Parrita

Parrita is a canton and its only district in the Puntarenas province of Costa Rica.^[2][3]

Parrita
Canton and District
African palm plantations in Parrita
Flag Seal
Parrita canton
Parrita Parrita canton location in Costa Rica
Coordinates: 9.5471005°N 84.3464358°W / 9.5471005; -84.3464358
Country	Costa Rica
Province	Puntarenas
Creation	5 July 1971[1]
Head city	Parrita
Districts	Districts Parrita
Government
• Type	Municipality
• Body	Municipalidad de Parrita
Area
• Total	478.79 km2 (184.86 sq mi)
Elevation	4 m (13 ft)
Population  (2011)
• Total	16,115
• Density	34/km2 (87/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC−06:00
Canton code	609
Website	muniparrita.go.cr

Toponymy

The origin of the name, it is said, has to do with a woman named Rita who lived in one of the original settlements. Rita had a business and received packages. "Es pa' Rita" (It's for Rita) was often heard so the canton was called Parrita.^{[citation needed]}

History

Parrita was created on 5 July 1971 by decree 4787.^[1]

Almost all of Costa Rican territory was inhabited before the arrival of the Spanish. The Huetars lived in this area. In 1924, a young German installed the first banana plantation near the Pirrís River (also called the Parrita River) which encouraged migration of people from San José and Guanacaste.

Geography

Parrita has an area of 478.79 km^2[4] and a mean elevation of 4 metres.^[2]

The canton lies along the central Pacific coast between the mouths of the Tusubres River and Damas River. Inland the canton is delineated by a series of rivers that meander through the valleys of the coastal mountain range.

Districts

The canton of Parrita is subdivided into only one district, occupying the same area as the whole canton:

1. Parrita, with postal code 60901

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	±% p.a.
1973	11,901	—
1984	9,774	−1.77%
2000	12,112	+1.35%
2011	16,115	+2.63%
2022	20,068	+2.01%
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos[5] Centro Centroamericano de Población[6]

According to the 2011 census, Parrita had a population of 16,115 inhabitants.^[7]

Transportation

Road transportation

The canton is covered by the following road routes:

• National Route 34
• National Route 239
• National Route 301
• National Route 318
• National Route 607
• National Route 609

References

• Costa Rica portal

1. Hernández, Hermógenes (1985). Costa Rica: evolución territorial y principales censos de población 1502 - 1984 (in Spanish) (1 ed.). San José: Editorial Universidad Estatal a Distancia. pp. 164–173. ISBN 9977-64-243-5. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
2. "Declara oficial para efectos administrativos, la aprobación de la División Territorial Administrativa de la República N°41548-MGP". Sistema Costarricense de Información Jurídica (in Spanish). 19 March 2019. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
3. División Territorial Administrativa de la República de Costa Rica (PDF) (in Spanish). Editorial Digital de la Imprenta Nacional. 8 March 2017. ISBN 978-9977-58-477-5.
4. "Área en kilómetros cuadrados, según provincia, cantón y distrito administrativo". Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 September 2020.
5. "Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos" (in Spanish).
6. Centro Centroamericano de Población de la Universidad de Costa Rica. "Sistema de Consulta a Bases de Datos Estadísticas" (in Spanish).
7. "Censo. 2011. Población total por zona y sexo, según provincia, cantón y distrito". Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 September 2020.