Río Negro Department

The Río Negro department (Spanish: Departamento de Río Negro) is a department of Uruguay. The capital is the city of Fray Bentos.

Río Negro
Department
San Javier, Plaza de la Libertad - Homage to Russians inmigrants.
Flag Coat of arms
Location of Río Negro, in red, in Uruguay
Coordinates: 33°7′29″S 58°18′1″W
Country	Uruguay
Creation	20 March 1880
Capital	Fray Bentos
Government
• Intendant	Oscar Terzaghi
Area
• Total	9,282 km2 (3,584 sq mi)
Population  (2011)
• Total	54,765
• Density	5.9/km2 (15/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC-03 (UYT)
ISO 3166 code	UY-RN
Website	Official website

Its ISO 3166-2 code is UY-RN.

History

The Río Negro department was created on 20 March 1880. Before that time, its territory was part of the Paysandú department.

Geography

Map of Río Negro

The Río Negro department is in the western part of Uruguay, along the Uruguay river. It has an area of 9,282 km² (3,584 sq mi). The population is 54,765 inhabitants (2011 census), one of the departments with fewest inhabitants, for a population density of 5.9 inhabitants/km2.

There are two chains of low hills in the department. These chains of low and rounded hills are named cuchillas in the country. The two cuchillas in the department are cuchilla de Navarro to the south and forming the border with the Durazno department, and cuchilla de Haedo that goes from the northeast to the southwest.

There are two protected areas in the department: National Park Esteros de Farrapos e islas del río Uruguay (Spanish: Parque Nacional Esteros de Farrapos e islas del río Uruguay) and the Esteros y algarrobales del río Uruguay.

Limits

• To the north: Paysandú department.
• To the east: Tacuarembó department.
• To the southeast: Durazno department, separated by the Río Negro river.
• To the south: Soriano department, separated by the Río Negro river.
• To the west: Argentina, separated by the Uruguay river.

Rivers

The main rivers in the department are:

• Uruguay, to the west and that forms the border with Argentina; and
• Río Negro that flows along the southern border of the department, forming the natural border with the departments of Durazno to the southeast and Soriano to the south.

Demographics

The inhabitants of the Río Negro department (and of the city of Paysandú) are known, in Spanish, as Rionegrenses.

Evolution of the population in Río Negro

Rural population

According to the 2011 census, the Río Negro department has a rural population of 5,212, that represents 9.5% of the total population of the department.

Main towns

City / Town	Population (2011)
Fray Bentos	24,406
Young	16,756
Nuevo Berlín	2,450
San Javier	1,781

Gallery

• 
  Church of Fray Bentos.
• 
  Artigas square, Fray Bentos.
• 
  Memorial with stone from the Berlin Wall, Nuevo Berlín
• 
  Esteros de Farrapos.

Related pages

• Departments of Uruguay
• ISO 3166-2:UY

Other websites

• Intendencia de Río Negro website (in Spanish)
• Statoids - Departments of Uruguay
• Enciclopedia Geográfica del Uruguay: Río Negro (in Spanish)