| Puno Region | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| — Region — | |||
| Lake Titicaca, which is partly located in the Puno Region | |||
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| Location of the Puno Region in Peru | |||
| Country | Peru | ||
| Subdivisions | 13 provinces and 108 districts | ||
| Capital | Puno (138000) | ||
| Government | |||
| • President | Mauricio Rodriguez (2011-2014) | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 66,997 km2 (25,867.7 sq mi) | ||
| Highest elevation | 4,725 m (15,502 ft) | ||
| Lowest elevation | 820 m (2,690 ft) | ||
| Population (INEI estimate 2011) | |||
| • Total | 1,364,362 | ||
| • Density | 20.4/km2 (52.7/sq mi) | ||
| UBIGEO | 21 | ||
| Dialing code | 0+51 | ||
| ISO 3166 code | PE-PUN | ||
| Principal resources | Quinoa; it is also the nation's largest producer of potatoes, sheep, alpacas and llamas. | ||
| Poverty rate | 60.8% (INEI 2009) | ||
| Percentage of Peru's GDP | 2.3% | ||
| Website | www.regionpuno.gob.pe | ||
Puno is a region in southeastern Peru. It is bordered by Bolivia on the east, the Madre de Dios Region on the north, the Cusco and Arequipa regions on the west, the Moquegua Region on the southwest, and the Tacna Region on the south. Its capital is the city of Puno, which is located on Lake Titicaca in the geographical region known as the Altiplano or high sierra.
Puno was the territory of the Tiahuanacos (800 A.D. – 1200 A.D.) who were the highest cultural expression of the Aymara people that established themselves in what is today Peru and Bolivia. The Incas took over these lands in the fifteenth century, and the Spanish, attracted by the mining industry developed there, left an important Colonial legacy throughout the entire area.
Today, the city of Puno (3,287 masl), which lies on the shores of Lake Titicaca, the highest navigable lake in the world, is the folklore capital of Peru and the site of the Feast of the Virgen de la Candelaria. In the outskirts, you can visit the spectacular Chullpas de Sillustani, a complex of impressive burial towers built by the Kollas, Juli, famous for its beautiful Colonial churches, Lampa with its vice royal church built between 1675 and 1685, Llachón, a community that still maintains its centuries old customs and cultural expressions, and Pucará, known for its pre-Inca pottery and for the "toritos de Pucará" that the artisans of today create from clay.
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The Puno region is located in the Collao Plateau. The western part of Lake Titicaca, which is the world's highest navigable lake, is located in the region. The Andean mountains make up 70% of the region's territory, and the rest is covered by the Amazon rainforest.
The lake contains numerous islands whose inhabitants continue to live as their ancestors have in custom and tradition. The Uros an example of this; this people group lives on "floating islands" that they have artificially made entirely of totora reeds, and they navigate in their traditional boats also made out of totora reeds. Taquile, Suasi, and Amantaní are knows for their kindness of their residents, their ancestral skill in weaving, their pre-Columbian constructions, and lovely countryside. The Titicaca National Reserve (36,180 hectares) protects extensive stretches of totora reeds and various species of plants and animals.
The climate is cold and dry, with a four-month rain season. On the other hand, the climate of the rainforest is warm. The water resources are taken from the Lake Titicaca, 50 lagoons and more than 300 rivers. There is also an important potential in underground waters.
Tourism is currently expanding in the Puno Region, with several tour operators and hotels ranging from low budget hostels to high-end hotels.
The region is divided into 13 provinces (provincias, singular: provincia), which are composed of 107 districts (distritos, singular: distrito). The provinces, with their capitals in parentheses, are:
In ancient times, the Collao plateau was inhabited by Aymara groups (Collas, Zapanas, Kallahuayos and Lupacas). The Quechuas came later.
According to chronicler Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, these ancient times coincide with the legend of Manco Cápac and Mama Ocllo, who emerged from the waters of Lake Titicaca to found the Inca Empire.
The Aymara culture, also known as Putina, was the most important and influential pre-Hispanic culture in the region.
During the Viceroyship, Puno was the obliged route for travelers going to Potosí, Bolivia. In 1668, viceroy Conde de Lemos established San Juan Bautista de Puno as the capital of the province of Paucarcolla. Later, it was called San Carlos de Puno, in honor of the ruling king, Charles II of Spain.
In 1870, the railway route Arequipa-Puno was installed and navigation in Lake Titicaca started.
In 2007, a meteorite landed in the region, triggering a widespread illness amongst the locals. The exact cause of the illness is unknown, but is speculated to be a result of arsenic or other toxic chemicals that may have been released by the heat of impact.
Indigenous people are the majority in the Puno region. As of 2011[update], 41.4% of Puno's inhabitants speak Quechua, 30.39% speak Aymara; 0.05% speak Ashaninka; and 0.03% speak another indigenous langague. Monolingual Spanish speakers make up 28.1% of the population.[1]
In March 2008, the regional President, Hernán Fuentes, declared that he seeks to push for the region's secession from Peru in order to establish an independent state. Fuentes has refused to help his local government organize a nationwide test for public sector teachers and promotes the cultivation of the coca leaf, often used to make cocaine. Then-Peruvian Prime Minister Jorge Del Castillo stated that promoting the breakup of Peru was "an act of sedition."
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