| Saavedra | |
| Native Name Lang: | es |
| Settlement Type: | Town and Commune |
| Flag Alt: | Flag |
| Shield Alt: | Coat of arms |
| Map Alt: | Map of Saavedra commune in Araucanía Region |
| Pushpin Map: | Chile |
| Pushpin Map Narrow: | yes |
| Pushpin Label Position: | bottom |
| Pushpin Map Alt: | Location in Chile |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location in Chile |
| Coordinates: | -38.7831°N -73.4°W |
| Coor Pinpoint: | town |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | Chile |
| Subdivision Type1: | Region |
| Subdivision Name1: | Araucanía |
| Subdivision Type2: | Province |
| Subdivision Name2: | Cautín |
| Established Title: | Founded |
| Established Date: | 5 December 1895 |
| Established Title1: | Founded as |
| Established Date1: | Bajo Imperial |
| Government Footnotes: | [1] |
| Government Type: | Municipality |
| Leader Title: | Alcalde |
| Leader Party: | PPD |
| Leader Name: | Ricardo Tripainao Calfulaf |
| Unit Pref: | Metric |
| Area Footnotes: | [2] |
| Area Total Km2: | 400.8 |
| Elevation M: | 10 |
| Population Total: | 11384 |
| Population As Of: | 2012 Census |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Population Blank1 Title: | Urban |
| Population Blank1: | 2679 |
| Population Blank2 Title: | Rural |
| Population Blank2: | 11355 |
| Demographics Type1: | Sex |
| Demographics1 Title1: | Men |
| Demographics1 Info1: | 7,259 |
| Demographics1 Title2: | Women |
| Demographics1 Info2: | 6,775 |
| Timezone: | CLT[3] |
| Utc Offset: | -4 |
| Timezone Dst: | CLST[4] |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -3 |
| Area Code: | country 56 + city 45 |
Saavedra (pronounced as /es/) is a commune of Chile in Cautín Province, Araucanía Region. The principal community and administrative centre of the commune is the town of Puerto Saavedra. The commune is named after the Chilean soldier General Cornelio Saavedra Rodríguez who was placed in charge of the occupation of the Araucanía in 1860. It has the highest percentage—though not the largest number—of Mapuche people in the region (64%, 2002 census). Location for the 1991 movie "La frontera".
According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Saavedra spans an area of 400.8sqkm and has 14,034 inhabitants (7,259 men and 6,775 women). Of these, 2,679 (19.1%) lived in urban areas and 11,355 (80.9%) in rural areas. The population fell by 2.8% (398 persons) between the 1992 and 2002 censuses.[2]
As a commune, Saavedra is a third-level administrative division of Chile administered by a municipal council, headed by an alcalde who is directly elected every four years. The 2008-2012 alcalde is Ricardo Tripainao Calfulaf (PPD).[1]
Within the electoral divisions of Chile, Saavedra is represented in the Chamber of Deputies by José Manuel Edwards (RN) and Joaquín Tuma (PDC) as part of the 51st electoral district, together with Carahue, Nueva Imperial, Teodoro Schmidt, Freire, Pitrufquén and Cholchol. The commune is represented in the Senate by José Garcia Ruminot (RN) and Eugenio Tuma Zedan (PPD) as part of the 15th senatorial constituency (Araucanía-South).