We will continue on from last week’s Spanish lesson and further explore more about ancient cultures of Latin America.  As have mentioned before, I had the opportunity to live in Perú, South America for an extended period of time. In my opinion, as with parts of Mexico, Perú is a mecca for ancient American ruins. This week and next, I will be sharing information about some of the fascinating ruins I have visited personally.

The cultural tidbit I would like to focus on this week comes from a ruin called “El Señor de Sipan” (The Lord of Sipan.) It is an incredible ruin that sheds light on some of the culture and beliefs of the ancient Pre-Inca people of South America (from about 1700 years ago.)

As I visited this site, the tour guide gave us some interesting information about its discovery. Apparently some grave robbers had found this site (a “huaca” [wah-cah] or ancient burial tomb) and began to excavate. They had excavated quite a lot when authorities found them and stopped their illegal efforts. Then an authorized excavation team continued to dig; they excavated one foot further down than the grave robbers had gone and found the tomb of the Lord of Sipan. (more…)

hay muchas culturas – there are many cultures
gente – people
y – and
leyendas – legends
grupos de gente – groups of people
en la historia de México – in Mexican history
una época más recién – a more recent era
vino a México – came to Mexico
en – in
una gente – a people
ruinas – ruins
una gente desaparecida – a vanished people
hay también – there are also
tuve la oportunidad de vivir – I had the opportunity to live
ruinas fascinantes – fascinating ru ins
sin embargo – however
ruinas increíbles – incredible ruins
me contaron – (they) told me
ruinas misteriosas – mysterious ruins
tan pronto como – as soon as
planeo llevarlos – I plan to take them
las ruinas asombrosas – the amazing ruins
uno de los sitios más conocidos – one of the most well-known sites
está en la parte sur – it is in the southern part
en la cima de – on top of
vea foto arriba – see photo above
que lleva turistas – that takes tourists
a la cima de – to the top of
(el) sistema de agua – (the) water system
han descubierto – have discovered
todavía está – it still
en la cima de – at the top of
es muy misteriosa – is very mysterious
es una ciudad costeña – is a coastal city
en la arena – in the sand
conocimiento – knowledge
que se puede ver – that can be seen
han estado allí – they have been theresupuestamente – supposedly
la pregunta – the question
de arriba – from above
en la tierra – in Earth
figuras de animales – animal figures
por kilómetros – for kilometers
pueden ser misteriosas – can be mysterious
durante las próximas semanas – During the next few weeks

To learn more Spanish words, click here