Huancavelica

Huancavelica

Peru
      city, central Peru. It is located about 140 miles (225 km) southeast of Lima, in the inter-Andean Huancavelica River valley at an elevation of 12,060 feet (3,676 m). Huancavelica was established as a mining settlement in 1563 after the local discovery of mercury, which was essential in extracting the silver from native ores. Founded as Villa Rica de Oropesa (“Rich Town of Oropesa”) in 1572, it was almost immediately called Huancavelica—a Spanish corruption of the Quechua name for the site, meaning “stone idol”—and was officially declared a city with its present name in 1581. The city remained an important mercury-mining centre until the mid-19th century. The U.S. Agency for International Development and Buenaventura Mining, the largest mining company in Peru, set up an antipoverty support centre in Huancavelica in 2002 to stimulate employment and enhance community development. Most inhabitants are Quechua-speaking and practice subsistence agriculture, cultivating potatoes and barley. Leather and alpaca products are traded in local markets. A narrow-gauge railway running south from Huancayo makes Huancavelica the terminus of a 404-mile (650-kilometre) intermontane rail line from Callao (the port of Lima). Pop. (2005) 33,144.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Huancavelica — (Wankawillka in Quechua) is a city in Peru. It is the capital of the Huancavelica region and has a population of approximately 40,000. Indigenous peoples represent a major percentage of the population. It has an approximate altitude of 3,600… …   Wikipedia

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  • Huancavelica — Huancavelīca (spr. uank ), Stadt in Peru, (1896) 8000 E.; Quecksilbergruben …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • Huancavelica — Huancavelica …   Wikipedia Español

  • Huancavelica — Region Huancavelica (grün) Huancavelica ist eine Stadt in den peruanischen Anden. Sie ist die Hauptstadt der Region Huancavelica. 12.785833333333 74.972777777778 …   Deutsch Wikipedia

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  • Huancavelica — Original name in latin Huancavelica Name in other language Huancavelica, Uankavelika, Wankawillka, Уанкавелика State code PE Continent/City America/Lima longitude 12.78542 latitude 74.97501 altitude 3677 Population 41576 Date 2012 11 08 …   Cities with a population over 1000 database

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