La Serena

La Serena

La Serena, city, northern Chile. It lies on a marine terrace overlooking Bahía (bay) de Coquimbo, just south of the Río Elqui and east of Coquimbo city.

Founded around 1543 on the river’s northern bank, it was named after the birthplace of the conquistador Pedro de Valdivia. Razed by Diaguita Indians in 1549 and rebuilt on the present site the following year, La Serena received city status in 1552. It survived pirate raids and earthquake damage. The seat of an archbishopric, the city has a cathedral, many churches, and several convents. This agricultural and dairy centre is also a popular tourist resort connected to Santiago by rail, bus, and air. The nearby town of Vicuña, 30 miles (50 km) east, is the birthplace of the Chilean poet Gabriela Mistral, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1945. Pop. (2002) city, 147,815; (2017) municipality, 221,054.