Peru - Colca Canyon - Andean Condor (Vultur Gryphus) 01
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, 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 A seal is a device for making an impression in wax, clay, paper, or some other medium, including an embossment on paper, and is also the impression thus made. The original purpose was to authenticate a document, or to prevent interference with a ...
, national_motto =

"Firm and Happy for the Union" , national_anthem =

"National Anthem of Peru"
, march =

"March of Flags"
, image_map = PER orthographic.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital =
Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of t ...
, coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages =
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, Cana ...
, languages_type = Co-official languages , languages = , ethnic_groups = , ethnic_groups_year = 2017 , demonym =
Peruvian Peruvians ( es, peruanos) are the citizens of Peru. There were Andean and coastal ancient civilizations like Caral, which inhabited what is now Peruvian territory for several millennia before the Spanish conquest in the 16th century; Peruvian p ...
, government_type =
Unitary Unitary may refer to: Mathematics * Unitary divisor * Unitary element * Unitary group * Unitary matrix * Unitary morphism * Unitary operator * Unitary transformation * Unitary representation * Unitarity (physics) * ''E''-unitary inverse semigroup ...
semi-presidential A semi-presidential republic, is a republic in which a president exists alongside a prime minister and a cabinet, with the latter two being responsible to the legislature of the state. It differs from a parliamentary republic in that it has a ...
republic A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...
, leader_title1 =
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
, leader_name1 =
Dina Boluarte Dina Ercilia Boluarte Zegarra ( (); born 31 May 1962) is a Peruvian politician, civil servant, and lawyer currently serving as the president of Peru, President of Peru since 7 December 2022. She had served as the Vice President of Peru, first ...
, leader_title2 = First Vice President , leader_name2 = Vacant , leader_title3 =
Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
, leader_name3 =
Alberto Otárola Luis Alberto Otárola Peñaranda (born 12 February 1967) is a Peruvian attorney and politician who currently serves as Prime Minister of Peru. He previously served as Minister of Defense twice, under Ollanta Humala and Dina Boluarte. Politic ...
, leader_title4 = President of Congress , leader_name4 = José Williams , legislature = Congress of the Republic , sovereignty_type =
Independence Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...
, sovereignty_note = from
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...
, established_event1 = Declared , established_date1 = 28 July 1821 , established_event2 = Consolidated , established_date2 = 9 December 1824 , established_event3 = Recognized , established_date3 = 14 August 1879 , area_km2 = 1,285,216 , area_rank = 19th , area_sq_mi = 496,225 , percent_water = 0.41 , population_estimate = 32,275,736 , population_estimate_year = 2022 , population_estimate_rank = 45th , population_density_km2 = 23 , population_density_sq_mi = 57 , population_density_rank = 198th , GDP_PPP = $513.715 billion , GDP_PPP_year = 2022 , GDP_PPP_rank = 47th , GDP_PPP_per_capita = $15,035 , GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank = 96th , GDP_nominal = $240.346 billion , GDP_nominal_year = 2022 , GDP_nominal_rank = 52nd , GDP_nominal_per_capita = $7,034 , GDP_nominal_per_capita_rank = 94th , Gini = 41.5 , Gini_year = 2019 , Gini_change = decrease , Gini_ref = , Gini_rank = , HDI = 0.762 , HDI_year = 2021 , HDI_change = decrease , HDI_ref = , HDI_rank = 84th , currency =
Peruvian sol The sol (; plural: soles; currency sign: S/) is the currency of Peru; it is subdivided into 100 ''céntimos'' ("cents"). The ISO 4217 currency code is PEN. The sol replaced the Peruvian inti in 1991 and the name is a return to that of Peru's hi ...
, currency_code = PEN , time_zone =
PET A pet, or companion animal, is an animal kept primarily for a person's company or entertainment rather than as a working animal, livestock, or a laboratory animal. Popular pets are often considered to have attractive appearances, intelligence, ...
, utc_offset = −5 , date_format = dd/mm/yyyy ( CE) , drives_on = right , calling_code = +51 , iso3166code = PE , cctld = .pe , religion = , religion_ref = , religion_year = 2017 , today = Peru (; es, link=no, Perú ;
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 ...
: ''Piruw'' ; ay, Piruw ), officially the Republic of Peru (), is a country in western
South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...
. It is bordered in the north by
Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...
and
Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
, in the east by
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
, in the southeast by
Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...
, in the south by
Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
, and in the south and west by the Pacific Ocean. Peru is a megadiverse country with habitats ranging from the arid plains of the Pacific coastal region in the west to the peaks of 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 ...
mountains extending from the north to the southeast of the country to the tropical
Amazon basin The Amazon basin is the part of South America drained by the Amazon River and its tributaries. The Amazon drainage basin covers an area of about , or about 35.5 percent of the South American continent. It is located in the countries of Bolivi ...
rainforest in the east with the
Amazon River The Amazon River (, ; es, Río Amazonas, pt, Rio Amazonas) in South America is the largest river by discharge volume of water in the world, and the disputed longest river system in the world in comparison to the Nile. The headwaters of t ...
. Peru has a
population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using a ...
of 32 million, and its capital and largest city is
Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of t ...
. At 1.28 million km2 (0.5 million mi2), Peru is the 19th largest country in the world, and the third largest in South America. Peruvian territory was home to several cultures during the ancient and medieval periods, and has one of the longest histories of civilization of any country, tracing its heritage back to the 10th millennium BCE. Notable pre-colonial cultures and civilizations include the Caral-Supe civilization (the earliest civilization in the Americas and considered one of the
cradles of civilization A cradle of civilization is a location and a culture where civilization was created by mankind independent of other civilizations in other locations. The formation of urban settlements (cities) is the primary characteristic of a society that c ...
,) the
Nazca culture The Nazca culture (also Nasca) was the archaeological culture that flourished from beside the arid, southern coast of Peru in the river valleys of the Rio Grande de Nazca drainage and the Ica Valley.''The Nasca'' by Helaine Silverman and Dona ...
, the Wari and
Tiwanaku Tiwanaku ( es, Tiahuanaco or ) is a Pre-Columbian archaeological site in western Bolivia near Lake Titicaca, about 70 kilometers from La Paz, and it is one of the largest sites in South America. Surface remains currently cover around 4 square kilo ...
empires, the
Kingdom of Cusco The Kingdom of Cusco (sometimes spelled ''Cuzco'' and in Quechua ''Qosqo'' or ''Qusqu'') was a small kingdom based in the city of Cusco, on the Andean mountain ranges that began as a small city-state founded by the Incas around the start of 13th ...
, and the
Inca Empire 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 ...
, the largest known state in the
pre-Columbian In the history of the Americas, the pre-Columbian era spans from the original settlement of North and South America in the Upper Paleolithic period through European colonization, which began with Christopher Columbus's voyage of 1492. Usually, th ...
Americas. The
Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...
conquered the region in the 16th century and established a viceroyalty that encompassed most of its South American territories, with its capital in
Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of t ...
. Higher education started in the Americas with the official establishment of the
National University of San Marcos The National University of San Marcos ( es, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, link=no, UNMSM) is a public research university located in Lima, the capital of Peru. It is considered the most important, recognized and representative educ ...
in Lima in 1551. Peru formally proclaimed independence in 1821, and following the foreign military campaigns of
José de San Martín José Francisco de San Martín y Matorras (25 February 177817 August 1850), known simply as José de San Martín () or '' the Liberator of Argentina, Chile and Peru'', was an Argentine general and the primary leader of the southern and cent ...
and
Simón Bolívar Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios (24 July 1783 – 17 December 1830) was a Venezuelan military and political leader who led what are currently the countries of Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Panama and B ...
, and the decisive
battle of Ayacucho The Battle of Ayacucho ( es, Batalla de Ayacucho, ) was a decisive military encounter during the Peruvian War of Independence. This battle secured the independence of Peru and ensured independence for the rest of South America. In Peru it is co ...
, Peru completed its independence in 1824. In the ensuing years, the country first suffered from political instability until a period of relative economic and political stability began due to the exploitation of
guano Guano (Spanish from qu, wanu) is the accumulated excrement of seabirds or bats. As a manure, guano is a highly effective fertilizer due to the high content of nitrogen, phosphate, and potassium, all key nutrients essential for plant growth. G ...
. Later, the
War of the Pacific The War of the Pacific ( es, link=no, Guerra del Pacífico), also known as the Saltpeter War ( es, link=no, Guerra del salitre) and by multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought ...
(1879–1884) with Chile brought Peru to a state of crisis, from which the oligarchy seized power through the
Civilista Party The Civilista Party ( es, Partido Civil, PC) was a political party in Peru. History Founded as a countermeasure against the growing power of the military in Peru during the first half of the Republic, the party's sole purpose was to establish a ...
. In the 20th century, the country endured coups, social unrest, and internal conflicts, as well as periods of stability and economic upswing. In the 1990s, the country implemented a neoliberal economic model which is still in use to this day. As the
2000s commodities boom The 2000s commodities boom or the commodities super cycle was the rise of many physical commodity prices (such as those of food, oil, metals, chemicals and fuels) during the early 21st century (2000–2014), following the Great Commodities Depress ...
took place, Peru experienced a period of constant economic growth and a decrease in
poverty Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little income. Poverty can have diverse social, economic, and political causes and effects. When evaluating poverty in ...
. The
sovereign state A sovereign state or sovereign country, is a polity, political entity represented by one central government that has supreme legitimate authority over territory. International law defines sovereign states as having a permanent population, defin ...
of Peru is a
representative democratic Representative democracy, also known as indirect democracy, is a type of democracy where elected people represent a group of people, in contrast to direct democracy. Nearly all modern Western-style democracies function as some type of represe ...
republic divided into 25 regions. Peru has a high level of
human development Human development may refer to: * Development of the human body * Developmental psychology * Human development (economics) * Human Development Index, an index used to rank countries by level of human development * Human evolution, the prehistoric ...
with an upper middle income level ranking 82nd on the
Human Development Index The Human Development Index (HDI) is a statistic composite index of life expectancy, education (mean years of schooling completed and expected years of schooling upon entering the education system), and per capita income indicators, whi ...
. It is one of the region's most prosperous economies with an average growth rate of 5.9% (in 2017) and it has one of the world's fastest industrial growth rates at an average of 9.6% (as of 2018). Its main economic activities include
mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic via ...
,
manufacturing Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to a r ...
, agriculture and fishing, along with other growing sectors such as
telecommunications Telecommunication is the transmission of information by various types of technologies over wire, radio, optical, or other electromagnetic systems. It has its origin in the desire of humans for communication over a distance greater than that fe ...
and
biotechnology Biotechnology is the integration of natural sciences and engineering sciences in order to achieve the application of organisms, cells, parts thereof and molecular analogues for products and services. The term ''biotechnology'' was first used b ...
. The country forms part of The Pacific Pumas, a political and economic grouping of countries along Latin America's Pacific coast that share common trends of positive growth, stable macroeconomic foundations, improved governance and an openness to global integration. Peru ranks high in
social freedom Liberty is the ability to do as one pleases, or a right or immunity enjoyed by prescription or by grant (i.e. privilege). It is a synonym for the word freedom. In modern politics, liberty is understood as the state of being free within society f ...
; it is an active member of the
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC ) is an inter-governmental forum for 21 member economy, economies in the Pacific Rim that promotes free trade throughout the Asia-Pacific region.
, the
Pacific Alliance The Pacific Alliance ( es, link=no, Alianza del Pacífico) is a Latin American trade bloc, formed by Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru, which all border the Pacific Ocean. The alliance was formed with the express purpose of improving regional in ...
, the
Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership Comprehensive may refer to: *Comprehensive layout, the page layout of a proposed design as initially presented by the designer to a client. * Comprehensive school, a state school that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement ...
and the
World Trade Organization The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization that regulates and facilitates international trade. With effective cooperation in the United Nations System, governments use the organization to establish, revise, and e ...
; and is considered as a
middle power In international relations, a middle power is a sovereign state that is not a great power nor a superpower, but still has large or moderate influence and international recognition. The concept of the "middle power" dates back to the origins of ...
. Peru has a population that includes
Mestizo (; ; fem. ) is a term used for racial classification to refer to a person of mixed Ethnic groups in Europe, European and Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous American ancestry. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also r ...
s,
Amerindians The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples. Many Indigenous peoples of the Ame ...
,
Europeans Europeans are the focus of European ethnology, the field of anthropology related to the various ethnic groups that reside in the states of Europe. Groups may be defined by common genetic ancestry, common language, or both. Pan and Pfeil (2004) ...
, Africans and
Asians Asian people (or Asians, sometimes referred to as Asiatic people)United States National Library of Medicine. Medical Subject Headings. 2004. November 17, 200Nlm.nih.gov: ''Asian Continental Ancestry Group'' is also used for categorical purpos ...
. The main spoken language is
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, Cana ...
, although a significant number of Peruvians speak
Quechuan languages Quechua (, ; ), usually called ("people's language") in Quechuan languages, is an indigenous language family spoken by the Quechua peoples, primarily living in the Peruvian Andes. Derived from a common ancestral language, it is the most widely ...
,
Aymara Aymara may refer to: Languages and people * Aymaran languages, the second most widespread Andean language ** Aymara language, the main language within that family ** Central Aymara, the other surviving branch of the Aymara(n) family, which today ...
, or other
Indigenous languages An indigenous language, or autochthonous language, is a language that is native to a region and spoken by indigenous peoples. This language is from a linguistically distinct community that originated in the area. Indigenous languages are not neces ...
. This mixture of cultural traditions has resulted in a wide diversity of expressions in fields such as
art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...
,
cuisine A cuisine is a style of cooking characterized by distinctive ingredients, techniques and dishes, and usually associated with a specific culture or geographic region. Regional food preparation techniques, customs, and ingredients combine to ...
,
literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...
, and
music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...
.


Etymology

The name of the country may be derived from ''Birú'', the name of a local ruler who lived near the
Bay of San Miguel The Bay of San Miguel () is a bay of the Gulf of Panama, located on the Pacific coast of Darién Province in eastern Panama. The bay is located at . It is fed by the Tuira River The Tuira River is located in the Darién Province of easter ...
, Panama City, in the early 16th century. Spanish
conquistador Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (, ; meaning 'conquerors') were the explorer-soldiers of the Spanish and Portuguese Empires of the 15th and 16th centuries. During the Age of Discovery, conquistadors sailed beyond Europe to the Americas, O ...
s, who arrived in 1522, believed this was the southernmost part of the
New World The term ''New World'' is often used to mean the majority of Earth's Western Hemisphere, specifically the Americas."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. 3 ...
. When
Francisco Pizarro Francisco Pizarro González, Marquess of the Atabillos (; ;  – 26 June 1541) was a Spanish conquistador, best known for his expeditions that led to the Spanish conquest of Peru. Born in Trujillo, Spain to a poor family, Pizarro chose ...
invaded the regions farther south, they came to be designated ''Birú'' or ''Perú''. An alternative history is provided by the contemporary writer
Inca Garcilaso de la Vega Inca Garcilaso de la Vega (12 April 1539 – 23 April 1616), born Gómez Suárez de Figueroa and known as El Inca, was a chronicler and writer born in the Viceroyalty of Peru. Sailing to Spain at 21, he was educated informally there, where he l ...
, son of an Inca princess and a conquistador. He said the name ''Birú'' was that of a common Amerindian who was happened upon by the crew of a ship on an exploratory mission for governor
Pedro Arias Dávila Pedro Arias de Ávila (1440 – March 6, 1531) (often Pedrarias Dávila) was a Spanish soldier and colonial administrator. He led the first great Spanish expedition to the mainland of the New World. There he served as governor of Panama (1514 ...
and went on to relate more instances of misunderstandings due to the lack of a common language. The
Spanish Crown , coatofarms = File:Coat_of_Arms_of_Spanish_Monarch.svg , coatofarms_article = Coat of arms of the King of Spain , image = Felipe_VI_in_2020_(cropped).jpg , incumbent = Felipe VI , incumbentsince = 19 Ju ...
gave the name legal status with the 1529 '' Capitulación de Toledo'', which designated the newly encountered
Inca Empire 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 ...
as the province of Peru. In 1561, the rebel
Lope de Aguirre Lope de Aguirre (; 8 November 1510 – 27 October 1561) was a Basque Spanish conquistador who was active in South America. Nicknamed ''El Loco'' ("the Madman"), he styled himself "Wrath of God, Prince of Freedom." Aguirre is best known for his fi ...
declared himself the "Prince" of an independent Peru, which was cut short by his arrest and execution. Under Spanish rule, the country adopted the denomination ''
Viceroyalty of Peru The Viceroyalty of Peru ( es, Virreinato del Perú, links=no) was a Spanish imperial provincial administrative district, created in 1542, that originally contained modern-day Peru and most of the Spanish Empire in South America, governed from ...
'', which became the ''Peruvian Republic'' after its
independence Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...
until
1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...
, adopting its current name of ''Republic of Peru''.


History


Prehistory and Pre-Columbian Peru

The earliest evidences of human presence in Peruvian territory have been dated to approximately 12,500
BCE Common Era (CE) and Before the Common Era (BCE) are year notations for the Gregorian calendar (and its predecessor, the Julian calendar), the world's most widely used calendar era. Common Era and Before the Common Era are alternatives to the or ...
in the
Huaca Prieta Huaca Prieta is the site of a prehistoric settlement beside the Pacific Ocean in the Chicama Valley, just north of Trujillo, La Libertad Province, Peru. It is a part of the El Brujo Archaeological Complex, which also includes Moche (culture) si ...
settlement. Andean societies were based on agriculture, using techniques such as
irrigation Irrigation (also referred to as watering) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow Crop, crops, Landscape plant, landscape plants, and Lawn, lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,00 ...
and terracing;
camelid Camelids are members of the biological family Camelidae, the only currently living family in the suborder Tylopoda. The seven extant members of this group are: dromedary camels, Bactrian camels, wild Bactrian camels, llamas, alpacas, vicuñas, ...
husbandry and fishing were also important. Organization relied on reciprocity and redistribution because these societies had no notion of market or money. The oldest known complex society in Peru, the Caral/Norte Chico civilization, flourished along the coast of the Pacific Ocean between 3,000 and 1,800 BCE. These early developments were followed by archaeological cultures that developed mostly around the coastal and Andean regions throughout Peru. The
Cupisnique The Cupisnique culture was a pre-Columbian indigenous culture that flourished from c. 1500 to 500 BC along what now is Peru's northern Pacific coast. The culture had a distinctive style of adobe clay architecture. Artifacts of the culture share art ...
culture which flourished from around 1000 to 200 BCE along what is now Peru's
Pacific coast Pacific coast may be used to reference any coastline that borders the Pacific Ocean. Geography Americas Countries on the western side of the Americas have a Pacific coast as their western or southwestern border, except for Panama, where the Pac ...
was an example of early pre-
Inca culture 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 ...
. The Chavín culture that developed from 1500 to 300 BCE was probably more of a religious than a political phenomenon, with their religious center in Chavín de Huantar. After the decline of the Chavin culture around the beginning of the 1st century CE, a series of localized and specialized cultures rose and fell, both on the coast and in the highlands, during the next thousand years. On the coast, these included the civilizations of the Paracas,
Nazca Nazca (; sometimes spelled Nasca; qu, Naska) is a city and system of valleys on the southern coast of Peru. It is also the name of the largest existing town in the Nazca Province. The name is derived from the Nazca culture, which flourished in ...
, Wari, and the more outstanding
Chimu Chimor (also Kingdom of Chimor or Chimú Empire) was the political grouping of the Chimú culture. The culture arose about 900 AD, succeeding the Moche culture, and was later conquered by the Inca emperor Topa Inca Yupanqui around 1470, fifty y ...
and Moche. The Moche, who reached their apogee in the first millennium CE, were renowned for their irrigation system which fertilized their arid terrain, their sophisticated ceramic pottery, their lofty buildings, and clever metalwork. The Chimu were the great city builders of pre-Inca civilization; as a loose confederation of walled cities scattered along the coast of northern Peru, the Chimu flourished from about 1140 to 1450. Their capital was at
Chan Chan Chan Chan was the largest city of the pre-Columbian era in South America. It is now an archaeology, archaeological site in La Libertad Region west of Trujillo, Peru. Chan Chan is located in the mouth of the Moche Valley and was the capital of ...
outside of modern-day Trujillo. In the highlands, both the
Tiahuanaco Tiwanaku ( es, Tiahuanaco or ) is a Pre-Columbian archaeological site in western Bolivia near Lake Titicaca, about 70 kilometers from La Paz, and it is one of the largest sites in South America. Surface remains currently cover around 4 square kilo ...
culture, near
Lake Titicaca Lake Titicaca (; es, Lago Titicaca ; qu, Titiqaqa Qucha) is a large freshwater lake in the Andes mountains on the border of Bolivia and Peru. It is often called the highest navigable lake in the world. By volume of water and by surface area, ...
in both Peru and Bolivia, and the Wari culture, near the present-day city of
Ayacucho Ayacucho (, qu, Ayak'uchu) is the capital city of Ayacucho Region and of Huamanga Province, Ayacucho Region, Peru. During the Inca Empire and Viceroyalty of Peru periods the city was known by the name of Huamanga (Quechua: Wamanga), and it c ...
, developed large urban settlements and wide-ranging state systems between 500 and 1000 CE.In the 15th century, the
Incas The Inca Empire (also Quechuan and Aymaran spelling shift, known as the Incan Empire and the Inka Empire), called ''Tawantinsuyu'' by its subjects, (Quechuan languages, Quechua for the "Realm of the Four Parts",  "four parts together" ) wa ...
emerged as a powerful state which, in the span of a century, formed the
largest empire Several empires in human history have been contenders for the largest of all time, depending on definition and mode of measurement. Possible ways of measuring size include area, population, economy, and power. Of these, area is the most commonly ...
in the
pre-Columbian Americas In the history of the Americas, the pre-Columbian era spans from the original settlement of North and South America in the Upper Paleolithic period through European colonization, which began with Christopher Columbus's voyage of 1492. Usually, th ...
with their capital in
Cusco Cusco, often spelled Cuzco (; qu, Qusqu ()), is a city in Southeastern Peru near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region and of the Cusco Province. The city is the list of cities in Peru, seventh m ...
. The Incas of Cusco originally represented one of the small and relatively minor ethnic groups, the
Quechuas Quechua people (, ; ) or Quichua people, may refer to any of the aboriginal people of South America who speak the Quechua languages, which originated among the Indigenous people of Peru. Although most Quechua speakers are native to Peru, there ...
. Gradually, as early as the thirteenth century, they began to expand and incorporate their neighbors. Inca expansion was slow until about the middle of the fifteenth century, when the pace of conquest began to accelerate, particularly under the rule of the emperor
Pachacuti Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui ( qu, Pachakutiq Inka Yupanki) was the ninth Sapa Inca (1418–1471/1472) of the Kingdom of Cusco which he transformed into the Inca Empire ( qu, Tawantinsuyu). Most archaeologists now believe that the famous Inca si ...
. Under his rule and that of his son,
Topa Inca Yupanqui Topa Inca Yupanqui or Túpac Inca Yupanqui ( qu, 'Tupaq Inka Yupanki'), translated as "noble Inca accountant," (c. 1441–c. 1493) was the tenth Sapa Inca (1471–93) of the Inca Empire, fifth of the Hanan dynasty. His father was Pachacuti, and h ...
, the Incas came to control most of the Andean region, with a population of 9 to 16 million inhabitants under their rule. Pachacuti also promulgated a comprehensive code of laws to govern his far-flung empire, while consolidating his absolute temporal and spiritual authority as the God of the Sun who ruled from a magnificently rebuilt Cusco. From 1438 to 1533, the Incas used a variety of methods, from conquest to peaceful assimilation, to incorporate a large portion of western South America, centered on the
Andean The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the List of mountain ranges#Mountain ranges by length, longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range i ...
mountain ranges, from southern Colombia to northern Chile, between the Pacific Ocean in the west and the Amazon rainforest in the east. The official language of the empire was
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 ...
, although hundreds of local languages and dialects were spoken. The Inca referred to their empire as ''Tawantinsuyu'' which can be translated as "The Four Regions" or "The Four United Provinces." Many local forms of worship persisted in the empire, most of them concerning local sacred ''
Huaca In the Quechuan languages of South America, a huaca or wak'a is an object that represents something revered, typically a monument of some kind. The term ''huaca'' can refer to natural locations, such as immense rocks. Some huacas have been asso ...
s'', but the Inca leadership encouraged the worship of
Inti INTI International University & Colleges are private university colleges located in Malaysia. The main campus was initially known as INTI University College until 31 May 2010 when the Higher Education Ministry announced its upgrade to universi ...
, the sun god and imposed its sovereignty above other cults such as that of
Pachamama Pachamama is a goddess revered by the indigenous peoples of the Andes. In Inca mythology she is an " Earth Mother" type goddess, Dransart, Penny. (1992) "Pachamama: The Inka Earth Mother of the Long Sweeping Garment." ''Dress and Gender: Making ...
. The Incas considered their King, the
Sapa Inca The Sapa Inca (from Quechua ''Sapa Inka'' "the only Inca") was the monarch of the Inca Empire (''Tawantinsuyu''), as well as ruler of the earlier Kingdom of Cusco and the later Neo-Inca State. While the origins of the position are mythical and o ...
, to be the "
child of the sun Child of the Sun is a collection of buildings designed by Frank Lloyd Wright on the campus of the Florida Southern College in Lakeland, Florida. The twelve original buildings were constructed between 1941 and 1958. Another of Wright's designs, a ...
."


Conquest and colonial period

Atahualpa (also Atahuallpa), the last
Sapa Inca The Sapa Inca (from Quechua ''Sapa Inka'' "the only Inca") was the monarch of the Inca Empire (''Tawantinsuyu''), as well as ruler of the earlier Kingdom of Cusco and the later Neo-Inca State. While the origins of the position are mythical and o ...
, became emperor when he defeated and executed his older half-brother
Huáscar Huáscar Inca (; Quechua: ''Waskar Inka''; 1503–1532) also Guazcar was Sapa Inca of the Inca Empire from 1527 to 1532. He succeeded his father, Huayna Capac and his brother Ninan Cuyochi, both of whom died of smallpox while campaigning near Qui ...
in a civil war sparked by the death of their father, Inca Huayna Capac. In December 1532, a party of ''
conquistador Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (, ; meaning 'conquerors') were the explorer-soldiers of the Spanish and Portuguese Empires of the 15th and 16th centuries. During the Age of Discovery, conquistadors sailed beyond Europe to the Americas, O ...
s'' (supported by the
Chanka The Chanka people (or Chanca) are a Quechua people ethnic group living in the regions of Apurimac, Ayacucho and Lamas of Peru. They were enemies of the Incas, and they were centered primarily in Andahuaylas, located in the modern-day region of ...
s, Huancas,
Cañari The Cañari (in Kichwa: Kañari) are an indigenous ethnic group traditionally inhabiting the territory of the modern provinces of Azuay and Cañar in Ecuador. They are descended from the independent pre-Columbian tribal confederation of the s ...
s and Chachapoyas as
Indian auxiliaries Indian auxiliaries were those indigenous peoples of the Americas who allied with Spain and fought alongside the conquistadors during the Spanish colonization of the Americas. These auxiliaries acted as guides, translators and porters, and in the ...
) led by
Francisco Pizarro Francisco Pizarro González, Marquess of the Atabillos (; ;  – 26 June 1541) was a Spanish conquistador, best known for his expeditions that led to the Spanish conquest of Peru. Born in Trujillo, Spain to a poor family, Pizarro chose ...
defeated and captured the Inca Emperor Atahualpa in the
Battle of Cajamarca The Battle of Cajamarca also spelled Cajamalca (though many contemporary scholars prefer to call it Massacre of Cajamarca) was the ambush and seizure of the Inca ruler Atahualpa by a small Spanish force led by Francisco Pizarro, on November 16, 1 ...
. The Spanish conquest of Peru was one of the most important campaigns in the
Spanish colonization of the Americas Spain began colonizing the Americas under the Crown of Castile and was spearheaded by the Spanish . The Americas were invaded and incorporated into the Spanish Empire, with the exception of Brazil, British America, and some small regions ...
. After years of preliminary exploration and military conflicts, it was the first step in a long campaign that took decades of fighting but ended in Spanish victory and colonization of the region known as the
Viceroyalty of Peru The Viceroyalty of Peru ( es, Virreinato del Perú, links=no) was a Spanish imperial provincial administrative district, created in 1542, that originally contained modern-day Peru and most of the Spanish Empire in South America, governed from ...
with its capital at
Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of t ...
, which was then known as "La Ciudad de los Reyes" (The City of Kings). The conquest of Peru led to spin-off campaigns throughout the viceroyalty as well as expeditions towards the Amazon Basin as in the case of Spanish efforts to quell Amerindian resistance. The last Inca resistance was suppressed when the Spaniards annihilated the
Neo-Inca State The Neo-Inca State, also known as the Neo-Inca state of Vilcabamba, was the Inca state established in 1537 at Vilcabamba by Manco Inca Yupanqui (the son of Inca emperor Huayna Capac). It is considered a rump state of the Inca Empire (1438–153 ...
in Vilcabamba in 1572. The Indigenous population dramatically collapsed overwhelmingly due to epidemic diseases introduced by the Spanish as well as exploitation and socio-economic change. Viceroy
Francisco de Toledo Francisco Álvarez de Toledo ( Oropesa, 10 July 1515 – Escalona, 21 April 1582), also known as ''The Viceroyal Solon'', was an aristocrat and soldier of the Kingdom of Spain and the fifth Viceroy of Peru. Often regarded as the "best of Peru ...
reorganized the country in the 1570s with gold and silver mining as its main economic activity and Amerindian
forced labor Forced labour, or unfree labour, is any work relation, especially in modern or early modern history, in which people are employed against their will with the threat of destitution, detention, violence including death, or other forms of ex ...
as its primary workforce. With the discovery of the great silver and gold lodes at
Potosí Potosí, known as Villa Imperial de Potosí in the colonial period, is the capital city and a municipality of the Department of Potosí in Bolivia. It is one of the highest cities in the world at a nominal . For centuries, it was the location o ...
(present-day Bolivia) and
Huancavelica Huancavelica () or Wankawillka in Quechua is a city in Peru. It is the capital of the department of Huancavelica and according to the 2017 census had a population of 49,570 people. The city was established on August 5, 1572 by the Viceroy ...
, the viceroyalty flourished as an important provider of mineral resources. Peruvian
bullion Bullion is non-ferrous metal that has been refined to a high standard of elemental purity. The term is ordinarily applied to bulk metal used in the production of coins and especially to precious metals such as gold and silver. It comes from t ...
provided revenue for the Spanish Crown and fueled a complex trade network that extended as far as Europe and the Philippines. The commercial and population exchanges between Latin America and Asia undergone via the
Manila Galleon fil, Galyon ng Maynila , english_name = Manila Galleon , duration = From 1565 to 1815 (250 years) , venue = Between Manila and Acapulco , location = New Spain (Spanish Empire) ...
s transiting through Acapulco, had
Callao Callao () is a Peruvian seaside city and Regions of Peru, 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 o ...
at Peru as the furthest endpoint of the trade route in the Americas. In relation to this, Don
Sebastian Hurtado de Corcuera Sebastian may refer to: People * Sebastian (name), including a list of persons with the name Arts, entertainment, and media Films and television * ''Sebastian'' (1968 film), British spy film * ''Sebastian'' (1995 film), Swedish drama film ...
, governor of Panama was also responsible for settling
Zamboanga City Zamboanga City, officially the City of Zamboanga (Chavacano and es, Ciudad de Zamboanga, Tausug language, Tausūg: ''Dāira sin Sambuangan'', fil, Lungsod ng Zamboanga, ceb, Dakbayan sa Zamboanga), is a city in the Zamboanga Peninsula region ...
in the Philippines, which now speak a
Spanish Creole A Spanish creole, or Spanish-based creole language, is a creole language (contact language with native speakers) for which Spanish serves as its substantial '' lexifier''. A number of creole languages are influenced to varying degrees by the Sp ...
by employing Peruvian soldiers and colonists. Because of lack of available workforce,
African slaves Slavery has historically been widespread in Africa. Systems of servitude and slavery were common in parts of Africa in ancient times, as they were in much of the rest of the ancient world. When the trans-Saharan slave trade, Indian Ocean sl ...
were added to the labor population. The expansion of a colonial administrative apparatus and bureaucracy paralleled the economic reorganization. With the conquest started the spread of Christianity in South America; most people were forcefully converted to
Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
, with Spanish clerics believing like Puritan divines of English colonies later that the Native Peoples "had been corrupted by the Devil, who was working "through them to frustrate" their foundations. It only took a generation to convert the population. They built churches in every city and replaced some of the Inca temples with churches, such as the
Coricancha Coricancha, Koricancha, Qoricancha or Qorikancha (''"The Golden Temple,"'' from Quechua ''quri'' gold; ''kancha'' enclosure) was the most important temple in the Inca Empire. It is located in Cusco, Peru, which was the capital of the empire. ...
in the city of Cusco. The church employed the
Inquisition The Inquisition was a group of institutions within the Catholic Church whose aim was to combat heresy, conducting trials of suspected heretics. Studies of the records have found that the overwhelming majority of sentences consisted of penances, ...
, making use of torture to ensure that newly converted Catholics did not stray to other religions or beliefs, and monastery schools, educating girls, especially of the Inca nobility and upper class, "until they were old enough either to profess o become a nunor to leave the monastery and assume the role ('estado') in the Christian society that their fathers planned to erect" in Peru. Peruvian Catholicism follows the
syncretism Syncretism () is the practice of combining different beliefs and various school of thought, schools of thought. Syncretism involves the merging or religious assimilation, assimilation of several originally discrete traditions, especially in t ...
found in many Latin American countries, in which religious native rituals have been integrated with Christian celebrations.Conquest and Colony of Peru. In this endeavor, the church came to play an important role in the
acculturation Acculturation is a process of social, psychological, and cultural change that stems from the balancing of two cultures while adapting to the prevailing culture of the society. Acculturation is a process in which an individual adopts, acquires and ...
of the Natives, drawing them into the cultural orbit of the Spanish settlers. By the 18th century, declining silver production and economic diversification greatly diminished royal income. In response, the Crown enacted the
Bourbon Reforms The Bourbon Reforms ( es, Reformas Borbónicas) consisted of political and economic changes promulgated by the Spanish Crown under various kings of the House of Bourbon, since 1700, mainly in the 18th century. The beginning of the new Crown's po ...
, a series of
edict An edict is a decree or announcement of a law, often associated with monarchism, but it can be under any official authority. Synonyms include "dictum" and "pronouncement". ''Edict'' derives from the Latin edictum. Notable edicts * Telepinu Proc ...
s that increased taxes and partitioned the
Viceroyalty A viceroyalty was an entity headed by a viceroy. It dates back to the Spanish conquest of the Americas in the sixteenth century. France *Viceroyalty of New France Portuguese Empire In the scope of the Portuguese Empire, the term "Viceroyalty o ...
. The new laws provoked Túpac Amaru II's rebellion and other revolts, all of which were suppressed. As a result of these and other changes, the Spaniards and their creole successors came to monopolize control over the land, seizing many of the best lands abandoned by the massive native depopulation. However, the Spanish did not resist the Portuguese expansion of Brazil across the meridian. The
Treaty of Tordesillas The Treaty of Tordesillas, ; pt, Tratado de Tordesilhas . signed in Tordesillas, Spain on 7 June 1494, and authenticated in Setúbal, Portugal, divided the newly discovered lands outside Europe between the Portuguese Empire and the Spanish Emp ...
was rendered meaningless between 1580 and 1640 while Spain controlled Portugal. The need to ease communication and trade with Spain led to the split of the viceroyalty and the creation of new viceroyalties of New Granada and
Rio de la Plata Rio or Río is the Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and Maltese word for "river". When spoken on its own, the word often means Rio de Janeiro, a major city in Brazil. Rio or Río may also refer to: Geography Brazil * Rio de Janeiro * Rio do Sul, a ...
at the expense of the territories that formed the
Viceroyalty of Peru The Viceroyalty of Peru ( es, Virreinato del Perú, links=no) was a Spanish imperial provincial administrative district, created in 1542, that originally contained modern-day Peru and most of the Spanish Empire in South America, governed from ...
; this reduced the power, prominence and importance of Lima as the viceroyal capital and shifted the lucrative
Andean The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the List of mountain ranges#Mountain ranges by length, longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range i ...
trade to
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
and
Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city of Colombia, and one of the larges ...
, while the fall of the mining and textile production accelerated the progressive decay of the Viceroyalty of Peru. Eventually, the viceroyalty would dissolve, as with much of the Spanish empire, when challenged by national independence movements at the beginning of the nineteenth century. These movements led to the formation of the majority of modern-day countries of South America in the territories that at one point or another had constituted the Viceroyalty of Peru. The conquest and colony brought a mix of cultures and ethnicities that did not exist before the Spanish conquered the Peruvian territory. Even though many of the Inca traditions were lost or diluted, new customs, traditions and knowledge were added, creating a rich mixed Peruvian culture. Two of the most important Indigenous rebellions against the Spanish were that of
Juan Santos Atahualpa Juan Santos Atahualpa Apu-Inca Huayna Capac (c. 1710 – c. 1756) was the messianic leader of a successful indigenous rebellion in the Amazon Basin and Andean foothills against the Viceroyalty of Peru in the Spanish Empire. The rebellion began i ...
in 1742, and Rebellion of
Túpac Amaru II José Gabriel Condorcanqui ( – May 18, 1781)known as Túpac Amaru II was an indigenous Cacique who led a large Andean rebellion against the Spanish in Peru. He later became a mythical figure in the Peruvian struggle for independence and in ...
in 1780 around the highlands near Cuzco.


Independence

In the early 19th century, while most South American nations were swept by
wars of independence This is a list of wars of independence (also called liberation wars). These wars may or may not have been successful in achieving a goal of independence. List See also * Lists of active separatist movements * List of civil wars * List of o ...
, Peru remained a
royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governme ...
stronghold. As the elite vacillated between emancipation and loyalty to the Spanish Monarchy,
independence Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...
was achieved only after the occupation by military campaigns of
José de San Martín José Francisco de San Martín y Matorras (25 February 177817 August 1850), known simply as José de San Martín () or '' the Liberator of Argentina, Chile and Peru'', was an Argentine general and the primary leader of the southern and cent ...
and
Simón Bolívar Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios (24 July 1783 – 17 December 1830) was a Venezuelan military and political leader who led what are currently the countries of Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Panama and B ...
. The economic crises, the loss of power of Spain in Europe, the war of independence in North America, and Native uprisings all contributed to a favorable climate to the development of emancipation ideas among the C''riollo'' population in South America. However, the Criollo oligarchy in Peru enjoyed privileges and remained loyal to the Spanish Crown. The liberation movement started in Argentina where autonomous juntas were created as a result of the loss of authority of the Spanish government over its colonies. After fighting for the independence of the Viceroyalty of Rio de la Plata,
José de San Martín José Francisco de San Martín y Matorras (25 February 177817 August 1850), known simply as José de San Martín () or '' the Liberator of Argentina, Chile and Peru'', was an Argentine general and the primary leader of the southern and cent ...
created the
Army of the Andes The Army of the Andes ( es, Ejército de los Andes) was a military force created by the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata (Argentina) and mustered by general José de San Martín in his campaign to free Chile from the Spanish Empire. In 181 ...
and crossed the Andes in 21 days. Once in Chile, he joined forces with Chilean army General
Bernardo O'Higgins Bernardo O'Higgins Riquelme (; August 20, 1778 – October 24, 1842) was a Chilean independence leader who freed Chile from Spanish rule in the Chilean War of Independence. He was a wealthy landowner of Basque-Spanish and Irish ancestry. Althou ...
and liberated the country in the battles of
Chacabuco Chacabuco is one of the many abandoned nitrate or "saltpeter" towns ("oficinas salitreras" in Spanish) in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. Other nitrate towns of the Atacama Desert include Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works. Unlike ...
and Maipú in 1818. On 7 September 1820, a fleet of eight warships arrived in the port of Paracas under the command of General José de San Martin and Thomas Cochrane, who was serving in the Chilean Navy. Immediately on 26 October, they took control of the town of
Pisco Pisco is a colorless or yellowish-to-amber colored brandy produced in winemaking regions of Peru and Chile. Made by distilling fermented grape juice into a high-proof spirit, it was developed by 16th-century Spanish settlers as an alternative t ...
. San Martin settled in
Huacho Huacho () is a city in Peru, capital of the Huaura Province and capital of the Lima Region. Also is the most populated city of the Lima Region and Norte Chico. It is located 223 feet (68 metres) above sea level and 148 km north of the city of ...
on 12 November, where he established his headquarters while Cochrane sailed north and blockaded the port of
Callao Callao () is a Peruvian seaside city and Regions of Peru, 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 o ...
in Lima. At the same time in the north,
Guayaquil , motto = Por Guayaquil Independiente en, For Independent Guayaquil , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Ecuador#South America , pushpin_re ...
was occupied by rebel forces under the command of Gregorio Escobedo. Because Peru was the stronghold of the Spanish government in South America, San Martin's strategy to liberate Peru was to use diplomacy. He sent representatives to Lima urging the
Viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning "k ...
that Peru be granted independence, however, all negotiations proved unsuccessful. The Viceroy of Peru, Joaquín de la Pazuela named
José de la Serna José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced differently in each language: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , is an old vernacul ...
commander-in-chief of the loyalist army to protect Lima from the threatened invasion by San Martin. On 29 January, de la Serna organized a coup against de la Pazuela, which was recognized by Spain and he was named Viceroy of Peru. This internal power struggle contributed to the success of the liberating army. To avoid a military confrontation, San Martin met the newly appointed viceroy, José de la Serna, and proposed to create a
constitutional monarchy A constitutional monarchy, parliamentary monarchy, or democratic monarchy is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in decision making. Constitutional monarchies dif ...
, a proposal that was turned down. De la Serna abandoned the city, and on 12 July 1821, San Martin occupied Lima and declared Peruvian independence on 28 July 1821. He created the first Peruvian flag.
Upper Peru Upper Peru (; ) is a name for the land that was governed by the Real Audiencia of Charcas. The name originated in Buenos Aires towards the end of the 18th century after the Audiencia of Charcas was transferred from the Viceroyalty of Peru to th ...
(Bolivia) remained as a Spanish stronghold until the army of
Simón Bolívar Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios (24 July 1783 – 17 December 1830) was a Venezuelan military and political leader who led what are currently the countries of Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Panama and B ...
liberated it three years later. José de San Martin was declared Protector of Peru. Peruvian national identity was forged during this period, as Bolivarian projects for a Latin American Confederation floundered and a union with Bolivia proved ephemeral. Simon Bolivar launched his campaign from the north, liberating the
Viceroyalty of New Granada The Viceroyalty of New Granada ( es, Virreinato de Nueva Granada, links=no ) also called Viceroyalty of the New Kingdom of Granada or Viceroyalty of Santafé was the name given on 27 May 1717, to the jurisdiction of the Spanish Empire in norther ...
in the Battles of
Carabobo , anthem = '' Himno del Estado Carabobo'' , image_map = Carabobo in Venezuela.svg , map_alt = , map_caption = Location within Venezuela , pushpin_map = , pushpin_map_ ...
in 1821 and Pichincha a year later. In July 1822, Bolivar and San Martin gathered in the
Guayaquil Conference The Guayaquil Conference ( es, Conferencia de Guayaquil) was a meeting that took place on July 26 and 27, 1822 in the port city of Guayaquil (today part of Ecuador) between libertadors José de San Martín and Simón de Bolívar to discuss the ...
. Bolivar was left in charge of fully liberating Peru while San Martin retired from politics after the first parliament was assembled. The newly founded
Peruvian Congress The Congress of the Republic of Peru ( es, Congreso de la República) is the unicameral body that assumes legislative power in Peru. Congress' composition is established by Chapter I of Title IV of the Constitution of Peru. Congress is compose ...
named Bolivar dictator of Peru, giving him the power to organize the military. With the help of
Antonio José de Sucre Antonio José de Sucre y Alcalá (; 3 February 1795 – 4 June 1830), known as the "Gran Mariscal de Ayacucho" ( en, "Grand Marshal of Ayacucho"), was a Venezuelan independence leader who served as the president of Peru and as the second pr ...
, they defeated the larger Spanish army in the
Battle of Junín The Battle of Junín was a military engagement of the Peruvian War of Independence, fought in the highlands of the Junín Region on 6 August 1824. The preceding February the royalists had regained control of Lima, and having regrouped in Trujill ...
on 6 August 1824 and the decisive
Battle of Ayacucho The Battle of Ayacucho ( es, Batalla de Ayacucho, ) was a decisive military encounter during the Peruvian War of Independence. This battle secured the independence of Peru and ensured independence for the rest of South America. In Peru it is co ...
on 9 December of the same year, consolidating the independence of Peru and Alto Peru. Alto Peru was later established as Bolivia. During the early years of the Republic, endemic struggles for power between military leaders caused political instability.


19th century

From the 1840s to the 1860s, Peru enjoyed a period of stability under the presidency of
Ramón Castilla Ramón Castilla y Marquesado (; 31 August 1797 – 30 May 1867) was a Peruvian ''caudillo'' who served as President of Peru three times as well as the Interim President of Peru (Revolution Self-proclaimed President) in 1863. His earliest pr ...
, through increased state revenues from
guano Guano (Spanish from qu, wanu) is the accumulated excrement of seabirds or bats. As a manure, guano is a highly effective fertilizer due to the high content of nitrogen, phosphate, and potassium, all key nutrients essential for plant growth. G ...
exports. However, by the 1870s, these resources had been depleted, the country was heavily indebted, and political in-fighting was again on the rise. Peru embarked on a railroad-building program that helped but also bankrupted the country. In 1879, Peru entered the
War of the Pacific The War of the Pacific ( es, link=no, Guerra del Pacífico), also known as the Saltpeter War ( es, link=no, Guerra del salitre) and by multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought ...
which lasted until 1884.
Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...
invoked its alliance with Peru against Chile. The
Peruvian Government The Republic of Peru is a unitary state with a Multi-party system, multi-party semi-presidential system. The current government was established by the 1993 Constitution of Peru. The government is composed of three branches, being executive, judi ...
tried to mediate the dispute by sending a diplomatic team to negotiate with the Chilean government, but the committee concluded that war was inevitable. Chile declared war on 5 April 1879. Almost five years of war ended with the loss of the department of Tarapacá and the provinces of
Tacna Tacna was known for its mining industry; it had significant deposits of sodium nitrate and other resources. Its economic prosperity attracted a wave of immigrants from Italy. Today, their Italian Peruvian descendants live in the city and many of t ...
and
Arica Arica ( ; ) is a Communes of Chile, commune and a port city with a population of 222,619 in the Arica Province of northern Chile's Arica y Parinacota Region. It is Chile's northernmost city, being located only south of the border with Peru. The ...
, in the Atacama region. Two outstanding military leaders throughout the war were
Francisco Bolognesi Francisco Bolognesi Cervantes (November 4, 1816 – June 7, 1880) was a Peruvian military general. He is considered a national hero in Peru and was declared patron of the Army of Peru by the government of Peru on January 2 of 1951. Early life a ...
and
Miguel Grau Miguel María Grau Seminario (27 July 1834 – 8 October 1879) was the most renowned Peruvian naval officer and hero of the naval battle of Angamos during the War of the Pacific (1879–1884). He was known as ''el Caballero de los Mares'' (Span ...
. Originally Chile committed to a referendum for the cities of Arica and Tacna to be held years later, to self determine their national affiliation. However, Chile refused to apply the Treaty, and neither of the countries could determine the statutory framework. After the War of the Pacific, an extraordinary effort of rebuilding began. The government started to initiate a number of social and economic reforms to recover from the damage of the war. Political stability was achieved only in the early 1900s.


20th century

Internal struggles after the war were followed by a period of stability under the
Civilista Party The Civilista Party ( es, Partido Civil, PC) was a political party in Peru. History Founded as a countermeasure against the growing power of the military in Peru during the first half of the Republic, the party's sole purpose was to establish a ...
, which lasted until the onset of the authoritarian regime of
Augusto B. Leguía Augusto Bernardino Leguía y Salcedo (February 19, 1863 – February 6, 1932) was a Peruvian politician who served as President of Peru from 1908 to 1912 and from 1919 to 1930, the latter term known as ''El Oncenio de Leguía'' (Leguía's E ...
. The
Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
caused the downfall of Leguía, renewed political turmoil, and the emergence of the
American Popular Revolutionary Alliance The Peruvian Aprista Party ( es, Partido Aprista Peruano, PAP) () is a Peruvian political party and a member of the Socialist International. The party was founded as the American Popular Revolutionary Alliance (APRA) by Víctor Raúl Haya de l ...
(APRA). The rivalry between this organization and a coalition of the elite and the military defined Peruvian politics for the following three decades. A final peace treaty in 1929, signed between Peru and Chile called the Treaty of Lima, returned
Tacna Tacna was known for its mining industry; it had significant deposits of sodium nitrate and other resources. Its economic prosperity attracted a wave of immigrants from Italy. Today, their Italian Peruvian descendants live in the city and many of t ...
to Peru. Between 1932 and 1933, Peru was engulfed in a year-long war with Colombia over a territorial dispute involving the
Amazonas Department Amazonas () is a department of Southern Colombia in the south of the country. It is the largest department in area while also having the 3rd smallest population. Its capital is Leticia and its name comes from the Amazon River, which drains t ...
and its capital Leticia. Later, in 1941, Peru and Ecuador fought the
Ecuadorian–Peruvian War The Ecuadorian–Peruvian War, known locally as the War of '41 ( es, link=no, Guerra del 41), was a South American border war fought between 5–31 July 1941. It was the first of three military conflicts between Ecuador and Peru during the 20th ...
, after which the
Rio Protocol The Protocol of Peace, Friendship, and Boundaries between Peru and Ecuador, or Rio Protocol for short, was an international agreement signed in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on January 29, 1942, by the foreign ministers of Peru and Ecuador, with t ...
sought to formalize the boundary between those two countries. In a military coup on 29 October 1948, General
Manuel A. Odría Manuel Arturo Odría Amoretti (26 November 1896 – 18 February 1974) was a military officer who served as the 45th President of Peru, essentially ruling as a military dictator. Biography Early life and military career Manuel Odría was ...
became president. Odría's presidency was known as the ''Ochenio''. He came down hard on APRA, momentarily pleasing the oligarchy and all others on the right, but followed a
populist Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term developed ...
course that won him great favor with the poor and lower classes. A thriving economy allowed him to indulge in expensive but crowd-pleasing social policies. At the same time, however,
civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life of ...
were severely restricted and corruption was rampant throughout his regime. Odría was succeeded by
Manuel Prado Ugarteche Manuel Carlos Prado y Ugarteche (April 21, 1889 – August 15, 1967) was a banker who served twice as President of Peru. Son of former president Mariano Ignacio Prado, he was born in Lima and served as the nation's 43rd (1939 - 1945) and 46th (1 ...
. However, widespread allegations of fraud prompted the Peruvian military to depose Prado and install a military junta, via a
coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...
led by
Ricardo Pérez Godoy Ricardo Pío Pérez Godoy (9 June 1905 – 26 July 1982) was a general of the Peruvian army who launched a coup d'état in July 1962, headed a military junta until March 1963 and served as the 47th President of Peru (1st President of the Militar ...
. Godoy ran a short transitional government and held new elections in 1963, which were won by
Fernando Belaúnde Terry Fernando is a Spanish and Portuguese given name and a surname common in Spain, Portugal, Italy, France, Switzerland, former Spanish or Portuguese colonies in Latin America, Africa, the Philippines, India, and Sri Lanka. It is equivalent to the G ...
who assumed presidency until 1968. Belaúnde was recognized for his commitment to the democratic process. On October 3, 1968, another
coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...
led by a group of officers led by General
Juan Velasco Alvarado Juan Francisco Velasco Alvarado (June 16, 1910 – December 24, 1977) was a Peruvian general who served as the President of Peru after a successful coup d'état against Fernando Belaúnde's presidency in 1968. Under his presidency, nationalism ...
brought the army to power with the aim of applying a doctrine of "social progress and integral development", nationalist and reformist, influenced by the
CEPAL The United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, known as ECLAC, UNECLAC or in Spanish and Portuguese CEPAL, is a United Nations regional commission to encourage economic cooperation. ECLAC includes 46 member States (2 ...
theses on dependence and underdevelopment. Six days after the golpe, Velasco proceeded to nationalize the ''International Petroleum Corporation'' (IPC), the North American company that exploited Peruvian oil, and then launched a reform of the state apparatus, an agrarian reform. It was the biggest agrarian reform ever undertaken in Latin America: it abolished the latifunda system and modernized agriculture through a more equitable redistribution of land (90% of the peasants formed cooperatives or agricultural societies of social interest). Land was to be owned by those who cultivated it, and large landowners were expropriated. The only large properties allowed were cooperatives. Between 1969 and 1976, 325,000 families received land from the state with an average size of 73.6 acres. The "revolutionary government" also planned massive investments in education, elevated the
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 ...
language – spoken by nearly half the population but hitherto despised by the authorities – to a status equivalent to that of Spanish and established equal rights for natural children. Peru wished to free itself from any dependence and carried out a third-world foreign policy. The United States responded with commercial, economic and diplomatic pressure. In 1973, Peru seemed to triumph over the financial blockade imposed by Washington by negotiating a loan from the International Development Bank to finance its agricultural and mining development policy. The relations with Chile became very tense after the coup d'état of the
general Pinochet Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte (, , , ; 25 November 1915 – 10 December 2006) was a Chilean general who ruled Chile from 1973 to 1990, first as the leader of the Military Junta of Chile from 1973 to 1981, being declared President of ...
. General Edgardo Mercado Jarrin (Prime Minister and Commander-in-Chief of the Army) and Admiral Guillermo Faura Gaig (Minister of the Navy) both escaped assassination attempts within weeks of each other. In 1975, General
Francisco Morales Bermúdez Cerruti Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name ''Franciscus''. Nicknames In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed "Paco". San Francisco de Asís was known as ''Pater Comunitatis'' (father of ...
seized power and broke with the policies of his predecessor. His regime occasionally participated in
Operation Condor Operation Condor ( es, link=no, Operación Cóndor, also known as ''Plan Cóndor''; pt, Operação Condor) was a United States–backed campaign of political repression and state terror involving intelligence operations and assassination of o ...
in collaboration with other American military dictatorships. Peru engaged in a two week long conflict with Ecuador during the
Paquisha War The Paquisha War or Fake Paquisha War () was a military clash that took place between January and February 1981 between Ecuador and Peru over the control of three watchposts. While Peru felt that the matter was already decided in the Ecuadorian ...
in early 1981 as a result of territorial dispute between the two countries. The economic policy
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
Alan García Alan Gabriel Ludwig García Pérez (; 23 May 1949 – 17 April 2019) was a Peruvian politician who served as President of Peru The president of Peru ( es, link=no, presidente del Perú), officially called the president of the Republic of ...
distanced Peru from international markets further, resulting in lower foreign investment in the country. After the country experienced
chronic inflation Chronic inflation is an economic phenomenon occurring when a country experiences high inflation for a prolonged period (several years or decades) due to continual increases in the money supply among other things. In countries with chronic infla ...
, the Peruvian currency, the sol, was replaced by the ''
Inti INTI International University & Colleges are private university colleges located in Malaysia. The main campus was initially known as INTI University College until 31 May 2010 when the Higher Education Ministry announced its upgrade to universi ...
'' in mid-1985, which itself was later replaced by the
nuevo sol The sol (; plural: soles; currency sign: S/) is the currency of Peru; it is subdivided into 100 ''céntimos'' ("cents"). The ISO 4217 currency code is PEN. The sol replaced the Peruvian inti in 1991 and the name is a return to that of Peru's ...
in July 1991, at which time the new sol had a cumulative value of one billion old soles. The per capita annual income of Peruvians fell to $720 (below the level of 1960) and Peru's GDP dropped 20% at which national reserves were a negative $900 million. The economic turbulence of the time acerbated social tensions in Peru and partly contributed to the rise of violent rebel rural insurgent movements, like
Sendero Luminoso The Shining Path ( es, Sendero Luminoso), officially the Communist Party of Peru (, abbr. PCP), is a communist guerrilla group in Peru following Marxism–Leninism–Maoism and Gonzalo Thought. Academics often refer to the group as the Communis ...
(Shining Path) and MRTA, which caused great havoc throughout the country. The Shining Path had appeared in the universities in the 1970s. These students, many of them from peasant backgrounds, then returned to their communities and organized local party committees. The abandonment by the state of certain rural regions favored the establishment of the party. In June 1979, demonstrations for free education were severely repressed by the army: 18 people were killed according to the official report, but non-governmental estimates put the death toll at several dozen. This event led to a radicalization of political protests in the countryside and eventually to the outbreak of armed struggle. After the beginning of the armed struggle, the new recruits of the Shining Path were generally peasants with little political background, rather than truly political militants. The Peruvian armed forces grew frustrated with the inability of the García administration to handle the nation's crises and drafted
Plan Verde Green Plan was a clandestine military operation developed by the armed forces of Peru during the internal conflict in Peru; it involved the genocide of impoverished and indigenous Peruvians, the control or censorship of media in the nation and the ...
– which involved the
genocide Genocide is the intentional destruction of a people—usually defined as an ethnic, national, racial, or religious group—in whole or in part. Raphael Lemkin coined the term in 1944, combining the Greek word (, "race, people") with the Latin ...
of impoverished and indigenous Peruvians, the control or
censorship Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments ...
of the
media in Peru The mass media in Peru includes a variety of different types of Media (communication), media, including television, radio, cinema, newspapers, magazines, and Internet-based web sites. Much of the print-based media in Peru is over a century old, wit ...
and the establishment of a
neoliberal Neoliberalism (also neo-liberalism) is a term used to signify the late 20th century political reappearance of 19th-century ideas associated with free-market capitalism after it fell into decline following the Second World War. A prominent fa ...
economy controlled by a
military junta A military junta () is a government led by a committee of military leaders. The term ''junta'' means "meeting" or "committee" and originated in the national and local junta organized by the Spanish resistance to Napoleon's invasion of Spain in ...
in Peru – as an effort to overthrow his government.
Alberto Fujimori Alberto Kenya Fujimori Inomoto ( or ; born 28 July 1938) is a Peruvian politician, professor and former engineer who was President of Peru from 28 July 1990 until 22 November 2000. Frequently described as a dictator, * * * * * * he remains a ...
assumed the presidency in 1990 and according to Rospigliosi, the head of the National Intelligence Service (SIN) General Edwin “Cucharita” Díaz and
Vladimiro Montesinos Vladimiro Lenin Ilich Montesinos Torres (born 20 May 1945) is a former long-standing head of Peru's intelligence service, National Intelligence Service (SIN), under President Alberto Fujimori. In the year 2000, the infamous "Vladi-videos" came ...
played a key role with making President Fujimori abide by the military's demands while "an understanding was established between Fujimori, Montesinos and some of the military officers" involved in Plan Verde prior to Fujimori's inauguration. Fujimori would go on to adopt many of the policies outlined in Plan Verde. Fujimori's policies, prescribed by
Hernando de Soto Hernando de Soto (; ; 1500 – 21 May, 1542) was a Spanish explorer and '' conquistador'' who was involved in expeditions in Nicaragua and the Yucatan Peninsula. He played an important role in Francisco Pizarro's conquest of the Inca Empire ...
, led to the immediate suffering of poor Peruvians who saw unregulated prices increase rapidly, with those living in poverty seeing prices increase so much that they could no longer afford food. De Soto advocated for the collapse of Peru's society, with the economist saying that a civil crisis was necessary to support the policies of Fujimori. These drastic measures caused inflation to drop from 7,650% in 1990 to 139% in 1991 and 57% in 1992. Due to his controversial governance, Fujimori faced opposition to his reform efforts and utilized coup proposals from Plan Verde, dissolving Congress, suspending the judiciary, arresting several opposition leaders and assuming full powers in the '' auto-golpe'' ("self-coup") of 5 April 1992. He then revised the constitution; called new congressional elections; and implemented substantial economic reform, including privatization of numerous state-owned companies, creation of an investment-friendly climate, and sound management of the economy. Fujimori's administration was dogged by
insurgent An insurgency is a violent, armed rebellion against authority waged by small, lightly armed bands who practice guerrilla warfare from primarily rural base areas. The key descriptive feature of insurgency is its asymmetric warfare, asymmetric na ...
groups, most notably the Sendero Luminoso (also called the Shining Path), who carried out terrorist campaigns across the country throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Fujimori cracked down on the insurgents and was successful in largely quelling them by the late 1990s, but the fight was marred by atrocities committed by both the Peruvian security forces and the insurgents: the
Barrios Altos massacre The Barrios Altos massacre took place on 3 November 1991, in the Barrios Altos neighborhood of Lima, Peru. Fifteen people, including an eight-year-old child, were killed, and four more injured, by assailants who were later determined to be member ...
and La Cantuta massacre by Government paramilitary groups, and the bombings of Tarata and Frecuencia Latina by Sendero Luminoso. Those incidents subsequently came to symbolize the
human rights Human rights are Morality, moral principles or Social norm, normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for ce ...
violations committed in the last years of violence. His
Programa Nacional de Población The National Population Program ( es, link=no, Programa Nacional de Población), known as the National Program for Reproductive Health and Family Planning ( es, link=no, Programa Nacional de Salud Reproductiva y Planificación Familiar (PNSRPF)) ...
– an implementation of one of Plan Verde's proposals for the "total extermination" of impoverished Peruvians that would possibly be sympathetic to insurgent groups – also resulted with the
forced sterilization Compulsory sterilization, also known as forced or coerced sterilization, is a government-mandated program to Involuntary treatment, involuntarily Sterilization (medicine), sterilize a specific group of people. Sterilization removes a person's ca ...
of at least 300,000 poor and indigenous women. In early 1995, once again Peru and Ecuador clashed in the
Cenepa War The Cenepa War (26 January – 28 February 1995), also known as the Alto Cenepa War, was a brief and localized military conflict between Ecuador and Peru, fought over control of an area in Peruvian territory (i.e. in the eastern side of the Cord ...
, but in 1998 the governments of both nations signed a peace treaty that clearly demarcated the international boundary between them. In November 2000, Fujimori resigned from office and went into a self-imposed exile, initially avoiding prosecution for human rights violations and corruption charges by the new Peruvian authorities.


21st century

Since the end of the Fujimori regime, Peru has tried to fight corruption while sustaining economic growth. In spite of human rights progress since the time of insurgency, many problems are still visible and show the continued marginalization of those who suffered through the violence of the Peruvian conflict. A caretaker government presided over by
Valentín Paniagua Valentín Toribio Demetrio Agustin Paniagua Corazao (23 September 1936 – 16 October 2006) was a Peruvian lawyer and politician who briefly served as President of Peru from 2000 to 2001. Elected President of Congress on 16 November 2000, he a ...
took on the responsibility of conducting new presidential and congressional elections. Afterwards
Alejandro Toledo Alejandro Celestino Toledo Manrique (; born 28 March 1946) is a Peruvian politician who served President of Peru, from 2001 to 2006. He gained international prominence after leading the opposition against president Alberto Fujimori, who held ...
became president in 2001 to 2006. On 28 July 2006, former president
Alan García Alan Gabriel Ludwig García Pérez (; 23 May 1949 – 17 April 2019) was a Peruvian politician who served as President of Peru The president of Peru ( es, link=no, presidente del Perú), officially called the president of the Republic of ...
became President of Peru after winning the 2006 elections. In May 2008, Peru became a member of the
Union of South American Nations The Union of South American Nations (USAN; es, links=no, Unión de Naciones Suramericanas, UNASUR; pt, links=no, União de Nações Sul-Americanas, UNASUL; nl, links=no, Unie van Zuid-Amerikaanse Naties, UZAN; French: ''Union des nations s ...
. In April 2009, former president
Alberto Fujimori Alberto Kenya Fujimori Inomoto ( or ; born 28 July 1938) is a Peruvian politician, professor and former engineer who was President of Peru from 28 July 1990 until 22 November 2000. Frequently described as a dictator, * * * * * * he remains a ...
was convicted of human rights violations and
sentenced Sentenced was a Finnish gothic metal band that played melodic death metal in their early years. The band formed in 1989 in the town of Muhos and broke up in 2005. History Early years (1988–1991) Sentenced started in 1988 as Deformity and c ...
to 25 years in prison for his role in killings and kidnappings by the
Grupo Colina The (Spanish for "hill group") was a military anti-communist right wing death squad created in Peru that was active from 1990 until 1994, during the administration of president Alberto Fujimori. The group is known for committing several human ri ...
death squad A death squad is an armed group whose primary activity is carrying out extrajudicial killings or forced disappearances as part of political repression, genocide, ethnic cleansing, or revolutionary terror. Except in rare cases in which they are ...
during his government's battle against leftist guerrillas in the 1990s. On 5 June 2011,
Ollanta Humala Lieutenant colonel Ollanta Moisés Humala Tasso (; born 27 June 1962) is a Peruvian politician and former military officer who served as President of Peru from 2011 to 2016. Originally a socialist and left-wing nationalist, he is considered t ...
was elected president. During his presidency, Prime Minister
Ana Jara Ethel Ana del Rosario Jara Velásquez (born 11 May 1968) is a Peruvian lawyer and politician who was Prime Minister of Peru from July 2014 to April 2015.
and her cabinet were successfully censured, which was the first time in 50 years that a cabinet had been forced to resign from the Peruvian legislature. In 2016,
Pedro Pablo Kuczynski Pedro is a masculine given name. Pedro is the Spanish, Portuguese, and Galician name for ''Peter''. Its French equivalent is Pierre while its English and Germanic form is Peter. The counterpart patronymic surname of the name Pedro, meaning ...
was elected, though his government was short-lived as he
resigned Resignation is the formal act of leaving or quitting one's office or position. A resignation can occur when a person holding a position gained by election or appointment steps down, but leaving a position upon the expiration of a term, or choos ...
in 2018 amid various controversies surrounding his administration. Vice president
Martín Vizcarra Martín Alberto Vizcarra Cornejo (; born 22 March 1963) is a Peruvian engineer and politician who served as President of Peru from 2018 to 2020. Vizcarra previously served as Governor of the Department of Moquegua (2011–2014), First Vice Pre ...
then assumed office in March 2018 with generally favorable approval ratings. Alan García was involved in the
Operation Car Wash Operation Car Wash ( pt, Operação Lava Jato) was a criminal investigation by the Federal Police of Brazil's Curitiba branch. It began in March 2014 and was initially headed by investigative judge in France, but unlike judges in the common law ...
scandal and as police tried to arrest him, he committed suicide on 17 April 2019. Later that year, in July, police arrested Alejandro Toledo in California. Amid the crisis, on 30 September 2019, President Vizcarra dissolved the congress, and elections were held on 26 January 2020. The first case of
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
was confirmed on 6 March 2020. During the
COVID-19 pandemic in Peru The COVID-19 pandemic in Peru has resulted in confirmed cases of COVID-19 and deaths. The virus spread to Peru on 6 March 2020, when a 25-year-old man who had travelled to Spain, France, and the Czech Republic tested positive. On 15 March 20 ...
, most Peruvians were under a
stay-at-home order A stay-at-home order, safer-at-home order, movement control order (more common in Southeast Asia), or lockdown restrictions (in the United Kingdom) – also referred to by loose use of the terms (self-) quarantine, (self-) isolation, or lockdow ...
by President
Martin Vizcarra Martin may refer to: Places * Martin City (disambiguation) * Martin County (disambiguation) * Martin Township (disambiguation) Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Austral ...
. However, an economic crisis triggered by the pandemic led to his removal from the presidency, seen by many as a coup by
congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...
, and the far-right government of
Manuel Merino Manuel Arturo Merino de Lama (born 20 August 1961) is a Peruvian politician who briefly served as President of Peru for six days between 10 and 15 November 2020. He also served as the President of Congress from 16 March 2020 to 15 November 202 ...
, the new president, received a lot of backlash.
Protests A protest (also called a demonstration, remonstration or remonstrance) is a public expression of objection, disapproval or dissent towards an idea or action, typically a political one. Protests can be thought of as acts of coopera ...
sprang across the country, and after five days, Merino resigned. He was replaced by
Francisco Sagasti Francisco Rafael Sagasti Hochhausler OSP ( (); born 10 October 1944) is a Peruvian engineer, academic, and author who served as the President of Peru from November 2020 to July 2021. Sagasti has worked as an advisor for economic development a ...
. Sagasti led a provisional, centrist government, and enforced many of Vizcarra's former policies.
Elections An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operate ...
were held on 11 April 2021, and
Pedro Castillo José Pedro Castillo Terrones (; born 19 October 1969) is a Peruvian politician, former elementary school teacher, and union leader who served as the president of Peru, President of Peru from 28 July 2021 to 7 December 2022. On 7 December 2022, ...
of the
Free Peru Free Peru ( es, Perú Libre), officially the Free Peru National Political Party ( es, Partido Político Nacional Perú Libre), is a Marxist political party in Peru. Founded in 2008 as the Free Peru Political Regional Movement, the party was off ...
party won the first round, followed closely by
Keiko Fujimori Keiko Sofía Fujimori Higuchi (; ja, 藤森 恵子, Fujimori Keiko; born 25 May 1975) is a Peruvian politician. Fujimori is the eldest daughter of former Peruvian president Alberto Fujimori and Susana Higuchi. From August 1994 to November 2000, ...
. On 28 July 2021, Pedro Castillo was sworn in as the new
president of Peru The president of Peru ( es, link=no, presidente del Perú), officially called the president of the Republic of Peru ( es, link=no, presidente de la República del Perú), is the head of state and head of government of Peru. The president is th ...
after a narrow win in a tightly contested run-off election. The new Peruvian president Castillo appointed Guido Bellido, a member of Free Peru Party, as prime minister. That same year, Peru celebrated the bicentenary of independence on its 200th anniversary. In March and April 2022,
protests and demonstrations A protest (also called a demonstration, remonstration or remonstrance) is a public expression of objection, disapproval or dissent towards an idea or action, typically a political one. Protests can be thought of as acts of cooper ...
against the government of President Castillo were widely spread in the country. The demonstrators demanded the removal of President Pedro Castillo, because of difficult economic conditions and the allegations of corruption. Castillo faced multiple impeachment votes during his presidency from the opposition controlled Congress. On December 7, just hours before Congress was set to begin a third impeachment effort, Castillo tried to prevent this by attempting to dissolve the opposition-controlled legislature and create an "exceptional emergency government." In response, Congress quickly held an emergency session on the same day, during which it voted 101-6 (with 10 abstentions) to remove Castillo from office and replace him with
Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...
Dina Boluarte Dina Ercilia Boluarte Zegarra ( (); born 31 May 1962) is a Peruvian politician, civil servant, and lawyer currently serving as the president of Peru, President of Peru since 7 December 2022. She had served as the Vice President of Peru, first ...
. She became the country’s first female president. Castillo was arrested after trying to flee to the
Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...
embassy and was charged with the crime of rebellion.


Government and politics

Peru is a
unitary Unitary may refer to: Mathematics * Unitary divisor * Unitary element * Unitary group * Unitary matrix * Unitary morphism * Unitary operator * Unitary transformation * Unitary representation * Unitarity (physics) * ''E''-unitary inverse semigroup ...
semi-presidential A semi-presidential republic, is a republic in which a president exists alongside a prime minister and a cabinet, with the latter two being responsible to the legislature of the state. It differs from a parliamentary republic in that it has a ...
republic A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...
with a
multi-party system In political science, a multi-party system is a political system in which multiple political parties across the political spectrum run for national elections, and all have the capacity to gain control of government offices, separately or in coal ...
. The country has maintained a
liberal democratic Liberal democracy is the combination of a liberal political ideology that operates under an indirect democratic form of government. It is characterized by elections between multiple distinct political parties, a separation of powers into diff ...
system under its 1993 Constitution, which replaced a
constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When ...
that leaned the government to a federation to authorize more power to the president. It is also a
unitary republic A unitary state is a sovereign state governed as a single entity in which the central government is the supreme authority. The central government may create (or abolish) administrative divisions (sub-national units). Such units exercise only th ...
, in which the central government holds the most power and can create
administrative division Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...
s. The Peruvian system of government combines elements derived from the political systems of the United States (a
written constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these princi ...
, an autonomous
Supreme court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
, and a
presidential system A presidential system, or single executive system, is a form of government in which a head of government, typically with the title of president, leads an executive branch that is separate from the legislative branch in systems that use separati ...
) and the
People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
(a
unicameral Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature, which consists of one house or assembly, that legislates and votes as one. Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multic ...
congress, a
premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...
and ministry system). The Peruvian government is separated into three branches: * Legislature: the unicameral
Congress of Peru The Congress of the Republic of Peru ( es, Congreso de la República) is the unicameral body that assumes legislative power in Peru. Congress' composition is established by Chapter I of Title IV of the Constitution of Peru. Congress is compose ...
, consisting of 130 members of Congress (on a basis of population), the president of Congress, and the Permanent Commission; * Executive: the president, the
Council of Ministers A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or natio ...
, which in practice controls domestic legislation and serve as a Cabinet to the president, consisting of the
prime minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
and 18 ministers of the state; * Judiciary: the
Supreme Court of Peru The Supreme Court of Justice is the highest judicial court in Peru. Its jurisdiction extends over the entire territory of the nation. It is headquartered in the Palace of Justice (Peru), Palace of Justice in Lima. Structure The supreme court is ...
, also known as the Royal Audencia of Lima, composed of 18
justices A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...
including a supreme justice, along with 28 superior courts, 195
trial court A trial court or court of first instance is a court having original jurisdiction, in which trials take place. Appeals from the decisions of trial courts are usually made by higher courts with the power of appellate review (appellate courts). Mos ...
s, and 1,838 district courts. Under its constitution, the president of Peru is both
head of state A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...
and
government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
and is elected to a five-year term without immediate reelection. The president appoints
ministers Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of governme ...
who oversee the 18 ministries of the state, including the
prime minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
, into the
Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...
. The constitution designates minimal authority to the prime minister, who presides over cabinet meetings in which ministers advise the president and acts as a spokesperson on behalf of the
executive branch The Executive, also referred as the Executive branch or Executive power, is the term commonly used to describe that part of government which enforces the law, and has overall responsibility for the governance of a State (polity), state. In poli ...
. The president is also able to pose questions of confidence to the Congress of Peru, and consequently order the dissolution of congress, done in
1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...
by
Alberto Fujimori Alberto Kenya Fujimori Inomoto ( or ; born 28 July 1938) is a Peruvian politician, professor and former engineer who was President of Peru from 28 July 1990 until 22 November 2000. Frequently described as a dictator, * * * * * * he remains a ...
and in
2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
by
Martín Vizcarra Martín Alberto Vizcarra Cornejo (; born 22 March 1963) is a Peruvian engineer and politician who served as President of Peru from 2018 to 2020. Vizcarra previously served as Governor of the Department of Moquegua (2011–2014), First Vice Pre ...
. In the Congress of Peru, there are 130 Members of Congress from 25
administrative division Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...
s, determined by respective population, elected to five-year terms. Bills are proposed by the executive and
legislative A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government. Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known as p ...
powers and become law through a plurality vote in Congress. The judiciary is nominally independent, though political intervention into judicial matters has been common throughout history. The Congress of Peru can also pass a
motion of no confidence A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or mana ...
,
censure A censure is an expression of strong disapproval or harsh criticism. In parliamentary procedure, it is a debatable main motion that could be adopted by a majority vote. Among the forms that it can take are a stern rebuke by a legislature, a spir ...
ministers, as well as initiate
impeachment Impeachment is the process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In ...
s and
convict A convict is "a person found guilty of a crime and sentenced by a court" or "a person serving a sentence in prison". Convicts are often also known as "prisoners" or "inmates" or by the slang term "con", while a common label for former convict ...
executives. Due to broadly interpreted
impeachment Impeachment is the process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In ...
wording in the 1993 Constitution of Peru, the legislative branch can impeach the president without cause, effectively making the executive branch subject to Congress. In recent times, the legislative body has passed semi-successful impeachment and one successful impeachment;
Alberto Fujimori Alberto Kenya Fujimori Inomoto ( or ; born 28 July 1938) is a Peruvian politician, professor and former engineer who was President of Peru from 28 July 1990 until 22 November 2000. Frequently described as a dictator, * * * * * * he remains a ...
resigned prior to removal in 2000,
Pedro Pablo Kuczynski Pedro is a masculine given name. Pedro is the Spanish, Portuguese, and Galician name for ''Peter''. Its French equivalent is Pierre while its English and Germanic form is Peter. The counterpart patronymic surname of the name Pedro, meaning ...
resigned Resignation is the formal act of leaving or quitting one's office or position. A resignation can occur when a person holding a position gained by election or appointment steps down, but leaving a position upon the expiration of a term, or choos ...
in 2018 and
Martín Vizcarra Martín Alberto Vizcarra Cornejo (; born 22 March 1963) is a Peruvian engineer and politician who served as President of Peru from 2018 to 2020. Vizcarra previously served as Governor of the Department of Moquegua (2011–2014), First Vice Pre ...
was removed from office in 2020. Peru's
electoral system An electoral system or voting system is a set of rules that determine how elections and Referendum, referendums are conducted and how their results are determined. Electoral systems are used in politics to elect governments, while non-political ...
uses
compulsory voting Compulsory voting, also called mandatory voting, is the requirement in some countries that eligible citizens register and vote in elections. Penalties might be imposed on those who fail to do so without a valid reason. According to the CIA World F ...
for citizens from the age of 18 to 70, including dual-citizens and
Peruvians Peruvians ( es, peruanos) are the citizens of Peru. There were Andean and coastal ancient civilizations like Caral, which inhabited what is now Peruvian territory for several millennia before the Spanish conquest in the 16th century; Peruvian p ...
abroad. Members of Congress are
directly elected Direct election is a system of choosing political officeholders in which the voters directly cast ballots for the persons or political party that they desire to see elected. The method by which the winner or winners of a direct election are cho ...
by constituents in respective districts through
proportional voting Proportional representation (PR) refers to a type of electoral system under which subgroups of an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. The concept applies mainly to geographical (e.g. states, regions) and political divis ...
. The president is elected in a general election, along with the
vice president A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...
, through a majority in a
two-round system The two-round system (TRS), also known as runoff voting, second ballot, or ballotage, is a voting method used to elect a single candidate, where voters cast a single vote for their preferred candidate. It generally ensures a majoritarian resul ...
. Elections are observed and organized by the
National Jury of Elections The National Jury of Elections (''Jurado Nacional de Elecciones'', JNE) of Peru is an autonomous constitutional organ, headquartered in Lima. Its goal is to oversee the legality of electoral processes, guaranteeing the respect for the population' ...
,
National Office of Electoral Processes The National Office of Electoral Processes (''Oficina Nacional de Procesos Electorales'', ONPE) is the body in charge of organizing elections in Peru. Created in 1993, during the government of Alberto Fujimori, it is headquartered in the Lima Dist ...
, and the
National Registry of Identification and Civil Status The National Registry of Identification and Civil Status (''Registro Nacional de Identificación y Estado Civil'', RENIEC) is an autonomous constitutional body of the State of Peru. Its role is to maintain the records of births, marriages, divorce ...
. Peru uses a
multi-party system In political science, a multi-party system is a political system in which multiple political parties across the political spectrum run for national elections, and all have the capacity to gain control of government offices, separately or in coal ...
for
congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...
ional and general elections. Major groups that have formed governments, both on a federal and legislative level, are parties that have historically adopted
economic liberalism Economic liberalism is a political and economic ideology that supports a market economy based on individualism and private property in the means of production. Adam Smith is considered one of the primary initial writers on economic liberalism ...
,
progressivism Progressivism holds that it is possible to improve human societies through political action. As a political movement, progressivism seeks to advance the human condition through social reform based on purported advancements in science, tec ...
,
right-wing populism Right-wing populism, also called national populism and right-wing nationalism, is a political ideology that combines right-wing politics and populist rhetoric and themes. Its rhetoric employs anti-elitist sentiments, opposition to the Establi ...
(specifically
Fujimorism Fujimorism () denotes the policies and the political ideology of former President of Peru Alberto Fujimori as well as the personality cult built around him, his policies and his family. The ideology is defined by authoritarianism, its support for ...
),
nationalism Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a in-group and out-group, group of peo ...
, and
reformism Reformism is a political doctrine advocating the reform of an existing system or institution instead of its abolition and replacement. Within the socialist movement, reformism is the view that gradual changes through existing institutions can eve ...
. The most recent general election was held on 11 April 2021 and resulted in
Free Peru Free Peru ( es, Perú Libre), officially the Free Peru National Political Party ( es, Partido Político Nacional Perú Libre), is a Marxist political party in Peru. Founded in 2008 as the Free Peru Political Regional Movement, the party was off ...
winning the most seats in Congress, although it fell well short of a majority. A presidential runoff between
Pedro Castillo José Pedro Castillo Terrones (; born 19 October 1969) is a Peruvian politician, former elementary school teacher, and union leader who served as the president of Peru, President of Peru from 28 July 2021 to 7 December 2022. On 7 December 2022, ...
and
Keiko Fujimori Keiko Sofía Fujimori Higuchi (; ja, 藤森 恵子, Fujimori Keiko; born 25 May 1975) is a Peruvian politician. Fujimori is the eldest daughter of former Peruvian president Alberto Fujimori and Susana Higuchi. From August 1994 to November 2000, ...
took place on 5 June 2021 and resulted in the victory of Castillo.


Allegations of corruption in politics

Exceptionally many presidents of Peru have been ousted from office or imprisoned on allegations of corruption over the past three decades. Alberto Fujimori is serving a 25-year sentence in prison for commanding
death squad A death squad is an armed group whose primary activity is carrying out extrajudicial killings or forced disappearances as part of political repression, genocide, ethnic cleansing, or revolutionary terror. Except in rare cases in which they are ...
s that killed civilians in a counterinsurgency campaign during his tenure (1990–2000). He was later also found guilty of corruption. Former president Alan García (1985–1990 and 2006–2011) committed suicide in April 2019 when Peruvian police arrived to arrest him over allegations he participated in Odebrecht bribery scheme. Former president Alejandro Toledo is accused of allegedly receiving bribe from Brazilian construction firm
Odebrecht Odebrecht S.A. (), officially known as Novonor, is a Brazilian conglomerate, headquartered in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil, consisting of diversified businesses in the fields of engineering, construction, chemicals and petrochemicals. The company w ...
during his government (2001–2006). Former president Ollanta Humala (2011–2016) is also under investigation for allegedly receiving bribe from Odebrecht during his presidential election campaign. Humala's successor Pedro Pablo Kuczynski (2016–2018) remains under house arrest while prosecutors investigate him for favoring contracts with Odebrecht. Former president Martín Vizcarra (2018–2020) was ousted by Congress after media reports alleged he had received bribes while he was a regional governor years earlier.


Regions and territories

Peru is divided into 26 units: 24 departments, the
Constitutional Province of Callao 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 ...
and the
Province of Lima 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 ...
(LIM) – which is independent of any region and serves as the country's capital. Under the constitution, the 24 departments plus Callao Province have an elected "regional" government composed of the regional governor and the regional council. The governor constitutes the
executive body The Executive, also referred as the Executive branch or Executive power, is the term commonly used to describe that part of government which enforces the law, and has overall responsibility for the governance of a state. In political systems ba ...
, proposes
budget A budget is a calculation play, usually but not always financial, for a defined period, often one year or a month. A budget may include anticipated sales volumes and revenues, resource quantities including time, costs and expenses, environmenta ...
s, and creates decrees, resolutions, and regional programs. The Regional Council, the region's
legislative body A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government. Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known as p ...
, debates and votes on budgets, supervises regional officials, and can vote to remove the governor, deputy governor, or any member of the council from office. The regional governor and the Regional Council serve a term of four years, without immediate reelection. These governments plan regional development, execute public investment projects, promote economic activities, and manage public property. Provinces, such as the province of
Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of t ...
, are administered by a
municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counci ...
, headed by a mayor. The goal of devolving power to regional and municipal governments was among others to improve popular participation. NGOs played an important role in the
decentralization Decentralization or decentralisation is the process by which the activities of an organization, particularly those regarding planning and decision making, are distributed or delegated away from a central, authoritative location or group. Conce ...
process and still influence local politics. Some areas of Peru are defined as
metropolitan areas A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually com ...
which overlap district areas. The largest of them, the Lima metropolitan area, is the seventh- largest metropolis in the Americas.


Foreign relations


Over recent decades, Peru's foreign relations has historically been dominated by close ties with the United States and Asia, particularly through the
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC ) is an inter-governmental forum for 21 member economy, economies in the Pacific Rim that promotes free trade throughout the Asia-Pacific region.
(APEC), the
World Trade Organization The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization that regulates and facilitates international trade. With effective cooperation in the United Nations System, governments use the organization to establish, revise, and e ...
, the
Pacific Alliance The Pacific Alliance ( es, link=no, Alianza del Pacífico) is a Latin American trade bloc, formed by Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru, which all border the Pacific Ocean. The alliance was formed with the express purpose of improving regional in ...
,
Mercosur The Southern Common Market, commonly known by Spanish abbreviation Mercosur, and Portuguese Mercosul, is a South American trade bloc established by the Treaty of Asunción in 1991 and Protocol of Ouro Preto in 1994. Its full members are Argentina ...
, and the
Organization of American States The Organization of American States (OAS; es, Organización de los Estados Americanos, pt, Organização dos Estados Americanos, french: Organisation des États américains; ''OEA'') is an international organization that was founded on 30 April ...
(OAS). Peru is an active member of several regional trade blocs and is one of the founding members of the
Andean Community of Nations 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 l ...
. It is also a member of international organizations such as the
OAS OAS or Oas may refer to: Chemistry * O-Acetylserine, amino-acid involved in cysteine synthesis Computers * Open-Architecture-System, the main user interface of Wersi musical keyboards * OpenAPI Specification (originally Swagger Specification) ...
and the United Nations.
Javier Pérez de Cuéllar Javier Felipe Ricardo Pérez de Cuéllar de la Guerra (; ; 19 January 1920 – 4 March 2020) was a Peruvian diplomat and politician who served as the fifth Secretary-General of the United Nations from 1982 to 1991. He later served as Prime Mini ...
, a celebrated Peruvian diplomat, served as
United Nations Secretary General The secretary-general of the United Nations (UNSG or SG) is the chief administrative officer of the United Nations and head of the United Nations Secretariat, one of the six principal organs of the United Nations. The role of the secretary-ge ...
from 1981 to 1991. Peru has planned to be fully integrated into the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) by 2021, attributing its economic success and efforts to strengthen institutions as meeting factors to be a part of the OECD. Peru is a member of the
World Trade Organization The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization that regulates and facilitates international trade. With effective cooperation in the United Nations System, governments use the organization to establish, revise, and e ...
, and has pursued multiple major free trade agreements, most recently the Peru–United States Free Trade Agreement, the
China–Peru Free Trade Agreement The China–Peru Free Trade Agreement ( es, Tratado de Libre Comercio Perú – China) is a bilateral free trade agreement designed to eliminate obstacles to trade and investment between China and Peru. The two sides concluded talks in Novembe ...
, the European Union Free Trade Agreement, free trade agreements with Japan, and many others. Peru maintains an integrated relationship with other South American nations, and is a member of various South American intergovernmental agreements, more recently the
Organization of American States The Organization of American States (OAS; es, Organización de los Estados Americanos, pt, Organização dos Estados Americanos, french: Organisation des États américains; ''OEA'') is an international organization that was founded on 30 April ...
,
Mercosur The Southern Common Market, commonly known by Spanish abbreviation Mercosur, and Portuguese Mercosul, is a South American trade bloc established by the Treaty of Asunción in 1991 and Protocol of Ouro Preto in 1994. Its full members are Argentina ...
, the
Andean Community The Andean Community ( es, Comunidad Andina, CAN) is a free trade area with the objective of creating a customs union comprising the South American countries of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. The trade bloc was called the Andean Pact un ...
of Nations, the
Pacific Alliance The Pacific Alliance ( es, link=no, Alianza del Pacífico) is a Latin American trade bloc, formed by Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru, which all border the Pacific Ocean. The alliance was formed with the express purpose of improving regional in ...
, and the
APEC The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC ) is an inter-governmental forum for 21 member economies in the Pacific Rim that promotes free trade throughout the Asia-Pacific region.
. Peru has historically experienced stressed relations with Chile, including the Peru v Chile international court resolution and the Chilean-Peruvian maritime dispute, but the two countries have agreed to work in improving relations. Additionally, Peru has participated in taking a leading role in addressing the
crisis in Venezuela The crisis in Venezuela is an ongoing socioeconomic and political crisis that began in Venezuela during the presidency of Hugo Chávez and has worsened in Nicolás Maduro's presidency. It has been marked by hyperinflation, escalating starvation ...
through the establishment of the
Lima Group The Lima Group (GL; Spanish and pt, links=yes, Grupo de Lima, French: Groupe de Lima) is a multilateral body that was established following the Lima Declaration on 8 August 2017 in the Peruvian capital of Lima, where representatives of 12 cou ...
.


Military and law enforcement

Peru has the fourth largest military in Latin America. Peru's armed forcesthe
Armed Forces of Peru The Peruvian Armed Forces ( es, Fuerzas Armadas del Perú) are the military services of Peru, comprising independent Army, Navy and Air Force components. Their primary mission is to safeguard the country's independence, sovereignty and territoria ...
comprise the
Peruvian Navy The Peruvian Navy ( es, link=no, Marina de Guerra del Perú, abbreviated MGP) is the branch of the Peruvian Armed Forces tasked with surveillance, patrol and defense on lakes, rivers and the Pacific Ocean up to from the Peruvian littoral. Addit ...
(MGP), the
Peruvian Army The Peruvian Army ( es, Ejército del Perú, abbreviated EP) is the branch of the Peruvian Armed Forces tasked with safeguarding the independence, sovereignty and integrity of national territory on land through military force. Additional missions ...
(EP), and the
Peruvian Air Force The Peruvian Air Force ( es, link=no, Fuerza Aérea del Perú, FAP) is the branch of the Peruvian Armed Forces tasked with defending the nation and its interests through the use of air power. Additional missions include assistance in safeguardin ...
(FAP), in total numbering 392,660 personnel (including 120,660 regulars and 272,000 reservists) as of 2020. Their primary mission is to safeguard the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country. Their functions are separated by branch: * The
Peruvian Army The Peruvian Army ( es, Ejército del Perú, abbreviated EP) is the branch of the Peruvian Armed Forces tasked with safeguarding the independence, sovereignty and integrity of national territory on land through military force. Additional missions ...
is made up of the Chief of Staff, two Control Bodies, two Support Bodies, five Military Regions and six Command Rooms. * The
Peruvian Air Force The Peruvian Air Force ( es, link=no, Fuerza Aérea del Perú, FAP) is the branch of the Peruvian Armed Forces tasked with defending the nation and its interests through the use of air power. Additional missions include assistance in safeguardin ...
was officially created on 20 May 1929, with the name of Peruvian Aviation Corps. Its main function is to serve as the country's
air defense Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based, ...
. It also participates in social support campaigns for hard-to-reach populations, organizes air bridges during disasters, and participates in international peace missions. Its four major
air base An air base (sometimes referred to as a military air base, military airfield, military airport, air station, naval air station, air force station, or air force base) is an aerodrome used as a military base by a military force for the operation ...
s are located in the cities of
Piura Piura is a city in northwestern Peru located in the Sechura Desert on the Piura River. It is the capital of the Piura Region and the Piura Province. Its population was 484,475 as of 2017. It was here that Spanish Conqueror Francisco Pizarro fou ...
,
Callao Callao () is a Peruvian seaside city and Regions of Peru, 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 o ...
,
Arequipa Arequipa (; Aymara and qu, Ariqipa) is a city and capital of province and the eponymous department of Peru. It is the seat of the Constitutional Court of Peru and often dubbed the "legal capital of Peru". It is the second most populated city ...
and
Iquitos Iquitos (; ) is the capital city of Peru's Maynas Province and Loreto Region. It is the largest metropolis in the Peruvian Amazon, east of the Andes, as well as the ninth-most populous city of Peru. Iquitos is the largest city in the world th ...
. *The
Peruvian Navy The Peruvian Navy ( es, link=no, Marina de Guerra del Perú, abbreviated MGP) is the branch of the Peruvian Armed Forces tasked with surveillance, patrol and defense on lakes, rivers and the Pacific Ocean up to from the Peruvian littoral. Addit ...
is in charge of the country's maritime, river, and lake defense. It is made up of 26,000 sailors. Personnel are divided into three levels: superior personnel, junior personnel and seafarers. The military is governed by both the commander in chief,
Ministry of Defense {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...
, and Joint Command of the Armed Forces (CCFFAA). The CCFFAA has subordinates to the Operational Commands and Special Commands, with which it carries out the military operations that are required for the defense and the fulfillment of the tasks that the executive power provides.
Conscription Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day un ...
was abolished in 1999 and replaced by
voluntary military service A volunteer military system or all volunteer military system (AVMS) is a military service system that maintains the military only with applicants without compulsory conscription. A country may offer attractive pay and benefits through military re ...
. The
National Police of Peru The Peruvian National Police ( es, Policía Nacional del Perú, PNP) is the national police force of Peru. Its jurisdiction covers the nation's land, sea, and air territories. Formed from the merge of the Investigative Police, the Civil Guard, a ...
is often classified as a part of the armed forces. Although in fact it has a different organization and a wholly civil mission, its training and activities over more than two decades as an
anti-terrorist Counterterrorism (also spelled counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, incorporates the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, business, and intelligence agencies use to combat or el ...
force have produced markedly military characteristics, giving it the appearance of a virtual fourth military service with significant land, sea and air capabilities and approximately 140,000 personnel. The Peruvian armed forces report through the Ministry of Defense, while the National Police of Peru reports through the Ministry of Interior. Since the end of the crisis in Peru in 2000, the federal government has significantly reduced annual spending in defense. In the 2016–2017 budget, defense spending has constituted 1.1% of GDP ($2.3 billion), the second lowest spending relative to GDP in South America following Argentina. More recently, the Armed Forces of Peru have been used in
civil defense Civil defense ( en, region=gb, civil defence) or civil protection is an effort to protect the citizens of a state (generally non-combatants) from man-made and natural disasters. It uses the principles of emergency operations: prevention, miti ...
. In 2020, Peru used its military personnel and even reservists to enforce the strict
quarantine A quarantine is a restriction on the movement of people, animals and goods which is intended to prevent the spread of disease or pests. It is often used in connection to disease and illness, preventing the movement of those who may have been ...
measures placed during the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
.


Geography

Peru is located on the central western coast of South America facing the Pacific Ocean. It lies wholly in the Southern Hemisphere, its northernmost extreme reaching to 1.8 minutes of latitude or about south of the
equator The equator is a circle of latitude, about in circumference, that divides Earth into the Northern and Southern hemispheres. It is an imaginary line located at 0 degrees latitude, halfway between the North and South poles. The term can als ...
, covers of western South America. It borders Ecuador and Colombia to the north, Brazil to the east, Bolivia to the southeast, Chile to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. 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 ...
mountains run parallel to the Pacific Ocean; they define the three regions traditionally used to describe the country geographically. The ''costa'' (coast), to the west, is a narrow, largely arid plain except for valleys created by seasonal rivers. The ''sierra'' (highlands) is the region of the Andes; it includes the ''
Altiplano The Altiplano (Spanish for "high plain"), Collao (Quechua and Aymara: Qullaw, meaning "place of the Qulla") or Andean Plateau, in west-central South America, is the most extensive high plateau on Earth outside Tibet. The plateau is located at the ...
'' plateau as well as the highest peak of the country, the
Huascarán Huascarán () (Quechua: Waskaran), Nevado Huascarán or Mataraju is a mountain in the Peruvian province of Yungay (Ancash Department), situated in the Cordillera Blanca range of the western Andes. The southern summit of Huascarán (Huascarán ...
. The third region is the ''selva'' (jungle), a wide expanse of flat terrain covered by the
Amazon rainforest The Amazon rainforest, Amazon jungle or ; es, Selva amazónica, , or usually ; french: Forêt amazonienne; nl, Amazoneregenwoud. In English, the names are sometimes capitalized further, as Amazon Rainforest, Amazon Forest, or Amazon Jungle. ...
that extends east. Almost 60 percent of the country's area is located within this region. The country has fifty-four hydrographic basins, fifty-two of which are small coastal basins that discharge their waters into the Pacific Ocean. The final two are the
endorheic An endorheic basin (; also spelled endoreic basin or endorreic basin) is a drainage basin that normally retains water and allows no outflow to other external bodies of water, such as rivers or oceans, but drainage converges instead into lakes ...
basin of
Lake Titicaca Lake Titicaca (; es, Lago Titicaca ; qu, Titiqaqa Qucha) is a large freshwater lake in the Andes mountains on the border of Bolivia and Peru. It is often called the highest navigable lake in the world. By volume of water and by surface area, ...
, and the Amazon basin, which empties into the Atlantic Ocean. Both are delimited by the Andes mountain range. The Amazon basin is particularly noteworthy as it is the source of the Amazon River, which at 6872 km, is the longest river in the world, and covers 75% of Peruvian territory. Peru contains 4% of the planet's freshwater. Most Peruvian rivers originate in the peaks of the Andes and drain into one of three
basins Basin may refer to: Geography and geology * Depression (geology) ** Back-arc basin, a submarine feature associated with island arcs and subduction zones ** Debris basin, designed to prevent damage from debris flow ** Drainage basin (hydrology), a ...
. Those that drain toward the Pacific Ocean are steep and short, flowing only intermittently. Tributaries of the
Amazon River The Amazon River (, ; es, Río Amazonas, pt, Rio Amazonas) in South America is the largest river by discharge volume of water in the world, and the disputed longest river system in the world in comparison to the Nile. The headwaters of t ...
have a much larger flow, and are longer and less steep once they exit the ''sierra''. Rivers that drain into Lake Titicaca are generally short and have a large flow. Peru's longest rivers are the
Ucayali The Ucayali River ( es, Río Ucayali, ) is the main headstream of the Amazon River. It rises about north of Lake Titicaca, in the Arequipa region of Peru and becomes the Amazon at the confluence of the Marañón close to Nauta city. The city o ...
, the Marañón, the Putumayo, the Yavarí, the Huallaga, the Urubamba, the Mantaro, and the Amazon. The largest lake in Peru, Lake Titicaca between Peru and Bolivia high in the Andes, is also the largest of South America. The largest
reservoirs A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation. Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including control ...
, all in the coastal region of Peru, are the
Poechos Poechos Reservoir is a middle-sized reservoir on Peru's Chira River in the border area between Peru and Ecuador. Its purpose is to improve the accumulation of water stocks in the upper part of Peru's Chira basin by flood control, irrigation, drain ...
, Tinajones, San Lorenzo, and El Fraile reservoirs.


Climate

The combination of tropical latitude, mountain ranges, topography variations, and two ocean currents ( Humboldt and
El Niño El Niño (; ; ) is the warm phase of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and is associated with a band of warm ocean water that develops in the central and east-central equatorial Pacific (approximately between the International Date L ...
) gives Peru a large diversity of climates. The coastal region has moderate temperatures, low precipitation, and high humidity, except for its warmer, wetter northern reaches. In the mountain region, rain is frequent in summer, and temperature and humidity diminish with altitude up to the frozen peaks of the Andes. The
Peruvian Amazon Peruvian Amazonia ( es, Amazonía del Perú) is the area of the Amazon rainforest included within the country of Peru, from east of the Andes to the borders with Ecuador, Colombia, Brazil and Bolivia. This region comprises 60% of the country and ...
is characterized by heavy rainfall and high temperatures, except for its southernmost part, which has cold winters and seasonal rainfall.


Wildlife

Because of its varied geography and climate, Peru has a high biodiversity with 21,462 species of plants and animals reported as of 2003, 5,855 of them
endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
, and is one of the megadiverse countries. Peru has over 1,800
species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
of birds (120
endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
), over 500 species of
mammal Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur or ...
s, over 300 species of reptiles, and over 1,000 species of freshwater
fishes Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% of li ...
. The hundreds of mammals include rare species like the puma,
jaguar The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large cat species and the only living member of the genus '' Panthera'' native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the largest cat species in the Americas and the th ...
and spectacled bear. The Birds of Peru produce large amounts of
guano Guano (Spanish from qu, wanu) is the accumulated excrement of seabirds or bats. As a manure, guano is a highly effective fertilizer due to the high content of nitrogen, phosphate, and potassium, all key nutrients essential for plant growth. G ...
, an economically important export. The Pacific holds large quantities of
sea bass Sea bass is a common name for a variety of different species of marine fish. Many fish species of various families have been called sea bass. In Ireland and the United Kingdom, the fish sold and consumed as sea bass is exclusively the European ba ...
,
flounder Flounders are a group of flatfish species. They are demersal fish, found at the bottom of oceans around the world; some species will also enter estuaries. Taxonomy The name "flounder" is used for several only distantly related species, thou ...
,
anchovies An anchovy is a small, common forage fish of the family Engraulidae. Most species are found in marine waters, but several will enter brackish water, and some in South America are restricted to fresh water. More than 140 species are placed in 1 ...
,
tuna A tuna is a saltwater fish that belongs to the tribe Thunnini, a subgrouping of the Scombridae (mackerel) family. The Thunnini comprise 15 species across five genera, the sizes of which vary greatly, ranging from the bullet tuna (max length: ...
,
crustacean Crustaceans (Crustacea, ) form a large, diverse arthropod taxon which includes such animals as decapods, seed shrimp, branchiopods, fish lice, krill, remipedes, isopods, barnacles, copepods, amphipods and mantis shrimp. The crustacean group ...
s, and
shellfish Shellfish is a colloquial and fisheries term for exoskeleton-bearing aquatic invertebrates used as food, including various species of molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms. Although most kinds of shellfish are harvested from saltwater envir ...
, and is home to many sharks,
sperm whale The sperm whale or cachalot (''Physeter macrocephalus'') is the largest of the toothed whales and the largest toothed predator. It is the only living member of the genus ''Physeter'' and one of three extant species in the sperm whale famil ...
s, and whales. The invertebrate fauna is far less inventoried; at least beetles (Coleoptera) have been surveyed in the "Beetles of Peru" project, led by Caroline S. Chaboo, University of Nebraska, USA and this revealved more 12,000 documented and many new species for Peru. Peru also has an equally diverse
flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or '' skin flora''. E ...
. The coastal deserts produce little more than
cacti A cactus (, or less commonly, cactus) is a member of the plant family Cactaceae, a family comprising about 127 genera with some 1750 known species of the order Caryophyllales. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, from the Ancient Greek ...
, apart from hilly fog oases and river valleys that contain unique plant life. The Highlands above the tree-line known as puna is home to bushes,
cactus A cactus (, or less commonly, cactus) is a member of the plant family Cactaceae, a family comprising about 127 genera with some 1750 known species of the order Caryophyllales. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, from the Ancient Greek ...
, drought-resistant plants such as ichu, and the largest species of
bromeliad The Bromeliaceae (the bromeliads) are a family of monocot flowering plants of about 80 genera and 3700 known species, native mainly to the tropical Americas, with several species found in the American subtropics and one in tropical west Africa, ...
 – the spectacular
Puya raimondii ''Puya raimondii'', also known as queen of the Andes (English), titanka (Quechua) or puya de Raimondi (Spanish), is the largest species of bromeliad, its inflorescences reaching up to in height. It is native to the high Andes of Bolivia and Per ...
. The cloud-forest slopes of the Andes sustain
moss Mosses are small, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic division Bryophyta (, ) '' sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryophytes, which comprise liverworts, mosses, and hor ...
,
orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering ...
s, and bromeliads, and the
Amazon rainforest The Amazon rainforest, Amazon jungle or ; es, Selva amazónica, , or usually ; french: Forêt amazonienne; nl, Amazoneregenwoud. In English, the names are sometimes capitalized further, as Amazon Rainforest, Amazon Forest, or Amazon Jungle. ...
is known for its variety of trees and canopy plants. Peru had a 2019
Forest Landscape Integrity Index The Forest Landscape Integrity Index (FLII) is an annual global index of forest condition measured by degree of anthropogenic modification. Created by a team of 48 scientists, the FLII, in its measurement of 300m pixels of forest across the globe ...
mean score of 8.86/10, ranking it 14th globally out of 172 countries.


Economy

The economy of Peru is the 48th largest in the world (ranked by
Purchasing power parity Purchasing power parity (PPP) is the measurement of prices in different countries that uses the prices of specific goods to compare the absolute purchasing power of the countries' currency, currencies. PPP is effectively the ratio of the price of ...
),Peru
. CIA, The World Factbook
and the income level is classified as ''upper middle'' by the World Bank.The World Bank
''Data by country: Peru''
. Retrieved on 1 October 2011.
Peru is, , one of the world's fastest-growing economies owing to an economic boom experienced during the 2000s. It has an above-average
Human Development Index The Human Development Index (HDI) is a statistic composite index of life expectancy, education (mean years of schooling completed and expected years of schooling upon entering the education system), and per capita income indicators, whi ...
of 0.77 which has seen steady improvement over Historically, the country's economic performance has been tied to exports, which provide
hard currency In macroeconomics, hard currency, safe-haven currency, or strong currency is any globally traded currency that serves as a reliable and stable store of value. Factors contributing to a currency's ''hard'' status might include the stability and ...
to finance imports and external debt payments. Although they have provided substantial revenue, self-sustained growth and a more egalitarian
distribution of income In economics, income distribution covers how a country's total GDP is distributed amongst its population. Economic theory and economic policy have long seen income and its distribution as a central concern. Unequal distribution of income causes eco ...
have proven elusive. According to 2015 data, 19.3% of its total population is poor, including 9% that lives in extreme poverty. Inflation in 2012 was the lowest in Latin America at only 1.8%, but increased in 2013 as oil and commodity prices rose; it stands at 2.5%. The unemployment rate has fallen steadily and stands at 3.6%. Peruvian economic policy has varied widely over The 1968–1975 government of
Juan Velasco Alvarado Juan Francisco Velasco Alvarado (June 16, 1910 – December 24, 1977) was a Peruvian general who served as the President of Peru after a successful coup d'état against Fernando Belaúnde's presidency in 1968. Under his presidency, nationalism ...
introduced radical reforms, which included
agrarian reform Agrarian reform can refer either, narrowly, to government-initiated or government-backed redistribution of agricultural land (see land reform) or, broadly, to an overall redirection of the agrarian system of the country, which often includes land re ...
, the expropriation of foreign companies, the introduction of an economic planning system, and the creation of a large state-owned sector. These measures failed to achieve their objectives of
income redistribution Redistribution of income and wealth is the transfer of income and wealth (including physical property) from some individuals to others through a social mechanism such as taxation, welfare, public services, land reform, monetary policies, confisc ...
and the end of economic dependence on developed nations. Despite these results, most reforms were not reversed until the 1990s, when the liberalizing government of
Alberto Fujimori Alberto Kenya Fujimori Inomoto ( or ; born 28 July 1938) is a Peruvian politician, professor and former engineer who was President of Peru from 28 July 1990 until 22 November 2000. Frequently described as a dictator, * * * * * * he remains a ...
ended
price controls Price controls are restrictions set in place and enforced by governments, on the prices that can be charged for goods and services in a market. The intent behind implementing such controls can stem from the desire to maintain affordability of good ...
,
protectionism Protectionism, sometimes referred to as trade protectionism, is the economic policy of restricting imports from other countries through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, import quotas, and a variety of other government regulations. ...
, restrictions on
foreign direct investment A foreign direct investment (FDI) is an investment in the form of a controlling ownership in a business in one country by an entity based in another country. It is thus distinguished from a foreign portfolio investment by a notion of direct co ...
, and most state ownership of companies.
Services Service may refer to: Activities * Administrative service, a required part of the workload of university faculty * Civil service, the body of employees of a government * Community service, volunteer service for the benefit of a community or a p ...
account for 53% of Peruvian gross domestic product, followed by manufacturing (22.3%), extractive industries (15%), and taxes (9.7%). Recent economic growth had been fueled by
macroeconomic Macroeconomics (from the Greek prefix ''makro-'' meaning "large" + ''economics'') is a branch of economics dealing with performance, structure, behavior, and decision-making of an economy as a whole. For example, using interest rates, taxes, and ...
stability, improved
terms of trade The terms of trade (TOT) is the relative price of exports in terms of imports and is defined as the ratio of export prices to import prices. It can be interpreted as the amount of import goods an economy can purchase per unit of export goods. An i ...
, and rising investment and consumption. Trade was expected to increase further after the implementation of a free trade agreement with the United States signed on 12 April 2006. Peru's main exports were copper, gold, zinc, textiles, and fish meal; its major trade partners were the United States, China, Brazil, and Chile. Peru was ranked 70th in the
Global Innovation Index The Global Innovation Index is an annual ranking of countries by their capacity for, and success in, innovation, published by the World Intellectual Property Organization. It was started in 2007 by INSEAD and ''World Business'', a British maga ...
in 2021.


Mining

The country is heavily dependent on
mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic via ...
for the export of raw materials, which represent 60% of exports: in 2019, the country was the second world producer of
copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...
,
silver Silver is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂erǵ-, ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, whi ...
and
zinc Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodi ...
, eighth world producer of
gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...
, third world producer of
lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...
, the world's fourth largest producer of
tin Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn (from la, stannum) and atomic number 50. Tin is a silvery-coloured metal. Tin is soft enough to be cut with little force and a bar of tin can be bent by hand with little effort. When bent, t ...
, the fifth world's largest producer of
boron Boron is a chemical element with the symbol B and atomic number 5. In its crystalline form it is a brittle, dark, lustrous metalloid; in its amorphous form it is a brown powder. As the lightest element of the ''boron group'' it has th ...
and the world's fourth largest producer of
molybdenum Molybdenum is a chemical element with the symbol Mo and atomic number 42 which is located in period 5 and group 6. The name is from Neo-Latin ''molybdaenum'', which is based on Ancient Greek ', meaning lead, since its ores were confused with lea ...
. – not to mention gas and of oil. Little industrialized, Peru suffers from the international variation of commodity prices.


Agriculture

Peru is the world's largest producer of
quinoa Quinoa (''Chenopodium quinoa''; , from Quechua ' or ') is a flowering plant in the amaranth family. It is a herbaceous annual plant grown as a crop primarily for its edible seeds; the seeds are rich in protein, dietary fiber, B vitamins, and ...
, one of the 5 largest producers of
avocado The avocado (''Persea americana'') is a medium-sized, evergreen tree in the laurel family (Lauraceae). It is native to the Americas and was first domesticated by Mesoamerican tribes more than 5,000 years ago. Then as now it was prized for i ...
,
blueberry Blueberries are a widely distributed and widespread group of perennial flowering plants with blue or purple berries. They are classified in the section ''Cyanococcus'' within the genus ''Vaccinium''. ''Vaccinium'' also includes cranberries, bi ...
,
artichoke The globe artichoke (''Cynara cardunculus'' var. ''scolymus'' ),Rottenberg, A., and D. Zohary, 1996: "The wild ancestry of the cultivated artichoke." Genet. Res. Crop Evol. 43, 53–58. also known by the names French artichoke and green articho ...
and
asparagus Asparagus, or garden asparagus, folk name sparrow grass, scientific name ''Asparagus officinalis'', is a perennial flowering plant species in the genus ''Asparagus''. Its young shoots are used as a spring vegetable. It was once classified in ...
, one of the 10 largest producers in the world of
coffee Coffee is a drink prepared from roasted coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulant, stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content. It is the most popular hot drink in the world. S ...
and
cocoa Cocoa may refer to: Chocolate * Chocolate * ''Theobroma cacao'', the cocoa tree * Cocoa bean, seed of ''Theobroma cacao'' * Chocolate liquor, or cocoa liquor, pure, liquid chocolate extracted from the cocoa bean, including both cocoa butter and ...
, and one of the 15 largest producers in the world of
potato The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae. Wild potato species can be found from the southern Unit ...
and
pineapple The pineapple (''Ananas comosus'') is a tropical plant with an edible fruit; it is the most economically significant plant in the family Bromeliaceae. The pineapple is indigenous to South America, where it has been cultivated for many centuri ...
, also having a considerable production of
grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years ago, ...
,
sugarcane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of (often hybrid) tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with ...
,
rice Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima ''Oryza glaberrima'', commonly known as African rice, is one of the two domesticated rice species. It was first domesticated and grown i ...
,
banana A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus ''Musa''. In some countries, bananas used for cooking may be called "plantains", distinguis ...
,
maize Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. Th ...
and
cassava ''Manihot esculenta'', common name, commonly called cassava (), manioc, or yuca (among numerous regional names), is a woody shrub of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to South America. Although a perennial plant, cassava is extensively ...
; its agriculture is considerably diversified. In livestock, Peru is one of the 20 largest producers of
chicken meat Chicken is the most common type of poultry in the world. Owing to the relative ease and low cost of raising chickens—in comparison to mammals such as cattle or hogs—chicken meat (commonly called just "chicken") and chicken eggs have becom ...
in the world.


Industry

The
World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Interna ...
lists the top producing countries each year, based on the total value of production. By the 2019 list, Peru has the 50th most valuable industry in the world ($28.7 billion). In 2016 Peru was the world's largest supplier of
fishmeal Fish meal is a commercial product made from whole wild-caught fish, bycatch and fish by-products to feed farm animals, e.g., pigs, poultry, and farmed fish.R. D. Miles and F. A. Chapman.FA122: The Benefits of Fish Meal in Aquaculture DietsFisherie ...
.


Infrastructure


Transport

Peru's road network in 2021 consisted of of highways, with paved. Some highways in the country that stand out are the
Pan American Highway The Pan-American Highway (french: (Auto)route panaméricaine/transaméricaine; pt, Rodovia/Auto-estrada Pan-americana; es, Autopista/Carretera/Ruta Panamericana) is a network of roads stretching across the Americas and measuring about in to ...
and
Interoceanic Highway The Interoceanic Highway or Trans-oceanic highway is an international, transcontinental highway in Peru and Brazil to connect the two countries. The east–west passageway spans 2600 kilometers. From Peru's Pacific Ocean coastline, it continues ...
. In 2016, the country had of duplicated highways, and was investing in more duplications: the plan was to have in 2026. The country's rail network is small: in 2018, the country only had of railways. Peru has important international airports such as
Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of t ...
,
Cuzco Cusco, often spelled Cuzco (; qu, Qusqu ()), is a city in Southeastern Peru near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region and of the Cusco Province. The city is the seventh most populous in Peru; ...
and
Arequipa Arequipa (; Aymara and qu, Ariqipa) is a city and capital of province and the eponymous department of Peru. It is the seat of the Constitutional Court of Peru and often dubbed the "legal capital of Peru". It is the second most populated city ...
. The 10 busiest airports in South America in 2017 were: São Paulo-Guarulhos (Brazil), Bogotá (Colombia), São Paulo-Congonhas (Brazil), Santiago (Chile), Lima (Peru), Brasília (Brazil), Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), Buenos Aires-Aeroparque (Argentina), Buenos Aires-Ezeiza (Argentina) and Minas Gerais (Brazil). Peru has important ports in
Callao Callao () is a Peruvian seaside city and Regions of Peru, 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 o ...
,
Ilo The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations, it is the first and ol ...
and
Matarani Matarani is a port city in Arequipa Region, Peru. It is a major port on the southern coast of Peru. The port is operated by Tisur. See also * PeruRail PeruRail is a railway operator providing tourist, freight, and charter services in south ...
. The 15 most active ports in South America in 2018 were: Port of Santos (Brazil), Port of Bahia de Cartagena (Colombia), Callao (Peru), Guayaquil (Ecuador), Buenos Aires (Argentina), San Antonio (Chile), Buenaventura (Colombia), Itajaí (Brazil), Valparaíso (Chile), Montevideo (Uruguay), Paranaguá (Brazil), Rio Grande (Brazil), São Francisco do Sul (Brazil), Manaus (Brazil) and Coronel (Chile).


Energy

Peruvian electricity production totaled 49.3 million GWh in November 2021. Of these, 52% came from hydroelectric plants, 38.3% from thermoelectric plants (which use oil, gas and coal) and 9.7% of renewable energy plants like: wind, solar, and others. In 2021, Peru had, in terms of installed renewable electricity, 5,490 MW in hydropower (34th largest in the world), 409 MW in wind power (49th largest in the world), 336 MW in solar power (62nd largest in the world), and 185 MW in biomass.


Demographics

With about 31.2 million inhabitants in 2017, Peru is the fourth most populous country in South America. The demographic growth rate of Peru declined from 2.6% to 1.6% between 1950 and 2000; with the population being expected to reach approximately 42 million in 2050. According to the 1940 Peruvian census, Peru had a population at the time of seven million residents. , 79.3% lived in urban areas and 20.7% in rural areas. Major cities include the Lima metropolitan area (home to over 9.8 million people),
Arequipa Arequipa (; Aymara and qu, Ariqipa) is a city and capital of province and the eponymous department of Peru. It is the seat of the Constitutional Court of Peru and often dubbed the "legal capital of Peru". It is the second most populated city ...
, Trujillo,
Chiclayo Chiclayo (; qu, Chiklayu) is the principal city of the Lambayeque region in northern Peru. It is located inland from the Pacific coast and from the nation's capital, Lima. Founded by Spanish explorers as "Santa María de los Valles de Chiclay ...
,
Piura Piura is a city in northwestern Peru located in the Sechura Desert on the Piura River. It is the capital of the Piura Region and the Piura Province. Its population was 484,475 as of 2017. It was here that Spanish Conqueror Francisco Pizarro fou ...
,
Iquitos Iquitos (; ) is the capital city of Peru's Maynas Province and Loreto Region. It is the largest metropolis in the Peruvian Amazon, east of the Andes, as well as the ninth-most populous city of Peru. Iquitos is the largest city in the world th ...
,
Cusco Cusco, often spelled Cuzco (; qu, Qusqu ()), is a city in Southeastern Peru near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region and of the Cusco Province. The city is the list of cities in Peru, seventh m ...
,
Chimbote Chimbote ; qu, Chimputi) is the largest city in the Ancash Region of Peru, and the capital of both Santa Province and Chimbote District. The city is located on the coast in Ferrol Bay, 130 km south of Trujillo and north of Lima on the No ...
, and
Huancayo Huancayo (; in qu, label=Wanka Quechua, Wankayuq , '(place) with a (sacred) rock') is the capital of Junín Region, in the central highlands of Peru. Location Huancayo is located in Huancayo Province, of which it is also the capital. Sit ...
; all reported more than 250,000 inhabitants in the 2007 census. There are 15
uncontacted Uncontacted peoples are groups of indigenous peoples living without sustained contact with neighbouring communities and the world community. Groups who decide to remain uncontacted are referred to as indigenous peoples in voluntary isolation. L ...
Amerindian tribes in Peru. Peru has a
life expectancy Life expectancy is a statistical measure of the average time an organism is expected to live, based on the year of its birth, current age, and other demographic factors like sex. The most commonly used measure is life expectancy at birth ...
of 75.0 years (72.4 for males and 77.7 for females) according to the latest data for the year 2016 from the
World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Interna ...
.


Ethnic groups

Peru is a multiethnic nation formed by successive waves of different peoples over five centuries.
Amerindians The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples. Many Indigenous peoples of the Ame ...
inhabited Peruvian territory for several millennia before the
Spanish conquest The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its predece ...
in the 16th century; according to historian Noble David Cook, their population decreased from nearly 5–9 million in the 1520s to around 600,000 in 1620 mainly because of
infectious disease An infection is the invasion of tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmissible disease or communicable dise ...
s. The 2017 census for the first time included a question on ethnic self-identification. According to the results, 60.2% of the people identified themselves as
mestizo (; ; fem. ) is a term used for racial classification to refer to a person of mixed Ethnic groups in Europe, European and Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous American ancestry. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also r ...
, 22.3% identified themselves as
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 ...
, 5.9% identified themselves as
white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
, 3.6% identified themselves as
black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...
, 2.4% identified themselves as
Aymara Aymara may refer to: Languages and people * Aymaran languages, the second most widespread Andean language ** Aymara language, the main language within that family ** Central Aymara, the other surviving branch of the Aymara(n) family, which today ...
, 2.3% identified themselves as other ethnic groups, and 3.3% didn't declare their ethnicity. Spaniards and Africans arrived in large numbers under colonial rule, mixing widely with each other and with Indigenous peoples. After independence, there was gradual immigration from England, France, Germany, and Italy. Peru freed its black slaves in 1854. Chinese and Japanese arrived in the 1850s as laborers following the end of slavery, and have since become a major influence in Peruvian society.


Language

According to the Peruvian Constitution of 1993, Peru's official languages are Spanish and, in areas where they predominate,
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 ...
and other Indigenous languages. Spanish is spoken natively by 82.6% of the population, Quechua by 13.9%, and Aymara by 1.7%, while other languages are spoken by the remaining 1.8%. Spanish language is used by the government and is the mainstream language of the country, which is used by the media and in educational systems and commerce. Amerindians who live in the Andean highlands speak Quechua and Aymara and are ethnically distinct from the diverse Indigenous groups who live on the eastern side of the Andes and in the tropical lowlands adjacent to the
Amazon basin The Amazon basin is the part of South America drained by the Amazon River and its tributaries. The Amazon drainage basin covers an area of about , or about 35.5 percent of the South American continent. It is located in the countries of Bolivi ...
. Peru's distinct geographical regions are mirrored in a language divide between the coast where Spanish is more predominant over the Amerindian languages, and the more diverse traditional Andean cultures of the mountains and highlands. The Indigenous populations east of the Andes speak various languages and dialects. Some of these groups still adhere to traditional Indigenous languages, while others have been almost completely assimilated into the Spanish language. There has been an increasing and organized effort to teach Quechua in public schools in the areas where Quechua is spoken. In the Peruvian Amazon, numerous Indigenous languages are spoken, including
Asháninka The Asháninka or Asháninca are an indigenous people living in the rainforests of Peru and in the State of Acre, Brazil. Their ancestral lands are in the forests of Junín, Pasco, Huánuco and part of Ucayali in Peru. Population The Ashá ...
, Bora, and Aguaruna.Resonancias.org
– Aboriginal languages of Peru


Religion

Roman Catholicism has been the predominant faith in Peru for centuries, albeit religious practices have a high degree of
syncretism Syncretism () is the practice of combining different beliefs and various school of thought, schools of thought. Syncretism involves the merging or religious assimilation, assimilation of several originally discrete traditions, especially in t ...
with Indigenous traditions. Two of its universities,
Pontifical Catholic University of Peru Pontifical Catholic University of Peru ( es, link=no, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, PUCP) is a private university in Lima, Peru. It was founded in 1917 with the support and approval of the Catholic Church, being the oldest private ...
and Universidad Cattolica San Pablo, are among the 5 top universities of the country. As of the 2017 census, 76% of the population over 12 years old described themselves as
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
, 14.1% as
Evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide Interdenominationalism, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "bor ...
, 4.8% as Protestant, Jewish,
Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...
, and
Jehovah's Witnesses Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The group reports a worldwide membership of approximately 8.7 million adherents involved in ...
, and 5.1% as nonreligious. Amerindian religious traditions continue to play a major role in the beliefs of Peruvians. Catholic festivities like Corpus Christi,
Holy Week Holy Week ( la, Hebdomada Sancta or , ; grc, Ἁγία καὶ Μεγάλη Ἑβδομάς, translit=Hagia kai Megale Hebdomas, lit=Holy and Great Week) is the most sacred week in the liturgical year in Christianity. In Eastern Churches, w ...
and Christmas sometimes blend with Amerindian traditions. Amerindian festivities from pre-Columbian remain widespread;
Inti Raymi The Inti Raymi (Quechua for "Inti festival") is a traditional religious ceremony of the Inca Empire in honor of the god Inti (Quechua for "sun"), the most venerated deity in Inca religion. It was the celebration of the winter solstice – the s ...
, an ancient Inca festival, is still celebrated, especially in rural communities. The majority of towns, cities, and villages have their own official church or cathedral and
patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...
.


Education

Peru's literacy rate is estimated at 92.9% as of 2007; this rate is lower in rural areas (80.3%) than in urban areas (96.3%). Primary and secondary education are
compulsory Compulsion may refer to: * Compulsive behavior, a psychological condition in which a person does a behavior compulsively, having an overwhelming feeling that they must do so. * Obsessive–compulsive disorder, a mental disorder characterized by i ...
and free in public schools. Peru is home to one of the oldest institutions of higher learning in the New World. The
National University of San Marcos The National University of San Marcos ( es, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, link=no, UNMSM) is a public research university located in Lima, the capital of Peru. It is considered the most important, recognized and representative educ ...
, founded on 12 May 1551, during the
Viceroyalty of Peru The Viceroyalty of Peru ( es, Virreinato del Perú, links=no) was a Spanish imperial provincial administrative district, created in 1542, that originally contained modern-day Peru and most of the Spanish Empire in South America, governed from ...
, is the first officially established and the oldest continuously functioning university in the Americas.


Toponyms

Many of the Peruvian
toponym Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of '' toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage and types. Toponym is the general term for a proper name of ...
s have
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 ...
sources. In the Andes communities of
Ancash Ancash ( qu, Anqash; es, Áncash ) is a department and region in northern Peru. It is bordered by the departments of La Libertad on the north, Huánuco and Pasco on the east, Lima on the south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. Its capital i ...
,
Cusco Cusco, often spelled Cuzco (; qu, Qusqu ()), is a city in Southeastern Peru near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region and of the Cusco Province. The city is the list of cities in Peru, seventh m ...
and
Puno Puno (Aymara and qu, Punu) is a city in southeastern Peru, located on the shore of Lake Titicaca. It is the capital city of the Puno Region and the Puno Province with a population of approximately 140,839 (2015 estimate). The city was establish ...
, Quechua or Aymara names are overwhelmingly predominant. Their Spanish-based orthography, however, is in conflict with the normalized alphabets of these languages. According to Article 20 of ''Decreto Supremo No 004-2016-MC'' (Supreme Decree) which approves the Regulations to Law 29735, published in the official newspaper El Peruano on 22 July 2016, adequate spellings of the
toponym Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of '' toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage and types. Toponym is the general term for a proper name of ...
s in the normalized alphabets of the Indigenous languages must progressively be proposed with the aim of standardizing the naming used by the National Geographic Institute ''(Instituto Geográfico Nacional, IGN)''. The National Geographic Institute realizes the necessary changes in the official maps of Peru.


Culture

Peruvian culture is primarily rooted in Andean and Iberian traditions, though it has also been influenced by various Asian and African ethnic groups. Peruvian artistic traditions date back to the elaborate pottery, textiles, jewelry, and sculpture of Pre-Inca cultures. The Incas maintained these crafts and made
architectural Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing buildings o ...
achievements including the construction of
Machu Picchu Machu Picchu is a 15th-century Inca citadel located in the Eastern Cordillera of southern Peru on a mountain range.UNESCO World Heritage Centre. It is located in the Machupicchu District within Urubamba Province above the Sacred Valley, which ...
.
Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...
dominated colonial art, though modified by Native traditions. During this period, most art focused on religious subjects; the numerous churches of the era and the paintings of the
Cusco School The Cusco School (''Escuela cuzqueña'') or Cuzco School, was a Roman Catholic artistic tradition based in Cusco, Peru (the former capital of the Inca Empire) during the Colonial period, in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries. It was not limited to ...
are representative. Arts stagnated after independence until the emergence of ''
Indigenismo ''Indigenismo'' () is a political ideology in several Latin American countries which emphasizes the relationship between the nation state and indigenous nations and indigenous peoples. In some contemporary uses, it refers to the pursuit of great ...
'' in the early 20th century. Since the 1950s, Peruvian art has been
eclectic Eclectic may refer to: Music * ''Eclectic'' (Eric Johnson and Mike Stern album), 2014 * ''Eclectic'' (Big Country album), 1996 * Eclectic Method, name of an audio-visual remix act * Eclecticism in music, the conscious use of styles alien to th ...
and shaped by both foreign and local art currents.


Visual Arts

Peruvian art has its origin in the
Andean civilizations The Andean civilizations were civilization, complex societies of many Indigenous peoples of South America, cultures and peoples mainly developed in the river valleys of the coastal deserts of Peru. They stretched from the Andes of southern Colomb ...
. These civilizations arose in the territory of modern Peru before the arrival of the Spanish. Peruvian art incorporated European elements after the Spanish conquest and continued to evolve throughout the centuries up to the modern day.


Pre-Columbian art

Peru's earliest artwork came from the
Cupisnique The Cupisnique culture was a pre-Columbian indigenous culture that flourished from c. 1500 to 500 BC along what now is Peru's northern Pacific coast. The culture had a distinctive style of adobe clay architecture. Artifacts of the culture share art ...
culture, which was concentrated on the Pacific coast, and the Chavín culture, which was largely north of
Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of t ...
between the Andean mountain ranges of the
Cordillera Negra The Cordillera Negra (Spanish for "black range"), Yana Walla in qechua is part of the ''Cordillera Occidental'', one of three mountain ranges in the Andes of west central Peru. It is almost entirely located within the Ancash Region. The range ext ...
and the
Cordillera Blanca The Cordillera Blanca (Spanish for "white range") is a mountain range in Peru that is part of the larger Andes range and extends for between 8°08' and 9°58'S and 77°00' and 77°52'W, in a northwesterly direction. It includes several peaks ove ...
. Decorative work from this era, approximately the 9th century BCE, was symbolic and religious in nature. The artists worked with gold, silver, and
ceramics A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain ...
to create a variety of sculptures and relief carvings. These civilizations were also known for their architecture and wood sculptures. Between the 9th century BCE and the 2nd century CE, the Paracas Cavernas and Paracas
Necropolis A necropolis (plural necropolises, necropoles, necropoleis, necropoli) is a large, designed cemetery with elaborate tomb monuments. The name stems from the Ancient Greek ''nekropolis'', literally meaning "city of the dead". The term usually im ...
cultures developed on the south coast of Peru. Paracas Cavernas produced complex polychrome and monochrome ceramics with religious representations. Burials from the Paracas Necropolis also yielded complex textiles, many produced with sophisticated geometric patterns. The 3rd century BCE saw the flowering of the urban culture, Moche, in the Lambayeque region. The Moche culture produced impressive architectural works, such as the
Huacas del Sol y de la Luna The Huaca del Sol is an adobe brick pyramid built by the Moche civilization (100 AD to 800 AD) on the northern coast of what is now Peru. The pyramid is one of several ruins found near the volcanic peak of Cerro Blanco, in the coastal dese ...
and the Huaca Rajada of
Sipán Huaca Rajada, also known as Sipán, is a Moche archaeological site in northern Peru in the Lambayeque Valley, that is famous for the tomb of ''Lord of Sipán'' (El Señor de Sipán), excavated by Walter Alva and his wife Susana Meneses beginni ...
. They were experts at cultivation in terraces and
hydraulic engineering Hydraulic engineering as a sub-discipline of civil engineering is concerned with the flow and conveyance of fluids, principally water and sewage. One feature of these systems is the extensive use of gravity as the motive force to cause the mov ...
and produced original ceramics, textiles, pictorial and sculptural works. Another urban culture, the Wari civilization, flourished between the 8th and 12th centuries in
Ayacucho Ayacucho (, qu, Ayak'uchu) is the capital city of Ayacucho Region and of Huamanga Province, Ayacucho Region, Peru. During the Inca Empire and Viceroyalty of Peru periods the city was known by the name of Huamanga (Quechua: Wamanga), and it c ...
. Their centralized town planning was extended to other areas, such as
Pachacamac Pachacámac ( qu, Pachakamaq) is an archaeological site southeast of Lima, Peru in the Valley of the Lurín River. The site was first settled around A.D. 200 and was named after the "Earth Maker" creator god Pacha Kamaq. The site flourished f ...
, Cajamarquilla and
Wari Willka Wari Willka, also Wariwillka (hispanicized spellings ''Huarihuilca, Huariwilka, Huarivilca, Huarivillca, Huariwillka, Warivilca, Wariwillca, Wariwilka, Wari Willca''), is an archaeological site in Peru. It is located in the Junín Region, Huancay ...
. Between the 9th and 13th centuries CE, the military urban
Tiwanaku Tiwanaku ( es, Tiahuanaco or ) is a Pre-Columbian archaeological site in western Bolivia near Lake Titicaca, about 70 kilometers from La Paz, and it is one of the largest sites in South America. Surface remains currently cover around 4 square kilo ...
empire rose by the borders of
Lake Titicaca Lake Titicaca (; es, Lago Titicaca ; qu, Titiqaqa Qucha) is a large freshwater lake in the Andes mountains on the border of Bolivia and Peru. It is often called the highest navigable lake in the world. By volume of water and by surface area, ...
. Centered around a city of the same name in modern-day Bolivia, the Tiwanaku introduced stone architecture and sculpture of a monumental type. These works of architecture and art were made possible by the Tiwanaku's developing
bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such ...
, which enabled them to make the necessary tools. Urban architecture reached a new height between the 14th and 15th centuries in the
Chimú Culture Chimor (also Kingdom of Chimor or Chimú Empire) was the political grouping of the Chimú culture. The culture arose about 900 AD, succeeding the Moche culture, and was later conquered by the Inca emperor Topa Inca Yupanqui around 1470, fifty y ...
. The Chimú built the city of
Chan Chan Chan Chan was the largest city of the pre-Columbian era in South America. It is now an archaeology, archaeological site in La Libertad Region west of Trujillo, Peru. Chan Chan is located in the mouth of the Moche Valley and was the capital of ...
in the valley of the
Moche River The Moche River is one of the rivers of the Pacific Ocean slope, located in the northern coast of Peru, in La Libertad Region. On both sides of this river is the millenary Moche Valley. The Moche river goes through east to west the metropolitan ...
, in La Libertad. The Chimú were skilled
goldsmith A goldsmith is a Metalworking, metalworker who specializes in working with gold and other precious metals. Nowadays they mainly specialize in jewelry-making but historically, goldsmiths have also made cutlery, silverware, platter (dishware), pl ...
s and created remarkable works of
hydraulic engineering Hydraulic engineering as a sub-discipline of civil engineering is concerned with the flow and conveyance of fluids, principally water and sewage. One feature of these systems is the extensive use of gravity as the motive force to cause the mov ...
. The
Inca Civilization The Incas were most notable for establishing the Inca Empire in Pre-Columbian America, which was centered in modern day South America in Peru and Chile. It was about 2,500 miles from the northern to southern tip. The civilization lasted from 14 ...
, which united Peru under its hegemony in the centuries immediately preceding the Spanish conquest, incorporated into their own works a great part of the cultural legacy of the civilizations which preceded it. Important relics of their artwork and architecture can be seen in cities like
Cusco Cusco, often spelled Cuzco (; qu, Qusqu ()), is a city in Southeastern Peru near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region and of the Cusco Province. The city is the list of cities in Peru, seventh m ...
, architectural remains like Sacsahuamán and
Machu Picchu Machu Picchu is a 15th-century Inca citadel located in the Eastern Cordillera of southern Peru on a mountain range.UNESCO World Heritage Centre. It is located in the Machupicchu District within Urubamba Province above the Sacred Valley, which ...
and stone pavements that united Cusco with the rest of the Inca Empire.


Colonial art

Peruvian sculpture and painting began to define themselves from the
ateliers An atelier () is the private workshop or studio of a professional artist in the fine or decorative arts or an architect, where a principal master and a number of assistants, students, and apprentices can work together producing fine art or v ...
founded by monks, who were strongly influenced by the Sevillian Baroque School. In this context, the stalls of the
Cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...
choir, the fountain of the Main Square of Lima both by Pedro de Noguera, and a great part of the colonial production were registered. The first center of art established by the Spanish was the
Cuzco School The Cusco School (''Escuela cuzqueña'') or Cuzco School, was a Roman Catholic artistic tradition based in Cusco, Peru (the former capital of the Inca Empire) during the Colonial period, in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries. It was not limited to ...
that taught
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 ...
artists European painting styles. Diego Quispe Tito (1611–1681) was one of the first members of the Cuzco school and
Marcos Zapata Marcos Zapata (c. 1710–1773), also called Marcos Sapaca Inca, was a Peruvian painter, born in Cuzco. He was one of the last members of the Cuzco School, an art center in which Spanish painters taught native students to paint religious works. Z ...
(1710–1773) was one of the last. Painting of this time reflected a synthesis of European and Indigenous influences, as is evident in the portrait of prisoner Atahualpa, by D. de Mora or in the canvases of the Italians
Mateo Pérez de Alesio Mateo may refer to: People ;Name * Mateo (given name) * Mateo (surname) ;People named Mateo * Mateo (singer) (born 1986), former stage name of American pop/R&B singer-songwriter Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Mateo'' (1937 film), a 1937 Argent ...
and Angelino Medoro, the Spaniards Francisco Bejarano and J. de Illescas and the Creole J. Rodriguez. During the 17th and 18th centuries, the
Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...
Style also dominated the field of
plastic arts Plastic arts are art forms which involve physical manipulation of a plastic medium by molding or modeling such as sculpture or ceramics. Less often the term may be used broadly for all the visual arts (such as painting, sculpture, film and pho ...
.


Literature

The term Peruvian literature not only refers to literature produced in the independent Republic of Peru, but also to literature produced in the
Viceroyalty of Peru The Viceroyalty of Peru ( es, Virreinato del Perú, links=no) was a Spanish imperial provincial administrative district, created in 1542, that originally contained modern-day Peru and most of the Spanish Empire in South America, governed from ...
during the country's colonial period, and to
oral The word oral may refer to: Relating to the mouth * Relating to the mouth, the first portion of the alimentary canal that primarily receives food and liquid **Oral administration of medicines ** Oral examination (also known as an oral exam or oral ...
artistic forms created by diverse ethnic groups that existed in the area during the pre-Columbian period, such as the
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 ...
, the
Aymara Aymara may refer to: Languages and people * Aymaran languages, the second most widespread Andean language ** Aymara language, the main language within that family ** Central Aymara, the other surviving branch of the Aymara(n) family, which today ...
and the
Chanka The Chanka people (or Chanca) are a Quechua people ethnic group living in the regions of Apurimac, Ayacucho and Lamas of Peru. They were enemies of the Incas, and they were centered primarily in Andahuaylas, located in the modern-day region of ...
people. Peruvian literature is rooted in the oral traditions of
pre-Columbian In the history of the Americas, the pre-Columbian era spans from the original settlement of North and South America in the Upper Paleolithic period through European colonization, which began with Christopher Columbus's voyage of 1492. Usually, th ...
civilizations. Spaniards introduced writing in the 16th century; colonial literary expression included
chronicle A chronicle ( la, chronica, from Greek ''chroniká'', from , ''chrónos'' – "time") is a historical account of events arranged in chronological order, as in a timeline. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and lo ...
s and
religious literature {{Commons Literature by genre Literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuri ...
. After independence,
Costumbrism ''Costumbrismo'' (sometimes anglicized as costumbrism, with the adjectival form costumbrist) is the literary or pictorial interpretation of local everyday life, mannerisms, and customs, primarily in the Hispanic scene, and particularly in the 19t ...
and
Romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...
became the most common literary genres, as exemplified in the works of
Ricardo Palma Manuel Ricardo Palma Soriano (February 7, 1833 – October 6, 1919) was a Peruvian author, scholar, librarian and politician. His magnum opus is the ''Tradiciones peruanas''. Biography According to the official account, Manuel Ricardo Pa ...
. The early 20th century's ''Indigenismo'' movement was led by such writers as
Ciro Alegría Ciro Alegría Bazán (November 4, 1909 – February 17, 1967) was a Peruvian journalist, politician, and novelist. Biography Born in Huamachuco District, he exposed the problems of the Native Peruvians while learning about their way of life. ...
and
José María Arguedas José María Arguedas Altamirano (18 January 1911 – 2 December 1969) was a Peruvian novelist, poet, and anthropologist. Arguedas was an author of Spanish descent, fluent in the Native Quechua language, gained by living in two Quechua househo ...
.
César Vallejo César Abraham Vallejo Mendoza (March 16, 1892 – April 15, 1938) was a Peruvian poet, writer, playwright, and journalist. Although he published only two books of poetry during his lifetime, he is considered one of the great poetic innovators ...
wrote modernist and often politically engaged verse. Modern Peruvian literature is recognized thanks to authors such as
Nobel laureate The Nobel Prizes ( sv, Nobelpriset, no, Nobelprisen) are awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Swedish Academy, the Karolinska Institutet, and the Norwegian Nobel Committee to individuals and organizations who make out ...
Mario Vargas Llosa Jorge Mario Pedro Vargas Llosa, 1st Marquess of Vargas Llosa (born 28 March 1936), more commonly known as Mario Vargas Llosa (, ), is a Peruvian novelist, journalist, essayist and former politician, who also holds Spanish citizenship. Vargas Ll ...
, a leading member of the
Latin American Boom The Latin American Boom ( es, Boom latinoamericano) was a literary movement of the 1960s and 1970s when the work of a group of relatively young Latin American novelists became widely circulated in Europe and throughout the world. The Boom is mos ...
.


Cuisine

Because of the Spanish expedition and discovery of America, explorers started the
Columbian exchange The Columbian exchange, also known as the Columbian interchange, was the widespread transfer of plants, animals, precious metals, commodities, culture, human populations, technology, diseases, and ideas between the New World (the Americas) in ...
which included unknown food in the Old World, including potatoes, tomatoes, and maize. Modern Indigenous Peruvian food often includes corn, potatoes, and chilies. There are now more than 3,000 kinds of potatoes grown on Peruvian terrain, according to Peru's Instituto Peruano de la Papa. Modern
Peruvian cuisine Peruvian cuisine reflects local practices and ingredients including influences mainly from the indigenous population, including the Inca, and cuisines brought by immigrants from Europe (Spanish cuisine, Italian cuisine); Asia (Japanese cuisine an ...
blends
Amerindian The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples. Many Indigenous peoples of the Am ...
and
Spanish food Spanish cuisine consists of the cooking traditions and practices from Spain. Olive oil (of which Spain is the world's largest producer) is heavily used in Spanish cuisine. It forms the base of many vegetable sauces (known in Spanish as ''sofri ...
with strong influences from Chinese, African, Arab, Italian, and Japanese cooking. Common dishes include ''
anticuchos ''Anticuchos'' (singular ''anticucho'', Quechua 'Anti Kuchu', ''Anti'': 'Eastern region of the Andes' or 'Eastern native ethnicities', ''Kuchu'': 'Cut'; Quechua for 'Anti-style cuts', 'Eastern-style cuts') are popular and inexpensive meat dishes ...
'', ''
ceviche Ceviche () is a Peruvian dish typically made from fresh raw fish cured in fresh citrus juices, most commonly lime or lemon. It is also spiced with '' ají'', chili peppers or other seasonings, and julienned red onions, salt, and cilantro are al ...
'', and ''
pachamanca Pachamanca (from Quechua ''pacha'' "earth", ''manka'' "pot") is a traditional Peruvian dish baked with the aid of hot stones. The earthen oven is known as a '' huatia''. It is generally made of, lamb, mutton, alpaca, llama, guanaco, vicuna, ...
''. Peru's varied climate allows the growth of diverse plants and animals good for cooking. Peruvian cuisine reflects local practices and ingredientsincluding influences from the Indigenous population including 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 ...
and cuisines brought in with colonizers and immigrants. Without the familiar ingredients from their home countries, immigrants modified their traditional cuisines by using ingredients available in Peru. The four traditional staples of Peruvian cuisine are
corn Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. Th ...
, potatoes and other
tuber Tubers are a type of enlarged structure used as storage organs for nutrients in some plants. They are used for the plant's perennation (survival of the winter or dry months), to provide energy and nutrients for regrowth during the next growing ...
s,
Amaranthaceae Amaranthaceae is a family of flowering plants commonly known as the amaranth family, in reference to its type genus ''Amaranthus''. It includes the former goosefoot family Chenopodiaceae and contains about 165 genera and 2,040 species, making it ...
s (
quinoa Quinoa (''Chenopodium quinoa''; , from Quechua ' or ') is a flowering plant in the amaranth family. It is a herbaceous annual plant grown as a crop primarily for its edible seeds; the seeds are rich in protein, dietary fiber, B vitamins, and ...
,
kañiwa ''Chenopodium pallidicaule'', known as ''cañihua'', ''canihua'' or ''cañahua'' (from Quechua ''qañiwa, qañawa or qañawi'') and also kaniwa, is a species of goosefoot, similar in character and uses to the closely related ''quinoa'' ''(Chenopo ...
and
kiwicha ''Amaranthus caudatus'' (also known as ''Amaranthus edulis'' and ''Amaranthus mantegazzianus'') is a species of annual flowering plant. It goes by common names such as love-lies-bleeding, pendant amaranth, tassel flower, velvet flower, foxtail a ...
) and
legume A legume () is a plant in the family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), or the fruit or seed of such a plant. When used as a dry grain, the seed is also called a pulse. Legumes are grown agriculturally, primarily for human consumption, for livestock f ...
s (
beans A bean is the seed of several plants in the family Fabaceae, which are used as vegetables for human or animal food. They can be cooked in many different ways, including boiling, frying, and baking, and are used in many traditional dishes th ...
and
lupins ''Lupinus'', commonly known as lupin, lupine, or regionally bluebonnet etc., is a genus of plants in the legume family Fabaceae. The genus includes over 199 species, with centers of diversity in North and South America. Smaller centers occur ...
). Staples brought by the Spanish include rice, wheat, and meats (beef, pork, and chicken). Many traditional foodssuch as
quinoa Quinoa (''Chenopodium quinoa''; , from Quechua ' or ') is a flowering plant in the amaranth family. It is a herbaceous annual plant grown as a crop primarily for its edible seeds; the seeds are rich in protein, dietary fiber, B vitamins, and ...
,
kiwicha ''Amaranthus caudatus'' (also known as ''Amaranthus edulis'' and ''Amaranthus mantegazzianus'') is a species of annual flowering plant. It goes by common names such as love-lies-bleeding, pendant amaranth, tassel flower, velvet flower, foxtail a ...
,
chili pepper Chili peppers (also chile, chile pepper, chilli pepper, or chilli), from Nahuatl '' chīlli'' (), are varieties of the berry-fruit of plants from the genus ''Capsicum'', which are members of the nightshade family Solanaceae, cultivated for ...
s, and several roots and
tuber Tubers are a type of enlarged structure used as storage organs for nutrients in some plants. They are used for the plant's perennation (survival of the winter or dry months), to provide energy and nutrients for regrowth during the next growing ...
s have increased in popularity in recent decades, reflecting a revival of interest in Native Peruvian foods and culinary techniques. It is also common to see traditional cuisines being served with a modern flair in towns like
Cusco Cusco, often spelled Cuzco (; qu, Qusqu ()), is a city in Southeastern Peru near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region and of the Cusco Province. The city is the list of cities in Peru, seventh m ...
, where tourists come to visit. Chef
Gaston Acurio Gaston is a masculine given name of French origin and a surname. The name "Gaston" may refer to: People First name *Gaston I, Count of Foix (1287–1315) *Gaston II, Count of Foix (1308–1343) *Gaston III, Count of Foix (1331–1391) *Gaston I ...
has become well known for raising awareness of local ingredients.


Music

Peruvian music has
Andean The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the List of mountain ranges#Mountain ranges by length, longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range i ...
,
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, Cana ...
, and
African African or Africans may refer to: * Anything from or pertaining to the continent of Africa: ** People who are native to Africa, descendants of natives of Africa, or individuals who trace their ancestry to indigenous inhabitants of Africa *** Ethn ...
roots. In pre-Columbian times, musical expressions varied widely in each region; the ''
quena The quena (hispanicized spelling of Quechua ''qina'', sometimes also written ''kena'' in English) is the traditional flute of the Andes. Traditionally made of cane or wood, it has 6 finger holes and one thumb hole, and is open on both ends or th ...
'' and the ''
tinya The tinya (Quechua language, Quechua)Diccionario Quechua - Español - Quechua, Academía Mayor de la Lengua Quechua, Gobierno Regional Cusco, Cusco 2005 (Quechua-Spanish dictionary) or kirki (Quechua) is a percussion instrument, a small handmade dr ...
'' were two common instruments. Spaniards introduced new instruments, such as the guitar and the harp, which led to the development of crossbred instruments like the ''
charango The charango is a small Andean stringed instrument of the lute family, from the Quechua and Aymara populations in the territory of the Altiplano in post-Colonial times, after European stringed instruments were introduced by the Spanish during c ...
''. African contributions to Peruvian music include its rhythms and the ''
cajón A cajón (; "box", "crate" or "drawer") is a box-shaped percussion instrument originally from Peru, played by slapping the front or rear faces (generally thin plywood) with the hands, fingers, or sometimes implements such as brushes, mallets, ...
'', a percussion instrument. Peruvian folk dances include
marinera Marinera is a courtship dance that originated along the coastal regions of Peru, using handkerchiefs as props. The dance is a mix of Spanish contradanza and Andean zamacueca, and is a stylized reenactment of a courtship, showing a blend of th ...
,
tondero Tondero is a dance and guitar rhythm from Peru that developed in the country's northern coastal region (Piura– Lambayeque). Geographical origin of tondero and cumananas The Tondero is a Peruvian dance and rhythm born in the north coast adj ...
,
zamacueca The Zamacueca is an ancient colonial dance and music that originated in the Viceroyalty of Peru, taking its roots from Spanish, and Andean rhythms. Although currently the dance is not widely popular, several dance institutions in places such as Per ...
,
diablada The Diablada, also known as the Danza de los Diablos ( en, Dance of the Devils), is an Andean folk dance performed in the Altiplano region of South America, characterized by performers wearing masks and costumes representing the devil and other c ...
and
huayno Huayno (Waynu in Quechua)Teofilo Laime Ajacopa, Diccionario Bilingüe Iskay simipi yuyayk'ancha, La Paz, 2007 (Quechua-Spanish dictionary) is a genre of popular Andean music and dance. It is especially common in Peru, Bolivia, Northern Argentina ...
.Romero, Raúl (1985). "La música tradicional y popular". In: Patronato Popular y Porvenir, ''La música en el Perú''. Lima: Industrial Gráfica, pp. pp. 243–245, 261–265. Peruvian music is dominated by the national instrument, the
charango The charango is a small Andean stringed instrument of the lute family, from the Quechua and Aymara populations in the territory of the Altiplano in post-Colonial times, after European stringed instruments were introduced by the Spanish during c ...
. The charango is a member of the
lute A lute ( or ) is any plucked string instrument with a neck and a deep round back enclosing a hollow cavity, usually with a sound hole or opening in the body. It may be either fretted or unfretted. More specifically, the term "lute" can ref ...
family of instruments and was invented during
colonial times The ''Colonial Times'' was a newspaper in what is now the Australian state of Tasmania. It was established as the ''Colonial Times, and Tasmanian Advertiser'' in 1825 in Hobart, Van Diemen's Land Van Diemen's Land was the colon ...
by musicians imitating the Spanish
vihuela The vihuela () is a 15th-century fretted plucked Spanish string instrument, shaped like a guitar (figure-of-eight form offering strength and portability) but tuned like a lute. It was used in 15th- and 16th-century Spain as the equivalent of t ...
. In the Canas and
Titicaca Lake Titicaca (; es, Lago Titicaca ; qu, Titiqaqa Qucha) is a large freshwater lake in the Andes mountains on the border of Bolivia and Peru. It is often called the highest navigable lake in the world. By volume of water and by surface area, i ...
regions, the charango is used in courtship rituals, symbolically invoking mermaids with the instrument to lure the woman to the male performers. Until the 1960s, the charango was denigrated as an instrument of the rural poor. After the revolution in 1959, which built the
Indigenismo ''Indigenismo'' () is a political ideology in several Latin American countries which emphasizes the relationship between the nation state and indigenous nations and indigenous peoples. In some contemporary uses, it refers to the pursuit of great ...
movement (1910–1940), the charango was popularized among other performers. Variants include the
walaycho The walaycho (hispanicized spelling ''hualaycho'', also ''walaychu'') is a small lute-like fretted stringed instrument, the smallest member of the charango family. It is the same or similar to the ''maulincho''. The ''walaychu'' along with the ch ...
, chillador,
chinlili The Chinlili, also known as the Chinlilo, is a chordophone from Ayacucho, Peru. It is a variant of the Charango tuned to a lower tone. The frets are laid out Diatonic and chromatic, diatonically, and it has 6 Course (music), courses of 8 metal st ...
, and the larger and lower-tuned
charangon The Charangón is a small lute-like fretted stringed instrument String instruments, stringed instruments, or chordophones are musical instruments that produce sound from vibrating strings when a performer plays or sounds the strings in some ...
. While the Spanish guitar is widely played, so too is the Spanish-in-origin
bandurria The bandurria is a plucked chordophone from Spain, similar to the mandolin and bandola, primarily used in Spanish folk music, but also found in former Spanish colonies. Instrument development Prior to the 18th century, the bandurria had a round ...
. Unlike the guitar, it has been transformed by Peruvian players over the years, changing from a 12-string, 6-course instrument to one having 12 to 16 strings in a mere four courses. Violins and
harps The High Accuracy Radial Velocity Planet Searcher (HARPS) is a high-precision echelle planet-finding spectrograph installed in 2002 on the ESO's 3.6m telescope at La Silla Observatory in Chile. The first light was achieved in February 2003. H ...
, also of European origin, are also played.


Cinema

While the Peruvian film industry has not been nearly as prolific as that of some other Latin American countries, some Peruvian movies produced enjoyed regional success. Historically, the cinema of Peru began in Iquitos in 1932 by Antonio Wong Rengifo (with a momentous, initial film billboard from 1900) because of the
rubber boom The Amazon rubber boom ( pt, Ciclo da borracha, ; es, Fiebre del caucho, , 1879 to 1912) was an important part of the economic and social history of Brazil and Amazonian regions of neighboring countries, being related to the extraction and comm ...
and the intense arrival of foreigners with technology to the city, and thus continued an extensive, unique filmography, with a different style than the films made in the capital, Lima. Peru also produced the first animated 3-D film in Latin America, '' Piratas en el Callao''. This film is set in the historical port city of
Callao Callao () is a Peruvian seaside city and Regions of Peru, 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 o ...
, which during colonial times had to defend itself against attacks by Dutch and British privateers seeking to undercut Spain's trade with its colonies. The film was produced by the
Peruvian Peruvians ( es, peruanos) are the citizens of Peru. There were Andean and coastal ancient civilizations like Caral, which inhabited what is now Peruvian territory for several millennia before the Spanish conquest in the 16th century; Peruvian p ...
company Alpamayo Entertainment, which made a second 3-D film one year later: ''Dragones: Destino de Fuego''. In February 2006, the film ''
Madeinusa ''Madeinusa'' is a 2005 Peruvian-Spanish drama film directed by Claudia Llosa. Plot Set in the fictional small and isolated indigenous village of Manayaycuna ("the town no one can enter" in Quechua) in the Peruvian Andes, the story covers three ...
'', produced as a joint venture between Peru and Spain and directed by
Claudia Llosa Claudia Llosa Bueno (born 15 November 1976) is a Peruvian film director, writer, producer, and author. She is recognized for her Academy-Award-nominated film ''The Milk of Sorrow''. Early life Claudia Llosa was born on November 15, 1976 in Li ...
, was set in an imaginary Andean village and describes the stagnating life of Madeinusa performed by
Magaly Solier Magaly Solier Romero (born 11 June 1986) is a Peruvian actress and singer. Magaly Solier Romero was born on 11 June 1986 in to a Quechua family, the province of Huanta, in the region of Ayacucho in Peru. She speaks the indigenous language o ...
and the traumas of post-civil war Peru. Llosa, who shared elements of
Gabriel García Márquez Gabriel José de la Concordia García Márquez (; 6 March 1927 – 17 April 2014) was a Colombian novelist, short-story writer, screenwriter, and journalist, known affectionately as Gabo () or Gabito () throughout Latin America. Considered one ...
's magic realism, won an award at the
Rotterdam Film Festival The International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) is an annual film festival held at the end of January in various locations in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Since its foundation in 1972, it has maintained a focus on independent and experimental fi ...
. Llosa's second feature,
The Milk of Sorrow ''The Milk of Sorrow'' ( es, La Teta Asustada, The frightened teat) is a 2009 Peruvian-Spanish drama film by Peruvian director Claudia Llosa and co-produced by Peru and Spain. The film stars Magaly Solier and addresses the fears of abused women du ...
("La Teta Asustada"), was nominated for the
82nd Academy Awards The 82nd Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2009 and took place on March 7, 2010, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p.m ...
for Best Foreign Language Picture, the first Peruvian film in the academy's history to be nominated.
The Milk of Sorrow ''The Milk of Sorrow'' ( es, La Teta Asustada, The frightened teat) is a 2009 Peruvian-Spanish drama film by Peruvian director Claudia Llosa and co-produced by Peru and Spain. The film stars Magaly Solier and addresses the fears of abused women du ...
("La Teta Asustada"), won the Golden Bear award at the 2009 Berlinale.


See also

* Outline of Peru


Notes and references


Notes


Citations


Bibliography

* Bailey, Gauvin Alexander. ''Art of colonial Latin America''. London: Phaidon, 2005, .
''Constitución Política del Perú''
29 December 1993. * Custer, Tony. ''The Art of Peruvian Cuisine''. Lima: Ediciones Ganesha, 2003, . * Garland, Gonzalo. "Perú Siglo XXI", series of 11 working papers describing sectorial long-term forecasts, Grade, Lima, Peru, 1986–1987. * Garland, Gonzalo. Peru in the 21st Century: Challenges and Possibilities in ''Futures: the Journal of Forecasting, Planning, and Policy'', Volume 22, No. 4, Butterworth-Heinemann, London, England, May 1990. * Gootenberg, Paul. (1991) ''Between silver and guano: commercial policy and the state in postindependence Peru''. Princeton: Princeton University Press . * Gootenberg, Paul. (1993) ''Imagining development: economic ideas in Peru's "fictitious prosperity" of Guano, 1840–1880''. Berkeley: University of California Press, . * Higgins, James (editor). ''The Emancipation of Peru: British Eyewitness Accounts'', 2014. Online a
jhemanperu
* Instituto de Estudios Histórico–Marítimos del Perú. ''El Perú y sus recursos: Atlas geográfico y económico''. Lima: Auge, 1996. * Instituto Nacional de Estadística e Informática.  . Lima: INEI, 2005. * Instituto Nacional de Estadística e Informática. ''Perfil sociodemográfico del Perú''. Lima: INEI, 2008. * Instituto Nacional de Estadística e Informática. ''Perú: Estimaciones y Proyecciones de Población, 1950–2050''. Lima: INEI, 2001. * . 28 September 1999. * Ley N° 27867
''Ley Ley Orgánica de Gobiernos Regionales''
16 November 2002. * Martin, Gerald. "Literature, music and the visual arts, c. 1820–1870". In: Leslie Bethell (ed.), ''A cultural history of Latin America''. Cambridge: University of Cambridge, 1998, pp. 3–45. * Martin, Gerald. "Narrative since c. 1920". In: Leslie Bethell (ed.), ''A cultural history of Latin America''. Cambridge: University of Cambridge, 1998, pp. 133–225. * Porras Barrenechea, Raúl. ''El nombre del Perú''. Lima: Talleres Gráficos P.L. Villanueva, 1968. * * Thorp, Rosemary, and Geoffrey Bertram. ''Peru 1890–1977: growth and policy in an open economy''. New York: Columbia University Press, 1978,


Further reading

;Economy * Banco Central de Reserva

. * Instituto Nacional de Estadística e Informática. ''Perú: Perfil de la pobreza por departamentos, 2004–2008''. Lima: INEI, 2009. * Concha, Jaime. "Poetry, c. 1920–1950". In: Leslie Bethell (ed.), ''A cultural history of Latin America''. Cambridge: University of Cambridge, 1998, pp. 227–260.


External links


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of the Peruvian Government * {{Authority control Andean Community Countries in South America Former Spanish colonies Member states of the United Nations Republics Spanish-speaking countries and territories States and territories established in 1821 Cradle of civilization