La Calera, Chile
Encyclopedia
La Calera is a city and commune in the Quillota Province
of central Chile
's fifth region of Valparaíso
.
La Calera is located 66 km (41 mi) from Valparaíso, and 118 km (73 mi) from Santiago
. Its area is 60.5 sqkm. La Calera borders Nogales
to the north and west, Hijuelas to the east, and La Cruz to the south.
(Spanish
: piedra caliza) (calcium carbonate), extracted from the hills at the south of the town, which were already exploited by the Chilean and Peruvian Natives for some 400 years previously. Therefore, La Calera means "quicklime mine".
The estate of La Calera belonged to the Jesuits up to 1767. The turning point came in 1842, when it was acquired by Bolivia
n citizen Ildefonso Huici, who started industrialising it with local products. By 1844, a small town had emerged consisting mainly in a number of workers' dwellings located around the factories and production centres established in it, giving life to what La Calera is today.
, Germans, Italians), La Calera has managed to remain a significant commercial and services centre to the interior of the Valparaiso Region, even though it is not the capital city of the Province. It also remains an important industrial base, employing a fair share of the rural population around it.
Taking into account the fact that La Calera is a very small town with an infrastructure and economy not necessarily noteworthy in the area, the city has developed its commerce in a very advanced way, maintaining itself essential for a number of services and businesses that see on it, a closer and affordable alternative to Santiago or Valparaíso.
The population surrounding it, on a radius of 15 km (9 mi) overpasses 150,000 people, which allows the development of the city as a commercial centre. Mainstreets of "José Joaquín Perez
" and "Arturo Prat
" have plenty of stores and shops, some of them owned originally by Palestinian
s and mainly aimed to the working class.
Noteworthy is the case of Seidemann Megastores, which has three more branches in Quillota
and La Calera. Two of the five Chilean biggest chain retailers companies in South America
, namely Fallabella and Ripley, and four of the six largest supermarket firms in Chile all have stores in La Calera, something very unlikely for a town of some 50,000 people anywhere in Chile. In addition to that, the main Fruits & Vegetables and Livestock Markets of the region are based in the town. All of which shows its strategic importance, leaving La Calera commanding over a level investment and services much disproportionate to its real size.
, the commune's population was 49,503 inhabitants (24,134 men and 25,369 women). Of these, 47,836 (96.6%) lived in urban area
s and 1,667 (3.4%) in rural areas. Its 2007 estimated population was 50,644. La Calera holds 3.21% of the total population of the region. The city's central location in between Santiago de Chile and Valparaiso
on the coast made the city of La Calera a true crossroads of industrial development.
Amongst the important immigrant communities
set in La Calera before 1950, Palestinians and Italians stand out, which makes the town with the largest proportion of Palestine people in Latin America
. The small but well prominent Palestinian community was recently reported in international news media. Even a former Mayor of the city was of Palestinian descent. As mentioned, Italians as well as French
immigrants have established a thriving agricultural economy.
La Calera has a mestizo
cultural identity and over half the people have some Amerindian ancestry. It is estimated that Spanish descendants
and mestizo
s make up more than 90% of the population.
for a person from La Calera is Calerano for a man, or Calerana for a woman. Notable Caleranos include:
Within the electoral divisions of Chile, La Calera is represented in the Chamber of Deputies
by Mr. Eduardo Cerda (PDC
) and Mrs. Andrea Molina (UDI) as part of the 10th electoral district, (together with La Ligua
, Petorca
, Cabildo
, Papudo
, Zapallar
, Puchuncaví
, Quintero
, Nogales
La Cruz
, Quillota
and Hijuelas
). The commune is represented in the Senate
by Ignacio Walker Prieto (PDC
) and Lily Pérez San Martín (RN
) as part of the 5th senatorial constituency (Valparaíso-Cordillera).
Quillota Province
Quillota Province is one of eight provinces of the central Chilean region of Valparaíso . Its capital is the city of Quillota .-Administration:...
of central Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
's fifth region of Valparaíso
Valparaíso Region
The V Valparaíso Region is one of Chile's 15 first order administrative divisions.Valparaíso Region, 2006 With the country's third highest population of 1,539,852 million in 2002 and third smallest area of , the region is Chile's second most densely populated after the Santiago Metropolitan Region...
.
Geography
Santiago, Chile
Santiago , also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile, and the center of its largest conurbation . It is located in the country's central valley, at an elevation of above mean sea level...
. Its area is 60.5 sqkm. La Calera borders Nogales
Nogales
Nogales is a Spanish word meaning "walnut trees".As a geographical name, it is shared by several places:*Chile**Nogales, Chile*Mexico**Nogales, Chihuahua**Nogales, Durango**Nogales, Sonora**Nogales, Tamaulipas**Nogales, Veracruz*Spain...
to the north and west, Hijuelas to the east, and La Cruz to the south.
History
La Calera's name comes from the production of quicklime (Spanish "cal") that is obtained from the processed limestoneLimestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
(Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
: piedra caliza) (calcium carbonate), extracted from the hills at the south of the town, which were already exploited by the Chilean and Peruvian Natives for some 400 years previously. Therefore, La Calera means "quicklime mine".
The estate of La Calera belonged to the Jesuits up to 1767. The turning point came in 1842, when it was acquired by Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
n citizen Ildefonso Huici, who started industrialising it with local products. By 1844, a small town had emerged consisting mainly in a number of workers' dwellings located around the factories and production centres established in it, giving life to what La Calera is today.
Economy
Due to its strategic crossroads location on the central valley and the pioneering and entrepreneurial work of locals and immigrants (Palestinian immigrantsPalestinian Chilean
The Palestinian community in Chile is believed to be the largest Palestinian community outside of the Arab world. Estimates of the number of Palestinian descendants in Chile range from 350,000 to 500,000...
, Germans, Italians), La Calera has managed to remain a significant commercial and services centre to the interior of the Valparaiso Region, even though it is not the capital city of the Province. It also remains an important industrial base, employing a fair share of the rural population around it.
Taking into account the fact that La Calera is a very small town with an infrastructure and economy not necessarily noteworthy in the area, the city has developed its commerce in a very advanced way, maintaining itself essential for a number of services and businesses that see on it, a closer and affordable alternative to Santiago or Valparaíso.
The population surrounding it, on a radius of 15 km (9 mi) overpasses 150,000 people, which allows the development of the city as a commercial centre. Mainstreets of "José Joaquín Perez
José Joaquín Pérez
José Joaquín Pérez Mascayano was a Chilean political figure. He served as the president of Chile between 1861 and 1871....
" and "Arturo Prat
Arturo Prat
Agustín Arturo Prat Chacón was a Chilean navy officer. He was killed shortly after boarding the Peruvian armored monitor Huáscar at the Naval Battle of Iquique after the ship under his command, the Esmeralda, was rammed by the Peruvian monitor...
" have plenty of stores and shops, some of them owned originally by Palestinian
Palestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
s and mainly aimed to the working class.
Noteworthy is the case of Seidemann Megastores, which has three more branches in Quillota
Quillota
Quillota is a city and commune located in the Aconcagua River valley of central Chile's Valparaíso Region. It is the capital and largest city of the Quillota Province where many inhabitants live in the surrounding farm areas of San Isidro, La Palma, Pocochay, and San Pedro...
and La Calera. Two of the five Chilean biggest chain retailers companies in South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
, namely Fallabella and Ripley, and four of the six largest supermarket firms in Chile all have stores in La Calera, something very unlikely for a town of some 50,000 people anywhere in Chile. In addition to that, the main Fruits & Vegetables and Livestock Markets of the region are based in the town. All of which shows its strategic importance, leaving La Calera commanding over a level investment and services much disproportionate to its real size.
Industries and commercial markets
- Cemento Melón
- Sopraval
- Algamar
- Falabella Shopping Plaza
- Ripley Shopping Plaza
Demographics
According to data from the Census 2002 by the National Statistics InstituteINE
INE, Ine or ine may refer to one of the following:*Institut für Nukleare Entsorgung*Instituto Nacional de Estadística...
, the commune's population was 49,503 inhabitants (24,134 men and 25,369 women). Of these, 47,836 (96.6%) lived in urban area
Urban area
An urban area is characterized by higher population density and vast human features in comparison to areas surrounding it. Urban areas may be cities, towns or conurbations, but the term is not commonly extended to rural settlements such as villages and hamlets.Urban areas are created and further...
s and 1,667 (3.4%) in rural areas. Its 2007 estimated population was 50,644. La Calera holds 3.21% of the total population of the region. The city's central location in between Santiago de Chile and Valparaiso
Valparaíso
Valparaíso is a city and commune of Chile, center of its third largest conurbation and one of the country's most important seaports and an increasing cultural center in the Southwest Pacific hemisphere. The city is the capital of the Valparaíso Province and the Valparaíso Region...
on the coast made the city of La Calera a true crossroads of industrial development.
Amongst the important immigrant communities
Immigration to Chile
Over the centuries, Chile has received a number of immigrants mainly from Europe followed by the Americas and Asia. Today, millions of their descendants still live in the country and are found in all areas of the community....
set in La Calera before 1950, Palestinians and Italians stand out, which makes the town with the largest proportion of Palestine people in Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
. The small but well prominent Palestinian community was recently reported in international news media. Even a former Mayor of the city was of Palestinian descent. As mentioned, Italians as well as French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
immigrants have established a thriving agricultural economy.
La Calera has a mestizo
Mestizo
Mestizo is a term traditionally used in Latin America, Philippines and Spain for people of mixed European and Native American heritage or descent...
cultural identity and over half the people have some Amerindian ancestry. It is estimated that Spanish descendants
Spanish Chilean
Spanish Chileans are Chileans, of Spanish origin, even though most of the original colonial settlers have mixed with the other Europeans that have settled in the country after Independence up to the 20th century....
and mestizo
Mestizo
Mestizo is a term traditionally used in Latin America, Philippines and Spain for people of mixed European and Native American heritage or descent...
s make up more than 90% of the population.
Notable Caleranos
The demonymDemonym
A demonym , also referred to as a gentilic, is a name for a resident of a locality. A demonym is usually – though not always – derived from the name of the locality; thus, the demonym for the people of England is English, and the demonym for the people of Italy is Italian, yet, in english, the one...
for a person from La Calera is Calerano for a man, or Calerana for a woman. Notable Caleranos include:
- Eugenia ErrázurizEugenia ErrázurizEugenia Huici Arguedas de Errázuriz was a Chilean patron of modernism and a style leader of Paris from 1880 into the 20th century, who paved the way for the modernist minimalist aesthetic that would be taken up in fashion by Coco Chanel. Her circle of friends and protégés included Pablo Picasso,...
- Elías Figueroa BrandenElías FigueroaElías Ricardo Figueroa Brander is a former football player from Chile. He is considered the best Chilean footballer of all time, as well as one of the greatest defenders ever to play the game....
- Manfred Max-NeefManfred Max-NeefArtur Manfred Max Neef is a Chilean economist and environmentalist mainly known for his human development model based on Fundamental human needs. He is of German descent...
Administration
As a commune, La Calera is a third-level administrative division of Chile, administered by a Communal Council (Concejo Comunal), which is headed by a directly elected Mayor. The current Mayor, as of December 2008 is Dr. Eduardo Martínez Machuca (Christian Democrat). The Communal Council has the following members:- Trinidad Rojo (RNNational Renewal (Chile)National Renewal , is a liberal conservative political party belonging to the Chilean right-wing political coalition Coalition for Change in conjunction with the Independent Democratic Union and the Chile First movement...
) - Margarita Osorio (independent)
- Ricardo Aliaga (DCChristian Democratic PartyChristian democratic parties are those political parties that seek to apply Christian principles to public policy. The underlying Christian democracy movement emerged in 19th-century Europe, largely under the influence of Catholic social teaching, and it continues to be influential in Europe and...
) - Gustavo Arancibia (PSSocialist Party of ChileThe Socialist Party of Chile is a political party, that is part of the center-left Coalition of Parties for Democracy coalition. Its historical leader was the late President of Chile Salvador Allende Gossens, who was deposed by General Pinochet in 1973...
) - Orietta Valencia (PRSD)
- Lautaro Correa (PS)
Within the electoral divisions of Chile, La Calera is represented in the Chamber of Deputies
Chamber of Deputies of Chile
The Chamber of Deputies of the Republic of Chile is the lower house of Chile's bicameral Congress. Its organisation and its powers and duties are defined in articles 42 to 59 of Chile's current constitution....
by Mr. Eduardo Cerda (PDC
Christian Democratic Party
Christian democratic parties are those political parties that seek to apply Christian principles to public policy. The underlying Christian democracy movement emerged in 19th-century Europe, largely under the influence of Catholic social teaching, and it continues to be influential in Europe and...
) and Mrs. Andrea Molina (UDI) as part of the 10th electoral district, (together with La Ligua
La Ligua
La Ligua is a Chilean city and commune, capital of the Petorca Province in Valparaíso Region.The city is known for its textile manufacturing and typical Chilean pastry production.-Demographics:...
, Petorca
Petorca
Petorca is a Chilean town and commune located in the Petorca Province, Valparaíso Region. The commune spans an area of .-Demographics:According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Petorca has 9,440 inhabitants . Of these, 4,535 lived in urban areas and 4,905 in rural areas...
, Cabildo
Cabildo, Chile
Cabildo is a Chilean city and commune located in the Petorca Province, Valparaíso Region. The commune spans an area of .-Demographics:According to data from the 2002 Census of Population and Housing, Cabildo had 18,916 inhabitants; of these, 12,453 lived in urban areas and 6,463 in rural areas....
, Papudo
Papudo
Papudo is a Chilean commune located in the Petorca Province, Valparaíso Region. The commune spans an area of .-Demographics:According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Papudo has 4,608 inhabitants . Of these, 4,343 lived in urban areas and 265 in rural areas...
, Zapallar
Zapallar
Zapallar is a Chilean town and commune located in the Petorca Province, Valparaíso Region. The commune spans an area of .-Demographics:According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Zapallar has 5,659 inhabitants . Of these, 4,744 lived in urban areas and 915 in rural areas...
, Puchuncaví
Puchuncaví
Puchuncaví is a town and commune in the Valparaíso Province of central Chile's fifth region of Valparaíso. It spans a coastal area of .-History:...
, Quintero
Quintero
Quintero is a Chilean city and commune in Valparaíso Province, Valparaíso Region. The commune spans an area of .-History:The name of the city comes from Alonso Quintero, the Spanish navigator who discovered the bay in 1536 when he arrived on the ship Santiaguillo.-Demographics:According to the 2002...
, Nogales
Nogales, Chile
Nogales is a city and commune in the Quillota Province of central Chile's fifth region of Valparaíso.-Demographics:According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Nogales has 21,633 inhabitants . Of these, 18,698 lived in urban areas and 2,935 in rural areas...
La Cruz
La Cruz, Chile
La Cruz is a city and commune in the Quillota Province of central Chile's fifth region of Valparaíso.- Geography :The Mediterranean climate of Chile's Zona Central allows for a rich quality and variety of flora and fauna. Thanks to this climate, it is in this small commune in the Quillota Province...
, Quillota
Quillota
Quillota is a city and commune located in the Aconcagua River valley of central Chile's Valparaíso Region. It is the capital and largest city of the Quillota Province where many inhabitants live in the surrounding farm areas of San Isidro, La Palma, Pocochay, and San Pedro...
and Hijuelas
Hijuelas
Hijuelas is a city and commune in the Quillota Province of central Chile's fifth region of Valparaíso.- Geography :Hijuelas spans an area of in Chile's Zona Central...
). The commune is represented in the Senate
Senate of Chile
The Senate of the Republic of Chile is the upper house of Chile's bicameral National Congress, as established in the current Constitution of Chile.-Composition:...
by Ignacio Walker Prieto (PDC
Christian Democratic Party
Christian democratic parties are those political parties that seek to apply Christian principles to public policy. The underlying Christian democracy movement emerged in 19th-century Europe, largely under the influence of Catholic social teaching, and it continues to be influential in Europe and...
) and Lily Pérez San Martín (RN
National Renewal (Chile)
National Renewal , is a liberal conservative political party belonging to the Chilean right-wing political coalition Coalition for Change in conjunction with the Independent Democratic Union and the Chile First movement...
) as part of the 5th senatorial constituency (Valparaíso-Cordillera).