Quilicura ( ; ) is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the eas ...

located in capital

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whos ...

. Founded in 1901, it was originally a satellite city on what were then the outskirts of the city of Santiago, but as

urban sprawl Urban sprawl (also known as suburban sprawl or urban encroachment) is defined as "the spreading of urban developments (such as houses and shopping centers) on undeveloped land near a city." Urban sprawl has been described as the unrestricted growt ...

has set in it is now quickly urbanizing from what was recently prime agricultural land.

Etymology

The origin of the name Quilicura is from the

Mapuche The Mapuche ( (Mapuche & Spanish: )) are a group of indigenous inhabitants of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina, including parts of Patagonia. The collective term refers to a wide-ranging ethnicity composed of various groups who s ...

language

Mapudungun Mapuche (, Mapuche & Spanish: , or Mapudungun; from ' 'land' and ' 'speak, speech') is an Araucanian language related to Huilliche spoken in south-central Chile and west-central Argentina by the Mapuche people (from ''mapu'' 'land' and ''che ...

and comes from the words ''kila'' meaning three and ''kura'' meaning stone. The "Three Stones" are three hills which separate the area and formed the border with Renca.

Location

Quilicura is located in Santiago Province,

Santiago Metropolitan Region Santiago Metropolitan Region ( es, link=no, Región Metropolitana de Santiago) is one of Chile's 16 first-order administrative divisions. It is the country's only landlocked administrative region and contains the nation's capital, Santiago. Mos ...

, at the northwestern edge of Chile's capital Santiago. It borders Renca to the south (naturally separated by Renca Hill), Pudahuel to the west,

Huechuraba Huechuraba () is a city and commune of Chile located in Santiago Province, Santiago Metropolitan Region. Huechuraba has a mild mediterranean climate: relatively hot dry summers (November to March) with temperatures reaching up to on the hotte ...

and

Conchalí Conchalí () is a commune of Chile located in Santiago Province, Santiago Metropolitan Region. It is a northwestern suburb of Santiago. Demographics According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Conchalí spans an area of ...

to the east, and Lampa and Colina to the north. There is little green space in comparison to wealthier neighborhoods in the city because Quilicura is still an industrial area.

Demographics

According to the 2002 census, Quilicura spans an area of and has 126,518 inhabitants (62,421 men and 64,097 women). Of these, 125,999 (99.6%) lived in

urban area An urban area, built-up area or urban agglomeration is a human settlement with a high population density and infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas are created through urbanization and are categorized by urban morphology as cities ...

s and 519 (0.4%) in

rural area In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry typically are descr ...

s. The population grew by 207.7% (85,397 persons) between the 1992 and 2002 censuses. According to the 2012 census preliminary data Quilicura is now home to 203,946 residents. Note: Data are preliminary. In 2005 the regional quality of life index was rated at a medium level of 72.53 or 34 out of 52. In 2003 Quilicura's

Human Development Index The Human Development Index (HDI) is a statistic composite index of life expectancy, education (mean years of schooling completed and expected years of schooling upon entering the education system), and per capita income indicators, w ...

was recorded as 0.782 or 19 out of 341.Las Trayectorias del Desarrollo Humano en las Comunas de Chile (1994-2003)
."

UNDP The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)french: Programme des Nations unies pour le développement, PNUD is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries eliminate poverty and achieve sustainable economic growth and human dev ...

, ''Gobierno de Chile, Mideplán'' In 2011 the average annual household per capita income was rated at US$39,302 ( PPP). For the year 2017; according to the results of the 2017 census delivered by the National Institute of Statistics, the population of the commune increased to a total of 210 410 inhabitants, of which 103 456 (49%) correspond to men, while 106 954 (51%) correspond to women; therefore, its masculinity index is 96,7. In recent years, Quilicura has become the home of a large Haitian community.

Transport

Quilicura is located about 12 km from Santiago's international airport and is served by the Américo Vespucio Norte Highway as well as the

Pan-American Highway The Pan-American Highway (french: (Auto)route panaméricaine/transaméricaine; pt, Rodovia/Auto-estrada Pan-americana; es, Autopista/Carretera/Ruta Panamericana) is a network of roads stretching across the Americas and measuring about in to ...

. RED public buses connect Quilicura to the centre of Santiago and run frequently in each direction. The first phase of the

Santiago Metro Line 3 Line 3 is a rapid transit line of the Santiago Metro. Traveling from La Reina in the east towards the center, and Quilicura in the North, Line 3 was originally intended to open in the late 1980s, but the 1985 Algarrobo Earthquake hampered its cons ...

connecting the commune with the rest of the network was completed on 22 January 2019, with phase 2 being completed in 2023. Currently, the closest metro station to Quilicura is Los Libertadores which is the northern terminus of the line 3.

Administration

As a commune, Quilicura is a third-level

administrative division of Chile The administrative division or territorial organization of Chile exemplifies characteristics of a unitary state. State administration is functionally and geographically decentralized, as appropriate for each authority in accordance with the law. ...

administered by a

municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

, headed by a mayor who is directly-elected every four years. The 2021-2024 mayor is Paulina Bobadilla Navarrete ( Ind./

Comunes The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...

). The communal council has the following members: * Alexandra Arancibia Olea ( Ind./ PEV) * Nicolas Quiroz Venegas ( Ind./ PEV) * Gonzalo López Pizarro ( Ind./ PH) * Daniela Cuevas Fuentes ( PCCh) * Lorena Ayala Galaz ( Ind./ RD) * Juan Muñoz Milla ( Ind./ PPD) * María Margarita Indo Romo ( PDC) * Miguel Astudillo Cáceres ( RN) Within the

electoral divisions of Chile Chile has two distinct electoral division systems: * To elect members of the Chamber of Deputies and of the Senate, Chile is divided into several electoral divisions, namely electoral districts and senatorial constituencies. * To elect members of t ...

, Quilicura is part of electoral district No. 8 together with the

of Colina, Lampa, Pudahuel, Maipú, Til Til, Cerrillos and

Estación Central Estación Central ((), Spanish for "central station") is a commune of Chile located in Santiago Province, Santiago Metropolitan Region. Its namesake is the Estación Central railway station located in the commune. Demographics According to th ...

. On the other hand, the commune belongs to the VII Senatorial District that represents the entire

Metropolitan Region of Santiago Santiago Metropolitan Region ( es, link=no, Región Metropolitana de Santiago) is one of Chile's 16 first-order administrative divisions. It is the country's only landlocked administrative region and contains the nation's capital, Santiago. Mo ...

Notable people

* Carmen Romo Sepúlveda

References

External links

*
Municipality de Quilicura
*
Quilicura TV Canal 6 Comunitario

In Mapudungun
{{Authority control Populated places in Santiago Province, Chile Geography of Santiago, Chile Communes of Chile Populated places established in 1901 1901 establishments in Chile