Teja island (
Spanish: ''isla Teja'') is an island in the city of
Valdivia
Valdivia (; Mapuche: Ainil) is a city and commune in southern Chile, administered by the Municipality of Valdivia. The city is named after its founder, Pedro de Valdivia, and is located at the confluence of the Calle-Calle, Valdivia, and ...
, Chile, surrounded by three rivers:
Cau-Cau river to the north,
Cruces river to the west and
Valdivia river to the southeast. Prior to the mid-19th century, the island was known as ''isla Valenzuela'' after Francisco de Valenzuela, an
encomendero that settled there in 1552. In the second half of the 19th century, the island became known for its
roof tile (Spanish: ''teja'') and brick factory, hence the name ''isla Teja''.
Initially it was outside the proper city, but with the
arrival of German immigrants, many of them settled there,
and since 1939, the island is directly connected to downtown Valdivia through the
Pedro de Valdivia bridge. A large section of the island's western riverside sank below water level due to the
Great Chilean earthquake of 1960.
The island holds the main campus of
Universidad Austral de Chile and since the construction of
Río Cruces bridge
Río Cruces Bridge is a triangular bridge spanning Cruces River that unites Isla Teja from Torobayo, a sub-urban area of Valdivia
Valdivia (; Mapuche: Ainil) is a city and commune in southern Chile, administered by the Municipality of V ...
in 1987 it became the main route to the neighboring areas of
Niebla,
Corral and
Mancera Island.
The island contain
wetland
A wetland is a distinct semi-aquatic ecosystem whose groundcovers are flooded or saturated in water, either permanently, for years or decades, or only seasonally. Flooding results in oxygen-poor ( anoxic) processes taking place, especially ...
s that are protected by the
Urban Wetlands Law.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Teja Island
River islands of Chile
Islands of Los Ríos Region
Populated places in Valdivia Province
Neighborhoods in Valdivia