History Before the Iberian conquest, the central zone of
Chile was sparsely inhabited by an indigenous population of
Picunches, the northern branch of the
Mapuches. The
European occupation had a considerable impact on the native population and culture, which suffered a rapid and profound disintegration. Chief among the reasons was the Spanish Crown's granting of gifts of land to its colonists. In addition, the institution of a system of
encomiendas, only abolished by the end of the 18th century, had irreversible consequences. It represented first the appropriation of indigenous ground, and second the practice of Spaniards receiving groups of natives who had to pay tribute. Over time, in the Province, as in the whole country, cultural identity became predominantly European in character, with minor hints of native character, thus setting in motion a process of homogenization of the population. at night
Population According to the
census of 2002, Santiago Province has 4,668,473 inhabitants, of whom 2,244,497 are male and 2,423,976 female, meaning that the number of males is 92.6% that of females. The
population density is the highest in Chile, with 2,999.4 inhabitants/km2; the most densely populated
comuna is that of
Lo Prado and the most populous is
La Florida, a suburb of the capital. In 2002, there were 4,658,687 persons living in
urban areas and 9,786 persons living in
rural areas, classifying 99.79% of the population as urban. The annual
population growth rate is calculated for 2005 as 0.9%.
Life expectancy is exactly the Chilean national average, which is the highest national life expectancy in
Latin America: 80 years on average, 78 for men and 82 for women. The area has an average household income of $29,062 in
PPP US dollars (2000). The population tends to be concentrated evenly between the heart of the city and the suburbs, due to government promotion of populating urban centers in high-rise buildings by offering state subsidies, thereby avoiding the progressive extension of
Greater Santiago. == Economy ==