Rocha () is a department in the east of

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

. Its capital is the city of Rocha. It borders Maldonado Department to its west,

Lavalleja Department Lavalleja () is a department of Uruguay. Its capital is Minas. It is located in the southeast of the country, bordered to the north by the department of Treinta y Tres to the east with Rocha, to the south with Canelones and Maldonado, and to ...

to its northwest, Treinta y Tres Department to its north, while to its northeast Laguna Merín forms part of its border with

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

and at the south end of the lake it also borders the southernmost end of Brazil, with the city of Chuy "shared" between both countries, the border passing through its main commercial avenue. Rocha has natural beauties like Cabo Polonio, Valizas,

Santa Teresa National Park Santa Teresa National Park is a seaside forested area in Rocha Department which is an important national park of Uruguay. It is operated by the National Army of Uruguay. It is located in the Atlantic coast southeast of Route 9 at the northeast si ...

. It is well known for its beach resorts, like Punta del Diablo or La Esmeralda, which swell with visitors during the summer holidays. Inland, the primary economy of Rocha is based on large cattle ranches.

History

On 7 July 1880, the department of Rocha was formed from territory that had belonged to the department of Maldonado since the first division of the Republic in departments in 1819.

In literature

Rocha department features in Carlos Maria Dominguez's 2004 novel ''Casa de Papel'' (trs English, 2005, ''The House of Paper''). The narrator visits the ruins of a house of books ergo, 'house of paper', which had been built and then destroyed by an obsessive book collector on the sand spit separating

Rocha lagoon Laguna de Rocha (Rocha Lagoon) is an important body of water located in Rocha Department, Uruguay. The lagoon and its surroundings were declared a protected area in 1977. On October 31, 1945, a Latecoere 631 (F-BANT) of Air France made an emer ...

from the ocean.

Population and Demographics

As of the census of 2011, Rocha Department had a population of 68,088 (33,269 male and 34,819 female) and 46,071 households. Demographic data for Rocha Department in 2010: *Population growth rate: -0.082% *Birth Rate: 14.04 births/1,000 people *Death Rate: 10.44 deaths/1,000 people *Average age: 35.0 (34.0 male, 36.0 female) *Life Expectancy at Birth: **Total population: 75.82 years **Male: 72.17 years **Female: 79.43 years *Average per household income: 19,978 pesos/month *Urban per capita income: 8,635 pesos/month ''2010 Data Source:''

Main Urban Centres

Population stated as per 2011 census.

Other towns and villages

Population stated as per 2011 census.

Rural population

According to the 2011 census, Rocha department has an additional rural population of 4,146.

References

External links

Official site of the Department of Rocha - About the DepartmentINE map of Rocha DepartmentNuestra Terra, Colección Los Departamentos, Vol.10 "Rocha"
{{Authority control Departments of Uruguay