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Charcas

historical area, Bolivia
Also known as: Upper Peru

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Charcas was a historical region in what is now Bolivia, known during the Spanish colonial period as Upper Peru. This area was a significant center of the Spanish empire from the 16th to 18th centuries, primarily due to the rich silver mines of Potosí and Oruro. The administrative and intellectual hub of Charcas was Chuquisaca, which later became Sucre, the judicial capital of modern Bolivia. The region was home to advanced pre-Columbian civilizations, including the Tiwanaku and later the Inca empire. Indigenous populations, primarily Aymara and Quechua speakers, were forced into labor in the mines after the Spanish conquest.12

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