Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “Peru” come from?

Peru derives from Spanish Perú, which comes from an undetermined source, possibly Birú, of unknown ultimate origin and meaning.

Ancestry of “Peru”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1SpanishPerúPeru
2Quechuapeluriver

Words derived from “Peru”

  • Peruvian
  • Peruvianness
  • Republic of Peru
  • पेरू
  • পেৰু
Every word from Quechua pelu →