Cusco or Cuzco (pronounced /ˈkuːskoʊ/; in Quechua written Qusqu and pronounced [ˈqosqo]) is a city in southeastern Peru, near the Urubamba Valley (Sacred Valley) of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region as well as the Cusco Province. The city has a population of 348,935 which is triple the figure of 20 years ago. Located on the eastern end of the Knot of Cusco, its altitude is around 3,300 m (11,000 ft). Cusco is the his...
more
Cusco or Cuzco (pronounced /ˈkuːskoʊ/; in Quechua written Qusqu and pronounced [ˈqosqo]) is a city in southeastern Peru, near the Urubamba Valley (Sacred Valley) of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region as well as the Cusco Province. The city has a population of 348,935 which is triple the figure of 20 years ago. Located on the eastern end of the Knot of Cusco, its altitude is around 3,300 m (11,000 ft). Cusco is the historic capital of the Inca Empire and was declared a World Heritage Site in 1983 by UNESCO. It is a major tourist destination and receives almost a million visitors a year. It is designated as the Historical Capital of Peru by the Constitution of Peru.
Upon the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors, the Quechua name ("Qosqo") was transliterated into Spanish as "Cusco", which is how it appears on maps from the 17th and 18th centuries. On maps from the 19th century (as early as 1810) and through the mid-20th century (until at least 1976), the name...
less
