Tungurahua ( es, Provincia del Tungurahua, literally ''Province of the Tungurahua''; ) is one of the twenty-four

provinces of Ecuador Ecuador is divided into 24 provinces ( es, provincias, singular''provincia''). The provinces of Ecuador and their capitals are: List 1 Population as per the census carried out on 2010-11-28 In addition, there were four areas that were non-del ...

. Its capital is Ambato. The province takes its name from the Tungurahua volcano, which is located within the boundaries of the provinces.

Population

In 2011, Tungurahua had an estimated population of 581,389. Approximately 10% of that population is made up of indigenous peoples, while another 70% are of

mestizo (; ; fem. ) is a term used for racial classification to refer to a person of mixed European and Indigenous American ancestry. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also refer to people who are culturally European even though thei ...

or mixed race heritage. The final 20% is made up of peoples of African, Asian, and European ancestry.

Climate

The province has a dry, temperate climate. Like all mountainous areas, the region experiences the phenomenon known as

microclimate A microclimate (or micro-climate) is a local set of atmospheric conditions that differ from those in the surrounding areas, often with a slight difference but sometimes with a substantial one. The term may refer to areas as small as a few squ ...

s, in which small portions of the province have drastically different conditions from others due to winds and area pressure. Generally though, Tungurahua experiences temperatures between 14 and 17 degree Celsius in the day-time, with cooler nights. At higher altitudes, conditions are much colder. Despite the area being near the

Equator The equator is a circle of latitude, about in circumference, that divides Earth into the Northern and Southern hemispheres. It is an imaginary line located at 0 degrees latitude, halfway between the North and South poles. The term can also ...

, mountains such as Carihuayrazo and Chimborazo are covered in snow for much of the year.

Geography

The province is very mountainous, containing the Tungurahua volcano near Baños, as well as bordering the Carihuayrazo and Chimborazo volcanoes to the south. Baños attracts the highest number of tourists. The principal river of the province is the Patate River, which flows to the east toward the Amazon Region.

Political division

The province is divided into nine

canton Canton may refer to: Administrative division terminology * Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland * Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French Arts and ente ...

s which stretch from Ambato in the west to Baños in the east. The following table lists each with its population at the 2001

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...

, its area in square kilometres (km²), and the name of the canton seat or

capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used fo ...

.Cantons of Ecuador
Statoids.com. Retrieved 4 November 2009.

Places of interest

* Parque de la Familia *

Llanganates National Park Llanganates National Park ( es, Parque Nacional Llanganates, links=no) is a protected area in Ecuador situated in the Cotopaxi Province, Napo Province, Pastaza Province and Tungurahua Province. Located within the park is Cerro Hermoso ("beautifu ...

References

External links

* Provinces of Ecuador {{Ecuador-geo-stub