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| With an area of 1,285,215 square km, Peru is the third-largest country in South America after Brazil and Argentina, ranking it amongst the world's 20 largest nations. Peru also holds sway over the sea up to 200 miles from the Peruvian coast and has territorial rights to an area of 60 million hectares in the Antarctic. Peru is divided into 24 departments, plus the Constitutional Province of Callao. Lima is the capital of Peru.
Population 25.662.000 inhabitants. - Urban: 72,3 % - Rural: 27,7 % Peru is a nation of mixed ethnic origins. Throughout its history, Peru has been the meeting ground for different nations and cultures. The indigenous population was joined 500 years ago by the Spaniards.
As a result of this encounter, and later enriched by the migration of African blacks, Asians and Europeans, Peruvian man emerged as the representative of a nation whose rich ethnic mix is one of its leading characteristics. Language: Oficcial languages: - Spanish: 80,3% - Quechua: 16,2% - Other languages: 3,0% - Foreign languages: 0,2% As part of its rich cultural tradition, Peru features many different languages. Although Spanish is commonly spoken across the country, Quechua is a major legacy of the Inca empire, and is still spoken with regional dialects in many parts of Peru. In addition, other languages are spoken such as Aymara (in Puno) and a startling variety of dialects in the Amazon jungle, which are divided up into 15 linguistic families and 43 different languages. Currency. The official currency in Peru is the Nuevo Sol (S/.), which is divided into 100 centimos. The currency includes coins for 5, 10, 20 and 50 centimos and 1, 2 and 5 sol coins. There are bills in the denomination of 10, 20, 50, 100 and 200 soles.
Government. Peru is a democratic republic. The president and members of Congress are elected every five years by universal suffrage. The current constitutional president of Peru is Alejandro Toledo Manrique (2001-2006). Religion Roman Catholic: 89% Evangelical: 7% Other religions: 4% Telephone in Peru Peru features a far-reaching telephone network that provides services for national and international long-distance calls from private telephone lines and public cabins. There are also currently 1.3 million clients who have cellular phones, and satellite communications are currently being developed. Internet / e-mail.in Peru U A number of service providers across the country has given the public access to Internet. Known in Peru as Cabinas Internet, the average cost of an hour's connection is S/.3,50 (US$1). Airports in Peru There are 26 airports in Peru, and 19 air lines currently link Peru to Europe, North America and the rest of South America. Ports in Peru Peru's largest port is Callao, outside Lima. Other major ports include Paita, Salaverry, Chimbote, Callao, Pisco, Ilo and Matarani. Peru Roads Peru is criss-crossed by more than 70,000 km of roads, of which 16,705,79 km are national highways. Of these roads, 8,711.02 km. run from north to south and 7,994.77 km from east to west. The main roads running down the length of the country are the Pan-American Highway (North and South), which links up the towns along Peru's coast, and the Marginal Jungle Highway which links up the towns in the northern jungle with the south, near the Bolivian border. Cutting inland is the Central Highway, which starts out in Lima and runs up to the central highlands, climbing through the high mountain pass of Ticlio (Kilometer 132), which at 4,818 meters above sea level is also the world's highest railway pass. From here, the road descends to the towns of La Oroya and Tarma, continuing down to the Chanchamayo jungle valley in the department of Junín. The government plans to build another 1,819.2 km of roads in the next few years .
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