Nanchoc
District
Nanchoc is located in Peru
Nanchoc
Nanchoc
Location in Peru
Coordinates: 6°57′33″S 79°14′35″W / 6.9591°S 79.2430°W / -6.9591; -79.2430
Country Peru
RegionCajamarca
ProvinceSan Miguel
FoundedDecember 2, 1958
CapitalNanchoc
Area
 • Total359 km2 (139 sq mi)
Elevation
400 m (1,300 ft)
Population
 (Peru 2017 Census)
 • Total1,368
 • Density3.8/km2 (9.9/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC-5 (PET)
UBIGEO061108

Nanchoc District is one of thirteen districts of San Miguel Province in the Cajamarca Region of Peru.[1] In 2017, the district had an area of 359 square kilometres (139 sq mi) and a population of 1,368.[2] The capital of the district is the town of Nanchoc which had a population of 332 in 2017.[3] The Nanchoc River, a tributary of the Zaña River, bisects the district.

Nanchoc is located in an irrigated and cultivated valley about 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) wide and 60 kilometres (37 mi) from the Pacific Ocean to the west. Between the valley and the ocean is a low range of mountains and the Peruvian coastal desert. East of Nanchoc the Andes rise sharply and the greater precipitation in the Andes feeds the Nanchoc River and its tributaries, permitting irrigated agriculture to flourish in the valley.[4]

History

Nanchoc district was created 2 December 1958 by Law No. 13039 del 2, during the second government of President Manuel Prado Ugarteche.[5] At the time the district included the population centers of Carahuasi, Bolívar, El Espino, Trigal, La Aventuraza, El Diamante, La Tambora and Tingues. Most of these communities were separated from Nanchoc district in 1989 and placed in Bolivar District.[6]

Archaeology

See also: Zaña Valley

On the western side of the Nanchoc river, about 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) from the town of Nanchoc, archaeologist Tom Dillehay found evidence of the oldest known irrigation canals in the Americas, radiocarbon dated to at least 3400 BCE and possibly as old as 4700 BCE. The canals built by the people of Nanchoc at that time were utilized to irrigate crops such as peanuts, squash, manioc, and chenopods, a relative of Quinoa.[7]

References

  1. ^ "Instituto Nacional de Estadística e Informática." [1]. Retrieved April 11, 2008.
  2. ^ "City Population, [2], accessed 20 November 2020
  3. ^ "City Population," [3], accessed 20 November 2020.
  4. ^ Google Earth
  5. ^ Leyes Congresso", [4]. Accessed 12 October 2019
  6. ^ Sitio web provinvial. Accessed 12 Oct 2019.
  7. ^ Dillehay, Tom D.; Eling, Jr., Herbert H.; Rossen, Jack (2005). "Preceramic irrigation canals in the Peruvian Andes" (PDF). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. National Academy of Science. 102 (47): 17241–17244. doi:10.1073/pnas.0508583102. PMC 1288011. PMID 16284247. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
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