Monsefú, founded as San Pedro de Monsefú, is a town in Northern

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

, capital of the

Monsefú district Monsefú District is one of twenty Districts of Peru, districts of the province Chiclayo Province, Chiclayo in Peru. Instituto Nacional de Estadística e Informática. Banco de Información Distrital''. Retrieved April 11, 2008. References

...

in the Chiclayo Province that is part of the

Lambayeque Region Lambayeque () is a Administrative divisions of Peru, department and Regional Government of Lambayeque, region in northwestern Peru known for its rich Moche culture, Moche and Chimú culture, Chimú historical past. The region's name originates ...

. It is renowned for its food and handicrafts, which are on display at the annual FEXTICUM festival, named in 1973 by Professor

Limberg Chero Ballena Limberg may refer to: * Limberg is a village of the municipality Maissau, a town in the district of Hollabrunn in Lower Austria, Austria. * Limberg bei Wies, municipality in the district of Deutschlandsberg in Styria, Austria. * Limberg (grape), ...

and held in July during the '' Fiestas Patrias''. Monsefú is also the home of

cumbia Cumbia refers to a number of musical rhythms and folk dance traditions of Latin America, generally involving musical and cultural elements from American Indigenous peoples, Europeans, and Africans during colonial times. Cumbia is said to have com ...

groups ''Grupo 5'' and ''Hermanos Yaipen''. Monsefú was elevated to the category of "city" on October 26, 1888.

Etymology

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

priest Fernando de la Carrera, in his work ''Arte de la lengua yunga'' (1644), argues that the word "monsefu" comes from ''Omænssefæc'', meaning "God punishes the one who offends the earth".

History

Before the arrival of the

, Monsefú would have been part of the chieftainship of Cinto, with the name of Chuspo, whose main center have been located in the vicinity of San Bartolo hill. In 1578, heavy rains and floods blighted the crops and in 1612, the area was ravaged by a disease. The population was reduced by the disease and survivors after a few years were located in what is now Monsefú. In the early 1880s, the

Chilean Army The Chilean Army () is the land arm of the Chilean Armed Forces. This 80,000-person army (9,200 of which are conscripts) is organized into six divisions, an army aviation brigade and a special operations brigade. In recent years, and after sever ...

, under the command of

Patricio Lynch Patricio Javier de los Dolores Lynch y Solo de Zaldívar (18 December 1825 in Valparaíso – 13 May 1886) was a lieutenant in the Royal Navy and a rear admiral in the Chilean Navy, and one of the principal figures of the later stages of the War ...

, occupied the area and its surroundings during the

War of the Pacific The War of the Pacific (), also known by War of the Pacific#Etymology, multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Treaty of Defensive Alliance (Bolivia–Peru), Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought over Atacama Desert ...

, where infrastructure was built by the Chilean authorities for both the locals and the troops' use, with the latter residing in a

barracks Barracks are buildings used to accommodate military personnel and quasi-military personnel such as police. The English word originates from the 17th century via French and Italian from an old Spanish word 'soldier's tent', but today barracks ar ...

. After the war, the town was elevated to city level on October 26, 1888 at the request of deputy Manuel María Izaga, under the presidency of

Andrés Avelino Cáceres Andrés Avelino Cáceres Dorregaray (10 November 1836 – 10 October 1923) was a Peruvian politician and general who served as the President of Peru, from 1886 to 1890 as the 27th president, and again from 1894 to 1895 as the 30th. He is cons ...

Government

List of mayors

The following is a list of mayors of Monsefú since the establishment of a

municipal government A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

Climate

It has a varied semitropical temperature, since part of its territory is on the shore of the sea, and another is located in the

valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains and typically containing a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams over ...

of the Reque River.

Notelist

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Monsefu Populated places in the Department of Lambayeque