Traditional music from the Andes: Chasca - Pallita Maya video

The Andes are the world's longest exposed mountain range.[1] They lie as a continuous chain of highland along the western coast of South America. The range is over 7000 km (4400 miles) long, 200-700 km (300 miles) wide (widest between 18° to 20°S latitude), and of an average height of about 4000 m (13000 ft). The Andes mountains forms north-south axis of cultural influences. The Inca Empire developed in the central Andes during the 15th century. The Incas formed this civilization through imperialistic militarism as well as careful and meticulous governmental management.[citation needed] The government sponsored the construction of aqueducts and roads, some of which, like those created by the Romans a thousand years before them, are still in existence today. Devastated by deadly European diseases to which they had no immunity, and by a terrible civil war, in 1532 the Incas were defeated by an alliance composed of tens of thousands allies from nations they had subjugated (Huancas, Chachapoyas, Cañaris, etc) and a small army of 180 Spaniards led by Pizarro. One of the few Inca cities the Spanish never found in their conquest was Machu Picchu, which lay hidden on a peak on the edge of the Andes where they descend to the Amazon. The main surviving languages of the Andean peoples are those of the Quechua and Aymara language families. Transportation Several major cities exist in the Andes, among them Bogotá, Quito, La Paz, and Cusco. These and most other cities are now connected ...