SERENA, a city of Chili, capital of the province of Coquimbo, is situated on an elevated plain on the south side of the river Coquimbo, about 5 miles from the sea, in 29° 54' S. lat. and 71° 13' W. long. The original town was founded by Juan Bohon in 1544, on the opposite side of the river, and called by him Serena, after the town of that name in Spanish Estremadura, the birthplace of his chief, Pedro de Valdivia. Being shortly after destroyed by the Indians, it was rebuilt on its present site by Francisco de Aguirre in 1549. Serena is the seat of a bishopric embracing the whole of Chili to the north, and of a court of appeal the jurisdiction of which extends to the province of Atacama. The town is well supplied with water. The principal edifice is the cathedral (1844-60), built of a light porous stone, 216 feet long and 66 broad. The town contains eight other churches, an excellent lyceum, a theatre, an episcopal palace, and several convents and charitable institutions. It is connected by rail with its port 9 miles to the south-west, and with the Tamaya copper-mines. A narrow-gauge line up the Elqui valley was opened in 1883. Brewing has recently become an important industry. The population of Serena was 12,293 in 1875, or, including the suburbs of the Pampa (Alta and Baja), 14,403.