[puh-roo] 
| 1. | Spanish, Pe⋅rú [pe-roo] . a republic in W South America. 24,949,512; 496,222 sq. mi. (1,285,215 sq. km). Capital: Lima. |
| 2. | a city in N central Indiana. 13,764. |
| 3. | a city in N Illinois. 10,886. |
[puh-roo-vee-uh
n] , adjective, noun Pe·ru (pə-rōō')  (click for larger image in new window) A country of western South America on the Pacific Ocean. Inhabited since at least the 9th millennium B.C., it was the center of an Incan empire established after the 12th century A.D. The Spanish under Pizarro conquered the empire in 1533 and set up in 1542 the viceroyalty of Peru, which at one time included Panama and all of Spanish South America except Venezuela. Peru achieved full independence from Spain in 1824. Lima is the capital and the largest city. Population: 28,700,000. Pe·ru'vi·an (-vē-ən) adj. & n. |
Republic in western South America, bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the west, Ecuador to the northwest, Colombia to the northeast, Brazil and Bolivia to the east, and Chile to the south. Its capital and largest city is Lima.
Note: Achieved independence from Spain in 1821.
Note: Peru was the heart of the Inca Empire, which flourished from the twelfth to the sixteenth centuries. The remains of the empire include the fabled stone fortress of Machu Picchu.