It was created on 1 January 1999 out of the former Rzeszow, Przemysl, Krosno and parts of Tarnow and Tarnobrzeg voivodships as a result of Local Government Reogranization Act of 1998. The voivodship's name recalls the region's geographical location by the Carpathian Mountains.

Capital city: Rzeszow

Major cities and towns

• Rzeszow (160,300);
• Stalowa Wola (71,900);
• Przemysl (68,900);
• Mielec (64,400).
• Tarnobrzeg (50,700);
• Krosno (49,400);
• Debica (48,700);
• Jaroslaw (41,800).
• Sanok (41,400);
• Jaslo (38,900).