Lima

Lima is the capital and largest city of Peru, and it functions as a primate city, dominating the country's urban hierarchy. It sits in the desert along Peru’s central coast, overlooking the Pacific Ocean, within the valleys formed by the Chillón, Rímac, and Lurín Rivers. As the nation’s political, cultural, financial, and commercial hub, Lima’s metropolitan area mostly falls within the province of Lima, but a smaller western portion lies in the Constitutional Province of Callao. This separate province is home to the main seaport and the Jorge Chávez Airport. Since 2002, both provinces have operated with regional autonomy.

According to a 2023 census projection, Lima proper has an estimated 10,092,000 residents, making it the second-most populous city in South America after São Paulo and the largest Spanish-speaking city in the world by city proper population. The Lima Metropolitan Area, which forms a single continuous urban zone with the coastal city of Callao, holds about 10,151,200 people. When including all seven districts of the Constitutional Province of Callao, the total agglomeration reaches 11,342,100 inhabitants, placing it among the most populated urban agglomerations globally. Roughly one-third of Peru’s national population now lives in this metropolitan area.

The name Lima comes from the native agricultural region known as Limaq. After the Spanish founded the city, it became the capital of the Viceroyalty of Peru and, following the Peruvian War of Independence, the capital of the Republic of Peru. Lima serves as the headquarters of the Andean Community, giving it a key role in regional diplomacy and trade. In October 2013, the city was selected to host the 2019 Pan American Games, the largest sporting event ever held in Peru, and it will host the games again in 2027. Lima has also hosted the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings three times (2008, 2016, and 2024), the Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank Group in October 2015, the United Nations Climate Change Conference in December 2014, and the Miss Universe 1982 contest.

Etymology: Early Spanish records refer to the area as Itchyma, after its original inhabitants. Even before the Inca occupation in the 15th century, a famous oracle in the Rímac Valley was known to visitors as Limaq, meaning “talker” or “speaker” in the coastal Quechua language. The Spanish destroyed this oracle and replaced it with a church, but the name stuck, with chronicles showing “Límac” replacing “Ychma.” Modern scholars believe “Lima” came from the Spanish pronunciation of Limaq, since spoken Spanish typically drops stop consonants at the end of words. The city was founded in 1535 as the City of Kings (Ciudad de los Reyes), named for the feast of the Epiphany on January 6, but this name quickly fell out of use. In September 1821, after José de San Martín reached Lima during the war for independence, the city was granted the title “Heroic and Courageous City of the Free.” The river running through Lima is called Rímac, and many mistakenly think this comes from the Inca name “Talking River” (the Incas spoke a highland Quechua where “talker” was pronounced [ˈrimɑq]). However, the valley’s original inhabitants were not Incas; this name was a later innovation by Cuzco nobility in colonial times to standardize the toponym to Cuzco Quechua phonology. As the original inhabitants died out and local Quechua became extinct, the Cuzco pronunciation took over. Today, Spanish-speaking locals often assume the valley is named after the river, but colonial Spanish documents show the opposite.

Symbols: The flag of Lima, historically called the “Banner of the City of the Kings of Peru,” is a golden silk canvas with the city’s embroidered coat of arms in the center. The coat of arms was granted by the Spanish Crown on December 7, 1537, via a royal decree signed in Valladolid by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, and his mother, Queen Joanna of Castile. It features a blue field with three gold crowns arranged in a triangle, a gold star above touching all three crowns, and gold letters in the border reading “Hoc signum vere regum est” (This is the true sign of the kings). Outside the shield are the initials I and K (for Ioana and Karolus), representing Queen Joanna and Charles V, with a star above them and two crowned, sabre-faced eagles embracing the shield. The anthem of Lima was first heard on January 18, 2008, at a solemn session attended by then-President Alan García, Mayor Luis Castañeda Lossio, and other officials, including lyricist Luis Enrique Tord, composer Euding Maeshiro, and producer Ricardo Núñez. It was officially adopted on October 7, 2010.

History: While the city’s history officially begins with its Spanish founding in 1535, the territory formed by the Rímac, Chillón, and Lurín valleys had long been inhabited.