
The Incas named their empire Tawantinsuyo, the "Land of the Four Quarters."
Their capitol, Cuzco, literally "navel," was situated in the middle of four
sectors. To the north was Chinchaysuyu, which was made up of modern-day Ecuador and
most of Peru. To the south was Collasuyu, the largest sector, which contained Lake Titicaca
and about a third of Chile. To the west and east were, respectively Cuntisuyu and Antisuyu,
the smallest sector.
Quite separate from all other civilizations, the Inca world in
1532 had developed in isolation and as we understand it now
was at about the same level of development as the Bronze-Age civilizations
of the Old World. In fact, the Inca
world offers many fascinating parallels with ancient Egypt and Shang dynasty China, to which it was distantly
related, particularly in its shamanistic religion, its mountain
worship, and in the importance of astronomy and divination.
But while the technology of the Incas lagged behind that of the West, the empire functioned with efficiency. It was
linked by an intricate system of roads that stretched from Quito down to southern
Chile, and across the Andes into Argentina. Five centuries after the conquest, many of the Inca traditions survive today.
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