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Arequipa ( ay, Ariqipa; qu, Ariqipa) is a department and region in southwestern
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 ...
. It is the sixth largest department in Peru, after
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 ...
,
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; ...
, Madre de Dios,
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 ...
, and Loreto, its sixth most populous department, and its eleventh least densely populated department. It is bordered by the departments of Ica,
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 ...
, Apurímac and Cusco in the north, the
Department of Puno Puno () is a department and region in southeastern Peru. It is the fifth largest department in Peru, after Cuzco, Madre de Dios, Ucayali, and Loreto. It is bordered by Bolivia on the east, the departments of Madre de Dios on the north, Cusc ...
in the east, the
Department of Moquegua Moquegua () is a department and region in southern Peru that extends from the coast to the highlands. Its capital is the city of Moquegua, which is among the main Peruvian cities for its high rates of GDP and national education. Geography The ...
in the south, and the
Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contin ...
in the west. Its capital, also called Arequipa, is Peru's second-largest city.


Geography

This department has a rough topography, which is characterised by heavy layers of
volcanic A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates a ...
lava Lava is molten or partially molten rock (magma) that has been expelled from the interior of a terrestrial planet (such as Earth) or a moon onto its surface. Lava may be erupted at a volcano or through a fracture in the crust, on land or un ...
covering large areas of its inter-
Andean 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 ...
sector. It has deep canyons such as the ones formed by the Ocoña and Majes rivers.
Plateaus In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ha ...
range in height from medium, such as La Joya, and high-altitude ones such the Arrieros Pampa and those located in the zones of Chivay, Huambo and Pichucolla. Volcanic cones, such as Misti,
Chachani Chachani is a volcanic group in southern Peru, northwest of the city of Arequipa. Part of the Central Volcanic Zone of the Andes, it is above sea level. It consists of several lava domes and individual volcanoes such as Nocarane, along with ...
, Ampato, Mismi, Solimana and
Coropuna Coropuna is a dormant compound volcano located in the Andes mountains of southeast-central Peru. The upper reaches of Coropuna consist of several perennially snowbound conical summits, lending it the name Nevado Coropuna in Spanish. The compl ...
, emerge above the plateaus and attract snowfall. In contrast with these heights, there are deep canyons, including Majes,
Colca A qullqa ( "deposit, storehouse"; (spelling variants: ''colca, collca, qolca, qollca'') was a storage building found along roads and near the cities and political centers of the Inca Empire. To a "prodigious xtentunprecedented in the annals of ...
, Sihuas and Ocoña, where important aspects of the
ecological Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overlaps wi ...
evolution of this zone can be clearly observed. Along the coast, small plateaus and dunes represent characteristics of the desert of Arequipa, such as the ones located in the Majes, Sihuas and La Joya plains. These are particularly beautiful and developed. From a hydrographic point of view, the rivers draining its territory belong mainly to the Pacific watershed. Some rivers belong to the
Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon (company), an American multinational technolog ...
hydrographic system. Some of the region's main rivers are: Ocoña, Yauca, Camaná and Quilca. The starting point of the Amazon River is located in the Arequipa region . The Highest Mountains of Arequipa are: # Coropuna 6,425 mamsl, Ampato Range. # Ampato 6,288 mamsl, Ampato Range. # Solimana 6,093 mamsl, Ampato Range. # Chachani 6,057 mamsl, Volcanic Range. # Hualca Hualca 6,025 mamsl, Ampato Range. # Sabancaya 5,976 mamsl, Ampato Range. # Misti 5,822 mamsl, Volcanic Range. # Nocarane 5,784 mamsl, Volcanic Range. # Pichu Pichu 5,664 mamsl, Volcanic Range. # Chila 5,654 mamsl, Chila Range. # Casiri 5,647 mamsl, Chila Range. # Mismi 5,597 mamsl, Chila Range. # Minaspata 5,555 mamsl, Chila Range. # Quehuisha 5,514 mamsl, Chila Range. # Surihuiri 5,506 mamsl, Chila Range. # Tacune 5,500 mamsl, Volcanic Range. # Firura 5,498 mamsl, Ampato Range. # Yuraccasa 5,465 mamsl, Chila Range. # Jatunpila 5,450 mamsl, Chila Range. # Jatun Huaychahui 5,445 mamsl, Huanzo Range


Political division

The region is divided into eight
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 ou ...
s (''provincias'', singular: ''provincia''), which are composed of 109
district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municipa ...
s (''distritos'', singular: ''distrito''). The provinces, with their capitals in parentheses, are: # Arequipa ( Arequipa) #
Camaná Camaná is the district capital of the homonymous province, located in the Department of Arequipa, Peru. In 2015, it had an estimate of 39,026 inhabitants. It lies 180 km from Arequipa, on the Panamerican Highway The Pan-American Hig ...
(
Camaná Camaná is the district capital of the homonymous province, located in the Department of Arequipa, Peru. In 2015, it had an estimate of 39,026 inhabitants. It lies 180 km from Arequipa, on the Panamerican Highway The Pan-American Hig ...
) # Caravelí ( Caravelí) # Castilla (
Aplao Aplao District is one of fourteen districts of the Castilla Province in Peru. Instituto Nacional de Estadística e Informática. Banco de Información Distrital''. Retrieved April 11, 2008. See also * Antamayu Andamayo River (possibly from Qu ...
) # Caylloma (
Chivay Chivay is a town in the Colca valley, capital of the Caylloma province in the Arequipa region, Peru. Located at about 3,600 m above sea level (12,000 ft), it lies upstream of the renowned Colca Canyon. It has a central town square and an ac ...
) # Condesuyos ( Chuquibamba) # Islay (
Mollendo Mollendo is a town bordering the Pacific Ocean in southern Peru. It is located in the Arequipa Region and is the capital of both the Islay Province and the Mollendo District. Mollendo was the main port in the Peruvian southern coast until Matar ...
) # La Unión (
Cotahuasi Cotahuasi is a town in Southern 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 , nat ...
)


People


Languages

According to the 2007 Peru Census, the first language learned by most of the residents was
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 ...
(83.17%), followed by the native language of
Quechua Quechua may refer to: *Quechua people, several indigenous ethnic groups in South America, especially in Peru *Quechuan languages, a Native South American language family spoken primarily in the Andes, derived from a common ancestral language **So ...
(14.78%). The Quechua variety spoken in Arequipa is
Cusco–Collao Quechua Cusco–Collao (Spanish, also ''Cuzco–Collao'') or Qusqu–Qullaw (Quechua) is a collective term used for Quechua dialects that have aspirated () and ejective () plosives, apparently borrowed from Aymaran languages. They include Cusco Quechua ...
. The following table shows the first languages by province in the Arequipa Region by province:inei.gob.pe
INEI, Peru, Censos Nacionales 2007


Ethnicity

As of 2017, the largest ethnicity in the Arequipa region are the Mestizo, followed by 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 ...
.


Religion

In 2017, over 80% of Arequipa's population was Catholic.


Literacy

In 2017, 91.5% (1,274,358) of the population was literate and 8.5% (118,691) of the population was illiterate.


Points of interest

There are numerous points of interest in the Arequipa region. The three coastal provinces, Caraveli, Camana and Islay all have popular beaches. Various ports can also be found along the coastline, the two most important being
Mollendo Mollendo is a town bordering the Pacific Ocean in southern Peru. It is located in the Arequipa Region and is the capital of both the Islay Province and the Mollendo District. Mollendo was the main port in the Peruvian southern coast until Matar ...
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 sout ...
, both in the province of Islay. The
Colca Canyon The Colca Canyon is a canyon of the Colca River in southern Peru, located about northwest of Arequipa. With a depth of about 1000 - 2000 m (3300 - 6600 ft) (whereas bottom is at cca 2000 m and edges are at 3000 - 4000 metres above the sea lev ...
, twice as deep as the Grand Canyon in the United States, is situated in the province of Caylloma. The Cotahuasi Canyon is in the La Union Province. Colca Valley provides incredible close-up views of majestic
Andean 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 ...
condor Condor is the common name for two species of New World vultures, each in a monotypic genus. The name derives from the Quechua ''kuntur''. They are the largest flying land birds in the Western Hemisphere. They are: * The Andean condor (''Vu ...
s soaring in their natural
habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...
. Cotahuasi, at , is thought to be the deepest canyon in the world. Both canyons offer spectacular scenery and villages as yet unaffected by the modern world. In the Castilla Province near Corire, Toro Muerto (meaning "dead bull" in Spanish) is an area with more than 3,000 ancient petroglyphs dating to the ancient
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 ...
of 500–1000 CE, which dominated much of this region. Further to the north near Andaguas lies the Valley of Volcanoes. Almost 100 cones of various sizes dominate the lava-hardened landscape.


See also

*
2001 southern Peru earthquake The 2001 southern Peru earthquake occurred at 20:33:15 UTC (15:33:15 local time) on June 23 with a moment magnitude of 8.4 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (''Severe''). The quake affected the Peruvian regions of Arequipa, Moquegua and ...
* Cotahuasi Subbasin Landscape Reserve


Sources


External links


Arequipa region official website (in Spanish)

Arequipa Today
{{Authority control Arequipa