San Carlos (canton)

San Carlos is the 10th canton in the province of Alajuela in Costa Rica.[1] The canton covers an area of 3,347.98 square kilometres (1,292.66 sq mi),[2] making it the largest canton in the country. It has a population of 178,460 (estimate as of 2013).[3] ranking it fifth.

San Carlos
Cantón
Flag
Seal
Location of San Carlos Canton in Alajuela Province
CountryCosta Rica
ProvinceAlajuela
Founded26 September 1911
Area
 • Total3,347.98 km2 (1,292.66 sq mi)
Population
 (June 2013)
 • Total178,460
 • Density53/km2 (140/sq mi)

The capital city of the canton is Quesada, which is also known as San Carlos.

Geography

The canton encompasses a major portion of the San Carlos Plain, a wide expanse on the Caribbean side of the Cordillera Central (Central Mountain Range). San Carlos reaches north to the border of Nicaragua, east to the province of Heredia, west to the province of Guanacaste, and south into the heights of the Cordillera.

San Carlos is noted as the home of Arenal Volcano, one of the most active volcanoes in the world. The canton's principal economic activities include the production of oranges, yuca, pineapple, sugar cane, beef and dairy products. More than 50% of the total production of milk in Costa Rica comes from San Carlos.

There is a branch of the Costa Rica Institute of Technology in Santa Clara, San Carlos.

Districts

The canton of San Carlos is subdivided into 13 districts (distritos):[1]

  1. Quesada
  2. Florencia
  3. Buenavista
  4. Aguas Zarcas
  5. Venecia
  6. Pital
  7. La Fortuna
  8. La Tigra
  9. La Palmera
  10. Venado
  11. Cutris
  12. Monterrey
  13. Pocosol

History

The canton was established by a decree of September 26, 1911.

See also

References
  1. "División Territorial Administrativa de Costa Rica" (PDF) (in Spanish). Instituto de Fomento y Asesoria Municipal (IFAM). 5 May 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 August 2015.
  2. Instituto Geográfico Nacional (IGN), 2001.
  3. Estadísticas Vitales 2013 Archived 2015-04-02 at the Wayback Machine - INEC


Instituto Geográfico Nacional de Costa Rica

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.