Lima Ciudad de Los Reyes
Capital city
San Isidro skyline Government Palace Legislative Palace Archbishop's Palace and Metropolitan Cathedral Fountain of Plaza Mayor Park of the Reserve San Francisco el Grande Basilica La Marina Lighthouse Miraflores skyline
Flag Coat of arms
Nickname(s):  Ciudad de los Reyes (City of the Kings) La Tres Veces Coronada Villa (The Three Times Crowned Ville) La Perla del Pacífico (The Pearl of the Pacific)
Motto(s):  Hoc Signum Vere Regum Est (Latin) "This is the real sign of the Kings")
Interactive map of Lima
Coordinates: 12°03′36″S 77°02′15″W / 12.06000°S 77.03750°W / -12.06000; -77.03750
Country	Peru
Province	Lima
Established	18 January 1535
Founded by	Francisco Pizarro
Government
• Mayor	Rafael López Aliaga
Area
• City	2,672.3 km2 (1,031.8 sq mi)
• Urban	800 km2 (300 sq mi)
• Metro	2,819.3 km2 (1,088.5 sq mi)
Elevation [1]	0–1,550 m (0–5,090 ft)
Population  (2023)[3]
• Rank	2nd in South America 1st in Peru
• Urban	9,751,717
• Urban density	12,000/km2 (32,000/sq mi)
• Metro	11,283,787[2]
• Metro density	4,002.3/km2 (10,366/sq mi)
Demonyms	Limeño/a
GDP (PPP, constant 2015 values)
• Year	2023
• Total	$210.4 billion[4]
Time zone	UTC−5 (PET)
UBIGEO	15000
Area code	1
Website	www.munlima.gob.pe
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Official name	Historic Centre of Lima
Type	Cultural
Criteria	iv
Designated	1988, 1991 (12th, 15th sessions)
Reference no.	500
Region	Latin America and the Caribbean

Lima (/ˈliːmə/ LEE-mə; locally [ˈlima]), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (locally [sjuˈðað ðe los ˈreʝes], Spanish for "City of Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of the central coastal part of the country, overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The city is considered the political, cultural, financial and commercial center of Peru. Due to its geostrategic importance, the Globalization and World Cities Research Network has categorized it as a "beta" tier city. Jurisdictionally, the metropolis extends mainly within the province of Lima and in a smaller portion, to the west, within the Constitutional Province of Callao, where the seaport and the Jorge Chávez Airport are located. Both provinces have regional autonomy since 2002.

The 2023 census projection indicates that the city of Lima has an estimated population of 10,092,000 inhabitants, making it the most populated city in the country, and the second most populous in the Americas after São Paulo.^[5][6] Together with the seaside city of Callao, it forms a contiguous urban area known as the Lima Metropolitan Area, which encompasses a total of 10,151,200 inhabitants.^{[5][note 1]} When considering the constitutional province of Callao, the total agglomeration reaches a population of 11,342,100 inhabitants, one of the thirty most populated urban agglomerations in the world.

Lima was named by natives in the agricultural region known by native Peruvians as Limaq. It became the capital and most important city in the Viceroyalty of Peru. Following the Peruvian War of Independence, it became the capital of the Republic of Peru (República del Perú). Around one-third of the national population now lives in its metropolitan area.

In October 2013, Lima was chosen to host the 2019 Pan American Games; these games were held at venues in and around Lima, and were the largest sporting event ever hosted by the country. It also hosted the APEC Meetings of 2008 and 2016, the Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group in October 2015, the United Nations Climate Change Conference in December 2014, and the Miss Universe 1982 contest.

Etymology

According to early Spanish articles, the Lima area was once called Itchyma,^{[citation needed]} after its original inhabitants. However, even before the Inca occupation of the area in the 15th century, a famous oracle in the Rímac Valley had come to be known by visitors as Limaq (Limaq, pronounced [ˈli.mɑq], which means "talker" or "speaker" in the coastal Quechua that was the area's primary language before the Spanish arrival). This oracle was eventually destroyed by the Spanish and replaced with a church, but the name persisted: the chronicles show "Límac" replacing "Ychma" as the common name for the area.^[7]

Modern scholars speculate that the word "Lima" originated as the Spanish pronunciation of the native name Limaq. Linguistic evidence seems to support this theory, as spoken Spanish consistently rejects stop consonants in word-final position.

The city was founded in 1535 under the name City of Kings (Spanish: Ciudad de los Reyes), because its foundation was decided on January 6, date of the feast of the Epiphany. This name quickly fell into disuse, and Lima became the city's name of choice; on the oldest Spanish maps of Peru, both Lima and Ciudad de los Reyes can be seen together.

The river that feeds Lima is called Rímac, and many people erroneously assume that this is because its original Inca name is "Talking River" (the Incas spoke a highland variety of Quechua, in which the word for "talker" was pronounced [ˈrimɑq]).^[8] However, the original inhabitants of the valley were not Incas. This name is an innovation arising from an effort by the Cuzco nobility in colonial times to standardize the toponym so that it would conform to the phonology of Cuzco Quechua.

Later, as the original inhabitants died out and the local Quechua became extinct, the Cuzco pronunciation prevailed. Nowadays, Spanish-speaking locals do not see the connection between the name of their city and the name of the river that runs through it. They often assume that the valley is named after the river; however, Spanish documents from the colonial period show the opposite to be true.^[7]

Symbols

Flag

The Flag of Lima is historically known as "Banner of the City of the Kings of Peru". It is formed by a golden-colored silk canvas and in the center is the embroidered coat of arms of the city.^[9]

Coat of arms

The coat of arms of Lima was granted by the Spanish Crown on 7 December 1537, through a real cédula signed in Valladolid by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and his mother, Queen Joanna of Castile. It is formed by a main field azure, with three gold crowns of kings placed in a triangle and above them a gold star that touches the three crowns with its points, and in the orle some gold letters that say: Hoc signum vere regum est (This is the true sign of the kings). Outside the shield are the initials I and K (Ioana and Karolus), which are the names of Queen Joanna and her son Charles V. A star is placed above the letters and two crowned sabre-faced eagles embracing them, which hold the coat of arms.

Anthem

The anthem of Lima was heard for the first time on 18 January 2008, in a solemn session that was attended by the then President of Peru Alan García, the mayor of the city Luis Castañeda Lossio and various authorities. Those in charge of creating the anthem were the councillors Luis Enrique Tord (author of the lyrics), Euding Maeshiro (composer of the melody) and the musical producer Ricardo Núñez (arranger).^[10]

History

Pre-Columbian era

Although the history of the city of Lima began with its Spanish foundation in 1535, the territory formed by the valleys of the Rímac, Chillón and Lurín rivers was occupied by pre-Inca settlements, which were grouped under the Lordship of Ichma.^[12] The Maranga culture and the Lima culture were the ones that established and forged an identity in these territories. During those times, the sanctuaries of Lati (current Puruchuco) and Pachacámac (the main pilgrimage sanctuary during the time of the Incas) were built, it was built from 3rd century to 15th century by several civilizations, and which was used even until the time the Spanish conquistadors arrived.

These cultures were conquered by the Wari Empire during the height of its imperial expansion. It is during this time that the ceremonial center of Cajamarquilla was built.^[13][14] As Wari importance declined, local cultures regained autonomy, highlighting the Chancay culture. Later, in the 15th century, these territories were incorporated into the Inca Empire.^[15] From this time we can find a great variety of huacas throughout the city, some of which are under investigation.

The most important or well-known are those of Huallamarca, Pucllana, and Mateo Salado, all located in the middle of Lima districts with very high urban growth, so they are surrounded by business and residential buildings; however, that does not prevent its perfect state of conservation.

Founding

In 1532, the Spanish and their indigenous allies (from the ethnic groups subdued by the Incas) under the command of Francisco Pizarro took monarch Atahualpa prisoner in the city of Cajamarca. Although a ransom was paid, he was sentenced to death for political and strategic reasons. After some battles, the Spanish conquered their empire. The Spanish Crown named Francisco Pizarro governor of the lands he had conquered. Pizarro decided to found the capital in the Rímac river valley,^[17] after a failed attempt to establish it in Jauja.

He considered that Lima was strategically located, close to a favorable coast for the construction of a port but prudently far from it in order to prevent attacks by pirates and foreign powers, on fertile lands and with a suitable cool climate. Thus, on 6 January 1535, Lima was founded with the name "City of the Kings", named in this way in honor of the epiphany,^[18][19] on territories that had been of the kuraka Taulichusco. The explanation of this name is due to the fact that "around the same time in January, the Spaniards were looking for the place to lay the foundation for the new city, not far from the Pachacámac sanctuary, near the Rímac river.

However, as had happened with the region, initially called New Castile and later Peru, the City of the Kings soon lost its name in favor of "Lima". Pizarro, with the collaboration of Nicolás de Ribera, Diego de Agüero and Francisco Quintero personally traced the Plaza Mayor and the rest of the city grid, building the Viceroyalty Palace (today transformed into the Government Palace of Peru, which hence retains the traditional name of Casa de Pizarro) and the Cathedral, whose first stone Pizarro laid with his own hands.^[20] In August 1536, the flourishing city was besieged by the troops of monarch Manco Inca Yupanqui, but the Spanish and their indigenous allies managed to defeat them.

In the following years, Lima gained prestige by being designated the capital of the Viceroyalty of Peru and the seat of a Real Audiencia in 1543. Since the location of the coastal city was conditioned by the ease of communications with Spain, a close bond with the port of Callao was soon established.^[21]

Viceroyalty time

For the next century, it prospered as the center of an extensive trade network that integrated the viceroyalty with the Americas, Europe, and East Asia. But the city was not without its dangers; violent earthquakes destroyed a large part of it between 1586 and 1687, leading to a great deal of construction activity. It is then when aqueducts, starlings and retaining walls appear before the flooding of the rivers, the bridge over the Rímac is finished, the cathedral is built, and numerous hospitals, convents and monasteries are built. Then we can see that the city is articulated around its neighborhoods. Another threat was the presence of pirates and corsairs in the Pacific Ocean, which motivated the construction of the Walls of Lima between 1684 and 1687.^[14]

The 1687 earthquake marked a turning point in the history of Lima, since it coincided with a recession in trade due to economic competition with other cities such as Buenos Aires. With the creation of the Viceroyalty of New Granada in 1717, the political demarcations were reorganized, and Lima only lost some territories that actually already enjoyed their autonomy. In 1746 a strong earthquake severely damaged the city and destroyed Callao, forcing a massive reconstruction effort by Viceroy José Antonio Manso de Velasco.^[22]

In the second half of the 18th century, Enlightenment ideas about public health and social control influenced the development of the city. During this period, the Peruvian capital was affected by the Bourbon reforms as it lost its monopoly on foreign trade and its control over the important mining region of Upper Peru. This economic weakening led the elite of the city to depend on the positions granted by the viceregal government and the Church, which contributed to keeping them more linked to the Crown than to the cause of independence.

The greatest political-economic impact that the city experienced at that time occurred with the creation of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata in 1776, which changed the course and orientations imposed by the new mercantile traffic. Among the buildings built during this period there is the Coliseo de Gallos, the Acho Bullring and the General Cemetery. The first two were erected to regulate these popular activities, centralizing them in one place, while the cemetery put an end to the practice of burying the dead in churches, considered unhealthy by public authorities.

• 
  "The City of the Kings of Lima, royal high court, principal city of the kingdom of the Indies, residence of the viceroy", painting of 1615 by the Inca painter Guamán Poma. Royal Library, Denmark.^[23]
• Zdroj:https://en.wikipedia.org?pojem=Lima,_Peru
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