Desamparados (canton)

{{Short description|Canton in San José province, Costa Rica}}

{{Expand Spanish|topic=geo|Cantón de Desamparados|date=July 2024}}

{{Infobox settlement

|name = Desamparados

|native_name_lang = es

|settlement_type = Canton

|pushpin_map = Costa Rica San José#Costa Rica

|pushpin_map_alt = Desamparados canton location in San José Province##Desamparados canton location in Costa Rica

|pushpin_map_caption = Desamparados canton location in San José Province##Desamparados canton location in Costa Rica

|coordinates = {{coord|9.8114083|-84.0289552|type:adm2nd_region:CR|display=inline,title}}

|image_flag = Bandera de Desamparados.svg

|image_seal = Escudo del cantón de Desamparados.svg

|image_map = {{maplink|frame=yes|plain=yes|frame-align=center|type=shape|title=Desamparados canton}}

|map_alt = Desamparados canton

|map_caption = Desamparados canton

|image_skyline =

|image_alt =

|image_caption =

|established_title = Creation

|established_date = 4 November 1862

|subdivision_type = Country

|subdivision_name = {{CRI}}

|subdivision_type1 = Province

|subdivision_name1 = San José

|seat_type = City

|seat = Desamparados

|government_type = Municipality

|governing_body = {{lang|es|Municipalidad de Desamparados}}

|leader_title = Mayor

|leader_name = María Antonieta Naranjo Brenes (PLN)

|parts_type = Districts

|parts_style = list

|parts = Districts

|p1 = Desamparados

|p2 = San Miguel

|p3 = San Juan de Dios

|p4 = San Rafael Arriba

|p5 = San Antonio

|p6 = Frailes

|p7 = Patarrá

|p8 = San Cristóbal

|p9 = Rosario

|p10 = Damas

|p11 = San Rafael Abajo

|p12 = Gravilias

|p13 = Los Guido

|area_total_km2 = 118.89

|elevation_m = 1270

|population_total = 208411

|population_as_of = 2011

|population_est = 223226

|pop_est_as_of = 2022

|population_density_km2 = auto

|timezone1 = UTC−06:00

|blank_name = Canton code

|blank_info = 103

|website = {{URL|https://www.desamparados.go.cr }}

}}

Desamparados is the 3rd canton in the province of San José in Costa Rica. The canton covers an area of {{cvt|118.89|km2}},{{Cite web |website=Instituto Geográfico Nacional de Costa Rica |date=20 June 2024 |title=División Territorial Administrativa, 2024 – Totales de Provincias, Cantones y Distritos de Costa Rica |trans-title=Administrative Territorial Division, 2024 – Totals of Provinces, Cantons and Districts of Costa Rica |url=https://files.snitcr.go.cr/boletines/DTA-TABLA%20POR%20PROVINCIA-CANT%C3%93N-DISTRITO%202024.pdf |access-date=16 July 2024 |language=es |format=PDF}} and had a population of {{formatnum:223226}} in 2022,{{Cite web |author=Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos |author-link=National Institute of Statistics and Census of Costa Rica |date=July 2023 |title=Resultados Estimacion de Poblacion y Vivienda 2022 |trans-title=2022 Population and Housing Estimate Results |url=https://admin.inec.cr/sites/default/files/2023-11/reResultadosEstimacionPoblacionVivienda2022_3.xlsx |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240604233425/https://admin.inec.cr/sites/default/files/2023-11/reResultadosEstimacionPoblacionVivienda2022_3.xlsx |archive-date=2024-06-04 |access-date=2024-04-21 |language=es |format=XLSX}} making it the third most populated among the 81 cantons of Costa Rica. The canton's capital city is also called Desamparados.

The canton begins in the southern suburbs of the national capital city of San José, with the Tiribí River marking its northern boundary. It snakes its way south as a backward letter S, finally reaching its southern limit at the Tarrazú River. It contains the bigger of the last forest lungs in the Greater Metropolitan Area, the Loma Salitral, which conservation issues have generated social conflicts between community environmentalists and immobility developers, as it is seen as an identity mark of the desamparadeño people and a vital infiltration area to prevent the frequents and disastrous floods in the district of Gravilias.{{Cite web|url=https://www.informa-tico.com/4-04-2018/sala-iv-resuelve-favor-proteccion-loma-salitral-desamparados|title=Sala IV resuelve a favor de la protección de la Loma Salitral en Desamparados}}

Urban areas claim 80.4% of the canton's population. Those under age 10 comprise 19.8% of its inhabitants, while 5.1% are over 65.