Chiclayo

Commercial centre and capital of Lambayeque department, northwest Peru, 640 km/400 mi northwest of Lima; population (2005) 495,400; urban agglomeration 1,091,500. One of Peru's fastest growing cities, it lies at the centre of an agricultural area producing rice, cotton, and sugar cane, which are all grown and processed in the region. There are tanning, distilling, and dairy industries. The city comprises a mixture of Creole, Spanish, and Indian architecture, and there is a 19th-century cathedral, designed by the English architect Andrew Townsend.

Chiclayo was founded in the 1560s by Spanish priests. In 1987 five royal Moche tombs were discovered at Sipán, 30 km/19 mi southeast of Chiclayo.