Los_Lagos_Region
Los Lagos Region
Region of Chile
Los Lagos Region (Spanish: Región de Los Lagos pronounced [los ˈlaɣos], lit. 'Region of the Lakes') is one of Chile's 16 regions, which are first order administrative divisions, and comprises four provinces: Chiloé, Llanquihue, Osorno and Palena. The region contains the country's second largest island, Chiloé, and the second largest lake, Llanquihue. Its capital is Puerto Montt; other important cities include Osorno, Castro, Ancud, and Puerto Varas. The mainland portion of Los Lagos Region south of Reloncaví Sound (Palena Province) is considered part of Patagonia.
Historically, the Huilliche have called this territory between Bueno River and Reloncaví Sound Futahuillimapu, meaning "great land of the south". The region hosts Monte Verde, one of the oldest archaeological sites of the Americas. The largest indigenous group of the region are the Huilliche who lived in the area before the arrival of the Spanish. The Spanish crown settled Chiloé Archipelago in 1567[4] while the rest of the region begun to be slowly colonized by non-indigenous people only in the late 18th century. In the 1850s Germans arrived to colonize the shores of Llanquihue Lake under a Chilean state-sponsored program.
Los Lagos Region economy is dominated by the service sector but based in fishing, salmon aquaculture, forestry and cattle farming. Tourism is economically important in The Andes where ski resorts, hot springs and recreational fishing are popular offers.
