Cajamarca (; qu, Kashamarka; ay, Qajamarka) is a department and region in

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

. The capital is the city of

Cajamarca Cajamarca (), also known by the Quechua name, ''Kashamarka'', is the capital and largest city of the Cajamarca Region as well as an important cultural and commercial center in the northern Andes. It is located in the northern highlands of Peru ...

. It is located in the north part of the country and shares a border with

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: ' ...

. The city has an elevation of above sea level in the

Andes Mountain Range 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 ...

, the longest mountain range in the world. Part of its territory includes 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. ...

, the largest in the world.

History

The oldest known irrigation canals in the Americas are located in the

Nanchoc District Nanchoc District is one of thirteen districts of San Miguel Province in the Cajamarca Region of Peru. In 2017, the district had an area of and a population of 1,368. The capital of the district is the town of Nanchoc which had a population of 332 ...

of Cajamarca Department. The canals in the Zaña Valley have been

radiocarbon Carbon-14, C-14, or radiocarbon, is a radioactive isotope of carbon with an atomic nucleus containing 6 protons and 8 neutrons. Its presence in organic materials is the basis of the radiocarbon dating method pioneered by Willard Libby and c ...

dated to 3400 BCE, and possibly date to 4700 BCE. From the 6th to the 10th century the people of the

Wari culture The Wari ( es, Huari) were a Middle Horizon civilization that flourished in the south-central Andes and coastal area of modern-day Peru, from about 500 to 1000 AD. Wari, as the former capital city was called, is located north-east of the mo ...

ruled earlier cultures in the highlands. They established the administrative center of Wiraquchapampa. In the 15th century, the

Incas 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 adm ...

conquered the territory, expanding their empire. They established their regional capital in what is now Cajamarca. The Incas in 1465 established a new

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions out ...

there to serve as a bridge to their later conquests. Cajamarca had long been one of the oldest cities in

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 sou ...

when the

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

arrived in their

conquest of Peru The Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire, also known as the Conquest of Peru, was one of the most important campaigns in the Spanish colonization of the Americas. After years of preliminary exploration and military skirmishes, 168 Spanish sol ...

Political division

The Region is divided into 13

s. Province (Capital) # Cajabamba ( Cajabamba) #

(

) #

Celendín Celendín is an Andean town in northern Peru, capital of the province of Celendín, in the department of Cajamarca. It is on the road between the city of Cajamarca and the city of Chachapoyas. History The history of the city of Celendín begins ...

(

) # Chota ( Chota) # Contumazá ( Contumazá) # Cutervo ( Cutervo) # Hualgayoc ( Bambamarca) # Jaén ( Jaén) # San Ignacio ( San Ignacio) # San Marcos ( San Marcos) # San Miguel ( San Miguel de Pallaques) # San Pablo ( San Pablo) # Santa Cruz (

Santa Cruz de Succhubamba Santa Cruz de Succhubamba is a town in northern Peru, capital of Santa Cruz Province in Cajamarca Region Cajamarca (; qu, Kashamarka; ay, Qajamarka) is a department and region in Peru. The capital is the city of Cajamarca. It is located in ...

)

Places of interest

Chancaybaños Reserved Zone The Chancaybaños Reserved Zone (''Zona Reservada Chancaybaños'') is a protected area in Peru located in the Cajamarca Region, Santa Cruz Province, Chancaybaños District. See also * Natural and Cultural Peruvian Heritage This is a list of ...

Notable people

* Maxima Acuña, winner of the 2016 Goldman Environmental Prize *

Yma Sumac Zoila Augusta Emperatriz Chávarri del Castillo (September 13, 1922 (birth certificate) or September 10, 1922 (later documents) – November 1, 2008), known professionally as Yma Sumac (), was a Peruvian-American coloratura soprano. She was one ...

, notable exotica singer of the 1950s *

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 from 28 July 2021 to 7 December 2022. On 7 December 2022, he was impeached a ...

, President of Peru (2021–2022)

References

Departments of Peru {{Cajamarca-geo-stub