Potosí Department

Department of Potosí
Flag Coat of arms
Location within Bolivia
Coordinates: 20°40′0″S 66°40′0″W / 20.66667°S 66.66667°W / -20.66667; -66.66667
Country	Bolivia
Capital	Potosí
Government
• Governor	Omar Veliz Ramos
Area
• Total	118,218 km2 (45,644 sq mi)
Population  (2012)
• Total	823,517
• Density	7.0/km2 (18/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC-4 (BOT)
HDI (2017)	0.559[1] medium · 9th

Potosí (Spanish pronunciation: [potoˈsi]; Aymara: Putusi; Quechua: P'utuqsi) is a department in southwestern Bolivia. It comprises 118,218 km² with 823,517 inhabitants (2012 census). The capital is the city of Potosí. It is mostly a barren, mountainous region with one large plateau to the west, where the largest salt flat in the world, Salar de Uyuni, is located.

Cerro Potosí was the richest province in the Spanish empire, providing a great percentage of the silver that was shipped to Europe.

Potosi is also the location of the San Cristóbal silver, zinc and lead mines, developed by the US-company Apex Silver Mines Limited of Colorado and in November 2008 sold to the Japanese Sumitomo Corporation.

Government[]

The chief executive office of Bolivia departments (since May 2010) is the governor; until then, the office was called the prefect, and until 2006 the prefect was appointed by the President of Bolivia. The current governor, Esteban Urquizu Cuéllar of the Movement for Socialism – Political Instrument for the Sovereignty of the Peoples was elected on 4 April 2010.

Legislative Assembly[]

Under the 2009 Constitution, each Bolivian department has an elected Departmental Legislative Assembly. The first elections were held 4 April 2010.

Provinces of Potosi Department[]

The department is divided into 16 provinces which are further subdivided into 40 municipalities^[3] (municipios) and 219 cantons (cantones).

Province	Capital	Area km2	Population (2012 census)	Map Number
Alonso de Ibáñez	Sacaca	2.170	29.821	1
Antonio Quijarro	Uyuni	14,890	54,947	12
Bernardino Bilbao	Arampampa	640	10,224	2
Charcas	San Pedro de Buena Vista	2,964	41,214	3
Chayanta	Colquechaca	7,026	97,251	5
Cornelio Saavedra	Betanzos	2,375	55,100	7
Daniel Campos	Llica	12,106	5,850	13
Enrique Baldivieso	San Agustín	2,254	1,684	15
José María Linares	Puna	5,136	49,619	8
Modesto Omiste	Villazón	2,260	44,645	11
Nor Chichas	Cotagaita	8,979	42,248	9
Nor Lípez	Colcha K	20,892	14,057	14
Rafael Bustillo	Uncía	2,235	86,947	4
Sud Chichas	Tupiza	8,516	55,879	10
Sud Lípez	San Pablo de Lípez	22,355	6,835	16
Tomás Frías	Potosí	3,420	229,047	6

Languages[]

The languages spoken in the department are mainly Quechua, Spanish and Aymara. The following table shows the number of those belonging to the recognized group of speakers.^[4]

Places of interest[]

• Eduardo Avaroa Andean Fauna National Reserve
• Torotoro National Park
• Laguna Colorada
• Laguna Verde
• Laguna Blanca
• Salar de Uyuni
• Potosí
• Uyuni

Notable people[]

• Juana Azurduy de Padilla, guerrilla military leader.
• Manuel Ascencio Padilla, namesake of the town of Padilla, Bolivia.
• Modesto Omiste Tinajeros, writer, politician, and namesake of the province Modesto Omiste.

See also[]

• Provinces of Bolivia

References[]

External links[]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Potosí Department.

• Potosi Travel Guide
• Weather in Potosi
• Bolivian Music and Web Varieties
• Full information of Potosi Department

Coordinates: 20°40′S 66°40′W / 20.667°S 66.667°W / -20.667; -66.667

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