Cuenca

Capital of Azuay province, southern Ecuador, 330 km/205 mi south of Quito; population (1991) 193,000. Industries include chemicals, food processing, agricultural machinery, flour milling, tyres, panama hats, and textiles. It is Ecuador's third-largest city and a commercial centre, trading in cinchona bark, sugar cane, and cereals; it is also a major centre of trade for Ecuadorean handicrafts.

Cuenca was founded by the Spanish in 1557 on the site of an Inca settlement. The River Tomebamba flows through it. Both the new cathedral and old cathedral stand opposite each other in the main plaza. The city also has a university (founded in 1868), and several museums, one of which contains artefacts from the site of the Inca settlement of Tomebamba. Nearby is the Inca fortress of Ingapirca – Ecuador's best preserved pre-colonial ruin.

Cuenca

Capital of Cuenca province in Castilla-La Mancha, central Spain, 135 km/84 mi southeast of Madrid, at the confluence of the Júcar and Huécar rivers; population (2001) 277,400. Industries include timber and tourism. It has a 13th-century cathedral, a ruined Moorish castle, and a 16th-century bishop's palace. Nearby is the Ciudad Encantada (Enchanted City), a rock formation of 200 ha/494 acres, eroded into the appearance of a ruined city.

Cuenca

Province of central Spain in northwest Castilla-La Mancha autonomous community; area 17,060 sq km/6,587 sq mi; population (1991 est) 204,300. In general a dry plateau, Cuenca has fertile river valleys and the mountainous region of Serranía de Cuenca, which contains large coniferous forests. The capital is Cuenca.