Chumbivilcas is a province in the

Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...

in South

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 ...

. The

Inca The Inca Empire (also known as the Incan Empire and the Inka Empire), called ''Tawantinsuyu'' by its subjects, (Quechua for the "Realm of the Four Parts", "four parts together" ) was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The admin ...

called it "Chumpiwillka". The seat of the province is Santo Tomás. Officially Chumbivilcas was founded on June 21, 1825.

Geography

Some of the most important rivers of the area are Velille River, Qañawimayu and Sinqa Wayq'u which are springs of the

Apurímac River The Apurímac River ( que, Apurimaq mayu; es, Río Apurímac, ; from Quechua ''apu'' 'divinity' and ''rimaq'' 'oracle, talker') rises from glacial meltwater of the ridge of the Mismi, a mountain in the Arequipa Province in the south-western ...

. The Wansu mountain range traverses the province. Some of the highest peaks of the province are listed below:

Population

According to the Peru 2005 Census 77,721 inhabitants live in an area of 5,371.08 km². There are about 77 rural communities. Chumbivilcas is looked upon as one of the poorest regions of the country. Half of the population is younger than 16 years. In the rural communities families with eight and more children are not unusual.

Ethnic groups

The people in the province are mainly

indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention *Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band *Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...

citizens of

Quechua Quechua may refer to: *Quechua people, several indigenous ethnic groups in South America, especially in Peru *Quechuan languages, a Native South American language family spoken primarily in the Andes, derived from a common ancestral language **So ...

descent.

is the language which the majority of the population (91.07%) learnt to speak in childhood, 8.62% of the residents started speaking in

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 ...

( 2007 Peru Census).inei.gob.pe
INEI, Peru, Censos Nacionales 2007 Because of the

migration Migration, migratory, or migrate may refer to: Human migration * Human migration, physical movement by humans from one region to another ** International migration, when peoples cross state boundaries and stay in the host state for some minimum le ...

of a high number of rural people to the towns the

Spanish language Spanish ( or , Castilian) is a Romance language of the Indo-European language family that evolved from colloquial Latin spoken on the Iberian peninsula. Today, it is a global language with more than 500 million native speakers, mainly in th ...

(''castellano'') is getting more and more influence. School children are taught bilingually by law.

Political divisions

Chumbivilcas is one of 13 provinces of the Cusco Region. It is divided into eight districts: * Santo Tomás * Capacmarca * Chamaca * Colquemarca * Livitaca * Llusco * Quiñota * Velille

Graphics

The Provinces of Cusco Region

The Districts

References

External links

(Spanish)
Infocusco: Chumbivilcas
(Spanish)
Satellite Photos: All Population Centers
Provinces of the Cusco Region {{Cusco-geo-stub