Tarija Department

Tarija
Symbols
flag coat of arms
Basic data
Country	Bolivia
Capital	Tarija
surface	37,623 km²
Residents	482,196 (2012 census)
density	13 inhabitants per km²
ISO 3166-2	BO-T
Río Pilcomayo in the Tarija department

Coordinates: 21 ° 35 ′  S , 63 ° 50 ′  W

The Tarija Department is located in southern Bolivia on the border with Argentina and Paraguay . Within Bolivia it borders on Chuquisaca to the north and Potosí to the west .

geography

The area is often referred to as Andalusia Bolivia because of the predominantly mild climate, the fertile valleys, the vast plains, the rivers with crystal clear water and the cheerful and open-minded population . Although Tarija is relatively small in terms of area, the department includes all of the country's main landscapes and climatic zones except for the tropics. In the west, the cordillera of the Andes with the foothills of the Altiplano run through, including the Sama nature reserve, in the vicinity of which there are nameless mountain peaks at an altitude of 4500 to 4650 m . To the east are the lowlands of the Gran Chaco . In between is the fertile Valle Central de Tarija with the capital in a large valley on the eastern slope of the Cordilleras . To the east of it run about ten wooded ridges of the Bolivian mountains east of the Andes in a north-south direction and form an almost impenetrable barrier for east-west traffic. At the transition from the mountains to the Gran Chaco, as well as in the border area to the Departamento Chuquisaca , rich natural gas deposits are extracted.

population

The population of the Tarija Department has increased by about five times over the past sixty years:

year	Residents	source
1950	103 441	census
1976	187 204	census
1992	291 407	census
2001	391 226	census
2012	482 196	census

More than twenty indigenous peoples populate the region with a size between 20 and 1,500 members. The largest group are the Guaraní . The capital with 214,304 inhabitants ( 2010 update ) is the city of Tarija in the central western part of the department. The long -established Tarijeños , especially the rural population in the comparatively densely populated Valle Central in the vicinity of the capital including Padcaya , refer to themselves as Chapacos and Chapacas . As descendants of Europeans (mainly Andalusian colonizers) and the ethnic groups living in the region at the time of colonization, such as the Tomatas , Churumatas, Chichas and the Guaraní-speaking Chiriguanos, they are predominantly relatively light-skinned mestizos who all speak Spanish and are predominantly Catholic. Over the decades, immigrant groups from Argentina, the Arab-Turkish region ( commonly known as Turcos ), Croatia and the German-speaking region have added further facets. The constantly developing Chapaco culture is often seen as representative of the entire department in terms of its external impact. The indigenous peoples are only a minority of the population. However, the strong influx of people from highland departments such as Potosí and Chuquisaca has led to a strengthening of population groups with indigenous identity, especially in the capital. The sparsely populated eastern highlands are also predominantly inhabited by people who can be assigned to the Quechua, while small Guaraní settlements are distributed in the inaccessible mountainous region of the Voranden. The Mennonite settlements in this region are similarly isolated . The traditional inhabitants of the Chaco region bordering Paraguay in the east call themselves Chaqueños and cultivate their own lowland culture, which they share with the neighboring regions in northern Argentina and Paraguay.

Provinces

The department is divided into six provinces, e.g. Some of them were named after famous people:

province	Area (in km²)	Population 2012 (census)
Province of Aniceto Arce	4,943	53 081
Burnet O'Connor Province	6 104	21 378
Province of Cercado	2,047	205 346
Province of Eustaquio Méndez	4060	34 993
Gran Chaco Province	17 428	147 164
José María Avilés Province	2,637	20 234

Biggest cities

city	Population 2001 (census)	Inhabitants 2010 (update)
Tarija	135,478	214,304
Yacuiba	64,698	91,077
Bermejo	26,133	33,825
Villamontes	16,214	24,809

politics

Overall result of the regional elections on April 4, 2010 in the Tarija Department:

electoral legitimate		electoral participation	valid votes		CC	MAS-IPSP	PAN
264,747		225,050	199,649		97,726	88.014	13,909
		85.0%	88.7%		48.9%	44.1%	7.0%

Agriculture

Vines planted at an altitude of almost 2000 m in the Central Valley of Tarija produce a full-bodied wine that is also known beyond the Bolivian borders. Through the Rio Guadalquivir and the Río Pilcomayo , the region is one of the most important fish resources in the country. In addition, mainly small businesses produce all kinds of agricultural products, including potatoes, corn, peanuts, onions, carrots, tomatoes, quinces , figs , oranges, parsley and oregano as well as alfalfa for cattle. Large farms in the subtropical region near Bermejo produce sugar cane .

tourism

Since Tarija is difficult to access from several directions and is not on the main tourist axes of Bolivia, tourism is still relatively poorly developed despite the scenic beauty and the pleasant climate. Visitors from northern Argentina and the interior of the country come to spend a happy day in one of the numerous bodegas with live music. Some foreign visitors use the capital as a comfortable starting point for excursions to the Salar de Uyuni and other attractions in the wider area. However, the department's government, which was newly elected in 2015, has committed itself to making better use of the tourism potential and investing in a targeted manner.

In addition to the diverse nature of the country, which offers excellent photo opportunities for hikers, mountaineers and bird watchers and the simple but very tasty cuisine, Tarija attracts above all with its year-round calendar of events, which is well filled with thematic fairs ( ferias ), religious traditions and music events. The wine festival Vendimia Chapaca in the Valle de Concepción , the cheerful carnival of Tarija and the parades of the Comadres and Compadres as well as the Chunchos de San Roque should be mentioned here . The pilgrimage to Chaguaya is also very popular every year . The city of Tarija organizes an extensive international cultural program every April.

Tomatitas is a popular excursion destination, especially on weekends, in the immediate vicinity of the city of Tarija. In addition to the possibility of bathing in the rivers Río Nuevo Guadalquivir and Río Erquis , which flow together here , there are many restaurants with local specialties and sometimes live music. The easily accessible and beautifully situated reservoir Lago San Jacinto is also worth seeing .

Villamontes is the venue for the International Fish Festival. Fishing is a popular pastime here. The sport may only be done with fishing hooks.

Further north in the province of Mendez is the 40 m high waterfall Chorros de Jurina. The two rivers Chorro Blanco and Chorro Negro emerge from it and flow through a beautiful landscape. The national hero Don Eustaquio "Moto" Méndez was born in San Lorenzo . The Casa del Moto Méndez museum is named after him. Inside, items from the personal belongings of the freedom fighter and the weapons used at the time are kept. The church in San Francisco dates from 1709 and still has the original architecture. The small lagoon of Coimata with its clear spring water is ideal for sunbathing and swimming . They are formed by small waterfalls that are fed by largely untouched nature of the Cordillera de Sama .

Ancient rock paintings can be found in the Padcaya Caves , in the vicinity of which there are also the best chances of spotting condors . The tropical cane sugar city of Bermejo , located further south on the border with Argentina , is known for its hunting and fishing opportunities. This is also where the Internacional del Lapacho Festival takes place.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c d} Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE) ( Memento of the original from February 26, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
2. ↑ INE - Instituto Nacional de Estadística Bolivia 2012 ( Memento of the original from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
3. ↑ Acta de computo Nacional Electoral Departamentales, Municipales y Regional 2010

Web links

Commons : Departamento Tarija  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files

• Information about the department on the website of the Bolivian Embassy in Berlin
• Department Tarija - Social data ( Spanish ) (PDF; 3.05 MB)