Olmos District is one of twelve

districts A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

of the province Lambayeque in

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 ...

History

The name of the district comes from the town of Olmos, meaning "elms", because the pale bark of the trees in the surrounding forest reminded the Spanish settlers of the elm trees back in Spain. At the time of the arrival of the Spaniards the area was occupied by the

Quechuas Quechua people (, ; ) , Quichua people or Kichwa people may refer to any of the Indigenous peoples of South America who speak the Quechua languages, which originated among the Indigenous people of Peru. Although most Quechua speakers are nativ ...

and the extensive region of Olmos was administered by the Kingdom (''curacazgo'') of Copiz, which was under the

Inca Empire The Inca Empire, officially known as the Realm of the Four Parts (, ), was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The administrative, political, and military center of the empire was in the city of Cusco. The History of the Incas, Inca ...

. The pre-existing town was recognized in 1544 by the viceroy

Blasco Núñez Vela Blasco Núñez Vela (c. 1490 – January 18, 1546) was the first Spanish viceroy of South America ("Viceroyalty of Peru"). Serving from May 15, 1544 to January 18, 1546, he was charged by Charles V with the enforcement of the controversial ...

Hydrographics

The major river in the district is the Olmos River. Other important rivers are the Cascajal River, the Insculás River, the Ñaupe River, and the San Cristóbal River. The

Limón Dam The Limón Dam, part of the Olmos Transandino Project, is a multi-purpose concrete-face rock-fill embankment dam on the Huancabamba River in northwestern Peru, located to the south of Guabal. The project helps produce of electricity per year and ...

is part of the Olmos irrigation project which is intended to irrigate dry region west of the Andes by damming the flood-prone

Huancabamba River The Huancabamba River ("Stony Plain" in the Quechuan languages, Quechua language) in the Pasco Region of Peru has its origin in the confluence of several small rivers near the town of Oxapampa: the Chontabamba, the Llamaquizú, and the Esperan ...

Climate

Notes and references

Districts of the Department of Lambayeque Districts of the Lambayeque province {{Lambayeque-geo-stub