Amazonas Region
Encyclopedia
Amazonas is a department of northern Peru
bordered by Ecuador
on the north and west, Cajamarca Department on the west, La Libertad Department
on the south, and Loreto Department and San Martín Department
on the east. Its capital is the city of Chachapoyas
.
The Amazonas department consists of regions covered by rainforest
s and mountain range
s. The rainforest zone predominates (72.93%) and it extends to the north over its oriental slope, up to the border with Ecuador
in the summits of the Cordillera del Cóndor
. The mountain range zone is located in the southern provinces
of the Amazonas department and it only includes 27.07% of its whole territorial surface.
One of the factors that help to give big importance to its geography
is not only that the big valleys and plain
s of its rainforest zone are the closest to the Pacific Ocean
, but also its connections with the routes of the coast are the lowest. This is because they use the Paso de Porculla (the mountain pass of Porculla) that is located at 2,144 m. This is the lowest pass of the whole Peruvian Andes
to arrive to the Pan-American road
system.
The vast and deep valle del Marañón (Marañon's valley), which constitutes one of the most important morphologic features of the department.
The valle del Marañón crosses a big part of its territory and expands itself from south to north. It reaches its greatest width in the province of Bagua
. It narrows when it crosses the Cordillera Oriental
(the Oriental mountain range
) in its most violent route towards the east, towards the lowest part of the Amazon
. It crosses those wonderful canyons and natural porches called pongos
, Quechua word that means doors.
The valle del Utcubamba
(Utcubamba's valley), which is the real axis of the Amazonas department, is located between 5°
and 6°
of south latitude and 78°
and 79°
of west longitude. It is longitudinally developed up to the Marañon river, in which it flowed at 400 m.
This zone is the principal center of production and human groups location. It is developed in four very pronounced sectors:
The principal tributaries
of the Utcubamba
are the Chiriaco
, the Nieva
, the Santiago (that is born in Ecuador
) and the Cenepa
, that is born in the north zone of the Cordillera del Cóndor
. The Cenepa River receives in its trip numerous tributaries like the Comaina. It flowed in the Marañon river, located near Orellana
(province of Condorcanqui
).
The Utcubamba valley
, that is born in the high jalcas
of Chachapoyas
and that runs from southeast to northwest to mix with the waters of the Marañón river, forms the immense plain of Bagua
. This plain has a warm climate, which temperature can reach a maximum of 40 °C, being the minimum one 21 °C.
Like in the whole high jungle
region of Peru
–head of mountain-, its water regimen is irregular and sometimes without rains.
Some of the important places inside this route are:
people is still a mystery. In accordance with the racial characteristics of the majority, some anthropologists suppose that they came down the Andes
centuries ago and adapted themselves to the geographical conditions of the region. Others believe that they are emigrants of Central America
who came either by the coast or through rivers. They established themselves in a zone much wider than the one they occupy now. Apparently this zone also included the actual Jaén
. It is also said that they were influenced by cultural groups that were immigrants from the islands of Melanesia
.
They have always had the reputation of being brave warriors, standing out for their skills in war. Physically there are differences between the aguarunas and the other inhabitants of the Peruvian rainforest
. Their average height is taller – especially between men – and their physical constitution denotes strength.
The Aguarunas have a traditional, ideological and material culture, and they communicate with each other in their own language. For this reason, there is a book called the Vocabulario aguaruna del Amazonas (Aguaruna's Vocabulary of the Amazon) written by Mildred L. Larson and published by SIL International
in 1966. The Aguarunas are located in the geographical area of the Marañón river, that is to say on the banks of the Marañón river and of its tributaries, the rivers Santiago, Nieva
, Cenepa
, Numpatakay and Chiriaco
.
The Aguarunas' families, either monogamous
or polygamous
, occur in a dispersed form, grouped in extensive families or forming major magnitude towns.
Examples of the last case constitute the towns of Yutupiza on the Santiago River and Japaime on the Nieva.
In the cases in which there exists a pattern of nucleate population, these towns, called in their native language yáakat, do not have streets, footpaths, or squares, are formed by houses of traditional construction. These houses are distributed in a kind of asymmetric form and the tendency is usually to be placed in a linear form along the river.
Another typical aspect of the Aguarunas consists in the fact that they have traditionally worked as a seminomadic population, due to the poverty of the agricultural soil and the extremely elementary, traditional agrarian technology, which brings as a consequence the depletion of the soil in a short period of two or three years.
Inside their major hunting activities, the natives hunt members of sajino
, huangana
, Brazilian Tapir
(sachavaca
), Little Red Brocket
, ocelot
and otorongo
(jaguar
). In their minor hunting activities, they hunt majaz
, ronsoco
, achuni
, añuje
, carachupa, otter
, diverse classes of monkey
s and other animals. They also hunt birds.
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Traditionally they used a spear
made from pijuayo
(palm tree of very hard wood) and the blowpipe
for hunting. At present the spear has been almost completely displaced by the shotgun
with pellet
s but they still use the blowpipe.
From the animals taken in hunting, they use the meat, the leather, the skins, the feathers, the teeth and the bones. These animal products serve a double purpose: a nutritive purpose and a handmade, medicinal and/or a witchcraft
purpose.
They gather wild fruits of some palm tree
s, like the uvilla and some shrub
s. Also they gather bud
s of palm trees, stem
s, bark
, and resin
s. They extract the leche caspi
and gather edible worm
s (suri
s) and coleopterous
and the honey
of wild bee
s. Finally, they gather medicinal plants
and liana
s. They use everything gathered to provide food, to make crafts, to make traditional medicine
, to use in witchcraft
and to use as fuel
, inside an ancestral pattern of self-sufficiency.
For agricultural instruments, they use the traditional tacarpo
(a stick with sharp top, made of wood from the palm tree called pijuayo
); together with the axe
, the machete
and the shovel
.
The principal crafts of masculine activities are rope
making, basketry
, the construction of canoe
s, the making of textile
s. The principal crafts of feminine activities are ceramics
and the making of necklaces made of seeds, the small wings of insects and bead
s. The men make crowns of exquisite feathers as well as cotton
ribbon
s in whose ends they places feathers and human hair. These adornments are kept in containers made of bamboo
.
Between the Aguarunas, there is the traditional institution of mutual help known in their language as ipáámu, which works principally in the construction of young couples' housing, in the cleanliness of the small farms and, with less frequency, in sowing the yuca
and peanut
.
cultures that became prosperous in the area are still a mystery due to the lack of research. The Kuélap's Fortress is the most representative monument of this age. It is a huge construction of military architecture which shows the high level of civilization achieved by the people of this region. The Chachapoyas culture
developed during the Inca age and represented a strong opposition to the Incan conquest by repelling the first Inca attempts to incorporate the region to their empire.
The region's capital, Chachapoyas, was founded in 1538 by Alonso de Alvarado. During the same year, its first church was built and later, the Santa Ana, San Lázaro and Señor de Burgos churches were built. In April 1821, the city's inhabitants expelled the Spaniards and ignored their authority, following the steps taken by the San Martín
liberating army.
The area of the Amazonas Region was strongly linked to the independence thoughts and actions. The cleric Toribio Rodríguez de Mendoza
was its most outstanding representative, encouraging the patriots of this era and signing the National Act of Independence.
The Cordillera del Condor, located in this region, was the scenery of the war between Peru and Ecuador in 1981.
.
In this city it had been said to Francisco Pizarro
that Chachapoyas
was an excellent agricultural region which settlers possessed a lot of gold and silver. The big conqueror did not lose time and formed immediately an expedition of 20 men, putting the distinguished captain Alonso de Alvarado
in charge of it, with an express indication: founding a Christian
city.
The chroniclers say that, when the Spanish arrived to the region, the Chachapoyas people gave big parties in their honor and gave them many rich gifts willingly, also numerous examples of appreciation, including showing some interest to become Christians.
Pizarro decided to send a second expedition, this time with instructions to take possession of the zone, delivering Alvarado
a provision so he would be able to found the city of San Juan de la Frontera de los Chachapoyas.
But this time Pizarro's envoy met the bellicose resistance of a curaca
called Huamán, whom they had to defeat before coming to their destination, where they founded the mentioned city on September 5, 1538.
Alvarado had chosen a place called Jalca, which apparently did not have the demanded conditions. This was the reason why the location of the flaming city was changed several times.
According to the papers of the epoch, the last time that a change was made was in 1544, but it is unknown when the city was established in its current place.
The same day of Chachapoyas' foundation, the members of the first cabildo were elected, turning out to be designated the councillor
s Gómez de Alvarado, Alonso de Chávez, Gonzalo de Trujillo, Gonzalo de Guzmán, Luis Valera (father of the chronicler Blas Valera
), Pedro Romero, Bernardino de Anaya
and Francisco de Fuentes.
According to the Spanish custom, the layout of the city was made by means of rectilinear design streets.
A few years after its foundation, the prosperity of the region began to demonstrate itself in magnificent constructions in the city of Chachapoyas, with big courts
, wide lounges and architectural characteristics adapted to the zone.
The colonial aspect of Chachapoyas stays almost intact until now, and it is one of the most attractive characteristics of this old city.
A refined religious feeling was one of the characteristics that distinguished the settlers of this department during the colony. In the same year of the foundation of Chachapoyas, the first church was built. Its first priest
was Hernando Gutiérrez Palacios. Later the churches of Santa Ana
, San Lázaro
and Señor de Burgos
were built.
Three religious convents
were also established: San Francisco, La Merced and that of the betlehemitas. The majority of the persons who settled in Chachapoyas from the time of its foundation were people with nobility
, but poor. They were living in a modest and worthily way and they devoted themselves to agriculture
and mining
. Many settlers achieved a loose economic position, keeping, nevertheless, the austerity of the customs that was one of the highlight points of Chachapoyas' social life.
With time the settlers were spreading to other zones of the region, such as Luya
, city that was established in 1569 by the governor Lope García de Castro
, ratified later in its administrative organization by the viceroy
Francisco de Toledo.
There it bloomed an agriculture
of varied production and the upbringing of dairy
, sheep
and equine
cattle.
In one of his pastoral visits, Saint Toribio de Mogrovejo visited the principal populations of this department in this epoch.
liberating army, they ignored the Spanish authorities, exiling the subdelegate Francisco Baquedano and the bishop
of Maynas
Hipólito Sánchez, who were fighting openly against the independence
.
Between the patriots that were born in Amazonas, history remembers:
Facing this act of rebellion, the military chief of Moyobamba
, colonel José Matos, organized an army of 600 men, who met the patriots on June 6, 1821 in Higos Urco pampa
.
The organization and discipline of the Spanish could not do anything in front of the heroism of the patriots who without training, military knowledge or discipline, faced the realistas determined to give their lives in defense of the proclaimed freedom.
A woman from Amazonas is represented in this battle by Matea Rimachi that has gone on to posterity as the heroine of Higos Urco
.
Between the important men that Amazonas gave to Peru in this decisive epoch for nationality, figures Toribio Rodríguez de Mendoza
, the professor
, politician
, philosopher and jurist
who formed a generation of patriots.
Rodríguez of Mendoza signed the record of national independence in Lima
. He was the rector
of the Convictorio de San Carlos, member of the Sociedad Amantes del País
(Lovers of the Country Society), founder and collaborator of the newspaper Mercurio Peruano
, deputy of the Spanish Parliament
and congressman
of the first Constituent Congress
, in which the majority of its members were his disciples.
Agustín Gamarra
, promulgated on November 21, 1832. The initiative belonged to two illustrious children of Chachapoyas: Modesto de la Vega and José Braulio de Camporredondo. Camporredondo was in charge of the presidency of the republic, in absence of the marshall Gamarra
.
The same law contained a series of norms to promote the economic development of the new hindu network including exonerations of rights in its commerce with Ecuador or Brazil. In accordance with this law, the regions of Pataz
, Chachapoyas
and Maynas
will stay inside the limits of the Amazonas Region.
Salaverry
tried futilely to annul the creation of this department that, later, according to diverse demarcating dispositions was diminishing in its area. Most of its territory was dismembered in 1866, when the department of Loreto
was created.
The creation of its current provinces was realized in the following dates:
The colonial splendour of Chachapoyas
, almost a complete city, was disappearing during the Republic because it had been imposed in the country new means of transport that were turning it in a cloistered and outlying city from the rest of the country.
Chachapoyas remained this way during more than one century in the Republic. Without highways of access, the route had to be done on horse, in long and painful caravans from the coast, or by the rivers from the region of the east. Such situation continue until 1960, date in which the highway arrived to Chachapoyas, although it had been already preceded by air transport.
Later, during the last government of the doctor Manuel Prado
, there was constructed and inaugurated the highway that joins Chachapoyas with the big route of penetration Olmos-Marañon. With this, Amazonas was put in direct communication with Lima
and the rest of the Republic.
s (provincias, singular: provincia), which are composed of 83 district
s (distritos, singular: distrito). Its capital is the Province of Chachapoyas
.
possesses a great past that is still precariously evaluated and spread. On its borders, there are fabulous archaeological testimonies like Cuélap
, the most extensive monument of the Peruvian ancestral past. Cuélap was the main city of the Chachapoyas
in the times of their cultural climax.
". Their incorporation to the Inca Empire had not been easy, due to the sprouts of resistance that the chachapoyas offered repeatedly to the Inca's troops.
The chronicler Pedro Cieza de León
offers some picturesque notes about the chachapoyas:
Cieza adds that, after their annexation to the Inca Empire, they adopted the customs imposed by the people from the department of Cuzco
.
The meaning of the word chachapoyas is unknown. If it is a Quechua voice, perhaps it might come from sacha-p-collas, that could be the equivalent of "colla people who live in the woods" (sacha = wild p = of the colla = nation in which aimara
is spoken).
The Chachapoyas' territory was very extensive. It included the triangular space that is shaped by the confluence of the Marañón River and Utcubamba River in the zone of Bagua
, up to the basin of the Abiseo river. In this place are the chachapoyas' ruins of Pajatén
. This territory included even more to the south, up to the Chontayacu river. In this way it exceeded, in a southern direction, the limits of the current department of Amazonas. But the center of the Chachapoyas culture was the basin of the Utcubamba river.
Not only the defined architectural style known as chachapoyas testify the above mentioned, but also the historical news. For this reason, Garcilazo de la Vega
records that the chachapoyas' territory was so extensive that,
(The league
was a measurement that covered about 5 kilometers.)
The area of the Chachapoyas corresponds to a region that, being part of a mountain range because of its land, was characterized for being covered by dense tropical woods. Talking in general terms, it was named as Amazonian Andes, in replacement of the old and vague word "mountain region".
As fast as the population was growing, the forests of the Amazonian Andes were felled in order to extend the agrarian border. This act caused that the tropical scenery was diminishing and instead, a place marked by its dryness was outcropping, due to the soil erosion that supervenes when these soils remain unprotected from its ancient green mantle. Nowadays, the Amazonian Andes resemble the barren scenery of the Andean moorlands.
The Amazonian Andes are constituted by the oriental flank of the Andes, covered originally by a dense Amazon vegetation. It spread from the cordillera
spurs until reaching surprising altitudes where the forests have not been felled, in certain cases exceeding the 3 500 m.
Culturally focused, the Amazonian Andes only included between 2 and 3 thousand meters of altitude. This means that they are limited to the altitude occupied by the Chachapoyas. This is certified by the location of their numerous architectural remains.
of Chiñuña-Yamón and Limones-Calpón in the province of Utcubamba
. A part of these haughty pictorial samples was made by people that had a hunting economy. These people perhaps left their trace 6 or 7 thousand years ago. At the times in which the formation of Peruvian civilization was consolidated, it appeared a type of ceramics mainly identified in Bagua
.
From the Chachapoyas culture, there are innumerable architectural remains, such as Cuélap, Congón
(place that was re-baptized by the name of Vilaya
), Olán, Purunllacta (place that was re-baptized by the name of Monte Peruvia), Pajatén
, etc. All these expressions of architecture show a model that allows to identify them like if they are related to each other. What has not been established yet is the age of these architectural remains, neither which one would be the most ancient and which one the last in the cultural development of the chachapoyas.
testimonies that talk about the cultural splendour reached by the Chachapoyas in pre-Inca times are fantastic. These principally refer to two forms of grave and one wall painting.
These are some of the most important cultural testimonies that are found in the Amazonas Region:
The profusion of dances, songs and clothing is not seen in here, like in Puno
or Cuzco
. Its folklore is nourished from legend
s and stories
in which mystery and inexplicable things are always present. Towns, lagoon
s, hills, religious images, always have an origin that violates in an invariable way the rules of logic or biology
.
For example, if you ask people about the lagoon of Cochaconga, they will say that it is enchanted. They say it has the "form of a neck" and that with the smallest noise provoked by an animal or the scream of a person, there will be a tremendous thunderstorm in which an enormous monster
will appear in the shape of cow. This monster will become mad with the strangers. That's why, whoever passes by this remote place, does it with maximum precautions for not altering the local silence.
To give accommodation to travelers is an elementary norm of good behaviour with people. To deny it can provoke the most tremendous evil on the selfish person. An irrefutable evidence is the marsh of Mono Muerto (Dead Monkey's marsh), in the district of Huambo
(Rodríguez de Mendoza
). A dramatic story that people tell, with more or less details, but with the same respect.
A very rich man was living in his house. The marsh
was a part of his estate
, in which he was happy and lacking of nothing, until the day a traveler asked him for home and he denied it to him. A witch doctor
of the surroundings, who found out about the attitude of the wealthy neighbor, entrusted that all the curses fell on him. All his goods disappeared and his grounds became a stinking marsh.
Mysterious power are also assumed to the four lagoons of Puquio, in which there are monsters that influence the crops, as well as to the lagoon of Santa Barbara, which disappears before the view of the walkers and it is destined to initiate the end of the world with the overflow of its waters.
Next to the city of Chachapoyas there is a hill called Piscohuañuna, in the way towards the forest. This name means "where birds die", because the mountain kills all the birds that approach it.
People attribute pernicious influences to certain animals like the mochuelo
that "freezes the soul", or "quien-quien", that makes fun of the travelers in the roads; or the cricket
, which singing in certain circumstances, like when it has sound of bells, presages big evil.
People have big respect to the antique remains. They firmly believe that there will be terrifying punishments for those who violate the graves of the "agüelos" (mummies
).
Most of the population of the department of Amazonas is indigenous
and mestizo
, being notable the people' quantity, in some cases entire communities, in which the Spanish type predominates. Since the time of the Incas, there are legends about the existence of white people in these places. There are also versions gathered by chroniclers in which they assure that women were chosen here for the Inca, precisely because they were white.
in them.
There are three Virgins who are famous:
Well, there is no one who does not believe the story that said that the three Virgins were found in a cave to which a young shepherd
was mysteriously attracted. And when the Virgin of Levanto goes to Chachapoyas
"her sisters" go to the outer parts of the town for "receiving her".
The venerated image of Santa Lucía (Saint Lucy
) was also found by a girl in a cave. Cristo de Bagazán (Christ of Bagazán), who is venerated in Rioja
, was also found by a stockbreeder
who was looking for a lost ox. Near Almirante, he heard a voice that was calling him by his name from the interior of a cave, in which he found a Christ
image that told him: "take me".
In days of long drought
, Cristo de la Contradicción (the Christ of Contradiction) disappears from the chapel
of the cemetery
of Chachapoyas
and he is "discovered" when it begins to rain, beginning then big celebrations up to the time of taking him to his place again.
Corpus Christi
, Holy Week
, the Assumption
, Dia de los Difuntos
(Day of the death), and Christmas
are classic dates in the calendar of this department. In Christmas
Days there are groups of little shepherds that walk around the streets singing and dancing in front of the cribs
. With the same splendour, the patronal feasts are celebrated in all the towns.
One of the most well-known and traditional celebrations is known as:
This department includes inter-Andean
and forest
regions. It has a strong forestal and hydro energetics potential. The province of Bagua
, because of geographical factors, has an incipient development based on cultivations like rice
, coffee
, Cocoa bean, fruit trees and livestock
.
The department of Amazonas presents three well-defined geographical fields:
The provinces of Bongará
, Luya
and Chachapoyas
present a very hilly geographical configuration, that gives them mountain range
characteristics.
Amazonas has an eminently agrarian economy. In its extensive territory, it concentrates valuable natural resources
: agricultural
, mining
and energy
.
The department has excellent and favorable conditions in both: climate
and pasture
s availability for the agricultural-livestock
development.
The information about structure of the agricultural surface, size of the agricultural units, main cultivations and cattle
population is taken from what was recorded in the III National Agricultural Census 1994 (III CENAGRO), made by the Instituto Nacional de Estadística e Informática
(INEI) (National Institute of Statistics and Informatics).
The department of Amazonas has 48,173 agricultural units (UA) with 9,811.75 km2. 99.9% of the UA have lands and 0.1% do not have them. This 0.1% are exclusively dedicated to the breeding of animals
.
* It only considers the area of the agricultural units that have worked lands.
From the total of agricultural lands (9750.34 km2), only 16,4% includes the agricultural area and 83,6% includes the non-agricultural area.
* It only considers the area of the agricultural units that have worked lands.
Agricultural units with 0.5 km2 and more only represent 4.4% of the whole department, but concentrate 61.8% of the agricultural surface.
Rice
is the main transitory cultivation of the department. It brings together 18.5% of the agricultural surface with transitory cultivations (129.42 km2). Dry yellow maize
with 125.08 km2 (17.9%) is the second important one.
Coffee
concentrates 66.4% of the agricultural area with permanent cultivations (198.19 km2), followed by Theobroma cacao (cocoa bean) with 31.21 km2 (10,5%).
Cattle
is the most important one in the department. It is raised in 21,857 AU (Agricultural units) with a population of 139,267 head of cattle
. Pig
s are the second one with 34,421 head, distributed in 14,573 AU.
and that help with the development of it. Between the principal institutions, we have:
. Some of these famous people are:
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
bordered by Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
on the north and west, Cajamarca Department on the west, La Libertad Department
La Libertad Department
La Libertad is one of the departments of El Salvador and is located in the southwest of the country. The capital is Santa Tecla. It has 1,653 km² and a population of more than 780,400 people. It was classified as a department on January 28, 1865. The population was settled on the Ulliman...
on the south, and Loreto Department and San Martín Department
San Martín Department
San Martín Department may refer to:*In Argentina:**San Martín Department, Corrientes**San Martín Department, Mendoza**San Martín Department, San Juan**San Martín Department, Santiago del Estero**San Martín Department, Santa Fe*In Peru:...
on the east. Its capital is the city of Chachapoyas
Chachapoyas, Peru
In this part of Peru, located in the eyebrow of the jungle, the climate is subtropical highland, described by the Köppen climate classification as Cwb, with an average temperature of 18 °C and an average relative humidity of 74 percent. However, in some areas the temperature can drop to 2 °C....
.
Geography
Rainforest
Rainforests are forests characterized by high rainfall, with definitions based on a minimum normal annual rainfall of 1750-2000 mm...
s and mountain range
Mountain range
A mountain range is a single, large mass consisting of a succession of mountains or narrowly spaced mountain ridges, with or without peaks, closely related in position, direction, formation, and age; a component part of a mountain system or of a mountain chain...
s. The rainforest zone predominates (72.93%) and it extends to the north over its oriental slope, up to the border with Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
in the summits of the Cordillera del Cóndor
Cordillera del Cóndor
The Cordillera del Condor is a range in Ecuador and Peru....
. The mountain range zone is located in the southern provinces
Provinces of Peru
The provinces of Peru, known in Spanish as provincias, are the second-level administrative subdivisions of the country. They are divided into districts . There are 195 provinces in Peru, grouped into 25 regions except for the Lima Province which does not belong to any region. This makes an average...
of the Amazonas department and it only includes 27.07% of its whole territorial surface.
One of the factors that help to give big importance to its geography
Geography
Geography is the science that studies the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. A literal translation would be "to describe or write about the Earth". The first person to use the word "geography" was Eratosthenes...
is not only that the big valleys and plain
Plain
In geography, a plain is land with relatively low relief, that is flat or gently rolling. Prairies and steppes are types of plains, and the archetype for a plain is often thought of as a grassland, but plains in their natural state may also be covered in shrublands, woodland and forest, or...
s of its rainforest zone are the closest to the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
, but also its connections with the routes of the coast are the lowest. This is because they use the Paso de Porculla (the mountain pass of Porculla) that is located at 2,144 m. This is the lowest pass of the whole Peruvian Andes
Andes
The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...
to arrive to the Pan-American road
Pan-American Highway
The Pan-American Highway is a network of roads measuring about in total length. Except for an rainforest break, called the Darién Gap, the road links the mainland nations of the Americas in a connected highway system. According to Guinness World Records, the Pan-American Highway is the world's...
system.
The vast and deep valle del Marañón (Marañon's valley), which constitutes one of the most important morphologic features of the department.
The valle del Marañón crosses a big part of its territory and expands itself from south to north. It reaches its greatest width in the province of Bagua
Bagua Province
Bagua is a province of the Amazonas Region in Peru. It is located in the north and central part of the department of Amazonas. Its territory is rugged in all its extension. It is also cut by deep gorges that have been formed by the important rivers that cross this province, as well as their...
. It narrows when it crosses the Cordillera Oriental
Cordillera Oriental, Peru
The section of the Cordillera Oriental in Peru is in the extreme south-west of the area of study, where manifestation like the spurs of the eastern flank. This unit has modelled itself on metamorphic rocks of the Paleozoic. The eastern limit is more or less uniform and Colorado is located in the...
(the Oriental mountain range
Mountain range
A mountain range is a single, large mass consisting of a succession of mountains or narrowly spaced mountain ridges, with or without peaks, closely related in position, direction, formation, and age; a component part of a mountain system or of a mountain chain...
) in its most violent route towards the east, towards the lowest part of the Amazon
Omagua
Omagua or Low Jungle is one of the eight Natural Regions of Peru. It is located between 80 and 400 m above sea level in the Amazon rainforest. In this region, there are a lot of rivers that create meanders, swamps and lagoons....
. It crosses those wonderful canyons and natural porches called pongos
Pongo (geography)
A pongo is a type of canyon or narrow gorge along rivers in Peru, especially on the Marañón River and its affluents, in the Amazonas Region.See:...
, Quechua word that means doors.
The valle del Utcubamba
Valle del Utcubamba
The Valle del Utcubamba develops longitudinally up to the Marañon River, being the principal center of production and of location of human groups....
(Utcubamba's valley), which is the real axis of the Amazonas department, is located between 5°
5th parallel south
The 5th parallel south is a circle of latitude that is 5 degrees south of the Earth's equatorial plane. It crosses the Atlantic Ocean, Africa, the Indian Ocean, Southeast Asia, Australasia, the Pacific Ocean and South America....
and 6°
6th parallel south
The 6th parallel south is a circle of latitude that is 6 degrees south of the Earth's equatorial plane. It crosses the Atlantic Ocean, Africa, the Indian Ocean, Southeast Asia, Australasia, the Pacific Ocean and South America....
of south latitude and 78°
78th meridian west
The meridian 78° west of Greenwich is a line of longitude that extends from the North Pole across the Arctic Ocean, North America, the Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean Sea, Central America, South America, the Pacific Ocean, the Southern Ocean, and Antarctica to the South Pole.The 78th meridian west...
and 79°
79th meridian west
The meridian 79° west of Greenwich is a line of longitude that extends from the North Pole across the Arctic Ocean, North America, the Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean Sea, Central America, South America, the Pacific Ocean, the Southern Ocean, and Antarctica to the South Pole.The 79th meridian west...
of west longitude. It is longitudinally developed up to the Marañon river, in which it flowed at 400 m.
- Vertiente del Marañon (Marañon's springSpring (hydrosphere)A spring—also known as a rising or resurgence—is a component of the hydrosphere. Specifically, it is any natural situation where water flows to the surface of the earth from underground...
), that has important quebradaStreamA stream is a body of water with a current, confined within a bed and stream banks. Depending on its locale or certain characteristics, a stream may be referred to as a branch, brook, beck, burn, creek, "crick", gill , kill, lick, rill, river, syke, bayou, rivulet, streamage, wash, run or...
s (SecaQuebrada SecaThe Quebrada Seca River is a river in Peru with a length of 29.3 km, and a slope of 7.2 per cent....
, Bocana, Copallín Nuevo and Choloque). - Valle Medio (the middle valley) that has eleven quebradas in its both borders.
- Valle Alto (the high valley) that has seven quebradas. The most important one is MagunchalQuebrada MagunchalThe Quebrada Magunchal is a river in the Luya Province in Peru. Its coordinates are Latitude -5.8875 and Longitude -78.19....
. - Planicie de Bagua (the Bagua's plain), wavy and picturesque, that is located at 550 m. In some places, it mounts up to 900 m., for example in the inhabited point called La Peca.
The principal tributaries
Tributary
A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...
of the Utcubamba
Utcubamba River
The Utcubamba River is a river in the Amazonas Region of Peru, located at . The river's name is Quechua for "cotton fields".The Utcubamba River originates in the highlands of the central cordillera, then flows north through Amazonas before joining the Marañón River...
are the Chiriaco
Chiriaco River
The Chiriaco river is a river in Peru. The Chiriaco is a tributary of the Marañón and takes Tuntungos, Shushug and Wawas as principal tributaries....
, the Nieva
Nieva River
The Nieva River is a tributary of the Marañón River in Peru. Its length, from the east in the mountain range of Campanquiz to the mouth is approximately 150 kilometers....
, the Santiago (that is born in Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
) and the Cenepa
Cenepa River
The Cenepa River rises in the Condor mountain range in Peru, South America and has a length of 185 km. It borders to the North on Ecuador, to the East on the districts of Río Santiago and Nieva, on the South with the district of Imaza, and on the West with Ecuador....
, that is born in the north zone of the Cordillera del Cóndor
Cordillera del Cóndor
The Cordillera del Condor is a range in Ecuador and Peru....
. The Cenepa River receives in its trip numerous tributaries like the Comaina. It flowed in the Marañon river, located near Orellana
Orellana (Peru)
Francisco de Orellana is a town in the Amazonas Region where there is a statue in memory of Francisco de Orellana, the first European who discovered the Amazon river in 1542....
(province of Condorcanqui
Condorcanqui Province
Condorcanqui is a province of the Amazonas Region, Peru. It was created by law 23832 of May 18, 1984, based on territories of the province of Bagua, covering the basins of the rivers Santiago, Cenepa and Marañon....
).
Route to Huallaga Central: The plain of Bagua
Valle del Utcubamba
The Valle del Utcubamba develops longitudinally up to the Marañon River, being the principal center of production and of location of human groups....
, that is born in the high jalcas
Suni (Geography)
Suni or Jalca is one of the eight Natural Regions of Peru. It is located in the Andes at an altitude between 3,500 and 4,100 metres above sea level...
of Chachapoyas
Chachapoyas Province
Chachapoyas is a province of the Amazonas Region, Peru. The province of Chachapoyas was a part of the department of Trujillo being its capital the city of Chachapoyas....
and that runs from southeast to northwest to mix with the waters of the Marañón river, forms the immense plain of Bagua
Plain of Bagua
The Utcubamba valley is born in the high jalcas of Chachapoyas and runs from the southeast to the northwest to mix with the waters of the Marañón river, forming the immense plain of Bagua...
. This plain has a warm climate, which temperature can reach a maximum of 40 °C, being the minimum one 21 °C.
Like in the whole high jungle
Rupa-Rupa
Rupa-Rupa or High Jungle is one of the eight natural regions of Peru. It is located between 400 and 1,000 m above the sea level. This region has lots of narrow and long valleys and fluvial mountain trails...
region of Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
–head of mountain-, its water regimen is irregular and sometimes without rains.
Some of the important places inside this route are:
- Touristic corridor of the Utcubamba
- Pomacochas lagoon
The Aguarunas
The real origin of the AguarunaAguaruna
For the Aguaruna people's language, see Aguaruna language.The Aguaruna are an indigenous people of the Peruvian jungle. Historically, they lived primarily on the banks of the Marañón River, a tributary of the Amazon in northern Peru near the border with Ecuador...
people is still a mystery. In accordance with the racial characteristics of the majority, some anthropologists suppose that they came down the Andes
Andes
The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...
centuries ago and adapted themselves to the geographical conditions of the region. Others believe that they are emigrants of Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
who came either by the coast or through rivers. They established themselves in a zone much wider than the one they occupy now. Apparently this zone also included the actual Jaén
Jaén, Peru
The city of Jaén is the capital of the Jaén Province in the Cajamarca Region of Peru. At an altitude of 740 meters above sea level it is considered part of the northern Sierra region of Peru. It has a warm and humid climate. Temperatures fluctuate between 15 and 33 degrees Celsius. Rice is the main...
. It is also said that they were influenced by cultural groups that were immigrants from the islands of Melanesia
Melanesia
Melanesia is a subregion of Oceania extending from the western end of the Pacific Ocean to the Arafura Sea, and eastward to Fiji. The region comprises most of the islands immediately north and northeast of Australia...
.
They have always had the reputation of being brave warriors, standing out for their skills in war. Physically there are differences between the aguarunas and the other inhabitants of the Peruvian rainforest
Amazon Rainforest
The Amazon Rainforest , also known in English as Amazonia or the Amazon Jungle, is a moist broadleaf forest that covers most of the Amazon Basin of South America...
. Their average height is taller – especially between men – and their physical constitution denotes strength.
The Aguarunas have a traditional, ideological and material culture, and they communicate with each other in their own language. For this reason, there is a book called the Vocabulario aguaruna del Amazonas (Aguaruna's Vocabulary of the Amazon) written by Mildred L. Larson and published by SIL International
SIL International
SIL International is a U.S.-based, worldwide, Christian non-profit organization, whose main purpose is to study, develop and document languages, especially those that are lesser-known, in order to expand linguistic knowledge, promote literacy, translate the Christian Bible into local languages,...
in 1966. The Aguarunas are located in the geographical area of the Marañón river, that is to say on the banks of the Marañón river and of its tributaries, the rivers Santiago, Nieva
Nieva River
The Nieva River is a tributary of the Marañón River in Peru. Its length, from the east in the mountain range of Campanquiz to the mouth is approximately 150 kilometers....
, Cenepa
Cenepa River
The Cenepa River rises in the Condor mountain range in Peru, South America and has a length of 185 km. It borders to the North on Ecuador, to the East on the districts of Río Santiago and Nieva, on the South with the district of Imaza, and on the West with Ecuador....
, Numpatakay and Chiriaco
Chiriaco River
The Chiriaco river is a river in Peru. The Chiriaco is a tributary of the Marañón and takes Tuntungos, Shushug and Wawas as principal tributaries....
.
The Aguarunas' families, either monogamous
Monogamy
Monogamy /Gr. μονός+γάμος - one+marriage/ a form of marriage in which an individual has only one spouse at any one time. In current usage monogamy often refers to having one sexual partner irrespective of marriage or reproduction...
or polygamous
Polygamy
Polygamy is a marriage which includes more than two partners...
, occur in a dispersed form, grouped in extensive families or forming major magnitude towns.
Examples of the last case constitute the towns of Yutupiza on the Santiago River and Japaime on the Nieva.
In the cases in which there exists a pattern of nucleate population, these towns, called in their native language yáakat, do not have streets, footpaths, or squares, are formed by houses of traditional construction. These houses are distributed in a kind of asymmetric form and the tendency is usually to be placed in a linear form along the river.
Another typical aspect of the Aguarunas consists in the fact that they have traditionally worked as a seminomadic population, due to the poverty of the agricultural soil and the extremely elementary, traditional agrarian technology, which brings as a consequence the depletion of the soil in a short period of two or three years.
Inside their major hunting activities, the natives hunt members of sajino
White-lipped Peccary
The White-lipped Peccary, Tayassu pecari, is a peccary species found in Central and South America, living in rainforest, dry forest and chaco scrub. It is monotypic within the genus Tayassu....
, huangana
White-lipped Peccary
The White-lipped Peccary, Tayassu pecari, is a peccary species found in Central and South America, living in rainforest, dry forest and chaco scrub. It is monotypic within the genus Tayassu....
, Brazilian Tapir
Brazilian Tapir
The South American Tapir , or Brazilian Tapir or Lowland Tapir or Anta, is one of four species in the tapir family, along with the Mountain Tapir, the Malayan Tapir, and Baird's Tapir...
(sachavaca
Brazilian Tapir
The South American Tapir , or Brazilian Tapir or Lowland Tapir or Anta, is one of four species in the tapir family, along with the Mountain Tapir, the Malayan Tapir, and Baird's Tapir...
), Little Red Brocket
Little Red Brocket
The Little Red Brocket , also known as the Ecuador Red Brocket, is a small, little-studied deer native to the Andes of Colombia, Ecuador and northern Peru, where found in forest and páramo at altitudes between . It is one of the smallest brocket deer. The coat is reddish, and the legs and crown are...
, ocelot
Ocelot
The ocelot , pronounced /ˈɒsəˌlɒt/, also known as the dwarf leopard or McKenney's wildcat is a wild cat distributed over South and Central America and Mexico, but has been reported as far north as Texas and in Trinidad, in the Caribbean...
and otorongo
Jaguar
The jaguar is a big cat, a feline in the Panthera genus, and is the only Panthera species found in the Americas. The jaguar is the third-largest feline after the tiger and the lion, and the largest in the Western Hemisphere. The jaguar's present range extends from Southern United States and Mexico...
(jaguar
Jaguar
The jaguar is a big cat, a feline in the Panthera genus, and is the only Panthera species found in the Americas. The jaguar is the third-largest feline after the tiger and the lion, and the largest in the Western Hemisphere. The jaguar's present range extends from Southern United States and Mexico...
). In their minor hunting activities, they hunt majaz
Paca
The Lowland Paca , also known as the Spotted Paca, is a large rodent found in tropical and sub-tropical America, from East-Central Mexico to Northern Argentina...
, ronsoco
Capybara
The capybara , also known as capivara in Portuguese, and capibara, chigüire in Venezuela, Colombia, and Ecuador ronsoco in Peru, chigüiro, and carpincho in Spanish, is the largest living rodent in the world. Its closest relatives are agouti, chinchillas, coyphillas, and guinea pigs...
, achuni
Coati
Coatis, genera Nasua and Nasuella, also known as the Brazilian aardvark, Mexican tejón, hog-nosed coon, pizotes, crackoons and snookum bears, are members of the raccoon family . They are diurnal mammals native to South America, Central America, and south-western North America...
, añuje
Black Agouti
The Black Agouti, Dasyprocta fuliginosa, is a South American agouti species from the family Dasyproctidae. It is found in Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador and Brazil. The agouti is the only animal that has sharp enough teeth to crack open the tough shell of a brazil nut, something that similar rodents...
, carachupa, otter
Giant Otter
The giant otter is a South American carnivorous mammal. It is the longest member of the Mustelidae, or weasel family, a globally successful group of predators. Unusually for a mustelid, the giant otter is a social species, with family groups typically supporting three to eight members...
, diverse classes of monkey
Monkey
A monkey is a primate, either an Old World monkey or a New World monkey. There are about 260 known living species of monkey. Many are arboreal, although there are species that live primarily on the ground, such as baboons. Monkeys are generally considered to be intelligent. Unlike apes, monkeys...
s and other animals. They also hunt birds.
Spear
A spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head.The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with bamboo spears, or it may be made of a more durable material fastened to the shaft, such as flint, obsidian, iron, steel or...
made from pijuayo
Bactris gasipaes
Bactris gasipaes is a species of palm native to the tropical forests of South and Central America.There are numerous common names for this plant in several languages and many countries...
(palm tree of very hard wood) and the blowpipe
Blowgun
"Blowpipe" and "blow tube" redirect here. For other uses of the terms, see GlassblowingA blowgun is a simple weapon consisting of a small tube for firing light projectiles, or darts....
for hunting. At present the spear has been almost completely displaced by the shotgun
Shotgun
A shotgun is a firearm that is usually designed to be fired from the shoulder, which uses the energy of a fixed shell to fire a number of small spherical pellets called shot, or a solid projectile called a slug...
with pellet
Lead shot
Lead shot is a collective term for small balls of lead. These were the original projectiles for muskets and early rifles, but today lead shot is fired primarily from shotguns. It is also used for a variety of other purposes...
s but they still use the blowpipe.
From the animals taken in hunting, they use the meat, the leather, the skins, the feathers, the teeth and the bones. These animal products serve a double purpose: a nutritive purpose and a handmade, medicinal and/or a witchcraft
Witchcraft
Witchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
purpose.
They gather wild fruits of some palm tree
Arecaceae
Arecaceae or Palmae , are a family of flowering plants, the only family in the monocot order Arecales. There are roughly 202 currently known genera with around 2600 species, most of which are restricted to tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate climates...
s, like the uvilla and some shrub
Shrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
s. Also they gather bud
Bud
In botany, a bud is an undeveloped or embryonic shoot and normally occurs in the axil of a leaf or at the tip of the stem. Once formed, a bud may remain for some time in a dormant condition, or it may form a shoot immediately. Buds may be specialized to develop flowers or short shoots, or may have...
s of palm trees, stem
Plant stem
A stem is one of two main structural axes of a vascular plant. The stem is normally divided into nodes and internodes, the nodes hold buds which grow into one or more leaves, inflorescence , conifer cones, roots, other stems etc. The internodes distance one node from another...
s, bark
Bark
Bark is the outermost layers of stems and roots of woody plants. Plants with bark include trees, woody vines and shrubs. Bark refers to all the tissues outside of the vascular cambium and is a nontechnical term. It overlays the wood and consists of the inner bark and the outer bark. The inner...
, and resin
Resin
Resin in the most specific use of the term is a hydrocarbon secretion of many plants, particularly coniferous trees. Resins are valued for their chemical properties and associated uses, such as the production of varnishes, adhesives, and food glazing agents; as an important source of raw materials...
s. They extract the leche caspi
Leche caspi (Couma macrocarpa)
Couma macrocarpa, known by the common names leche caspi, leche huayo, sorva, and cow tree, is a species of tropical plant native to tropical, humid Central and South America....
and gather edible worm
Worm
The term worm refers to an obsolete taxon used by Carolus Linnaeus and Jean-Baptiste Lamarck for all non-arthropod invertebrate animals, and stems from the Old English word wyrm. Currently it is used to describe many different distantly-related animals that typically have a long cylindrical...
s (suri
Suri
-Places:* Suri, Birbhum, a town in West Bengal, India* Suri , an assembly constituency in Birbhum district in the Indian state of West Bengal* Suri dynasty, a former South Asian empire* Şuri, a commune in Drochia District, Moldova*...
s) and coleopterous
Beetle
Coleoptera is an order of insects commonly called beetles. The word "coleoptera" is from the Greek , koleos, "sheath"; and , pteron, "wing", thus "sheathed wing". Coleoptera contains more species than any other order, constituting almost 25% of all known life-forms...
and the honey
Honey
Honey is a sweet food made by bees using nectar from flowers. The variety produced by honey bees is the one most commonly referred to and is the type of honey collected by beekeepers and consumed by humans...
of wild bee
Bee
Bees are flying insects closely related to wasps and ants, and are known for their role in pollination and for producing honey and beeswax. Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfamily Apoidea, presently classified by the unranked taxon name Anthophila...
s. Finally, they gather medicinal plants
Herbalism
Herbalism is a traditional medicinal or folk medicine practice based on the use of plants and plant extracts. Herbalism is also known as botanical medicine, medical herbalism, herbal medicine, herbology, herblore, and phytotherapy...
and liana
Liana
A liana is any of various long-stemmed, woody vines that are rooted in the soil at ground level and use trees, as well as other means of vertical support, to climb up to the canopy to get access to well-lit areas of the forest. Lianas are especially characteristic of tropical moist deciduous...
s. They use everything gathered to provide food, to make crafts, to make traditional medicine
Traditional medicine
Traditional medicine comprises unscientific knowledge systems that developed over generations within various societies before the era of modern medicine...
, to use in witchcraft
Witchcraft
Witchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
and to use as fuel
Fuel
Fuel is any material that stores energy that can later be extracted to perform mechanical work in a controlled manner. Most fuels used by humans undergo combustion, a redox reaction in which a combustible substance releases energy after it ignites and reacts with the oxygen in the air...
, inside an ancestral pattern of self-sufficiency.
For agricultural instruments, they use the traditional tacarpo
Tacarpo
The Tacarpo is an agricultural traditional tool of the Peruvian Amazonía, of approximately 2 m long and 4 cm of diameter. It is made of the trunk or the branch of a tree of hard wood; one of its ends is cut to make a point....
(a stick with sharp top, made of wood from the palm tree called pijuayo
Bactris gasipaes
Bactris gasipaes is a species of palm native to the tropical forests of South and Central America.There are numerous common names for this plant in several languages and many countries...
); together with the axe
Axe
The axe, or ax, is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood; to harvest timber; as a weapon; and as a ceremonial or heraldic symbol...
, the machete
Machete
The machete is a large cleaver-like cutting tool. The blade is typically long and usually under thick. In the English language, an equivalent term is matchet, though it is less commonly known...
and the shovel
Shovel
A shovel is a tool for digging, lifting, and moving bulk materials, such as soil, coal, gravel, snow, sand, or ore. Shovels are extremely common tools that are used extensively in agriculture, construction, and gardening....
.
The principal crafts of masculine activities are rope
Rope
A rope is a length of fibres, twisted or braided together to improve strength for pulling and connecting. It has tensile strength but is too flexible to provide compressive strength...
making, basketry
Basket weaving
Basket weaving is the process of weaving unspun vegetable fibres into a basket or other similar form. People and artists who weave baskets are called basketmakers and basket weavers.Basketry is made from a variety of fibrous or pliable materials•anything that will bend and form a shape...
, the construction of canoe
Canoe
A canoe or Canadian canoe is a small narrow boat, typically human-powered, though it may also be powered by sails or small electric or gas motors. Canoes are usually pointed at both bow and stern and are normally open on top, but can be decked over A canoe (North American English) or Canadian...
s, the making of textile
Textile
A textile or cloth is a flexible woven material consisting of a network of natural or artificial fibres often referred to as thread or yarn. Yarn is produced by spinning raw fibres of wool, flax, cotton, or other material to produce long strands...
s. The principal crafts of feminine activities are ceramics
Pottery
Pottery is the material from which the potteryware is made, of which major types include earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. The place where such wares are made is also called a pottery . Pottery also refers to the art or craft of the potter or the manufacture of pottery...
and the making of necklaces made of seeds, the small wings of insects and bead
Bead
A bead is a small, decorative object that is usually pierced for threading or stringing. Beads range in size from under to over in diameter. A pair of beads made from Nassarius sea snail shells, approximately 100,000 years old, are thought to be the earliest known examples of jewellery. Beadwork...
s. The men make crowns of exquisite feathers as well as cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
ribbon
Ribbon
A ribbon or riband is a thin band of material, typically cloth but also plastic or sometimes metal, used primarily for binding and tying. Cloth ribbons, most commonly silk, are often used in connection with clothing, but are also applied for innumerable useful, ornamental and symbolic purposes...
s in whose ends they places feathers and human hair. These adornments are kept in containers made of bamboo
Bamboo
Bamboo is a group of perennial evergreens in the true grass family Poaceae, subfamily Bambusoideae, tribe Bambuseae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family....
.
Between the Aguarunas, there is the traditional institution of mutual help known in their language as ipáámu, which works principally in the construction of young couples' housing, in the cleanliness of the small farms and, with less frequency, in sowing the yuca
Cassava
Cassava , also called yuca or manioc, a woody shrub of the Euphorbiaceae native to South America, is extensively cultivated as an annual crop in tropical and subtropical regions for its edible starchy tuberous root, a major source of carbohydrates...
and peanut
Peanut
The peanut, or groundnut , is a species in the legume or "bean" family , so it is not a nut. The peanut was probably first cultivated in the valleys of Peru. It is an annual herbaceous plant growing tall...
.
History
The archaeological centers lost in the rain forest emerge as a testimony of presence of humans in the area since remote times. Most of the Pre-HispanicSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
cultures that became prosperous in the area are still a mystery due to the lack of research. The Kuélap's Fortress is the most representative monument of this age. It is a huge construction of military architecture which shows the high level of civilization achieved by the people of this region. The Chachapoyas culture
Chachapoyas culture
The Chachapoyas, also called the Warriors of the Clouds, were an Andean people living in the cloud forests of the Amazonas region of present-day Peru. The Incas conquered their civilization shortly before the arrival of the Spanish in Peru. When the Spanish arrived in Peru in the 16th century, the...
developed during the Inca age and represented a strong opposition to the Incan conquest by repelling the first Inca attempts to incorporate the region to their empire.
The region's capital, Chachapoyas, was founded in 1538 by Alonso de Alvarado. During the same year, its first church was built and later, the Santa Ana, San Lázaro and Señor de Burgos churches were built. In April 1821, the city's inhabitants expelled the Spaniards and ignored their authority, following the steps taken by the San Martín
José de San Martín
José Francisco de San Martín, known simply as Don José de San Martín , was an Argentine general and the prime leader of the southern part of South America's successful struggle for independence from Spain.Born in Yapeyú, Corrientes , he left his mother country at the...
liberating army.
The area of the Amazonas Region was strongly linked to the independence thoughts and actions. The cleric Toribio Rodríguez de Mendoza
Toribio Rodríguez de Mendoza
Toribio Rodríguez de Mendoza was a Peruvian academic.He was born on April 15, 1750 in Chachapoyas, his hometown, when José Antonio Manso de Velasco, count of Superunda, was governing the Viceroyalty of Peru. He was of the most illustrious precursors of the national independence. He was a priest, a...
was its most outstanding representative, encouraging the patriots of this era and signing the National Act of Independence.
The Cordillera del Condor, located in this region, was the scenery of the war between Peru and Ecuador in 1981.
The Conquest
The natives of the region received in a jubilant and cordial way to the first Spanish who came into Amazonas. They knew about their arrival in Peru by the news that they had received from CajamarcaCajamarca Region
Cajamarca is a region in Peru. The capital is the city of Cajamarca. It is located in the north part of the country and shares a border with Ecuador...
.
In this city it had been said to Francisco Pizarro
Francisco Pizarro
Francisco Pizarro González, Marquess was a Spanish conquistador, conqueror of the Incan Empire, and founder of Lima, the modern-day capital of the Republic of Peru.-Early life:...
that Chachapoyas
Chachapoyas Province
Chachapoyas is a province of the Amazonas Region, Peru. The province of Chachapoyas was a part of the department of Trujillo being its capital the city of Chachapoyas....
was an excellent agricultural region which settlers possessed a lot of gold and silver. The big conqueror did not lose time and formed immediately an expedition of 20 men, putting the distinguished captain Alonso de Alvarado
Alonso de Alvarado
Alonso de Alvarado Montaya González de Cevallos y Miranda was a Spanish conquistador and knight of the Order of Santiago. After a period in Mexico under the orders of Hernán Cortés, he then joined the campaign of Francisco Pizarro.He went to Peru with Pedro de Alvarado in search of gold in 1534...
in charge of it, with an express indication: founding a Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
city.
The chroniclers say that, when the Spanish arrived to the region, the Chachapoyas people gave big parties in their honor and gave them many rich gifts willingly, also numerous examples of appreciation, including showing some interest to become Christians.
Pizarro decided to send a second expedition, this time with instructions to take possession of the zone, delivering Alvarado
Alonso de Alvarado
Alonso de Alvarado Montaya González de Cevallos y Miranda was a Spanish conquistador and knight of the Order of Santiago. After a period in Mexico under the orders of Hernán Cortés, he then joined the campaign of Francisco Pizarro.He went to Peru with Pedro de Alvarado in search of gold in 1534...
a provision so he would be able to found the city of San Juan de la Frontera de los Chachapoyas.
But this time Pizarro's envoy met the bellicose resistance of a curaca
Curaca
A curaca was an official of the Inca Empire, who held the role of magistrate, about 4 levels down from the Sapa Inca, the head of the Empire. The curacas were the heads of the ayllus . They served as tax collector, and held religious authority, in that they mediated between the supernatural sphere...
called Huamán, whom they had to defeat before coming to their destination, where they founded the mentioned city on September 5, 1538.
Alvarado had chosen a place called Jalca, which apparently did not have the demanded conditions. This was the reason why the location of the flaming city was changed several times.
According to the papers of the epoch, the last time that a change was made was in 1544, but it is unknown when the city was established in its current place.
The same day of Chachapoyas' foundation, the members of the first cabildo were elected, turning out to be designated the councillor
Councillor
A councillor or councilor is a member of a local government council, such as a city council.Often in the United States, the title is councilman or councilwoman.-United Kingdom:...
s Gómez de Alvarado, Alonso de Chávez, Gonzalo de Trujillo, Gonzalo de Guzmán, Luis Valera (father of the chronicler Blas Valera
Blas Valera
thumb|Three signatures of Blas Valera thumb|Three signatures of Blas Valera thumb|Three signatures of Blas Valera (private collection, C. Miccinelli - Naples (Italy)Blas Valera was born in Chachapoyas in 1545.Valera is considered to be the son of Luis Valera, one of the men who accompanied Pizarro...
), Pedro Romero, Bernardino de Anaya
Bernardino de Anaya
Bernardino de Anaya came to Peru in the middle of the 16th century and founded the city of Chachapoyas. Alderete Maldonado of Anaya, more known as the Admiral, settled down in Cusco and at present his house is a Museum, "The house of the Admiral". Also, Anaya was entrusted to kill the last Inca in...
and Francisco de Fuentes.
According to the Spanish custom, the layout of the city was made by means of rectilinear design streets.
The Colony
Courtyard
A court or courtyard is an enclosed area, often a space enclosed by a building that is open to the sky. These areas in inns and public buildings were often the primary meeting places for some purposes, leading to the other meanings of court....
, wide lounges and architectural characteristics adapted to the zone.
The colonial aspect of Chachapoyas stays almost intact until now, and it is one of the most attractive characteristics of this old city.
A refined religious feeling was one of the characteristics that distinguished the settlers of this department during the colony. In the same year of the foundation of Chachapoyas, the first church was built. Its first priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
was Hernando Gutiérrez Palacios. Later the churches of Santa Ana
Santa Ana Church, Amazonas
Santa Ana Church is located in the first block of Chincha Alta street, opposite to the Saint Ana's square. It was the first church of its genre in being constructed by the Spanish in the Amazonas Region, Peru. It keeps in its interior beautiful colonial images. It is transforming in an ethnic -...
, San Lázaro
San Lázaro Church, Amazonas
San Lazaro Church is located in the Amazonas Region, Peru. It is also called Good Death Church, because it was a part of the religious complex of the Lazaristas....
and Señor de Burgos
Señor de Burgos Church, Amazonas
The Señor de Burgos Church is a 17th century adobe built church located on Plaza de la Independencia in the La Laguna quarter of Chachapoyas, capital of the Amazonas region of Peru. Señor de Burgos is a venerated local figure to whom is attributed a number of miracles...
were built.
Three religious convents
Abbey
An abbey is a Catholic monastery or convent, under the authority of an Abbot or an Abbess, who serves as the spiritual father or mother of the community.The term can also refer to an establishment which has long ceased to function as an abbey,...
were also established: San Francisco, La Merced and that of the betlehemitas. The majority of the persons who settled in Chachapoyas from the time of its foundation were people with nobility
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
, but poor. They were living in a modest and worthily way and they devoted themselves to agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
and mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
. Many settlers achieved a loose economic position, keeping, nevertheless, the austerity of the customs that was one of the highlight points of Chachapoyas' social life.
With time the settlers were spreading to other zones of the region, such as Luya
Luya Province
Luya is located in the south and west part of the department of Amazonas in Peru. Its territory, which partly is ceja de selva, is crossed by branches of the Cordillera Central and the Oriental of the Andes, being rasped by deep streams, high pampas and snowed summit...
, city that was established in 1569 by the governor Lope García de Castro
Lope García de Castro
Lope García de Castro was a Spanish colonial administrator, member of the Council of the Indies and of the Audiencias of Panama and Lima...
, ratified later in its administrative organization by the viceroy
Viceroy
A viceroy is a royal official who runs a country, colony, or province in the name of and as representative of the monarch. The term derives from the Latin prefix vice-, meaning "in the place of" and the French word roi, meaning king. A viceroy's province or larger territory is called a viceroyalty...
Francisco de Toledo.
There it bloomed an agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
of varied production and the upbringing of dairy
Dairy
A dairy is a business enterprise established for the harvesting of animal milk—mostly from cows or goats, but also from buffalo, sheep, horses or camels —for human consumption. A dairy is typically located on a dedicated dairy farm or section of a multi-purpose farm that is concerned...
, sheep
Domestic sheep
Sheep are quadrupedal, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Like all ruminants, sheep are members of the order Artiodactyla, the even-toed ungulates. Although the name "sheep" applies to many species in the genus Ovis, in everyday usage it almost always refers to Ovis aries...
and equine
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
cattle.
In one of his pastoral visits, Saint Toribio de Mogrovejo visited the principal populations of this department in this epoch.
Independence
In an active and enthusiastic way, the inhabitants of Chachapoyas incorporated themselves to the cause of freedom. In April 1821, helping the action of San Martin'sJosé de San Martín
José Francisco de San Martín, known simply as Don José de San Martín , was an Argentine general and the prime leader of the southern part of South America's successful struggle for independence from Spain.Born in Yapeyú, Corrientes , he left his mother country at the...
liberating army, they ignored the Spanish authorities, exiling the subdelegate Francisco Baquedano and the bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
of Maynas
Maynas Province
Maynas is a province in the Loreto Region in northeastern Peru. Its capital, Iquitos, is also Loreto's regional capital and the largest city in the Peruvian Amazon Rainforest.-Boundaries:...
Hipólito Sánchez, who were fighting openly against the independence
Independence
Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state in which its residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory....
.
Between the patriots that were born in Amazonas, history remembers:
- Mariano Aguilar
- Manuel Rodríguez
- Luis Zagaceta
- Lucero Villacorta
- Juan Reina
- José Fabián Rodríguez
- Dionisio Hernández
Facing this act of rebellion, the military chief of Moyobamba
Moyobamba
Moyobamba is the capital city of the San Martín Region in northern Peru. Called "Santiago of eight valleys of Moyobamba" or "Maynas capital". There are 70,000 inhabitants, according to the 2009 census. Some 3,500 species of orchids are native to the area, which has led to the city's nickname of...
, colonel José Matos, organized an army of 600 men, who met the patriots on June 6, 1821 in Higos Urco pampa
Higos Urco pampa
Higos Urco pampa is a historical place in Chachapoyas, Peru where the battle of the same name was fought on 6 June 1821, before José de San Martín proclaimed Peruvian independence. Also there is a beautiful small square raised in its commemoration....
.
The organization and discipline of the Spanish could not do anything in front of the heroism of the patriots who without training, military knowledge or discipline, faced the realistas determined to give their lives in defense of the proclaimed freedom.
A woman from Amazonas is represented in this battle by Matea Rimachi that has gone on to posterity as the heroine of Higos Urco
Higos Urco battle
The battle of Higos Urco, near Chachapoyas in the Amazonas Region of Peru was part of the war for the independence of Peru.The battle began on 6 June 1821. It was joined by small pro-independence and pro-Spanish forces. The battle was part of the campaign which led to the proclamation of Peruvian...
.
Between the important men that Amazonas gave to Peru in this decisive epoch for nationality, figures Toribio Rodríguez de Mendoza
Toribio Rodríguez de Mendoza
Toribio Rodríguez de Mendoza was a Peruvian academic.He was born on April 15, 1750 in Chachapoyas, his hometown, when José Antonio Manso de Velasco, count of Superunda, was governing the Viceroyalty of Peru. He was of the most illustrious precursors of the national independence. He was a priest, a...
, the professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
, politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
, philosopher and jurist
Jurist
A jurist or jurisconsult is a professional who studies, develops, applies, or otherwise deals with the law. The term is widely used in American English, but in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth countries it has only historical and specialist usage...
who formed a generation of patriots.
Rodríguez of Mendoza signed the record of national independence in Lima
Lima
Lima is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín rivers, in the central part of the country, on a desert coast overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Together with the seaport of Callao, it forms a contiguous urban area known as the Lima...
. He was the rector
Rector
The word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...
of the Convictorio de San Carlos, member of the Sociedad Amantes del País
Sociedad Académica de Amantes del País
Sociedad Académica de Amantes del País was established in 1790 for the purpose of discussing the national matters. This group, which recognized as founder Joseph Rossi and Ruby, was shaped by José Maria Egaña, Demetrio Guasque, Hipólito Unanue and Jacinto Calero y Moreira...
(Lovers of the Country Society), founder and collaborator of the newspaper Mercurio Peruano
Mercurio Peruano
Mercurio Peruano was a newspaper published in Peru between 1790 and 1795. It was the first scientific paper in the country. Over 400 editions were published.-History:...
, deputy of the Spanish Parliament
Cortes Generales
The Cortes Generales is the legislature of Spain. It is a bicameral parliament, composed of the Congress of Deputies and the Senate . The Cortes has power to enact any law and to amend the constitution...
and congressman
Congressperson
A Member of Congress is a term used for a politician who has become qualified, appointed or elected, and inducted into some official body , typically to represent a particular constituency in a legislature...
of the first Constituent Congress
Primer Congreso Constituyente del Perú de 1822
The Primer Congreso Constituyente del Perú de 1822 was the first institution chosen democratically in Peru...
, in which the majority of its members were his disciples.
The Republic
The department of Amazonas was created by a law issued by the government of the marshalMarshal
Marshal , is a word used in several official titles of various branches of society. The word is an ancient loan word from Old French, cf...
Agustín Gamarra
Agustín Gamarra
Agustín Gamarra Messia was a Peruvian soldier and politician, becoming twice President of Peru from 1829 to 1833 and from 1838 to 1841....
, promulgated on November 21, 1832. The initiative belonged to two illustrious children of Chachapoyas: Modesto de la Vega and José Braulio de Camporredondo. Camporredondo was in charge of the presidency of the republic, in absence of the marshall Gamarra
Agustín Gamarra
Agustín Gamarra Messia was a Peruvian soldier and politician, becoming twice President of Peru from 1829 to 1833 and from 1838 to 1841....
.
The same law contained a series of norms to promote the economic development of the new hindu network including exonerations of rights in its commerce with Ecuador or Brazil. In accordance with this law, the regions of Pataz
Pataz Province
The Pataz Province is one of twelve provinces of the La Libertad Region in Peru. The capital of this province is the city of Tayabamba.-Political division:The province is divided into thirteen districts, which are:* Buldibuyo* Chillia* Huancaspata...
, Chachapoyas
Chachapoyas Province
Chachapoyas is a province of the Amazonas Region, Peru. The province of Chachapoyas was a part of the department of Trujillo being its capital the city of Chachapoyas....
and Maynas
Maynas Province
Maynas is a province in the Loreto Region in northeastern Peru. Its capital, Iquitos, is also Loreto's regional capital and the largest city in the Peruvian Amazon Rainforest.-Boundaries:...
will stay inside the limits of the Amazonas Region.
Felipe Santiago Salaverry
Felipe Santiago de Salaverry was a Peruvian soldier, politician and, from 1835 to 1836, President of Peru.He studied in the College of San Carlos in Lima...
tried futilely to annul the creation of this department that, later, according to diverse demarcating dispositions was diminishing in its area. Most of its territory was dismembered in 1866, when the department of Loreto
Loreto Region
Loreto is Peru's northernmost region. Covering almost one-third of Peru's territory, Loreto is by far the nation's largest region and also one of the most sparsely populated ones, due to its remote location in the Amazon Rainforest...
was created.
The creation of its current provinces was realized in the following dates:
- On February 12, 1821, ChachapoyasChachapoyas ProvinceChachapoyas is a province of the Amazonas Region, Peru. The province of Chachapoyas was a part of the department of Trujillo being its capital the city of Chachapoyas....
. - On February 5, 1861, LuyaLuya ProvinceLuya is located in the south and west part of the department of Amazonas in Peru. Its territory, which partly is ceja de selva, is crossed by branches of the Cordillera Central and the Oriental of the Andes, being rasped by deep streams, high pampas and snowed summit...
. - On December 26, 1870, BongaráBongará ProvinceBongará is a province of the Amazonas Region, Peru. It borders by the north with the province of Condorcanqui, by the East with the Loreto Region, by the south with the Chachapoyas Province and by the west with the provinces of Luya and Utcubamba....
. - On October 31, 1932, Rodríguez de MendozaRodríguez de Mendoza ProvinceRodríguez de Mendoza is a province of the Amazonas Region, Peru. It is located in the southeast part of the department of Amazonas. It borders on the west with the province of Chachapoyas and on the north, east and south with the department of San Martin...
. - On September 1, 1941, BaguaBagua ProvinceBagua is a province of the Amazonas Region in Peru. It is located in the north and central part of the department of Amazonas. Its territory is rugged in all its extension. It is also cut by deep gorges that have been formed by the important rivers that cross this province, as well as their...
. - On May 18, 1984, CondorcanquiCondorcanqui ProvinceCondorcanqui is a province of the Amazonas Region, Peru. It was created by law 23832 of May 18, 1984, based on territories of the province of Bagua, covering the basins of the rivers Santiago, Cenepa and Marañon....
. - On May 30, 1984, UtcubambaUtcubamba ProvinceUtcubamba is one of seven provinces of the Amazonas Region, Peru. It was created by Law#-23843 on May 30, 1984. Its capital is Bagua Grande and its principal attraction is the Touristic Corridor of Utcubamba where the valley becomes notably closer forming "the canyon of Utcubamba". These conditions...
.
The colonial splendour of Chachapoyas
Chachapoyas Province
Chachapoyas is a province of the Amazonas Region, Peru. The province of Chachapoyas was a part of the department of Trujillo being its capital the city of Chachapoyas....
, almost a complete city, was disappearing during the Republic because it had been imposed in the country new means of transport that were turning it in a cloistered and outlying city from the rest of the country.
Chachapoyas remained this way during more than one century in the Republic. Without highways of access, the route had to be done on horse, in long and painful caravans from the coast, or by the rivers from the region of the east. Such situation continue until 1960, date in which the highway arrived to Chachapoyas, although it had been already preceded by air transport.
Later, during the last government of the doctor Manuel Prado
Manuel Prado Ugarteche
Manuel Prado y Ugarteche was a Peruvian banker and political figure. Son of former president, Mariano Ignacio Prado, he was born in Lima and served as the President of Peru twice, from 1939 until 1945 and again between 1956 and 1962...
, there was constructed and inaugurated the highway that joins Chachapoyas with the big route of penetration Olmos-Marañon. With this, Amazonas was put in direct communication with Lima
Lima
Lima is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín rivers, in the central part of the country, on a desert coast overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Together with the seaport of Callao, it forms a contiguous urban area known as the Lima...
and the rest of the Republic.
Political division
The region is divided into 7 provinceProvince
A province is a territorial unit, almost always an administrative division, within a country or state.-Etymology:The English word "province" is attested since about 1330 and derives from the 13th-century Old French "province," which itself comes from the Latin word "provincia," which referred to...
s (provincias, singular: provincia), which are composed of 83 district
District
Districts are a type of administrative division, in some countries managed by a local government. They vary greatly in size, spanning entire regions or counties, several municipalities, or subdivisions of municipalities.-Austria:...
s (distritos, singular: distrito). Its capital is the Province of Chachapoyas
Chachapoyas Province
Chachapoyas is a province of the Amazonas Region, Peru. The province of Chachapoyas was a part of the department of Trujillo being its capital the city of Chachapoyas....
.
Provinces
The provinces and their capitals are:| Province | Capital | District |
|---|---|---|
| Bagua Bagua Province Bagua is a province of the Amazonas Region in Peru. It is located in the north and central part of the department of Amazonas. Its territory is rugged in all its extension. It is also cut by deep gorges that have been formed by the important rivers that cross this province, as well as their... |
Bagua Bagua, Peru Bagua is a city in Peru located about from the city of Chachapoyas. It lies in the provincia of the same name.-External links:*... |
5 |
| Bongará Bongará Province Bongará is a province of the Amazonas Region, Peru. It borders by the north with the province of Condorcanqui, by the East with the Loreto Region, by the south with the Chachapoyas Province and by the west with the provinces of Luya and Utcubamba.... |
Jumbilla | 12 |
| Chachapoyas Chachapoyas Province Chachapoyas is a province of the Amazonas Region, Peru. The province of Chachapoyas was a part of the department of Trujillo being its capital the city of Chachapoyas.... |
Chachapoyas Chachapoyas, Peru In this part of Peru, located in the eyebrow of the jungle, the climate is subtropical highland, described by the Köppen climate classification as Cwb, with an average temperature of 18 °C and an average relative humidity of 74 percent. However, in some areas the temperature can drop to 2 °C.... |
21 |
| Condorcanqui Condorcanqui Province Condorcanqui is a province of the Amazonas Region, Peru. It was created by law 23832 of May 18, 1984, based on territories of the province of Bagua, covering the basins of the rivers Santiago, Cenepa and Marañon.... |
Sta. María de Nieva Santa María de Nieva The town of Santa Maria de Nieva, is a capital of the province of Condorcanqui in the department of Amazonas Region. It was constituted as such in 1984.... |
3 |
| Luya Luya Province Luya is located in the south and west part of the department of Amazonas in Peru. Its territory, which partly is ceja de selva, is crossed by branches of the Cordillera Central and the Oriental of the Andes, being rasped by deep streams, high pampas and snowed summit... |
Lamud Lamud Lamud is a town in northern Peru, capital of the province Luya in the region Amazonas.-References:... |
23 |
| Rodríguez de Mendoza Rodríguez de Mendoza Province Rodríguez de Mendoza is a province of the Amazonas Region, Peru. It is located in the southeast part of the department of Amazonas. It borders on the west with the province of Chachapoyas and on the north, east and south with the department of San Martin... |
Mendoza Mendoza (Peru) Mendoza is a town in the San Nicolás District and capital of the Rodríguez de Mendoza Province, located in the South part East of the Amazonas Region, Peru.Mendoza is characterized by its tropical climate... |
12 |
| Utcubamba Utcubamba Province Utcubamba is one of seven provinces of the Amazonas Region, Peru. It was created by Law#-23843 on May 30, 1984. Its capital is Bagua Grande and its principal attraction is the Touristic Corridor of Utcubamba where the valley becomes notably closer forming "the canyon of Utcubamba". These conditions... |
Bagua Grande Bagua Grande Bagua Grande is a town in northern Peru, capital of the province Utcubamba in the region Amazonas.-References:... |
7 |
The Amazonas' Ancestors
The department of AmazonasAmazonas before the Inca Empire
The department of Amazonas in modern Peru – a part of Peru close to the Andes but within the Amazonian forest – has a millennial history. There is some evidence exhibited on rocky walls dated from the most remote times, including the rock paintings of Chiñuña-Yamón and Limones-Calpón in the...
possesses a great past that is still precariously evaluated and spread. On its borders, there are fabulous archaeological testimonies like Cuélap
Kuelap
The fortress of Kuelap or Cuélap , associated with the Chachapoyas culture, consists of massive exterior stone walls containing more than four hundred buildings. The structure, situated on a ridge overlooking the Utcubamba Valley in northern Peru, is roughly 600 meters in length and 110 meters in...
, the most extensive monument of the Peruvian ancestral past. Cuélap was the main city of the Chachapoyas
Chachapoyas culture
The Chachapoyas, also called the Warriors of the Clouds, were an Andean people living in the cloud forests of the Amazonas region of present-day Peru. The Incas conquered their civilization shortly before the arrival of the Spanish in Peru. When the Spanish arrived in Peru in the 16th century, the...
in the times of their cultural climax.
The Chachapoyas
When the Spanish arrived in Peru in the 16th century, the Chachapoyas were one of the many nations that were part of the Inca EmpireInca Empire
The Inca Empire, or Inka Empire , was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The administrative, political and military center of the empire was located in Cusco in modern-day Peru. The Inca civilization arose from the highlands of Peru sometime in the early 13th century...
". Their incorporation to the Inca Empire had not been easy, due to the sprouts of resistance that the chachapoyas offered repeatedly to the Inca's troops.
The chronicler Pedro Cieza de León
Pedro Cieza de León
Pedro Cieza de León was a Spanish conquistador and chronicler of Peru. He is known primarily for his history and description of Peru, Crónicas del Perú...
offers some picturesque notes about the chachapoyas:
Cieza adds that, after their annexation to the Inca Empire, they adopted the customs imposed by the people from the department of Cuzco
Cusco Region
Cusco is a region in Peru. It is bordered by the Ucayali Region on the north; the Madre de Dios and Puno regions on the east; the Arequipa Region on the south; and the Apurímac, Ayacucho and Junín regions on the west...
.
The meaning of the word chachapoyas is unknown. If it is a Quechua voice, perhaps it might come from sacha-p-collas, that could be the equivalent of "colla people who live in the woods" (sacha = wild p = of the colla = nation in which aimara
Aymara language
Aymara is an Aymaran language spoken by the Aymara people of the Andes. It is one of only a handful of Native American languages with over three million speakers. Aymara, along with Quechua and Spanish, is an official language of Peru and Bolivia...
is spoken).
The Chachapoyas' territory was very extensive. It included the triangular space that is shaped by the confluence of the Marañón River and Utcubamba River in the zone of Bagua
Bagua Province
Bagua is a province of the Amazonas Region in Peru. It is located in the north and central part of the department of Amazonas. Its territory is rugged in all its extension. It is also cut by deep gorges that have been formed by the important rivers that cross this province, as well as their...
, up to the basin of the Abiseo river. In this place are the chachapoyas' ruins of Pajatén
Gran Pajáten
Gran Pajatén is an archaeological site located in the Andean cloud forests of Peru, on the border of the La Libertad region and the San Martín region, between the Marañon and Huallaga rivers. The archaeological site lies in the Rio Abiseo National Park, which was established in 1983. The park was...
. This territory included even more to the south, up to the Chontayacu river. In this way it exceeded, in a southern direction, the limits of the current department of Amazonas. But the center of the Chachapoyas culture was the basin of the Utcubamba river.
Not only the defined architectural style known as chachapoyas testify the above mentioned, but also the historical news. For this reason, Garcilazo de la Vega
Inca Garcilaso de la Vega
Garcilaso de la Vega , born Gómez Suárez de Figueroa, was a historian and writer from the Spanish Viceroyalty of Peru. The son of a Spanish conquistador and an Inca noblewoman, he is recognized primarily for his contributions to Inca history, culture, and society...
records that the chachapoyas' territory was so extensive that,
(The league
League (unit)
A league is a unit of length . It was long common in Europe and Latin America, but it is no longer an official unit in any nation. The league originally referred to the distance a person or a horse could walk in an hour...
was a measurement that covered about 5 kilometers.)
The area of the Chachapoyas corresponds to a region that, being part of a mountain range because of its land, was characterized for being covered by dense tropical woods. Talking in general terms, it was named as Amazonian Andes, in replacement of the old and vague word "mountain region".
As fast as the population was growing, the forests of the Amazonian Andes were felled in order to extend the agrarian border. This act caused that the tropical scenery was diminishing and instead, a place marked by its dryness was outcropping, due to the soil erosion that supervenes when these soils remain unprotected from its ancient green mantle. Nowadays, the Amazonian Andes resemble the barren scenery of the Andean moorlands.
The Amazonian Andes are constituted by the oriental flank of the Andes, covered originally by a dense Amazon vegetation. It spread from the cordillera
Cordillera
A cordillera is an extensive chain of mountains or mountain ranges, that runs along a coastline . It comes from the Spanish word cordilla, which is a diminutive of cuerda, or "cord"...
spurs until reaching surprising altitudes where the forests have not been felled, in certain cases exceeding the 3 500 m.
Culturally focused, the Amazonian Andes only included between 2 and 3 thousand meters of altitude. This means that they are limited to the altitude occupied by the Chachapoyas. This is certified by the location of their numerous architectural remains.
Times previous to the Inca Empire
The Amazonas Region has a millennial history. There are some testimonies exhibited on rocky walls dated from the most remote times. Such is the case of the rock paintingsCave painting
Cave paintings are paintings on cave walls and ceilings, and the term is used especially for those dating to prehistoric times. The earliest European cave paintings date to the Aurignacian, some 32,000 years ago. The purpose of the paleolithic cave paintings is not known...
of Chiñuña-Yamón and Limones-Calpón in the province of Utcubamba
Utcubamba Province
Utcubamba is one of seven provinces of the Amazonas Region, Peru. It was created by Law#-23843 on May 30, 1984. Its capital is Bagua Grande and its principal attraction is the Touristic Corridor of Utcubamba where the valley becomes notably closer forming "the canyon of Utcubamba". These conditions...
. A part of these haughty pictorial samples was made by people that had a hunting economy. These people perhaps left their trace 6 or 7 thousand years ago. At the times in which the formation of Peruvian civilization was consolidated, it appeared a type of ceramics mainly identified in Bagua
Bagua Province
Bagua is a province of the Amazonas Region in Peru. It is located in the north and central part of the department of Amazonas. Its territory is rugged in all its extension. It is also cut by deep gorges that have been formed by the important rivers that cross this province, as well as their...
.
From the Chachapoyas culture, there are innumerable architectural remains, such as Cuélap, Congón
Gran Vilaya
Gran Vilaya is a complex of many archaeological remains and ruins, spread over a wide area in the Utcubamba Valley in northern Peru. Gene Savoy, an American explorer, discovered and named the complex in 1985...
(place that was re-baptized by the name of Vilaya
Gran Vilaya
Gran Vilaya is a complex of many archaeological remains and ruins, spread over a wide area in the Utcubamba Valley in northern Peru. Gene Savoy, an American explorer, discovered and named the complex in 1985...
), Olán, Purunllacta (place that was re-baptized by the name of Monte Peruvia), Pajatén
Gran Pajáten
Gran Pajatén is an archaeological site located in the Andean cloud forests of Peru, on the border of the La Libertad region and the San Martín region, between the Marañon and Huallaga rivers. The archaeological site lies in the Rio Abiseo National Park, which was established in 1983. The park was...
, etc. All these expressions of architecture show a model that allows to identify them like if they are related to each other. What has not been established yet is the age of these architectural remains, neither which one would be the most ancient and which one the last in the cultural development of the chachapoyas.
Main cultural testimonies
Some of the archaeologicalArchaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
testimonies that talk about the cultural splendour reached by the Chachapoyas in pre-Inca times are fantastic. These principally refer to two forms of grave and one wall painting.
These are some of the most important cultural testimonies that are found in the Amazonas Region:
-
- Sarcofagi of CarajíaSarcofagi of CarajíaAlthough the model of burying using coffins of anthropomorphous shape and sarcofagi, was already mentioned in the Mercurio Peruano as part of the cultural area of Chachapoyas, and it deserved the attention of Louis Langlois and of the archaeologists Henry and Paule Reichlen , this Chachapoyas's...
- Revash's mausoleums
- Tunnels of San AntonioTunnels of San AntonioThe tunnels of San Antonio are located in the province of Luya, Peru. They are rocky formations like natural bridges placed over San Antonio river....
- CuelapKuelapThe fortress of Kuelap or Cuélap , associated with the Chachapoyas culture, consists of massive exterior stone walls containing more than four hundred buildings. The structure, situated on a ridge overlooking the Utcubamba Valley in northern Peru, is roughly 600 meters in length and 110 meters in...
- Sarcofagi of Carajía
Folklore
The folklore of Amazonas is not as varied as in other departments of Peru.The profusion of dances, songs and clothing is not seen in here, like in Puno
Puno
Puno 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 100,000. The city was established in 1668 by viceroy Pedro Antonio Fernández de Castro as capital of the province of...
or Cuzco
Cusco Region
Cusco is a region in Peru. It is bordered by the Ucayali Region on the north; the Madre de Dios and Puno regions on the east; the Arequipa Region on the south; and the Apurímac, Ayacucho and Junín regions on the west...
. Its folklore is nourished from legend
Legend
A legend is a narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to take place within human history and to possess certain qualities that give the tale verisimilitude...
s and stories
Tall tale
A tall tale is a story with unbelievable elements, related as if it were true and factual. Some such stories are exaggerations of actual events, for example fish stories such as, "that fish was so big, why I tell ya', it nearly sank the boat when I pulled it in!" Other tall tales are completely...
in which mystery and inexplicable things are always present. Towns, lagoon
Lagoon
A lagoon is a body of shallow sea water or brackish water separated from the sea by some form of barrier. The EU's habitat directive defines lagoons as "expanses of shallow coastal salt water, of varying salinity or water volume, wholly or partially separated from the sea by sand banks or shingle,...
s, hills, religious images, always have an origin that violates in an invariable way the rules of logic or biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
.
For example, if you ask people about the lagoon of Cochaconga, they will say that it is enchanted. They say it has the "form of a neck" and that with the smallest noise provoked by an animal or the scream of a person, there will be a tremendous thunderstorm in which an enormous monster
Monster
A monster is any fictional creature, usually found in legends or horror fiction, that is somewhat hideous and may produce physical harm or mental fear by either its appearance or its actions...
will appear in the shape of cow. This monster will become mad with the strangers. That's why, whoever passes by this remote place, does it with maximum precautions for not altering the local silence.
To give accommodation to travelers is an elementary norm of good behaviour with people. To deny it can provoke the most tremendous evil on the selfish person. An irrefutable evidence is the marsh of Mono Muerto (Dead Monkey's marsh), in the district of Huambo
Huambo District
Huambo District is one of twelve districts of the province of Rodríguez de Mendoza in Peru.-References:...
(Rodríguez de Mendoza
Rodríguez de Mendoza Province
Rodríguez de Mendoza is a province of the Amazonas Region, Peru. It is located in the southeast part of the department of Amazonas. It borders on the west with the province of Chachapoyas and on the north, east and south with the department of San Martin...
). A dramatic story that people tell, with more or less details, but with the same respect.
A very rich man was living in his house. The marsh
Marsh
In geography, a marsh, or morass, is a type of wetland that is subject to frequent or continuous flood. Typically the water is shallow and features grasses, rushes, reeds, typhas, sedges, other herbaceous plants, and moss....
was a part of his estate
Estate (house)
An estate comprises the houses and outbuildings and supporting farmland and woods that surround the gardens and grounds of a very large property, such as a country house or mansion. It is the modern term for a manor, but lacks the latter's now abolished jurisdictional authority...
, in which he was happy and lacking of nothing, until the day a traveler asked him for home and he denied it to him. A witch doctor
Curandero
A curandero or curandeiro is a traditional folk healer or shaman in Latin America, who is dedicated to curing physical or spiritual illnesses. The role of a curandero or curandera can also incorporate the roles of psychiatrist along with that of doctor and healer. Many curanderos use Catholic...
of the surroundings, who found out about the attitude of the wealthy neighbor, entrusted that all the curses fell on him. All his goods disappeared and his grounds became a stinking marsh.
Mysterious power are also assumed to the four lagoons of Puquio, in which there are monsters that influence the crops, as well as to the lagoon of Santa Barbara, which disappears before the view of the walkers and it is destined to initiate the end of the world with the overflow of its waters.
Next to the city of Chachapoyas there is a hill called Piscohuañuna, in the way towards the forest. This name means "where birds die", because the mountain kills all the birds that approach it.
People attribute pernicious influences to certain animals like the mochuelo
Little Owl
The Little Owl is a bird which is resident in much of the temperate and warmer parts of Europe, Asia east to Korea, and north Africa. It is not native to Great Britain, but was first introduced in 1842, and is now naturalised there...
that "freezes the soul", or "quien-quien", that makes fun of the travelers in the roads; or the cricket
Cricket (insect)
Crickets, family Gryllidae , are insects somewhat related to grasshoppers, and more closely related to katydids or bush crickets . They have somewhat flattened bodies and long antennae. There are about 900 species of crickets...
, which singing in certain circumstances, like when it has sound of bells, presages big evil.
People have big respect to the antique remains. They firmly believe that there will be terrifying punishments for those who violate the graves of the "agüelos" (mummies
Mummy
A mummy is a body, human or animal, whose skin and organs have been preserved by either intentional or incidental exposure to chemicals, extreme coldness , very low humidity, or lack of air when bodies are submerged in bogs, so that the recovered body will not decay further if kept in cool and dry...
).
Most of the population of the department of Amazonas is indigenous
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
and mestizo
Mestizo
Mestizo is a term traditionally used in Latin America, Philippines and Spain for people of mixed European and Native American heritage or descent...
, being notable the people' quantity, in some cases entire communities, in which the Spanish type predominates. Since the time of the Incas, there are legends about the existence of white people in these places. There are also versions gathered by chroniclers in which they assure that women were chosen here for the Inca, precisely because they were white.
Dances
Some of the dances most representative of the Department of Amazonas are:- The ChumaichadaChumaichadaLa Chumaichada is a typical dance from the Amazonas Region, Peru. It is "the dance of Chachapoyas" because it was born in this place and it was formed in there until it became institutionalized...
- Huanca (dance)Huanca (dance)Huanca is a typical dance from the Amazonas Region, Peru . Next to Chachapoyas, there is a small town called Huanca, where the homonym dance had its origin. It is also danced in several places of the department of Amazonas during the agricultural chores, the construction of a house, etc. It is a...
- The Danzantes de LevantoDanzantes de LevantoLos Danzantes de Levanto is a typical dance from the Amazonas Region, Peru. Levanto is a little town that is approximately 10 km far from Chachapoyas, whose "dancers" form a showy group of thirteen cholos, very well trained, that are guided by a "pifador" that plays the antara and a small...
(Levanto's Dancers) - Carnaval en AmazonasCarnaval en AmazonasCarnaval en Amazonas is a typical dance from the Amazonas Region, Peru. The "carnival music" that is played in Amazonas presents notes of real euphoria. It is similar to the huayno. At its times, couples dance forming the pandilla around the humishas - trees adorned with quitasueños, small...
(Carnival in Amazonas)
Religious festivities
Religiousness is an outstanding note in the most of these towns and they demonstrate it through the enthusiasm and withdrawal that they put into these celebrations. But, faithful to their tradition, their religious beliefs are mixed with fantastic apparitions and there is almost always a caveCave
A cave or cavern is a natural underground space large enough for a human to enter. The term applies to natural cavities some part of which is in total darkness. The word cave also includes smaller spaces like rock shelters, sea caves, and grottos.Speleology is the science of exploration and study...
in them.
There are three Virgins who are famous:
- Virgen de Belén (Virgin of BethlehemBethlehemBethlehem is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank of the Jordan River, near Israel and approximately south of Jerusalem, with a population of about 30,000 people. It is the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate of the Palestinian National Authority and a hub of Palestinian culture and tourism...
) in ChachapoyasChachapoyas, PeruIn this part of Peru, located in the eyebrow of the jungle, the climate is subtropical highland, described by the Köppen climate classification as Cwb, with an average temperature of 18 °C and an average relative humidity of 74 percent. However, in some areas the temperature can drop to 2 °C....
. - Virgen de Sonche (Virgin of SoncheSonche DistrictSonche District is one of twenty-one districts of the province Chachapoyas in Peru.-References:...
) - Virgen de Levanto (Virgin of LevantoLevanto DistrictLevanto is a district of the province of Chachapoyas.-History:It was one of the principal centers in the province of Chachapoyas. In 1538 Alonso de Alvarado founded the city of Chachapoyas, Peru...
)
Well, there is no one who does not believe the story that said that the three Virgins were found in a cave to which a young shepherd
Shepherd
A shepherd is a person who tends, feeds or guards flocks of sheep.- Origins :Shepherding is one of the oldest occupations, beginning some 6,000 years ago in Asia Minor. Sheep were kept for their milk, meat and especially their wool...
was mysteriously attracted. And when the Virgin of Levanto goes to Chachapoyas
Chachapoyas, Peru
In this part of Peru, located in the eyebrow of the jungle, the climate is subtropical highland, described by the Köppen climate classification as Cwb, with an average temperature of 18 °C and an average relative humidity of 74 percent. However, in some areas the temperature can drop to 2 °C....
"her sisters" go to the outer parts of the town for "receiving her".
The venerated image of Santa Lucía (Saint Lucy
Saint Lucy
Saint Lucy , also known as Saint Lucia, was a wealthy young Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint by Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, and Orthodox Christians. Her feast day in the West is 13 December; with a name derived from lux, lucis "light", she is the patron saint of those who are...
) was also found by a girl in a cave. Cristo de Bagazán (Christ of Bagazán), who is venerated in Rioja
Rioja Province
The Rioja Province is one of ten provinces of the San Martín Region in northern Peru.-Location:The province is bordered to the north and east by the Moyobamba Province and to the south and west by the Amazonas Region....
, was also found by a stockbreeder
Animal husbandry
Animal husbandry is the agricultural practice of breeding and raising livestock.- History :Animal husbandry has been practiced for thousands of years, since the first domestication of animals....
who was looking for a lost ox. Near Almirante, he heard a voice that was calling him by his name from the interior of a cave, in which he found a Christ
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
image that told him: "take me".
In days of long drought
Drought
A drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply. Generally, this occurs when a region receives consistently below average precipitation. It can have a substantial impact on the ecosystem and agriculture of the affected region...
, Cristo de la Contradicción (the Christ of Contradiction) disappears from the chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
of the cemetery
Cemetery
A cemetery is a place in which dead bodies and cremated remains are buried. The term "cemetery" implies that the land is specifically designated as a burying ground. Cemeteries in the Western world are where the final ceremonies of death are observed...
of Chachapoyas
Chachapoyas, Peru
In this part of Peru, located in the eyebrow of the jungle, the climate is subtropical highland, described by the Köppen climate classification as Cwb, with an average temperature of 18 °C and an average relative humidity of 74 percent. However, in some areas the temperature can drop to 2 °C....
and he is "discovered" when it begins to rain, beginning then big celebrations up to the time of taking him to his place again.
Corpus Christi
Corpus Christi (feast)
Corpus Christi is a Latin Rite solemnity, now designated the solemnity of The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ . It is also celebrated in some Anglican, Lutheran and Old Catholic Churches. Like Trinity Sunday and the Solemnity of Christ the King, it does not commemorate a particular event in...
, Holy Week
Holy Week
Holy Week in Christianity is the last week of Lent and the week before Easter...
, the Assumption
Assumption of Mary
According to the belief of Christians of the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, and parts of the Anglican Communion and Continuing Anglicanism, the Assumption of Mary was the bodily taking up of the Virgin Mary into Heaven at the end of her life...
, Dia de los Difuntos
Day of the Dead
Day of the Dead is a Mexican holiday celebrated throughout Mexico and around the world in many cultures. The holiday focuses on gatherings of family and friends to pray for and remember friends and family members who have died. It is particularly celebrated in Mexico, where it attains the quality...
(Day of the death), and Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
are classic dates in the calendar of this department. In Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
Days there are groups of little shepherds that walk around the streets singing and dancing in front of the cribs
Nativity scene
A nativity scene, manger scene, krippe, crèche, or crib, is a depiction of the birth of Jesus as described in the gospels of Matthew and Luke...
. With the same splendour, the patronal feasts are celebrated in all the towns.
One of the most well-known and traditional celebrations is known as:
- Los pastorcillos de NavidadLos pastorcillos de NavidadLos pastorcillos de Navidad is a Christmas tradition unique to the Amazonas region of Peru, in which the children of the city play a main role.At dusk on December 24, choirs of children dressed as shepherd walk around the town singing Christmas Carols...
(Christmas's little shepherds)
Typical dishes
Some of the most well-known and delicious typical dishes of this region are the following:- TamalitoTamalitoTamalito is a typical dish of the Amazonas Region in Peru. Its appearance is similar to the tamale from the coast, but they are drier and smaller. It scarcely reaches 7 cm. -Preparation:Tamalitos are prepared in a similar manner to tamales....
s - CazuelaCazuela (Peru)Cazuela is a typical dish of the Amazonas Region in Peru. In each province or district of Amazonas, the cazuela has its own way of cooking. This one is from Chachapoyas.-Preparation:Boil a piece of hen, a good piece of meat and a good piece of sheep...
- Carne arrolladaCarne arrolladaCarne arrollada is a typical dish of the Amazonas Region in Peru.-Preparation:Extend a thin cut of beef loin, clean of fat in a kitchen table and filled it with fried ground beef, boiled eggs, olives and onions. Tied it well with a string trying to make a roll and boil it until the meat is...
(rolled beef) - PurtumutePurtumutePurtumute is a typical dish of the Amazonas Region in Peru.The dish is prepared by stewing several types of beans and corn, seasoned made with coriander....
- Humitas de choclo (sweet tamaleTamaleA tamale — or more correctly tamal — is a traditional Latin American dish made of masa , which is steamed or boiled in a leaf wrapper. The wrapping is discarded before eating...
made of cornMaizeMaize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...
) - ChipasmuteChipasmuteChipasmute is a typical dish of the Amazonas Region in Peru. It is similar to the purtumute. It is practically a variant, because instead of preparing it with stewed corn grains, sweetcorn grains are used. For many people, it is a tastier dish than the purtumute.-Preparation:Mix sweetcorn with...
- Plátanos rellenosPlátanos rellenosPlátanos rellenos is a typical dish of the Amazonas Region in Peru. To prepare this dish, it is preferred to use the bananas.-Preparation:Cut the banana along, by the middle of it. Fill it with a stuffing of minced meat with peanut....
(stuffed bananaBananaBanana is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa and for the fruit they produce. Bananas come in a variety of sizes and colors when ripe, including yellow, purple, and red....
s)
Economy
Suni (Geography)
Suni or Jalca is one of the eight Natural Regions of Peru. It is located in the Andes at an altitude between 3,500 and 4,100 metres above sea level...
and forest
Omagua
Omagua or Low Jungle is one of the eight Natural Regions of Peru. It is located between 80 and 400 m above sea level in the Amazon rainforest. In this region, there are a lot of rivers that create meanders, swamps and lagoons....
regions. It has a strong forestal and hydro energetics potential. The province of Bagua
Bagua Province
Bagua is a province of the Amazonas Region in Peru. It is located in the north and central part of the department of Amazonas. Its territory is rugged in all its extension. It is also cut by deep gorges that have been formed by the important rivers that cross this province, as well as their...
, because of geographical factors, has an incipient development based on cultivations like rice
Rice
Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...
, coffee
Coffea arabica
Coffea arabica is a species of Coffea originally indigenous to the mountains of Yemen in the Arabian Peninsula, hence its name, and also from the southwestern highlands of Ethiopia and southeastern Sudan. It is also known as the "coffee shrub of Arabia", "mountain coffee" or "arabica coffee"...
, Cocoa bean, fruit trees and livestock
Livestock
Livestock refers to one or more domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to produce commodities such as food, fiber and labor. The term "livestock" as used in this article does not include poultry or farmed fish; however the inclusion of these, especially poultry, within the meaning...
.
The department of Amazonas presents three well-defined geographical fields:
- The district of El CenepaEl Cenepa DistrictEl Cenepa is a district of the province of Condorcanqui in Peru. The district of El Cenepa, created on September 1, 1941 by Law Nº 9364, belongs to the province of Condorcanqui, department of Amazonas. It has an area of 5,558 km², which represents 24 % of the territory of Alto Marañón. El...
(province of CondorcanquiCondorcanqui ProvinceCondorcanqui is a province of the Amazonas Region, Peru. It was created by law 23832 of May 18, 1984, based on territories of the province of Bagua, covering the basins of the rivers Santiago, Cenepa and Marañon....
) that has a climate of humid tropicalTropical climateA tropical climate is a climate of the tropics. In the Köppen climate classification it is a non-arid climate in which all twelve months have mean temperatures above...
forest - The province of BaguaBagua ProvinceBagua is a province of the Amazonas Region in Peru. It is located in the north and central part of the department of Amazonas. Its territory is rugged in all its extension. It is also cut by deep gorges that have been formed by the important rivers that cross this province, as well as their...
, which has a climate of dry tropical forest; and - The other provinces with a typical formation of very humid low mountainous forest, humid subtropical forest and dry low mountainous forest.
The provinces of Bongará
Bongará Province
Bongará is a province of the Amazonas Region, Peru. It borders by the north with the province of Condorcanqui, by the East with the Loreto Region, by the south with the Chachapoyas Province and by the west with the provinces of Luya and Utcubamba....
, Luya
Luya Province
Luya is located in the south and west part of the department of Amazonas in Peru. Its territory, which partly is ceja de selva, is crossed by branches of the Cordillera Central and the Oriental of the Andes, being rasped by deep streams, high pampas and snowed summit...
and Chachapoyas
Chachapoyas Province
Chachapoyas is a province of the Amazonas Region, Peru. The province of Chachapoyas was a part of the department of Trujillo being its capital the city of Chachapoyas....
present a very hilly geographical configuration, that gives them mountain range
Mountain range
A mountain range is a single, large mass consisting of a succession of mountains or narrowly spaced mountain ridges, with or without peaks, closely related in position, direction, formation, and age; a component part of a mountain system or of a mountain chain...
characteristics.
Amazonas has an eminently agrarian economy. In its extensive territory, it concentrates valuable natural resources
Natural Resources
Natural Resources is a soul album released by Motown girl group Martha Reeves and the Vandellas in 1970 on the Gordy label. The album is significant for the Vietnam War ballad "I Should Be Proud" and the slow jam, "Love Guess Who"...
: agricultural
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
, mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
and energy
Energy
In physics, energy is an indirectly observed quantity. It is often understood as the ability a physical system has to do work on other physical systems...
.
The department has excellent and favorable conditions in both: climate
Climate
Climate encompasses the statistics of temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind, rainfall, atmospheric particle count and other meteorological elemental measurements in a given region over long periods...
and pasture
Pasture
Pasture is land used for grazing. Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, cattle, sheep or swine. The vegetation of tended pasture, forage, consists mainly of grasses, with an interspersion of legumes and other forbs...
s availability for the agricultural-livestock
Livestock
Livestock refers to one or more domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to produce commodities such as food, fiber and labor. The term "livestock" as used in this article does not include poultry or farmed fish; however the inclusion of these, especially poultry, within the meaning...
development.
The information about structure of the agricultural surface, size of the agricultural units, main cultivations and cattle
Cattle
Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
population is taken from what was recorded in the III National Agricultural Census 1994 (III CENAGRO), made by the Instituto Nacional de Estadística e Informática
Instituto Nacional de Estadística e Informática
The Instituto Nacional de Estadística e Informática is a semi-autonomous Peruvian government agency which coordinates, compiles, and evaluates statistical information for the country...
(INEI) (National Institute of Statistics and Informatics).
The department of Amazonas has 48,173 agricultural units (UA) with 9,811.75 km2. 99.9% of the UA have lands and 0.1% do not have them. This 0.1% are exclusively dedicated to the breeding of animals
Animal husbandry
Animal husbandry is the agricultural practice of breeding and raising livestock.- History :Animal husbandry has been practiced for thousands of years, since the first domestication of animals....
.
Structure of the agricultural area
| Agricultural structure | Surface area (ha Hectare The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2... )* |
|---|---|
| a. Total | 975,034 |
| b. Agricultural surface | 159,934 |
| - Farming lands | 71,595 |
| - Permanent cultivations | 69,579 |
| - Associate cultivations | 18,760 |
| c. Non agricultural surface | 815,100 |
| - Natural grasslands | 212,371 |
| - Scrublands and forest Forest A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed... s |
538,032 |
| - Other types of lands | 64,697 |
* It only considers the area of the agricultural units that have worked lands.
From the total of agricultural lands (9750.34 km2), only 16,4% includes the agricultural area and 83,6% includes the non-agricultural area.
Size of the agricultural units and principal cultivations
| Main variables | Agricultural unit* | Surface area (ha Hectare The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2... ) |
|---|---|---|
| a. Main transitory cultivations | 34,363 | 69,794 |
| - Rice Rice Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies... |
4,294 | 12,942 |
| - Dry yellow maize Maize Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable... |
9,634 | 12,508 |
| - Yucca Cassava Cassava , also called yuca or manioc, a woody shrub of the Euphorbiaceae native to South America, is extensively cultivated as an annual crop in tropical and subtropical regions for its edible starchy tuberous root, a major source of carbohydrates... |
11,186 | 10,896 |
| - Banana Banana Banana is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa and for the fruit they produce. Bananas come in a variety of sizes and colors when ripe, including yellow, purple, and red.... |
8,058 | 8,448 |
| - Sugarcane Sugarcane Sugarcane refers to any of six to 37 species of tall perennial grasses of the genus Saccharum . Native to the warm temperate to tropical regions of South Asia, they have stout, jointed, fibrous stalks that are rich in sugar, and measure two to six metres tall... for producing alcohol Alcohol In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms.... |
5,702 | 4,156 |
| - Soft corn Maize Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable... |
3,376 | 4,112 |
| b. Main permanent cultivations | 18,610 | 29,865 |
| - Coffee Coffea Coffea is a genus of flowering plants in the Rubiaceae family. They are shrubs or small trees native to tropical and southern Africa and tropical Asia. Seeds of several species are the source of the popular beverage coffee. Coffee ranks as one of the world's most valuable and widely traded... |
12,232 | 19,819 |
| - Cocoa bean | 2,282 | 3,121 |
| - (soft) Sharp lemon Lemon The lemon is both a small evergreen tree native to Asia, and the tree's ellipsoidal yellow fruit. The fruit is used for culinary and non-culinary purposes throughout the world – primarily for its juice, though the pulp and rind are also used, mainly in cooking and baking... |
351 | 409 |
| - Coca Coca Coca, Erythroxylum coca, is a plant in the family Erythroxylaceae, native to western South America. The plant plays a significant role in many traditional Andean cultures... |
290 | 254 |
| - Aguaje Moriche Palm The Moriche Palm, Mauritia flexuosa, also known as the Ité Palm, Ita, Buriti, or aguaje , is a palm tree. It grows in and near swamps and other wet areas in tropical South America.... |
235 | 253 |
* It only considers the area of the agricultural units that have worked lands.
Agricultural units with 0.5 km2 and more only represent 4.4% of the whole department, but concentrate 61.8% of the agricultural surface.
Rice
Rice
Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...
is the main transitory cultivation of the department. It brings together 18.5% of the agricultural surface with transitory cultivations (129.42 km2). Dry yellow maize
Maize
Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...
with 125.08 km2 (17.9%) is the second important one.
Coffee
Coffea
Coffea is a genus of flowering plants in the Rubiaceae family. They are shrubs or small trees native to tropical and southern Africa and tropical Asia. Seeds of several species are the source of the popular beverage coffee. Coffee ranks as one of the world's most valuable and widely traded...
concentrates 66.4% of the agricultural area with permanent cultivations (198.19 km2), followed by Theobroma cacao (cocoa bean) with 31.21 km2 (10,5%).
Livestock population by species
| Livestock Livestock Livestock refers to one or more domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to produce commodities such as food, fiber and labor. The term "livestock" as used in this article does not include poultry or farmed fish; however the inclusion of these, especially poultry, within the meaning... species |
Agricultural unit | Quantity of animals |
|---|---|---|
| Cattle Cattle Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius... |
21,857 | 139,267 |
| Sheep | 5,476 | 27,180 |
| Pig Pig A pig is any of the animals in the genus Sus, within the Suidae family of even-toed ungulates. Pigs include the domestic pig, its ancestor the wild boar, and several other wild relatives... s |
14,573 | 34,421 |
| South American Camelid Camelid Camelids are members of the biological family Camelidae, the only living family in the suborder Tylopoda. Dromedaries, Bactrian Camels, llamas, alpacas, vicuñas, and guanacos are in this group.... s (alpaca Alpaca An alpaca is a domesticated species of South American camelid. It resembles a small llama in appearance.Alpacas are kept in herds that graze on the level heights of the Andes of southern Peru, northern Bolivia, Ecuador, and northern Chile at an altitude of to above sea level, throughout the year... , llama Llama The llama is a South American camelid, widely used as a meat and pack animal by Andean cultures since pre-Hispanic times.... and guanaco) |
29 | 282 |
Cattle
Cattle
Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
is the most important one in the department. It is raised in 21,857 AU (Agricultural units) with a population of 139,267 head of cattle
Cattle
Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
. Pig
Pig
A pig is any of the animals in the genus Sus, within the Suidae family of even-toed ungulates. Pigs include the domestic pig, its ancestor the wild boar, and several other wild relatives...
s are the second one with 34,421 head, distributed in 14,573 AU.
Climate, rates and distance information
| Weather | Warm, with very well defined rainy and dry seasons. |
| Temperature | Annual average 14.5 °C (58.1 °F) |
| Road network | 1600 kilometres (994.2 mi) |
| Illiteracy rate | 20% |
| Child mortality rate | 52 per thousand |
| Distances |
|
Institutions that are linked with the Amazon Region
There are several institutions that are linked with the Amazon region in PeruPeru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
and that help with the development of it. Between the principal institutions, we have:
- Asociación Interétnica de Desarrollo de la SelvaAsociación Interétnica de Desarrollo de la SelvaThe Interethnic Association for the Development of the Peruvian Rainforest is a Peruvian national indigenous rights organization, presided over by a decentralized National Council based on six organisms found in the North, Center and South of the country...
(AIDESEP) - Interethnic Association for the Rainforest Development - Centro Amazónico de Antropología y Aplicación PrácticaCentro Amazónico de Antropología y Aplicación PrácticaThe Centro Amazónico de Antropología y Aplicación Práctica is a non-profit association...
(CAAAP) - Amazon Center of Anthropology and Practical Application - Instituto Lingüístico de Verano - Linguistic Summer Institute
Important figures
The department of Amazonas has been the cradle of important figures, whose life and works have reverberated in the National history of PeruPeru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
. Some of these famous people are:
- Blas ValeraBlas Valerathumb|Three signatures of Blas Valera thumb|Three signatures of Blas Valera thumb|Three signatures of Blas Valera (private collection, C. Miccinelli - Naples (Italy)Blas Valera was born in Chachapoyas in 1545.Valera is considered to be the son of Luis Valera, one of the men who accompanied Pizarro...
- Toribio Rodríguez de MendozaToribio Rodríguez de MendozaToribio Rodríguez de Mendoza was a Peruvian academic.He was born on April 15, 1750 in Chachapoyas, his hometown, when José Antonio Manso de Velasco, count of Superunda, was governing the Viceroyalty of Peru. He was of the most illustrious precursors of the national independence. He was a priest, a...
- Manuel Antonio Mesones MuroManuel Antonio Mesones MuroManuel Antonio Mesones Muro was born in Ferreñafe in the Lambayeque Region of Peru. He was one of the pioneers of the exploration of north-eastern Peru and a scientist of many talents - a natural historian, geographer, historian, geologist, archeologist and linguist.-Early life:At the age of six...
- José del Carmen MarínJosé del Carmen Marín AristaJosé del Carmen Marín Arista was born on March 2, 1899 in the department of Amazonas. He went to the Military academy in 1917 and on the following year, he went to the top division from which he graduated with honours in 1922....
Places of interest
- Cordillera de Colán Reserved ZoneCordillera de Colán Reserved ZoneThe Cordillera de Colán Reserved Zone is a protected area in Peru located in the Amazonas Region, in the Bagua and Utcubamba provinces.- External links :*...
- Ichigkat muja - Cordillera del Condor National ParkIchigkat muja - Cordillera del Condor National ParkThe Ichigkat muja – Cordillera del Condor National Park is a protected area in Peru located in the Amazonas Region, Condorcanqui Province.- External links :*...
- Santiago-Comaina Reserved ZoneSantiago-Comaina Reserved ZoneThe Santiago-Comaina Reserved Zone is a protected area in Peru located in the Amazonas Region, Condorcanqui Province.- External links :*...
See also
- Iperu, tourist information and assistanceIperu, tourist information and assistanceIperú, Tourist Information and Assistance, or simply iperú is the free tourism office provided by the Peruvian government through the Commission for the Promotion of Export and Tourism Peru and the National Institute for Defense Competition and Protection of...
- Amazonas before the Inca EmpireAmazonas before the Inca EmpireThe department of Amazonas in modern Peru – a part of Peru close to the Andes but within the Amazonian forest – has a millennial history. There is some evidence exhibited on rocky walls dated from the most remote times, including the rock paintings of Chiñuña-Yamón and Limones-Calpón in the...
- Origin of the Chachapoyas