Today, when we think about ancient civilizations of South America the Incas is the solely, if not the only one that come to our minds. However, there were many societies that either preceded or that were contemporaneous with the Incas. Some of them are the Muisca from present-day Colombia, the Cañaris from present-day Ecuador, the Mapuche from Chile, and the Calchaquis and Paciocas from Argentina, among others.

In present day Peru, there were the Chiribaya, Chincha, Ichma, Chancay, Chancas, Cajamarcas and the Chimu. The Chimu were the most powerful, almighty, and sophisticated society of all times in this part of the world. They reigned on the North Coast of Peru for more than 400 years and built a large empire from which very little is known today.

For a complete survey of the Chimu territory, watch this BBC documentary filmed in 2012. Chan Chan was their capital, a city with no parallels in ancient South America. To learn more about Chan Chan, watch this video. The Chimu were practitioners of human and animal sacrifice, some of which are considered the largest ever found in the ancient world. They controlled a vast territory along the coast, but also had influence on the neighboring highlands and even on the forest mountains and Amazon basin. However, religious practices, social interaction and economic trade had already a millennial tradition in this part of ancient Peru, so it is not surprising that the Chimu were engaged in long trade practices.

Watch here a TED-Ed lesson on the ancestors from the Chimu in the Huanchaco area, who were engaged during the third millennium BC in long distance trading networks. The Chimu spoke an extinguished language known as Quignam from which very little information is available, click here for some recent research on the matter.

Quignam was intentionally whipped out by the Incas as a strategy to diminish the power and culture of the Chimu civilization. By the time of the Spanish conquest in the 16^th century AD, Quignam was almost forgotten by the survivors living the in the Moche and Chicama valleys, once the heartland of the Chimu. However, the Chimu people continued to exist, and today we can find their direct descendants at the fishing town of Huanchaco (located 3.5 miles north of the ancient city of Chan Chan), where brave fishermen are still using reed boats for daily fishing practices.

However, this continuity is threatened by modernity and globalization, which is making local traditions less attractive for recent generations. Learn more about modern threats against traditional practices in Huanchaco here. The Huanchaco Archaeological Project is trying to contribute to preserve the Chimu and Huanchaco’s ancient history through archaeological research. If you would like to learn more about our efforts, click here.

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