Tacna

The term Tacna is derived from two Quechua words: Taka, meaning 'to hit', and na, which means 'place'. Thus, the full name means "I hit this place" or "I rule this place".

At the time of the Spanish conquest, the region around Tacna was already multiethnic, displaying a mix of local sedentary populations and mitma settlers from the Altiplano. The proportions of these are that the first made up about 66% of the population and the latter 25%. Fishing-oriented people known as Camanchacos made up about the remaining 9% of the population. Much of the population practising agriculture is believed to have spoken the Puquina language. In 1540 the encomienda system was established in Tacna and its surroundings with conquistador Lucas Martínez de Vegaso obtaining 1,638 encomienda indians (a third of tributaries distributed). Pedro Pizarro and Pedro de la Fuente followed in numbers receiving each approximately 600 tributaries. …

The area is generally desert, with a few fertile spots near the mountains. Except for Caplina, no rivers cross the entire province. Tacna has a desert climate (BWk/BWh, according to the Köppen climate classification).

Many monuments are located in this city, including the arch of the Alto de la Alianza Monumental Complex and the Tacna Parabolic Arch. Other monuments include a neo-renaissance Cathedral, the Courthouse, the Alameda Bolognesi and the caves of Toquepala, where archaeologists have found some of the oldest human remains in Peru. Another important tourist attraction is the Town Hall Theater, the most emblematic theater in Tacna. Its construction was promoted after the construction of the Tacna–Arica railway in 1856, as theater companies traveling to La Paz passed through Tacna on their way to Bolivia. Taking advantage of this situation, Colonel Cesáreo Vargas, together with Italian businessman Pablo Ferreti, requested permission from the municipality to construct a theater. By 1862, the theater was already operating, although only its first floor had been completed.

Tacna was served by a cross-border 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge railway to Arica, Chile. The line closed in 2012, but as of June 2014, there were plans to reopen it. It is also the location of the National Railway Museum of Peru. Tacna is served by the Crnl. FAP. Carlos Ciriani Santa Rosa International Airport, with flights to Arequipa and Lima. Tacna is also served by Peru Highway 1 which heads south to Arica and north to Moquegua.