The Andes are a range of high mountains that run down the western side of South America. They are shared by seven countries.

The Andes are in a Spanish-speaking part of the world, where the word for mountain chain is ‘cordillera’. The people of this area, therefore, call their mountains ‘Cordillera de los Andes’.

The Andes consists of many high mountain ranges with steep sides and deep valleys with few passes, making them one of the greatest barriers in the world. Some of the ranges also contain the world’s highest volcanoes.

The Andes are so high that they block the flow of moist winds across them. As a result, the Andes are responsible for creating areas of desert.

Few people live in the high mountains, but many live in the valleys. Some ancient civilisations lived here, quite undisturbed by the colonial Spanish. They include the Inca, whose mountain stronghold is the famous city of Machu Picchu.