Temuco's central place in Araucanía with easy access to the Andean valleys, lakes and coastal areas makes it a hub for tourism, agricultural, livestock and forestry operations as well as a communication and trade centre for the numerous small towns of Araucanía. Temuco has recently been regarded as a university city as it houses two large universities:University of the Frontier andTemuco Catholic University. Nobel laureatesGabriela Mistral andPablo Neruda both lived in Temuco for some time.
The word Temuco comes from theMapudungun language, meaning "temu water"; "temu" is the common name of two native trees of the family Myrtaceae,Luma apiculata (also known as arrayán in Spanish) andBlepharocalyx cruckshanksii. Both species are characterized by their orange-reddish bark and by having aromatic fruits and leaves which are commonly used by theMapuche for medicinal purposes. WhileBlepharocalyx cruckschankii is endangered,Luma apiculata is relatively common and in Temuco it is possible to see it in the Cerro Ñielol Natural Monument (in its natural state) as well as in city gardens and sidewalks. The blend between the words "temu" and "co" (water), probably reflects the fact that these trees frequently grow beside water bodies.
The area around Temuco began to be settled by non-indigenous Chileans in the mid-1870s, when for exampleLabranza began to be settled.[5][6]
The city was founded by Chilean army on 24 February 1881, as a fort during theOccupation of the Araucanía.Manuel Recabarren, in charge of the project, named the place Fuerte (Fort) Recabarren.
Formed as a military encampment, Temuco had in its origins the attributes of a camp, and a year after its founding, the first major streets started to form in the downtown area.
On 15 April 1888, the first city officers were elected including the first mayor José del Rosario Muñoz. The city grew quickly; a census in 1895 indicated a population of 7,708 people, and when Cautin was declared a province, Temuco became its capital, with its population by that time of 16,037 people.
Chilean poetry has deep roots in Temuco. Nobel laureatesGabriela Mistral andPablo Neruda (Neftalí Reyes) both lived in Temuco. Mistral was the principal of an all-girls school where Neruda would visit her and show her his first verses when he was around 15 years old.
Temuco Downtown.
In 2010 Temuco was affected by theearthquake on 27 February centered 400 km (250 mi) to the north. It was one of the most affected regions of Chile besides Santiago, Concepcion, Valparaíso and others.[clarification needed] The earthquake registered 8.8 Mw on themoment magnitude scale. Though landlocked Temuco avoided the tsunamis the earthquake caused, many very strong aftershocks throughout the country followed, including a 7.1 MW earthquake 70 km (43 mi) northwest of the city.[7] Nowadays, Temuco is a fast growing city with diversified commerce and services.
Tucapel neighborhood.CONADI's national subdirectorate of Temuco.
According to the 2017census by theNational Statistics Institute (INE), Temuco had a communal population of 282,415 (134,289 men and 148,126 women). Of these, 263,165 (93.2%) lived inurban areas and 19,250 (6.8%) inrural areas. The population grew by 15.11% (37,068 persons) between the 2002 and 2017 censuses.[3] TheINE projected the 2024 population to be 309,696,[8] TheGreater Temucometropolitan area, including the neighbouring commune ofPadre Las Casas, has a population of 410,520 people, which makes it the second largest city south of Santiago (behindConcepción), and the sixth largest in the country.[3] One of the distinctive features of Temuco is the strong presence of theMapuche culture, who make up 23.1% of the population in the Temuco commune, and numerous German immigrant colonies (9.8%). Temuco proper has a population of 227,086.[when?][citation needed]
Cult of Reconcíliate con Dios Evangelistic Church, in Ampliación Amanecer Neighborhood's Community Center.
The locals are calledtemuquenses. The inhabitants have diverse origins. Temuco has a high percentage of people ofBasque ancestry, as well asCastilian and otherSpanish nationalities. There is a substantial indigenous component, mainlyMapuche, accounting for 13% of the population of Temuco, which makes it the city ofChile with the largest indigenous presence.[citation needed] There is also a large percentage oftemuquences directly descended fromEuropean immigrants, many of whom arrived during 1883–1901 after the pacification ofAraucanía. The main European sources are Switzerland, Spain, France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom. Others, less numerous and from many other parts of Europe such as the Netherlands, Austria,Croatia,Armenia, Greece, Portugal, etc., arrived after that first migration, especially during the World Wars. During theSpanish Civil War (1930s), a large percentage ofAragonese,Asturians,Catalans,Galicians,Navarrese andBasques reached a significant number of immigrants from Europe (mainly Spain).
There are also small communities of Jews, from Russia, Poland,Macedonia, Hungary, as well asCentral andEastern Europe in general, andArabs, fromLebanon,Syria andPalestine. This immigration from Europe and, to a lesser extent, Jewish and Arabic areas helps to explain the various clubs, schools, and sections of the city of Temuco. There areEast Asian colonies of Chinese, Japanese and Koreans in Temuco, dating back to the end of theKorean War in the 1950s when thousands of Korean refugees settled through U.N. relocation programs to Chile.[citation needed]
Llaima volcano located in the Andes as seen from Temuco valley
Temuco is located in a valley in the center-south of Chile, equidistant between the Pacific Ocean to the west and theAndes to the east.Morphologically, the city placement corresponds toCautín River-originated fluvial land masses that developed in a crushed form between two hills, Ñielol (350m) and Conunhueno (360m).
Although the region of La Araucanía is the poorest in Chile,[11] the city of Temuco concentrates most of the region’s wealth, paradoxically positioning it as a wealthy city on par withAntofagasta,Punta Arenas, andSantiago. This is evident from per capita consumption figures in both supermarkets and shopping centers.Its metropolitan area hosts internationally recognized factories such asRosen andSurlat, among others—especially linked to the furniture industry.Temuco also has the largestshopping mall in southern Chile, located in theAvenida Alemania district. It was built by a typical representative of the city’sGerman community, businessmanHorst Paulmann—one of the largest retailers inHispanic America, and number one inArgentina withJumbo. He began to build his fortune just a few blocks from where Portal Temuco stands today, in what was once Las Brisas, the region’s first supermarket, where theCencosud retail empire was born.According to the National Training and Employment Service (SENCE), there are 79 Technical Training Organizations in the region, 52 of which are concentrated in Temuco.[12]
The city of Temuco hosts a number of international relations institutions, such as the Regional Unit for International Affairs (URAI) of theRegional Government of La Araucanía, which is responsible for the analysis and management of the region’s bilateral and multilateral relations withLatin America and the rest of the world; the Regional Unit for Investment Promotion and Attraction (Invest Araucanía); the Planning, Decentralization and International Relations Commission of the Regional Council of La Araucanía; the regional office of theNational Migration Service; the regional office of theGeneral Directorate for Export Promotion (ProChile); the Department of Migration and International Police of theInvestigations Police; and the Migrant Office of the Municipality of Temuco.[13]
In terms of international relations and higher education, the main actors in Temuco are the Temuco UniverCiudad initiative,[14] the Directorate of Internationalization[15] and the Confucius Institute of theUniversity of La Frontera,[16] as well as the International Relations Office of theCatholic University of Temuco.[17]
Due to the large number of European immigrant descendants, various honorary consulates have been established in Temuco to assist the population. Their main functions are to facilitate procedures related to nationality and visas. They operate voluntarily to provide a closer service to those who require consular assistance. It is worth noting that Temuco is the fifth Chilean city with the largest number of consulates, only surpassed bySantiago,Valparaíso,Concepción andPunta Arenas.
Commerce in Temuco is concentrated mainly in two areas (unlike most cities where it is centralized downtown): the Avenida Alemania district and the Downtown Sector. The latter has seen significant growth due to thegentrification of San Martín and O’Higgins avenues, marked by the opening of new commercial establishments.[18]Downtown Temuco features numerous galleries, department stores, cinemas, food courts, theMunicipal Market, and the Pinto Fair (with about 600 commercial stalls), along with various services. Avenida Alemania hosts the Mall Portal Temuco, Mall Mirage, several strip centers, museums, the casino, and multiple commercial outlets.The city’s economy is closely linked to the development of the service, tourism, and convention industries. It also stands out for its manufacturing sectors—particularly wood products (especially furniture), mattresses (Rosen), beverage bottling (CCU), and retail trade with neighboring communes.Temuco also showcases traditionalMapuche culture through its handicrafts, such as wooden carvings (like theIndio pícaro), musical instruments, clothing, andMapuche silverwork, all of which are highly valued by tourists visiting the city.
The city is surrounded by a landscape typical to central-southern Chile, consisting mostly of plantations of exotic species used in forestry along with prairies. The original ecosystem of the area consisting in temperate forest is present mostly in the Ñielol hill. Given that burning wood is the primary source of heat during the cold months in Temuco, air pollution is a recurrent problem during autumn and winter. As a consequence, Air quality in Temuco is the third lowest in Chile.[19][20]
Climatologically, Temuco lies at the border of Chile's central valley Mediterranean region, albeit with aMediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification:Csb). Through the year, cyclonic and anticyclonic influences alternate, with a distinct drier summer period (although not as dry as Santiago or other central valley cities, receiving just enough precipitation to avoid a Mediterranean climate classification). Its mean annual temperature is 13 °C (55 °F), with highest median during the warmest month of 23.5 °C (74 °F) and lowest median during the coldest month of 3.5 °C (38 °F) (Ciren-Corfo, 1992). Annual mean rain during 1961-1990 (Dirección Meteorológica de Chile, 1991) was 1,157 millimetres (45.6 in) (Capelli de Steffens et al., 1997).
Climate data for Temuco (Maquehue Airport) 1991–2020, extremes 1952–present
Within theelectoral divisions of Chile, Temuco is represented in theChamber of Deputies by Germán Becker (RN) and René Saffirio (PDC) as part of the 50th electoral district, together withPadre Las Casas. The commune is represented in theSenate by José Garcia Ruminot (RN) and Eugenio Tuma Zedan (PPD) as part of the 15th senatorial constituency (Araucanía-South).
Temuco, is as well known as "La ciudad del deporte" which means, the city of sports. Temuco hosts one of the newest as well as biggest stadiums in the country, the "German Becker" stadium; home to the local soccer team "Deportes Temuco".[26]
This stadium has hosted numerous local sports events, as well as international ones. They are as follows:
FIFA U20 Women's World Cup in 2008
WORLD RUGBY's U20 RUGBY WORLD TROPHY in 2013
AMERICAN CUP's in 2015
Temuco was also one of the host cities of the official1959 Basketball World Cup, whereChile won the bronze medal. Further to that, Temuco has numerous gyms and parks where people can go on their leisure time.
Terminal Rodoviario.Caupolicán Avenue.Crossing of Manuel Recabarren and Francisco Salazar avenues, in Amanecer quarter.General Cruz Street.Valparaíso Avenue.
Buses andcollective taxis are the most popular modes of mass transit. The bus fare is CLP$150 for students and $450 for adults; thecolectivos charge $500 ($650 at night).[citation needed]
La Araucanía Airport is commercial air terminal for Temuco located to the south of the city, near the town ofFreire, about 20 minutes south of Temuco.
Therailroad connects Temuco with Victoria to the north and points in between.
Long-haul buses run from the Terminal Rodoviario de la Araucania,[27] at the northern approach to town.
Private transport by car is commonly used which causes traffic congestion at peak hours.
The recent proliferation of bike lanes has placed transportation by bicycle as an emerging trend. By 2017, 35 km (22 mi) of bike lanes are expected to be operative.[28]
The Ñielol Hill houses the original temperate forest at this latitude in southern Chile as it was before the Spanish people colonised it. Currently, it has the status of natural monument and as such, it is a protected area. It has also a special meaning for theMapuche people living in the Region, housing near the top a ceremonial area called La Patagua. We can also find a restaurant at the top of the Hill and a viewpoint of the east side of the city and Padre Las Casas, across the river. It is easily accessed by foot or car. TheSouthern Andean Volcano Observatory has its office there.
Central market
The central market is one of the best places to get Mapuche crafts. It has a meat market and shops selling woodcrafts, artifacts, wool knits, and similar goods. A fire has recently affected its structure. Reconstruction is planned, but the original market is currently closed.
Feria Pinto
One of the most traditional places in the city. Fresh fruits and vegetables are sold here in a daily basis. People from the city and from rural nearby towns come here for trade.
Is the principal artery in Temuco. Here we can find The Araucaria Museum building (19th century Chilean style); the Menchaca Lira Campus of Art Building (aVictorian Style building, recently restored); The English Alley, where we can find theRed Cross Building and not long ago a blue house which was dismantled to be rebuilt elsewhere (as a Heritage recovery project by the school of architecture of a known University of Temuco), bothNeoclassical styled.Recently, Alemania Av. has become an important commercial centre. Several restaurants, night clubs, pubs, bistros, pharmacies, boutiques, banks, supermarkets and two shopping malls have been opened there. There is also a Casino and a five stars hotel in the same avenue.
Anibal Pinto Square
The core of Downtown Temuco is the Main Square Anibal Pinto. Temuco's Main Square is the only one inChile that was not built with a water fountain in its centre; an art gallery was built in 1981 as part of a total renewal. Compared to other main squares of southern Chile, Temuco's looks very modern. It was named one of Chile's most beautiful plazas.It is a tradition, in allcreole cities in Chile, that some specific buildings must be in front of the main square; in Temuco, this tradition has been broken. Main Squares are supposed to be surrounded by: aCathedral (which is in front of Temuco's main square, as traditionally), theMunicipality (which also, is located in front of the square), aTheatre (there used to be a film theatre in front of it), aFire Station (there is not a fire station in front of the square, as it should), aSchool (there is no school in front of the main square), and aBank (there are four banks around the main square).
^Gobierno Regional de la Araucanía (GORE). 2011. Labranza. Huellas en el camino. Historia de mi localidad. Santiago de Chile: Comité de Desarrollo Local de Labranza.
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