La Victoria

La Victoria, distrito (district) of the Lima-Callao metropolitan area of Peru, south of downtown Lima. It is mainly residential, with slums in the north, pueblos jóvenes (“young towns”), or squatter settlements, in the east, and middle-income housing in the south. The district is the site of Peru’s largest wholesale and retail market area, near which are many light industries. La Victoria is often the initial settlement area for thousands of highland migrants who pour into Lima each year. Institutions include the Workers’ Hospital, the Principal Polytechnic, and the National Psychopedagogic Institute. Pop. (2005) 190,218.