Combarbala
Encyclopedia
Combarbalá is a Chile
an city and commune, located in the Limarí Province
, Coquimbo Region
. The overall population of the commune is about 14.000 inhabitants, while the population of the city is about 6000 inhabitants. It is known by the astronomic observatory Cruz del Sur; its typical handcraft made of the unique combarbalita stone; the classical basketball match at the end February; the Virgen de la Piedra catholic-pagan festivity, among other touristic attractions.
word "Cumparpayay", which means "to break with a hammer", and designates the usual labor for obtaining minerals and stones from mines.
. The second hypothesis holds that the origin of the word Combarbalá comes from the Mapudungun
word "Co Cam Bala", where "Co" means Water, "Cam" means Far, and "Bala" means Duck. Thus, Cocambala literally means "far away water with ducks", or Duck's pond. In fact, there's a place known as Duck's pond very near to the city. This pond was used as a resting place by the Inca army in their advance to the south, and then by the Spanish
conquistador
es Diego de Almagro
first, and later by Pedro de Valdivia
.
People of Combarbalá likes to make jokes about the name of the city: they hold that an aborigine of the area, who was named "La", left to travel with the spaniards. "La" get used to shave his face and returned with a dense beard, something unusual because southamerican aborigines don't grow beards. Because of this, people named the area as the place where "Con-Barba-La" —literally with-beard-La or bearded La—lived. This history is told for the amusement of childrens during the celebration of the city foundation anniversary.
, Diaguita
and Inca people. Molle
people were the first to inhabit the area. The Molle people were hunter-gatherers, although they also practiced some primal forms of agriculture. They inhabited the area from c. 400 B.E.C. to c. 900 E.C. Their origins are still unknown, although some hypothesis trace them back to the Amazon Rainforest
, coming through what is now Bolivia
to the Atacama
and Coquimbo
regions of Chile.
The Diaguita people arrived to the area c. 700 E.C, about three hundred years after the Molle people. They crossed from Argentina
through one of the several summer passages in the Andes
mountain range. They practiced advanced forms of agriculture, pottery
, stone work, weaving
and metallurgy
, mainly based on copper
and bronze
). They also carved figures in stone known as petroglyphs. These petroglyphs are believed to represent the cosmology
of the Diaguita people,. Nowadays, some of this archeological treasures can be observed in the area of Rincon las Chilcas.
The Inca conquerors arrived c. 1450 A.D. It is believed that the conquest was pacific, and mainly affected cultural aspects. They extended the Inca roads in the area, and practiced advanced forms of mining
and agriculture
.
, empty handed. After that, the expedition of Pedro de Valdivia arrived to the area c. 1541. They found the valley mostly uninhabited, because most of the indigenous people were hiding in the hills. The indigenous were already afraid of Spaniards, because of the deeds of Almagro
and his people. The first Spanish chronologist recording the name of "Cocambala" valley was Jeronimo de Vivar. He wrote: "It rains more heavier and more in summer (than Copiapó
)... there are good rivers in this area". He described the number of inhabitants as "Not too many people".
Before the official foundation of the town, the life there was characterized for being extremely hard. The first census showed that the overall population of the area (Combarbalá, Cogotí and Pama) was 240 people, distributed across 60 families. Most of the activities were related to farming and shepherding. In 1757, the overall population was around 1,140 people. That same year, Bishop Manuel de Alday established the vice-Parish in the area. In 1774, this was advanced to parish status. Later, on March 3, 1789, neighbors of the area ask the Spanish governor, Ambrosio O'Higgins, to establish a church in the area. This finally happened on November 30, 1789. The original name of the city was "Villa of San Francisco de Borja de Combarbalá". The foundation was done by Captain Juan Ignacio Flores, under decree (frml) of governor and later vice-king, Ambrosio O'Higgins.
At the beginning of the 18th century, mines of copper, gold
and silver
were discovered in the area. Thus, Combarbalá became an important mining center. However, during the mid 80's, the military dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet
dismantled the mineral processing plant that operated in the city, thus ending the era of mining wealth, and putting the city into an era of economic uncertainty. Lately on the 90's, and thanks to techniques of dry areas irrigation, growing of export-grade grapes have become the main economical activity, but only generating seasonal employment.
, and the valley lies in between the Cogotí River valley
to the north and the Valle Hermoso
(Beautiful Valley) to the south. Those three are the main transversal valleys found in the commune.
Some important heights located in the commune of Combarbalá are:
of the National Statistics Institute
, Combarbalá spans an area of 1895.9 sqkm and has 13,483 inhabitants (6,695 men and 6,788 women). Of these, 5,494 (40.7%) lived in urban area
s and 7,989 (59.3%) in rural areas. The population fell by 6.3% (899 persons) between the 1992 and 2002 censuses.
, headed by an alcalde
who is directly elected every four years. The 2008-2012 alcalde is Solercio Rojas Aguirre (PRI). The council has the following members:
Within the electoral divisions of Chile, Combarbalá is represented in the Chamber of Deputies
by Mrs. Adriana Muñoz (PDC) and Mr. Luis Lemus (Ind.) as part of the 9th electoral district, (together with Punitaqui
, Monte Patria
, Illapel
, Salamanca
, Los Vilos
, Canela
). The commune is represented in the Senate
by Evelyn Matthei Fornet (UDI) and Jorge Pizarro Soto (PDC) as part of the 4th senatorial constituency (Coquimbo Region). On January 2011, Evelyn Matthei abandoned its elected senatorial position and it was replaced by Gonzalo Uriarte.
The vegetation found in the commune is typical of the area climate, adapted to the dryness and low relative humidity of the climate. Predominating species are in most of the area are different types of cacti
, hawthorns and carob trees. However, in the valleys, near the rivers, is possible to find more water-demanding species, like Eucalyptus
and Weeping Willows.
Rivers in the area are fed by two main sources: rain and melting snow. Because of this, their levels rise at least twice a year: in winter due to rains, and in summer due to snow melting. In a normal year, rains can be up to 200 mm. But periods of drought or heavy raining are not uncommon.
There are a number of small rivers that come down from the Andes mountain chain, which tribute their water to the three main rivers in the commune: Combarbalá, Cogotí
and Pama. All of them end at the Cogotí dam, which has a capacity of 150 million cubic meters (~39 billion gallons). From there, it flows into the Guatulame River
and then to La Paloma dam in the commune of Monte Patria
.
shepherding, and craft work of Combarbalita stone have become important productive activities. There are a number of artisans in the area that work with the stone and produce a variety of decorative and utilitarian objects. Goat cheese is also a famous product of the zone, and export-grade grape
production has become the main agricultural activity, with the only caveat that it produces seasonal work.
La Isla religious festivals
On the first Sunday in May, Catholics participate in the traditional religious celebration of the Virgin of the Stone, in the town of La Isla, located 22 kilometers from the city of Combarbalá. Thousands of pilgrims demonstrate their devotion by climbing the hill were the stone virgin is located. various interesting aspects of the Inca-Catholic mixture are present in this festivity, as in others through the north of Chile. Among these, are: payment of "mandas". which are commitments between the virgin and the pilgrim, were the virgin grants some wish, and the pilgrim pays with physical, usually painful, acts (e.g. climbing the hill on the knees). Another interesting aspect of the festivity are the "religious dances", which are Inca in origin, but nowadays represent the mixture between indigenous and Catholic beliefs. In these dances, groups of men, women and children dance in columns, dressed in non-traditional outfits (e.g. gypsies. red skins), while are followed by a band composed of different types of drums, and sometimes different kinds of flutes.
Petroglyphs
Petroglyphs were ubiquitous in the area and remain as part of the Diaguita heritage. Unfortunately, most of them were stolen by unscrupulous "private collectionists". Nowadays, despite the lack of a defined protection policy, they can be found mainly in the areas of Rincón Las Chilcas, Ramadilla and Pama. The main motives in this carved stones are cosmology of Diaguita people and they religious ceremonies.
El Clasico
In February, Combarbala lives a unique event: El Clásico. Two of the city's sports, culture and social Clubs, "Los Loros" and "Union Juvenil", dispute the title of the city championship. Even there is no trophy or cash reward, during the whole summer, the people of Combarbalá and the visitors are divided, belonging to one of the two clubs. Although club membership is determined by family and heritage, often young people challenge their parents' affiliation, and switch clubs. At the end of february, both clubs confront each other in sport and cultural activities that decide the triumph of one the clubs. This is decided after an exciting basketball game which usually starts after a theatrical play and a cheerleaders presentation by each club. It is not an unusual that the game can start at 1 am and ends around 4 am. After the match, both winners and losers celebrate until the dawn in their respective club houses. Because of this, it is also known as "The Night Combarbalá doesn't sleep". Usually the score is only a few points difference.
Other touristic attractions
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an city and commune, located in the Limarí Province
Limarí Province
Limarí Province is one of three provinces of the Chilean region of Coquimbo Region . Its capital is the city of Ovalle-Geography and demography:...
, Coquimbo Region
Coquimbo Region
The IV Coquimbo Region is one of Chile's 15 first order administrative divisions. It is some 400 km north of the capital, Santiago.The capital and largest city is La Serena, other important cities include the seaport Coquimbo and the agricultural centre...
. The overall population of the commune is about 14.000 inhabitants, while the population of the city is about 6000 inhabitants. It is known by the astronomic observatory Cruz del Sur; its typical handcraft made of the unique combarbalita stone; the classical basketball match at the end February; the Virgen de la Piedra catholic-pagan festivity, among other touristic attractions.
Origin of the name
There are two hypotheses that might to explain the origin of the name "Combarbalá". Both hypothesis are rooted in the spanish transliteration of the aborigine name of the area. The first hypothesis holds that the word Combarbalá it is derived from the QuechuaQuechua languages
Quechua is a Native South American language family and dialect cluster spoken primarily in the Andes of South America, derived from an original common ancestor language, Proto-Quechua. It is the most widely spoken language family of the indigenous peoples of the Americas, with a total of probably...
word "Cumparpayay", which means "to break with a hammer", and designates the usual labor for obtaining minerals and stones from mines.
. The second hypothesis holds that the origin of the word Combarbalá comes from the Mapudungun
Mapudungun
The Mapuche language, Mapudungun is a language isolate spoken in south-central Chile and west central Argentina by the Mapuche people. It is also spelled Mapuzugun and sometimes called Mapudungu or Araucanian...
word "Co Cam Bala", where "Co" means Water, "Cam" means Far, and "Bala" means Duck. Thus, Cocambala literally means "far away water with ducks", or Duck's pond. In fact, there's a place known as Duck's pond very near to the city. This pond was used as a resting place by the Inca army in their advance to the south, and then by the Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
conquistador
Conquistador
Conquistadors were Spanish soldiers, explorers, and adventurers who brought much of the Americas under the control of Spain in the 15th to 16th centuries, following Europe's discovery of the New World by Christopher Columbus in 1492...
es Diego de Almagro
Diego de Almagro
Diego de Almagro, , also known as El Adelantado and El Viejo , was a Spanish conquistador and a companion and later rival of Francisco Pizarro. He participated in the Spanish conquest of Peru and is credited as the first European discoverer of Chile.Almagro lost his left eye battling with coastal...
first, and later by Pedro de Valdivia
Pedro de Valdivia
Pedro Gutiérrez de Valdivia or Valdiva was a Spanish conquistador and the first royal governor of Chile. After serving with the Spanish army in Italy and Flanders, he was sent to South America in 1534, where he served as lieutenant under Francisco Pizarro in Peru, acting as his second in command...
.
People of Combarbalá likes to make jokes about the name of the city: they hold that an aborigine of the area, who was named "La", left to travel with the spaniards. "La" get used to shave his face and returned with a dense beard, something unusual because southamerican aborigines don't grow beards. Because of this, people named the area as the place where "Con-Barba-La" —literally with-beard-La or bearded La—lived. This history is told for the amusement of childrens during the celebration of the city foundation anniversary.
Prehispanic
The geographical area where Combarbalá is located was originally populated by MolleMolle
Molle may mean:* Mölle, a town in southwestern Sweden* MOLLE , a version of load bearing gear used by the U.S. Military* Molle Holmberg , Swedish celebrity...
, Diaguita
Diaguita
The Diaguita, also called Diaguita-Calchaquí, are a group of South American indigenous peoples. The Diaguita culture developed between the 8th and 16th centuries in what are now the provinces of Salta, Catamarca, La Rioja and Tucumán in northwestern Argentina, and in the Atacama and Coquimbo...
and Inca people. Molle
Molle
Molle may mean:* Mölle, a town in southwestern Sweden* MOLLE , a version of load bearing gear used by the U.S. Military* Molle Holmberg , Swedish celebrity...
people were the first to inhabit the area. The Molle people were hunter-gatherers, although they also practiced some primal forms of agriculture. They inhabited the area from c. 400 B.E.C. to c. 900 E.C. Their origins are still unknown, although some hypothesis trace them back to the Amazon Rainforest
Amazon Rainforest
The Amazon Rainforest , also known in English as Amazonia or the Amazon Jungle, is a moist broadleaf forest that covers most of the Amazon Basin of South America...
, coming through what is now Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
to the Atacama
Atacama Region
The Atacama Region is one of Chile's 15 first order administrative divisions. It comprises three provinces, Chañaral, Copiapó and Huasco. It is bordered to the north by Antofagasta, to the south by Coquimbo, to east with Provinces of Catamarca, La Rioja and San Juan of Argentina, and to west with...
and Coquimbo
Coquimbo Region
The IV Coquimbo Region is one of Chile's 15 first order administrative divisions. It is some 400 km north of the capital, Santiago.The capital and largest city is La Serena, other important cities include the seaport Coquimbo and the agricultural centre...
regions of Chile.
The Diaguita people arrived to the area c. 700 E.C, about three hundred years after the Molle people. They crossed from Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
through one of the several summer passages in the Andes
Andes
The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...
mountain range. They practiced advanced forms of agriculture, pottery
Pottery
Pottery is the material from which the potteryware is made, of which major types include earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. The place where such wares are made is also called a pottery . Pottery also refers to the art or craft of the potter or the manufacture of pottery...
, stone work, weaving
Weaving
Weaving is a method of fabric production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. The other methods are knitting, lace making and felting. The longitudinal threads are called the warp and the lateral threads are the weft or filling...
and metallurgy
Metallurgy
Metallurgy is a domain of materials science that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their intermetallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are called alloys. It is also the technology of metals: the way in which science is applied to their practical use...
, mainly based on copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
and bronze
Bronze
Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...
). They also carved figures in stone known as petroglyphs. These petroglyphs are believed to represent the cosmology
Cosmology
Cosmology is the discipline that deals with the nature of the Universe as a whole. Cosmologists seek to understand the origin, evolution, structure, and ultimate fate of the Universe at large, as well as the natural laws that keep it in order...
of the Diaguita people,. Nowadays, some of this archeological treasures can be observed in the area of Rincon las Chilcas.
The Inca conquerors arrived c. 1450 A.D. It is believed that the conquest was pacific, and mainly affected cultural aspects. They extended the Inca roads in the area, and practiced advanced forms of mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
and agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
.
Spanish Conquest and Colony
The failed expedition of Diego de Almagro arrived to the area in c. 1536. As it is known, they returned shortly after to PeruPeru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
, empty handed. After that, the expedition of Pedro de Valdivia arrived to the area c. 1541. They found the valley mostly uninhabited, because most of the indigenous people were hiding in the hills. The indigenous were already afraid of Spaniards, because of the deeds of Almagro
Almagro
Almagro may refer to:*Diego de Almagro , Spanish explorer*Diego Almagro II , assassin of Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro*Nicolás Almagro , Spanish tennis player*Almagro, Buenos Aires...
and his people. The first Spanish chronologist recording the name of "Cocambala" valley was Jeronimo de Vivar. He wrote: "It rains more heavier and more in summer (than Copiapó
Copiapó
Copiapó is a city in northern Chile, located about 40 miles east of the coastal town of Caldera. Founded on December 8, 1744, it is the capital of Copiapó Province and Atacama Region....
)... there are good rivers in this area". He described the number of inhabitants as "Not too many people".
Before the official foundation of the town, the life there was characterized for being extremely hard. The first census showed that the overall population of the area (Combarbalá, Cogotí and Pama) was 240 people, distributed across 60 families. Most of the activities were related to farming and shepherding. In 1757, the overall population was around 1,140 people. That same year, Bishop Manuel de Alday established the vice-Parish in the area. In 1774, this was advanced to parish status. Later, on March 3, 1789, neighbors of the area ask the Spanish governor, Ambrosio O'Higgins, to establish a church in the area. This finally happened on November 30, 1789. The original name of the city was "Villa of San Francisco de Borja de Combarbalá". The foundation was done by Captain Juan Ignacio Flores, under decree (frml) of governor and later vice-king, Ambrosio O'Higgins.
At the beginning of the 18th century, mines of copper, gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
and silver
Silver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
were discovered in the area. Thus, Combarbalá became an important mining center. However, during the mid 80's, the military dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet
Chile under Pinochet
Chile was ruled by a military dictatorship headed by Augusto Pinochet from 1973 when Salvador Allende was overthrown in a coup d'etat until 1990 when the Chilean transition to democracy began. The authoritarian military government was characterized by systematic suppression of political parties and...
dismantled the mineral processing plant that operated in the city, thus ending the era of mining wealth, and putting the city into an era of economic uncertainty. Lately on the 90's, and thanks to techniques of dry areas irrigation, growing of export-grade grapes have become the main economical activity, but only generating seasonal employment.
Geography
Combarbalá commune is located in the geographical area known as transversal valleys of central Chile. These are valleys that run perpendicularly from the Andes mountain range to the Coastal mountain range. The city is located right next to Combarbalá RiverCombarbalá River
-References:*...
, and the valley lies in between the Cogotí River valley
Cogotí River
-References:*...
to the north and the Valle Hermoso
Valle Hermoso
Valle Hermoso may refer to:*Argentina: Valle Hermoso, Córdoba*Chile: Valle Hermoso, Valparaíso*Mexico: Valle Hermoso, Tamaulipas...
(Beautiful Valley) to the south. Those three are the main transversal valleys found in the commune.
Some important heights located in the commune of Combarbalá are:
- Pabellon Hill: 4700 metres (15,419.9 ft) AMSL.
- Chaguareche Hill: 2612 metres (8,569.6 ft) AMSL.
- Ramadilla Hill: 1353 metres (4,439 ft) AMSL.
- Movilo Hill: 1230 metres (4,035.4 ft) AMSL.
Demographics
According to the 2002 censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of the National Statistics Institute
National Statistics Institute (Chile)
The National Statistics Institute of Chile is a state-run organization of the Government of Chile, created in the second half of the 19th century and tasked with performing a general census of population and housing, then collecting, producing and publishing official demographic statistics of...
, Combarbalá spans an area of 1895.9 sqkm and has 13,483 inhabitants (6,695 men and 6,788 women). Of these, 5,494 (40.7%) lived in urban area
Urban area
An urban area is characterized by higher population density and vast human features in comparison to areas surrounding it. Urban areas may be cities, towns or conurbations, but the term is not commonly extended to rural settlements such as villages and hamlets.Urban areas are created and further...
s and 7,989 (59.3%) in rural areas. The population fell by 6.3% (899 persons) between the 1992 and 2002 censuses.
Administration
As a commune, Combarbalá is a third-level administrative division of Chile administered by a municipal councilMunicipal council
A municipal council is the local government of a municipality. Specifically the term can refer to the institutions of various countries that can be translated by this term...
, headed by an alcalde
Alcalde
Alcalde , or Alcalde ordinario, is the traditional Spanish municipal magistrate, who had both judicial and administrative functions. An alcalde was, in the absence of a corregidor, the presiding officer of the Castilian cabildo and judge of first instance of a town...
who is directly elected every four years. The 2008-2012 alcalde is Solercio Rojas Aguirre (PRI). The council has the following members:
- Miguel Oñate Collado (RNNational Renewal (Chile)National Renewal , is a liberal conservative political party belonging to the Chilean right-wing political coalition Coalition for Change in conjunction with the Independent Democratic Union and the Chile First movement...
) - Gustavo Hernández V. (PPDParty for DemocracyThe Party for Democracy is a political party in Chile; it is social democratic in its political orientation. It was founded in December 1987 by Ricardo Lagos, who aimed at forming a legal social democratic party . The party continued to function after the defeat of Pinochet...
) - Claudio Bravo Gallardo (PSSocialist Party of ChileThe Socialist Party of Chile is a political party, that is part of the center-left Coalition of Parties for Democracy coalition. Its historical leader was the late President of Chile Salvador Allende Gossens, who was deposed by General Pinochet in 1973...
) - Bernardita Cortés Gómez (PDCChristian Democratic PartyChristian democratic parties are those political parties that seek to apply Christian principles to public policy. The underlying Christian democracy movement emerged in 19th-century Europe, largely under the influence of Catholic social teaching, and it continues to be influential in Europe and...
) - Miguel Viera Flores (PRI)
- Hugo Galleguillos Cortés (Ind.Independent (politician)In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
)
Within the electoral divisions of Chile, Combarbalá is represented in the Chamber of Deputies
Chamber of Deputies of Chile
The Chamber of Deputies of the Republic of Chile is the lower house of Chile's bicameral Congress. Its organisation and its powers and duties are defined in articles 42 to 59 of Chile's current constitution....
by Mrs. Adriana Muñoz (PDC) and Mr. Luis Lemus (Ind.) as part of the 9th electoral district, (together with Punitaqui
Punitaqui
Punitaqui is a town and commune of Chile in the Limarí Province.-History:Punitaqui was once part of the Ovalle Department before the administrative restructuring of 1976.-1997 earthquake:...
, Monte Patria
Monte Patria
Monte Patria is a city and one of four communes in the Limarí Province of Chile's north-central IV Coquimbo Region.-Administration:As a commune, Monte Patria is a third-level administrative division of Chile administered by a Communal Council , headed by a directly elected alcalde...
, Illapel
Illapel
Illapel is a Chilean city, which is the capital of the Choapa Province, Coquimbo Region. It lies along the Illapel River and marks the country's narrowest point along a parallel .It's located to the east of Los Vilos.-Administration:...
, Salamanca
Salamanca, Chile
Salamanca is a Chilean city and commune in Choapa Province, Coquimbo Region. It is located east of Illapel, the province's administrative center, and north of Santiago, Chile...
, Los Vilos
Los Vilos
Los Vilos is both a Chilean coastal commune and a coastal city with over 9,000 inhabitants , located in the Province of Choapa, part of the IV Region of Coquimbo. Its main activity is fishing. The city also has a significant amount of tourism, mainly due to its two beaches: La Principal and Las...
, Canela
Canela
Canela, meaning Cinnamon in Portuguese, Spanish, and Italian, is a town located in the Serra Gaúcha of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Both Canela and neighboring Gramado are important tourist resorts and they both draw many visitors each year. Ecotourism is very popular in the area and there are many...
). The commune is represented in the Senate
Senate of Chile
The Senate of the Republic of Chile is the upper house of Chile's bicameral National Congress, as established in the current Constitution of Chile.-Composition:...
by Evelyn Matthei Fornet (UDI) and Jorge Pizarro Soto (PDC) as part of the 4th senatorial constituency (Coquimbo Region). On January 2011, Evelyn Matthei abandoned its elected senatorial position and it was replaced by Gonzalo Uriarte.
Climate
Combarbalá's climate is semi-arid, with a relative humidity around 50%. Summer temperatures range from 24 to 33 °C (75.2 to 91.4 F) with the much cooler nights typical of desert climates. Winter temperatures are generally above freezing, the minimum being ~3 °C (37.4 °F). Most of the year it is clear and sunny. Annual rainfall is about 200 mm, but long droughts and heavy rains are not rare in the region.The vegetation found in the commune is typical of the area climate, adapted to the dryness and low relative humidity of the climate. Predominating species are in most of the area are different types of cacti
Cacti
-See also:* RRDtool The underlying software upon which Cacti is built* MRTG The original Multi Router Traffic Grapher from which RRDtool was "extracted".* Munin -External links:******...
, hawthorns and carob trees. However, in the valleys, near the rivers, is possible to find more water-demanding species, like Eucalyptus
Eucalyptus
Eucalyptus is a diverse genus of flowering trees in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Members of the genus dominate the tree flora of Australia...
and Weeping Willows.
Rivers in the area are fed by two main sources: rain and melting snow. Because of this, their levels rise at least twice a year: in winter due to rains, and in summer due to snow melting. In a normal year, rains can be up to 200 mm. But periods of drought or heavy raining are not uncommon.
There are a number of small rivers that come down from the Andes mountain chain, which tribute their water to the three main rivers in the commune: Combarbalá, Cogotí
Cogotí River
-References:*...
and Pama. All of them end at the Cogotí dam, which has a capacity of 150 million cubic meters (~39 billion gallons). From there, it flows into the Guatulame River
Guatulame River
-References:*...
and then to La Paloma dam in the commune of Monte Patria
Monte Patria
Monte Patria is a city and one of four communes in the Limarí Province of Chile's north-central IV Coquimbo Region.-Administration:As a commune, Monte Patria is a third-level administrative division of Chile administered by a Communal Council , headed by a directly elected alcalde...
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Economic activities
For almost two centuries, Combarbalá's main economic activity has been mining of copper, gold and silver. However, due to Pinochet dictatorship systematic dismantlement of small and medium mining, these activities have been greatly diminished not only in Combarbalá, but also in the rest of Chile. Besides mining, other activities such as agriculture, goatGoat
The domestic goat is a subspecies of goat domesticated from the wild goat of southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the Bovidae family and is closely related to the sheep as both are in the goat-antelope subfamily Caprinae. There are over three hundred distinct breeds of...
shepherding, and craft work of Combarbalita stone have become important productive activities. There are a number of artisans in the area that work with the stone and produce a variety of decorative and utilitarian objects. Goat cheese is also a famous product of the zone, and export-grade grape
Grape
A grape is a non-climacteric fruit, specifically a berry, that grows on the perennial and deciduous woody vines of the genus Vitis. Grapes can be eaten raw or they can be used for making jam, juice, jelly, vinegar, wine, grape seed extracts, raisins, molasses and grape seed oil. Grapes are also...
production has become the main agricultural activity, with the only caveat that it produces seasonal work.
Tourism
There are a variety of touristic attractions in the area. The main ones are:La Isla religious festivals
On the first Sunday in May, Catholics participate in the traditional religious celebration of the Virgin of the Stone, in the town of La Isla, located 22 kilometers from the city of Combarbalá. Thousands of pilgrims demonstrate their devotion by climbing the hill were the stone virgin is located. various interesting aspects of the Inca-Catholic mixture are present in this festivity, as in others through the north of Chile. Among these, are: payment of "mandas". which are commitments between the virgin and the pilgrim, were the virgin grants some wish, and the pilgrim pays with physical, usually painful, acts (e.g. climbing the hill on the knees). Another interesting aspect of the festivity are the "religious dances", which are Inca in origin, but nowadays represent the mixture between indigenous and Catholic beliefs. In these dances, groups of men, women and children dance in columns, dressed in non-traditional outfits (e.g. gypsies. red skins), while are followed by a band composed of different types of drums, and sometimes different kinds of flutes.
Petroglyphs
Petroglyphs were ubiquitous in the area and remain as part of the Diaguita heritage. Unfortunately, most of them were stolen by unscrupulous "private collectionists". Nowadays, despite the lack of a defined protection policy, they can be found mainly in the areas of Rincón Las Chilcas, Ramadilla and Pama. The main motives in this carved stones are cosmology of Diaguita people and they religious ceremonies.
El Clasico
In February, Combarbala lives a unique event: El Clásico. Two of the city's sports, culture and social Clubs, "Los Loros" and "Union Juvenil", dispute the title of the city championship. Even there is no trophy or cash reward, during the whole summer, the people of Combarbalá and the visitors are divided, belonging to one of the two clubs. Although club membership is determined by family and heritage, often young people challenge their parents' affiliation, and switch clubs. At the end of february, both clubs confront each other in sport and cultural activities that decide the triumph of one the clubs. This is decided after an exciting basketball game which usually starts after a theatrical play and a cheerleaders presentation by each club. It is not an unusual that the game can start at 1 am and ends around 4 am. After the match, both winners and losers celebrate until the dawn in their respective club houses. Because of this, it is also known as "The Night Combarbalá doesn't sleep". Usually the score is only a few points difference.
Other touristic attractions
- Petrified forest, in El Algarrobal, 03 km. from the city.
- Mountain bike in Barrancas, Chineo and Fragüita, to 11 km. to the interior of the city.
- San Francisco de Borja de Combarbala Church, built on 1754. Historical monument and touristic attraction in the town center.