CHIANA (anc. Clanis), a river of Tuscany, which rises in the Apennines S. of Arezzo, runs through the valley of Chiusi, and after receiving the Paglia just below Orvieto, falls into the Tiber after a course of 60 m. In Roman times its waters ran entirely into the Tiber. It often caused considerable floods in the valley of Clusium (Chiusi) which were noticeable even in Rome itself, and in A.D. 15 it was proposed to divert part of its waters into the Arnus, a project which was abandoned owing to the opposition of the Florentines (Tac. Ann. i. 76, 79). In the middle ages the whole of its valley from Arezzo to Chiusi was an uninhabitable swamp; but at the end of the 18th century the engineer Count Fossombroni took the matter in hand, and moved the watershed some 25 m. farther south, so that its waters now flow partly into the Arno and partly into the Tiber.
CHIAPAS, a Pacific coast state of southern Mexico on the Guatemalan frontier, bounded by the states of Tabasco on the N. and Vera Cruz and Oaxaca on the W. Pop. (1895) 318,730; (1900) 360,799, a large proportion of which are Indians; area, 27,222 sq.m. largely forested. The Sierra Madre crosses the southern part of the state parallel with the coast, separating the low, humid, forested districts on the frontier of Tabasco from the hot, drier, coastal plain on the Pacific. The mountain region includes a plateau of great fertility and temperate climate, which is one of the best parts of Mexico and contains the larger part of the population of the state. But isolation and lack of transportation facilities have retarded its development. The extension of the Pan-American railway across the state, from San Gerommo, on the Tehuantepec National line, to the Guatemalan frontier, is calculated to improve the industrial and social conditions of the people. The principal industries are agriculture, which is very backward, stock-raising, timber-cutting, fruit-farming and salt-making. Coffee-planting is a new industry on the Pacific slope of the Sierra Madre at elevations of 2000 to 4000 ft., and has met with considerable success. Rubber plantations have also been laid out, principally by American companies, the Castilloa elastica doing well. The exports include cattle, hides, coffee, rubber, fruit and salt. The mineral resources include gold, silver, copper and petroleum, but no mines were in operation in 1906. The capital, Tuxtla Gutierrez (pop. 9395 in 1900), is on the plateau, 3½ m. from the Rio Sabinas, and 138 m. N.E. of the Pacific port of Tonala. The former capital, San Cristobal (pop. about 5000 in 1895), about 40 m. E. of Tuxtla, is an interesting old town and the seat of the bishopric of Chiapas, founded in 1525 and made famous through its associations with Las Casas. Tapachula (pop. in 1895, 6775), the capital of the department of Soconusco, 18 m. from the Guatemalan frontier, is a rising commercial town of the new coffee district. It is 24 m. inland from the small port of San Benito, is 559 ft. above sea-level, and has a healthy climate. Other prominent towns with their populations in 1895, are Comitan, or Comitlan (9316), on the Rio Grijalva about 40 m. S.E. of San Cristobal, and chiefly distinguished for its fine church and convent dedicated to San Domingo; Pichucalco (8549), Tenejapa (7036), San Antonio (6715), Cintalape (6455), La Concordia (6291), San Carlos (5977), and Ococingo (5667).
CHIAROSCURO (from the Ital. chiaro, light or brightness, and oscuro, darkness or shade), the disposition of light and shade in a painting; the term is applied to an early method of printing wood-engravings from several blocks, and also to a picture in black and white, or brown and white only.
CHIAVARI, a town of Liguria, Italy, in the province of Genoa, 24 m. S.E. by rail from the town of Genoa. Pop. (1901) 10,397 (town), 12,689 (commune). It is situated near the mouth of the Entella, in the centre of a fertile plain surrounded by mountains except on the S.W., where it comes down to the sea. Its buildings are mostly modern, but it has a ruined castle of 1147. It has an active trade in agricultural products, and manufactures lace, light wicker-seated bentwood chairs, silk, &c.
CHIAVENNA (anc. Clavenna), a town of Lombardy, Italy, in the province of Sondrio, 17 m. by rail N. of Colico which lies at the N. end of the lake of Como. Pop. (1901) town 3140, commune 4732. It is well situated on the right bank of the Mera, at the mouth of the Val Bregaglia, through which the road to the Maloja Pass and the Engadine runs to the east. This line was partly followed by a Roman road, which at Casaccia, just below the last ascent to the Maloja Pass, diverged to the N. by the Septimer Pass, joining the Julier route to Coire (anc. Curia) at Stalla. The Splügen route, which was also used by the Romans, runs N. from Chiavenna to Coire: the modern road was constructed by the Austrians in 1819-1821. Chiavenna is crowned by a ruined castle, once an important strategic point, and the seat of the counts who ruled the valley from the time of the Goths till 1194, when the district was handed over to the bishops of Coire. In the 14th century the Visconti, having become masters of the Valtellina, bought the “county” (contado or contea) of Chiavenna from the bishop of Coire; but it was taken by the canton of the Grisons in 1525, and the castle dismantled. In 1797 Chiavenna became part of the Cisalpine republic, and thenceforward followed the fortunes of Lombardy. The church of S. Lorenzo is baroque in style, but its baptistery contains a font of 1206 with reliefs. Chiavenna has cotton factories and breweries, and is a depot for the wine of the district.