5 Themes of
geography
Human Characteristics
The predominant religion in Peru is Roman Catholic however, there are a scattering of other faiths as well, such as Adventists, Muslims, Buddhists, and Hindus. Indigenous Peruvians have blended Catholicism and their traditional beliefs. Most of the people in Peru are Mestizo. Mestizo people are a mixture of Amerindians and Peruvians of European ancestry. A small number of African, Japanese and Chinese ancestries are also found in Peru. Spanish and Quechua, a Native South American language spoken primarily in the Andes, derived from a common ancestral language, are the two official languages of Peru. Festivals are very common in Peru and are a part of its unique culture. Another big part in Peru's culture is its delicious Peruvian cuisine.
Place
Physical Characteristics
The coastal strip of Peru is mainly desert and scrubland, although in the more northern coast, tropical savanna, mongrove swamps, and dry forests exist as well. The highland of Peru consists primarily of grassland, scrub and alpine waste. The area of cloud forest and upland jungle is known as the selva alta, high jungle, or ceja de selva, eyebrow of the jungle. The vast lowland area of the Amazon Basin is a region of dense tropical rainforests where riverboats become the main form of transportation. The Andes Mountains cover nearly 40% of Peru. While the lowest part of Peru is irrigated by tributaries of the Amazon River. Peru is also drained by many rivers, including the Apurimac, Maranon, Napo and Ucayali. Sharing with Bolivia, Peru contorls Lake Titicaca which is the world's highest navigable lake. Peru also contains a sandy mountainous desert and many rivers that flow into the Pacific Ocean. The climate on the coast of Peru is commonly subtropical with very little rainfall. However, near the Andes Mountains the climate remains cool-to-cold with rainy summers and extremely dry winters. The lowlands of Peru hold an equatorial climate, hot weather and steady rainfall all year. The geology of the Peru region reflects the subduction of the Nazca Plate under the South American Plate and consequent uplift and volcanic activity. The engineering problems related to the geology of Peru concern earthquake protective design, foundation problems on unstable soils, water supply, and solid waste disposal.
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