Limarí Province is one of three provinces

Provinces of Chile

A province is the second largest administrative division in Chile, after a region. Each region is divided into provinces. There are 54 provinces in total....

 of the Chile

Chile

Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...

an region of Coquimbo Region

Coquimbo Region

The IV Coquimbo Region is one of Chile's 15 first order administrative divisions. It is some 400 km north of the capital, Santiago.The capital and largest city is La Serena, other important cities include the seaport Coquimbo and the agricultural centre...

 (IV). Its capital is the city of Ovalle

Geography and demography

According to the 2002 census by the National Statistics Institute

National Statistics Institute (Chile)

The National Statistics Institute of Chile is a state-run organization of the Government of Chile, created in the second half of the 19th century and tasked with performing a general census of population and housing, then collecting, producing and publishing official demographic statistics of...

 (INE), the province spans an area of 13553.2 sqkm and had a population of 156,158 inhabitants (77,087 men and 79,071 women), giving it a population density of 11.5 PD/sqkm. Between the 1992 and 2002 censuses, the population grew by 10.3% (14,607 persons).

Comunas

The province is composed by 5 comunas:

• Ovalle
• Río Hurtado
  Río Hurtado
  Río Hurtado is one of five communes in the Limarí Province of Chile's north-central IV Coquimbo Region.-Administration:As a commune, Río Hurtado is a third-level administrative division of Chile administered by a municipal council, headed by an alcalde who is directly elected every four years...
  
  
• Monte Patria
  Monte Patria
  Monte Patria is a city and one of four communes in the Limarí Province of Chile's north-central IV Coquimbo Region.-Administration:As a commune, Monte Patria is a third-level administrative division of Chile administered by a Communal Council , headed by a directly elected alcalde...
  
  
• Combarbalá
  Combarbala
  Combarbalá is a Chilean city and commune, located in the Limarí Province, Coquimbo Region. The overall population of the commune is about 14.000 inhabitants, while the population of the city is about 6000 inhabitants...
  
  
• Punitaqui
  Punitaqui
  Punitaqui is a town and commune of Chile in the Limarí Province.-History:Punitaqui was once part of the Ovalle Department before the administrative restructuring of 1976.-1997 earthquake:...