Assigned Blog - Isla Del Sol

     Isla Del Sol or Island of the Sun is an island in the southern part of Lake Titicaca. The terrain is rocky and hilly. No motor vehicles or paved roads. The main economic activity of the approximately 800 families on the island are farming, with fishing and tourism. Of the several villages Yumani and Cha'llapampa are the largest. The Aymara name for the island is Titi'kaka. The original meaning of the word is unknown. Some archeologists believe the name to be a corruption of Titt (puma) and Kala (rock). The phrase Tahksi kala is listed as "piedra fundamental" or "foundation stone".

    There are over 80 ruins on the island and most of these date to the Inca period circa the 15th century AD. Archeologists discovered evidence that people lived on the island as far back as the third millennium BCE. Many of the hills on the island contain agricultural terraces witch adapt steep and rocky terrain to agriculture. Some of the ruins on the island are the Sacred Rock, a building called Chicana, Kasa Pata, and Pilco Kaima. In the religion of the Incas, it is believed that the sun god was born here. The island takes its name from the temple of the sun, traditionally the site where Manco Capac and Mama Ocllo, the founders of the Inca dynasty, were sent to earth by the sun god. 

     Isla Del Sol is the largest island in lake Titicaca and is part of the Bolivian territory. It is the birthplace of the sun in Inca mythology. It was here that the white bearded god Viracocha and the first Incas made their mystical appearances. There are over 180 ruins on the island and most of them date back to the Inca period circa the 15th century A.D. It is one of the most known islands along with Isla del Luna (Island of the Moon).

    

E-mail me when people leave their comments –

You need to be a member of History 360 to add comments!

Join History 360

eXTReMe Tracker