Elqui Province

Elqui Province () is one of three provinces in the Chilean region of Coquimbo (IV). Its capital is the city of Coquimbo.

It is named after the main river of the province: the Elqui River river.

Geography
The Elqui province has an area of , the largest province in the Coquimbo region.

Elqui is bordered on the north by the Atacama region (Huasco province), on the east by Argentina, on the south by the Limarí province and on the west by the Pacific Ocean.

The main river of the province is the Elqui river that is  long. In the valley of the river, fruits, including grapes, are grown.

Population
 (last national census), there were 365,371 people living in the province, giving it a population density of  inhabitants/km², the province of the region with more people living in it.

The largest city of the province is La Serena with a population, in 2002, of 160,148 inhabitants.

Administration
As a province, Elqui is a second-level administrative division, consisting of six communes (comunas). The city of Coquimbo serves as the provincial capital. The province is administered by a governor.

+ Elqui province Code Comuna  Capital Area(km²) Population(2002) 04101 8 La Serena La Serena 1,892.8 160,148 04102 6 Coquimbo Coquimbo 1,429.3 163,036 04103 5 Andacollo Andacollo 310.3 10,288 04104 7 La Higuera La Higuera 4,158.2 3,721 04105 9 Paihuano Paihuano 1,494.7 4,168 04106 10 Vicuña Vicuña 7,609.8 24,010 Total 16,895.1 365,371

References

Other websites
 Territorial division of Chile 
 Gobierno Regional de Coquimbo Official website 
 Province of Elqui website 

Category:Provinces of Chile
Category:Coquimbo Region