Lima is the capital and largest city of Peru, as well as a primate city. 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. 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 had 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 second-most populous city in South America after São Paulo and the largest Spanish-speaking city in the world in terms of city proper population. The Lima Metropolitan Area, which forms a contiguous urban area with the seaside city of Callao, has a population of 10,151,200 inhabitants. When considering the additional seven districts contained in the Constitutional Province of Callao, the total agglomeration reaches a population of 11,342,100 inhabitants, one of the 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. Around one-third of the national population now lives in its metropolitan area.
As the headquarters of the Andean Community, Lima plays a crucial role in regional diplomacy and trade integration. 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. The city will host the games for a second time in 2027. It also hosted the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Meetings three times in 2008, 2016 and 2024; 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.
According to an early Spanish article, the Lima area was once called Itchyma, 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.
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 at the ends of words.
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. After José de San Martín reached Lima in 1821 during the Peruvian War of Independence, the city was granted the title of Heroica y Esforzada Ciudad de los Libres ("Heroic and Courageous City of the Free") in September of the same year.
The river that flows through 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]). 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.
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.
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.
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 such as city councilors Luis Enrique Tord (author of the lyrics), Euding Maeshiro (composer of the melody) and the musical producer Ricardo Núñez (arranger). It was officially adopted on 7 October 2010.
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. 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. 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. 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 huacas 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.
During the time of the Incas, the valley of Lima was highly populated and organized into an Inca province, or huamani (wamani), called Pachacamac. The colonial Spanish historian Bernabé Cobo mentions that the huamani of Pachacamac was subdivided into three hunu of tributary men, rather than the conventional four hunu. It has also been argued that a fourth hunu may have existed but was not recorded. The primary meaning of the word hunu in Quechua is 10,000, leading to the assumption that 30,000 families lived in the valley. This assumption has been criticized, including by the historian Åke Wedin, because hunu can also mean countless, and therefore could simply refer to a very large group of men. The scholar John Rowe suggested that the valley had a population of about 150,000 during Inca times.
Whatever the case, each recorded hunu of Pachacamac had a head town, corresponding to some of the most populated settlements in the valley: Caraguayllo (Carabayllo), Maranga, and Surco (or Sulco, also known as the archaeological site Armatambo).... this valley was divided, according to the government of the Inca kings, into three 'unos' or governorships of ten thousand families each; the town of Caraguayllo was the head of the first; that of Maranga, which is situated in the middle of the valley, of the second, and the third, that of Surco; this last town was the largest of all ...The inhabitants of the pre-Columbian town of Surco were relocated to the modern district of Santiago de Surco early in the colonial period. In addition to Aymara and Quechua, the inhabitants of the northern part of the valley, specifically in the hunu of Carabayllo, spoke an additional language believed to be Quingnam.