ambrosio de Ballenary by Ambrose O'Higgins in 1789, after his birthplace in Ballynary in County Sligo, Ireland. With its founding Vallenar displaced Santa Rosa, now Freirina, as the main settlement of the Huasco Valley.
In 1922 a large earthquake devastated the city, destroying much of its older architecture.
Since the 1950s the city has been a service hub for iron mining in Chile with the city experiencing a significant economic upswing in the 1960s with the opening of the mine of El Algarrobo. Other iron mines near Los Colorados and Huantemé, but the wider Huasco basin hosts also mineral deposits of copper and gold.
The city lies next to the north-south Chile Route 5 highway which crosses through Huasco Bridge the river. The city lies downstream Santa Juana Dam built in the 1990s, and provides access to the inland commune of Alto del Carmen. Llanos de Challe National Park is located 60 km northwest of the city of Vallenar.
Demographics
According to the 2002 census by the National Statistics Institute, Vallenar had 48,040 inhabitants (23,284 men and 24,756 women). Of these, 43,750 (91.1%) lived in urban areas and 4,290 (8.9%) in rural areas. The population grew by 1.7% (792 persons) between the 1992 and 2002 censuses.
Administration
As a commune, Vallenar is a third-level administrative division of Chile administered by a municipal council, headed by an alcalde who is directly elected every four years. The 2008-2012 alcalde is Cristian Tapia Ramos.
Within the electoral divisions of Chile, Vallenar is represented in the Chamber of Deputies by Mr. Alberto Robles (PRSD) and Mr. Giovanni Calderón (UDI) as part of the 6th electoral district, (together with Caldera, Tierra Amarilla, Freirina, Huasco and Alto del Carmen). The commune is represented in the Senate by Isabel Allende Bussi (PS) and Baldo Prokurica Prokurica (RN) as part of the 3rd senatorial constituency (Atacama Region).
Climate
|location = Vallenar |metric first = Yes |single line = Yes |Jan high C = 26.6 |Feb high C = 26.7 |Mar high C = 25.3 |Apr high C = 22.7 |May high C = 20.6 |Jun high C = 18.9 |Jul high C = 18.8 |Aug high C = 19.8 |Sep high C = 21.0 |Oct high C = 22.7 |Nov high C = 24.1 |Dec high C = 25.5 |year high C = 22.7 |Jan mean C = 18.6 |Feb mean C = 18.6 |Mar mean C = 17.1 |Apr mean C = 14.9 |May mean C = 13.1 |Jun mean C = 11.7 |Jul mean C = 11.4 |Aug mean C = 12.2 |Sep mean C = 13.0 |Oct mean C = 14.5 |Nov mean C = 15.6 |Dec mean C = 17.5 |year mean C = 14.9 |Jan low C = 13.1 |Feb low C = 13.1 |Mar low C = 12.0 |Apr low C = 10.1 |May low C = 8.6 |Jun low C = 7.1 |Jul low C = 6.8 |Aug low C = 7.3 |Sep low C = 7.9 |Oct low C = 9.0 |Nov low C = 10.1 |Dec low C = 11.8 |year low C = 9.7 |precipitation colour = green |Jan precipitation mm = 0.0 |Feb precipitation mm = 0.0 |Mar precipitation mm = 0.7 |Apr precipitation mm = 1.3 |May precipitation mm = 4.1 |Jun precipitation mm = 3.2 |Jul precipitation mm = 11.9 |Aug precipitation mm = 7.1 |Sep precipitation mm = 2.1 |Oct precipitation mm = 1.2 |Nov precipitation mm = 0.0 |Dec precipitation mm = 0.0 |year precipitation mm = 31.6 |Jan sun = 337.9 |Feb sun = 299.5 |Mar sun = 285.2 |Apr sun = 240.0 |May sun = 213.9 |Jun sun = 195.0 |Jul sun = 210.8 |Aug sun = 235.6 |Sep sun = 249.0 |Oct sun = 288.3 |Nov sun = 303.0 |Dec sun = 325.5 |year sun = 3183.7 |Jand sun = 10.9 |Febd sun = 10.6 |Mard sun = 9.2 |Aprd sun = 8.0 |Mayd sun = 6.9 |Jund sun = 6.5 |Juld sun = 6.8 |Augd sun = 7.6 |Sepd sun = 8.3 |Octd sun = 9.3 |Novd sun = 10.1 |Decd sun = 10.5 |yeard sun = |source 1 = Universidad de Chile{{cite web |url = http://www.atmosfera.cl/HTML/climatologia/DATOS/CHILENORTE.HTM |title = Información climatológica de estaciones chilenas-Chile Norte |language = es |access-date = March 17, 2014 |archive-url = https://archive.today/20130116014724/http://www.atmosfera.cl/HTML/climatologia/DATOS/CHILENORTE.HTM |archive-date = January 16, 2013 |url-status = dead |df = mdy-all | url = https://www.u-cursos.cl/ingenieria/2008/2/ME716/1/material_docente/bajar?id_material=201902 | title = Tabla 4.6: Medias mensuales de horas de sol diarias extraídas del WRDC ruso (en (hrs./dia)) | work = Elementos Para La Creación de Un Manual de Buenas Prácticas Para Instalaciones Solares Térmicas Domiciliarias | publisher = Universidad de Chile | language = es | format = PDF | page = 81 | access-date = 21 January 2015 | date = September 2007}} |date=March 2014}}
Notable people
References
;Bibliography
References
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