Puriscal (canton)

Puriscal is the 4th canton in the province of San José, Costa Rica.

The head city of the canton is Santiago.

Toponymy
In Spanish, a purisco is the flower of the common bean. A puriscal is a field of flowering beans.

Geography
Puriscal has an area of 553.66 km² and a mean elevation of 945 metres.

Chucás River delineates the canton's northernmost boundary, while the Chires River marks its far southern border, with the canton of Parrita in Puntarenas Province. Puriscal includes a significant portion of the Coastal Mountain Range. However, the canton is landlocked.

Demographics
For the 2011 census, Puriscal had a population of 33,004 inhabitants.

Only 18% of the canton's population live in urban areas. Among its inhabitants, 20.2% are under ten, and 7.4% are over 65.

Districts
The canton of Puriscal is subdivided into the following districts:
 * 1) Santiago
 * 2) Mercedes Sur
 * 3) Barbacoas
 * 4) Grifo Alto
 * 5) San Rafael
 * 6) Candelarita
 * 7) Desamparaditos
 * 8) San Antonio
 * 9) Chires

History
Purical canton was established by decree on 7 August 1868.

Road transportation
The following road routes cover the canton: • CR RNS 136.svg National Route 136

• CR RNS 137.svg National Route 137

• CR RNS 239.svg National Route 239

• CR RNT 314.svg National Route 314

• CR RNT 316.svg National Route 316

• CR RNT 317.svg National Route 317

• CR RNT 318.svg National Route 318

• CR RNT 319.svg National Route 319

• CR RNT 324.svg National Route 324