Santiago, city (1990 est. pop. 4,395,000), central Chile, capital of Chile and of Metropolitana de Santiago region, on the Mapocho River. It is the political, commercial, and financial heart of the nation, although Valparaiso has been the seat of the Chilean congress since 1990. Much of Chile's industry is distributed among other cities, but Santiago is an active manufacturing center. Textiles, foodstuffs, clothing, footwear, and other goods are produced. There are also large iron and steel foundries in the city, which has a subway and an international airport.

The city was founded and named Santiago de Nueva Estremadura on Feb. 12, 1541, by Pedro de Valdivia. Laid out according to Valdivia's plan in a gridiron pattern between the hill of Santa Lucía and the Mapocho, a mountain torrent, Santiago has spread over a broad valley plain and is today one of the largest cities in South America. Low foothills encompass the valley, and the snowcapped Andes, forming a superb backdrop, rise in the eastern distance. For most of the year the capital (alt. c.1,700 ft/520 m) has a nearly perfect climate—warm days and cool nights.

While some structures from the colonial era remain, the atmosphere of Santiago is fairly modern (much construction took place in the late 19th cent.), with neoclassical government offices, modern office buildings, and sumptuous residences. Spacious parks, plazas, gardens, and wide avenues (the Avenida Bernardo O'Higgins extends 2 mi/3.2 km in a straight line through the city) are characteristic features. The city also has a zoo, camping grounds, and several sports stadiums. Focal point of the intellectual and cultural development of Chile from colonial times to the present, Santiago has many national establishments—the library, the museum, the theater, and (besides other institutions of higher learning) the National Univ., which is the successor to the Univ. of San Felipe, founded by a royal decree of 1758.

Santiago has experienced several catastrophes. In Sept., 1541, the indigenous Mapuche peoples nearly wiped out the new settlement; it was completely leveled by an earthquake in 1647; and the Mapocho has frequently flooded the city. In 1863 the Campañía Church, with doors that opened inward, caught fire from a falling lamp, and 2,000 worshipers perished.

Santiago, city (1990 pop. 60,959), W central Panama. Santiago is a communications and commercial center in the Pacific lowlands. It is a provincial and district capital.

Santiago, Río Grande de, river, Mexico: see Lerma.

Ramón y Cajal, Santiago, 1852-1934, Spanish histologist. He was a university professor at Valencia (1881-86), at Barcelona (1886-92), and at Madrid (1892-1922), where he founded the Cajal Institute. He described the terminal branchings of neurons, devised a method of staining nerve tissues, and made numerous discoveries in the structure of the nervous system. For this work he shared with Camillo Golgi the 1906 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. His works include Studies of the Degeneration and Regeneration of the Nervous System (tr. 1928) and the classic Histology (tr. 1933).

Calatrava, Santiago, 1951-, Spanish architect, b. Benimamet, near Valencia. He studied at the Institute of Architecture, Valencia (grad. 1974), and at the Federal Institute of Technology, Zürich (Ph.D., 1981). He opened his own architectural and engineering practice in Zürich in 1981 and later expanded to Valencia and Paris. Influenced by the work of Eero Saarinen, Calatrava has become known for the arching sculptural forms of his large public buildings. These structures—railway stations, bridges, airports, and museums—are built of concrete, metal, and glass and are rarely completely enclosed. The unusual spaces and swooping shapes of these works, which often seem poised for flight, reflect a refined aesthetic sensibility informed by engineering skill. Among his most notable commissions are the Stadelhofen Railway Station, Zürich (1984); Lyons Airport Terminal, France (1994); Campo Volantin Footbridge, Bilbao, Spain (1998); Science City, Valencia, Spain (2000); and the opera house, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canary Islands (2003). Motion is often important in his work, as in his first American building, the Milwaukee Art Museum's Quadracci Pavilion (2001), which includes louvered sunscreens that rise from the building like giant wings, opening and closing to control light. Calatrava is also known for his drawings and sculpture, which have been exhibited in numerous galleries since 1985.

Seaport city (pop., 1994 est.: 440,000), eastern Cuba. The second largest city in Cuba, it was founded in 1514 and moved to its present site in 1522. It commanded a strategic location on the northern Caribbean Sea in the early colonial period and was the capital of Cuba until 1589. It was a focal point of the Spanish-American War, and in 1898 the entire Spanish fleet was destroyed near its coast. In 1953 it was the scene of Fidel Castro's attack against the Moncada army barracks. It is the centre of an agricultural and mining region and exports copper, iron, manganese, sugar, and fruit.

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City (pop., 2001: 90,188), capital of Galicia autonomous community (comunidad autonóma), northwestern Spain. Santiago de Compostela contains a Romanesque cathedral completed in 1211 that was built on what was said to be the tomb of Jesus' apostle St. James. This tomb, discovered in the 9th century, became the most important Christian pilgrimage site in Europe after Rome. The town that grew up around the tomb was destroyed in 997 by the Moors and was rebuilt in the Middle Ages. Chief economic activities include agriculture, silverwork, wood engraving, and the manufacture of linen and paper. The city is home to several colleges and a university.

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City (pop., 2004 est.: 505,600), north-central Dominican Republic. It was founded circa 1500; it was destroyed by an earthquake in 1562 and rebuilt a few miles away. Ruins of the old city are still visible in the district of San Francisco de Jacagua. It is the country's second largest city; its economy depends mainly on the production of pharmaceuticals, cigarettes, rum, and coffee.

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City (pop., 2002 prelim.: 4,630,000), capital of Chile. It is located in central Chile, on the Mapocho River at an elevation of about 1,700 ft (520 m). Founded in 1541 by the Spanish, the city has suffered repeatedly from earthquakes, floods, and civil disorder. It was only slightly damaged during the War of Independence (1810–18) and became the capital of an independent Chile at the war's end. It is the country's economic and cultural centre and principal industrial city, producing textiles, footwear, and foodstuffs. The city boasts a cosmopolitan cultural life and is the home of the University of Chile.

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Santiago is the name of:

In Argentina:

• Santiago del Estero Province
• Santiago del Estero, capital of the province

In Brazil:

• Santiago, Rio Grande do Sul

In Cape Verde:

• Santiago, Cape Verde

In Chile:

• Santiago, Chile, the capital
• Santiago Province, Chile
• Santiago Metropolitan Region

In Colombia:

• Santiago de Cali
• Santiago, Norte de Santander
• Santiago, Putumayo

In Costa Rica:

• Santiago de Palmares
• Santiago de Paraíso
• Santiago de Puriscal
• Santiago de San Rafael
• Santiago de San Ramón

In Cuba:

• Santiago de Cuba Province
• Santiago de Cuba, capital of the province

In Dominican Republic:

• Santiago Province (Dominican Republic)
• Santiago de los Caballeros, capital of the province

In Ecuador:

• Guayaquil, officially called Santiago de Guayaquil
• Santiago Island (Galápagos)

In Guatemala:

• Santiago Sacatepéquez

In Jamaica:

• Jamaica, formerly known as Santiago
• Spanish Town, Jamaica, formerly known as Santiago de la Vega

In Mexico:

• Querétaro, Querétaro, formerly called Santiago de Querétaro
• Santiago, Nuevo León
• Santiago, Baja California Sur
• Santiago Maravatío (Guanajuato)
• Santiago Tianguistenco, a city in the State of México
• Santiago Jamiltepec (Oaxaca)

In Nicaragua:

• León, Nicaragua, originally called Santiago de los Caballeros de León

In Panama:

• Santiago de Veraguas, Veraguas

In Paraguay:

• Santiago, Paraguay, town and district in Misiones Department

In Peru:

• Santiago de Surco, a district of Lima
• Santiago de Chuco, a province of the La Libertad region
• Santiago River (Peru)

In the Philippines:

• Santiago, Agusan del Norte
• Santiago, General Trias, Cavite
• Santiago, Ilocos Sur
• Santiago City, Isabela province
• Santiago Island (Philippines), Pangasinan province

In Portugal:

• Santiago (Alcácer do Sal), a parish in the municipality of Alcácer do Sal
• Santiago (Arganil), a parish in the municipality of Arganil
• Santiago (Armamar), a parish in the municipality of Armamar
• Santiago (Lisbon), a parish in the municipality of Lisbon
• Santiago (Seia), a parish in the municipality of Seia
• Santiago (Sesimbra), a parish in the municipality of Sesimbra
• Santiago (Tavira), a parish in the municipality of Tavira
• Santiago (Torres Novas), a parish in the municipality of Torres Novas
• Santiago da Guarda, a parish in the municipality of Ansião
• Santiago da Ribeira de Alhariz, a parish in the municipality of Valpaços
• Santiago de Besteiros, a parish in the municipality of Tondela
• Santiago de Bougado, a parish in the municipality of Trofa
• Santiago de Candoso, a parish in the municipality of Guimarães
• Santiago do Cacém, a parish and a municipality in the Setúbal
• Santiago de Carreiras, a parish in the municipality of Vila Verde
• Santiago de Cassurrães, a parish in the municipality of Mangualde
• Santiago de Figueiró, a parish in the municipality of Amarante
• Santiago de Litém, a parish in the municipality of Pombal
• Santiago de Montalegre, a parish in the municipality of Sardoal
• Santiago de Piães, a parish in the municipality of Cinfães
• Santiago de Riba-Ul, a parish in the municipality of Oliveira de Azeméis
• Santiago de Subarrifana, a parish in the municipality of Penafiel
• Santiago de Vila Chã, a parish in the municipality of Ponte da Barca
• Santiago do Escoural, a parish in the municipality of Montemor-o-Novo
• Santiago dos Velhos, a parish in the municipality of Arruda dos Vinhos
• São Pedro e Santiago, a parish in the municipality of Torres Vedras
• Santiago Maior (Alandroal), a parish in the municipality of Alandroal
• Santiago Maior (Beja), a parish in the municipality of Beja
• Santiago Maior (Castelo de Vide), a parish in the municipality of Castelo de Vide
• Vale de Santiago, a parish in the municipality of Odemira

In Spain:

• Santiago de Compostela, Galicia
• Santiago (Valdés), a parish in the municipality of Valdés
• Santiago (Sariego), a parish in the municipality of Sariego
• Santiago de la Ribera, a cluster of San Javier in Murcia
• Santiago (comarca), a comarca in the province of A Coruña
• Santiago del Teide, Canary Islands

In the United States:

• Santiago High School, Garden Grove, California
• Santiago, Pennsylvania, in Allegheny County
• Santiago Peak, a mountain in Orange County, California

In Uruguay:

• Montevideo, originally called San Felipe y Santiago de Montevideo

In Venezuela:

• Caracas, originally called Santiago de León de Caracas

In geography:

• Santiago River, a tributary of the Amazon River

Santiago is the name of:

• Benito Santiago, a professional baseball catcher
• Hugo Santiago, film director
• Joey Santiago, guitarist of the Pixies and The Martinis
• Liliana Santiago, American Economist
• Santiago Caballero, DJ and Producer
• Santiago Cabrera, an actor
• James, son of Zebedee, also called Saint James the Greater

Fictional people:

• Dominic Santiago, a fictional character from Gears of War
• Santiago Arnavisca, a fictional character from Rainbow Six: Covert Operations Essentials
• Santiago, the name of a character in Chronicle of a Death Foretold by Gabriel García Márquez
• Santiago, the titular character of Ernest Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea
• Luis Santiago, a fictional character in the television series Babylon 5
• Santiago (The Vampire Chronicles), character in Anne Rice's novel Interview with the Vampire
• Santiago, the main character of Paulo Coelho's book The Alchemist

In history:

• Battle of Santiago de Cuba

In music:

• Santiago (band), an indie/punk band from Santa Rosa, California, USA
• Santiago, a 1996 album by The Chieftains
• "Santiago", the title of one of Loreena McKennitt's songs from her album The Mask and Mirror

Santiago may also refer to:

• Order of Santiago, a Spanish Knightly order
• Santiago (name), about the common Spanish given name
• Santiago: a Myth of the Far Future, by Mike Resnick
• "Santiago", a shortened form of the Reconquista battle cry "Santiago y cierra España"

See also

• Santiago Maior
• San Diego (disambiguation)