In 2007, the region was subdivided to create the Arica y Parinacota region and the present day Tarapacá Region to the south. The region is further subdivided into two provinces: Arica and Parinacota.
Demography
According to data from the 2017 Census of the National Statistics Institute, the region is populated by 224,548 inhabitants. Its density reaches 13.3 inhabitants per km ². This region holds the largest population of Aymara and a significant number of immigrants from neighboring Peru and Bolivia. Included are those of Asian descent, such as Chinese and Japanese; and Arabs from Lebanon, Palestine and Syria. Most of the country's Afro-Chileans live in the Arica province, descended from slaves in the 17th and 18th centuries. There are a large number of Roma people or Gypsies in the Arica province as well, originated from Eastern Europe in the late 19th century. At the level of cities, the most populated are: Arica, with 175,441 inhabitants and Putre, with 1235 inhabitants.
Geography
The region lies within the Norte Grandenatural region. It combines deserts, green valleys, the steep and volcanic Andes mountains, and the Altiplano to the east. A narrow coastal strip of low-lying land no more than wide separates the Pacific's Nazca plate from the Andes. Its Parinacota volcano is the region's highest elevation at and lies on the northern border with Bolivia in Lauca National Park.
Hydrology
The region's two main rivers are the Lauca, which drains into Bolivia's Coipasa salt flat, and the Lluta, which flows into the Pacific Ocean. Lake Chungará at above sea level ranks as one of the highest in the world.
Climate
A desert climate dominates the region. Near the coast, cloudiness can limit the temperature swing throughout the day, but in other drier areas, temperatures can vary greatly as is typical in deserts. A marginal desert region can be found over above sea level, which sees milder temperatures and summer rains.
Border dispute with Peru
On January 26, 2007, Peru’s government issued a protest against Chile’s demarcation of the coastal frontier the two countries share. According to the Peruvian Foreign Ministry, the Chilean legislatures had endorsed a plan regarding the Arica y Parinacota region which did not comply with the current established territorial demarcation. Moreover, it is alleged that the proposed Chilean law included an assertion of sovereignty over of land in Peru's Department of Tacna. According to the Peruvian Foreign Ministry, Chile has defined a new region "without respecting the Concordia demarcation." For its part, the Chilean government has asserted that the region in dispute is not a coastal site named Concordia, but instead refers to boundary stone No. 1, which is located to the northeast and 200 meters inland. A possible border dispute was averted when the Chilean Constitutional Court formally ruled on January 26, 2007, against the legislation. While agreeing with the court's ruling, the Chilean government reiterated its stance that the maritime borders between the two nations were not in question and have been formally recognized by the international community.. The Peruvian government has stated that it might turn to the international court at The Hague to solve the dispute. On January 27, 2014, in the final ruling of the International Court of Justice located in The Hague, Peru gained some maritime territory. The maritime boundary extends only to 80 nautical miles off of the coast. From that point, the new border runs in a southwest direction to a point that is 200 miles equidistant from the coast of the two countries. Under the ruling, Chile lost control over part of its formerly claimed maritime territory and gives additional maritime territory to Peru. From the 27 January 2014 court press release:
