Chile is bordered by Argentina to the East, Bolivia to the North East and Peru to the North. It’s only one 2 countries on the South American continent that are not bordered by Brazil. They played in the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa and were knocked out of the tournament. There’s much more to Chile than just football though.
Here are 17 Interesting facts about Chile you might not have known
1. Chile declared independence from Spain in 1818 but was only recognized as a country in 1844.
2. Spanish is the only Chilean official language.
3. An estimated 17 million people live in the country (according the 2017 Sensus).
4. Although Ferdinand Magellan passed the region in 1520 the conquest of the region only started in 1540 by the Spanish.
5. “José Antonio Kast is the current president of the country. He took office in March 2026, succeeding Gabriel Boric.
6. The country’s coastline stretches 2,700 miles long, running from the Atacama (the world’s most arid desert) in the North, through forests, valleys, mountains, lakes, glacier fields, the Tierra del Fuego and the Antarctic Circle in the South. The country is never more than 110 miles wide East to West.
7. There are more than 2,000 volcanoes in the country, of which 50 are actually active.
8. Alexander Selkirk, immortalized as Robinson Crusoe, survived a shipwreck and lived for several years on a desert island off the coast of the country, no doubt thriving on the nutritional benefits of fresh fruit.
9. Santiago is the country’s capital and also the largest city in the country with an estimated population of 6.2 million people. Santiago was founded in 1541 by the Spanish.
10. The highest point in the country is Ojos del Salado in the Atacama Region, 6,893 meters (22,614 feet).
11. Chile is the world’s largest copper producer, accounting for roughly a quarter of the world’s mined copper.
12. Easter Island (Rapa Nui), famous for its giant moai statues, belongs to Chile. It lies more than 3,500 km off the mainland coast and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
13. The strongest earthquake ever recorded struck Chile near Valdivia in 1960, with a magnitude of 9.5.
14. Two Chilean poets have won the Nobel Prize in Literature: Gabriela Mistral in 1945 and Pablo Neruda in 1971. Mistral was the first Latin American writer to win it.
15. In 2010, 33 miners trapped underground at the San José mine near Copiapó were all rescued after 69 days, in one of the most closely watched rescue operations in history.
16. The Atacama Desert’s dry, clear skies make northern Chile one of the best places on Earth for astronomy. It hosts major observatories, including the ALMA radio telescope array high on the Chajnantor Plateau.
17. Chile is one of the longest and narrowest countries in the world, stretching more than 4,000 km from north to south while averaging only about 175 km from east to west.
Well, there you have it, 17 facts you might not have known about Chile. If I left out something important, feel free to comment below.
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