Quebrada de Humahuaca
Encyclopedia
The Quebrada de Humahuaca is a narrow mountain valley
located in the province
of Jujuy
in northwest Argentina
, 1500 km (932 mi) north of Buenos Aires
(23°11′59"S 65°20′56"W). It is about 155 km (96 mi) long, oriented north-south, bordered by the Altiplano
in the west and north, by the Sub-Andean
hills in the east, and by the warm valleys (Valles Templados) in the south.
The name quebrada (literally "broken") translates as a deep valley or ravine
. It receives its name from Humahuaca
, a small city of 11,000 inhabitants. The Grande River (Río Grande), which is dry in winter, flows copiously through the Quebrada in the summer.
The region has always been a crossroads for economic, social and cultural communication. It has been populated for 10,000 years, since the settlement of the first hunter-gatherer
s, which is evidenced by substantial prehistoric remains. It was a caravan road for the Inca Empire in the 15th century, then an important link between the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata
and the Viceroyalty of Peru
, as well as a stage for many battles of the Spanish War of Independence.
The Quebrada de Humahuaca was made a UNESCO
World Heritage Site
in 2 July, 2003.
Valley
In geology, a valley or dale is a depression with predominant extent in one direction. A very deep river valley may be called a canyon or gorge.The terms U-shaped and V-shaped are descriptive terms of geography to characterize the form of valleys...
located in the province
Provinces of Spain
Spain and its autonomous communities are divided into fifty provinces .In other languages of Spain:*Catalan/Valencian , sing. província.*Galician , sing. provincia.*Basque |Galicia]] — are not also the capitals of provinces...
of Jujuy
Jujuy Province
Jujuy is a province of Argentina, located in the extreme northwest of the country, at the borders with Chile and Bolivia. The only neighboring Argentine province is Salta to the east and south.-History:...
in northwest Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, 1500 km (932 mi) north of Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
(23°11′59"S 65°20′56"W). It is about 155 km (96 mi) long, oriented north-south, bordered by the Altiplano
Altiplano
The Altiplano , in west-central South America, where the Andes are at their widest, is the most extensive area of high plateau on Earth outside of Tibet...
in the west and north, by the Sub-Andean
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...
hills in the east, and by the warm valleys (Valles Templados) in the south.
The name quebrada (literally "broken") translates as a deep valley or ravine
Ravine
A ravine is a landform narrower than a canyon and is often the product of streamcutting erosion. Ravines are typically classified as larger in scale than gullies, although smaller than valleys. A ravine is generally a fluvial slope landform of relatively steep sides, on the order of twenty to...
. It receives its name from Humahuaca
Humahuaca
Humahuaca is a city in the province of Jujuy, Argentina. It has 11,369 inhabitants as per the , and is the principal town of the Department of Humahuaca...
, a small city of 11,000 inhabitants. The Grande River (Río Grande), which is dry in winter, flows copiously through the Quebrada in the summer.
The region has always been a crossroads for economic, social and cultural communication. It has been populated for 10,000 years, since the settlement of the first hunter-gatherer
Hunter-gatherer
A hunter-gatherer or forage society is one in which most or all food is obtained from wild plants and animals, in contrast to agricultural societies which rely mainly on domesticated species. Hunting and gathering was the ancestral subsistence mode of Homo, and all modern humans were...
s, which is evidenced by substantial prehistoric remains. It was a caravan road for the Inca Empire in the 15th century, then an important link between the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata
Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata
The Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata, , was the last and most short-lived Viceroyalty of the Spanish Empire in America.The Viceroyalty was established in 1776 out of several former Viceroyalty of Perú dependencies that mainly extended over the Río de la Plata basin, roughly the present day...
and the Viceroyalty of Peru
Viceroyalty of Peru
Created in 1542, the Viceroyalty of Peru was a Spanish colonial administrative district that originally contained most of Spanish-ruled South America, governed from the capital of Lima...
, as well as a stage for many battles of the Spanish War of Independence.
The Quebrada de Humahuaca was made a UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
in 2 July, 2003.
External links
- UNESCO World Heritage Centre - Description of the site.
- Jujuy Province - Official website (in Spanish).
- Pictures from Humahuaca
- Quebrada de Humahuaca pictures