250 CHAPTER 9

The Land of PeruThough Peru is rich in resources, such as guano, variations in itsphysical geography also present problems. Three types of land-forms exist in Peru: mountains, rain forest, and desert. Each typehas its own special characteristics, but all three are transportationbarriers rather than transportation corridors. Traveling from onepart of Peru to another is not easy.

TERMS & NAMESoasisguerrilla warfareAlberto FujimoriQuechua

Peru’s physical features and itsunstable governments have posedchallenges to the development ofits economy and its people.

Peru’s economic problems alsoaffect its trading partners,including the United States.

MAIN IDEA WHY IT MATTERS NOW

CHINCHA ISLANDS, PERU, 1842—

Officials recently announced a major

new source of prosperity for Peru.

Dried sea-bird droppings, called

guano, are now being exported

around the world to be used as

plant fertilizer.

The idea of using guano as

fertilizer came from ancient Inca

farmers. Recently, scientific research

has confirmed that guano is rich

in phosphates and nitrates, which

help plants to grow. Fertilizer

companies in Britain and other

countries are now paying huge

sums of money for the right to dig

guano from Peru.

Peru Today

Human-Environment Interaction • Guano

comes from a number of sea birds,

including cormorants like this one. �

Peru Today

TAKING NOTES

Independence led to differ-ent types of governments in South America.

South American countriesare trying to cooperate . . .

Generalizations Facts

Use your chart to take notes about South America.

Three Types of Landforms Look at the map above. You can seethat the Andes Mountains run the entire length of Peru, dividingthe country in two. In places, the mountains are so steep that theyare practically impassable. Notice that off the eastern slopes of theAndes stretches rain forest, which is called selva in Spanish. Nowlook to the west of the Andes, along the Pacific coast. Here thenorthern stretches of Chile’s Atacama Desert reach into Peru. Mostof Peru’s cities, large farms, and factories are located in the desert,in or near oases. An oasis is a fertile region in a desert that formedaround a river or spring.

The Economy of PeruPeru has many resources, but it also has many problems. The coun-try’s harsh geography affects its economy. For example, the cold,rocky highlands and the cool, dry desert cover so much area thatthere is not enough arable land to feed the growing population.

AN

DE

SM

OU

NTA

I NS

s e l v a

Amazon R.PACIFIC

OCEAN

Gulf of Guayaquil

LakeTiticaca

4°S

0°

N

0

0 250 500 kilometers

250 500 miles

Elevation(4,000 m)(2,000 m)

(500 m)(200 m)

(0 m)Below sea level

13,100 ft.6,600 ft.1,600 ft.

650 ft.0 ft.

Physical Features of Peru

GEOGRAPHYSKILLBUILDER:Interpreting a Map1. Region • Through

which of Peru’s landforms does theAmazon River run?

2. Place • What is thehighest elevationshown on this map?

Place • Becauseof cold currentsin the PacificOcean, Peru’sdesert has anaverage summer temperature of only 73ºF. �

A. Clarifying Whydo you think Peru’scities are locatedin the desert ratherthan in other environments?

Agriculture Like many other countries, Peru must import cer-tain foods. These include grains, vegetable oils, and some meats,many of which come from the United States. However, Peruviansdo grow sugar cane, cotton, and coffee for export. Also, southernPeru has a large dairy industry that serves markets both in Peruand beyond. Meats from cattle, sheep, alpaca, and goats are alsoprocessed and distributed within the country.

Fishing The cold waters along the Pacific Coast are fine fishinggrounds. Sardines and anchovies are the most important fish inthe Peruvian catch. They are dried and made into fishmeal, whichis sold as feed for livestock throughout the world.

Mining Peru is an important supplier of metals such as silver, cop-per, and bismuth. It also contains oil and gold deposits. However,the richest deposits of minerals in the country exist in dense rainforests and at elevations of over 12,000 feet. Because it is difficult tomine in these locations, Peru’s mineral resources have not broughtthe country the great wealth that they could.

The Government of PeruPeru declared itself independent of Spain in 1821. The nationwas not completely free, however, until December of 1824, whenSimón Bolívar finally drove out the Spanish. Following inde-pendence, Peru’s military leaders began fighting one another.Struggles between military and civilian leaders continued untillate in the 20th century.

Guerrilla Warfare Perhaps the greatest struggle in Peru’s modernhistory arose in the early 1980s. At that time, Communist groupsrose up to fight against the democracy that they felt was failingPeru. The most powerful of these groups was Sendero Luminoso(sen•DAIR•oh loo•mih•NOH•soh), or Shining Path.

252 CHAPTER 9

Place • At left, a freight traintransports copper ingotsthrough Peru.At center, cotton plantsgrow in Ica,Peru. �

Place • Manycrates ofanchovies aresold in Perueach year. �

Although inSpanish guerrillais pronounced geh-REE-yuh, inEnglish it is pronounced likethe word gorilla.The word isSpanish for “small-scale war.”

Sendero Luminoso fought for changes usingguerrilla warfare, or nontraditional military tac-tics characterized by small groups using surpriseattacks. The military responded, and many citi-zens died in the crossfire. Until SenderoLuminoso’s leader, Abimael Guzmán Reynoso(ah•bee•mah•EHL gooz•MAHN ray•NAW•saw),was imprisoned in 1992, the civil war continued.

Government in Crisis The 1990s did not bringbetter times to Peru. From 1990 to 2000,Alberto Fujimori, the son of Japanese immi-grants, was president. At first, many of Peru’spoor rural people supported him. By May 2000,however, he and his officials were accused ofcorruption. Many resignations followed, and inNovember, Fujimori abandoned the presidencyand fled to Japan. The new president, AlejandroToledo (al•eh•HAHN•droh toh•LAY•doh),faced the challenge of trying to win back thetrust of Peruvians after the government scandals.

Peruvian People and Culture Today, more Native Americans live in Peru thanin any other South American country. Forty-fivepercent of Peru’s people are Native Americans—the descendants of the Inca. Many of these peo-ple are Quechua (KEHCH•wuh), people who live in the Andeshighlands and speak the Inca language Quechua. Along withSpanish, Quechua is one of Peru’s official languages. Many peoplein the highlands speak the language of another Native Americangroup, the Aymara (EYE•mah•RAH). The Inca conquered theAymara in the 15th century, but the language lived on.

After Native Americans, mestizos are Peru’s next largest group.Peru’s population also includes people with European, African,and Asian ancestors.

Urban and Rural Life Most of Peru’s people live in cities ortowns. Lima is Peru’s capital and its biggest city, with about 7 mil-lion people. Lima has grown very quickly, which poses somesevere problems. At the dawn of the 21st century, many neighbor-hoods lacked basic city services, such as electricity, running water,and public transportation.

Committee to Protect JournalistsIn a democracy, freedom of thepress helps to prevent wrongdoingby the government. In Peru, forexample, many administratorsresigned in disgrace after journalistsexposed widespread corruption inAlberto Fujimori’s administration.Elsewhere, however, many govern-ments have jailed journalists likethe one shown below for theirreports.

The Committee to ProtectJournalists (CPJ) was formed in 1981to promote freedom of the press.CPJ tracks abuses against the pressall over the world, makes the abusespublic, and organizes protests.

B. DrawingConclusionsHow do you thinkthe violence andcorruption in governmentaffected people’sdaily lives in Peru?

South America 253

254 CHAPTER 9

Imagine you live in Peru. Write a short story describing your daily life, includingwhat you do for work and for recreation.

SECTION ASSESSMENT

Using Graphics2. Use a chart like this one to list the

products generated by each ofPeru’s industries.

Main Ideas3. (a) Describe the three types of

landforms in Peru.

(b) Describe the challenges facingPeru’s economy.

(c) Which group makes upthe largest part of Peru’s population?

Critical Thinking4. Forming and Supporting

OpinionsWhy did Peru’s guerrillas use violence to bring about change?Were they right to do so? Explain.

Think About◆ reasons for discontent in Peru◆ the history of democracy in Peru◆ other possible methods of

demanding change

Terms & Names1. Explain the significance of: (a) oasis (b) guerrilla warfare (c) Alberto Fujimori (d) Quechua

Region • Likethis mother anddaughter, manyQuechua live inthe Andes ofEcuador, Peru,and Bolivia. �

Agriculture

Fishing

Mining

Industry Products

Many of Peru’s rural farmers are verypoor. They farm such small plots of landthat often they cannot grow enough to feedtheir families. These rural people, who aremainly Native Americans, often move tothe cities in search of a better life. However,many have little education and cannotspeak Spanish, making it hard to find work.

Religion Peru’s religions reflect multiplecultural traditions. Catholicism is thenational religion of Peru, and more than 90percent of Peruvians are Catholic. However,many Inca religious practices also still exist. Attimes, the Inca and Catholic customs mix.For example, some villages honor Catholicsaints with traditional Inca festivals.

Literature The literature of Peru reveals modern themes as well astraditional ones. Peru’s most famous living novelist, Mario VargasLlosa (MAHR•yoh VAHR•guhs YOH•suh), is known for hisbelief that a novel should represent life to the fullest. César Vallejo(SAY•sar vuh•YAY•hoh), a mestizo, is Peru’s most famous poet andis considered one of the world’s best Spanish-language poets. Hispoetry describes what life is like for Peru’s Native Americans andtells about suffering and struggles that all people may face.