Pepe's Chile

A Gringo's Culture Guide to Chile

  • Home
  • Culture
  • Travel
  • Pesos
  • Facts
  • About
  • Book
  • Español
Home » Legend of Chile’s Origin

Legend of Chile’s Origin

One of Chile’s legends is how the country was created by the hand of God:

In the beginning of time, God created the wonders of the world. When he was finished, he saw that he had many leftover pieces. He had parts of rivers and valleys, of oceans and lakes, of glaciers and deserts, of mountains and forests, and of meadows and hills. Rather than let such beauty go to waste, God put them all together and cast them to the most remote corner of the Earth. This is how Chile was born.

The diversity of Chile’s geography and climates attest to the validity of this legend. Where else can you find both the driest desert on earth and huge ice glaciers? Chile is a land of contrasts and beauties found nowhere else on Earth.

In reference to the legend’s “remote corner of the earth” statement, many Chileans today refer to Chile as the “end of the world.”

In fact, a large part of Chile is found farther south than Australia or even South Africa which share the southern reaches of the globe’s Southern Hemisphere.

If you’re curious, Chile’s name also has an interesting origin.

Comments

  1. eileen says

    June 3, 2009 at 10:40 pm

    I always translate that expression as “the tushie of the world,” but yours is imminently more publishable!

Traveling to Chile?

Learn the secrets of Chilean culture that every gringo should know:

Click to see the book

Get your culture book today

Traveling to Chile?

culture book

Find out what you should know before landing in Chile.

The Gringo’s Culture Guide to Chile is designed to help you understand Chileans, their culture, food, language, and daily life so you can enjoy your time in this beautiful country and not be blindsided by culture shock.

Read The Gringo’s Culture Guide to Chile

Copyright © 1995-2022 Joe Rawlinson. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy