Once at the centre of the powerful Inca Empire, today Peru is, by area, the third largest country in South America. Its landscape is dominated by the Andes Mountains, which rise steeply from a narrow coastal plain to a region of rugged uplands called the sierra. In the south, a high plateau known as the Altiplano stretches into Bolivia and Argentina. The eastern slopes of the Andes merge into the Amazon rainforest. The coastal plain is mostly desert, except in the valleys created by seasonal rivers. Although Peru lies close to the Equator, its climate is cooled by the Humboldt ocean current, which flows from the south. The cooler air above above the current bars rainfall coming in from the ocean—except during El Niño events. In winter there is an almost permanent fog, called garua. The Andes have wet summers and dry winters. The eastern rainforest lowlands are hot and rainy throughout the year.

Together with the seaport of Callao, Lima forms a sprawling urban area with a population of more than 11 million. Around one third of the entire population of Peru lives there. Founded by the Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro in 1535 as Ciudad de los Reyes, it became the capital during Spanish colonial times.

​​​​​​​Lima's population features a wide range of ethnic groups. Mestizos of mixed Amerindian and European (mostly Spanish and Italian) ancestry are the largest, with white Europeans, mostly of Spanish, Italian or German descent, the next largest. Minorities in Lima include Amerindians—mostly Aymara and Quechua—African Peruvians, descendants of those brought to Peru as slaves, Jews, Middle Easterners, Chinese (Cantonese) and Japanese. Lima's newest immigrants are from smaller towns and villages in Peru itself, seeking work in the city. A number of them live in shantytowns, known as pueblos jóvenes, clustered around the city’s edges.

Economy

Peru has some of the richest natural resources on Earth. It has large reserves of oil and natural gas as well as minerals and metals. Gold is mined in the Amazon rainforest. Peru is the largest producer of gold in South America, and the eighth largest in the world. In and around the cities, factories make goods such as textiles, chemicals and machinery. Half of the population is employed in services such as tourism, banking and telecommunications.
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On the coast, Peruvian fishermen are responsible for around 10% of the world’s fish catch—second only to China. A natural abundance of Peruvian anchovy (known locally as anchoveta) off the Pacific coast makes Peru the world’s biggest producer of fishmeal, which is made from ground dried fish and used as livestock feed. The industry is centred on Chimbote.

In the mountains, many people are subsistence farmers. They raise sheep, llamas and alpacas for their meat and wool, and grow crops such as potatoes. Recently, the number of people living in poverty in Peru has dramatically reduced: from two-thirds to around a quarter of the population.

Amerindians

Just under half of Peruvians are Amerindians (almost as many Peruvians are of mixed Amerindian-European ancestry). The largest group, Quechua, are descended from the Inca. They speak the old Inca language of Quechua as well as Spanish, the language of the region’s 16th-century colonists.

​​​​​​​Beyond the mountains, the rainforests of Peru are home to hundreds of indigenous tribes. A small number of these tribes have never been in contact with the rest of the world.

El Niño is the name given to an unusually warm ocean current that appears on average every seven years off the Pacific coast of South America. El Niño is Spanish for “the Christ child”, because the effects of the current are normally noticed around Christmas in South America. El Niño often has destructive consequences for Peru.
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El Niño causes heavy rainfall along the coast, which often leads to flooding. The warmer water causes many fish native to the waters of Peru to die, or disappear in search of cooler waters. During the 1998 El Niño, Peru’s fishing industry was devastated: floods destroyed boats and jetties, and catches of fish fell by 80%.

Facts about Peru

Area 1,285,216 sq km (496,225 sq miles)

Population 34,352,720 (2023 estimate)

Highest point Nevado Huascarán 6768 m (22,205 ft)

Capital Lima (metro area, with Callao, population 11,283,787)

Other major cities Trujillo (pop. 1,048,800), Arequipa (1,177,200), Chiclayo (615,700)

Languages Spanish, Quechua, Aymara (official languages)

Religions Christian (Catholic) 81%, Christian (other) 16%, none and other 3%

Ethnicity Amerindian 45%, mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 37%, white 15%, other 3%

Currency Nuevo sol (PEN)

Chief exports Gold, copper and other metals, oil and petroleum products, coffee, vegetables, fishmeal