The Inca lived in the Andes Mountains of western South America, mainly in what is now Peru, but their empire also stretched into present-day Ecuador, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, and southern Colombia.

Core location

  • The heart of the Inca Empire was in the Andes mountain range along the west coast of South America.
  • Their capital city was Cuzco (Cusco) in modern-day Peru, which served as the political and religious center.

Extent of their empire

  • At its height, the Inca Empire ran from southern Colombia down through Ecuador and Peru into Bolivia, northern Chile, and northwestern Argentina.
  • This territory covered many environments, from high mountain valleys to coastal deserts and parts of tropical slopes.

How they lived in the mountains

  • Many Inca communities were farming villages on steep mountain slopes, where they built stone or adobe houses with thatched roofs.
  • They carved terraces into hillsides and used irrigation canals so crops like potatoes, corn, and quinoa could grow in the rugged terrain.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.