San Martín () is a department and

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

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 ...

. Most of the department is located in the upper part of the Peruvian

Amazon rainforest The Amazon rainforest, also called the Amazon jungle or Amazonia, is a Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, moist broadleaf tropical rainforest in the Amazon biome that covers most of the Amazon basin of South America. This basin ...

. Its capital is

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 ...

and the largest city in the department is Tarapoto.

Geography

Boundaries

* North and East:

Loreto Region Loreto () is Peru's northernmost department and region. Covering almost one-third of Peru's territory, Loreto is by far the nation's largest department, slightly smaller than Japan; it is also one of the most sparsely populated regions due to ...

* South: Huánuco Region * West: La Libertad and Amazonas regions

Morphology

The territory of San Martín can be divided into four morphological zones: * the west, near the eastern side of the

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

Plateau, with a rough topography and many ravines; * the zone of the wide valleys, with stepped terraces formed by the Huallaga River and its affluents, where population is engaged mainly in cattle and agriculture; * the southwest zone, with a relief coming down from the Cordillera Azul, with low elevation, where is an impressive canyon known as Cajón de Sión, which finishes in the Cayumba rapids; * a small lower-lying jungle zone with areas easily flooded and with almost no hills. The Huallaga River is one of the most important rivers in the region. It forms, together with its tributaries a hydrographical system which drains all of the region's territory. The Pongo de Aguirre is an important canyon formed by the Huallaga going through the Andean hills.

History

Tupac Yupanqui entered and subdued the

Inca The Inca Empire, officially known as the Realm of the Four Parts (, ), was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The administrative, political, and military center of the empire was in the city of Cusco. The History of the Incas, Inca ...

dominion, the province of

, known back then by its native name, Muyupampa. In 1539,

Spaniard Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance languages, Romance-speaking Ethnicity, ethnic group native to the Iberian Peninsula, primarily associated with the modern Nation state, nation-state of Spain. Genetics, Genetically and Ethnolinguisti ...

Alonso de Alvarado reached the Mayo River and founded a city he named ''Santiago de los Valles de Moyobamba'', which later became the capital of Maynas. Another important personality was Priest Manuel Sobreviela who, between 1787 and 1790, accomplished traveling across the Huallaga River and subsequently published a map named "Planning for the course of the Huallaga and Ucayali Rivers and for the Pampa del Sacramento". On August 19, 1821, Moyobamba was the first Peruvian city in declaring its independence. The construction of a highway in recent years has increased the exchange of different products, benefitting the economy of this region.

Political division

The region is divided into 10

provinces A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...

(, singular: ), which are composed of 78

districts 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 counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

(''distritos'', singular: ''distrito''). The provinces, with their capitals in parentheses, are: * Bellavista ( Bellavista) *

El Dorado El Dorado () is a mythical city of gold supposedly located somewhere in South America. The king of this city was said to be so rich that he would cover himself from head to foot in gold dust – either daily or on certain ceremonial occasions � ...

( San José de Sisa) * Huallaga ( Saposoa) * Lamas ( Lamas) * Mariscal Cáceres ( Juanjuí) *

(

) * Picota ( Picota) * Rioja ( Rioja) * San Martín ( Tarapoto) * Tocache ( Tocache)

Archaeology

Gran Pajáten is a pre Inca complex of circular slate buildings decorated with figures of flying condors situated on the border with La Libertad. Due to its difficult access,

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...

is not yet possible at the site.

External links

*
Gobierno Regional San Martín
– San Martín Regional Government official website *
Proyecto Mono Tocon
– Conservation and study programme for the threatened and endemic titi monkey of San Martin (''Callicebus oenanthe''). El Tití de San Martín (''Callicebus oenanthe''), localmente conocido como Mono Tocón, es una de las especies de primates más amenazadas del Perú, recientemente considerada por l
UICN
como en peligro de extinción. {{DEFAULTSORT:San Martin Region San Martín San Martín