Inca (n)
South American Indians who ruled an empire in the Andean region that stretched from the northern border of Ecuador to central Chile. The Inca established their capital at Cuzco (Peru) in the 12th century and began conquests in the early 15th century, eventually forming the largest empire in the ancient Americas. By the time of the Spanish conquest in 1532, the Inca controlled an Andean population of about 12 million people.

According to Spanish accounts, Incan society was highly stratified. The emperor ruled with the aid of a military aristocracy, exercising harsh and often repressive authority. Incan technology and architecture were so highly developed that irrigation systems, palaces, temples, and fortifications still exist throughout the Andes, most notably at Machu Picchu, Pisac, Ollantaytambo, and Cuzco. The Incan economy was based on agriculture, including the production of the grain quinoa, maize, potatoes, lima beans, peanuts (groundnuts), cotton, and llama wool.