Lima is a

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municipa ...

Lima Province Lima Province is located in the central coast of Peru and is the only province in the country not belonging to any of the twenty-five regions. Its capital is Lima, which is also the nation's capital. Despite its small area, this province is the ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

. Lima district is the oldest in Lima Province and as such, vestiges of the city's

colonial Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 au ...

era remain today in the

historic centre of Lima Located principally in the city centre or Cercado de Lima and Rímac areas, the Historic Centre of Lima is among the most important tourist destinations in Peru. Foundation The city of Lima, the capital of Peru, was founded by Francisco Piz ...

, which was declared a

UNESCO World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

in 1988 and contains the foundational area known as Cercado de Lima (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

: "Walled Lima").

Geography

The district has a total land

area Area is the quantity that expresses the extent of a region on the plane or on a curved surface. The area of a plane region or ''plane area'' refers to the area of a shape or planar lamina, while '' surface area'' refers to the area of an ope ...

of 21.98 km². Its administrative center is located at 154 meters above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardise ...

Boundaries

* North: The

Rímac River The Rímac River is located in western Peru and is the most important source of potable water for the Lima and Callao Metropolitan Area. The river is part of the Pacific watershed and has a length of 204 km. The river begins in the highlan ...

marks the district's border with the San Martín de Porres and Rímac districts. * East:

El Agustino El Agustino is a district of the Lima Province in Peru. It is part of city of Lima. Officially established as a district on January 6, 1965, the current mayor (''alcalde'') of El Agustino is Víctor Modesto Salcedo Ríos. The district's postal code ...

and

San Juan de Lurigancho San Juan de Lurigancho (SJL) is a district in Lima, Peru, located in the area known as ''Cono Este''. It is Peru's most populous district, with a current population that may exceed one million. On the north, it is bordered by the districts of ...

. * South: La Victoria, Lince, Jesús María, Breña and

Pueblo Libre Pueblo Libre (originally called La Magdalena or Old Magdalena to differentiate it from Magdalena del Mar District) is a district of the Lima Province in Peru. Its name, which means ''Free Town'' or ''Free People'', was granted by José de San Mart� ...

. * West: San Miguel District; and the

Callao Region Callao () is a Peruvian seaside city and region on the Pacific Ocean in the Lima metropolitan area. Callao is Peru's chief seaport and home to its main airport, Jorge Chávez International Airport. Callao municipality consists of the whole Call ...

districts of Bellavista, Callao and

Carmen de la Legua Reynoso Carmen de la Legua Reynoso District ( es, Distrito de Carmen de la Legua Reynoso) is a district of the Constitutional Province of Callao in Peru, and one of the seven districts that comprise the port city of Callao. In 1952 Carmen de la Legua Reyn ...

Demographics

According to a 2005 estimate by the INEI, the district has 278,804 inhabitants and a population density of 15,736.9 persons/km². In 1999, there were 75,595 households in the district. The high point of Lima's religious calendar for the masses is a month of festivities in October dedicated to the Lord of Miracles, during which take place several processions in the city.

Neighborhoods

Central Lima (known as Cercado proper) is limited by Avenida Alfonso Ugarte on the west and Jirón Huánuco (Huánuco Street) on the east. It is divided into West and East sides by Jirón de la Unión (Union Street), from which ''cuadras'' ( blocks) are numbered beginning at 100 and changing the first numbers at the next block. Unlike New York's Fifth Avenue, though, ''Jirón de la Unión'' is not paved for cars, but almost entirely a shopping and

pedestrian street Pedestrian zones (also known as auto-free zones and car-free zones, as pedestrian precincts in British English, and as pedestrian malls in the United States and Australia) are areas of a city or town reserved for pedestrian-only use and in whi ...

; the main thoroughfares for cars and

bus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...

es are Tacna Ave. on the West side and Abancay Ave. on the East. Both are separated from Jirón de la Unión by 4 blocks. The ''

Plaza de Armas The ''Plaza de Armas'' (literally Weapons Square, but better translated as Parade Square or parade ground) is the name for Latin American main squares. In the central region of Mexico this space is known as El Zócalo and in Central America as ...

'' (Grand Army Plaza), which is the main square, is located on block 2 of Jirón de la Unión, facing the Peruvian government palace and the

Metropolitan Municipality of Lima The Metropolitan Municipality of Lima ( es, Municipalidad Metropolitana de Lima) is the local government entity of the Lima Province and Lima District. It is the only provincial municipality of special regime with faculties of regional government. I ...

( City Hall). It's also known as Damero de Pizarro (''Pizarro's Checkerboard''). East of the center is the Barrios Altos (Uptown) neighborhood. Here the oldest, though least stable, buildings in Central Lima are located. Two cemeteries, El Ángel and Presbítero Maestro, form the eastern border with

. Parts of the long-demolished colonial city walls can be seen here. Abutting this to the southwest is the Barrio chino (Chinatown) neighborhood, dating from the mid-1800s. South of the West Side is Santa Beatriz section, which contains residential buildings and the ''

Parque de la Reserva The Parque de la Reserva (English: ''Park of the Reserve'') is a park located in downtown Lima, in Peru. Built in an irregular shape, it is located between two of the city's principal streets, the Paseo de la Republica expressway and Arequipa Aven ...

''. Santa Beatriz is locally famous for containing the buildings for the state TV network TNP ( Ch. 7), and the top two private TV networks, America Television (Ch. 4) and Panamericana Television (Ch. 5). Its main thoroughfare is Arequipa Avenue, a narrow boulevard lined with trees of all sizes. Santa Beatriz is also home to the city (and country)'s main football stadium, the Estadio Nacional (''National Stadium''). West of the center is the Industrial Area, an industrial belt extending into neighboring Callao Region, and home to the main industries in both city and country. Most of the area is covered by large blocks containing large factories. Also this area include the

University City of the National University of San Marcos The University City of the National University of San Marcos (acronym: CU-UNMSM), generally known as the University City of Lima or simply University City, is the main campus of the National University of San Marcos and is located in Lima District. ...

. At its northern and southern edges, there are clusters of

residential area A residential area is a land used in which housing predominates, as opposed to industrial and commercial areas. Housing may vary significantly between, and through, residential areas. These include single-family housing, multi-family resi ...

s, particularly in the southern zone bordering

, San Miguel and Callao Region's

Bellavista District Bellavista is a district of the Constitutional Province of Callao in Peru, and one of the seven districts that comprise the port city of Callao. The current mayor of the district is Daniel Malpartida. Geography The district has a total land a ...

. Image:Lima-peru.jpg, View of Lima District from the San Cristobal hill, showing the Acho bullring. Image:Lima Cathedral.jpg,

Cathedral of Lima The Basilica Metropolitan Cathedral of Lima and Primate of Peru, otherwise Lima Metropolitan Cathedral, is a Roman Catholic cathedral located in the Plaza Mayor of downtown Lima, Peru. This third and current Cathedral of Lima was built betwee ...

facing the ''Plaza de Armas'' Image:Mapa distrito de Lima.png, A detailed map of the district, showing important avenues.

Notes

References

External links

*
Municipalidad Metropolitana de Lima
- Metropolitan Lima Municipal Council official website * {{Districts of Lima and Callao Districts of Lima Central business districts 1535 establishments in the Spanish Empire eo:Lima