Cusco
Cusco or Cuzco Qosqo or Qusqu (Quechua)
Plaza de Armas with Cusco Cathedral (left) and Iglesia de la Compañía de Jesús (right) in the background Sacsayhuamán Qorikancha Fountain at the Plaza de Armas View of colonial houses of the Historic Centre Aerial view of Cusco
Flag Coat of arms
Nickname(s):  La Ciudad Imperial (The Imperial City), El Ombligo del Mundo (The Navel of the World)
Districts of Cusco
Cusco Location within Peru Show map of Peru Cusco #Location within South America Show map of South America Cusco #Location within Earth Show map of Earth
Coordinates: 13°31′30″S 71°58′20″W / 13.52500°S 71.97222°W / -13.52500; -71.97222
Country	Peru
Region	Cusco
Province	Cusco
Founded	1100
Government
• Mayor	Víctor G. Boluarte Medina
Area
• Total	385.1 km2 (148.7 sq mi)
Elevation	3,399 m (11,152 ft)
Population  (2017)
• Total	428,450
• Estimate  (2015)[1]	427,218
• Density	1,100/km2 (2,900/sq mi)
Demonym(s)	cuzqueño/a, cusqueño/a
Time zone	UTC-5 (PET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5
Area code	84
Website	www.cusco.gob.pe
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Official name	City of Cusco
Location	Latin America and the Caribbean
Criteria	Cultural: iii, iv
Reference	273
Inscription	1983 (7th Session)

Cusco or Cuzco^[a] ([ˈkusko]; Quechua: Qusqu or Qosqo ([ˈqɔsqɔ])) is a city in southeastern Peru near the Sacred Valley of the Andes mountain range and the Huatanay river. It is the capital of the Department of Cusco and of the Cusco Province. The city is the seventh most populous in Peru; in 2017, it had a population of 428,450. Its elevation is around 3,400 m (11,200 ft).

The city was the capital of the Inca Empire from the 13th century until the 16th-century Spanish conquest. In 1983, Cusco was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO with the title "City of Cusco". It has become a major tourist destination, hosting over 2 million visitors a year and providing passage to numerous Incan ruins, such as Machu Picchu, one of the Seven modern wonders of the world and others. The Constitution of Peru (1993) designates the city as the Historical Capital of Peru.^[2] The city is often dubbed the ''Rome of America''.

Spelling and etymology

The indigenous name of this city is Qusqu. Although the name was used in Southern Quechua, its origin is found in the Aymara language. The word is derived from the phrase qusqu wanka ('rock of the owl'), related to the city's foundation myth of the Ayar siblings. According to this legend, Ayar Awqa (Ayar Auca) acquired wings and flew to the site of the future city; there he was transformed into a rock to mark the possession of the land by his ayllu ("lineage"):^[3]

Then Ayar Oche stood up, displayed a pair of large wings, and said he should be the one to stay at Guanacaure as an idol in order to speak with their father the Sun. Then they went up on top of the hill. Now at the site where he was to remain as an idol, Ayar Oche raised up in flight toward the heavens so high that they could not see him. He returned and told Ayar Manco that from then on he was to be named Manco Capac. Ayar Oche came from where the Sun was and the Sun had ordered that Ayar Manco take that name and go to the town that they had seen. After this had been stated by the idol, Ayar Oche turned into a stone, just as he was, with his wings. Later Manco Capac went down with Ayar Auca to their settlement...he liked the place now occupied in this city Cuzco. Manco Capac and his companion, with the help of the four women, made a house. Having done this, Manco Capac and his companion, with the four women, planted some land with maize. It is said that they took the maize from the cave, which this lord Manco Capac named Pacaritambo, which means those of origin because...they came out of that cave.^{[4]: 15–16}

The Spanish conquistadors (Spanish soldiers) adopted the local name, transcribing it according to Spanish phonetics as Cuzco or, less often, Cozco. Cuzco was the standard spelling on official documents and chronicles in colonial times,^[5] though Cusco was also used. Cuzco, pronounced as in 16th-century Spanish, seems to have been a close approximation to the Cusco Quechua pronunciation of the name at the time.^[6]

As both Spanish and Quechua pronunciation have evolved since then, the Spanish pronunciation of 'z' is no longer universally close to the Quechua pronunciation. In 1976, the city mayor signed an ordinance banning the traditional spelling and ordering the use of a new spelling, Cusco, in municipality publications. Nineteen years later, on 23 June 1990, the local authorities formalized a new spelling more closely related to Quechua, Qosqo, but later administrations have not followed suit.^[7]

There is no international, official spelling of the city's name. In English-language publications both "s"^[8][9] and "z"^[10][11] can be found. The Oxford Dictionary of English and Merriam-Webster Dictionary prefer "Cuzco",^[12][13] and in scholarly writings "Cuzco" is used more often than "Cusco".^[14] The city's international airport code is CUZ, reflecting the earlier Spanish spelling.

History

Killke culture

The Killke people occupied the region from 900 to 1200 CE, prior to the arrival of the Inca in the 13th century. Carbon-14 dating of Saksaywaman, the walled complex outside Cusco, established that Killke constructed the fortress about 1100 CE. The Inca later expanded and occupied the complex in the 13th century. In March 2008, archeologists discovered the ruins of an ancient temple, roadway and aqueduct system at Saksaywaman.^[15] The temple covers some 2,700 square feet (250 square meters) and contains 11 rooms thought to have held idols and mummies,^[15] establishing its religious purpose. Together with the results of excavations in 2007, when another temple was found at the edge of the fortress, this indicates a longtime religious as well as military use of the facility.^[16]

Inca period

Digital recreation of the original interior of the Qurikancha (The main Temple of the Sun of the Inca Empire) according to the description of Garcilaso de la Vega; and the current Qoricancha's wall remains below the Convento de Santo Domingo

Cusco was long an important center of indigenous people. It was the capital of the Inca Empire (13th century – 1532). Many believe that the city was planned as an effigy in the shape of a puma, a sacred animal.^[17] How Cusco was specifically built, or how its large stones were quarried and transported to the site remain undetermined. Under the Inca, the city had two sectors: the hurin and hanan. Each was divided to encompass two of the four provinces, Chinchasuyu (NW), Antisuyu (NE), Kuntisuyu (SW) and Qullasuyu (SE). A road led from each quarter to the corresponding quarter of the empire.

Each local leader was required to build a house in the city and live part of the year in Cusco, restricted to the quarter that corresponded to the quarter in which he held territory. After the rule of Pachacuti, when an Inca died, his title went to one son and his property was given to a corporation controlled by his other relatives (split inheritance). Each title holder had to build a new house and add new lands to the empire in order to own land for his family to keep after his death.

According to Inca legend, the city was rebuilt by Sapa Inca Pachacuti, the man who transformed the Kingdom of Cusco from a sleepy city-state into the vast empire of Tawantinsuyu.^{[18]: 66–69} Archeological evidence, however, points to a slower, more organic growth of the city beginning before Pachacuti. The city was constructed according to a definite plan in which two rivers were channeled around the city. Archeologists have suggested that this city plan was replicated at other sites.

The city fell to the sphere of Huáscar during the Inca Civil War after the death of Huayna Capac in 1528. It was captured by the generals of Atahualpa in April 1532 in the Battle of Quipaipan. Nineteen months later, Spanish explorers invaded the city after kidnapping and murdering Atahualpa (see Battle of Cuzco), and gained control.

Spanish period

The first three Spaniards arrived in the city in May 1533, after the Battle of Cajamarca, collecting for Atahualpa's Ransom Room. On 15 November 1533 Francisco Pizarro officially arrived in Cusco. "The capital of the Incas ... astonished the Spaniards by the beauty of its edifices, the length and regularity of its streets." The great square was surrounded by several palaces, since "each sovereign built a new palace for himself." "The delicacy of the stone work excelled" that of the Spaniards'. The fortress had three parapets and was composed of "heavy masses of rock". "Through the heart of the capital ran a river ... faced with stone. ... The most sumptuous edifice in Cuzco ... was undoubtedly the great temple dedicated to the Sun ... studded with gold plates ... surrounded by convents and dormitories for the priests. ... The palaces were numerous and the troops lost no time in plundering them of their contents, as well as despoiling the religious edifices," including the royal mummies in the Coricancha.^{[19]: 186–187, 192–193, 216–219}

Pizarro ceremoniously gave Manco Inca the Incan fringe as the new Peruvian leader.^[19]: 221 Pizarro encouraged some of his men to stay and settle in the city, giving out repartimientos, or land grants to do so.^[20]: 46 Alcaldes were established and regidores on 24 March 1534, which included the brothers Gonzalo Pizarro and Juan Pizarro. Pizarro left a garrison of 90 men and departed for Jauja with Manco Inca.^{[19]: 222, 227}

Pizarro renamed it as the "very noble and great city of Cuzco". Buildings often constructed after the Spanish invasion have a mixture of Spanish influence and Inca indigenous architecture, including the Santa Clara and San Blas neighborhoods. The Spanish destroyed many Inca buildings, temples and palaces. They used the remaining walls as bases for the construction of a new city, and this stone masonry is still visible.

Father Vincente de Valverde became the Bishop of Cusco and built his cathedral facing the plaza. He supported construction of the Dominican Order monastery (Santo Domingo Convent) on the ruins of the Corichanca, House of the Sun, and a convent at the former site of the House of the Virgins of the Sun.^[19]: 222

During the Siege of Cuzco of 1536 by Manco Inca Yupanqui, a leader of the Sapa Inca, he took control of the city from the Spanish. Although the siege lasted 10 months, it was ultimately unsuccessful. Manco's forces were able to reclaim the city for only a few days. He eventually retreated to Vilcabamba, the capital of the newly established small Neo-Inca State. There his state survived another 36 years but he was never able to return to Cuzco. Throughout the conflict and years of the Spanish colonization of the Americas, many Incas died of smallpox epidemics, as they had no acquired immunity to a disease by then endemic among Europeans.

Cusco was built on layers of cultures. The Tawantinsuyu (former Inca Empire) was built on Killke structures. The Spanish replaced indigenous temples with Catholic churches, and Inca palaces with mansions for the invaders.

Cusco was the center for the Spanish colonization and spread of Christianity in the Andean world. It became very prosperous thanks to agriculture, cattle raising and mining, as well as its trade with Spain. The Spanish colonists constructed many churches and convents, as well as a cathedral, university and archdiocese.

Present

A major earthquake on 21 May hit in 1950, and caused damage in more than one third of the city's structures. The Dominican Priory and Church of Santo Domingo, which were built on top of the impressive Qurikancha (Temple of the Sun), were among the affected colonial era buildings. Inca architecture withstood the earthquake. Many of the old Inca walls were at first thought to have been lost after the earthquake, but the granite retaining walls of the Qurikancha were exposed, as well as those of other ancient structures throughout the city. Restoration work at the Santo Domingo complex exposed the Inca masonry formerly obscured by the superstructure without compromising the integrity of the colonial heritage.^[26] Many of the buildings damaged in 1950 had been impacted by an earthquake only nine years previously.^[27]

In the 1990s, during the mayoral administration of Mayor Daniel Estrada Pérez, the city underwent a new process of beautification through the restoration of monuments and the construction of plazas, fountains and monuments. Likewise, thanks to the efforts of this authority, various recognitions were achieved, such as the declaration as "Historical Capital of Peru" contained in the text of the Political Constitution of Peru of 1993. It was also decided to change the coat of arms of Cusco, leaving aside the colonial coat of arms and adopting the "Sol de Echenique" as the new coat of arms. Additionally, the change of the official name of the city was proposed to adopt the Quechua word Qosqo, but this change was reversed a few years later. Currently, Cusco is the most important tourist destination in Peru. Under the administration of mayor Daniel Estrada Pérez, a staunch supporter of the Academia Mayor de la Lengua Quechua, between 1983 and 1995 the Quechua name Qosqo was officially adopted for the city. Tourism in the city was drastically affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in Peru and the 2022–2023 Peruvian protests, with the latter event costing the area 10 million soles daily.^[28]

Honors

• In 1933, the Congress of Americanists met in La Plata, Argentina, and declared the city as the Archeological Capital of the Americas.
• In 1978, the 7th Convention of Mayors of Great World Cities met in Milan, Italy, and declared Cusco a Cultural Heritage of the World.
• In 1983, UNESCO, in Paris, France, declared the city a World Heritage Site. The Peruvian government declared it the Tourism Capital of Peru and Cultural Heritage of the Nation.
• In 2001, in Cusco, the Latin American Congress of Aldermen and Councillors awarded Cusco the title of Historical Capital of Latinamerica.^[29]
• In 2007 the Organización Capital Americana de la Cultura awarded Cusco the title of Cultural Capital of America.^[29]
• In 2007, the New7Wonders Foundation designated Machu Picchu one of the New Seven Wonders of the World, following a worldwide poll.^[30]

Geography

Location

Cusco extends throughout the Huatanay (or Watanay) river valley. Located on the eastern end of the Knot of Cusco^{[citation needed]}, its elevation is around 3,400 m (11,200 ft). To its north is the Vilcabamba mountain range with 4,000–6,000-meter-high (13,000–20,000-foot) mountains. The highest peak is Salcantay (6,271 meters or 20,574 feet) about 60 kilometers (37 miles) northwest of Cusco.^[31]

Climate

Cusco has a subtropical highland climate (Köppen Cwb). It is generally dry and temperate, with two defined seasons. Winter occurs from April through September, with abundant sunshine and occasional nighttime freezes; July is the coldest month with an average of 9.7 °C (49.5 °F). Summer occurs from October through March, with warm temperatures and abundant rainfall; November is the warmest month, averaging 13.3 °C (55.9 °F). Although frost and hail are common, the last reported snowfall was in June 1911. Temperatures usually range from 0.2 to 20.9 °C (32.4 to 69.6 °F), but the all-time temperature range is between −8.9 and 30 °C (16.0 and 86.0 °F). Sunshine hours peak in July, the equivalent of January in the Northern Hemisphere. In contrast, February, the equivalent of August in the Northern Hemisphere, has the least sunshine.

In 2006, Cusco was found to be the spot on Earth with the highest average ultraviolet light level.^[32]