Melipilla, Santiago Metropolitan Region, Chile

🇨🇱 Melipilla ("four Pillans") is a Chilean commune and capital city of the province of the same name. It is part of the Santiago Metropolitan Region and is a significant satellite city of the Chilean capital.

The Melipilla commune borders 10 other communes, María Pinto, and a portion of Curacaví to the north; San Pedro and Alhué to the south; Isla de Maipo, El Monte, Peñaflor, Padre Hurtado in the Talagante Province, and Paine in the Maipo Province to the east; and San Antonio in the Valparaíso Region. It has an area of 1,344.8 km² (519 sq mi).

History The area has been inhabited since the last glaciation (approx. 11,000 BC). From there, groups of hunters and gatherers belonging to the Archaic Period made their way into the valleys. Subsequently, in relation to the early pottery period, other traces can be found that are continued by the Bato and Llolleo cultures.

In the 15th century, it came into contact with the Inca culture and established a mitimae in Talagante governed by Prince Tala Canta Ilabe. Shortly after the Incas arrived, they were followed by the Spanish, whom the locals called wingka in Mapudungun. The Mapuches who lived in this area were called picones or promaucaes. The most prominent ethnic centre of the picones seems to have been located in the town of Pico, located near Melipilla. Precisely, seventy indigenous picones were entrusted to Bishop Rodrigo González Marmolejo by Valdivia. Later, the encomienda was enjoyed by Antonio González Montero, the bishop's nephew. In the 18th century, the town of Pico was located near Pomaire, on the hacienda of the same name, about 8 km north-west of Melipilla. Probably, Pico was a head of relief, since a cacique with that name appeared among the "exalted heads" of the Kingdom, in Valdivia's time.

Founding Melipilla was officially founded on 11 October 1742 by José Manso de Velasco. The governor, at the request of the residents of the district, ordered the establishment of a town where families who lived scattered in the district could gather. Manso de Velasco stopped in the Melipilla valley after visiting Valparaíso's fortifications and, after recognizing the location, decreed the establishment of a town on a spacious and pleasant plain located about half a league from the north bank of the Maipo River. The town was named Logroño de San José and the district governor was charged with implementing the establishment according to the instructions that were followed in such cases.

Demographics Melipilla spans an area of 1,355.8 km² (523 sq mi). Of the population (64.4%) lived in urban areas and (35.6%) in rural areas.

Administration As a commune, Melipilla is a third-level administrative division of Chile administered by a municipal council, headed by an alcalde who is directly elected every four years.

Economy In 2018, there were 2,804 registered businesses in Melipilla. The Economic Complexity Index (ECI) in the same year was 1.23, and the economic activities with the highest Revealed Comparative Advantage (RCA) index were Cheese Processing (162.89), Wholesale Sale of Live Animals (98.76), and Chicken Farming for Meat Production (88.96).

Transport Melitrén, a commuter rail line linking Melipilla with Santiago is currently being planned.