Cartago Province

Cartago is a province of Costa Rica. It is in the central part of the country. The provincial capital is the city of Cartago.

Province of Cartago Provincia de Cartago
Province
Flag Coat of arms
Location of the Province of Cartago
Coordinates: 9°48′N 83°39′W
Country	Costa Rica
Capital city	Cartago
Area [1]
• Total	3,124.67 km2 (1,206.44 sq mi)
Population  (2011)[2]
• Total	490,903
• Density	160/km2 (410/sq mi)
Demonym	Cartaginés
ISO 3166 code	CR-C

Location

The Cartago province is a landlocked province (it does not border the ocean) and is bordered on the east and north by the Limón province and on the south and west by the San José province.^[1]

Geography

Cartago is the second smallest province of Costa Rica, only the Heredia province is smaller. It has an area of 3,124.67 km² (1,206.44 sq mi).^[1]

There are two mountain ranges in the province: the Cordillera Central ("Central mountain range"), also known as Volcanic Central mountain range, and the Talamanca mountain range.

There are several volcanoes in the province; among them are the Irazú, 3,432 m (11,260 ft) high, and the Turrialba, 3,340 m (10,960 ft) high.^[1]

Some rivers in the province are Reventado, Reventazón, Palomo, Grande de Orosi, Macho, Tiribí, Chirripó, Tuis and Pejibaye.^[3]

Demographics

A person from the province is known as cartaginés (woman: cartaginesa).^[3]

The Cartago province had a population, in 2011, of 490,903 for a population density of 157.1 inhabitants/km². The canton of Cartago, with 147,898 inhabitants, is the canton with more inhabitants.^[2]

Evolution of the population in Cartago^[2]

Administrative divisions

The Cartago province is divided in 8 cantons, which are divided into 47 Districts.^[4]

Cantons of Cartago

No.	Canton	Capital	Districts	Population (2011)	Area (km²)	Density (Inh./km²)
1	Cartago	Cartago	11	151,774	287.77	527.4
2	Paraíso	Paraíso	5	58,030	411.91	43.5
3	La Unión	Tres Ríos	8	101,195	44.83	2,257.3
4	Jiménez	Juan Viñas	3	15,716	286.43	54.9
5	Turrialba	Turrialba	12	72,631	1,642.67	44.2
6	Alvarado	Pacayas	3	14,302	81.06	176.4
7	Oreamuno	San Rafael	5	46,136	202.31	228.0
8	El Guarco	Tejar	4	42,474	167.69	253.3

Economy

An important economic activity in the province is farming. Important crops in the province are potato, coffee, sugarcane, Macadamia nut, pejibaye and ornamental plants.^[3]

Cartago has attracted many export-orientated manufacturing companies, especially within the industrial zone, the largest in the country.

There are eight dams in the province to produce hydroelectricity.

Gallery

• 
  Turrialba volcano
• 
  Virgen de los Ángeles basilica, Cartago
• 
  Tapantí National Park
• 
  Angostura dam, Turrialba