The Inca Empire

[Judi Lynn]

By Owen Jarus, Live Science Contributor | November 5, 2018 01:20pm ET

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Villagers in Cuzco, Peru, dressed in colorful shawls, or chompas, mingle with city-folk and tourists during a festival..
Credit: Jesse Lewis

The Inca Empire was a vast empire that flourished in the Andean region of South America from the early 15th century A.D. up until its conquest by the Spanish in the 1530s. Even after the conquest, Inca leaders continued to resist the Spaniards up until 1572, when its last city, Vilcabamba, was captured.

The Incas built their empire, called Tawantinsuyu or the "Land of the Four Corners," without the wheel, powerful draft animals, iron working, currency or even what we would consider to be a writing system. The empire stretched from modern-day Argentina to southern Columbia, and was divided up into four “suyu,” which intersected at the capital, Cuzco. These suyu in turn were divided into provinces. [Gallery: Tracing the Ancient Incan Empire]

Machu Picchu sits nestled between the Andes mountains of modern-day Peru and the Amazon basin and is one of the Inca's most famous surviving archeological sites.

This breathtaking ancient city, made up of around 200 structures built up on the mountains, is still largely mysterious. Archeologists don't know what purpose many of the structures served, but its intricate roads, trail systems, irrigation canals and agricultural areas suggest humans used the site for a long time, according to UNESCO.

More:
https://www.livescience.com/41346-the-incas-history-of-andean-empire.html


To hear the Quechua language in a song you might enjoy hearing the following song, The Way You Make Me Feel, Michael Jackson, sung by Peruvian girl, Renata Flores: