Chachapoyas () is a city in northern
Peru
Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...
at an elevation of 2,335 meters (7,661 ft). The city has a population of 32,026 people (
2017
2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly.
Events January
* January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...
). Situated in the mountains far from the Peruvian coast, Chachapoyas remains fairly isolated from other regions of Peru. It is served by buses to
Chiclayo and
Cajamarca, and flights to domestic locations from
Chachapoyas Airport.
The city of Chachapoyas is the capital of the
Amazonas Region. It was founded on September 5, 1538, by the Spanish
conquistador
Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (; ; ) were Spanish Empire, Spanish and Portuguese Empire, Portuguese colonizers who explored, traded with and colonized parts of the Americas, Africa, Oceania and Asia during the Age of Discovery. Sailing ...
Alonso de Alvarado "and his twenty". Local agriculture includes
sugar cane
Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of 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 stout, jointed, fib ...
,
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. Orchids are cosmopolitan plants that are found in almost every habitat on Eart ...
and
coffee
Coffee is a beverage brewed from roasted, ground coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content, but decaffeinated coffee is also commercially a ...
growing. Chachapoyas' transitional location between the arid
Cordillera Occidental and
Cordillera Central and the rainy, rainforested
Cordillera Oriental, allow it to receive generally moderate annual precipitation without experiencing the copiously excessive, tropical-rainforest-like precipitation amounts in towns farther east such as
Moyobamba
Moyobamba () or Muyupampa ( Quechua ''muyu'' circle, ''pampa'' large plain, "circle plain") is the capital city of the San Martín Region in northern Peru. Called "Santiago of eight valleys of Moyobamba" or "Maynas capital". There are 50,073 inh ...
.
History
Named San Juan de la Frontera de los Chachapoyas, the city was first established near
La Jalca
La Jalca is a district of the Chachapoyas Province in the Amazonas Region, Peru. Its capital is La Jalca, also known as ''Jalca'', ''Jalca Grande'' or ''La Jalca Grande''. It was the first Spanish foundation of the region. The current city of C ...
, and then near
Levanto. The city's original locations were abandoned due to climate, disease and a lack of defenses against rebelling local groups. The location of the city changed several times, until it was settled in the place that it now occupies at 2334 m. At first the date of settlement had not been specified. It is believed that the Spanish colonials moved the city to its present location in 1545.
The city still preserves its wide colonial
casonas of big
court
A court is an institution, often a government entity, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between Party (law), parties and Administration of justice, administer justice in Civil law (common law), civil, Criminal law, criminal, an ...
s and
lounge
Lounge may refer to:
Architecture
* Lounge, the living room of a dwelling
* Lounge, a public waiting area in a hotel's lobby
* Lounge, a style of commercial alcohol- bar
* Airport lounge or train lounge (e.g., Amtrak's Acela Lounge), a premium ...
s, with roofs made of tiles. Its
Plaza de Armas
''Plaza de armas'' (pl. ; literally ''arms square'' or ''place-of-arms'') is a Spanish language, Spanish term commonly used to refer to town square, town squares in Latin America, Spain and the Philippines, as well as a name commonly given to th ...
is located to the west of the city and it is a perfect
quadrilateral
In Euclidean geometry, geometry a quadrilateral is a four-sided polygon, having four Edge (geometry), edges (sides) and four Vertex (geometry), corners (vertices). The word is derived from the Latin words ''quadri'', a variant of four, and ''l ...
of 100 m. per side. Located on the south side of the plaza is a monument to the "Hero of Arica",
colonel Francisco Bolognesi.
From the
viceroyalty period dates the legend that the Indian chief Pantoja asked 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 Anglo-Norman ''roy'' (Old Frenc ...
for permission to put a gold roof in his house. This and other treasures would be hidden in one of the 40 caves that surround the city.
[Kuélap, a mystical place that everyone should visit (in Spanish)]
http://civa.com.pe
At one time there was a
lagoon
A lagoon is a shallow body of water separated from a larger body of water by a narrow landform, such as reefs, barrier islands, barrier peninsulas, or isthmuses. Lagoons are commonly divided into ''coastal lagoons'' (or ''barrier lagoons'') an ...
surrounded with
totoras (a type of
bulrush
Bulrush is a vernacular name for several large wetland graminoid, grass-like plants
*Sedge family (Cyperaceae):
**''Cyperus''
**''Scirpus''
**''Blysmus''
**''Bolboschoenus''
**''Scirpoides''
**''Isolepis''
**''Schoenoplectus''
**''Trichophorum''
...
) and
palm trees. From these plants, wood was used to build the churches of the city. The Kuélap stadium now stands on this location.
Geography
From the route of
Bagua
The ''bagua'' ( zh, c=八卦, p=bāguà, l=eight trigrams) is a set of symbols from China intended to illustrate the nature of reality as being composed of mutually opposing forces reinforcing one another. ''Bagua'' is a group of trigrams—co ...
towards the
Mayo River and
Huallaga Central, a branch detaches itself, following the course of the
Utcubamba River and leading to Chachapoyas.
The city's geographical location has determined its isolation until recently, when better roads were constructed between Chachapoyas and the cities of the northern Peruvian coast. Chachapoyas is surrounded by extensive and matted wooded formations. During the rainy season, these formations are covered with a thick haze, from which the city's name may be derived (from the
Quechua word: ''sachapuyos'', meaning "mount of haze"). Another interpretation of the name Chachapoyas is the one that alludes its meaning of "strong male". .
Climate
In this part of Peru, located in the eyebrow of the jungle, the climate is
subtropical highland but ever humid, described by the
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...
as ''Cfb'', with an average temperature of 18 °C and an average
relative humidity
Humidity is the concentration of water vapor present in the air. Water vapor, the gaseous state of water, is generally invisible to the human eye. Humidity indicates the likelihood for precipitation (meteorology), precipitation, dew, or fog t ...
of 74 percent. However, in some areas the temperature can drop to 2 °C. Chachapoyas has a temperate climate and is moderately rainy. The annual average of maximum and minimum temperature (period 1960–1991) is 19.8 °C and 9.2 °C, respectively. Annual average precipitation accumulated for period 1960-1991 is 777.8 mm.
Jiron Triunfo is the street which links the three principal plazas of the city. It is called by this name because the victorious Chachapoyans of the
Higos Urco battle entered the city through here. Chacapoyas' transitional location between the arid
Cordillera Occidental and
Cordillera Central and the rainy, rainforested
Cordillera Oriental, allow it to receive a generally moderate annual precipitation amount without receiving the copiously excessive, tropical-rainforest-like precipitation amounts farther east in towns such as
Moyobamba
Moyobamba () or Muyupampa ( Quechua ''muyu'' circle, ''pampa'' large plain, "circle plain") is the capital city of the San Martín Region in northern Peru. Called "Santiago of eight valleys of Moyobamba" or "Maynas capital". There are 50,073 inh ...
.
Tourist attractions
Independence Square
To the east of the city is the Independence Square. In this
square
In geometry, a square is a regular polygon, regular quadrilateral. It has four straight sides of equal length and four equal angles. Squares are special cases of rectangles, which have four equal angles, and of rhombuses, which have four equal si ...
there is a monument to the Chachapoyas heroes of the
Higos Urco battle of June 6, 1821. It is said that Plaza Santa Ana was the first square in the city . Here the first church of Chachapoyas was built. People used to celebrate the
San Juan de los Indios' festivities in this square with eight days of
bullfighting
Bullfighting is a physical contest that involves a bullfighter attempting to subdue, immobilize, or kill a bull, usually according to a set of rules, guidelines, or cultural expectations.
There are several variations, including some forms wh ...
.
Luya Urco
Luya Urqu ''(Luya Urco)'' is a hill located to the west of the city. In this place stands the well of Yana Yaku ''(Pozo de Yanayacu)'', originally known as the ''Fuente Cuyana''. The well was constructed in the same place in which, according to legend, Santo Toribio de Mogrovejo brought forth water from a rock, ending the drought that was plaguing the region. The legend of the well is that any man who drinks from its waters will be forever attracted by the charm of the city's women
Cuyana Fountain
This fountain of legend was in the skirt of Luya Urco hill and had two
jets, one of good and one of evil. According to the legend, when a person drank water from the first jet, love was born, but from the second one hate or negligence was produced. In the city, it was said that the foreigner who drank from this "fountain of love", would be forever captivated by its beautiful women and its wonderful grounds that are full of delight.
The Lagoon
At one time there was a
lagoon
A lagoon is a shallow body of water separated from a larger body of water by a narrow landform, such as reefs, barrier islands, barrier peninsulas, or isthmuses. Lagoons are commonly divided into ''coastal lagoons'' (or ''barrier lagoons'') an ...
surrounded with
totoras (a type of
bulrush
Bulrush is a vernacular name for several large wetland graminoid, grass-like plants
*Sedge family (Cyperaceae):
**''Cyperus''
**''Scirpus''
**''Blysmus''
**''Bolboschoenus''
**''Scirpoides''
**''Isolepis''
**''Schoenoplectus''
**''Trichophorum''
...
) and
palm trees. From these plants, wood was used to build the churches of the city. The Kuélap stadium is now in this location.
Legón Hill
Legón Hill is located in the town of
Higos Urco, 2 km from the city.
Petroglyphs of Pitaya
An archaeological site with about 3,000 years old located 20 km from the city of Chachapoyas, in the
Huancas district. It is about 30 graphic representations of various species of flora and fauna. Some of these images also refer to hunting days.
To get there we must travel about 9 kilometers (20 min) by road northward from the center of Chachapoyas to the Huanca district, and finally we will have to walk an hour to find the famous Petroglyphs of Pitaya. Entrance to the site is free.
Notable people
*
Pedro de Añazco, Jesuit missionary
*
Gisela Ortiz, human rights activist and politician
*
Hernán Rengifo, footballer
*
Toribio Rodríguez de Mendoza, academic
*
Blas Valera, writer
See also
*
1928 Chachapoyas earthquake
*
Chachapoyas culture
*
Chachapoyas Province
References
External links
*
*
Municipality of Chachapoyas
{{Authority control
Populated places in the Amazonas Region
Chachapoyas Districts
Populated places established in 1538
1538 establishments in the Spanish Empire
Regional capital cities in Peru