Apurímac Region

Apurímac Region
Region
The lake Usphaqucha with the volcano Ampay in the background
Seal
Location of the Apurímac region in Peru
Country	Peru
Subdivisions	7 provinces and 80 districts
Capital	Abancay
Government
• President	Elias Segovia
Area
• Total	20,895.79 km2 (8,067.91 sq mi)
Highest elevation	3,952 m (12,966 ft)
Lowest elevation	2,378 m (7,802 ft)
Population (2005 Census)
• Total	418,882
• Density	20/km2 (52/sq mi)
UBIGEO	03
Dialing code	083
ISO 3166 code	PE-APU
Principal resources	Fruit, maize, potato, wheat, eucalyptus.
Poverty rate	78%
Percentage of Peru's GDP	0.42%
Website	www.regionapurimac.gob.pe

Apurímac is a region in southern-central Peru. It is bordered on the east by the Cusco Region, on the west by the Ayacucho Region, and on the south by the Arequipa and Ayacucho regions. The region's name originates from the Quechua language and means "where the gods speak" in reference to the many mountains of the region (gods in the andean religion) that seem to be talking to each other.

The region is divided into 7 provinces (provincias, singular: provincia), which are composed of 80 districts (distritos, singular: distrito). The provinces, with their capitals in parenthesis, are:

According to the 2007 Peru Census, the first language learned by most of the residents was Quechua (70.58%) followed by Spanish (29.01%). The Quechua varieties spoken in Apurímac are Cusco Quechua and Chanka Quechua. The following table shows the results concerning the language learnt first in the Apurímac Region by province:

Little is known about the region's origins, however chroniclers note that the first settlers were formed by tribes of several regions originating among the Quechua Aymarays. The Chancas, originally from Choclococha and Huancavelica, settled in the region of Andahuaylas. This group of tribes is historically known as rebellious and fearless warriors of ancient Peru.

Chronicles relate that the Chancas prepared themselves for years to conquer the imperial city of Cusco. Only due to the great figure and strategy of Inca Pachacutec, the Inca Empire did not yield.

By the time the conquerors established the first political organization of the Colony, almost the whole extension of the current region was under the jurisdiction of the authorities of Huamanga; nevertheless, there is no recollection on the foundation of cities and towns.