Oxapampa | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
  Oxapampa Location in Peru | |
| Coordinates:10°34′26″S75°24′18″W / 10.574°S 75.405°W /-10.574; -75.405 | |
| Country |  Peru |
| Region | Pasco |
| Province | Oxapampa |
| District | Oxapampa |
| Founded | 1891 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Juan Carlos La Torre Moscoso |
| Elevation | 1,814 m (5,951 ft) |
| Population (2017) | |
• Total | 14,304 |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (PET) |
Oxapampa is the capital ofOxapampa District andOxapampa Province inPeru in the eastern part of thePasco Region.[1] Oxapampa belongs to the natural region known as Selva Alta or high jungle. 80 kilometres (50 miles) northward down the valley of theHuancabamba River is the settlement ofPozuzo (altitude 800 m).[2] The most important agricultural pursuits in the region are raisingcattle and growingcoffee.[citation needed]
Oxapampa was founded in 1891 by settlers of Austrian and Germanic origin from Pozuzo. The town and the region retains a Germanic flavor in itsTyrolean architecture and celebrates its origins in public celebrations. Oxapampa, due to its mild climate and scenic surroundings, has become a tourist destination since access was improved by highway construction beginning in the 1980s.
Oxapampa orOxhapampa comes from theQuechuaUqshapampa, meaning "straw plain" or "grassy plain", whereuqsha means "straw" andpampa means "plain" or flat area.
The toponym isKoshapampó inYanesha'.[3][4]
In March 1857, a group of 300Tyrolean andPrussian settlers, consisting mainly of poor peasant families and couples who were not allowed to marry in their home countries, boarded the “Norton” to go to Peru. Before starting the journey, the couples were married. After 4 months, the settlers arrived atCallao port inLima. After two days ofquarantine, the settlers took a ship to the port ofHuacho, where their belongings were put on mules and men had to continue the journey on foot while women and children were given donkeys to ride on. The journey went from Huancho toCerro de Pasco,Acobamba andSanta Cruz. On the way, some of the settlers left the group.[5]In 1858, the male settlers travelled from Santa Cruz to Pozuzo to partition the lands and sow enough so they would be able to live off their crops once their families arrived. Finally, in 1859 a group of 170 people moved permanently to Pozuzo.[6]
In 1891, when things were better, a group of colonists from Pozuzo founded the city of Oxapampa (now the capital of the province of same name) and then the town of Villa Rica (both south of Pozuzo).[7]
Oxapama has aCfb (humid, sub-tropical with warm summers, "eternal spring" ) climate under theKöppen Classification system. Measured by theTrewartha climate classification system the climate isCrlk (humid, subtropical with mild summers and cool winters). Oxapampa's climate is modified by its altitude which results in lower temperatures year round than the nearby low-elevation tropics. The monthly deviation in average temperatures between the hottest and coldest months is only 2.2 °C or 4.0 °F. The austral winter months of June, July, and August are moderately dry, but rain is abundant during the remainder of the year.
| Climate data for Oxapampa, elevation 1,801 m (5,909 ft), (1991–2020) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 23.0 (73.4) | 22.8 (73.0) | 23.1 (73.6) | 23.4 (74.1) | 23.2 (73.8) | 22.9 (73.2) | 22.9 (73.2) | 23.6 (74.5) | 23.9 (75.0) | 24.0 (75.2) | 24.0 (75.2) | 23.2 (73.8) | 23.3 (74.0) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 18.5 (65.3) | 18.5 (65.3) | 18.4 (65.1) | 18.3 (64.9) | 18.0 (64.4) | 17.4 (63.3) | 17.0 (62.6) | 17.3 (63.1) | 17.6 (63.7) | 18.4 (65.1) | 18.7 (65.7) | 18.6 (65.5) | 18.1 (64.5) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 14.0 (57.2) | 14.1 (57.4) | 13.7 (56.7) | 13.1 (55.6) | 12.7 (54.9) | 11.8 (53.2) | 11.0 (51.8) | 11.0 (51.8) | 11.2 (52.2) | 12.7 (54.9) | 13.3 (55.9) | 13.9 (57.0) | 12.7 (54.9) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 203.0 (7.99) | 223.4 (8.80) | 194.4 (7.65) | 96.2 (3.79) | 48.7 (1.92) | 30.9 (1.22) | 36.1 (1.42) | 42.1 (1.66) | 55.8 (2.20) | 108.4 (4.27) | 114.9 (4.52) | 195.9 (7.71) | 1,349.8 (53.15) |
| Source: National Meteorology and Hydrology Service of Peru[8] | |||||||||||||
