Chincheros Province
Chincheros Province is the smallest of seven provinces of the Apurimac Region in Peru.
Boundaries
North: Ayacucho Region
East: Andahuaylas Province
South: Andahuaylas Province
West: Ayacucho Region
Political division
The province measures 1,242.33 square kilometres km2 and is divided into eight districts:
Chincheros
Anco-Huallo
Cocharcas
Huaccana
Ocobamba
Ongoy
Uranmarca
Ranracancha
Capital
The capital of the province is the city of Chincheros.
Culture
Most people living in Chincheros speak the Indigenous language Quechua.
Chincheros is also the site of la Fiesta de la Virgen del Carmen. This yearly Fiesta patronal celebrates the Virgin del Carmenin the Monte Carmelo in Galilee. During the Spanish Conquest of Peru, La Virgen del Carmen became venerated among the native population of the south Andes of Peru. Each locality has its own version of exactly how the veneration began, most related to miracles that she performed, convincing the population.
The Fiesta is based around a mass followed by dancing, performances, food, and drink. The dances and other performances vary based on location, but most include satire and parody of Spanish characters, such as landlords, the nobility, even toreros. The fight between peoples of the Andes and the Amazon is also represented, wherein the Andeans win and devils steal the souls of dead bodies to take to Hell.
The fiesta has also been brought to Lima by those former residents of Chincheros, who now reside in the country's capitol.
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Chincheros Province
