Temuco (Spanish pronunciation: [teˈmuko]) is a city and commune, capital of the Cautín

Province and of the Araucanía Region in southern Chile. The city is located 670 kilometres
(416 miles) south of Santiago. The city grew out from a fort of the same name established in
1881 during Chile's invasion of Araucanía.[4] Temuco lies in the middle of the
historic Araucanía, a traditional land of the indigenous Mapuche.
Temuco's central place in Araucanía with easy access to the Andean valleys, lakes and
coastal areas makes it a hub for tourism, agricultural, livestock and forestry operations as well
as a communication and trade centre for the numerous small towns of Araucanía. Temuco has
recently been regarded as a university city as it houses two large universities: University of the
Frontier and Temuco Catholic University. Nobel laureates Gabriela Mistral and Pablo
Neruda both lived in Temuco for some time.

Contents

• 1Etymology
• 2History
• 3Demographics
o 3.1Notable people
• 4Geography
• 5Economy and environment
• 6Climate
• 7Administration
• 8Sports
• 9Transportation
• 10Important places
• 11References
• 12External links

Etymology[edit]

Luma apiculata

The word Temuco comes from the Mapudungun language, meaning "temu water"; "temu" is
the common name of two native trees of the family Myrtaceae, Luma apiculata (also known as
arrayán in Spanish) and Blepharocalyx cruckshanksii. Both species are characterized by their
orange-reddish bark and by having aromatic fruits and leaves which are commonly used by
the Mapuche for medicinal purposes. While Blepharocalyx cruckschankii is endangered, Luma
apiculata is relatively common and in Temuco it is possible to see it in the Cerro Ñielol Natural
Monument (in its natural state) as well as in city gardens and sidewalks. The blend between
the words "temu" and "co" (water), probably reflects the fact that these trees frequently grow
beside water bodies.

History[edit]
See also: Mapuche uprising of 1881
The city was founded by Chilean army on February 24, 1881, as a fort during the Occupation
of the Araucanía. Manuel Recabarren, in charge of the project, named the place Fuerte (Fort)
Recabarren.
Formed as a military encampment, Temuco had in its origins the attributes of a camp, and a
year after its founding, the first major streets started to form in the downtown area.
On April 15, 1888, the first city officers were elected including the first mayor José del Rosario
Muñoz. The city grew quickly; a census in 1895 indicated a population of 7,708 people, and
when Cautin was declared a province, Temuco became its capital, with its population by that
time of 16,037 people.
Chilean poetry has deep roots in Temuco. Nobel laureates Gabriela Mistral and Pablo
Neruda (Neftalí Reyes) both lived in Temuco. Mistral was the principal of an all-girls school
where Neruda would visit her and show her his first verses when he was around 15 years old.
In 2010 Temuco was affected by the earthquake on February 27 centered 400 km (250 mi) to
the north. It was one of the most affected regions of Chile besides Santiago, Concepcion,
Valparaíso and others.[clarification needed] The earthquake registered 8.8 Mw on the moment magnitude
scale. Though landlocked Temuco avoided the tsunamis the earthquake caused, many very
strong aftershocks throughout the country followed, including a 7.1 MW earthquake 70 km
(43 mi) northwest of the city.[5] Nowadays, Temuco is a fast growing city with diversified
commerce and services.

Demographics[edit]

Central Temuco

According to the 2002 census by the National Statistics Institute (INE), Temuco had a
communal population of 245,347 (117,071 men and 128,276 women). Of these, 232,528
(94.8%) lived in urban areas and 12,819 (5.2%) in rural areas. The population grew by 24.4%
(48,111 persons) between the 1992 and 2002 censuses.[3] The INE projected the 2010
population to be 377,495,[citation needed] which makes it the second largest city south of Santiago
(behind Concepción), and the fourth largest in the country. One of the distinctive features of
Temuco is the strong presence of the Mapuche culture, who make up 23.1% of the population
in the Temuco commune, and numerous German immigrant colonies (9.8%). Temuco proper
has a population of 227,086.[when?][citation needed]
The locals are called temuquenses. The inhabitants have diverse origins. Temuco has a high
percentage of people of Basque ancestry, as well as Castilian and other Spanish nationalities.
There is a substantial indigenous component, mainly Mapuche, accounting for 13% of the
population of Temuco, which makes it the city of Chile with the largest indigenous
presence.[citation needed] There is also a large percentage of temuquences directly descended
from European immigrants, many of whom arrived during 1883–1901 after the pacification
of Araucanía. The main European sources are Switzerland, Spain, France, Germany, Italy and
the United Kingdom. Others, less numerous and from many other parts of Europe such as
the Netherlands, Austria, Croatia, Armenia, Greece, Portugal, etc., arrived after that first
migration, especially during the World Wars. During the Spanish Civil War (1930s), a large
percentage of Aragonese, Asturians, Catalans, Galicians, Navarrese and Basques reached a
significant number of immigrants from Europe (mainly Spain).
There are also small communities of Jews, from Russia, Poland, Macedonia, Hungary, as well
as Central and Eastern Europe in general), and Arabs, from Lebanon, Syria and Palestine).
This immigration from Europe and, to a lesser extent, Jewish and Arabic areas helps to explain
the various clubs, schools, and sections of the city of Temuco. There are East Asian colonies
of Chinese, Japanese and Koreans in Temuco, dating back to the end of the Korean War in the
1950s when thousands of Korean refugees settled through U.N. relocation programs to
Chile.[citation needed]

Notable people[edit]
• Karina Riquelme Viveros, human rights lawyer[6]
• Rosa Catrileo, member of the Chilean Constitutional Convention
• Leonor Oyarzún, former first lady of Chile
• Gustavo Becerra-Schmidt, composer
• Dagoberto Godoy, aviator
• Pablo Neruda, 1971 winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature
• Marcelo Salas, retired footballer, chairman of local football club Deportes Temuco
• Luis Salvadores Salvi, Chilean basketball player

Geography[edit]
Llaima volcano located in the Andes as seen from Temuco valley

Temuco is located in a valley in the center-south of Chile, equidistant between the Pacific
Ocean to the west and the Andes to the east. Morphologically, the city placement corresponds
to Cautín River-originated fluvial land masses that developed in a crushed form between two
hills, Ñielol (350m) and Conunhueno (360m).

Economy and environment[edit]

Temuco products treemap, 2020

The city is surrounded by a landscape typical to central-southern Chile, consisting mostly of

plantations of exotic species used in forestry along with prairies. The original ecosystem of the
area consisting in temperate forest is present mostly in the Ñielol hill. Given that burning wood
is the primary source of heat during the cold months in Temuco, air pollution is a recurrent
problem during autumn and winter. As a consequence, Air quality in Temuco is the third lowest
in Chile.[7][8]
Climate[edit]
Climatologically, Temuco lies at the border of Chile's central valley Mediterranean region, albeit
with an oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification: Cfb). Through the year, cyclonic and
anticyclonic influences alternate, with a distinct drier summer period (although not as dry as
Santiago or other central valley cities, receiving just enough precipitation to avoid a
Mediterranean climate classification). Its mean annual temperature is 13 °C (55 °F), with
highest median during the warmest month of 23.5 °C (74 °F) and lowest median during the
coldest month of 3.5 °C (38 °F) (Ciren-Corfo, 1992). Annual mean rain during 1961-1990
(Dirección Meteorológica de Chile, 1991) was 1,157 millimetres (45.6 in) (Capelli de Steffens et
al., 1997).

hideClimate data for Temuco (Maquehue Airport) 1

Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May
38.0 42.0 35.1 32.0 24.1
Record high °C (°F)
(100.4) (107.6) (95.2) (89.6) (75.4)
24.4 25.0 22.5 18.0 14.3
Average high °C (°F)
(75.9) (77.0) (72.5) (64.4) (57.7)
16.0 15.7 13.9 11.0 9.1
Daily mean °C (°F)
(60.8) (60.3) (57.0) (51.8) (48.4)
8.9 8.7 7.8 6.3 5.7
Average low °C (°F)
(48.0) (47.7) (46.0) (43.3) (42.3)
−0.2 −1.9 −2.0 −4.0 −5.4
Record low °C (°F)
(31.6) (28.6) (28.4) (24.8) (22.3)
35.4 34.6 49.4 89.0 167.1
Average precipitation mm (inches)
(1.39) (1.36) (1.94) (3.50) (6.58)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) 4.2 3.5 5.8 9.1 13.8
Average relative humidity (%) 71.8 72.3 76.9 81.8 85.9
Mean monthly sunshine hours 303.8 265.6 226.3 147.0 111.6
Mean daily sunshine hours 9.8 9.4 7.3 4.9 3.6
Source 1: Dirección Meteorológica
Source 2: World Meteorological Organization (precipitation days and humidity 1

Administration[edit]
As a commune, Temuco 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 Miguel Becker Alvear (RN).[1][2]
Within the electoral divisions of Chile, Temuco is represented in the Chamber of Deputies by
Germán Becker (RN) and René Saffirio (PDC) as part of the 50th electoral district, together
with Padre Las Casas. The commune is represented in the Senate by José Garcia Ruminot
(RN) and Eugenio Tuma Zedan (PPD) as part of the 15th senatorial constituency (Araucanía-
South).
Sports[edit]
Temuco, is as well known as "La ciudad del deporte" which means, the city of sports. Temuco
hosts one of the newest as well as biggest stadiums in the country, the "German Becker"
stadium; home to the local soccer team "Deportes Temuco". Official Deportes Temuco FC site
This stadium has hosted numerous local sports events, as well as international ones. They are
as follows:
- FIFA U20 Women's World Cup in 2008
- WORLD RUGBY's U20 RUGBY WORLD TROPHY in 2013
- AMERICAN CUP's in 2015
Temuco was also one of the host cities of the official 1959 Basketball World Cup,
where Chile won the bronze medal.
Further to that, Temuco has numerous gyms and parks where people can go on their leisure
time.

Transportation[edit]

Terminal Rodoviario

Buses and collective taxis are the most popular modes of mass transit. The bus fare is
CLP$150 for students and $450 for adults; the colectivos charge $500 ($650 at night).[citation needed]
La Araucanía Airport is commercial air terminal for Temuco located to the south of the city,
near the town of Freire, about 20 minutes south of Temuco.
The railroad connects Temuco with Victoria to the north and points in between.
Temuco does not have a rapid transit rail system.
Long-haul buses run from the Terminal Rodoviario de la Araucania [3], at the northern
approach to town.
Private transport by car is commonly used which causes traffic congestion at peak hours.
The recent proliferation of bike lanes has placed transportation by bicycle as an emerging
trend. By 2017, 35 km of bike lanes are expected to be operative.[4]